It's no secret that I feel strongly that Williamstown's town meeting is broken and should be largely replaced by the Australian ballot at the town election. I further suggest any expenditure greater than $50,000 be required to be approved by voters at the town election.
The town election permits all the electorate to have a 12 or 13-hour window to be able go to the polling place and vote, as opposed to voting on any item at a largely unpredictable time during a much shorter town meeting.
So, what is the Williamstown Board of Selectmen planning on doing? Spending an unpublicized amount of hard-earned taxpayer money on renting and buying clickers so a smaller number of attendees can vote "in privacy" at town meeting.
That's the purpose of the town election. The clickers will transmogrify the town meeting into an illegal town election. We are devolving rather than progressing.
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Friday Front Porch Feature: An Energy-Efficient New Build
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Are you looking for a sophisticated home with low utility bills?
Our Friday Front Porch is a weekly feature spotlighting attractive homes for sale in Berkshire County. This week, we are showcasing 15 Orchard Lane.
This three-bedroom, 2 1/2-bath, contemporary farmhouse was built in 2025 and is 1,704 square feet on less than an acre. The house features an attached and insulated two-car garage.
The interior boasts hardwood floors, electric fireplace and a kitchen with stainless steel appliances. The primary bedroom and en suite are located on the first floor, and two bedrooms, a full bath and bonus space on the second floor.
The home is electric and energy efficient with heating and cooling technology from the latest Energy Star-rated heat pump technology.
Down in the waterproofed full basement, there is a dehumidifier and a battery-backed sump pump. It has a generously sized covered side porch.
It is on the market for $829,500.
We spoke with Paul Harsch III with Harsch Associates, which has the listing.
What do you think makes this property stand out in the current market?
This home stands out from anything else on the market now or that has been available in recent memory because it is brand new. Save for a portion of the foundation and some first-floor framing, it is completely new and much expanded from the original house. Unless one is building from scratch, to find a brand-new home is virtually impossible as there is no spec building and hasn't been any for many years.
What was your first impression when you walked into the home?
Crisp, clean, all new, bright, and spacious with the cathedral ceiling in the living room space yet compact and efficient.
Do you know any unique stories about the home or its history?
The sellers had designed this as their forever retirement home but family matters dictated they remain in Texas thus they are reluctantly giving up their dream home here.
What kind of buyer would this home be ideal for?
The buyer for this home wants a quiet location yet very convenient to the center of things. They want ground-floor living with spare bedrooms on the second floor for guests or office space. They want a modest-sized yard not requiring a lot of expense or care to maintain but providing a pleasant hot-weather retreat in the shade of mature trees. This buyer wants an efficient low-maintenance home not requiring any attention or work on the exterior other than perhaps the occasional power washing of the siding to show the crisp white lifetime siding. They want a totally dry basement with a warranty to back that up, and they want a spacious two-car garage to protect themselves and their vehicles from the weather or summer heat.
Are there any recent renovations or standout design features?
The Mount Greylock School Committee on Tuesday decided to bring a fiscal year 2027 budget to Thursday's public hearing that maintains level services while seeking double-digit percentage increases in the assessments to each of the district's member towns. click for more
Qwanell Bradley scored 33 points, and Adan Wicks added 29 as the Hoosac Valley boys basketball team won a Division 5 State Championship on Sunday. click for more
The cost to stabilize the bank of the Hoosic River near a town landfill continues to rise, and the town is still waiting on the commonwealth's blessing to get to work. click for more
The Williamstown Police Department last month reached a major milestone in its effort to earn accreditation from the Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission. click for more
