Town Government
Hamilton Select Board
About the Board
The Select Board is elected town-wide, so every Hamilton voter helps choose all five, and each serves a three-year term on a staggered schedule that puts a seat or two on the ballot every spring. Chapter 114 of the Acts of 2009 makes this board the town’s chief policy making body. It appoints the Town Manager who runs the town day to day and confirms his department appointments, it appoints residents to many of the town’s boards and commissions, and it signs the warrants that decide what Town Meeting gets to vote on. When a daily problem becomes town policy, this is the room where it happens.
- Sets policy and direction for the whole town.
- Hires the Town Manager and can end that appointment at its pleasure.
- Controls the warrant, deciding what business reaches Town Meeting for a vote.
Board Members
All five members are elected town-wide to staggered three-year terms, so a seat or two is on the ballot every spring. After each annual town election the board reorganizes and chooses its own officers. As the town lists them now, William A. Olson is Chair, Thomas Myers is Vice Chair, and Rosemary Kennedy is Clerk, with Benjamin Galuza and Lee McCoy rounding out the board. McCoy’s seat runs to 2029, which places this board after the April 2026 election.
William A. Olson
Thomas Myers
Rosemary Kennedy
Benjamin Galuza
Lee McCoy
The town routes contact to board members through the Select Board office, which can be reached at 978-626-5202. The member roster is posted at hamiltonma.gov.
Meetings & How to Participate
- When: on the first and third Monday of most months in the early evening. While Town Hall is under renovation the board meets at the Hamilton-Wenham Library, and the Town Offices operate from Patton Homestead, 650 Asbury Street. The town posts each agenda in advance.
- Agendas & minutes: posted at hamiltonma.gov, and you can sign up for an alert when a new one goes up.
- Watch: meetings are carried by HWCAM, the Hamilton-Wenham community access station, and streamed and archived online.
- Public comment: residents may address the board. Check the agenda for the procedure.
- Town Meeting: for the budget and bylaws, the deciding vote belongs to the registered voters in the hall, which can include you.
Public hearings and meetings are where residents shape town decisions.