Get Involved In Your Town! The Town of Shirley holds an annual town meeting, ATM, in May of each year. In 2026, the ATM will take place at 7:15 p.m., Monday, May 11. A special town meeting, STM, is normally scheduled for late October or November, and additional STMs are held as needed during the year whenever voter action is required. All town meetings take place in the auditorium of the Ayer-Shirley Regional Middle School at 1 Hospital Road. Each town meeting is open to all who wish to attend, but only Shirley registered voters may speak, make motions, and vote. The last day to do so in order to be able to vote at the May 11 Annual Meeting is May 1, explained below. New England town meetings are often called the purest form of democracy since they give each resident a direct vote in decisions that affect them and thus maximize their influence in town affairs. At town meetings, voters exercise traditional powers of the legislative branch of government, including enacting bylaws and approving budgets and capital expenditures. The town moderator, an elected official, runs meetings, and each meeting proceeds in a timely and efficient manner while providing every voter who wishes to speak a chance to do so. Topics for town meetings are listed on the warrant, a list that describes each warrant article to be discussed. At least a week or two prior to a meeting, the town clerk website provides town meeting warrants for review under the heading TownMeeting Information. The town clerk posts hard copies for review at the town office building, Hazen Memorial Library, post office, and senior center. For questions regarding topics that will be discussed at town meetings or about town meeting procedures, contact either the town clerk at 978-425-2600 extension 1 or the office of the town administrator at 978-425-2600 extension 200. Residents should register to vote by May 1 for annual town meeting. If you’re already registered to vote in Shirley, potential participants are all set. Those needing to register must do so by 5 p.m. on Monday, May 1, in order to vote at the May 11 ATM. One must register vote only once to participate in town meetings and all town, state, and federal elections, provided registered voters return the Annual Street Listing Form as required. To register to vote, complete theVoter Registration Form at theTown Clerk’s Office or contact the office if you request one mailed, or register online through the state website at sec.state.ma.us/OVR/.

The mission of Shirley Council on Aging is to serve the seniors of Shirley with services that enhance their lives and provide for their needs. The Shirley Senior Center at 9 Parker Road in Shirley Center is open from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday with a variety of programmed activities.  Come early for coffee, tea, and assorted treats to enjoy with daily newspapers.  Learn how to get help doing taxes, borrowing medical equipment, getting rides to appointments, or how to use your cellphone.    Events This Week  Monday, February 23  1 p.m. Ukulele Session    Tuesday, February 24  9 a.m. Games  12 p.m. Painting    Wednesday February 25  8:30 a.m. Yoga  10 a.m. Qigong  11:30 a.m. Birthday Celebration Lunch  12:45 p.m. Bingo    Thursday February 26  10 a.m. Stitch & Chat  1:30 p.m. Balance, Strength, & Flex    Transportation MART Van is a FREE wheelchair-accessible van for residents age 60 plus or disabled with 24- to 48-hour notice required for all rides.  Van hours are from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday – Thursday 8:00. To schedule a ride, call the Shirley Senior Center at (978) 425-1290 between 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday or leave a message and Scott will confirm the ride.  Please DO NOT contact the drivers directly. Call the center to add, change, or cancel a ride.  

