How the Oak Bluffs Select Board voted, from the Select Board’s official minutes. 5 Select Board members elected townwide. Mark Leonard joined the board after the April 2024 town election; Jason Balboni left. Gail Barmakian chaired the board. Covers 38 meetings, April 23 to April 1, 2025.
A monthly email on what it voted on, starting in November.
What does the Select Board do? It is the town’s executive board. It prepares the Town Meeting warrant (the list of articles voters decide), appoints members of many town boards, hires the town’s top staff, signs warrants to pay town bills, and grants licenses and permits.
Town Meeting, not the Select Board, votes the town budget and town bylaws.
From the agendas Oak Bluffs posts on its official site. Agendas can change; the posted agenda is the official one.
What Town Meeting decided
In Oak Bluffs, Town Meeting — not the Select Board — votes the town budget, bylaws and zoning. Here is what it did with each article, in the Town Clerk’s own words. Any registered voter can take part, and most votes are by voice or show of hands, so there is no list of who voted which way.
Special Town Meeting · November 4, 2025 14 votes: 13 passed, 1 passed as amended
Art. 1Amend the Personnel By-Laws to change references to the Personnel OfficePassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 2Amend Personnel By-Laws Section 6.2 on adding new positionsPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 3Amend Personnel By-Laws Section 7.3 on new hire starting payPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 4Amend Personnel By-Laws Sections 8.1 and 8.2 on hiring and advertisingPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 5Delete Personnel By-Laws Section 9.1.4 on the work week for paramedic shift supervisorsPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 6Amend Personnel By-Laws Section 12.2 on holiday payPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 7Amend Personnel By-Laws Section 13 on vacation timePassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 8Amend Personnel By-Laws Section 18.1 on longevity payPassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 9Amend Personnel Bylaws Schedule A classification schedulePassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 10Amend General Bylaw Section 304, Finance and Advisory CommitteePassed“seconded and voted”
Art. 11Amend General Bylaw 201-7, Mopeds / Motor ScootersPassed as amended“voted”
Not here yet: the April 14, 2026 Special and Annual Town Meetings (the 2026 Annual Town Report is not out yet and the Town Clerk posts only the warrants online).
Titles are short descriptions of each article from the official record; the quoted words are the Town Clerk’s. A vote at Town Meeting is not the final word on everything: some articles also need a ballot vote (such as a tax override) or the Attorney General’s approval (bylaws).
"At X of Y meetings" counts the members the minutes list as present at the start of each meeting in this record. Members who step out are listed on each meeting page.
Meetings
About missing minutes
Loaded: Select Board (Board of Selectmen until 2021) minutes from January 12, 2021 through September 22, 2026, from the town’s Agenda Center. Executive session minutes and subcommittee meetings are not included; many minutes are scanned, so we read them with text recognition and checked the votes. Nearly every vote is a roll call naming each member, such as “Roll Call Vote: Cleary - Aye, Leonard - Nay, Alley - Nay… (1 - Aye, 4 - Nay)”. In 2022 some votes give only a count such as “(4 - Aye)”; when the count equals the members present, each is shown voting yes. When a roll call leaves out a member who was at the meeting (for example after they left the room or recused), we show the votes as recorded and say who is not listed. Counts that don’t match the members present show the count only. A few motions with no vote recorded are left out. We will ask the town to confirm any noted vote.
Most board votes are unanimous. These are the ones where at least one member voted no or abstained, newest first.
Mar 25Approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the…Motion: approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB…Passed 4–0 · see note
Approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB COA bowling program
The minutes list each member’s vote but the tally in brackets (4 Aye, 1 Abstain) does not match, so individual votes are not shown.
From the minutes
“Select Person Hallahan made a motion to approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB COA bowling program Roll Call Vote: Hallahan - Aye, Alley - Abstain, Barmakian - Aye, Green-Beach ~ Aye, Leonard - Aye (4 - Aye, 1 - Abstain) Select Person Green-Beach asked about the possibility of.” (Motion: Hallahan, second: Green-Beach)
Mar 25Approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the…Motion: approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB…Passed 4–0 · see note
March 25, 2025: Approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB COA bowling program
ApprovePassed · 4–0
Approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB COA bowling program
The minutes list each member’s vote but the tally in brackets (4 Aye, 1 Abstain) does not match, so individual votes are not shown.
From the minutes
“Select Person Hallahan made a motion to approve donation of $2100.00 from Dion Alley for the 2025/26 OB COA bowling program Roll Call Vote: Hallahan - Aye, Alley - Abstain, Barmakian - Aye, Green-Beach ~ Aye, Leonard - Aye (4 - Aye, 1 - Abstain) Select Person Green-Beach asked about the possibility of.” (Motion: Hallahan, second: Green-Beach)
“Select Person Leonard made a motion to remove article X from the warrant Roll Call Vote: Leonard - Aye, Hallahan - Nay, Barmakian - Abstain, Alley - Aye, Green-Beach - Aye (3 - Aye, 1- Nay, 1- Abstain) Free Cash FC1 $400,000 to Stablization Fund. Town.” (Motion: Leonard, second: Green-Beach)
The minutes list each member’s vote but the tally in brackets (3 Aye, 1 Nay) does not match, so individual votes are not shown.
