image description

North Adams Swearing in New Government on Jan. 1

Print Story | Email Story
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The newly elected government of North Adams will be officially sworn in on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2020. 
 
The biennial inaugural takes place in City Council Chambers at 10 a.m. and is open to the public. The event will be broadcast on Northern Berkshire Community Television. 
 
Mayor Thomas Bernard, who is entering his second two-year term in the corner office, will give an address and the City Council will elect its president and vice president. 
 
The nine-member council will see a third of its membership changeover after November's election. 
 
Returning for the next term are Keith Bona, Marie T. Harpin, Paul Hopkins, Jason LaForest, Benjamin Lamb and Wayne Wilkinson. Two of the new members aren't that new: both Lisa Blackmer and Robert Moulton Jr. are former five-term councilors being returned after two years off. 
 
The single newcomer is Jessica Sweeney, elected in her first run for office in November. 
 
Moulton will be sworn in twice on the New Year — first for council and secondly as the new member of the School Committee. Moulton ran and won both seats, and returns the name Moulton to the School Committee after his brother Mark left the committee in 2015 after serving several terms. 
 
Also being sworn in the School Committee will be incumbents Karen Bond and Tara Jacobs.
 
The city's representatives to the Northern Berkshire Vocational Regional School District will also be taking their oaths for the new term. Incumbents George Canales and William Diamond will be joined on the McCann School Committee by newcomer Peter Breen, a longtime educator and member of the License Board. 
 
The public invited to attend. The ceremony begins with the swearing in and reorganization of the City Council; the mayor is then escorted into chambers for his address. 
 
The organization of government is held on Jan. 1 following an election according to the city charter, which states the mayor and councilors are to "serve for two years from the first day of January following their election." 

Tags: inauguration,   swearing in,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Clarksburg Sees Race for Select Board Seat

CLARKSBURG, Mass. — The town will see a three-way race for a seat on the Select Board in May. 
 
Colton Andrews, Seth Alexander and Bryana Malloy returned papers by Wednesday's deadline to run for the three-year term vacated by Jeffrey Levanos. 
 
Andrews ran unsuccessfully for School Committee and is former chairman of the North Adams Housing Authority, on which he was a union representative. He is also president of the Pioneer Valley Building Trades Council.
 
Malloy and Alexander are both newcomers to campaigning. Malloy is manager of industrial relations for the Berkshire Workforce Board and Alexander is a resident of Gates Avenue. 
 
Alexander also returned papers for several other offices, including School Committee, moderator, library trustee and the five-year seat on the Planning Board. He took out papers for War Memorial trustee and tree warden but did not return them and withdrew a run for Board of Health. 
 
He will face off in the three-year School Committee seat against incumbent Cynthia Brule, who is running for her third term, and fellow newcomer Bonnie Cunningham for library trustee. 
 
Incumbent Ronald Boucher took out papers for a one-year term as moderator but did not return them. He was appointed by affirmation in 2021 when no won ran and accepted the post again last year as a write-in.
 
View Full Story

More North Adams Stories