MassVoter.com← ShirleyMunicipal votes · 2022–2023 Board
Shirley Select Board
How the Shirley Select Board voted, from the Select Board’s official minutes. 3 Select Board members elected townwide for three-year terms. On August 8, 2022 the board chose Bryan Sawyer as Chair, Andree Jean Jacques as Vice Chair and Debra Flagg as Clerk (three 2-0 votes, each nominee abstaining). Debra Flagg was re-elected at the May 2, 2023 town election. Covers 19 meetings, August 8 to July 17, 2023.
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.
Sources: Massachusetts Select Board Handbook (MMA) · Mass. Division of Local Services: the town budgetBoard years
Coming up
No upcoming meeting is posted yet. Check the official calendar →
Under the state Open Meeting Law, boards post notice at least 48 hours ahead, not counting weekends and legal holidays.
What Town Meeting decided
In Shirley, 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.
Annual Town Meeting · May 11, 2026 26 votes: 22 passed, 1 passed as amended, 3 no action
- Art. 1 Accept the annual reports of town officers (FY2025) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 2 Transfer $828.44 from free cash to pay prior-year bills Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 4/5th vote.”
- Art. 3 Adopt the salary classification plan and FY2027 wage scale with a 2.75% cost-of-living raise (non-union) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 4 FY2027 omnibus operating budget, corrected at the meeting to $19,403,722 (including $175,000 from General Stabilization) Passed as amended “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote.”
- Art. 5 FY2027 Sewer Enterprise budget ($912,257) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 6 FY2027 Ambulance Enterprise budget ($403,789) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 7 FY2027 Curbside Solid Waste/Recycling Enterprise budget ($652,350) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 8 Accept the FY2027 capital budget and five-year Capital Improvement Plan Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 9 Appropriate $125,000 from free cash for capital items (culvert repair $70,000, IT $40,000, town office $15,000) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 10 Transfer $10,000 from free cash to the OPEB Trust Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 11 Appropriate $50,000 from free cash for a financial consultant Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 12 Appropriate $36,000 from free cash for town energy efficiency upgrades Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 13 Fund $55,113 first-year cost of the firefighters union contract (IAFF Local 4358) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 14 Fund the DPW union contract No action “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 15 Fund $57,627 first-year cost of the clerical union contract (AFSCME Council 93) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 16 Accept and spend $390,195.96 in Chapter 90 state road funds Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 17 Appropriate $44,447.95 from PEG Access cable receipts for cable expenses Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 18 Set FY2027 Community Preservation reserves and spending ($12,134.43 each to three reserves; $78,873.81 budgeted; $6,067.20 admin) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 19 Transfer $30,000 of CPA funds to the Affordable Housing Trust rental assistance program Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 20 Appropriate $22,415 of CPA historic funds to the Shirley Historical Society for School House #8 repairs Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 21 Appropriate $18,400 of CPA funds for Shirley Meeting House Ladies Parlor restoration Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 22 General bylaw: add revolving funds for Center Town Hall ($100,000), street trees ($50,000) and stone walls ($50,000) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 23 Zoning: allow lease or rental of designated vehicles and equipment by special permit in three business districts Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote.”
- Art. 24 Zoning: replace sign rules in Sec. 6.2.1(J) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote.”
- Art. 25 General bylaw: adopt a Public Street Trees bylaw No action “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 26 General bylaw: adopt a Stone Wall Preservation bylaw No action “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
Source: Town Clerk: Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting, May 11, 2026 (scanned PDF).
Special Town Meeting · November 17, 2025 15 votes: 14 passed, 1 no action
- Art. 1 Transfer $8,367.01 from free cash to pay FY2025 bills Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 9/10th Vote.”
- Art. 2 Appropriate $10,000 from free cash for roadway and traffic signs Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority Vote.”
- Art. 3 Appropriate $8,000 from free cash to repair a Fire Department vehicle Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority Vote.”
