Gardner Finance Panel Recommends New Chief of Staff at $70,000 Starting Salary

GARDNER — May 26, 2026 — Gardner Finance Committee advances mayor's chief of staff proposal on a 2-1 vote. The three-member Finance Committee of the Gardner City Council voted 2-1 Tuesday to recommend that the full council accept a new chief of staff position for Mayor Michael J. Nicholson's office, with Councilor Judy A. Mack casting the sole dissenting vote and arguing the duties largely duplicate those of the existing executive aide. A companion ordinance amendment setting the new position's starting salary at $70,000 — reduced by committee members from the mayor's proposed $80,000 and an interim compromise of $75,000 — passed unanimously, with an effective date of August 1, 2026 to align with the FY2027 budget. Councilor Brad E. Heglin, who sponsored the amended ordinance, said the position would help the city function when the mayor is "in Boston or at a conference," while Mack countered that "a change in title is not going to change" how the office operates. The committee also voted unanimously to reduce the executive aide salary line in the FY2027 budget to the FY2026 revised level of $58,341.84 pending full council action, and to zero out a separate professional development line in the Executive Department, rolling those funds into a consolidated $118,000 citywide account.