Editorial

Feeling Squeezed?

In the many years I lived in Stockbridge, I have been so impressed with the intelligence of the zoning and planning decisions Stockbridge made. Look at the result – in the 21st century, Stockbridge is less crowded, safer, cleaner, healthier, and more beautiful than many parts of this great country. That was no accident. I think the main reason I stand firmly against the seasonal communities designation is that we will lose control over our own future. In Stockbridge that is a high price to pay. If you vote for the seasonal communities designation, control shifts from Stockbridge to Boston.

“The act aims to limit local governments’ ability to set zoning laws and regulations. Local communities could lose input on housing developments in their areas. The act may prioritize state or federal guidelines over local needs. Potential for increased housing density without local consent or planning. Advocates argue it addresses housing shortages, while critics fear loss of local governance.”

What Would Stockbridge Do?

Thanks to Stockbridge-ma-gov, we know that the population of Stockbridge, including Interlaken, and Glendale, is 1,846 permanent residents. The land area is 23.7 square miles. New York City is 22.7 square miles with a population of 1,700,515. Those are extreme examples, but they allow us to imagine the impact density has on the cost of living, cost of governing as well as lifestyle, health, and safety.

The median age of Stockbridge residents is 61.9 years, and the median household income is $50,257. Statewide, the median age is 40 years and median household income of $85,000. We are simply older and poorer. Our average annual property tax for a single-family home is $5,717. The property tax rate is $7.37 per $1,000 of assessed value — one of the lowest in the county and the state. However, that is where Stockbridge being “less than” ends.

The average home price in Stockbridge is $775,646 compared to $638,500 statewide. Stockbridge has high house prices; too expensive for an older, poorer population to purchase. However, they don’t have to. Our older, poorer population are our homeowners.

Now add in the seasonal residents – our population rises to almost 4,000 with a median income over $125,000. That creates more competition for housing from a population able to pay more and able to improve what they purchase. Therefore, purchase prices rise. As the cost of everything goes up, purchase and maintenance of a house, a two-pronged problem emerges: the ability of young people to buy a house in Stockbridge and the ability of older people to hold onto their houses.

So, given the stats, exactly what is the housing problem we are trying to solve? Is it that we want younger people to be able to afford to buy houses? Do we want older folks to be able to afford to stay in their homes? Do we want folks of any age who work here to live here? Do we want to build adequate affordable housing or do we want to maintain low density? Can we do it all or do we have to choose?

Feel the Squeeze?

Unfortunately, the problems are inexorably linked. Affordable housing is subsidized housing. The difference between what an affordable house can be built for and what it can be sold for is paid for by our taxes. We know the cost of necessities is rising – gas, heat, food, medicine. With a median age of 69.1, incomes may be fixed. As all cost rise and taxes go up, we have to be careful not to price homeowners out of their homes in an effort to put others into a home.

Those who offer a quick fix, the magic bullet, and the best idea, are blind to the unintended consequences or wish us to be. Seasonal Communities designation was designed for and urged by the islands in Eastern Massachusetts. It doesn’t fit us very well. We have 900 square miles in Berkshire County, we are not limited in land mass or surrounded by water.

We do not have to choose between two things when we want both. For example, we don’t have to build affordable housing, we can renovate. We are awash in empty buildings and vacant houses. We can improve transportation so people can live and work further apart and still be Berkshire residents working in the Berkshires. We have time and we have choice.

