Letter: No 'No King Day' in Williamstown

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To the Editor:

Apparently, there was no scheduled "No Kings Day" rally in Williamstown, the home of Williams College.

So ..... I took my sign and my trusty chair and sat on the lawn outside the Williamstown traffic oval just before the library's entrance.

My sign was small, but it slowed most of the speeding traffic. Got a couple of honks. I also put my signs in my Jeep's windows in the library's parking lot.

I sat there for about two hours. One elderly couple stopped looking for the rally that had been held at Field Park inside the oval at the previous No Kings rally. Alas, there was only me and my sign. A couple riding on a tandem bike holding a No Kings sign waved as they passed, presumably on their way to the North Adams protest. A family of three children excitedly crossed the road to visit the town's historic 1753 House.



I also noted that none of the trees inside the circle had changed color. Was it due to traffic air pollution?

As all the many vehicles drove by, I played a game identifying each vehicle's brand name. Many Subarus, etc. Then my game morphed into: As soon as I would see three of the same brand in a row, I could head to the library to warm up. The winner was Toyota.

The Williamstown "No Kings Day" protest had ended.

Kenneth Swiatek
Williamstown Mass.

 

 

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Williamstown Town Meeting Debates, Passes by Large Margins, CPA Grants

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — As it has done nearly every time since the town adopted the provisions of the Community Preservation Act, town meeting Tuesday voted overwhelmingly to respect the decisions of its Community Preservation Committee and award the CPA grants recommended by that body.
 
Among the last actions of the nearly three-hour meeting were the approval of two heavily-discussed CPA grants, one of which generated a negative advisory vote from the town's Finance Committee.
 
That grant went to the Sand Springs Pool and Recreation Center, a $20,000 allotment of CPA funds to renovate and expand facilities at the facility.
 
The Fin Comm voted, 3-5, not to recommend town meeting OK the expenditure, and several residents took the floor at Tuesday night's meeting to argue against approving a grant that the center plans to use to improve its sauna.
 
"Why would we do such a thing?" asked Donald Dubendorf. "I understand we have 'recreational purposes' under the act, but why would we do such a thing when we are in dire straits in other areas, like housing?"
 
The executive director Sand Springs took the microphone to explain that an infrastructure investment in the sauna is part of a strategy to make the facility a year-round town asset and improve the non-profit's revenue stream.
 
Enhanced revenues, in turn, allow Sand Springs to keep its entry fees lower and provide scholarships to families of limited means, Henry Smith said, including in the summer months, when it is "the only public, guarded waterfront in town."
 
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