Letters: Things for Lowry Opponents to Think About

To the Editor:

For all of the people who are opposed to the Lowry and Burbank properties being used for housing, here are a few things to think about.

You state that we need to keep open spaces free from development and be able to have farmland and I understand that but. I also realize there is a dire need for housing that can not be overlooked.

Many of the homes near the land we are talking about once sat on farmland. If you live on the west side of Stratton Road south of the Lowry property, or on the new section of Longview Terrace, or any  development on the east side of Stratton Road, south of Cobbleview Road, think of where your home was built, and built within recent history. A good chance it was farmland? Absolutely. Are you in any of the new homes built in the last few years on or just off Oblong Road? Was that farmland? Absolutely.

You all enjoy living there with all that the land offers you and your family. How would you feel if there had been a motion to disallow the building of your home? Also why now (after so many years of most people not even checking to see where it stood in regards to conservation) is it so important to pass a vote to put Lowry and Burbank into conservation?

Charleen Blood
Williamstown
March 20, 2013

Williamstown Fire District Dedicates New Station

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
06:37AM / Sunday, May 31, 2026

Chief Jeffrey Dias recognizes firefighter Alexandra Riggs, who will graduate from Williams College next week. See more photos here.

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Massachusetts fire marshal came to town Saturday to congratulate the local Fire District and the taxpayers of Williamstown for the "amazing" station they have built on Main Street.

 

"I travel around the state, and I've seen hundreds of firehouses around the state — some great, some not so great," Fire Marshal Jon Davine told a crowd gathered outside the station for its dedication. "And I think we saw what the previous station here was in Williamstown. I'll tell you, especially in Western Massachusetts, we have a really big problem with deteriorating firehouses throughout Western Mass. These buildings are collapsing around our firefighters.

 

"And, as the marshal, it's my job to advocate for the departments for more funding. We've been working with our state reps and local reps and the fire chiefs association, trying to come up with different funding streams, so that we can help these departments build new stations, do better, safer stations, so that they have the equipment and the building they deserve to do their job safely."

 

The chair of the Prudential Committee, which governs the Fire District, and the chief of the department both thanked Williamstown residents for the 2023 special district meeting vote that paved the way for the station that went into operation earlier this year.

 

"It's an honor and a privilege to join you today as we celebrate this grand opening of the new firehouse," Chief Jeffrey Dias said. "This facility is so much more than a building that houses fire trucks. It stands as a symbol of our community's commitment to safety, preparedness and public service. It's a place where our members will maintain our equipment. They will learn about our craft. They'll share meals and, yes, from time to time, they're going to share sorrow.

 

"This isn't a fire station. This is a firehouse. And people have heard me say this a million times already. And it houses the very best second family that one could imagine."

 

Dias was joined at the podium set up in the parking lot for the noon ceremony by Prudential Committee Chair David Moresi, state Rep. John Barrett III and the the Rev. William F. Cyr, who gave an invocation.