Letter: Williamstown Planning Board Proposals

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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. 

 

 

 

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Mount Greylock School Committee Moving Superintendent Evaluation to Fall

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.—The Mount Greylock Regional School Committee this month discussed moving its evaluation of the superintendent from the spring to the fall starting in 2027.
 
Chair Julia Bowen brought the idea to the table as part of her proposed calendar for the committee's work during the 2026-27 academic year, saying that a move to the autumn will allow the committee to factor data from the preceding year into its evaluation.
 
"To the extent that [Superintendent Joseph Bergeron's] goals are tied to school performance and, specifically, MCAS [scores], we don't get that or other end of school year summative information until the fall," Bowen said. "Many schools I've worked with and know of actually moved their school leader evaluation to the fall so they can take advantage of all the data that's actually available, rather than doing it in the June time frame.
 
"The other point on that is, as it is, we otherwise vote for Joe's goals in September/October and evaluate him in May, and that's not a year. If we can do it fall to fall, we actually get a full year of work from when we agree on the goals."
 
The committee's most experienced member, Carolyn Greene, raised a concern about breaking with the practice of completing the evaluation process in May and June.
 
"It feels natural to evaluate a superintendent at the close of a school year, not the beginning of a school year," Greene said. "We're still in it in May and June. We're still in it in terms of our mindsets. Sometimes we don't meet in July. We come back in August and do a ‘retreat.' We're now meant to hit the ground running with an evaluation in September based on the work of the previous school year. And the reason is we don't get all the data from the previous school year until September.
 
"The rhythm is off for me. But it could just be that I'm so used to the previous rhythm. I don't want to oppose it. I just do have some reservations about it."
 
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