Berkshire County — All through 2022, the Berkshire region had to contend with the effects of the COVID pandemic. Despite this, residents found ways of coming back together through cultural events that were held during the year.
Town governments found ways to confront issues that have plagued Berkshire County for quite some time, including problems facing Housatonic Water Works’ water quality for its customers and affordable housing. While there have been no definitive solutions for these issues, municipalities, including Great Barrington, have continued to find ways to work towards potential solutions.
In 2022, there was a very competitive and controversial primary election season for both the sheriff and district attorney races. The year also brought controversies when it came to cell phone tower bylaws in Lenox and an application for a special permit for The Foundry in West Stockbridge.
This is the way it was in 2022 from January to April…
The year started on a somber note with a death at Jiminy Peak Ski Resort on January 4. The State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Berkshire District Attorney’s Office investigated the death of Kimberlee Francoeur, 30, of Lanesborough, who died after a snow groomer operator backed into the snowmobile she was operating.
During a virtual conversation with Great Barrington Town Manager Mark Pruhenski, Great Barrington Libraries Director Amanda DeGiorgis spoke about how she took a $9,800 federal grant and used it to create a “library of things” at Ramsdell Library in Housatonic. Through the program, residents can check out power washers, drills, staple guns, video cameras, looms, and other non-book items.
On January 10, Great Barrington Town Manager Pruhenski announced that the town was continuing to work on a free public Wi-Fi system for the downtown area. The company Fiber Connect handled the installation of routers and cabling for the town, with property owners asked to pay a one-time fee of $2,000 for equipment installation.
At the beginning of the month, the Great Barrington nonprofit Extra Special Teas opened a second community gathering space in Housatonic. The location is home to the organization’s adult daycare programs, and also offers residents a selection of tea, gluten-free baked goods, and coffee.
At a Great Barrington Select Board meeting on January 10, board members considered a residential tax exemption, which would have given a property tax break to resident homeowners at the expense of second homeowners. Eventually, as in previous years, the possibility of an exemption was struck down by board members. However, much later in the year, Stockbridge officials brought up the possibility of an RTE for the town which led to contentious debates amongst its residents.
Also on January 10, Housatonic Water Works reported that, during routine tests for drinking water contaminants during the latter half of 2021, the company’s water exceeded the state’s standards for haloacetic acid compounds, also known as HAA5. The elevated levels, if allowed to continue for a long period, could cause cancer for those who ingest it. Days later, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection deemed the company’s analysis as inadequate. MassDEP required the company to submit an engineered plan for how it would prevent the violation in the future. This was the first of many controversies that the company would find itself in during 2022.
Through its Community Preservation Committee, on January 25, Great Barrington announced that it would award $1.1 million to eight local community organizations. Organizations receiving funds included Construct Inc., CDC of South Berkshire, and the town’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. The funds were earmarked for various building projects. In June, residents at the annual town meeting approved the committee’s funding to the organizations.
At the beginning of February 2022, Berkshire County Day School in Stockbridge announced that veteran school administrator Mary Warner would be its new head of school. Warner officially replaced interim head of school Susan Benner on July 15.
Also in early February, Devine Cannabis and CBD announced that it would open up a store on Main Street in Egremont. As detailed in the article, it took couple Ari and Heidi Zorn some time to open the store due to unforeseen delays and due to the pandemic.
On February 7, Housatonic Water Works released a second study on elevated levels of HAA5 in its water supply. Company treasurer Jim Mercer said the most likely cause of elevated levels of HAA5 was due to a potential change in the natural organic matter present in the Long Pond source water, caused by “the extremely rainy summer and wettest July in recorded history.”
On February 9, Gov. Charlie Baker announced that the state would lift its mask mandate for students and staff in K-12 schools and licensed childcare providers by February 28. The mandate was lifted in consideration of the decline of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 in the state. Later on in the month, the Berkshire Hills Regional School District announced that it would lift most of its mask mandates by March 7.
In late February, angry Housatonic Water Works customers started a petition drive demanding that the state takes over Housatonic Water Works by eminent domain. The petition asserts that HWW is “in violation” of MassDEP regulations related “to poor management processes, unremedied systems, and lack of investment over a long period.”
Also in late February, 18-year-old Elizabeth Pevzner was named as a newly certified firefighter for the Great Barrington Fire department. Pevzner followed in the firefighting footsteps of her grandfather, mother, and father.
On March 1, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced that it granted a permit that requires General Electric to perform an extensive cleanup of the Rest of the River portion of the GE-Pittsfield/Housatonic River Site. As part of the cleanup, GE will excavate PCB contamination from 45 acres of floodplain and 300 acres of river sediment, resulting in the removal of over 1 million cubic yards of PCB-contaminated material. The cleanup project could take up to 13 years.
On March 3, Housatonic Water Works was served with a notice of noncompliance by MassDEP. In the notice, MassDEP administrator Deirdre Doherty wrote that HWW failed to adequately notify both the state and the public of the presence of HAA5 in its water, along with the failure to report the analytical results of the contaminants as required by state regulations. MassDEP required that HWW submit a proposal on how it intends to come into compliance with state regulations by April 4.
On March 14, West Stockbridge Select Board member Roger Kavanagh announced his resignation. The resignation took effect on May 9, which was the date of the town’s elections. Kavanagh was elected to the Select Board in 2020.
On March 18, Great Barrington resident James J. Keough, 54, was arrested on various child pornography charges. The arrest came after an investigation by the town’s police department, the U.S. Secret Service, and state police.
On March 22, at a meeting held by the eight-town Regional School District Planning Board, consultant Jake Eberwein recommended the merger of the Berkshire Hills and the Southern Berkshire regional school districts. Over the year, the board would meet to discuss strategies and various facets of the potential merger.
On April 1, the Great Barrington Fire Department responded to a porch fire at 27 Christian Hill Road, the Christian Hill Commons complex. It was reported that fire damage was contained to one apartment with minimal smoke and water damage to adjacent apartments.
In early April, Paula Ely was named superintendent of Great Barrington’s wastewater treatment plant. Ely succeeded Bill Ingram, who worked for the town for 36 years and served as the superintendent for four years until his retirement.
At its regular meeting on April 13, three members of the Great Barrington Housing Authority announced their resignations. Chairman James Mercer, along with members Marie Ryan and Mary Pat Akers, all announced their resignations at the meeting from the five-person board.
In late April, it was announced that the old Berkshire Record building at 21 Elm Street would be repurposed into Jennifer Bianco’s contemporary design center. The building was previously vacant for two years.
On April 29, the Great Barrington Fire Department rescued a dog that was reported to have fallen off of the top of a cliff on Monument Mountain.
Come back here tomorrow for part two of “2022 In Review” covering May through August.
