Cheshire Mulls Marijuana Consumption Bylaw

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
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CHESHIRE, Mass. — The Board of Selectmen is considering a bylaw covering the public consumption of cannabis. 

Police Officer Aaron Goodell brought this to the town administrator after receiving an increase of calls about juveniles in possession of marijuana vapes at Hoosac Valley High School.

Chair Shawn McGrath wondered at last week's meeting if they should consider adding an alcohol bylaw or incorporate both substances into one bylaw. 

The board had an initial draft based on Dalton's bylaws regarding public consumption.

The draft mentioned any public consumption of marijuana was prohibited with a penalty of $300 for each offense and the bylaw may be enforced through any lawful means.

The board members had many questions and suggested that they table the discussion until Goodell could attend a meeting to answer their questions.

In other business, the board was informed that the free cash certifications would bring in $677,991 from the general fund, $204,394 from the Water Enterprise Fund, and $32,071 from the Transfer Station Enterprise Fund.

Town Administrator Jennifer Morse also brought up the state Department of Transportation's Municipal Pavement Program. The state is planning to improve Route 116 in Cheshire and Savoy in fiscal 2028. Morse said the town will not be responsible for the project.


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Cheshire Seeks Options West Mountain Runoff

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
CHESHIRE, Mass. — The recent increase in rain has exacerbated an ongoing issue of flooding in the neighbors of West Mountain and Curren Roads. 
 
A few months back, a resident of West Mountain Road, Michael Lemanski, adjacent to Curren Road, complained about the runoff from Curren coming down the hill and into his yard. 
 
Over the years, the area's drainage system has changed. Initially, runoff would flow into the woods through a pipe on the right side of Curren Road, which then connected to a pipe on the left side, channeling water across the road and into the woods, said Corey McGrath, Department of Public Works director.
 
Then a garage was built and a pool was put in, so this system changed to a "strict 90" and ran it along the edge of the road, underneath the driveway, another 60 feet, then daylighted the runoff into a privately owned field.
 
"It's never worked. It's always been a problem. It overflows. It's not big enough. It goes down the driveway, and it cuts across his lawn, and washes out everything," McGrath said during the Select Board meeting on Tuesday. 
 
Now, McGrath is proposing installing a storm basin on the right side of Curren Road, pipe it farther down the road on the town's right of way, totally surpassing Lemanski's property, directing the water across the road, and then daylight it into that field. 
 
"Now, I don't know if we're removing one headache and getting another one, dumping it into that property," he said. 
 
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