Carole Owens
Executive Editor

by Carole Owens, Executive Editor

News

SU FYI

1. Berkshire Natural Resources Council (BNRC) needs our help. President Jenny Hansell says: “How you can help: Join BNRC in asking the Joint Committee on Ways and Means to maintain – and strengthen – Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) funding. Email Representative Sabadosa asking to reject cuts to DCR. In their next session March 10, 2026. Call your local representative and say “I am a constituent, and I care about our state parks.” Attend the Public Hearing via Zoom on March 11. You can sign up to speak or simply attend to signal your support. Learn more at Mass Parks for All blog for a detailed breakdown of the budget’s impact.
   Locally visit www.preservationinc.org and learn about our newest local effort to support land conservation and see Perspectives below.
   Hansell ends, “Let’s make sure the Commonwealth continues its proud history of taking care of our lands by speaking up for our state parks today.” 
2. Last summer, there were seven cases of Legionnaire’s disease at Berkshire Medical Center. Two of the seven died. 
3. Journalism Corner : Dedicated to Original Reporting
   Our earliest newspapers took great pride in taking a position; more than being objective. Early Berkshire County newspapers such as The Western Star, Stockbridge, 1789 to 1806, was Federalist; The American Centinel, Pittsfield, 1787 -, was avidly pro ratification of the Constitution. Being opinionated was considered a responsible part of reportage. You could buy a paper and read it. You could go to the tavern, pick the latest edition off a central table, read it, and return it to the table for others. Or, you could go to a public place, the same tavern or Town Square, and listen as it was read aloud. It was also true that newspapers announced their leanings. Often, right in the banner were the words like Republican, Federalist, and Independent. Those words heralded their position; readers were forewarned.
   
   The first Code of Ethics for journalism was written by the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) founded in 1922 to “promote excellence.” Excellence was defined by “fair, principled journalism [that] defends and protects First Amendment rights, and fights for freedom of information.“
   
   In 1926, The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) wrote its Code of Ethics based on ASNE. The code is a statement of principles more than a set of rules. It is a guide so that journalists take responsibility for the information they provide. Simply put the goal is to: seek truth and report it.
   
   Neither code eliminated opinion or analysis; both were still valued. The difference was that it was deemed fairer to the reader and more ethical professionally to divide and identify them. Objective, fact-based reporting was placed in a different section of the same paper from opinion and clearly identified usually with the word “opinion” or “editorial.” Still later it was determined more fair to express differing opinions in that section.
   
   The codes have been revisited multiple times as the context in which newspapers are written has changed. It can be more difficult or dangerous to report accurately and to express opinions or analyze events depending on context. Reporter can morph from hero to villain; face personal threats and legal consequences. In some circumstances, it is easier to compromise, but the responsibility does not change — seek truth and report it.
   
   Underlying all good news reporting is dedication to original reporting. If the newspaper presents a collection of submitted material from other sources, the reader cannot expect to receive well-rounded and full information as they have allegiance to their own party or mission. The newspaper and its allegiance must be to fully inform the public through original reporting.

News

From the Statehouse

By Christine Rasmussen

Relief From High Energy Bills

Has opening your energy bill become a task you dread? You are not alone. According to a new poll by the Massachusetts Chambers Policy Network, a consortium of state Chambers of Commerce, energy costs were consumers’ number one concern with a median monthly energy bill of $481, well above the national median of $347, making it one of the most expensive states for utilities.

Addressing this crisis, the House leadership enacted legislation that is expected to save MA ratepayers roughly $3 billion in the coming years, with some projections citing over $9 billion in savings over the next 10 years.

The legislation provisions include: The most controversial provision among lawmakers when the bill was debated on the House floor was the Democratic supermajority provision, which advances a $1 billion cut to an energy-efficiency program known as Mass Save, a program funded by ratepayers through a charge on utility bills. The measure cleared the House by a 128-27 vote. The cut to Mass Save is primarily aimed at its administrative, marketing, and advertising budget, and the bill orders an inspector general report on the program, due next year.

Other provisions in the bill are: Allowing smart solar permitting to get more projects online faster, but this may eliminate any local review in permitting. Removing barriers to nuclear energy by repealing Chapter 503 of the Acts of 1982, which established requirements for voter approval and legislative certification of any new nuclear power plant or any facility for the disposal or storage of low-level radioactive waste in the Commonwealth. Allowing high-voltage transmission lines on state highways.

Requiring labor peace agreements for geothermal energy projects to help support and create jobs, and adding prevailing wage requirements for work on thermal energy networks.

The legislation also creates a real-time, online retail residential customer bill assessment dashboard with explanations of customer bill components and analyses of the benefits of certain programs, procurements, and investments.

Requires distribution and gas companies to provide discounted rates for low-income and eligible moderate-income customers.

Requires that any standard residential default service rates cannot be changed more frequently than once every six months.

