Adams Community Bank Holds Annual Meeting

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ADAMS, Mass. — The annual meeting of the Community Bancorp of the Berkshires, MHC, the parent company of Adams Community Bank, was held on April 12, 2023, at Charles H. McCann Technical School in North Adams. 
 
The meeting included a review of the 2022 financial statements for the Bank, highlighting another year of growth in assets, loans, deposits, and net income.
 
During his remarks, Charles O'Brien, President and CEO of Adams Community Bank, presented an overview of the year's results.
 
"Adams Community Bank reached record levels in many key areas, including growth in assets, loans, and deposits to $931 million, $751 million, and $797 million, respectively," he said. "Plus, we achieved record net income levels in 2022 as earnings totaled
$5.1 million, an increase of about one million from last year."
 
Upon the retirement of long-time Directors Jay O'Connor and Bernie Pinsonnault, Board Chair Jeff Grandchamp acknowledged their input, guidance, and leadership to the Bank during the past 25 years.
 
A newly elected board director, John Sinopoli, was introduced and welcomed.
 
Sinopoli is President and CEO of Synagex, an IT-managed services and cybersecurity company. O'Brien stated, 
 
"We are very pleased to have John join as a new director; his extensive exposure to the financial sector and his IT and cybersecurity expertise will be an indispensable asset to the Bank," O'Brien said. 
 
Sinopoli earned a BS from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell in Information Technology with a minor in business. Also, he holds an Executive Certificate from the MIT Sloan School of Management.
 
The Bank continued its strategic plan of expanding its physical footprint in Berkshire County by opening the Pittsfield branch in December 2022. A Great Barrington branch is slated for late 2023. ACB's footprint will cover communities along the northern border with Vermont and extend southerly to Great Barrington.

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Special Minerals Agrees to Pay Adams, River Groups Over River Discharge

Staff ReportsiBerkshires

Adams plans to use the $50,000 it will get in the consent decree toward the removal of the Peck's Road Dam. 
BOSTON — Specialty Minerals is expected to pay $299,000 for a discharge of calcium carbonate into the Hoosic River nearly three years ago in a consent decree with the Attorney General's Office. 
 
The river turned visibly white from Adams to the Vermont state line from the mineral that leaked out from the plant's settling ponds on Howland Avenue in November 2021. 
 
Calcium carbonate, also known as chalk or limestone, is not toxic to humans or animals. However, the sudden discoloration of the water alarmed local officials and environmentalists and prompted an emergency session of the Northern Berkshire Regional Emergency Planning Committee. 
 
"We allege that this company violated its permits, disregarded federal and state law, and put the Hoosic River — a resource cherished by the Adams community — at risk," said AG Andrea Campbell in a statement. "I am grateful for this collaboration with our state agency partners and committed to holding polluters accountable and working to bring resources back to communities disproportionately impacted by environmental harms."   
 
If approved by the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, the consent decree will require Specialty Minerals to pay a total of $299,000, which includes payments to the town of Adams and three community groups in Northern Berkshire County that will be used to benefit water quality and prevent stormwater impacts. 
 
Once approved, most of the settlement would fund multiple projects to benefit water quality, including infrastructure improvements and native plantings to mitigate stormwater impacts in the Hoosic River Watershed. Specifically, the proposed settlement provides for: 
  • $50,000 to the town of Adams for infrastructure improvements in a tributary of the Hoosic River
  • $50,000 to Hoosic River Revival for stormwater mitigation projects  
  • $50,000 to Hoosic River Watershed Association for a native plant garden and other projects to mitigate stormwater impacts and benefit water quality 
  • $50,000 to Sonrisas to fund invasive plant removal and native plant habitat establishment at Finca Luna Búho, a community land project that centers the voices and prioritizes the decision-making of those living in marginalization. 
It will also provide $30,000 in civil assessments to the state's Natural Heritage Endangered Species Fund and $20,000 in civil penalties for violation of state law, as well as $49,000 to offset the costs of the AG's enforcement efforts. 
 
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