This edition in one sentence: Five separately elected light commissioners now hold the decision on a half-mill charge that state law would make permanent; schools opened today with the $4,120 kindergarten fee still owed; Fire Chief Jason Gilliland has handed off two captain promotions because one of the two candidates is his son, Lt. Liam Gilliland; the Police Department sent 41 notices for two openings and got two applications back, and Chief Dennis King has filed notice he intends to retire in June 2027; Board of Health member Tom McMahon read a youth survey backward and Ryan Wilson, a parent in the room, corrected him; this paper endorsed Tram Nguyen, the first endorsement in its history, and Mariah Lancaster quit the 6th District race Saturday to endorse Nguyen as well; election day is tomorrow; and around the edges, Dan Shuman will not sell an e-bike to anyone under 18 at Marblehead Cycle, Don Doliber wants the 400th anniversary planned starting now, and the Salem State freshmen spent Friday painting the animal shelter. — Cheers, Will.
Alongside our 122 members, this edition of The Independent's newsletter is made possible by the support of Marblehead Custom Jewelry. Learn more by clicking the logo:
The story of Marblehead Custom Jewelry began in a home studio in 2012, rooted in Steven Manchini’s dedication to the art of fine jewelry. This passion grew into a partnership with fellow artisan Ernie Thomas and, with Maria Demos providing operational direction, evolved into the vision for our Washington Street atelier. Our shared desire was to create a different kind of experience: a comfortable, alternative showroom where clients can relax and discuss their bespoke design directly with the jeweler. The addition of GIA Graduate Gemologist Graham Henderson completes our team, ensuring every client receives comprehensive, expert counsel from start to finish.
The Select Board voted unanimously Aug. 26 to back the application, but the decision it cannot make belongs to five separately elected light commissioners. They would have to levy $0.0005 per kilowatt-hour, roughly $4 a year for the average customer, to unlock about $150,000 in first-year state money. The Light Commission rejected the same charge in 2018, and under state law the surcharge never expires.
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All five public schools opened Aug. 31 for PreK through 12, with no staggered kindergarten start and no half day. Families who backed June's $15 million override expecting the full-day kindergarten fee to vanish will be writing the check anyway; that relief starts in fiscal 2028. Mary LeBlanc takes over at Glover, and Tower, Devereux and Epstein Hillel run calendars of their own.
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Two captain's seats are open, two firefighters took the April exam, and one of them is Lt. Liam Gilliland, the chief's son and the department's training officer. The Select Board voted twice Aug. 26 to move the appointing authority to Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer. The item took under two minutes; the state's file on chiefs who handled this differently is considerably longer.
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Marblehead needed two officers and sent notices to 41 names on the civil service eligible list, 12 of them residents. Eight said they might be interested. Chief Dennis King asked the Select Board to let him pursue a local public safety register alongside civil service, a change limited to entry-level hires that the state must still approve.
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The chief's one-year notice sets an endpoint of June 30, 2027, but he says he has not yet sat down with the Select Board and that everything past the filing is “way premature.” Dan Fox has indicated the town will not look for a successor until a new administrator is in place, putting the search behind a hire the town has only just started paying for. King came to Marblehead in 2021 after 25 years in Salem.
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Board member Tom McMahon told the Board of Health that 92% of high school students said adults in their homes had used substances in front of them. A parent in the room read the same chart the other way: 8.2% said yes, 91.8% said no. The board is deciding whether to ask Town Meeting to repeal or rewrite a bylaw the town clerk's office has no record of enforcing since 2017.
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Salem veterinarian Mariah Lancaster ended their campaign Saturday and threw their support behind state Rep. Tram Nguyen, narrowing the active Democratic field to five as voters head to the polls tomorrow. Lancaster's name stays on tomorrow's ballot and votes already cast for them will count. Marblehead had returned 2,375 ballots by Friday, 13.9% of its registered voters and well ahead of the statewide pace.
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In the last debate before tomorrow's voting begins, Seth Moulton repeatedly conceded that Ed Markey wrote the legislation, then argued it has not reached households paying twice the national average for energy. Markey treated the concession as an attack. Early voting has begun and the primary is tomorrow, Sept. 1.
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EDITORIAL:
This paper has never endorsed a candidate or published an editorial. With Moulton's 6th District seat open and six Democrats who agree about most things, the question stopped being who holds the right positions and became who has turned one into law. We watched nearly every debate and read the Federal Election Commission filings line by line. The primary is tomorrow, Sept. 1.
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A woman who moved into 17 Creesy St. this summer found a racial slur scratched into the wall a few feet from her door, cut deep enough to reach the drywall. Management told her family it had apparently been there since June, before she signed the lease. It came down after they reported it.
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Dan Shuman, who has owned Marblehead Cycle since 2020, asked parents to stop buying the machines for their children, citing speeds near 28 mph and helmets designed for a third of that. His mechanics will keep repairing them, because refusing the work would leave the safety problems unaddressed. His suggestion for unconvinced parents involves the hood of your own car and a trip down Hardy Street.
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Town Historian Don Doliber told the Select Board the 1999 celebration took a year and a half to plan and produced 33 events staffed by roughly 100 residents. The board voted Aug. 26 to create a seven-member committee, with the positions open to any resident who applies. There is no theme, no calendar and no appropriation, and Dan Fox said it sounded like the town should have started yesterday.
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Marblehead will join Swampscott and Nahant in a letter to Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority asking for mitigation before the Route 1A redesign starts in 2028. Select Board Chair Dan Fox noted the $20 million project could overlap with bridge work in Lynn and a new high school in Revere, both also on 1A.