Protects consumers by restricting predatory marketing practices by competitive electric suppliers, eliminating automatic renewals and variable-rate contracts, requiring greater transparency, and establishing new licensing requirements for door-to-door and telemarketing firms.

Allows municipalities to opt out of competitive electric supply.

The House bill has now been moved to the Senate for debate, potential amendments, and passage, a process that may take several months, as this is only one of the pieces of legislation on our elected leaders’ plates, and with an April deadline for passing the state budget, that is at the forefront right now.

When the Senate enacts a bill, it is expected to differ from the House bill; so a “Conference Committee” is appointed to resolve the differences. The Conference Committee is a temporary group of three representatives and three senators. In practice, the report produced by this committee is almost always approved by the House and Senate. Finally, the bill proceeds with an enactment vote in both the House and the Senate, confirming the exact language that will become law, as agreed by both chambers. This vote completes the bill’s path through the legislature and sends it to the governor, who can sign it, veto it, or send it back to the legislature with amendments.

So, for now, there is no immediate relief from the large utility bills many families struggle to pay, but there is hope that next winter’s bills will be lower than this year’s.

On a personal note: both Erik and I appreciated all the good wishes. We are now both home and feeling stronger each day when we can be out and walk through our special village. Thank you. Stockbridge is indeed a special place. CR

by Christine Rasmussen

News

More from the Statehouse

1. The Mass Department of Revenue (DOR) is providing as estimate on the upcoming Community Preservation Trust Fund distribution, in time to help communities prepare their CPC grant recommendations to the 2026 Town Meeting for fiscal 2027. This is the second year DOR has produced the estimates early enough to help local planning. Th projection is for a 15.5% base match.

Communities with a local surcharge LESS THAN 3%:

When preparing their FY27 CPA budget, these communities should use the 15.5% figure to estimate their November 2026 trust fund distribution. To calculate the dollar figure for your community’s trust fund distribution, multiply your FY26 estimated CPA local surcharge revenue by 15.5%.

Cities and towns with a local surcharge of 3%:

In addition to the 15.5% match on round one, these communities will receive additional funding in rounds two and three of the CPA Trust Fund distribution. Consult with your DOR field representative and/or your municipal finance officials for assistance with estimating your total FY26 trust fund revenue. For additional information regarding the CPA budget process, click here to read our technical assistance article. 

• Each year Mass Wildlife, a division of the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game (DFG), restocks our lakes and rivers with fish. It is a practice that many believe is harmful because the fish are hatchery raised and non-native. It is estimated that 500,000 fish are released into waterways in 264 of the 315 municipalities in Massachusetts. Ironically, the practice may be putting native fish at risk.
  
• The Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) believes that there are better and healthier ways such as removing dams, reconnecting waterways, restoring natural cold-water streams and protecting forests.
  BEAT asks those who agree to contact MassWildlife and voice your opinion. 413-2684 1646 or DFG at 617-626-1550

News

Notes from the Select Board (SB), March 5, 2026, Hybrid meeting

At the last meeting, the Town Administrator, Michael Canales, went over the operating budget, and this meeting was focused on the capital budget.

He announced an overall increase in the budget of $600,000. The increase includes costs associated with the fire department, infrastructure repairs, and Town employee raises in salaries and cost of benefits. Canales explained, “The entire budget is basically a continuation of what we’ve been doing. Except for the significant expansion, as I’ve stated, in our Fire/EMS…the biggest changes are 8% in public safety and 8.4% in employee benefits.”

Requested education budget – $4,324,090. Combined costs will result in the overall increase of 4.5% over last year and a 2.24% increase in average tax bill.

The capital increases do not include the school building or the new firehouse. It does include:

$250,000 from free cash will be used for installation of solar panels on the DPW garage and freestanding solar panels near the water treatment plant. Cost will be offset by a. Use of Free Cash b. Grants for which Stockbridge is eligible as a “Climate Leader Community” c. future savings in cost of energy to the town.

Select Board Chair Jamie Minacci asked if these panels would result in savings on citizens’ electricity rates. Canales said no, but it would save on the Town’s.

Capital improvements also include roads and bridges, sewer and water.

