Town Leadership
The Town Administrator’s Office
The Town Administrator
Evan Brassard
When a road goes unplowed or a development is proposed off Providence Road, the person with the most operational control over the response is appointed, not elected. Evan Brassard is the Town Administrator, hired by the five elected members of the Select Board to run the town day to day, and the board can let him go if it loses faith in him. He is the chief administrative officer: he appoints and supervises most department heads, shapes and presents the annual budget, and carries the town’s biggest spending requests to Town Meeting for the final vote. In June 2026 he brought the board a payment agreement with Tufts University that he and the board’s negotiators had spent more than a year building, and the board approved it four votes to none. Because Grafton hands the daily machinery to an appointed administrator, the plan to fix a problem usually crosses his desk first, then goes to the board and to Town Meeting.
| Role | Town Administrator (chief administrative officer) |
|---|---|
| Selection | Appointed by the Select Board under contract, not elected |
| Office | Grafton Memorial Municipal Center, 30 Providence Road, Grafton, MA 01519 |
| Phone | 508-839-5335 Ext. 1200 |
| Website | grafton-ma.gov |
What the Town Administrator Does
- Runs the departments. Public works, fire, building, planning, health, recreation, and the rest answer to the Town Administrator, who appoints most of their leaders.
- Builds the budget. Each year the office proposes how the town will spend its money for the town and the schools, then defends that plan before the Select Board and Town Meeting, which holds the final vote.
- Answers to the board. The Town Administrator serves at the pleasure of the elected Select Board and carries out the policies it sets.
- Reports to Town Meeting. Major spending and bylaws still need the vote of Town Meeting, and in Grafton that means every registered voter who walks in.
The Administration
- The office itself is four people: Town Administrator Evan Brassard, Assistant Town Administrator William Blake, Executive Assistant Cindy Ide, and Amber Monk, the administrative assistant to the Select Board who also staffs the Affordable Housing Trust and the Finance Committee.
- Department heads are appointed by the Town Administrator and carry out policy, from plowing snow to inspecting restaurants.
- The Select Board is the check: it hires and can dismiss the Town Administrator, sets policy, and signs the warrants that put questions before Town Meeting.
- Boards and commissions, many of them appointed by the Select Board, decide questions like zoning, conservation, and licensing.
Contact & Engage
- Municipal Center: 30 Providence Road, Grafton, MA 01519.
- Town Administrator’s Office: 508-839-5335 Ext. 1200.
- Hours: Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 8:30am to 4:30pm, Tuesday 8:30am to 7:00pm, Friday 8:30am to 1:00pm.
- Report a problem: potholes, broken lights, and missed pickups go to the Department of Public Works.
- Show up: the Select Board meets on its published calendar at the Municipal Center, and the public is welcome.
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