MATTAPOISETT — Mattapoisett resident Nicki Demakis wants members of the community to think critically about their local government.

Demakis has been paying attention to the changes around her, noticing that Massachusetts towns like Fairhaven, Provincetown, Lakeville, Concord and more have expanded their Select Boards from three members to five members.

Seeing the benefits of a larger Select Board, Demakis created a citizens petition that proposes to increase the number of members on the Mattapoisett Select Board from three to five. 

If the petition reaches 10 physical signatures, the expansion will be voted on by Mattapoisett residents at the annual town meeting on Monday, May 12.

“Our town is growing,” said Demakis. “We have a changing demographic and it would be nice to be able to expand the Select Board to allow for other individuals who might bring differing life experiences, different skill sets, different education levels, to be able to contribute that to the Select Board.” 

Mattapoisett Select Board member Jodi Bauer commented on the petition, stating “There are certainly some citizens that feel an increase of two more seats on the Select Board is of value for our town. It is the vote of the Town Meeting to decide on such a change. I will certainly support the will of the citizens at the town meeting.”

Select Board Chair Jordan Collyer and Vice Chair R. Tyler Macallister have not yet responded to requests for comment. 

Demakis outlined several reasons she supports the expansion, including increased collaboration between members, improved workflow and avoiding potential conflicts.

With five members on the board, Demakis believes that there will be more consideration put into voting on issues and changes to the town.

“You’d have to win a vote with three versus two, and I think it would require greater deliberation and collaboration amongst the members,” said Demakis.

She also outlined that with five members on the board it would allow for two members to meet outside of public settings without violating the Open Meeting Law.

The Massachusetts Open Meeting Law currently prohibits two members of the Mattapoisett Select Board from meeting to discuss work privately. This law ensures that all meetings with a majority of the Select Board are open to the public.

With a Select Board of five individuals, two members would be legally allowed to meet and discuss matters privately because it is not a majority of the board.

Demakis believes that allowing 2 members of the board to discuss matters in private will help increase the workflow of local government and create effective change quicker.

“The Select Board typically has a long list of projects and priorities, many of which remain unaddressed or incomplete for years due to the limited capacity of a three-member board,” wrote Demakis in a letter-to-the-editor about expanding the board.

Additionally, she expressed her concern with a three-member board whose members have full-time jobs, stating that an expansion could help work get done quicker as it would be split amongst a larger group.

She also explained that expanding the Select Board could potentially help with avoiding conflicts of interest, as a group of five would have a greater diversity of opinion and background.

Demakis described the petition as a “completely non-partisan, non-political ask of the voters of the town.”

“I just hope that folks will critically think about the benefits of expanding our Select Board and opening up the opportunity for more people to get involved in local government. Really, that’s my goal,” said Demakis.

When she returns from a business trip in early March, Demakis plans to stand outside the post office in Mattapoisett and ask for citizen support and signatures.