Town Meeting 101: What Every Blackstone Voter Needs to Know Before May 27

May 4, 2025

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Mark your calendars: Tuesday, May 27, 2025, is a big day for Blackstone. That’s when our town will hold its Annual Town Meeting at 7:30 PM, preceded by a Special Town Meeting at 7:00 PM.

If you’re not sure what a town meeting is or why you should go, you’re not alone. These meetings are the foundation of local democracy in Massachusetts—and they’re where real decisions get made. The more people who attend, the more representative our decisions become.

This article breaks it all down so every voter in Blackstone can understand what’s happening, why it matters, and how to get involved.

What Is a Town Meeting?

In Massachusetts, a Town Meeting is a form of direct democracy. Instead of electing officials to make every decision, you—the registered voters—get to vote on important local issues directly.

There are two main types:

Annual Town Meeting (ATM)

Held once a year (in Blackstone, its the last Tuesday of May ), this is when we vote on:

The town’s operating budget
Department funding
Capital improvement projects
Town bylaws
Other recurring business

Special Town Meeting (STM)

These are held when urgent or unexpected issues need to be addressed. In Blackstone, we sometimes hold an STM right before the ATM to save time and make sure we have a quorum.

Important Dates to Know Before May 27, 2025

Want to make informed choices at Town Meeting? These are the key dates when you can ask questions, hear department updates, and understand how each article is being funded:

May 5, 6:00–7:00 PM – Finance Committee
Budget reviews for most departments (excluding Board of Health, Parks & Rec, Senior Center, Police, Dispatch, Fire, and Ambulance). The committee will also review revenue sources, available funds, and funding options for all Town Meeting articles—including Sewer and Water. Agenda here
May 6, 6:00–7:00 PM – Board of Selectmen
Review and discussion of the FY26 town budget and Town Meeting warrant. Agenda here
May 6, 7:00–8:00 PM – Capital Outlay Committee
Review and recommendations on major capital articles: 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 18, 23, 25, and 29. Agenda here
May 12, 6:30–7:30 PM – Finance Committee Public Hearing
This is your opportunity to speak. The public may voice opinions on all warrant articles for both the Annual and Special Town Meetings. Nothing stops residents from speaking up even earlier at the meetings above. Notice of Public Hearing
May 17 – Deadline to Register to Vote
If you’re not yet registered, this is the last day to do so in order to vote at Town Meeting.
May 27 – Annual and Special Town Meetings
The big day. Vote on budgets, funding, bylaws, and more that impact Blackstone’s future.

Why Should You Go?

Town meetings are where decisions are made about how your tax dollars are spent, what services get funded, and how the town grows. These decisions affect:

Roads, schools, public safety, and parks
Property taxes
Town bylaws that can change how we live and do business

When you attend and vote, you’re directly shaping Blackstone’s future.

What Can I Do as a Citizen?

Vote

As a registered voter in Blackstone, you have the right to:

Speak at the meeting
Ask questions
Amend motions
Vote on each article

Submit a Citizen Petition

A citizen petition is a powerful tool. It allows any resident to propose a new idea, change a bylaw, or request funding for a town project.

For the Annual Town Meeting, you need 10 registered voter signatures
For a Special Town Meeting, you need 100 registered voter signatures

Blackstone Town Charter § C2-5

Once submitted, your article is placed on the warrant and must be voted on during the meeting.

Stay Informed: Watch Committee Meetings Online

Want to know what’s going on before the big night? You can attend committee meetings in person or watch them online anytime. Many key decisions and discussions happen at:

Finance Committee
Select Board
Planning Board
School Committee
Capital Outlay Committee

Thanks to the town’s video-on-demand system, you can watch live streams or past recordings.

Watch Meetings Online

You can also watch the meeting on Cable Channel 8. No cable? No problem. You can stream meetings from your phone, tablet, or laptop. There’s no excuse to miss out on the information that directly affects your life.

How Can I Prepare?

Read the Warrant: This is the meeting agenda. It lists all the articles (proposals) that will be discussed and voted on. → View the Annual Town Meeting Warrant Here | View the Special Town Meeting Warrant Here
Learn About the Articles: Many include budget items or bylaw changes. The Finance Committee usually provides recommendations to help explain them.
Ask Questions Before the Meeting: Reach out to the Town Clerk, Board of Selectman, or Finance Committee. They’re happy to help residents understand.
Register to Vote: If you’re not yet registered, you have until Friday, May 16 at 5 PM to do so.
Invite a Friend or Neighbor: Attendance is often low, and that means a few people make big decisions. More voices = better representation.
Citizen’s Guide to Town Meetings

How Does Town Meeting Affect My Taxes?