- Art. 4 Appropriate $20,000 from free cash for Center Town Hall repairs Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 5 Appropriate $47,143.26 from PEG Access cable receipts for cable expenses Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 6 Appropriate $13,000 from the CPA Open Space Reserve for a trailhead feasibility study Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 7 Keep May 2025 rental assistance funds available to the Affordable Housing Trust through June 30, 2030 Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 8 Amend the Salary Classification Plan to fix a clerical error in two positions' grades Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 9 Transfer 10.7 acres of tax-title land on Lawton Road to the Select Board and sell it to the state for conservation ($26,750) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 10 General bylaw: Affordable Housing Trust may serve households up to 80% of area median income No action “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 11 Zoning: accessory building rules do not apply to protected accessory dwelling units (Sec. 2.10.8) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote”
- Art. 12 Zoning: add definitions including business service establishment, multi-family housing and self-storage (Sec. 11) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote”
- Art. 13 Zoning: revise when site plan review is required (Sec. 7.2.3) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote”
- Art. 14 Zoning: allow two-family detached dwellings by special permit in the Great Road West Mixed Use District Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote”
- Art. 15 Zoning: extend marijuana business hours to close at 10 PM instead of 8 PM Passed “Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote · In Favor 45 votes; Against 12 votes”
Source: Town Clerk: Minutes of the Special Town Meeting, November 17, 2025 (scanned PDF).
Annual Town Meeting · May 12, 2025 28 votes: 27 passed, 1 failed
- Art. 1 Accept the annual reports of town officers (FY2024) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 2 Transfer $23,500 from free cash for FY2025 police stipends Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by majority.”
- Art. 3 Adopt the salary classification plan and FY2026 wage scale with a 2.75% cost-of-living raise (non-union) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 4 FY2026 omnibus operating budget ($18,528,077.92) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 5 FY2026 Sewer Enterprise budget ($889,020) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 6 FY2026 Ambulance Enterprise budget ($292,842) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 7 FY2026 Curbside Solid Waste/Recycling Enterprise budget ($643,420) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 8 Fund $74,782 first-year cost of the police union contract (Mass COP Local 205) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared passed by Majority.”
- Art. 9 Transfer $10,000 from free cash to the OPEB Trust Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 10 Accept the FY2026 capital budget and five-year Capital Improvement Plan Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 11 · motion 1 Borrow $357,000 for a 2025 Freightliner truck Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared passed by 2/3rd vote.”
- Art. 11 · motion 2 Appropriate $156,343 from free cash for capital items (DPW building, police cruiser, IT, town office, Center Town Hall) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 12 Transfer $10,000 from free cash to the Conservation Land Acquisition Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 13 Zoning: replace the Flood Plain Protective Overlay District (Sec. 4.12) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd Vote”
- Art. 14 Zoning: replace accessory apartment rules with Protected Use Accessory Dwelling Unit rules Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 15 Zoning: allow enclosed drive-through pickup at marijuana businesses and later closing (10 PM) Failed “Moderator declared Failed by 2/3rd Vote · Yes - 43; No - 36”
- Art. 16 General bylaw: revolving fund limits for Deputy Collector fees ($25,000) and Benjamin Hill Park ($105,000) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 17 Accept MGL c. 44, s. 55C: create the Shirley Affordable Housing Trust Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 18 Accept and spend Chapter 90 state road funds Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 19 Appropriate $48,661.99 from PEG Access cable receipts for FY2026 cable expenses Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 20 Set FY2026 Community Preservation spending and reserves ($5,910.90 admin; $11,821.80 each to three reserves; $76,841.70 budgeted) Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 21 Transfer $30,000 from the CPA Community Housing Reserve to the Affordable Housing Trust rental assistance program Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 22 Accept the 2023-2033 Open Space and Recreation Plan Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 23 Appropriate $50,000 from free cash for a financial consultant Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 24 Appropriate $75,000 from free cash for Front Street shared use path improvements Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 25 Appropriate $8,543 from free cash for a Hazen Memorial Library HVAC rooftop unit Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 26 Transfer $30,000 from free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (FIRM) Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 27 Transfer $25,366 from free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (DAM) Fund Passed “Voice Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
Source: Town Clerk: Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting, May 12, 2025 (scanned PDF).
Special Town Meeting · November 18, 2024 12 votes: 9 passed, 3 no action
- Art. 1 Appropriate $4,514.32 to pay FY2024 bills Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 9/10th Vote.”
- Art. 2 Borrow $200,000 for the Community Septic Management Program (septic repair loans to homeowners) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by 2/3rd vote.”
