Letter: Greylock Glen Camping Proposal Aligns with Town's Needs

To the Editor:

For many years, we've maintained our community with little economic growth. It has not been for lack of effort. And now, smart people from many different backgrounds have uncovered what we all knew — Adams is special! The founders of the Project 13 1/2 Grove Gallery and Real Eyes Gallery know it, as does Yina Moore, who has breathed new life into the Adams Theater, a revitalization effort started by our Topia Arts friends.

Our Greylock Glen trail partners DCR and TSR contribute to Adams by maintaining and expanding our trails. The outdoor center is being built, after years of hard work from our Community Development Director Donna Cesan, our town administrator(s) and our state Rep. John Barrett, and [former] state Sen. Adam Hinds, to name a few. We never lost sight of the end game, and now the state has funded further investment in Adams.

The newest developers interested in Adams have proposed an EcoVillage at the Greylock Glen. Not only does the EcoVillage align with keeping the beauty of Adams intact, it is also innovative, attractive, and creates a revenue stream that we have not seen the likes of in Adams. We were impressed by the developer's presentation, and hope other community members will turn out for future outreach sessions.

It is our turn to embrace growth in innovative programs and projects. It is our turn to share in the creative economy and tourism. Shame on us if we are not one voice in that support. We have vetted all the details of the Greylock Glen projects together and will continue to do so with the same goal in mind: To grow our town in a thoughtful manner, while maintaining the quality of life that we all enjoy. This town belongs to all of us.

Erin Mucci & David Bissaillon
co-chairs ProAdams
Carol Cushenette
Adams Finance Committee chair

North Adams' Walnut Street Work to Start Next Spring

By Tammy Daniels iBerkshires Staff
05:43AM / Wednesday, November 04, 2026

The city is in the process of taking 12 Oak Ave., with the hope of the contractor can use the property for staging equipment. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Work on the Walnut Street retaining wall is expected to begin next spring.

 

However, preparations for the project are starting now with the removal of trees, placement of utility poles and installation of drainage down Oak Street this fall — dependent on weather.

 

"We talked a lot about what we thought the schedule was going to be, and the contractor preferred to work on the stormwater management piece, and then move the utilities so we're not worrying about you in the winter," Mayor Jennifer Macksey told Walnut residents during a project update on Monday.

 

"The contractors will still be working up there, weather dependent. But originally, when we spoke, we talked about moving the utilities first. But we thought that it was a better plan to wait until the spring, so you won't have any disruption to your driveways."

 

She said there were concerns about depending on temporary utilities during the winter.  

 

"I think this is the best course of action to do it and do it right. It's safety, we have to think of safety not only of all of you, but safety of our contractors," she said. 

 

The city received a $2 million MassWorks grant, together with $200,000 left from flood recovery money, to rebuild the massive block wall holding Walnut Street 50-feet above a long abandoned quarry.