5 year plan for road improvements was based on a consultant report “by a company.” The Commonwealth’s Chapter 90 Program provides funding to municipalities for local public infrastructure improvements. The amount allocated to each of the Commonwealth’s 351 towns is calculated using a formula based on road mileage, population, and employment. More information on a five-year plan will be provided at the next Select Board meeting.

Five bridges – Tuckerman Bridge, Averic Road Bridge, Mary Goodrich Footbridge, Curtisville Bridge, and the Glendale Bridge. The assessed cost of repairs is in the millions. They are in various stages of design and planning.

The sewer account will cover a high percentage of the cost of repairs needed. The Water account will not. Water use has gone down significantly – approximately $50,000/annually so the rate will be adjusted.

The meeting closed with 2 announcements: appointment of committee to evaluate the concept of a five-person Select Board – all nine seats were appointed with SB member Jorja Marsden as the committee’s ninth member, and the next Stockbridge Select Board meeting – Public Hearing continued on Elm Court — will be Thursday, March 12, at 6:30 p.m.

News

Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC) – Home Modification Loan Program (HMLP)

By Brett Roberts, Principal Planner

Under HMLP, Stockbridge residents are eligible for a variety of state-funded housing initiatives including the Home Modification Loan Program (HMLP). HMLP is a state-funded no-interest loan program to provide modifications to those in need of accessibility improvements or for those hoping to “age in place” in their community and home of choice. Eligible applicants include homeowners and landlords (with fewer than 10 units) with necessary changes needed to their homes to keep disabled or elderly family members in their own homes. Home held in a trust are eligible as well.

Possible modifications include bathroom and kitchen modifications, ramps, stair lifts, platform lifts, sensory/therapy spaces, hard-wired alarm systems, fences, accessory dwelling units, and more. Please note that this is not a home repair program; repairs to roofs, windows, and heating are not eligible. All work must be completed by licensed and insured contractors.

For property owners, 0% interest loans range between $1,000 and $50,000. No monthly payments are required, with repayment is required when the property is sold or transferred.

All applications are subject to HMLP eligibility requirements. The program income guidelines are based on household size and are generous. For example, a household of 2 can make up to $264,800 per year. For more information or eligibility questions, please visit www.cedac.org/hmlp or contact Brett Roberts at HMLP@berkshireplanning.org.

If you are interested in any other state-funded or state-sponsored housing programs or initiatives within Berkshire County including planning, CDBG housing rehabilitation, housing production, Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs), etc., please feel free to reach out to me, Brett Roberts, at broberts@berkshireplanning.org.

by Brett Roberts, Principal Planner

News

Notes from the Select Board Meeting (SB), March 12, 2026, Hybrid meeting

Public Hearing continued: Applicant Vanderbilt Berkshire Estate (VBE)(Elm Court)

The applicant presented information requested by the permitting authority and answered questions. For example, the thought put into lighting, conservation (expanses of wild flowers rather than grass), and a maximum size not to exceed 7500 square feet and built by each new owner (the average house size built in USA is 2500 sq. ft).

Questions from those attending followed. Although no questions were not answered during the hearing, each participant asked that their question be answered at some point. Questions and comments included: since Lenox is carrying some of the burden of the development – water and sewer – should Lenox receive some of the taxes paid and funds donated to affordable housing? Shouldn’t there be a fair agreement? Question asked about Elm Court actually being developed and not just flipped. Concern about stress placed on Lily Pond which is actually shrinking, and concern about the wildlife for which this undeveloped land is habitat, and more.

The SB continued the Hearing although SB had no further questions and made no further requests for information. The attorney for VBE, Joel Silverstein, questioned why if there were no further requests, they did not close the hearing and vote? Nonetheless SB voted to continue until March 26, 2026, 6:30pm.

Thank you

Watch Now!

