Clark Art Institute to Host Oct. 1 5K

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WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The inaugural Trailblazer Run will be held at the Clark Art Institute on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 8 a.m.
 
The 5K trail run, a great way to explore both the Clark's campus trails and the interconnected trails maintained by the town of Williamstown, features individual timed results and is open to runners and walkers of all ages and abilities. Run or walk to celebrate the beauty of autumn and enjoy Stone Hill, the focus of the Clark’s special exhibition Sensing Place: Reflecting on Stone Hill, open through Oct. 10, 2016.
 
Early registration through Sept. 17 is $25 ($20 for Clark members) and includes a race shirt; after September 17 is $30 ($25 for Clark members) and does not include a shirt. Ages 10 and under are free. To register, visit berkshirerunningcenter.com or call Berkshire Running Center at 413-344-4472.
 
Race partner Nature’s Closet of Williamstown presents a race-day market featuring gear from vendors including Salomon and Smart Wool. Refreshments and a beer garden on the Lunder Center terrace will be available to runners at race end.
 
Awards will be given to the top male and female runners in age groups. The race is a rain or shine event and will only be canceled in the event of life-threatening weather conditions. Day-of-race pick up and registration start at 7 a.m.
 
The Trailblazer Run is sponsored by MountainOne.
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Mount Greylock School Committee Votes Slight Increase to Proposed Assessments

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Mount Greylock Regional School Committee on Thursday voted unanimously to slightly increase the assessment to the district's member towns from the figures in the draft budget presented by the administration.
 
The School Committee opted to lower the use of Mount Greylock's reserve account by $70,000 and, instead, increase by that amount the share of the fiscal year 2025 operating budget shared proportionally by Lanesborough and Williamstown taxpayers.
 
The budget prepared by the administration and presented to the School Committee at its annual public hearing on Thursday included $665,000 from the district's Excess and Deficiency account, the equivalent of a municipal free cash balance, an accrual of lower-than-anticipated expenses and higher-than-anticipated revenue in any given year.
 
That represented a 90 percent jump from the $350,000 allocated from E&D for fiscal year 2024, which ends on June 30. And, coupled with more robust use of the district's tuition revenue account (7 percent more in FY25) and School Choice revenue (3 percent more), the draw down on E&D is seen as a stopgap measure to mitigate a spike in FY25 expenses and an unsustainable budgeting strategy long term, administrators say.
 
The budget passed by the School Committee on Thursday continues to rely more heavily on reserves than in years past, but to a lesser extent than originally proposed.
 
Specifically, the budget the panel approved includes a total assessment to Williamstown of $13,775,336 (including capital and operating costs) and a total assessment to Lanesborough of $6,425,373.
 
As a percentage increase from the FY24 assessments, that translates to a 3.90 percent increase to Williamstown and a 3.38 percent increase to Lanesborough.
 
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