Veteran Selectmen Re-elected in Adams, Cheshire

By Brian RhodesiBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story

ADAMS, Mass. — Incumbents Joseph Nowak and Richard Blanchard were re-elected on Monday to the Board of Selectmen as the town held its first election back in the former Memorial School Building.

All candidates on the ballot, whether incumbents or newcomers, were running unopposed in this year's election. Nowak received 335 votes, while Blanchard received 287.

The highest vote-getter on the ballot was Library Trustee Virginia Duval, who received 341 votes.

After the election of Amy Oberlin to the Board of Health, the board will still have one empty seat. Former members Peter Hoyt and Joyce Brewer decided not to run for re-election.

Elected were Myra Wilk as moderator; Kelly Rice as treasurer/tax collector; Lorraine Kalisz as assessor; Sandra Moderski as planner; Aimee Sinopoli as parks commissioner for one year and Mary Ciuk and Sarah Marie Panesecchi as parks commissioners for two years; Karen Kettles to a second seat on the library trustees; James Taylor as cemetery commissioner; Joseph Allard as a member of the Redevelopment Authority and as a member of the McCann School Committee; and John F. Duval and Erin Milne as Adams representatives and Michael Henault as the Cheshire representative to the Hoosac Valley Regional School Committee. 

The election had been held at the town garage on Summer Street for more than a decade after the school closed. Renovations in the Memorial Building have been ongoing for several months, as the site will soon be the home of the Adams Council on Aging. COA Director Sarah Fontaine said she spent much of the day giving voters tours of the new facility.

"We had a great morning, and I gave a lot of tours. My throat was actually sore from talking so much," she said during Monday's COA meeting. "And people were excited to see the space and see how we're going to use it."

In Cheshire, voters swapped out a current selectman for a former one, returning Ronald DeAngelis to the board along with Michelle Francesconi in a three-way race for two seats. 
 
Francesconi polled the highest with 171 votes, followed by DeAngelis with 165, leaving incumbent Mark Biagini third with 143.
 
A ballot vote to create a combined town treasurer/tax collector appointed position was affirmed 158-111.
 
Also elected were Nancy Delorey as assessor, Christopher "C.J." Garner to the Board of Health; Stephen LaFogg as water commissioner; Richard Francesconi as cemetery commissioner; Francis Griswold to a five-year seat and E. Richard Scholz to a one-year seat on the Planning Board; C.J. Garner, Timothy Garner and Alison Warner as constables; William D. Craig to the McCann School Committee; and Michael Henault as the Cheshire representative and Erin Milne and John F. Duval as Adams representatives to the Hoosac Valley Regional School Committee. 
 
Offices left unfilled are moderator, two-year assessor, and four-year Planning Board member.

 


Tags: election 2022,   town elections,   

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

Adams Man Sentenced to State, Federal Prison for Child Rape

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An Adams man pleaded guilty on Friday in Berkshire Superior Court to multiple counts of aggravated rape of a child and aggravated indecent assault and battery on a child under 14. 
 
Brian Warner, 39, was sentenced by Judge Michael K. Callan to 25 to 28 years in state prison. 
 
The defendant pleaded guilty to the following:
  • Two counts of rape of a child with force
  • One count of aggravated rape of a child
  • Two counts of rape of a child, aggravated, five-year age difference
  • Four counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14
  • Fourteen counts of aggravated indecent assault and battery on a child under 14
  • Nine counts of posing a child in the nude
  • Two counts of possession of child sexual abuse material
Callan attributed the lengthy sentencing to the egregious nature of the defendant's crime. In his sentencing memo, the judge wrote, "In fashioning this sentence I have also considered the Sentencing Guidelines, which were established by a Sentencing Commission created by our Legislature and consisting of prosecutors, defense counsel, public safety and correctional officials, and victim-witness advocates. 
 
"While not mandatory, these guidelines were designed, among other goals, to promote consistency in the sentencing process in our judicial system. The guidelines utterly fail in some circumstances and this is one of them."
 
Warner produced child sexual abuse material, otherwise known as child pornography. In doing this, the defendant raped and assaulted a child over a period of two years. Law enforcement uncovered hundreds of images produced by Warner.
 
"Justice was served today, but Warner's crimes are deeply disturbing. When a child in our community is harmed, it naturally causes us to reflect on how we can do more to protect our children. To the survivor and their [singular] family, this outcome cannot undo the trauma you endured; however, I hope it offers some comfort in knowing that your abuser has been held accountable under the law," stated District Attorney Timothy Shugrue. 
 
Chief of the Child Abuse Unit Andrew Giarolo, an assistant district attorney, represented the commonwealth and Ian Benoit the victim witness advocate on behalf of the DA's Office. The Adams Police Department led the investigation with support from the Berkshire State Police Detective Unit's digital evidence lab.  
View Full Story

More Adams Stories