Letter: Bond Will Be the Mayor We Deserve

To the Editor:

North Adams, we are about to make history. We are about to usher in the election of our first female mayor of the city of North Adams. We are about to put our faith and hope in the leadership of them to lead this community. We are about to make a statement on what we see as critical to our collective future.

Overall, I would say that this election cycle has been one of the more professional and courteous ones I've seen during my time calling North Adams home. Beyond a few supporters in the wings and on social media injecting spats of personal attacks, intentionally divisive dog whistles, misinformation campaigns, and dredging up issues from the decades past … both candidates have generally shown respect and acumen, and have stayed out of the unavoidable social melee that comes with a heated partisan society.

So today I write with one central intent, to share more of what I know about Lynette Bond, and to further make clear why I am voting for her, and why I think you should, too.

Lynette is an invested community member who has volunteered thousands of hours to this city and the Northern Berkshires since moving here. Whether through her board work with the North Adams Planning Board and Childcare of the Berkshires, fostering children, hosting Steeplecats players, coaching youth sports, or helping spearhead the campaign to get Colegrove Park Elementary built with a massive state capital investment, Lynette is the epitome of a servant leader, an empathetic doer, and a champion for those in need.

Similarly, she will help to support our neighborhoods through opportunities for existing housing stock revitalization, and redevelopment focused on mixed use and workforce housing, so that we are prepared for the workforce and economy immediately in front of us. For good measure, toss in the neighboring example of downtown beautification that she facilitated in Adams, and you can see how her vision, hard work, attention to detail, and background with grant funding could raise up the entirety of our own Main Street corridor.

Lynette cares deeply, and commits fully to her work, and for the betterment of the lives of others. Some have claimed that her resume is "shallow" because she hasn't had dozens of different jobs in her career, but the fact is, that's because she commits deeply to the jobs she does and the organizations she works for and persists with. This is not just "another job" for her, it is a commitment to working tirelessly for this city. Her deep sense of duty and care transcends her entire career, and we would be lucky to have that same level of work ethic leading from the corner office.

Lynette understands what it means to collaborate for everyone's benefit. She's a communicator, connector, manager, effective delegator, and community builder who works across lines of division to get it done. She knows that we are only going to thrive if we work together for our future, rather than lament and divide over our pasts. This will be critical to advocating for resources and for facilitating potential shared services to save taxpayer dollars and increase the quality of what we have. She is ready to recruit, value, support, and hold accountable a team around her so that they can do their best work for the residents and community of North Adams. She will be transparent, open, inviting, and above all else, make sure the investment in this community is done for and WITH the community.

To put it simply, Lynette Bond is the mayor we need and the leader we deserve, and I ask you to get out and vote for her on Nov. 2.

Benjamin Lamb
North Adams, Mass.

Benjamin Lamb is a North Adams city councilor. 

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."