Letter: Jane Patton for Williamstown Select Board

To the Editor:

We are writing in support of Jane Patton for re-election to the Select Board.

Jane led the board through a tumultuous time in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd (in Minneapolis in 2020) and the revelations of misconduct in the Williamstown Police Department. Under Jane's leadership, the Select Board created the DIRE committee and she served as a member in its inaugural year. Over the past two years, Jane has shown up every day, listened empathically and worked diligently to build back the trust that was lost with many in the community. She asked the difficult questions, held people accountable and made the tough decisions.

Jane and her colleagues on the Select Board have improved accountability and transparency in town. We have a new town manager and we will soon have a new police chief. The town's HR policies have been revised and are available to the public and we will soon have a position to implement those policies and assist with important diversity work. The Police Department is seeking accreditation and they are working more closely with citizens in town to better understand how policing impacts everyone in our community. While the town is in a better place, there's more work to do and the town will be well served with Jane continuing that work.

In addition to her tireless leadership during these difficult times, Jane continues to be an advocate for much needed recreational opportunities for all members of our community, believes we need to create more diverse housing options in town and supports the environmental initiatives of the COOL Committee

Andi Bryant, Karl Mullen, Merritt Colaizzi, Elaine Neely, Liz Costley, Fred Puddester, Tom Costley, Susan Puddester, Brian Drake,  Reena Sharma, Karen Falk, Sanjay Sharmads, Joe Finnegan, Bob Stegeman, Tom Green, Carol Stegeman, Kristen Johanson and Charles Swabey.
Williamstown, Mass.

Lanesborough Officials Review Schools' Budgets

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
05:49AM / Thursday, April 09, 2026

Mount Greylock Superintendent Joseph Bergeron, left, addresses the Lanesborough Select Board and Finance Committee as School Committee member Curtis Elfenbein looks at the projection of a slide in the district's budget presentation.

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Town officials Monday appeared generally receptive to the fiscal year 2027 spending plans for the two public school districts that serve the town.

 

Superintendents from the Northern Berkshire Vocational Regional School District (McCann Technical School) and Mount Greylock Regional School District presented their respective FY27 budgets to a joint meeting of the town's Finance Committee and Select Board.

 

Both districts are sending significantly higher assessments for approval at Lanesborough's annual town meeting in June.

 

McCann Tech, which constituted a $317,109 expenditure for the town in the current fiscal year, is seeking $463,978 for the fiscal year that begins on July 1 even though the school's operating budget is up just 3.2 percent year to year.

 

The 46 percent increase in Lanesborough's share of McCann Tech's budget is is due to two factors: a rise in enrollment of town residents at the vocational school from 20 in 2025 to 29 in this school year and a capital assessment for the first round of payments — for interest only — for a roof and window replacement project on the North Adams campus.

 

The Mount Greylock assessment, a much larger component of Lanesborough's property tax bill, is up 10.99 percent from FY26 to FY27, from $6.8 million to $7.6 million.

 

Mount Greylock Superintendent Joseph Bergeron gave a budget presentation similar to one he has delivered twice to the district's School Committee and again last month to the Williamstown Finance Committee, explaining that while the FY27 budget maintains level services to students with a net reduction of three positions, a series of factors are driving much larger assessments to Mount Greylock's two member towns.