Introduction

Stockbridge Updates Statement of Purpose

To You and Yours Happy 2021!

Stockbridge Updates Statement of Purpose

To inform without opinion or pressure and give readers the facts they need to make their own decisions.

To provide space for opinion, but since facts and opinions are different, to clearly mark opinion pieces, and clearly identify the opinion holder.

Stockbridge Updates is a periodic newsletter delivered through email.

Carole Owens, Managing Editor

by Carole Owens, Managing Editor

Editorial

Hearing from You

At the end of this issue of Stockbridge Updates, the first issue of 2021, there are some very nice letters. Kind words are very welcome and gratifying. Thank you.

We look forward to your letters. We will consider every one unless…

What is excluded from SU?

SU does not print any article or email that contains name-calling.

Disagreement is energizing; a sound argument in support or in opposition is welcome. Attacking individuals is not.

One email asked that we reprint an opinion piece that appeared in The Berkshire Eagle. We want to be original, not imitative, and plagiarism would be as unwelcome as defamation.

All submissions are limited to 400 words or less. If the subject matter requires more, we invite the contributor to submit a two-part article or opinion.

Why 400 words?

SU is opened online in an email account. It is the opposite of a broadside or even a book. That is, it is long not wide. To go from one article or image, your eye moves continually down, not across. If the entry is over long, readers’ eyes tire. They stop reading and start skipping. SU is designed to keep the eye moving. Short pieces interspersed with photos or images helps. SU is written for your information and your pleasure. We want you to read it. We try and make it easy to read.

My father always said: The eleventh commandment is “Thou shalt not bore”. Therefore, the other reason to limit word count is to limit asides, digressions and over-elaboration.

Many tell me that they read the whole issue. I hope everyone does.

by Carole Owens, Managing Editor

News

Local Elections 2021

To all incumbents running to hold their seats and to all who wish to challenge them: Stockbridge Updates will publish “Stockbridge Candidates Q & A” before election day in May 2021. We will videotape the candidates’ answers or print them, whichever the candidate prefers. To assure fairness, we will collect statements and answers whenever the candidate is ready and publish them all in the same issue. SU will provide space/time for an opening statement and then ask three questions of each.

Open seats in 2021

3-year terms: Moderator, Selectman, Board of Assessors, Board of Health, Tree Warden, Sewer and Water Commission

5-year terms: Planning Board, Planning Board, Housing Authority

Current occupants of the seats are:

1. Gary Johnston, Moderator
2. Ernest (Chuckie) Cardillo, Selectman
3. Gary Pitney, Chair, Board of Assessors
4. Charles Kenny, Chair, Board of Health
5. Peter Curtin, Tree Warden
6. Donald Schneyer, Chair, Sewer and Water Commission
7. Christine Rasmussen, Planning Board
8. Gary Pitney, Planning Board
9. James Welch, Housing Authority

Thank you all for your service. Good luck to you and to the contenders. Stockbridge voters will vote for candidates at the voting booth and will vote on the issues at Town Meeting.

The “Stockbridge Candidates Q & A” will appear in the May 1 issue of Stockbridge Updates. An informed electorate is the first priority of Stockbridge Updates.

by Carole Owens, Managing Editor

News

Town Boards

Notes from the Stockbridge Community Preservation Committee

Meeting December 18, 2020 via Zoom

Committee Members:

(CPC members include representatives from other town commissions, boards, and committees including two appointed by the select board)

Planning Board Representative: Gary Pitney
Planning Board Representative: Bill Vogt
Finance Committee Representative: Jay Bikofsky
Board of Assessors Representative: Tom Stokes
Parks & Recreation Representative: Steve Knopf
Housing Authority Representative: Chuck Gillett
Historical Commission Representative: Linda Jackson
Conservation Representative: Sally Underwood-Miller – Chair
Select Board Representative: Jessica Meagher
Select Board Representative: Dr. Carole Owens

Present were:

Sally Underwood-Miller [chair]
Carole Owens
Gary Pitney
Linda Jackson
Tom Stokes
Patrick White

The Committee met to set the calendar for FY2021 and review documents.

There were no suggestions to revise current documents.

The calendar was set for FY2021 as follows:

January 8 – 6pm Public Meeting: The public will submit preliminary proposals and ask questions.

January 22 – NOON Application deadline: 10 hard copies due in the town office. One digital copy due to the Committee via email. This is a hard deadline, and no application will be accepted after noon on January 22, 2021.

February 19 – 5pm Voting Meeting: Committee meets to discuss/vote on the applications.

