NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A new government took the reins at City Hall on New Year's Day, pledging to move North Adams forward with compassion and accountability.

 

"My focus, as your mayor, has been and will continue to be, one of restoring accountability, stability, strengthening city operations and making meaningful progress of long standing challenges," said Mayor Jennifer Macksey, entering her third term. "City government has worked to move from reaction to action, addressing deferred issues, while laying the foundation for future growth."

 

The swearing in on New Year's Day included the election of Ashley Shade as council president and Andrew Fitch as vice president. 

 

Shade, also entering her third term, reflected on leadership as it relates to small communities and North Adams in particularly.

 

"It is where I learned that community is not something you inherit. It is something you practice. You practice it when times are easy and you practice it even more when times are not," she said. "I have said before that the city needs to renew its focus on investing in our most important resource — this city, the people of North Adams. I believe that with my whole heart, because, yeah, buildings matter and roads matter and budgets matter, but people, people are where everything begins."

 

The city has not only a woman mayor and woman council president, but also a majority of women on the City Council for the first time in its history.

 

Ceremonies were held in Council Chambers on Thursday morning, with state Rep. John Barrett III and city department heads in attendance. Family and friends filled the seats to see the new council and School Committee members take their oaths. 

 

Sworn in by City Clerk City Clerk Tina Leonesio were incumbents Lisa Blackmer, Peter Breen, Andrew Fitch, Bryan Sapienza and Shade along with newcomers Alexa MacDonald, Marie McCarron and Lillian Zavatsky were elected. Incumbent Keith Bona was not able to attend because of illness and will be sworn in at the council's first regular meeeting on Jan. 13. 

 

Incumbents Wayne Wilkinson and Deanna Morrow did not run for re-election and Peter Oleskiewicz was out of the running, coming in 11th. Oleskiewicz was on hand to applaud his former colleagues and welcome the new councilors. 

 

Also taking the oath were incumbents Taylor Gibeau and Gary Rivers as city representatives to the McCann School Committee and David Sookey to the North Adams School Committee. Incumbent Emily Daunis did not attend. 

 

Police Officer Christopher Voss sang the national anthem and Leonesio led a moment of silence to observe accomplishments over the past year and those lost in 2025, including Robert Leclair, a longtime coach at area high schools. 

 

Zatasky pulled the names and Macdonald the numbers for the council's seating arrangement this term. 

 

In a break with tradition, the mayor was escorted in at the beginning of the meeting by Blackmer and Sapienza. Normally the mayor is invited to take the oath and speak once the council's business is concluded. 

 

Macksey said it was an opportunity to reflect honestly on the state of the city, to look ahead to the work underway, and to set "a clear and deliberate course for the future."

 

"We've lived it through economic shifts, population changes, aging, infrastructure and emerging opportunities," the mayor said. "North Adams has continued to adapt, innovate and move forward. This city is built on its people, generations of hard work, creativity and determination have shaped this community and together, step by step, block by block, we continue to move North Adams."

 

She said she'd taken steps to clean up grant deficiencies, strengthened oversite and secured millions in grants and resources to support infrastructure, education and public safety projects. 

 

"The city is taking a firm stance against illegal drugs and violent crime, supporting enforcement efforts that protect our residents and our neighborhoods at the same time, we recognize that enforcement must be paired with combat, passion prevention and access to services," Macksey said, pointing to strengthened community policing, added firefighters and police officers, and efforts to improve public safety structures. 

 

"When I began as mayor, nothing was shovel ready, but with the great work of the people who are here today, we have engineering and planning underway for critical improvements, including wall and culvert repairs, bridge work, roof replacements, dam inspections, lead and copper studies, sidewalk upgrades, street improvements and heck, we're building a new school here in North Adams."

 

The city is also exploring options for a municipal broadband, investing in recreational facilities and working with economic and cultural partners to encourage sustainable growth, she said. 

 

"We must continue to protect and support our most vulnerable residents, including seniors, individuals in recovery, families facing food insecurity and those navigating economic hardship," Macksey said. "A strong community is one that doesn't forget and leave people behind. ...

 

"Leadership not only requires action, but it requires judgment. It's not always easy to make the right decision. Sometimes you make hard decisions that upset people, but I make my decisions in the best interest of the city."

 

Shade was nominated by Blackmer and quickly seconded by Breen and Fitch; Blackmer also nominated Fitch for vice president, seconded by Sapienza. 

 

In a new tradition, Sapienza ceremonially presented the president's gavel to Shade, recognizing the change in council leadership and wishing her the best of luck. 

 

"We are living in a moment that asks a lot of us, a moment when many feel unseen, uncertain, afraid," said Shade, the city's first transgender person elected to council. "It's a stressful time to be different in this country. It's hard to be a person right now, when your government declares you to not exist, those words are not political rhetoric. They are lived experience. They are the quiet fear someone carries with them into a grocery store, a classroom or a workplace."

 

That, she continued, was why local leadership was so important and noted the council's adoption last year to declare the city an LGBTQ sanctuary.

 

"Government should not be a blunt instrument. It should be careful, thoughtful and compassionate," Shade said. "I will do everything I can to make sure every person in the city is safe and feels welcome."

 

Compassion had to be paired with action to support small businesses, modernize infrastructure, make it easier for citizens to understand the city's laws and its spending, and invest in mental and public health and harm reduction. 

 

"I believe truly that through compassion, education and love, we can help our city grow and prosper together, not perfectly, not all at once, but honestly and together," Shade said. "So today, let us choose to lead with care. Let us choose to listen more than we speak."