Adams Picks Select Board Candidates; Cheshire Nixes Appointed Assessor

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
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ADAMS, Mass. — Voters chose incumbent John Duval and newcomer Ann Bartlett for the two open seats on the Selectmen.
 
Bartlett, a co-owner of the former Red Carpet Diner, garnered the most votes at 791, more than 300 above the other three challengers, and Duval was returned for another three-year term with 685.
 
Incumbent Howard Rosenberg's decision sparked a five-way race for the two seats. Coming in third was Jerome Socolof with 465, Mitchell Wisniowski with 446 and former board member Donald Sommer with 367.
 
All results are unofficial.
 
Wisniowski did win a seat on the Parks Commission and Michael Mach outpolled challenger Timothy Kitchell Jr. 887-407 to stay on the Planning Board. 
 
Frederick Lora appears to have bested Jennifer Solak as Adams representative to the Hoosac Valley Regional School District by 10 votes. The unofficial tally is 814-804, with Lora gaining 674 votes to Solak's 620 in Adams; the voted flipped in Cheshire with Solak winning 184-140 but not enough to overcome the gap. Robert Tetlow Jr., running unopposed, was returned as the Cheshire representative. 
 
Write-ins for Board of Health and Redevelopment Authority, which had no candidates, were still being tallied. 
 
Town Clerk Haley Meczywor, running unopposed for another three-year term, earned the highest number of votes at 1,335, just seven more than Eugene Michalenko, who was running with James Loughman for re-election to the library trustees. Also returned to office were Moderator Myra Wilk, Assessor Paula Wheeler, Mary Ciuk and James J. Fassell for Parks Commission; and Bruce Dale Shepley for Cemetery Commission and McCan School Committee. 
 
Turnout was about 22 percent with 1,465 of the town's 6,574 registered voters going to the polls. 
 
In Cheshire, a ballot vote on making the town assessor an appointed rather than elected position was roundly defeated 152-219. The question would also have been on the town warrant.
 
Shawn McGrath and Raymond Killeen were re-elected to three-year terms on the Select Board with 257 and 234 votes, respectively; coming in third was Mark Biagini with 204. 
 
Assessor Kellie Lahey, Board of Health member Brian Trudeau, Cemetery Commissioner Timothy Garner, Water Commissioner Ricky Gurney and Planning Board member Peter Traub were re-elected unopposed. 
 
Whitney Flynn received 55 votes for town clerk on an empty ballot to replace Christine Emerson, who retired.

Tags: election 2024,   town elections,   


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Hoosac Valley Train Car Catches Fire

Staff ReportsiBerkshires
ADAMS, Mass. — A malfunctioning heating pad is the suspected cause for a fire at one of the Hoosac Valley Service's train cars. 
 
The fire broke out about 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, and posts to Facebook show heavy flames and smokes on the side of the historic Budd Car 41. 
 
"We got dispatched to a train on fire, and when we got here, that's exactly what it was. It was a train on fire," said Fire Chief David Lennon. "We did have flames showing. We did have information from dispatch that there were no people on board. It was locked."
 
The incident is still under investigation but he said the best guess was the heating pad to keep the lines warm malfunctioned and the drip pads underneath ignited. 
 
Melanie Seiden, executive director of the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum, said the weekend rides had been completed for the day and only some staff were still at the Adams Station. 
 
The rides are approximately an hour and the last one is usually completed around 4 p.m. The last two weekends have been fall foliage rides and a Halloween one is scheduled for next weekend. 
 
Seiden said car will be taken out of service and that scheduled rides will go on. 
 
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