- Art. 3 Adopt MBTA Communities zoning (new Sec. 4.19) and overlay district map Passed “Card Vote on Article 3: Moderator declared passed by majority vote,”
- Art. 4 Citizen petition: alternative zoning to comply with the MBTA Communities Act No action “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 5 Appropriate $50,720.88 from PEG Access cable receipts for cable expenses Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 6 Redo FY2025 Community Preservation votes: $5,834 admin; $11,667 to each of three reserves; $75,831 budgeted reserve Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 7 General bylaw: raise the solicitor/canvasser application fee from $2 to $20 Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 8 Appropriate $20,000 from free cash for plow accessories for a DPW pickup truck Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 9 Appropriate $100,000 from free cash to repair three culverts Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 10 Appropriate $10,200 from free cash to complete the Hazard Mitigation Plan Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 11 Transfer free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (FIRM) Fund No action “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 12 Transfer free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (DAM) Fund No action “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
Source: Town Clerk: Minutes of the Special Town Meeting, November 18, 2024 (scanned PDF).
Annual Town Meeting · May 13, 2024 23 votes: 23 passed
- Art. 1 Accept the annual reports of town officers (FY2023) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 2 Accept MGL c. 90, s. 17C: let the Select Board set 25 mph limits on unposted roads in thickly settled or business districts Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by majority.”
- Art. 3 Adopt the salary classification plan and FY2025 wage scale with a 2.75% cost-of-living raise Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 4 FY2025 omnibus operating budget ($17,742,177) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 5 FY2025 Sewer Enterprise budget ($875,027) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 6 FY2025 Ambulance Enterprise budget ($270,401) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 7 FY2025 Curbside Solid Waste/Recycling Enterprise budget ($569,469) Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority.”
- Art. 8 Fund first-year cost items of the DPW union contract (AFSCME Local 1703), July 2023-June 2026 Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared passed by Majority.”
- Art. 9 Transfer $10,000 from free cash to the OPEB Trust Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 10 Appropriate $27,000 from free cash for a Hazen Memorial Library HVAC rooftop unit Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 11 Appropriate $12,500 from free cash for LED light fixtures at Town Hall Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 12 Transfer $10,000 from free cash to the Conservation Land Acquisition Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 13 Appropriate $30,000 from free cash for culvert repairs Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 14 Appropriate $75,000 from free cash for a police cruiser Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 15 Accept and spend Chapter 90 state road funds Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 16 Appropriate $52,994.60 from PEG Access cable receipts for FY2025 cable expenses Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 17 Place FY2025 Community Preservation Fund revenues in a budgeted reserve Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 18 Appropriate $10,000 from free cash for Fredonian Park Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 19 Transfer $200,000 from the FIRM stabilization fund to repair or replace roofs at Center Town Hall and Hazen Memorial Library Passed “Card Vote: Moderator Declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 20 Transfer $100,000 from free cash to the General Stabilization Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 21 Transfer $75,000 from free cash to the Capital Stabilization Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 22 Transfer $75,000 from free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (FIRM) Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
- Art. 23 Transfer $100,000 from free cash to the Special Purpose Stabilization (DAM) Fund Passed “Card Vote: Moderator declared Passed by Majority”
Source: Town Clerk: Minutes of the Annual Town Meeting, May 13, 2024 (scanned PDF).
Not here yet: No Shirley Town Meeting after May 11, 2026 is posted yet; Shirley's fall Special Town Meeting is usually in mid-November (November 18, 2024; November 17, 2025).
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).
