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Dave Watkins

Manchester Select Board Unanimously Confirms McCoy as Next Police Chief

MANCHESTER-BY-THE-SEA, May 18, 2026, Manchester-by-the-Sea Select Board confirms Lieutenant Mark McCoy as next police chief. The board voted unanimously Monday to approve Town Administrator Tony Marasm's recommendation of McCoy, who has served as outgoing Chief Todd Fitzgerald's second-in-command

Essex Select Board caps commercial shellfish licenses at 45 amid historic clam shortage

ESSEX -- May 18, 2026, Essex Select Board installs Annie Cameron as chair and cuts commercial shellfish licenses nearly in half to 45. The board opened its May 18 meeting by unanimously electing Cameron chair, with the prior chair continuing as secretary. The most debated item was the commercial shellfish license

Beverly City Council Delays Trash Fee Vote, Schedules Special May 27 Meeting

BEVERLY -- May 18, 2026, Beverly City Council punts on trash fee vote, schedules special meeting for May 27. The nine-member council declined to take a first-reading vote Monday on a proposed ordinance that would raise the city's residential trash fee from $100 to as much as

Saugus Library Board Eyes Possible Vote to Cut Marblehead Borrowing Access

Saugus library trustees monitor Marblehead's 50 percent library funding cut and potential decertification.

Gloucester Council Approves Applied Materials Expansion, Eyes 800 New Jobs

Gloucester City Council voted 9-0 to approve a building-height special permit for an Applied Materials logistics expansion at 11 Dory Road that company officials say could grow the firm's local workforce from 1,200 to 2,000 employees within 10 years.

Select Board Approves $20,000 HVAC Reserve Transfer Over Heat Pump Objections

WEST NEWBURY -- May 14, 2026, West Newbury Select Board approves $20,000 reserve fund transfer to replace a failing public safety building HVAC unit. The board, meeting for the first time with newly elected member Barry Fogel joining re-elected member Christopher Wile and Chair Wendy Reed, voted unanimously to

Swampscott School Committee Approves New Governance Protocols, Four Labor Agreements

SWAMPSCOTT -- May 14, 2026, Swampscott School Committee unanimously adopted updated governance protocols and approved four labor agreements with the teachers union at its May 14 meeting. Chair Glenn Pastor led the full board through a line-by-line review of the committee's operating protocols for 2026-27, incorporating

Swampscott Finance Committee Backs Free Cash to Buy $375,000 Recycling Bins

SWAMPSCOTT -- May 14, 2026, Swampscott's Finance Committee leaned toward using $375,000 in free cash to purchase automated recycling bins ahead of Town Meeting, while awaiting final numbers on a new five-year trash-hauling contract. In a non-binding straw poll, all responding members, including Chair Eric

Wilmington School Committee Votes to Reject School Choice for 2026-2027

NORTH ANDOVER -- May 14, 2026, Wilmington School Committee unanimously rejects school choice and hears sweeping middle school schedule overhaul. The committee voted 6-0 at its May 14 meeting not to participate in Massachusetts school choice for the 2026-2027 year, with member Dr. McCauldy citing the state's

Wilmington Middle School to Replace WIN Block With Shorter PAUSE Intervention System in Fall

NEWBURYPORT -- May 14, 2026, Wilmington School Committee hears sweeping middle school schedule overhaul, votes on Panama trip and audit report. Principal Brian Kyra and a team of educators presented a new Wilmington Middle School schedule for 2026-27 that replaces the daily WIN intervention block with a shorter, more flexible

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