Ellen Rosenfeld knows how to get things done, and this no-nonsense candidate for the Millis Select Board has a lot to offer. “I love to listen,” says Rosenfeld, who, if elected, would work to better engage residents. “Instead of being more open to communication and transparency, Millis is closing its doors, shutting out residents and limiting public discourse. I want to reopen Town Hall, to the residents, to the business owners. I want input. I want feedback.”

Few people have a connection to the town like Rosenfeld does. Educated in Millis Public Schools, the lifelong athlete excelled in softball, field hockey and basketball, even coming home to coach varsity softball and basketball during and after graduating from Brandeis University. 

“I love this town,” says Rosenfeld, “the community, the relationships, I feel as if people look out for one another.”

For this Millis native, attorney, and entrepreneur, building businesses and giving back to the Town has always been a family affair. Rosenfeld got her start working alongside her developer father Huna. “You can trace every success that my brothers and I have had to my father. Sure, we capitalized on his decisions, but without those decisions, we would not be as successful as we are today.” This includes the Roche Bros. Plaza, and CommCan. “We’ve grown those businesses to where I have time to give back to Millis.”

Rosenfeld has no wish to be idle with that extra time. Taking the example of her mother, Hindy, who devoted many years of service to the Town and was the first woman “Selectman,” the candidate wants to apply her business acumen to town matters. “I think there is a lot of real-world business experience that is transferable to town government,” she says, “and collaboration is key.”

“All of my business decisions are collaborative with my brothers, Jon and Marc. I try to surround myself with the best and the brightest and I listen to them. Everything is a collaboration, including the implementation of those decisions.”  

Feedback from residents, she says, is essential. “If we’re working on a policy that is going to affect our residents, we need to involve them,” she says, “We need to get the information out, we need it to be reliable, we need it to be timely, and we need to understand the issues and implications on all sides. This isn’t hard. It just takes the right leader to put everything together.” 

Rosenfeld is uniquely suited to this task.

Rosenfeld points to her forty years of presenting to Millis government boards, her knowledge as an attorney, and longstanding relationships with local families and business owners as the ideal foundation for an effective Town leader. “I have personal connections to Millis that go back decades. Everyone talks to me, and I talk to everyone. We are honest with each other. Familiarity ensures trust.” She promises to be informed on issues from all perspectives.

She holds herself to the highest standard as an attorney. “Your integrity and your reputation is everything.” she says.

Rosenfeld believes a lot is right with Millis, but a few areas need attention.

“We have to spend smarter, and there are ways to do that.” says Rosenfeld. “We have to make some short-term investments for long-term returns. Millis is still in a growth phase. It needs the infrastructure to support it.”

The candidate hopes to build more support for residents who volunteer on the Town’s boards and committees. “We make committees and then we disband them.” she points out. “There are plenty of people who want to help the Town, but for some reason we don’t know how to harness that. I have the knowledge, the passion, and energy to do it.”