Town Leadership
The Town Administrator’s Office
The Town Administrator
Michael Guzinski
When a road goes unplowed, a permit stalls, or a new school has to be planned and paid for, the person with the most operational control over the response is appointed, not elected. Michael Guzinski is the Town Administrator of Millis, hired by the three elected members of the Select Board to run the town day to day, and they can let him go if they lose confidence in him. He is the chief administrative officer of the town: he supervises the department heads, prepares and presents the annual budget, negotiates contracts, and carries the town’s biggest spending requests to Town Meeting for the final vote.
Understanding the job means understanding a split. The Select Board sets policy and decides what the town wants to do; the Town Administrator figures out how to do it and makes it happen across every department, from public works to the library. Because Millis hands the daily machinery to an appointed professional, the plan to fix a problem usually crosses his desk first, then goes to the board for a policy decision, and then, if it costs real money, to Town Meeting, where every registered voter present holds a vote. He answers to the board in public, at meetings you can attend, which is the point at which an ordinary resident can watch the town’s decisions actually get made.
| Role | Town Administrator (chief administrative officer) |
|---|---|
| Selection | Appointed by the Select Board under contract, not elected |
| Office | Town Hall, 900 Main Street, Millis, MA 02054 |
| Phone | (508) 376-7041 |
| Website | millisma.gov |
What the Town Administrator Does
- Runs the departments. Public works, health, recreation, the library, and the rest report up to the Town Administrator’s office.
- Builds the budget. Each year the Town Administrator 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 Millis that means every registered voter who walks in.
The Administration
- Department heads carry out policy, from plowing snow to inspecting restaurants, and report through the Town Administrator’s office.
- 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
- Town Hall: 900 Main Street, Millis, MA 02054.
- Town Administrator’s Office: (508) 376-7041.
- Report a problem: potholes, broken lights, and missed pickups go to the Department of Public Works.
- Show up: the Select Board meets most Monday evenings at Town Hall, and the public is welcome.
Want to weigh in on a town decision? Learn how to contact your officials so they actually hear you.