Great Barrington — The town’s much-vaunted water refill stations are officially open for business.
On Thursday afternoon, members of the Environment Committee of the Berkshire Women’s Action Group gathered with donors and onlookers in front of Town Hall to celebrate to honor all donors who made possible the purchase and installation of Great Barrington’s three new water refill stations.
“Today our donors, especially our three major donors, are being recognized for their incredible support,” said committee member Jenny Clark. “We are extremely grateful for their generosity.”
See video below of the dedication of Great Barrington’s new outdoor water refill stations:
The refill machines were brought in to fill a void created by the passage of a town bylaw prohibiting the sale of single-use plastic water bottles of 1 liter or less. The bylaw was the brainchild of the aforementioned Environment Committee of the Berkshire Women’s Action Group, which began publicizing the proposal in February 2018. The project was dubbed GB on Tap.
Clark and Anni Crofut, another member of the committee, wanted to thank three major donors for their strong support. Underwriting the effort were Karen W. Smith, Sidney and Wendy Kleinman, and Bob and Nyna Malley. Wendy Kleinman is also a member of the committee.
The stations were installed in late 2019 but were closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They are now open and once again dispensing water.
There are three stations. Two are downtown and on Main Street in front of Town Hall and in front of the Mason Library. There is another at the Housatonic Community Center, otherwise known as the Housy Dome.
“Wendy worked tirelessly and she and her husband have contributed a large sum to make the Housatonic Community Center station a reality,” Crofut said. “Karen Smith purchased this Town Hall station and paid for its installation.”
The original bylaw passed at the annual town meeting in May 2018 by a margin of approximately 2-1. Great Barrington joined Concord and Sudbury in enacting local bans in Massachusetts.
Opponents in Great Barrington, however, gathered signatures for a petition and successfully called for a special town meeting to repeal the measure. The vote to preserve the ban passed by almost 100 votes 297-199. A second attempt at repeal failed by an overwhelming margin.
“The refill stations are a visible reminder of what the Great Barrington community has accomplished,” Clark said. “They send a message that the town cares about the environment and about its residents and tourists.”
In order to prevent freezing water lines, the town will shut off the water to the stations each year in November and reopen them in mid-April.
