Letter: Blackmer Has Vision For Our Children's Future

To the Editor:

I am writing to express my support for Lisa Blackmer for state representative. In particular, Lisa's vision for our children's future is one that takes into account decades of being a mother, working in municipal government, and serving on the school council, which she did with my father in the mid-nineties.

Lisa's vision for our educational systems is one that takes into account all the details of the challenges our cities and towns face and meets them head on. Lisa understands that for this region to experience more economic growth, we need to have the best schools around, that for our children to succeed, they need access to broadband, foreign languages, and technical learning.

I know Lisa both personally and professionally. I attended elementary through high school with both of Lisa's children. Lisa worked hard as a parent leader for 20 years. I have also served with Lisa on the North Adams City Council for two terms and appreciate how prepared she was for some nuanced municipal issues.

Lisa Blackmer has paid her dues and walked the walk. With Lisa, I am especially impressed with her work in Boston at the Massachusetts Municipal Association. Lisa donates her time driving back and forth to Boston for the MMA and was recently elected as an officer. This is in addition to being a mother, grandmother, MBA student at MCLA, and wife to William Blackmer Sr., a retired state trooper.

Lisa will be an outstanding voice in Boston for our region, our children, and our future. She is the right choice to make on Oct. 10.

Jennifer Breen, Esq.
North Adams, Mass.

Breen is a local attorney and former North Adams city councilor.

Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
06:15PM / Thursday, April 25, 2024

Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.

 

More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing  Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.

 

Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.

 

One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly. 

 

"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."

 

Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.

 

Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.