By Janet Tice  If you’re looking for a quick update on happenings at town offices—what’s interesting, what’s important, or both—you’ve come to the right place. “Inside Town Offices” will focus on topics that impact the daily lives of Shirley residents. We won’t be able to cover every detail, but we promise we’ll hit the highlights. More importantly, we’ll point you in the right direction so you can learn more and provide your input to town officials on the topics that matter to you.  Town Budgeting Process before Town Meeting  The town budget process underway between now and the annual town meeting scheduled Monday, May 11 involves all town departments, boards, committees and commissions. They will be developing their operating budgets and capital requests for Fiscal Year 2027, which begins July 1, 2026.  Updates to the Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan are also included in town budgeting to enable long-term planning for big-ticket projects and purchases. Proposals were due January 30, when Town Administrator Bryan Sawyer and the town’s finance team began the lengthy review process.  Once the budget is finalized and approved by the selectboard, it will be brought before annual town meeting for approval by voters. During the preceding fine-tuning process, residents can provide input directly to Town Administrator Bryan, the finance committee, or the selectboard at any point until April 13 when the town meeting warrant—the official list of articles or considerations—closes and no further changes can be made.   Funds Available for Community Projects  Speaking of town meeting, the community preservation committee is accepting applications for project funding. A small property tax surcharge provides funds as per the Community Preservation Act passed by voters at special town meeting in 2024. Projects must fall within the areas of historic preservation, affordable housing or open space and recreation.  The funding process consists of three steps: determination of project eligibility, project acceptance by the CPC and approval by a majority of voters at town meeting.  If you have a project in mind, provide a brief description to the community preservation committee by email or in person at an upcoming meeting, and they will let you know how to proceed. The committee meets at 6 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month in the second-floor conference room of town offices.  Rental Assistance Program Launches  The newly created Affordable Housing Trust is busy finalizing its rental assistance program for Shirley residents. Rental assistance represents the trust’s first major undertaking, launched with $30,000 from CPA funds approved by special town meeting in November. The goal: to provide short-term rental assistance for Shirley residents experiencing hardships. For more information about the program and application process or the trust in general, contact the trust chair, Assistant Town Administrator Logan Bries.  Protecting Roadside Trees and Stone Walls  If you love our town’s classic New England vibe, you have another reason to attend annual town meeting in May. The planning board will propose two bylaws designed to protect public shade trees and stone walls lining our roadways. The planning board encourages residents wishing to provide input to on that topic or any other topic within planning board jurisdiction to attend a planning board meeting or email the board. Meetings are held on the first and third Wednesday of every month at 6 p.m. in the town offices first-floor conference room.  Transportation Committee Moving Along  The Shirley Transportation Action Committee, STAC, is hard at work improving safety for drivers and “vulnerable road users” alike. This spring, look for reduced speeds in the immediate area surrounding the Senior Center/playing fields/historic common, new signage identifying thickly settled areas, and a reduced-speed school zone and crosswalk upgrade on Hospital Road at the Ayer-Shirley Regional Middle School.   Potholes, Driveways, Roadway Reconstruction  Meanwhile, the Shirley Department of Public Works, DPW, is busy trying to fill potholes as soon as they appear and welcomes input from residents. If you’ve noticed a new pothole, call or email the DPW and let them know the location so they can add it to their list.  Looking ahead to spring, Shirley residents planning to reconstruct an existing paved driveway or add a new one need to complete the DPW driveway permit before beginning the project and must wait until April 1 to begin work. Resurfacing an existing driveway does not require a permit.  As for roadway reconstruction and/or repaving, DPW Director Dave Schwartz is in the planning stages for projects to be completed in 2026 and won’t begin construction until May at the earliest, so now is a good time to contact him with your input.   Janet Tice has lived in Shirley for over 40 years and is currently serving her 10th year on the planning board. She is also a founding member of the Shirley Transportation Action Committee and sits on the Shirley Meeting House board of directors.

Dear Neighbor,  You’ve asked for it. It’s here. We’re thrilled to present the very first edition of the Shirley Local. We created this newspaper for you. We are dedicated to keeping the residents of Shirley informed of local news and events and to support, strengthen and celebrate our vibrant community.  The first two issues are being mailed for free to homes in Shirley. After the first two all-town mailings, a limited number of papers will be available for free at the library and other central town locations. If you like what you see, make sure we can continue to bring the Shirley Local to you – please subscribe! Paid subscribers will be guaranteed a mailed copy and access to an online edition.  Stay in touch.  Sincerely,  Editor/Editorial Team       Do you know what’s happening in Shirley? Let Shirley Local tell you in two newspaper issues every month.  The first two copies will be free to every mailbox holder. After that, the editorial team will leave free copies of the paper at Hazen Memorial Library. But for only two dollars per issue, subscribers will have copies mailed to them, and they will be able to access the news on line.  Shirley Local will provide everyone with Shirley news that tells what has happened and what will happen. We will have announcements about Shirley government, schools, sports, obituaries, police activities, arts and library events and church services. We will present columns about Shirley people, health, nature, businesses, history, neighbors who need help and ways to help them.  Local organizations will be able to submit press releases at no charge to be printed if there is space. Advertising space will be sold to help pay the bills. If we can balance the budget after four months, we will continue. If there is not enough support, we will close at that time.