Letter: Williamstown Planning Board Proposals

Letter to the Editor05:00PM / Wednesday, June 08, 2022Print Story | Email Story

To the Editor:

How many citizens voted at the last town election? How many will vote at the town meeting? Town meeting is quaint AND irrevocably broken.

A holistic approach to town zoning is far preferable. Selectively passing one or two of the failed Planning Board's proposed zoning changes amounts to spot zoning. All related articles should be tabled or voted down.

Here is something to consider if you think the GR proposals, at minimum, are harmless. If you own land that can be divided into two or more now buildable parcels, guess what? Your property taxes will be jacked up because now, your property is "more valuable!" Voila!

These ill-thought out zoning changes have actually sucked the life out of any new real ideas as to how to create affordable housing in "The Village Beautiful." Sadly, instead, all our energy has been wasted on debating these ill-advised Planning Board proposals!

Ken Swiatek
Williamstown, Mass.

iBerkshires.com Text Ads

Greylock Youth SummerFest

Come join in on the wealth building fun! August 3-8. Click for event details. Insured by NCUA.

www.greylock.org

rk MILES Blding Materials

Are You Ready to Update Your Home? Start With rk MILES. 4 Locations (800)670-7433

www.rkmiles.com

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Williamstown Housing Trust Gets Update on Summer Street Project

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
05:38PM / Thursday, August 27, 2026

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – Northern Berkshire Habitat for Humanity continues to make progress on a planned four-home subdivision off Summer Street despite rising costs.

NBHFH project manager Keith Davis was back before the board of the town's Affordable Housing Trust in August to give an update on the project being developed on a parcel granted to the non-profit by the trustees.

"The majority of the site work is now done," Davis said. "The road base is completely in. We won't blacktop the road until the first foundation is done. It doesn't make any sense to drive a loaded cement truck over fresh blacktop.

"The detention basin is in. All the [stormwater] structures are in. I talked to [DPW Director] Craig Clough about coming in and looking at it, so he can verify all the structures are in. Because a lot of them get buried. That's the next step, to do that and sod it."

The construction package to build the road and stormwater infrastructure cost NBHFH $330,000. The Affordable Housing Trust kicked in $120,000 toward that, and the trustees have committed another $100,000 toward the construction cost of the first home to be built in what the non-profit has named the Meadowlands Subdivision.

Davis told the board at its Aug. 19 meeting that a couple of issues have popped up that have slowed the project and added cost.

One was the removal of an additional five trees on the 1.75-acre parcel.

View Full Story