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Salem State sent 165 incoming first-year students to 22 projects across six North Shore communities Aug. 28, the Friday before convocation. In Marblehead they painted, cleaned and assembled a cat tree at the volunteer-run shelter. “We are a true no-kill shelter built on volunteers, so any and all help is greatly appreciated,” said Sharman Pollender, who helps manage it.
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The Marblehead Independent's newsletter archive gives readers one place to revisit past editions, catch up on weeks they missed and track how the town's biggest stories unfolded over time. It is an easy way to browse the paper's recent history in the format many readers know best: a full, curated weekly edition built around the stories that mattered most.
Link to archive
Around Town
This week's community bulletin highlights key town deadlines, meetings, programs, events and civic reminders. Click any blue item to go directly to source material, registration pages or full details.
Vote tomorrow — polls close at 8 p.m.
Marblehead votes tomorrow, Sept. 1, in the state primary. Early voting closed Friday, Aug. 28, so anyone who has not already returned a mail ballot must vote at their precinct polling place; polls close at 8 p.m. Voters enrolled in a party may take only that party's ballot, while unenrolled voters may choose one. Precinct assignments and polling locations are posted on the town website, and questions can go to the Town Clerk's Office at Abbot Hall, 188 Washington St.
The town has posted Marblehead's official specimen ballot for tomorrow's Democratic state primary. The ballot includes contested races for U.S. Senate, the 6th Congressional District and the 6th District seat on the Governor's Council, along with statewide, legislative and county offices. Read more
The town has posted Marblehead's official specimen ballot for tomorrow's Republican state primary. It includes a contested governor's race and candidates for U.S. Senate, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer and the 6th Congressional District; several other offices offer write-in space only. Read more
The Select Board is seeking letters of interest and resumes to fill two vacancies on the Finance Committee. Materials are due Sept. 4 and may be sent to the Select Board at Abbot Hall, 188 Washington St., or emailed to wileyk@marbleheadma.gov. Read more
The town's water main improvement project moves into its next phase this week on Prospect Street, Commercial Street, Chestnut Street, Cottage Street and Shorewood Road, according to a Water and Sewer Commission update dated Aug. 28. Contractor N. Granese & Sons has completed the temporary bypass serving the Prospect Street cluster, which passed two rounds of water quality sampling, and began connecting individual properties Saturday, Aug. 29, while Shorewood Road and Park Lane are complete and set for final paving the week of Aug. 31. Road access will be limited to residents during construction, and residents are asked to run cold water until it clears before using hot water. Read more
The town began delivering smaller trash and recycling carts Aug. 19 to residents who requested them. Deliveries follow the trash collection schedule, starting with the Tuesday route and running Monday through Friday, and residents should expect their cart the day after their scheduled collection. The health department asked residents to leave existing carts curbside after collection day, empty and accessible at the street, for the exchange. Residents who have not received a cart by the second day after their collection can call the health office at 781-631-0212 or email Health2@marbleheadma.gov. Read more
Marblehead Alerts passes 1,000 signups as town seeks more
More than 1,000 residents have signed up for Marblehead Alerts, the town's mass notification system that replaced Code Red, according to Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer. Kezer said residents who have not yet registered should do so on the town's website, since the new system no longer pulls contact information automatically from landline phone directories.
Town renews warning on catch basin dumping
Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer reminded residents to keep debris out of catch basins, saying bacteria levels measured at the town's stormwater outfalls are subject to state limits that can trigger penalties if exceeded. Kezer said enforcement actions have followed at least one recent case of illegal dumping into a drain, and he urged residents not to use catch basins to dispose of waste.
Shop parcel redevelopment proposal heads to Central Register
Town Administrator Thatcher Kezer told the Select Board that the request for proposals covering the town-owned Shop parcel is with legal counsel for review, with a goal of posting it to the state's Central Register in time to be advertised the following week. The request will run 45 days beyond the 30-day state minimum, and the open space identified in the winning proposal would be preserved in the final purchase and sale agreement, Kezer said.
The Marblehead Fire and Police Departments will hold a remembrance ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 11, at Memorial Park marking the 25th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks. The ceremony will honor the nearly 3,000 people killed at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, and pay tribute to the firefighters, police officers, emergency medical personnel and other first responders who died responding to the attacks. The departments are inviting local leaders, public safety personnel, veterans and community members. For more information, contact the Marblehead Fire Department at 781-639-3427. Read more
The Spirit of '76 Patriot 5K Run/Walk/Ruck starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, at the VFW post, 321 W. Shore Drive. The 3.1-mile course is open to runners, walkers and ruckers of all ages and abilities, and organizers will set up a puppy therapy tent. Proceeds support Company 2 Heroes, a 501(c)(3) that trains veterans to raise a service dog from their own pet or a rescue at no charge to the veteran. Registration is $35 through Sept. 11 and $40 on race day, at runsignup.com; program information is at company2heroes.org. Read more
The Marblehead Democratic Town Committee will hold its annual summer picnic from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 14, at VFA Gerry #5, 210 Beacon St. The event, the committee's only annual fundraiser, features an Italian buffet dinner beginning at 6 p.m., a history trivia contest and information about volunteering with the committee during the 2026 midterm elections. The Marblehead High School chorus will perform patriotic songs, and state Rep. Jenny Armini, state Sen. Brendan Crighton and candidates running in 2026 are expected to attend. Proceeds support the Edwin L. Goldberg and Selma L. Goldberg scholarships for Marblehead students as well as committee campaign activities and candidates. Tickets are $35 for adults and $20 for students, available at marbleheaddems.org or by mailing a check payable to MDTC to P.O. Box 232, Marblehead, MA 01945. For more information, contact Committee Chair Anne Gugino Carrigan at annegugino@jamescarriganlaw.com. Read more
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