Members
Vice-ChairAndree Jean JacquesVice Chair · At-large · at 18 of 19 meetings"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: Shirley Select Board minutes from January 5, 2022 through September 8, 2026: 105 meetings and 1,266 votes. The town’s Agenda Center has Select Board minutes from January 2022 on; nothing earlier is online (the Archive Center and Document Center hold annual town reports, warrants and Town Meeting minutes, but no Select Board minutes). Minutes from 2022 to mid-2024 are typed files; most minutes since August 2024 are scanned images of the signed minutes, which MassVoter read with text recognition and checked where names or counts were unclear. Not here: executive-session meetings; votes of the Planning Board, Sewer Commission, Recreation Commission, War Memorial Trustees, Board of Assessors, Cemetery Committee and other boards at joint meetings (the minutes record each board’s vote separately); meetings with an agenda but no posted minutes, among them July 14 and July 25, 2022, September 11 and 14, 2023, June 16 and September 22, 2025, and May 20 and July 14, 2026 (the file posted for May 20, 2026 is a second copy of the March 23, 2026 minutes; the July 14, 2026 agenda includes the board’s reorganization); and meetings after September 8, 2026 (the September 24, September 28 and October 5, 2026 minutes are not posted yet). Shirley’s minutes name the mover and seconder and give a count (“Ms. Flagg made a motion to appoint Traci Bateman to the STAC. Ms. Jean Jacques seconded, Motion passed, 2-0, unanimous”), with abstentions named (“Motion passed, 2-0, Mr. Hildebrant Abstained”). A count equal to the members present, or unanimous wording, is shown as every member present voting yes; a named abstention is shown that way, with the other members present voting yes. Several minutes list fewer members in the attendance line than the votes show (for example, a member who called the meeting to order but is missing from the list, with votes recorded 3-0); on a three-member board a 3-0 vote means all three voted, so those members are counted present, with a note. Where the count is lower than the members present and the minutes do not say who did not vote (most often the board’s own officer elections, recorded 2-0 with three members present), we show the count only (10 votes); where the minutes give no count or names we show the result only (2 votes, both from the February 10, 2025 minutes, which are written as a narrative summary). Bryan Sawyer served on the board until May 2024 and has been Town Administrator since June 2024; as Town Administrator he does not vote. A motion with no recorded outcome, or one that died for lack of a second, is not counted as a vote. We will ask the town to confirm any noted vote.
Votes where members disagreed
Most board votes are unanimous. These are the ones where at least one member voted no or abstained, newest first.
Aug 8Appoint Bryan Sawyer as ChairMotion: Ms. Flagg made a motion to appoint Bryan Sawyer as Chair.…Passed 2–0 · Abstained: Sawyer
August 8, 2022: Appoint Bryan Sawyer as Chair
Ms. Flagg made a motion to appoint Bryan Sawyer as Chair. Ms. Jean Jacques seconded the motion. Mr. Sawyer abstained. Motion passed, 2-0.
Yes: Flagg, JacquesAbstained: Sawyer
From the minutes
“Ms. Flagg made a motion to appoint Bryan Sawyer as Chair. Ms. Jean Jacques seconded the motion. Mr. Sawyer abstained. Motion passed, 2-0..” (Motion: Debra Flagg, second: Andree Jean Jacques)
Aug 8Appoint Andree Jean Jacques Vice ChairMotion: Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Andree Jean Jacques Vice…Passed 2–0 · Abstained: Jacques
August 8, 2022: Appoint Andree Jean Jacques Vice Chair
Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Andree Jean Jacques Vice Chair. Ms. Flagg seconded the motion. Ms. Jean Jacques abstained. Motion passed, 2-0.
Yes: Flagg, SawyerAbstained: Jacques
From the minutes
“Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Andree Jean Jacques Vice Chair. Ms. Flagg seconded the motion. Ms. Jean Jacques abstained. Motion passed, 2-0..” (Motion: Bryan Sawyer, second: Debra Flagg)
Aug 8Appoint Debra Flagg as ClerkMotion: Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Debra Flagg as Clerk.…Passed 2–0 · Abstained: Flagg
August 8, 2022: Appoint Debra Flagg as Clerk
Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Debra Flagg as Clerk. Ms. Jean Jacques seconded the motion. Ms. Flagg abstained. Motion passed, 2-0.
Yes: Jacques, SawyerAbstained: Flagg
From the minutes
“Mr. Sawyer made a motion to appoint Debra Flagg as Clerk. Ms. Jean Jacques seconded the motion. Ms. Flagg abstained. Motion passed, 2-0..” (Motion: Bryan Sawyer, second: Andree Jean Jacques)
From the Shirley Select Board’s official minutes, posted in the town’s Agenda Center (Select Board). We check every vote against the Select Board members present and quote the exact wording. MassVoter never grades or scores officials. Photos (the town’s website has no Select Board photos): Lowell Sun / Nashoba Valley Voice — Andree Lourdes Jean Jacques (May 2025, courtesy of the candidate). Debra Flagg and Brian Hildebrant show initials (no named photo found). Cropped by MassVoter. Former members show initials.
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