Legislator Profiles: Speranzo, Just a Hometown Boy

By Jen Thomas05:04PM / Tuesday, October 09, 2007Print Story | Email Story

Rep. Christopher N. Speranzo

PITTSFIELD - A born and bred Pittsfield native, Rep. Christopher N. Speranzo couldn't be happier representing 12 of the 14 precincts in the city. "Being a born and raised Pittsfield man, I love it here," said Speranzo, 34. "It's a city, but with a small-town feel. In this one district, you get it all." From urban neighborhoods with drug and crime problems to expansive farmland with agricultural needs, Speranzo gets to see it all in his hometown. Tackling such a variety of issues is a challenge for the Democrat, who has been the 3rd Berkshire District's representative since defeating Republican Terry M. Kinnas in a 2005 special election. "There's a lot going on in this one small city and there's a lot of different focuses," he said. "But on the other side of it, there are benefits. I have the one city council, the one mayor, the one fire department. Everything is centralized." Coming Back Home Speranzo, now in his second term, returned to the Berkshires after attending colleges in Boston and Cambridge, England, and began working as city solicitor under Mayor James M. Ruberto in 2004. "I was the city's lawyer and I loved it. I was so happy to be back in Pittsfield and I got involved in a lot of issues important to the city," he said. As city solicitor, Speranzo represented the city on key issues including preventing the proposed move of a transfer station to a location off South Street and ensuring that the city not engage in a hostile takeover when considering the expansion of the municipal airport. With experience on city topics already under his belt, taking the plunge to becoming state representative seemed like the next logical step. "It's a big jump to state government and it's tough to make regional issues known, but it's my job to make our voice a little stronger," said Speranzo. Working closely with the other members of the Berkshire delegation made the transition a little bit smoother. "With the exception of [Rep. Daniel] Bosley, we have a young delegation," Speranzo said. "All of us being new legislators together helps and we all work very closely together. Because we all work so well together and we are so vocal, we can make a difference in our districts." Serving on three critical committees - the House Committee on Ways and Means, the Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Business and the Joint Committee on Healthcare Financing - has Speranzo completely immersed in the issues that are most pertinent to his small city. As the only member of the Ways and Means Committee west of Worcester, Speranzo has to work to keep valuable state dollars in the area. "These budget hearings gave me a window into the state budget. Even though I'm only in my second term, being able to have that firsthand access through the Ways and Means Committee allowed me to learn a tremendous amount about the budget and the Berkshires," Speranzo said. Speranzo said the city has struggled to reshape its image from an industrial center to a more diverse landscape where many different kinds of businesses can thrive. "The focus of the city has changed. The real concentration the last few years has been on diversifying and it's really affected the way we go after funding," said Speranzo, using the development of the Cultural Facilities Fund as an example. This year, the county received $2.3 million in grants to support organizations and projects that increase tourism, create new jobs, leverage private funding and expand arts and cultural activities in communities across the state. Speranzo is also proud of his role in securing $150,000 from the state budget for the Berkshire County Drug Task Force, which had never before seen any state funding. "As a lawyer, I'm specifically interested in crime and crime prevention issues," said Speranzo. "The drug task force never had any funding and this new money paid for the police officers to work on the task force. Now, it's an established line item." Working for the Berkshires Speranzo also detailed his legislative plans for the upcoming year. "There's so much to work on but regional education in a whole variety of fashions is my priority. I'm working on the development of the downtown, on getting critical funding for infrastructure, on healthcare issues, and on bringing small businesses to the area," he said. Specifically, Speranzo named the challenges of enforcing the state's comprehensive health-care reform as a legislative priority this year. The Health Care Reform bill, which requires all state residents have health insurance by the end of the year or lose a tax-return deduction, was enacted in 2006 but still 330,000 people are uninsured, according to Speranzo. "How do we tackle this?" he asked. Additionally, a lack of primary-care physicians in the commonwealth exacerbate an already strained system. "If we had everyone covered, we'd have a shortage of doctors across the state, especially in Berkshire County," Speranzo said. To address this problem, the Legislature will consider the best ways to recruit doctors and retain them, using a host of incentives. "Massachusetts is at the front line of this. If we can make this work, other states will adopt our model," Speranzo said. Making Home a Destination Just a hometown boy who loves his city and cares about its future, Speranzo wants others to see the Berkshires as a place to be. "I want this to be a destination for people. I want them coming to places that they hadn't thought of going before," he said. "I want them to be here when they could be anywhere."

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Dalton Board Signs Off on Land Sale Over Residents' Objections

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:50AM / Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Residents demanded the right to speak but the agenda did not include public comment. Amy Musante holds a sign saying the town now as '$20,000 less for a police station.'

DALTON, Mass. — The Select Board signed the sale on the last of what had been known as the Bardin property Monday even as a handful of residents demanded the right to speak against the action.

The quitclaim deed transfers the nine acres to Thomas and Esther Balardini, who purchased the two other parcels in Dalton. They were the third-highest bidders at $31,500. Despite this, the board awarded them the land in an effort to keep the property intact.

"It's going to be an ongoing battle but one I think that has to be fought [because of] the disregard for the taxpayers," said Dicken Crane, the high bidder at $51,510.

"If it was personal I would let it go, but this affects everyone and backing down is not in my nature."

Crane had appealed to the board to accept his bid during two previous meetings. He and others opposed to accepting the lower bid say it cost the town $20,000. After the meeting, Crane said he will be filing a lawsuit and has a citizen's petition for the next town meeting with over 100 signatures.

Three members of the board — Chair Robert Bishop Jr., John Boyle, and Marc Strout — attended the 10-minute meeting. Members Anthony Pagliarulo and Daniel Esko previously expressed their disapproval of the sale to the Balardinis.

Pagliarulo voted against the sale but did sign the purchase-and-sale agreement earlier this month. His reasoning was the explanation by the town attorney during an executive session that, unlike procurement, where the board is required to accept the lowest bid for services, it does have some discretion when it comes to accepting bids in this instance.

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