Letter: Support Next Generation With New Greylock School

To the Editor:

The most recent U.S. Census data on record indicates that North Adams experienced a population decline of 26 people from 2019 to 2022, averaging a difference less than 7 people per year. However, one major point the new Greylock opponents argue is that the school population will be cut in half, with several hundred fewer students over the next decade.

They claim that only one elementary school will be needed, negating the necessity of investing in a second school. Despite where they get their numbers, their projected enrollment figures do not align with the Census data showing a minute population decline the past few years.

The city's population appears to be stabilizing after the loss of Sprague in the 1980s. The trend of steep population drops has passed, and the city is now gaining nearly as many residents as it is losing each year. Given these small net changes, new developments, and attracting prospective residents, the city may see slight increases in the future, including an influx of children who will need schooling.

Maintaining two fully functional elementary schools in the coming decades is necessary. Rejecting the opportunity to build a new school at the same or lower cost than renovating the aging facility, with the state covering 80 percent of the expenses, would be shortsighted and fail to provide long-term cost savings.

Although my own children no longer attend the local schools, I recognize that when they did, the entire community — including residents without school-age kids — contributed to maintaining quality education by paying taxes. Strong teachers and curriculum are vital, but cultivating an environment that motivates and engages students is just as crucial.

Now it's my turn to pay it forward and support the next generation, which is why I am voting yes for the new Greylock School.

Keith Bona
North Adams, Mass. 

Driscoll Marches in North Adams, Meets With Local Democrats

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:28PM / Monday, October 07, 2024

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll waves in the Fall Foliage Parade. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said she sees optimism and potential in the Steeple City after marching in Sunday's Fall Foliage Day Parade. 

 

Driscoll is the first sitting lieutenant governor to appear in the parade since Timothy Murray and his family back in 2007. She and Gov. Maura Healey were elected to four-year terms in 2022. 

 

"Absolutely picturesque to be able to see, you know, this time of year in this region, and then this parade, the history of it, like multiple generations of families on the sidelines, excited to either watch the parade or be in the parade, participate in it," said Driscoll at a fundraiser meetup at Hotel Downstreet hosted by the local town and city Democratic committees. "It's a perfect New England day, and I was glad to be a part of it."

 

Driscoll had traveled to Dalton in the morning to endorse Leigh Davis, the Democratic candidate for the Third Berkshire District. In North Adams, she made some brief remarks then mingled with the dozen or so attendees, including city councilors and Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts President Jamie Birge, who hoped to bend her ear on relevant issues.

 

Driscoll said she was hearing "lots of enthusiasm for the work that's already happening here" including opportunities to leverage hospitality and tourism challenges around infrastructure and what the state could to support those efforts. 

 

She touched on the hopes for funding toward a public safety building and the city's two bridges — the closed Brown Street bridge and the deteriorating Veterans Memorial Bridge. The memorial bridge, constructed as part of the Central Artery project in the 1960s, is being studied for reconstruction or removal under a federal grant with the goal of better connecting Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art to the downtown. 

 

"I think generally, people are really optimistic about the possibilities that exist here in leveraging off of the things that are already working well, whether it's a university or a cultural asset like Mass MoCA, or a downtown that's beautiful, that has some some rough patches that need to be prettied up, like, how can we work together to accomplish that?" the lieutenant governor said.