Williamstown Town Treasurer Janet Sadler auctions a smaller trailer at the Spruces Mobile Home Park on Friday. This trailer went for $150.
This story was updated on Nov. 17 at 10:30 a.m.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Four town-owned mobile homes from the soon-to-be-closed Spruces Mobile Home Park were sold at auction on Friday for a combined $2,725.
Nine more trailers were available in a silent auction. As of Monday morning, no bids were received on those units.
In all, the town has taken possession of 50 trailers at the park since it began the process of closing it under the terms of a federal Hazard Mitigation Grant. Not all of the homes are in salable condition, however.
The homes were left behind by residents who have begun to vacate the park. Not all former residents have had the wherewithal to pay for removal and disposal of their trailers and have sold them back to the town.
An additional 31 trailers have been abandoned since Tropical Storm Irene in 2011. The town has asked a Housing Court judge to award it possession of those homes as well.
Everything - including the pads on which the homes once sat - must be removed from the park by early 2016 in order to comply with the terms of the grant, which calls for the land to be returned to its natural state.
On Friday, Town Treasurer Janet Sadler conducted a live auction of four of the town-owned trailers to a group of about half a dozen bidders. Two sold for $1,200 apiece; the other two went for $150 and $175. The entire auction took less than half an hour.
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Williamstown Charter Review Panel OKs Fix to Address 'Separation of Powers' Concern
By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Charter Review Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously to endorse an amended version of the compliance provision it drafted to be added to the Town Charter.
The committee accepted language designed to meet concerns raised by the Planning Board about separation of powers under the charter.
The committee's original compliance language — Article 32 on the annual town meeting warrant — would have made the Select Board responsible for determining a remedy if any other town board or committee violated the charter.
The Planning Board objected to that notion, pointing out that it would give one elected body in town some authority over another.
On Wednesday, Charter Review Committee co-Chairs Andrew Hogeland and Jeffrey Johnson, both members of the Select Board, brought their colleagues amended language that, in essence, gives authority to enforce charter compliance by a board to its appointing authority.
For example, the Select Board would have authority to determine a remedy if, say, the Community Preservation Committee somehow violated the charter. And the voters, who elect the Planning Board, would have ultimate say if that body violates the charter.
In reality, the charter says very little about what town boards and committees — other than the Select Board — can or cannot do, and the powers of bodies like the Planning Board are regulated by state law.
The Charter Review Committee on Wednesday voted unanimously to endorse an amended version of the compliance provision it drafted to be added to the Town Charter. click for more
Developer David Traggorth asked the trustees to make the contribution from its coffers to help unlock an additional $5.4 million in state funds for the planned 54-unit apartment building at the south end of the Cable Mills site.
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The donors, who wish to remain anonymous, say the gift reflects their desire to not only support Williams but also President Maud S. Mandel's strategic vision and plan for the college.
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Neighbors of a proposed subdivision off Summer Street last week asked the Planning Board to take a critical look at the project, which the residents say is out of scale to the neighborhood. click for more