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Annual Adams Fire District Election to Decide Treasurer Position

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
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ADAMS, Mass. — Voters will head to the polls Tuesday to choose the district's leadership and decide whether the clerk/treasurer position should shift from an elected role to an appointed one.
 
During the district's special meeting in February, voters overwhelmingly passed making the fire chief and clerk/treasurer appointed positions. 
 
Although the changes were approved during the meeting, they must also receive voter approval at the ballot. The proposal to make the clerk/treasurer position appointed will be before voters on Tuesday.
 
Despite also passing at the special meeting, the district's request to change the fire chief position to a paid, full-time, appointed role is not on this ballot.  
 
District officials thought the question would be too confusing as the chief engineer's position is up for election this year. It will be posed to voters on next year's ballot. 
 
If voters approve changing the clerk/treasurer role to an appointed position by the Prudential Committee, going forward the post will be filled based on expertise and individual will be required to have a medical exam and drug and criminal background check. 
 
The appointed officials will report directly to the Prudential Committee. If approved the district bylaws will be amended to align with this change. 
 
The current clerk and treasurer will also hold the office until their term expires or the office is vacated.
 
If the ballot question fails, the Adams Fire District bylaws will remain the same and the position of the clerk and treasurer shall continue to be elected by district voters for a three-year term. 
 
The only qualification for an elected official is the individual must be a legal voter residing within the district
 
Also on the ballot are elections for several district positions, all of which are uncontested.
  • Three-year term for the Prudential Committee: Richard Kleiner
  • Two-year term for the  Prudential Committee: John Pansecchi; remainder of the term ending in 2028
  • Three-year term for chief engineer: David Lennon
  • Three-year term for first assistant engineer: Edward Capeless
  • Three-year term for second assistant engineer: Dylan Grimes 
  • Three-year term for third assistant engineer: Timothy Ziemba 
  • Three-year term for fourth assistant engineer: David Lennon 
The annual district meeting will be held Wednesday, May 27, at 6 p.m.

Tags: annual meeting,   election 2026,   fire district,   

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Adams Sets Special Town Meeting

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
ADAMS, Mass. — Prior to the annual town meeting in June, there were several unknowns when the budget was being developed. Now that those uncertainties have been resolved, the town will hold a special town meeting to update the budget.
 
The special town meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 30, in the Memorial Building gymnasium.
 
The Select Board will sign the warrant on Wednesday, Sept. 2, at 5 p.m., the required 14 days before the special town meeting. 
 
In the last year, Adams has had a high turnover in employees because of retirements and staff leaving to pursue other opportunities. This resulted in several vacancies during budget season. 
 
Town Administrator Nicholas Caccamo conservatively budgeted those positions at previous rates, maintaining each staff member's prior step or grade, as if the roles were filled full time, essentially building a "level-funded service budget."
 
The special town meeting will take place before the tax rate is set, allowing the town sufficient time to prepare the tax bills for mailing in early November, with payments due in late November, he told the Select Board last Wednesday. 
 
"During the FY27 budget discussions, we started that process with a number of vacancies and a number of questions with some of our appropriations, particularly around salaries and health insurance. We've since nearly filled all those vacancies," Caccamo said. 
 
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