Meetings Ahead
Meetings in Truro are often held remotely. Go to Truro-ma.gov and click on the meeting you are interested in for an agenda and details on how to join.
Thursday, May 2
- School Committee, 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 4
- Special Town Meeting, 10 a.m., Truro Central School
- Annual Town Meeting, 10 a.m., Truro Central School
Monday, May 6
- Conservation Commission, 5 p.m., hybrid
Tuesday, May 7
- Board of Health, 4:30 p.m.
- Candidates Night, 6 p.m.
Wednesday, May 8
- Council on Aging Board, 12:30 p.m., Council on Aging
- Planning Board, 5 p.m.
Conversation Starters
Hiding in Plain Sight?
Check-in for Saturday’s town meetings begins at 8:30 a.m. in the Truro Central School gym. Nonvoters also must check in. All will then be directed to a tent on the ballfield, big enough for at least 1,000 people.
Town officials are preparing for requests for secret ballots — that is, anonymous voting rather than old-fashioned hand raising. According to Town Meeting Time: A Handbook of Parliamentary Law published by the Mass. Municipal Association, voters can move “to fix the method of voting” to a secret ballot; the motion requires a majority vote.
The town has ordered three enclosures, each of which will hold three separate locked boxes, each with a slit on top. Voters would be given a perforated sheet of paper with “yes” and “no” halves, one of which would be slipped into the corresponding “yes” or “no” box; the other would be placed in the discard box.
“There are no set rules other than having two people observe” this type of vote, Town Clerk Elisabeth Verde said, to ensure that each vote is properly cast. Votes would be counted during the meeting.
Motions to vote by secret ballot would apply to individual articles, not the whole warrant. “Although we’re prepared and completely willing to do it, people should know that it will be extremely time-consuming,” Verde said.
Moderator Paul Wisotzky said, “I will do my best to move us through as efficiently as possible, and everyone who is there has a role to play in how short or long this event goes.” The tent, which will have heat, does not include lighting, which could mean a hard stop at sunset.
Wisotzky said he was glad “that the democratic process is going to take place” and added, “I’m really looking forward to seeing everybody,”
BYO Food, Water, Meds
The special town meeting will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday; annual town meeting will follow, after a recess. The meeting will reconvene on Sunday if it cannot be completed in one day.
There will be baked goods for sale, “but people should definitely bring their own food and water and medication if they need it,” said Verde.
Three school buses will shuttle people from the satellite parking lots at Head of the Meadow and the Community Center to the ballfield and run continuously in case people need to leave early, Verde said.
As of April 30, reserved parking at the school was full, Verde said. There is a waiting list.
Inside the school, the town will provide child care, with lunch included. —Sophie Mann-Shafir
