LENOX, Mass. — The selectmen unanimously voted to offer the town manager job to Adams Town Administrator Jay Green.
The vote came after a short meeting held on Oct. 11 where the select board supported chairman Neal Maxymillian's recommendation to appoint Green over another finalist Nicholas Caccamo, former Pittsfield City Councilor and Williamsburg town administrator.
"He [Green] knows where we are and moving into this position is not going to be a huge issue," Selectman Dave Roche said. "This is a similar-sized town with many of the same issues, and I think it will be an easy transition. Given the choice I would rather go with experience."
A third finalist Maryanne Crawford, a former Rhode Island town administrator, withdrew her name from consideration as she took another job.
Roche added that he was impressed with Green's knowledge of the town, adding that Green said he watched a year's worth of selectmen's meetings in preparation for the finalist interviews.
Selectman Ed Lane agreed noting the move from Adams to Lenox is "lateral" and Green is equipped to deal with challenges the town will face.
"I think it is a good move for him and a good move for us," he said.
Selectman Max Scherff was not completely sold on Green and said he was "on the fence." Scherff said, based on the interview, that he was not sure Green was totally up for the challenge.
"I heard twice in the interview that Jay was tired and burnt out and that is a concern for me," he said. "There is still a lot for Lenox to do…and I was concerned he had the perception that he would come in and this would be an easy job."
Selectwoman Marybeth Mitts had similar concerns noting that Green said he "hated the budget process"
"It was an offhand comment…but the budget is like 25 percent of this job," she said. "He will need to work with department heads and find budget priorities…and that comment just concerned me. But clearly he has a lot of great experience."
Scherff added that he was concerned about how long Green would hold the position as he looks towards retirement. Mitts agreed and felt Caccamo would have a longer career in Lenox.
"I thought it was refreshing that Nick said he is really wonky, and he really digs doing the job of a town manager. That really resonated with me because I too like the geekiness of town meeting and stuff like that," she said. "I see him as someone who will be with us for a long time."
Lane agreed that Caccamo was refreshing but felt, at the moment, Lenox needs experience.
"I like him. I was impressed by him. But I think it comes down to experience and what is best for the town of Lenox. Not to nurture someone along…we have to take care of business.
Maxymillian offered to open up the discussion further, but both Mitts and Scherff supported offering the position to Green.
If he accepts the job, Green will fill the seat left by former Town Manager Christopher Ketchen. Ketchen stepped down in June after 10 years of leading the town
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A Boutique Hotel is Bringing Guests a Luxury Stay in Lenox
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
LENOX, Mass. — A new Inn is bringing a boutique-style stay for visitors and locals to enjoy.
Owners, Sullivan Capital LLC, purchased the property, located on 135 Main Street, in 2024. After a year or renovations, Garden Gables Inn is open for business.
"Garden Gables started off as one of the many Berkshire cottages, 1790 was the date on that, and it's always operated as an inn," said Hospitality Manager Yvonne Walton. "It's just a great gathering place and relaxation spot for people to come and get the feel of Lenox, and just slow down and enjoy the nature and the surrounding area...get culture and art and see some great concerts. I think it'll be a wonderful place, definitely does more of the upper-scale hospitality."
Owners Niko Giallouis and Eric Sullivan bought the property from the former owner. Sullivan had his eye on Lenox since attending a wedding almost 10 years ago.
"I came to a wedding in Lenox, probably six or seven years ago. Personally, just kind of fell in love with the area, and I guess that's kind of how it got on my radar. So you know from that perspective, as we got into the hotel business out towards an area, it was a place I was kind of monitoring and waiting for the right property to show up."
After purchasing the two underwent a full renovation, a project that cost around $1.5 million. The building, first built in 1780, required some TLC. Sullivan's wife, Jessica, who owns Jessica Sullivan Design, designed the inn.
Sullivan said they installed a new roof, repainted everything, renovated the bathrooms, installed new floors, a new HVAC system, and new plumbing.
"We really touched everything from the outside...I mean, all the aesthetics and layouts changed a bit," he said. "As I said, put about a million and a half into it. All new furniture, fixtures, everything. The design's completely different. It wasn't a full gut, but it was a heavy, heavy renovation."
The two like to collaborate with local businesses, and they make a point to direct visitors to local restaurants, businesses, and attractions.
"If guests are asking for recommendations, our customer service team, our guest services team, will relay that kind of information. Even if we can call and make a reservation for somebody, happy to do it," he said. "We aren't doing breakfast, but what we do is we have partnerships with a lot of the breakfast places downtown. We actually purchase a gift certificates for each person each day, so that they can use that to go downtown."
Sullivan hopes that guests don't see their inn as just a place to sleep and dump their bags, but make it an experience for anyone who stays.
"We really focus on kind of the experience side of things, so again, we want to give you the best experience you can have here...and we want that not just to be the place you put your bag and go do things. It's important to think of everything," he said.
Sullivan said partnerships are important to their business and are a way to connect with locals.
"The local partnerships, I can't stress that enough, because no matter how much and how great the room is, people are still going to want to go do other things," he said. "So, I think it just benefits everybody if we're all working together and so forth, and supporting the community, being neighborly too, because we are surrounded by residential homes...But we really try to put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, a lot of love into the building, all the details, really care about the senses," Sullivan said.
The Inn's check-in and reservations are completely online. When guests arrive, all they have to do is check in online and receive their code that they will use to enter their room. Sullivan hopes this helps create less stress for guests and gets them to their room as fast as possible, especially after a long trip.
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