Stockbridge Updates on TV: Lionel Delevingne

Events

Events

1. Good morning Carole,
   Please post…
   Mindful Drawing: Embodying the Shape and Rhythm of Sound at the Norman Rockwell Museum March 21, 1pm – 3pm
   This mindful drawing class invites you to immerse yourself in the shapes and rhythms of sound and playfully follow your imagination. Using pencil, crayons or pastels you’ll be led on a sonic journey by singer/songwriter/visual artist JoAnne Spies that strengthens your intuition, calls forth imagination and frees up your inner critic. The class will include a brief meditation, breath awareness and musical prompts. No drawing experience is needed. Free with Museum admission Readings at Rockwell: The Jazz Age Novel
   March 25 @ 6:00 pm EDT
   In partnership with The Mount, the Norman Rockwell Museum presents the Jazz Age Novel, a literary program organized in conjunction with the exhibition Jazz Age Illustration.
   The Jazz Age Novel will explore the work of three authors who critically examine the enormous cultural shifts that took place in America in the 1920s, including: F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby (1925) on the 100th anniversary of its publication; Edith Wharton’s Glimpses of the Moon (1922) chronicling the lives of American expatriates in Europe; and Nella Larsen’s Passing (1929) delving into the complexity of racial identity during the Harlem Renaissance.
   Each program will begin with a short talk about the author and the featured novel followed by dramatic reading of select passages by an actor or actors.
   ABOUT THIS PROGRAM
   Nella Larsen’s “Passing”
   Read by Sandra Seoane-Serí
   Introduced by Kristen Maye, Professor at Mount Holyoke College
   5:30 pm Jazz Age Illustration Exhibition open for viewing
   6 pm Reading at Rockwell in the Galleries
   $25; $20 for Members
   https://www.nrm.org/events/readings-at-rockwell-the-jazz-age-novel-3/
   Thank you! Betsy Kenney” 
2. Austen Riggs launches an Online Information Series for referrers, families, and prospective patients, Understanding the Austen Riggs Treatment Approach. Join for free. Click” https://www.austenriggs.org/admission/understanding-the-austen-riggs-treat 
3. Berkshire Botanical Garden: The Bulb Show, February 20-March 20
   CATA Art Exhibition, March 6-29
   Classes:
   Ready, Set, Grow: Starting Seeds for Plants, Saturday, March 14
   Go Big or Go Home: A Beginner’s Guide to Growing World-Class Giant Pumpkins, March 21
   Soup from Scratch with Tracy Hayhurst, March 21
   30 Favorite Trees and Shrubs for the Spring Garden, March 21
   Seed Starting Workshop for Families, March 21
   Landscape Design II, March 26-April 30
   Spring Equinox Meditation, March 28
   Spring Pruning of Woody Ornamental Plants, March 28 
4. Monument Mountain Regional High School Presents Hadestown
   Tony Award–winning musical Hadestown in the school theater for four performances: Thursday, March 12 at 7 PM; Friday, March 13 at 7 PM; Saturday, March 14 at 7 PM; and Sunday, March 15 at 2 PM.
   
   Winner of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Hadestown intertwines the mythic love stories of Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone. With a score inspired by folk, jazz, and blues, the show—featuring a talented student cast and crew—explores themes that are both evergreen and timely.
   “Hadestown asks big questions about fear, power, climate, economic struggle, and what happens when people lose hope,” says director Joshua Williams. Musical Director Sunhwa Reiner, Choreographer Maria Knox, and Set Designer John Hartcorn join Williams in delivering this vibrant theatrical experience.
   Performances will take place at Monument Mountain Regional High School, 600 Stockbridge Road in Great Barrington. Tickets are available at: https://monumentmusical.ludus.com/index.php
   Arts Brief
   Monument Mountain Regional High School will present the Tony Award–winning musical Hadestown in the school theater for four performances: Thursday, March 12 at 7 PM; Friday, March 13 at 7 PM; Saturday, March 14 at 7 PM; and Sunday, March 15 at 2 PM.
   Winner of eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Hadestown retells the mythic love stories of Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone through a score inspired by folk, jazz, and blues. The student production is directed by Joshua Williams.
   Performances take place at Monument Mountain Regional High School Theater, 600 Stockbridge Road, Great Barrington. Tickets: https://monumentmusical.ludus.com/index.php
   More information: Hannah Van Sickle, Communications Consultant Berkshire Hills Regional School District hannah.vansickle@bhrsd.org 
5. Berkshire Waldorf School proudly presents: “Little Women” this weekend at the Unicorn Theatre 6 East Street Stockbridge, Sunday, March 15, 2pm. Adapted by Kate Hamill’; directed by Kendell Shaffer, and Musical Direction by Edward Hamelrath. Tickets at the door. Suggested donation: $10 students, $25 adults, $60 families. For more information: office@berkshirewaldorf.com

