1. One of the Select Board's primary responsibilities is oversight of the town manager. In addition to being the hiring authority, the board does annual reviews and, at some point, negotiates contract renewals for the manager. Has the board been effective in that oversight role? If so, how? If not, how would you achieve greater oversight?

The Williamstown Select Board has historically relied on the "strong town manager'' model which has not provided a consistently positive outcome. The bi-weekly town manager report is not sufficient for true oversight. The model should be reinforced with greater periodic oversight. The phrase "trust but verify" comes to mind. There should be one Select Board member formally designated to meet regularly with the town manager to act as an adviser.

2. Are there specific directives in terms of an action plan that you would like to see the board give the incoming town manager?

Be the town manager for the entire town. It is too easy to hide behind bureaucratic processes. Have regular listening sessions. Go out into the community. Being a town manager is much more than "keeping the lights on" and the "trains running on time." Leadership must also be responsive to citizen feedback.

3. Can you cite an example of a specific action the board has taken in the last couple of years that you, as an individual, would have approached differently?

If elected I would promote active transparency and followup. An example of where these two qualities would have been beneficial can be found in the management of the Police Department crisis. Unnecessary mistrust was created by opaque answers to valid community questions. Tell us there is a problem, tell us all that you can, and tell us when you will follow up. And then follow up when you say you will.

4. While not under the purview of the Select Board directly, the board does weigh in with advisory votes on zoning proposals that go before town meeting. There are several on the warrant for the meeting that comes one week after May's election. Do you have thoughts about the direction the Planning Board is taking and, specifically, do you think the time is now to make some of the proposed changes to the zoning bylaw?

As a Select Board member, I would advocate for many of the proposed changes. We are all interested in economic development and diversity, of which, affordable housing is a cornerstone. My fear is that if we do not implement the zoning changes to allow the creation of more affordable housing opportunities, our housing crisis will deepen. There is an urgent need for Planning Board action, especially regarding affordable housing. Although some town residents have told me they find the proposed articles ambiguous, even confusing, I do support many of the zoning proposals.

However, as a Select Board member, I would convey my concerns about the impact of some of the provisions on our agricultural community. Equally legitimate concerns have been raised about environmental impacts. The Comprehensive Plan will create another opportunity for community conversation which will help guide us to the best solutions for this town.

5. One topic that was high on the Select Board's list of priorities in the previous decade but which has gotten less attention recently is economic development. Are there things the town could be doing and should be doing to encourage more businesses and job growth in the community?

Unemployment in Williamstown at the moment is at historic lows. Employers across town, including the College, cannot fill all the available positions. This imbalance will not last forever so now is the time to be thinking ahead. As one of your Select Board members, I would focus on encouraging small businesses to come to Williamstown. Our town can be more entrepreneurial as it looks for ways to incentivize the expansion of current businesses and the creation of new ones. How do we create more pop-up stores building off the success of the ABC store? How do we develop and promote more agricultural and arts tourism? How do we create strategies to incentivize the development of "cottage" businesses?

Our Chamber of Commerce has done a great job with its existing resources. As a Select Board member, I would increase our support of the chamber thereby allowing the chamber to extend its focus on new business development. Our community has extensive resources that can be built upon with the encouragement of the Select Board.

6. Are you in favor of offering compensation to members of town boards and committees and why? If so, do you support the current proposal on May's annual town meeting warrant?

As a Select Board member, I would not suggest paying committee members for their service. However, I would support offering a small stipend per meeting to reimburse a member for a babysitter or a small take-out meal, both of which I understand may be barriers that discourage people, especially parents, from serving.

Committee and Select Board members are volunteers. Their work requires a significant amount of time. The result is that only a small part of our community can even consider serving in these important roles. If we truly want our town government to represent the entire community, we then have an obligation to reduce some of the barriers.

Some may say that offering a stipend (not a salary) will change the basic relationship between the committee and community members into a transactional relationship. It is hard to believe that a small stipend would create this kind of relationship. In fact, we currently do not have a stipend and that does not limit the expectations of our committee members by the community.

