Lanesborough School Member Considering Ending Union 71

Barton was granted a total of $5,000 in town funds for research regarding the school district.

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — A School Committee member says the committee is considering pulling out of School Union 71, which it formed with Williamstown.

Chairman Robert Barton asked and received $1,000 from the Board of Selectmen to survey residents about the union. He says the town could save somewhere between $40,000 and $60,000 by opting to leave and signing on with another entity.

"When there is $40,000 to $60,000 on the table, I think it something we have to look at," Barton told the Selectmen on Monday. "It is not just about money either though."

The union was formed in 2008 to share administrative services — including business manager, superintendent and special education coordinator. Lanesborough had dissolved its union with Richmond, New Ashford and Hancock in part because it was shouldering more of the cost. The union joined in an administrative agreement with Mount Greylock Regional School District in 2010; both towns send their students to Mount Greylock.

The Mount Greylock Regional also has been studying the creation of a K-12 school district.

Barton says the school could possibly be better served by joining with another district or union instead.

"This is a big decision for the town but because of the law, it is made just by our three-member board," Barton said.

He will use the town money to mail surveys to residents to gauge their feelings about the district. He said while the school is performing well academically, he believes the town and the school could receive better service with another district. He said he also compared per-student cost of administration to other districts and Lanesborough is paying much more with the union agreement.

Barton has told Mount Greylock officials in the past that the town would consider pulling out of the tri-district altogether — thus avoiding the cost of building or renovating the high school. But, Lanesborough Selectmen were quick to say Barton did not represent the town in saying so.

Barton was also granted an additional $4,000 in town funds to commission a separate enrollment forecast than the one Mount Greylock Regional High School will be doing as part of the school building process.

Barton told the Selectmen that he has seen various projections and they all have drastically different numbers. He is looking to hire a consultant to not only update previous studies but also compare them.

The Selectmen approved sending a letter in support of the Sorrell's contention of the fees.

Editor's note: We have changed the headline from "committee" to "member" because it appears Mr. Barton is seeking studies that other committee members say have not been discussed at their meetings.

Pittsfield Celebrates Robert 'Bob' Presutti on Arbor Day

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:33PM / Friday, April 26, 2024

Bob Presutti, right, is presented the Hebert Award in 2017 for his volunteer efforts at Springside Park. He died in 2023 at age 88.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A tree has been planted next to the Berkshire Athenaeum in honor of local "giant" Robert Presutti.

Officials celebrated Arbor Day on Friday by installing a commemorative plaque next to the American elm sapling. This is a tree that James McGrath, the city's park program manager, said Presutti would have been particularly proud of.

"Today is a day where we yes, celebrate trees, but today is also a day where here in the city we intentionally try to acknowledge the good work of folks in our community who spend their time and their efforts and their talents to make Pittsfield a more beautiful place," he said to a crowd of about 20 people.

"Today we are honoring a longtime community volunteer named Bob Presutti. I'm sure a lot of you here know Bob and know his contributions to the city, not only when it comes to trees and parks but also to the Retired Senior Volunteer Program."

The longtime volunteer passed away last year at the age of 88. He contributed more than 10,600 hours to RSVP and had great impacts on the Parks Department over the years from sharing his knowledge and talents to ensuring that workers were safe when working on trees.

"This morning I went through my emails to see how many emails Bob Presutti sent me since the year 2001 when I started with the city. Bob Presutti sent me 14,000 emails and nearly every single one of those was about trees," McGrath said, prompting laughter and smiles from attendees.

One thread struck him as particularly important because it showed Presutti's empathy when it comes to the safety of city workers while caring for trees.

"There were multiple emails from Bob about the need to get the Parks Department maintenance guys into a program learning about chainsaw safety and learning about ladder safety. He was really into making certain that our city workers were well cared for and had all of the instruction that they needed and in fact, he even offered his own time and services after he became certified to teach our city workers," McGrath said.