Events

From the Desk of Senator Paul Mark

Carole, It’s great to once again have the opportunity to give an update on current events at the State House for Stockbridge Updates. Consideration of the state budget for Fiscal Year 2027 is underway and a number of important bills are coming to critical points of deliberation. One of these bills is an Environmental Bond Bill that will have a positive impact on protecting our natural resources here in the Berkshires.

Governor Healey proposed An Act to Build Resilience for Massachusetts Communities this session which seeks to authorize approximately $3 billion in funding for climate change adaptation, resiliency, and enhancement of recreational and natural assets. Some of the highlights include $587.5 million for parks and recreation facilities, $176.7 million for transportation infrastructure, $308.1 million for dam, flood control, and coastal infrastructure, $40 million for land acquisition and stewardship, $42 million for hazardous material removal, and $120 million to address PFAS contamination in water supplies.

Important bills like this go through several committee steps where changes are made and the important balance of spending in the most productive and efficient manner while achieving policy goals results in multiple versions of the bill before it can become law. The Senate is currently considering the bill and there are two important things I want to mention. First and foremost, I try to ensure that every bill that will become law helps us in the Berkshires, not just the people in eastern Massachusetts. Extremely important to making that happen is knowing about local projects that I can direct funding resources towards. If you have ideas on a local project that I should know about, please be in touch with my office.

I also want to ask for local support to include the language of my Climate Bank bill in the Environmental Bond Bill. The Climate Bank would be a self-sustaining institution that would potentially provide loans and grants for renewable energy projects and the development of green jobs. Home decarbonization, energy saving municipal projects, and forward thinking initiatives that will get us off reliance on foreign oil while providing local jobs are all possible targets for assistance through the Green Bank. Please be in touch directly if you want to help make this a reality for Massachusetts and the Berkshires.

As always, thank you for the opportunity to be your voice in the Senate. My full contact information is available at senatorpaulmark.com.

Best wishes, Paul

Perspective

Stockbridge Water Company: From Ice Glen to Lake Averic

By Rick Wilcox

Part Two

The Stockbridge Water company did well. As the population grew, they added a pipe at Ice Glen water source. They were careful to charge more for those who had bath tubs and livestock – as much as $13 annually for cattle and sheep. They were able to declare dividends to shareholders – as much a $3 per share. They had 93 customers and things were going well until June 19, 1884.

At the Annual Meeting of the Stockbridge Water Company, President Dr. Williams and the 5 elected directors voted that the directors be authorized to take such measures as they may deem best to obtain an additional Water Supply, and, if necessary to borrow the money to pay the expenses of the same. The meeting was then dissolved.

At a Town Meeting held May 16, 1890, a committee was formed to investigate and report upon the question of a water supply. The six-page report favored the use of Lake Averic for a water supply and suggested waterpower from the Stockbridge Bowl could be used to pump water to a reservoir on Rattlesnake Mountain at a height of 338 [feet] above the Stockbridge plain. The report went on to offer information as to the impact of the new system on the tax rate in relation to better fire protection and increased land values, especially the land of Mr. Allen Yale or Mr. D.D. Field. The report ended by stating: A Town meeting will be held on Saturday, August 2, 1890 at 2 o’clock P.M. to hear the report of the committee. It would be over 80 years before the town would acquire the Stockbridge Water Company Resolved that the Board of Directors be and hereby are empowered to make any contract or take any action which may be proper in their judgment to carry out the provisions of Act 430 of the laws of 1889 being an act authorizing the company to furnish additional water supply and otherwise to accomplish the purpose of the said act.

