Adams Officials Consider Scope of Government Review Committee
ADAMS, Mass. — The Board of Selectmen met with Community Paradigm Associates consultant Bernard Lynch on Wednesday night to review the scope of the General Government Review Committee.
Lynch, who was attending virtually, has previously worked with several municipalities in Berkshire County, recently working with Lanesborough on its town administrator search. Lynch described a five-phase outline for the committee, which will take it from the initial stages until the charter review is complete.
Lynch said he is looking forward to meeting with the committee and others in Adams during the coming months. He said he expects to be in town during the next several weeks and again in April.
"I have an opportunity to come out in early March probably. Meet with the committee in mid-February, come out in early March and spend a couple of days in Adams," he said. "Talking to each member of the board, various department heads, perhaps some of the other boards and committees that the town has; and spend time with the individual members of the board to try to understand what the issues are facing the town of Adams."
He anticipates findings from the committee around May of this year with deliberations on what to do to come afterward.
"And then, really getting into the meat of our work, will take place in Phase 3," he said. "With the committee and myself meeting on a regular basis over the summer into the fall looking at the various restructuring options that should be considered."
Lynch said it is crucial to discuss as many options as possible during this process. He said some communities don't change their governmental structure for 40 or 50 years.
"What made sense then may not make sense now," he said. "Obviously, if it's not broke, we don't need to fix it. But it's always valuable, I think, in any organization to step back, look and see what's working, what isn't working, what can be done better."
When asked by Selectman Howard Rosenberg about how the impact of technology will influence the process, Lynch said several aspects of it could fit into the process.
"One area that, for instance, that I mentioned about best practices was more and more communities and starting to actually put into the formal charter, the idea of a strategic plan," he said. "A strategic plan is very much based upon the idea of citizen engagement in the process, so that's an area, clearly, where technology plays a role.
Selectwoman Christine Hoyt said one outcome she hopes for with the committee is modernizing gendered language within town governance. She said reviewing and updating the language in the town's founding documents is crucial and hopes these changes can be in the works a year from now.
"As the only woman who sits on this board, it would be really great to see," she said. "Like the term 'selectmen' maybe has less of a gender bias to it, as well as the entire charter."
Selectman Joseph Nowak said he is excited to work with Lynch on this process, adding that a charter review is of immense importance to the future of Adams.
"I think this is well overdue in this community," he said. "As a board, we've discussed this and discussed it but I'm very happy to see that coming to the forefront."
Tags: charter review,
