Letter: Retired Police Chief Backs Macksey for Mayor

To the Editor:

To the residents of North Adams: It is with great pleasure that I may provide you with an honest and heartfelt letter in support of, who I feel, is the most qualified candidate for mayor of the City of North Adams. I have the privilege of knowing Jennifer Macksey both on a professional and personal basis. I have had the honor of serving this great city for over 32 years. I have seen its ups and downs, good and bad, positive and negative, trials and tribulations of the city I call home. However, through all of this, we always hold our heads high and continue to do what’s best for our city, its residents, and the communities around us.

Having known Jennifer for nearly 25 years, she has the integrity, intelligence, and strong municipal knowledge to "hit the ground running" on Jan. 1, 2022. I know Jennifer has a deep love and understanding of our city. Her passion and caring for our senior citizens, the hard working men and women of our community, and one of the most important assets of this city, our children and their education and well being.

We know there are some significant issues within this city, our crumbling infrastructure, failing water and sewer lines, roads, sidewalks, fire hydrants, public safety building, etc. Yes, there has been some improvements made to these issues, however, there is much more that needs to be done. We all know that this type of comprehensive work can be costly. But, if we start now, put a plan together and execute it, we will begin to make progress. Of course, this will take to few years to complete, nothing happens overnight. However, I know that Jennifer is person that can find the funding, coordinate, and execute a significant infrastructure improvement plan.

I believe public safety and our schools are the backbone of this city. I know Jennifer has the ability, trust, understanding and communication skills, to be sure that these important issues are always being improved, funded appropriately, and maintained to the highest standards possible.

Having worked with Jennifer, I have found her to have the ability to communicate and work very well with others. She listens to people, understands, and shows great empathy. She is a strong, no nonsense woman, yet, kind and understanding. In my opinion, her honesty, integrity, transparency, and love for this city is unquestionable.
Please go out and vote for Jennifer Macksey for mayor on Nov. 2, 2021.

Michael Cozzaglio
North Adams, Mass. 

Michael Cozzaglio is the retired police chief of North Adams.

North Adams Updated on Schools, Council President Honored With 'Distinction'

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
12:31PM / Wednesday, March 25, 2026

Superintendent Timothy Callahan gives a presentation on the school system at Tuesday's City Council meeting. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The City Council got an update on what's up in the school system and its president was inducted into the mayor's Women's Leadership Hall of Fame.

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey, as the city's first woman mayor, established the Hall of Fame in 2022, during March, Women's History Month, to recognize local women who have had a positive impact on the city. Past inductees have included the council's first woman president Fran Buckley, Gov. Jane Swift and boxing pioneer Gail Grandchamp. 

 

She described President Ashley Shade as a colleague and a friend and a former student. 

 

"Ashley is known not just for her leadership, but for her compassion, her ability to listen, to understand and to stand up for those whose voices are often gone unheard," the mayor said. "She has been a tireless advocate for the LGBTQ plus community and marginalized communities at both the local and national level here in North Adams."

 

Elected in 2021, Shade is the first openly transgender person to hold the role of council president in Massachusetts. She also leads the first-ever woman majority council in the city's history. 

 

The McCann Technical School graduate also has served on boards and commissions, "always working to make our city more inclusive, equitable and welcoming," said the mayor. "Ashley not leads not only with strength, but with a heart, and our community is a much stronger place because of it."

 

Shade, wearing her signature pink suit, was presented with a plaque from the mayor designating her a "woman of distinction."