February 26 – 5pm Backup meeting as needed.

Probable upcoming projects from the Town will include the Chime Tower and Civil War Monument. The Committee might consider prioritizing those projects that will require a Mass Historical Commission match.

Patrick White pointed out that there are unexpended funds that may be available for new projects because funds awarded but unexpended in three years, return to CPC.

Notes from Board of Selectmen

Meeting December 14 and 18, 6:30 PM via Zoom

At the Monday, December 14 meeting:

1. Select Board hired Erika Olsen to replace retired Town Collector/Treasurer, Karen Williams. Assistant Collector/Treasurer, Christine Goretti, will remain in her position.
2. Stockbridge Bowl Association (SBA) filed for $25,000 in legal costs they incurred suing the town. In advance of the judge’s ruling, the Select Board settled and paid SBA $18,500. The matter is now closed.

At the December 18 meeting:

Ernest (Chuckie) Cardillo, Select Board Chair
Roxanne McCaffrey, Select Board Member
Patrick White, Select Board Member

Also present: Michael Canales, Town Administrator; Richard Seltzer, SBA; Jamie Minacci, Stockbridge Bowl Stewardship; Bill Vogt, Planning Board; Kyle Ronayne, Tanglewood; Nick Paleologos, Berkshire Theater Group (BTG); Marc Wilhelm, Wheatleigh.

1. Michael Canales reported, “soon it will be move-in day at the town garage”; the contract was awarded for the Curtisville Bridge and work will resume; the engineers are finalizing work on Larrywaug Bridge. Finally, he reported an extension was granted so $1,000,000 in state matching funds for Larrywaug Bridge repair remains available.
2. Last May, the Select Board approved construction of a section of raised pavement at the intersection of Main Street and Route 7 – called Red Lion corner. The installation will now commence. Step one will be to paint the area to accustom drivers to what is coming. The painted area will be followed by building the raised area. The raised pavement is intended to slow and direct traffic at the intersection.
3. Canales led a discussion about the replacement of the Main Street trash receptacles. No decision was reached.
4. White informed the Board that he applied for $20,000 for propane heaters through the Shared Streets Program. If the grant is awarded, Stockbridge will be able to heat outdoor spaces for dining (for example).
5. The entertainment licenses renewal included the state mandate that all closings in residential areas be uniform. Because Stockbridge has so many event spaces in residential areas, an 11 P.M. closing was suggested. However, the entertainment venues such as BTG, Tanglewood, and Wheatleigh argued that the comparatively early closing made them less competitive in attracting weddings and other events. Cardillo and McCaffrey supported the earlier closing and suggested the venues apply for special permits to extend the closing time when necessary. White cautioned that these venues have been hurt by COVID and need immediate support. The vote was 2 for and 1 opposed – Cardillo and McCaffrey for, White opposed — it passed.
6. On behalf of SBA, Richard Seltzer requested that the Select Board apply for whole lake weed harvesting in 2021. White pointed out that in 2020 Seltzer was quoted in The Berkshire Eagle as being opposed to whole lake harvesting. Harvesting is subject to the state Department of Environmental Protection’s approval. Seltzer was assured that the town is taking all steps in the best interest of the lake. Seltzer thanked the select board.

News

Relief in the Time of COVID — Vaccination Planning

The Tri-Town Health Department continues to work alongside the Lee, Lenox, and Stockbridge Boards of Health members and community stakeholders across the entire county to combat COVID-19. As we pass through major holidays, we had our work cut out for us, but we are battle tested and will fight this pandemic with every weapon we have.

Through the months of November and December, we had to rely on education, monitoring, case investigation and contact tracing within the district, but there is good news coming! We will be getting a major new weapon!

As you all know, vaccines have been approved. During this next phase, boards of health throughout the county will be collaborating to plan and prepare for vaccine distribution and inoculation.

While we do not have details on what that will look like today, rest assured all the county boards of health, Berkshire Health Systems, Fire/Police/EMS services and many, many other organizations will work together to set up vaccine clinics using priority categories as defined by the Commonwealth. Obviously, this is all contingent upon vaccine supply and resources.

While this is a major heavy lift, we want to assure the community that we are prepared to handle this responsibility as a collective team effort. Please check town websites for future details and in the meantime, please continue to practice universal precautions including social distancing, masking, washing hands and limiting exposure/travel to large gatherings outside of your family bubble.

On behalf of the Tri-Town Health District, we thank you for your continued fight and hope everyone has a safe and fun holiday season.

