Town Leadership
The Town Administrator’s Office
The Town Administrator
The Town Administrator’s Office
When a road washes out on the mountain or a budget has to be built for Town Meeting, the person with the most operational control over the response is appointed, not elected. Washington’s Town Administrator is hired by the three elected members of the Select Board to run the town day to day, and the board can let that person go if it loses faith in the work. The office is a part-time one, shared fifty-fifty with the neighboring town of Middlefield, and it is established under Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 41, Section 23A: the administrator is appointed by the Select Board to a three-year term and works under the board’s strategic direction. The administrator helps oversee the town’s departments and projects, prepares the annual budget, and makes sure the town operates within state and local law. At the moment the seat is vacant while the Select Board fills it, so the board itself carries the administrator’s duties in the meantime.
| Role | Town Administrator (chief administrative officer), a part-time office shared with Middlefield |
|---|---|
| Selection | Appointed by the Select Board to a three-year term under MGL Chapter 41, Section 23A, not elected |
| Office | Town Hall, 8 Summit Hill Road, Washington, MA 01223 |
| Phone | 413-623-8878 x1 |
| washingtontownadm@gmail.com | |
| Website | washington-ma.gov |
What the Town Administrator Does
- Helps run the departments. The Highway Department, Police, Fire, health, and the rest answer to the Select Board, and the administrator helps oversee their daily work.
- Builds the budget. Each year the administrator prepares how the town will spend its money for the town and the schools, then that plan is defended before the Select Board and Town Meeting, which holds the final vote.
- Answers to the board. The 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 Washington that means every registered voter who walks in.
The Administration
- Department heads carry out policy, from plowing snow and grading the dirt roads to inspecting septic systems.
- The Select Board is the check: it hires and can release the 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: 8 Summit Hill Road, Washington, MA 01223.
- Town Administrator’s Office: 413-623-8878 x1, washingtontownadm@gmail.com.
- Report a problem: a pothole, a road washout, or a downed tree goes to the Highway Department.
- Show up: the Select Board meets weekly on 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.