At a meeting of the Directors held June 27, 1891 there were present DR Williams, CH Plumb, & DA Kimball. Daniel R. Williams was elected President, Daniel A. Kimball was elected Treasurer, S. L. Aymar was elected Water Commissioner. The Treasurer’s report was read, accepted & ordered placed on file. Voted (to reimburse the Treasurer for sundry expenses for travel and hotel fares in the Company’s service since 1886, including expenses connected with the renewal of the company’s charter in 1890 and matters not already charged for.) to pay him $100 in full for such items to date. Voted that the President & Treasurer be authorized to contract with Mr. John Feeley, or any other party, for a well and pumping station and necessary connections with the company’s present system, also to extend the mains through Church Street; and the Treasurer is authorized to borrow on the Company’s note and credit an amount not over $5000 to pay for the same.

The annual meeting of June 28, 1890 on a motion it was voted: That DR Williams, President & DA Kimball, Treasurer be a committee authorized to sell to the Town of Stockbridge the franchise, Corporate property, and all the rights and privileges of the Stockbridge Water Co. under the provisions of Chapter 430 of the Acts of 1889 and all other laws of the Commonwealth as pertaining thereto: upon payment of the sums agreed upon to make the proper transfers. Such Committee to make report of its doings as soon as practicable after such sale. On October 12, 1891 at a meeting of the Directors, regularly called, there were present DR Williams, CH Plumb & DA Kimball – DR Williams in the chair. On a motion it was voted to authorize the President & Treasurer to take purchase or lease in behalf of the Company the real estate belonging to Stephen C. Curtis or any water rights owned by him or any other parties controlling or affecting the waters of Lake Averic, and to contract with parties for laying the pipe and doing all work necessary to bring the waters of the lake to the village of Stockbridge, or to employ anyone for that purpose. The Treasurer shall receive subscriptions to the preferred stock of the Company at par and is authorized to borrow on the credit of the Company not to exceed $20,000 to carry out this vote.

And so it was that the privately held Stockbridge Water Company moved closer to being a department of the Town and the water source moved from Ice Glen to Lake Aeric. It would be over 80 years before the town would acquire the Stockbridge Water Company

Editor’s notes: 1. Rick Wilcox to Carole Owens: Hi Carole, When I returned from Vietnam in 1971 the Stockbridge Water Company was owned by Edmund Wilcox, my father’s first cousin, who sold it to the town in the mid-1970s. 2. This piece is excerpted from over 10,000 words of brilliant research.

by By Rick Wilcox

Perspective

TAKE A LOOK 

www.preservationinc.org

By Carole Owens

To follow up on BNRC President Jenny Hansell’s appeal, maintenance of conserved land is increasingly expensive as the pressure to develop land also increases.

The pressure is not from developers only. The Commonwealth passed two laws in 2025 that make building on land easier and protecting it for agriculture, forestry, or recreation much harder.

The Clean Air Act encourages clear cutting and placement of thousands of solar panels and windmills. The plan is intended to decrease energy costs and use renewable energy, but it will also destroy the oxygen producers (trees) and deplete open space. Similarly, the Affordable Homes Act seeks to build thousands of houses to meet the need. Both acts remove local control over zoning – let me repeat that – remove local control and place it with the state to facilitate development. As our local Planning Board struggles with a plan to evaluate land conserved under Chapter 61, the state renders whatever they decide irrelevant as final decisions move from Stockbridge to Boston.

At the same time that private nonprofits seek more funding to protect what land they have amassed, some are giving land back to the Town of Stockbridge or limiting what they will accept even as a gift due to the costs of maintenance.

Our Town seems to be funding limitless services with limited resources. BPI was founded to lend a hand as all the laudable public and private organizations are under increased pressure.

Now preservation is not for everyone. Some would rather progress than preserve. But consider: those old buildings, the grounds of those estates, are the bases of our current economy. Unless we have something to replace it, we better preserve it. That land is our oxygen producers, habitats for other species, and scientists say, restore our mental and physical health. People knew that intuitively as they rushed to semi-rural communities in their flight to safety from COVID. Still, not for everyone. Some want us to plan the future not save the past. Maybe it is not an either/or. Perhaps we should consider all the arguments. Weigh them, and before we blanket our community with solar panels and tiny houses, lose trees it takes 100 years to replace, lose more clean air that we produce, perhaps we should consider the choices with the fewest consequences; that allow us to pause and see what comes next. The one thing you can depend upon is change. The predictions for that change include the population decreasing, the cost of all necessities increasing, and human needs for oxygen remaining unchanged.

