Andover Town Meeting Attendees: Retain, But Change, Town Meeting

ANDOVER, MA — Andover town meeting attendees want to retain town meeting, but think it should be reformed, according to a survey conducted on behalf of the town Oct. 2019 to Feb. 2020.

Over 1,000 residents responded to the survey conducted by the UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion, of which a third had attended a town meeting in the last year. Among those, one third said the town meeting should be abolished.

Out of the other two-thirds, just 14 percent wanted to maintain the status quo. Instead, respondents wanted electronic participation (35 percent), limits to speaker time (15 percent) and other changes to the meeting.

Presenting the survey results to the Select Board, Town Clerk Austin Simko said the survey results have been influential on the Town Governance STudy Committee, which is examining whether to keep the open town meeting format.

The Town Governance Study Committee is holding the first of three public forums Thursday, as it explores options for changing the town's form of governance.

Among non-attendees, the most common reason for not going to town meeting was time conflicts, followed by political disengagement.

Town officials noted that while the survey was weighted for age, sex and education, it was not weighted for engagement in town politics. People who responded to the survey were likely more engaged than those who did not.

The survey also asked residents about their views on the town and its government broadly. Respondents praised the town as a place to live, work, raise children and engage in recreational activities. Town departments that got high marks included public safety, the library, parks, trash/recycling collection and snow removal.

But residents criticized the town for lack of senior and affordable housing options and public transportation. There were declines in ratings for schools, street maintenance, traffic/parking enforcement and other areas, from the survey in 2012, although marks remained high.

Town officials presented the survey to the Select Board at their Nov. 16 meeting, which is available here from AndoverTV.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.