FRAMINGHAM, MA -- The City of Framingham Charter Review Committee held its first meeting last night, July 20, 2023.

The Committee is comprised of 11 members – five individuals appointed by Mayor Charlie Sisitsky, three members appointed by the City Council, and three members appointed by the School Committee.

Members on the Committee are:

• Former Senator David Magnani – Mayoral appointee
• David Miles – Mayoral appointee
• Antonio Gutierrez – Mayoral appointee
• Steve Schneider – Mayoral appointee
• Laura Grome – Mayoral appointee
• Adam Blumer – City Council appointee
• Mary Zarrilli Connaughton – City Council appointee
• Susan Craighead – City Council appointee
• Christopher Brown – School Committee appointee
• Sarah McKeon – School Committee appointee
• Andy Limeri – School Committee appointee

Last night, the members of the Committee elected Blumer to chair the Committee in a 9-0 vote (Brown and Grome were not in attendance). A former School Committee member, Blumer served on the original Charter Committee.

Elected vice chair was Craighead, an attorney, who previously served on the Zoning Board of Appeals.

Elected clerk was Miles, a former School Building Committee and School Committee chair.

In April of 2017, residents voted to change Framingham from a Town to a City. Framingham went from the largest Town in the Commonwealth to the newest City in the State on January 1, 2018.

Per the City’s Charter, in May of every year ending in 3, the City shall appoint a Charter Review Committee "to review the Framingham Home Rule Charter and make a report with recommendations to voters for changes to it.”

The Charter states “all appointees shall be voters of the municipality but shall not be elected or appointed officers or employees of the municipality.”

The Committee will be tasked with holding a public hearing, and filing a report with recommendations to the City Council “no later than the first day of May” in 2024.

Per the Charter, the recommendations of the Committee shall appear on the City Council agenda for action before June 15, 2024.

The Charter states “if not so scheduled by the secretary of the council, the matter shall come before the council for action at its next meeting held after the said fifteenth day of June, and no other business shall be in order until the report has been acted upon, by roll call vote. The only action before the council will be whether to place the committee’s report and recommendations before the voters for their consideration.”

The Charter Review Committee decided last night to meet the second and fourth Thursdays monthly. Their next public meeting is Thursday, August 10th, 2023 at 7:00pm in the Blumer room in the Memorial Building. The public is invited to attend any of their meetings.

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Source: Framingham public information