Town Leadership
The Town Manager’s Office
The Acting Town Manager
Marc Tisdelle
When a water main breaks or a plow misses your street, the person with the most operational control over the response is appointed, not elected. The Town Charter makes the Town Manager the chief executive officer of the town, responsible for the day to day operations of every department under the office’s authority. Right now that office is held by Marc Tisdelle as Acting Town Manager. He was the Assistant Town Manager until July 29, 2026, when the Select Board appointed him to lead the town on an acting basis, and he serves until the board makes a permanent appointment. The word acting sets the length of the assignment, not the reach of the office. The manager appoints and supervises most department heads, from public works to the library, and when residents ask how something is being run, the answer comes from this office. The manager also builds the town’s annual budget, gathering every department’s requests into a single plan; the Fiscal Year 2027 budget presentation sits on the Town Manager page of the town website for anyone to read. That plan is not the last word, though, and the route it travels is the best map of who holds power here. The manager proposes, the five elected members of the Select Board review the plan and decide what goes on the warrant, and the 168 Town Meeting Representatives elected from Stoughton’s eight precincts cast the final vote each May. The manager answers continuously to the Select Board, which appointed him and can replace him, so the chain of accountability runs from every department head, through the manager, to five people you elect. It also tells you exactly where your hands fit. A question about how something is run goes to the Town Manager’s office on the third floor of Town Hall at 10 Pearl Street: call Gilda Pereira, assistant to the Town Manager, at 781-341-1300, ext. 9211. The town also keeps a standing route for residents’ questions and concerns through Communications Coordinator Kelsey Lynch, at klynch@stoughton-ma.gov or 781-341-1300, ext. 9514, who raises them with the Town Manager directly. A question about whether something should change belongs at a Select Board meeting, 7:30 pm on the second and fourth Tuesdays. And a question about what the town will pay for ends up, one way or another, in front of Town Meeting.
| Role | Acting Town Manager (chief executive officer under the Town Charter) |
|---|---|
| Acting since | July 29, 2026, appointed by the Select Board |
| Selection | Appointed by the Select Board, not elected. The seat is held on an acting basis pending a permanent appointment |
| Office | Town Hall, 10 Pearl Street, Third Floor, Stoughton, MA 02072 |
| Phone | 781-341-1300 ext. 9211 |
| Website | stoughton.org |
What the Town Manager’s Office Does
- Runs the departments. Police, fire, public works, health, recreation, and the rest answer to the Town Manager, who appoints most of their leaders.
- Builds the budget. Each year the manager 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. The Fiscal Year 2027 budget presentation is posted on the town website.
- Answers to the board. The manager 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 the 168 Town Meeting Representatives elected from your precinct.
The Administration
- Department heads are appointed by the Town Manager and carry out policy, from plowing snow to inspecting restaurants.
- The Select Board is the check: it hires and can fire the Manager, 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: 10 Pearl Street, Stoughton, MA 02072.
- Town Manager’s Office: 781-341-1300 ext. 9211 (Gilda Pereira, assistant to the Town Manager).
- Report a problem: potholes, broken lights, and missed pickups go through the Report a Problem link on stoughton.org.
- Show up: the Select Board meets at 7:30 pm on the second and fourth Tuesdays 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.