Editor’s note: As soon as a plan for distribution of the vaccine in Stockbridge are finalized, SU will send a News Alert.

Jim Wilusz is the Executive Director, Tri-Town Health District which is comprised of the Lee, Lenox, and Stockbridge Boards of Health

by James J Wilusz, RS

Insight

Harvesting: Permitting Explained

Although our local Conservation Commission issues permits, all interventions in Stockbridge Bowl are subject to DEP (Department of Environmental Protection) approval. There are two types of permits: ecological restoration and nuisance vegetation. Ecological restorations can be “whole-lake” permits and are used to target invasive plants. Nuisance vegetation permits can target all types of plants—native and invasive—but are typically limited to ten acres. In the case of Stockbridge, the applicant is the town itself, which will apply to the Conservation Commission, the DEP and the NHESP (Natural Heritage/Endangered Species).

An exception can be made to the ten-acre limit. However, that exception is permitted by the DEP and an applicant must demonstrate that the proposed action has “no adverse impacts on wildlife”. It’s a high bar to meet that requires a limnologist (lake expert) to certify the claim and provide evidence.

Harvesting nuisance vegetation is a lot like mowing the grass. The town owns two harvesters, one purchased over 25 years ago and a smaller one that was purchased in 2019. The harvesters have two sets of blades with sharp teeth that move in opposite directions. Harvesters cut vegetation at a depth of up to four feet. They do not uproot the vegetation or typically kill it; plants grow back within a matter of weeks.

Insight

About the COVID Vaccine

The development of vaccines began over 1000 years ago with observations that dried material from skin sores of convalescing smallpox victims conferred protection against death from the disease when blown into the nostrils of healthy persons (variolation).

Salk vaccine

Salk polio vaccine exemplifies the difficulties encountered with mass-production. First polio virus had to be cultured in susceptible animals, usually monkeys. The virus then isolated was treated with various chemicals, such as dilute formalin solution, to inactivate it. A sample of the weakened virus was injected into healthy monkeys, and, if these animals developed immunity, the vaccine was tested on humans. Many monkeys had to be sacrificed, and many early trials were unsuccessful. The process took several years.

Today we have mRNA-based vaccines

Coronavirus is an extremely abbreviated life-form. A small strand of genetic material, RNA (ribonucleic acid), is surrounded by a shell of glycoprotein with attached sugars sticking out that is specially configured (“spike protein”) to act like Velcro when the virus comes in contact with human cells in the nose and upper airway. Adjacent to the Velcro part is another protein covered with sugar that acts like scissors and snip a hole in a cell’s membrane. The viral RNA enters through the hole and takes over.

Normally, a cell makes protein by inducing its own RNA molecules to self-assemble along a gene’s DNA. The RNA then lifts off, is edited, and is spliced into one long chain called messenger mRNA. This mRNA travels to another area of the cell to make the protein.

The invading viral genetic RNA acts like the cell’s own DNA and takes over, making only viral glycoprotein and RNA for thousands of new viruses, until the cell bursts.

Subverting the virus’ routine

Medical science has subverted the virus’s routine. Using highly complex chemical procedures, we now know the entire viral RNA code. We can also make specially tailored mRNA that codes only for the spike protein. This custom mRNA does not code for any other part of the virus.

The miracle that allows this scheme to work is that when mRNA is injected into the human skin, the cells absorb it and use it to make protein, just as if it had been assembled during the usual protein making process. But this protein is just the spike protein; complete viral particles are not made. Nevertheless, the body’s immune system reacts to the spike protein as if it were part of an entire virus. After several weeks and an additional booster shot, we become immune.

Editor’s note: Charles Kenny, MD is chair of the Stockbridge Board of Health.

by Charles Kenny, M.D.

Insight

Openings and Closings in the Time of COVID

The lobby at Lee Bank, Elm Street will reopen 12/29

Winterlights at Naumkeag is extended until January 17

Restrictions in the time of COVID

To slow the spread of COVID, Governor Baker has rolled back capacity allowed in both public and private spaces. These are the restrictions in place from December 22 – January 10:

Gatherings: 10 persons indoors; 25 persons outdoors

Restaurants: 25% of seating capacity

Close Contact Personal Services: 25%

Indoor and Outdoor Events: 10 persons indoors; 25 persons outdoors

Theaters and Performance Venues:
Indoor performance venues remain closed.
Movie theaters – 25% and maximum 50 people
Outdoor performance venues – 25% and maximum 25 people

Casinos: 25%

Office Spaces: 25%

Places of Worship: 25%

Retail Businesses: 25%

Driving and Flight Schools: 25%

Golf Facilities: 25%

Libraries: 25%

Operators of Lodgings: 25%

Arcades & Other Indoor & Outdoor Recreation Businesses: 25%

Fitness Centers and Health Clubs: 25%

Museums / Cultural & Historical Facilities / Guided Tours by vehicles and vessels: 25%

Sectors Not Otherwise Addressed: 25%

Where no licensed or permitted capacity allowance is on record: for any enclosed space occupancy shall be limited to no more than 5 persons per 1,000 square feet.