A stipend is an acknowledgment that serving the community in these vital roles is real work. If we are committed to the diversification of representation we need to create more opportunities for service.

Background

Fippinger is currently visiting artist producer and outreach manager in the dance department at Williams College. and has a background in arts organizations and finance, after working for Goldman Sachs for more than a decade. He is chair of the Diversity, Inclusion, Racial Equity Committee and was a member of the Strengthening Police and Community Partnerships Committee and of the Roots Teen Center board.

1. One of the Select Board's primary responsibilities is oversight of the town manager. In addition to being the hiring authority, the board does annual reviews and, at some point, negotiates contract renewals for the manager. Has the board been effective in that oversight role? If so, how? If not, how would you achieve greater oversight?

It is a fair statement to say, no, the oversight of the town manager has not at all been effective. How oversight could achieve greater effectiveness is by continuing the progress in this regard in recent months. The board's oversight has made improvements, such as, our interim police chief has been supported with professional development, [human resource] policies have been given attention, and a greater willingness to collaborate with DIRE has been evident since year one's majority-minority committee.

2. Are there specific directives in terms of an action plan that you would like to see the board give the incoming town manager?

The town manager should be given some time to deeply listen to all constituents. He shouldn't take directives without first having time to understand the people, the place, and culture. Taking a contemplative and deliberative path should inform his leadership over finding a qualified chief of police will be one of the first duties.

3. Can you cite an example of a specific action the board has taken in the last couple of years that you, as an individual, would have approached differently?

Without knowing all the circumstances around a decision it is difficult to second-guess. I have been active in calling in our Select Board during lapses of leadership while they were happening. When the Select Board initially voted to be inactive and non-committal on the 2020 Articles 36 & 37, I, and others, zoomed in and encouraged them to show leadership in supporting these articles and they took another vote passing their support. I will continue to advocate for good policies in real time.

4. While not under the purview of the Select Board directly, the board does weigh in with advisory votes on zoning proposals that go before town meeting. There are several on the warrant for the meeting that comes one week after May's election. Do you have thoughts about the direction the Planning Board is taking and, specifically, do you think the time is now to make some of the proposed changes to the zoning bylaw?

I understand the desire to make housing more affordable. As a former member of the Affordable Housing Committee and advocate for The Spruces, I deeply understand the costs, the issues, and the anxieties around belonging as it relates to housing affordability. Since our experts on the Planning Board proposed these recommendations, the time must be now. I just disagree that reducing house lot sizes in RR2 as the most effective way to reach affordability nor is it the way to initiate such a conversation in Williamstown.

5. One topic that was high on the Select Board's list of priorities in the previous decade but which has gotten less attention recently is economic development. Are there things the town could be doing and should be doing to encourage more businesses and job growth in the community?

The town should be aggressively pursuing the development of the fiber-optic broadband network that is being studied. Broadband fiber-optic infrastructure in Williamstown will encourage economic development and job growth for remote workers across all fields. Our new bicycle path through Williamstown can become a driver for tourism and economic development, as well as a way to build our community connections to our neighbors. There are plans in the works for a bike bath to connect Williamstown to Bennington, Vt., along the old trolley line, and plans to connect the bike path through North Adams to the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail. The Ashuwillticook trail now runs through Adams and Cheshire into Pittsfield. This means that in the near future one will be able to bike from Pittsfield to Bennington along some beautiful paths.

6. Are you in favor of offering compensation to members of town boards and committees and why? If so, do you support the current proposal on May's annual town meeting warrant?

I am in favor of the option of compensation to members of town boards and committees. It will reduce an economic barrier and may increase civic participation from those most marginalized in our town.

Background

Bilal Ansari is assistant vice president for campus engagement in Williams College's Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and was previously the college's Muslim chaplain. He has worked in several posts at Williams as well as on equity issues in state and federal prisons. He was a founding member of the Diversity, Inclusion and Racial Equity Committee and served on the Affordable Housing Committee and Higher Ground, a group formed to address housing needs after the flooding of the Spruces.