One of the biggest questions people ask around town meeting time is:
“Is this going to raise my taxes?”

The honest answer? It can—but not always.

At a Town Meeting, voters decide how the town spends money on things like:

Public schools
Police, fire, and EMS
Road repairs and snow removal
Town building maintenance
Community programs and services

What’s the “Levy” Everyone Talks About?

You might hear terms like “levy limit” or “tax levy” at the town meeting (or the committee meetings before that). Here’s what they mean:

Tax levy = The total amount of money the town needs to raise from property taxes to cover its budget.
Levy limit = The maximum amount the town is allowed to raise in taxes under Proposition 2½, a Massachusetts law that caps yearly increases at 2.5%, plus any new growth.

So when you vote at Town Meeting, you’re helping decide how much money the town needs to operate, and whether it stays within that limit or not.

But Not All Spending Increases Taxes

Some articles are funded with:

Grants
Free cash (surplus funds from prior years)
Reallocated funds from other projects

And not all increases are bad—some are necessary to:

Avoid larger costs down the road
Fix aging infrastructure
Replace outdated equipment
Invest in schools and public safety

But here’s the key part: you have a say in this.

When you attend and vote, you’re helping decide what’s worth funding and what isn’t. You get to help balance the equation between services we need and what we can afford.

🧠 Example: If there’s a warrant article asking for $1 million to repair a town building, and it passes, that could mean an increase in taxes—unless another source of funding (like a grant or free cash) is used.

So if you’re worried about your tax bill—or frustrated by services not being funded well enough—The Town Meeting is the place to speak up and vote accordingly.

Don’t Wait Until the Town Meeting

If you have questions about a warrant article, don’t wait until you’re at the microphone in a packed auditorium. Most articles are discussed in public hearings or committee meetings ahead of time—when it’s easier to ask questions, understand the details, and even suggest changes. Getting informed early gives you more confidence and helps shape decisions before they’re final.

Let’s Turn Complaints Into Action

It’s easy to vent online when things in town don’t go the way we’d like. But here’s the truth: Town Meeting is where your voice matters the most. If you’ve ever felt frustrated by decisions being made without you—this is your chance to show up and be heard.

The real change happens when regular people—parents, business owners, commuters, retirees—step up and participate. Even if you only speak once, or just vote quietly from your seat, you’re helping shape the future of Blackstone.

What Is the Impact?

What gets decided at the May 27 Town Meetings will:

Fund (or defund) schools, fire, police, and local services
Approve or deny town projects and maintenance
Change how the town operates legally and financially

These aren’t theoretical issues. They impact our kids’ education, how safe our roads are, and what kind of community we live in.

Final Thoughts: You Have a Voice—Use It!

Democracy doesn’t end at the ballot box. In a town like Blackstone, it happens on the floor of a school gym or town hall—with neighbors, friends, and fellow residents deciding what matters most for the place we all call home.

If you’ve never attended a town meeting before, this is the perfect time to start.

With new officials recently elected and important decisions on the table, we all have a role to play in shaping Blackstone’s future—together.

But here’s the truth: not enough of us are showing up.

At our last Annual Town Meeting (2024), just 126 residents voted “yes” to approve the town’s entire $33 million operating budget. With 7,597 registered voters in Blackstone, that means only 1.65% of voters made a decision that impacts every department, every tax bill, and every service we rely on. This is deeply concerning.

At our last local election on April 7, 2025, only 15% of registered voters cast a ballot.

That means just a small group of people are making the decisions that affect all of us.

The Town Meeting is your chance to change that.

Show up. Listen. Ask questions. Vote. Be part of the conversation—not just the complaints online afterward. Because if we want a town that reflects all of us, we need more of us in the room.

Let’s fill those seats this year. Let’s make our voices count.

📝 This article is part of a special Small Town Post series where we’ll be breaking down Blackstone’s Town Meetings—what’s on the warrant, what the budget means, and how it all impacts you. Our goal is to keep things clear, local, and easy to understand so more residents can feel informed and empowered to take part.