For more information go to www.mass.gov

$668 million in aid

At the same time Governor Baker announced restrictions, he announced the establishment of a $668 million program to provide financial assistance to Massachusetts small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program in part relies on the pending federal COVID-19 relief bill recently passed by Congress. The Baker Administration will start releasing millions of dollars in new funding to restaurants, retailers, and other small businesses throughout the Commonwealth as soon as next week.

More details on how to apply and eligibility requirements are available at www.empoweringsmallbusiness.org.

Perspective

My COVID Vaccination

As a frontline worker at Fairview Hospital, the buzz around actually receiving the vaccine began in early December. It became a reality on Tuesday, December 16th at 11:46 AM when my phone dinged with a group text to me and 59 of my co-workers from my Nurse Manager. It was to notify us that the first round of vaccinations was being administered on the 17th, 18th and 19th of December. The responses were fast and furious with each of us picking a time slot. It was not mandated that we receive the vaccine.

With much excitement, I shared the news with my husband, kids, siblings and Dr. Kenny. My appointment was scheduled for the 19th at 12:30 during my shift. Full disclosure, I am not a fan of needles. No problem administering, but I am definitely not a fan of receiving. I walked down to the Andrews House to arrive ten minutes early as instructed. There, about 15 fellow employees were at various stations. I did my initial screening and was given my vaccination card that listed my next scheduled appointment in three weeks. With sweating hands, I moved to the next station. Right in front of me, on a big screen TV, was an image of a fireplace with logs beautifully burning and Christmas music playing in the background. The atmosphere was festive. The excitement palpable. I received my vaccination and then entered the observation room. There, socially distanced, we had to stay for 15 minutes to be monitored. We were given information on how to register in the CDC V-Safe site. Walking up the hill to return to my shift, I was overwhelmed with emotions. I felt pride in being a part of BHS which so professionally, proficiently and efficiently organized the process. I felt empowered that I was doing my part to protect myself, my family, my patients and my community. At 2:30, sitting at my desk, I received my first V-safe check-in via text message.

I did not feel the injection at all. On Saturday my right arm was mildly sore. I took some Motrin and went about my day. My mantra is now “I am Vaccinated!” What’s your superpower?

Editor’s note: Rae Williams is an RN at Fairview Hospital and a member of the Stockbridge Board of Health

by Rae Williams

Reader to Reader

Reader to Reader — We Got Mail

From Carl Bradford

“Our” newsletter (note that many of us are proud and are thinking of this as something we all own and have a stake in) continues as just terrific. In particular, the photos in this edition are wonderful.

Dear Carl

I am so glad you call it “our” newsletter – no better compliment. — Carole

From Barney Edmonds

Dear Carole, What a great issue! Thank you for including the poem “Anyway.” I have never seen it and it’s a wonderful reminder, especially at this time of the year…that we are all people with a conscience which we can pay attention to or ignore.

The several updates on Town business and committees continue to be timely and helpful.

The discussion of elections is even more so!

Patrick’s thank you is special and comes at a great time when we all need more human contact and recognition.

The photographs capture the season perfectly.

Congrats, all around.

Dear Barney,

Aren’t you nice. So glad you enjoyed the issue and took special note of Patrick’s “thank you” column. I made an exception to the 400-word rule because no thank you can be too long. — Carole

From Lenore Sundberg, Congrats on Stockbridge Updates!

Hi Carole –

Just read the current issue in its final format with beautiful photos! You are doing an amazing job in bringing this news to our townspeople and offering them the opportunity to contribute opinions as well as newsworthy and historically interesting pieces. I particularly appreciated Patrick White’s comprehensive “Thank You Note” — that was a very generous and heartfelt gesture on his part and a great example of how to build unity and community through understanding, sharing and respect. (Could you please share this email with Patrick — I do not have his email address).

Happy holidays to you!

Dear Lenore,

Thank you for your contribution to the final product. Best wishes for a wonderful 2021 — Carole

by Carole Owens