Williamstown's Lickety Split Closes

By Phyllis McGuireSpecial to iBerkshires
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Residents craving ice cream were greeted with this sign in the window of Lickety Split since Nov. 1.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Rumors began flying this summer but now what the Williams College community and town folk dreaded has come. Lickety Split on Spring Street has closed.

The beloved ice cream shop closed its doors at the end of October but owner Robin Kanelos said she expects the restaurant to reopen in a new location. However, that location is still unknown after the Kanelos' lease expired.

Kanelos did not wish to expand further on the shop's closing but when contacted in September, she said she intended to return to Spring Street. She declined to reveal what steps, if any, she is taking in that direction nor would she say why she was not renewing her lease or if she had even been given an opportunity to do so. The building's owner, Mark Paresky, has not been available to comment.

Recently, Kanelos mentioned that Williams College is helping her find a space to reopen Lickety Space. The only available space on Spring Street as of this moment is 32 Spring St., which was occupied by McClelland's until 2009.  But rumor has it that something else may be opening up on the street.

Loyal patrons of  Lickety Split, the shop best known for its delicious ice cream, including the popular Purple Cow flavor, are more than disappointed that their supply has literally been cut off. One Williams student spoke of the closing of the shop as an "atrocity" and the wife of a faculty member has vowed not to patronize any other ice cream vendors on the street.


The Lickety Split location at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is still open.

In September, Kanelos made it clear that since she assumed ownership of the Williamstown Lickety Split eleven years ago, she has operated the business independently of Lickety Split at Mass MoCA.  

"My sister and her husband own the Lickety Split at Mass MoCA," she said.
 
Though mystery continues to shroud the fate of the cozy eatery that offered snacks, soups, sandwiches and salads as well as ice cream, iBerkshires will be sleuthing until it can report the opening of a re-incarnated Lickety Split.


*iBerkshires reporter Andy McKeever also contributed to this article.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Voters Will Have to Write in Mount Greylock School Committee Candidates

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Voters in Lanesborough and Williamstown will need to write in candidates' names in the Mount Greylock Regional School Committee race on Nov. 3. 
 
Six residents qualified to be on the ballot for four positions on the seven-person committee that are at stake in the biennial election. 
 
But none of those six names will appear on the ballots voters take into the polling booth. 
 
"Due to a series of clerical and technological issues, ballots for Mount Greylock Regional School District's School Committee for each of Lanesborough and Williamstown will have blank spaces instead of names," current School Committee Chair Julia Bowen wrote Tuesday in an email to local media.
 
Instead of simply filling in an oval next to the candidate of their choice, voters will need to mark that oval *and* write in their preferred candidates' names and addresses on each line next to the marked ovals.
 
As always, voters in both the school district's member towns vote for candidates for all School Committee positions.
 
In the current election cycle, two seats designated for Williamstown residents and two seats designated for Lanesborough residents are on the ballot. 
 
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