By Mary Ann Borkowski and Denise Fortin
Wayland Post Contributors
The recent survey on the annual town meeting format, interest and effectiveness revealed that Wayland is still grappling with some of the same issues discussed in 1978.
The survey was distributed to Town Meeting attendees and through the town’s website, and results were presented to the Select Board on May 19. Its purpose was to give town residents and attendees a forum to reflect on what they like, and their ideas about what may be improved. One hundred and eighty-four residents participated in the survey, which included a variety of question types and offered an opportunity for comments. Ninety-two participants added comments.
The Annual Town Meeting on April 7-8 drew 480 registered voters the first night and 338 on the second, representing 4.4% and 3.1% of the registered voters, respectively.
Comments made in the current survey reflect decades of mixed feelings about Town Meeting seen in previous studies and the challenge on how to best promote attendance that offers maximum voice to all voters. The Town Meeting Improvement Committee noted in 1978 that Wayland residents had a “love/hate” relationship with Town Meeting. They acknowledged that although they there had been many efforts to change that over the years to make the event more accessible, they were seeking ways to improve the process such as better use of the moderator and town meeting procedures and provide more and better information.
The 2025 survey demonstrates that although attendees felt that there was some improvement, more is still needed. Respondents approved of the town moderator’s performance, the town manger’s clear presentation of the budget and the availability of child care. However, there were mixed reviews on the meeting itself. Some attendees complimented Town Meeting (“one of the best run meetings,” “very well run,” “good to see democracy in action”). Other attendees had less favorable comments, calling it “archaic” and “antiquated” and saying “the vast majority of the town has no representation or input” and “there must be a better way.”
Graph A demonstrates that virtual attendance options or remote voting is very popular — but remote voting requires state legislation. Residents interested in remote voting can advocate for it by contacting Sen. Becca Rausch and Rep. Jack P. Lewis, chairs of the Joint Committee on Municipalities and Regional Government.
A “more flexible format” was the second most popular request with 115 votes. That category includes ways to shorten the duration of Town Meeting and other perceived efficiencies, some which were a consent calendar, more information about warrant articles, use of the procedural microphone and how much time to devote to Town Meeting instructions. Other suggestions included better communication/education on articles, a timed agenda, holding Town Meeting on a weekend day, starting earlier, doing things that shorten the meeting, translation services, less discussion on articles, better communication about forums before Town Meeting, less discussion on an article and more childcare options.
Graph B identifies residents’ motivation for attending Town Meeting. Most respondents said they were interested in town government or an interest in seeing that a specific article is passed.
Seven Town Meeting categories — parking, check-in process, seating, audio/visual, electronic voting handset, accessibility and venue — were rated on a scale of one to five, with five being very satisfied. All seven received over 120 votes in the satisfied/very satisfied categories. However, audio/visual received a number of pointed suggestions in the comment sections, including requests for larger lettering and more screens further back in the room for those. Several also said the seating was uncomfortable, while the “accessibility” category received only one comment (a request for translation). There was no room to elaborate for this category so the accessibility comment section will be expanded in next year’s survey.
For more details on town meeting, see the Town Moderator’s and the Select Board’s discussion on WayCAM.tv during the May 19 the Moderator presentation starts at minute 48:15 on the recording. Other resources are the town webpage for the Moderator, which includes the moderator’s contact information, and the Town Meeting webpage.