From the minutes
“Chair Barmakian made a motion to keep this article on the warrant Roll Call Vote: Leonard - Nay, Hallahan - Nay, Barmakian - Aye, Alley - Nay (3 - Aye, 1- Nay) C9 $65,000 Mini Loader Parks and Highway Dept. All good, no c.” (Motion: Barmakian, second: Leonard)
Mar 3Reduce the amount to pay for the purchase cost,…Motion: reduce the amount to pay for the purchase cost, delivery and…Passed Unanimous, 4 present · see note
March 3, 2025: Reduce the amount to pay for the purchase cost, delivery and set up of one study pod
ApprovePassed · Unanimous, 4 present
Reduce the amount to pay for the purchase cost, delivery and set up of one study pod
The roll call does not list Emma Green-Beach.
From the minutes
“Select Person Leonard made a motion to reduce the amount to pay for the purchase cost, delivery and set up of one study pod Roll Call Vote: Leonard - Aye, Hallahan - Aye, Barmakian - Aye, Alley - Aye (4 - Aye) BORROWING ARTICLES B1 $2.5 million Chair Barmakian commented that thi.” (Motion: Leonard, second: Hallahan)
Feb 24Remove article X relative to the Town Clerks position…Motion: remove article X relative to the Town Clerks position becoming appointedPassed 4–1 · No: Hallahan
February 24, 2025: Remove article X relative to the Town Clerks position becoming appointed
AppointPassed · 4–1
Remove article X relative to the Town Clerks position becoming appointed
“Select Person Green-Beach made a motion to remove article X relative to the Town Clerks position becoming appointed Vote: Leonard - Aye, Barmakian - Aye, Hallahan - Nay, Green-Beach - Aye, Alley - Aye, (4 - Aye. 1 - Nay) Free Cash Articles FC 1. $400,000 Select Person Alley had f.” (Motion: Green-Beach, second: Alley)
Jan 28Identify the maximum useful life of equipment to be…Motion: identify the maximum useful life of equipment to be purchased with…Passed Unanimous, 4 present · see note
January 28, 2025: Identify the maximum useful life of equipment to be purchased with bond proceeds as authorized by ATM April 9, 2024, Article 44 pursuant to M.G.L. C44 Section 7(1) Fire Attack…
ApprovePassed · Unanimous, 4 present
Identify the maximum useful life of equipment to be purchased with bond proceeds as authorized by ATM April 9, 2024, Article 44 pursuant to M.G.L. C44 Section 7(1) Fire Attack pumper for a maximum useful life of twenty years and EMS Ambulance for maximum useful life of ten years
The roll call does not list Gail Barmakian.
From the minutes
“Select Person Leonard made a motion to identify the maximum useful life of equipment to be purchased with bond proceeds as authorized by ATM April 9, 2024, Article 44 pursuant to M.G.L. C44 Section 7(1) Fire Attack pumper for a maximum useful life of twenty years and EMS Ambulance for maximum useful life of ten years Roll Call Vote: Leonard - Aye, Hallahan - Aye, Green-Beach - Aye, Alley - Aye (4 - Aye) Discussion and possible vote to approve Select Board meeting minutes .” (Motion: Leonard, second: Hallahan)
Jan 28Approve expenditure warrant 25-15EXP for $1,232,837.53Motion: approve expenditure warrant 25-15EXP for $1,232,837.53Passed 3–0 · see note
January 28, 2025: Approve expenditure warrant 25-15EXP for $1,232,837.53
ApprovePassed · 3–0
Approve expenditure warrant 25-15EXP for $1,232,837.53
Yes: Green-Beach, Hallahan, LeonardThe roll call does not list Gail Barmakian.
From the minutes
“Select Person Hallahan made a motion to approve expenditure warrant 25-15EXP for $1,232,837.53 Roll Call Vote: Leonard - Aye, Hallahan - Aye, Green-Beach - Aye, Alley - Abstain (3 - Aye, 1 - Abstain) TOWN OF OAK BLUFFS OAK BLUFFS SELECT BOARD MEETING MINUT.” (Motion: Hallahan, second: Leonard)
From the Oak Bluffs Select Board’s official minutes, posted in the town’s Agenda Center. We check every vote against the members present and quote the exact wording. MassVoter never grades or scores officials. Photos: Dion Alley, Mark Leonard and Sean DeBettencourt (Ray Ewing) and Tom Hallahan (Jeanna Shepard), Vineyard Gazette; William Cleary and Emma Green-Beach (2024 election day) and Gail Barmakian, The Martha’s Vineyard Times.