Palmer, Massachusetts
Town Manager’s Office
Palmer’s chief executive was hired, not elected, and the seven people who hired him were. That single sentence is the whole design of a council-manager town: the voters choose a small legislature, the legislature chooses a professional to run the place, and the professional can be replaced by the same seven votes that hired him. Brad Brothers is the Town Manager, and the Town Council appointed him.
Who Runs Palmer
Brad Brothers
Town Manager
Appointed by the Palmer Town Council. Chief executive officer of the municipality, responsible for the day to day operations of the town.
The town’s own description of the office is short and worth reading in full: the Town Manager “is the Chief Executive Officer of the municipality and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the town,” and “ensures that town services are performed in accordance with Town Charter, ordinances and policies.”
Town Manager’s Office at townofpalmer.com. Phone 413-283-2603. Town Administration Building, 4417 Main Street, Palmer, MA 01069.
What the Town Manager Does
Think of it as a split between what and how. The Town Council decides what the town will do: which ordinances exist, what the tax rate is, how much money each department gets. The Town Manager decides how it gets done, and is accountable for whether it does. He carries out the laws and policies the council sets, oversees the departments and the staff, and manages the town’s fiscal, business and municipal affairs.
The budget is the clearest example. It is built inside this office, department by department, and it arrives at the Town Council as one package. The Palmer Town Council holds hearings and votes. There is no town meeting to appeal to afterwards, which means the council hearing IS the public stage of the budget. If you want to change a number, that hearing is where the argument has to land.
Two more things sit in this office that residents notice without knowing where they come from. The Town Manager sits on the License Commission by charter requirement, alongside the Chief of Police, so liquor and entertainment licences pass across this desk. And the office runs the town’s communications: since 2026 the Town Manager has published a newsletter, five issues through July 30, 2026, which anyone can subscribe to.
The office is staffed by Marlene Ottomaniello, Executive Assistant, and Ashley Place, Director of Administrative Services.
Where Your Hand Fits
A resident with a service problem is usually looking for this office’s departments rather than for an elected official. A pothole is Public Works at 413-283-2615. A restaurant inspection is the Health Department at 413-283-2606. A building permit is Building, Zoning and Inspectional Services at 413-283-2638. Each of those department heads reports up through the Town Manager, which is why a complaint that goes nowhere at the counter can go somewhere at 413-283-2603.
A resident who wants something changed rather than fixed is looking for the Town Council instead, because the manager carries out policy rather than setting it. Both doors are open, and they open onto different rooms.
The office is open Monday from 8:30 am to 7:30 pm and Tuesday through Thursday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, and it asks residents to call or email ahead so somebody is there to help.
Sources
Town of Palmer, Town Manager Office and Local Government Structure, read 2026. Town of Palmer Municipal Buildings Directory.