by Carole Owens

The Last Word

Reader To Reader

Dear Carole,
Here is a letter I submitted to the Stockbridge Selectboard outlining my views on the special
permit application for the current Elm Court proposal. I hope you will print it.
My husband and I are fulltime Stockbridge residents who have lived on Old Stockbridge Road
near the Elm Court estate since 1998. We have watched the estate transition from an
abandoned, vandalized mansion to a family home – and now to a proposed massive resort
hotel. Twenty years ago, Robert Berle, the great-great grandson of the original owner, and his
wife, Sonya, asked the town to change the bylaw to permit a 18-room boutique hotel. We,
along with most others, voted at Town Meeting to allow this use. We were thankful that the
Berles were renovating the mansion, and we enjoyed some of the events that they graciously
hosted.
Unfortunately, they couldn’t make a go of it. In 2012 Amstar, AKA Front Yard, the new owner,
met with the Selectboard to write an amendment to the existing Cottage Era Estate bylaw that
would allow for a larger resort hotel.
This proposal included an Annex and Spa connected to the mansion by a corridor thereby
increasing the total size of the hotel to 110,000 square feet. No other buildings were
proposed. Most people thought the plan would entail just the one building.
The amendment passed but a special permit was still required. There was plenty of vocal and
written opposition. A letter objecting to the size of the project and its impact on our residential
neighborhood, and signed by 110 residents, was submitted. (see osrna.org for more
information) After three hearings, the Stockbridge selectboard voted for the proposal. Next
came special hearings in Lenox town boards. The proposal passed by one vote. But a group of
abutters and neighbors, incensed by the lack of communication between them and the town

boards, brought a lawsuit to Land Court. The suit was dismissed. But the developers, unable
to secure financing, never broke ground.
Fast forward to 2025. The current owners proposed a plan, actually much larger than the
original. Instead of a single new structure they propose building 12 hotel buildings and 38
individual houses which would be located on currently pristine land. These 50 separate
structures would require the destruction of hundreds of trees and the construction of hundreds
of feet of roads and driveways.
Before 2002, the Elm Court 89-acre property was subject to four-acre zoning under which only
17 new houses would be permitted. The purpose of 4-acre zoning was, and is, to help
preserve the rural character of the town while conserving open space. Similarly, the purpose of
the Bylaw was to preserve the historic architecture and landscape of our great estates by
allowing for adaptive reuse.
It is ironic that what started as a proposed boutique hotel might now become an oversized
resort and housing development. It could be appropriate in a suburban setting, but if allowed
would most certainly change the rural character of our town.
It is now over 11 years since the original special permit was passed. A lot has changed. This
new proposal needs to be carefully discussed by town residents and neighbors as well as
reviewed by our town boards and commissions.
Julie Edmonds – Stockbridge
 
Dear Carole,
Here is a letter to the Editor. I do hope it is in the nick of time.
In preparation for upcoming local elections League of Women Voters Central Berkshire County
has compiled a Local Election Schedule for your convenience
at http://lwvcentralberkshires.org/voter-info. Find information on dates for Town
Meeting, Town Election and the schedule of open seats, plus your Town Administrator, if you
need to make sure you are developing registered to vote.
We strongly encourage you to see what positions are open and consider volunteering to serve
in these critical roles that keep our communities strong.
LWV-CBC will be hosting candidate forums, where your community can meet the candidates
running for office. You can help us cover the many towns we serve in South and Central
Berkshire County by notifying us of any contested races and open seats where a forum would
be useful. Please contact us by email at lwvcentralberkshires@gmail.com.
Ramelle Pulitzer
Editor’s note: Ramelle is Chapter President, LWV Central Berkshire County
 
Carole,
Many thanks for Saturday’s article. The referenced locus – the Miraval property – has special
meaning to me as I was a Cranwell student and spent some formative years on that site.
Cheers, Andrew Weiss
 
To the Editor:
We live on Church Street and our neighbor recently forwarded a copy of the Stockbridge