ADAMS, Mass. — Taxes, roads, housing and economic development, and tourism were on the agenda at a candidate forum on Thursday.

 

The three candidates for two seats on the Board of Selectmen — Joseph Nowak, Jay Meczywor and Jerome Socolof — answered questions during the 90-minute forum at the former Firehouse Cafe.

 

It was hosted the Adams Democratic Committee and Adams Concerned Citizens, and recorded for Northern Berkshire Community Television. Peter Wagner was moderator and the questions were supplied or informed by residents.

 

Nowak is running for a sixth term on the board; Meczywor, chair of the Finance Committee, is making his first run for office and Socolof his second. Incumbent Richard Blanchard declined to run again. 

 

The candidates mostly agreed on the town's needs but varied on the solutions. 

 

They concurred that road conditions and a high tax rate are concerning, but noted the difficulties of making changes when there's been little growth and high poverty. 

 

"Ultimately, the roads have to be a top two or three priority in Adams," said Socolof. "If we want to pursue economic growth, if we want to bring people here, to continue to develop new housing opportunities, if we want people to come to Adams, either as a destination for a vacation or relocation effort ... all of that is going to be contingent upon addressing the caliber of the roads."

 

Long-term solutions will be dependent on advocating for more state funding, especially getting an equitable amount from the Fair Share act, he said. 

 

Nowak said infrastructure is important but tends not to be a "sexy subject" and intimated that focusing on short-term items that make the town look good catches up with you in the end. 

 

"I voted against the paver that we bought," he said, referring to last year's purchase of a $147,000 paver out of Chapter 90 road funds. "I think the money could have been spent more more properly. ... I've never been able to get a breakdown of how much money we saved with this paver."

 

Meczywor noted that a road grading study done last fall estimated $20 million to fix everything. 

 

"We're not in the worst shape in the county, but we're in pretty dire straits, and we need to continue to work on it," he said. "How do we get the money out this way? These guys nailed it. It's talking to the state representatives. It's talking to the people in Boston and making sure that they come to Berkshire County, and they see what the situations that we have out here. We can't do it alone. We need the state to help us out, and we need to invest wisely."

 

As Finance chair, he assured the audience that the annual budgets are "scrutinized" but the only way to sustainability is new growth. 

 

"We want to do what's best for people ... rates are high because of the lack of new growth," he continued, asking them to consider $10 of their taxes breaks down to $3.60 for education, $4.10 for personnel and benefits, and another dollar for debt. "You're not left with a lot of money in the operating budget. Unfortunately, now that has to go to the Police Department, the DPW, whatnot, the wastewater treatment plant. There's not a lot of money left over."

 

Adams currently has the 23rd highest residential and 37th highest commercial rates in the state, but has the 26th lowest average tax bill in the state at $4,067. That's still higher than 13 other Berkshire communities.

 

Socolof agreed that higher property values and growth would translate to lower tax rates. He proffered a short-term solution in charging users for the wastewater treatment plant separately and long term in making a strategic capital plan rather than attacking problems piecemeal.  

 

"It's not as though the money would necessarily be tremendously less, however, like electricity, like your water bill, moving to a user fee [for wastewater] would allow you to shift to what you're paying not based on how much your house is worth, but based on a reflection of what you actually use," he said, and "planning to build toward something allows us to consolidate and orient our efforts so that we can have things popping up in concert with each other in a way that is sustainable and will build sustainable long-term growth."

 

Nowak said he's voted against the tax rate going up for the past three years, and feels the board needs to "really step back and look at this community, with the number of employees we have, how we're doing things to be more efficient."

 

"I'm going to do my best, and I voted against the tax increases, because I don't think we're doing enough as a community to cut and make things more livable and at a reasonable cost," he said. 

 

Affordable housing is an issue but there wasn't a lot the Select Board could do other than encouraging and supporting efforts, they said. Socolof thought the town could seek legislative help to offer tax incentives for residential investments that are only available to gateway cities, Nowak suggested tiny houses and Meczywor applying for grants. 

 

Blight was an issue that they agreed the town could have some impact on by pushing for more aggressive code enforcement, seeking resources for landlords and homeowners to keep up their properties, and communicating with property owners. 

 

They did not believe the long-held assumption that the town discourages new business, with Nowak pointing out how often new ventures come before the board thanking the Community Development Office for its guidance. However, they did feel there were ways it could be "friendlier" and further streamline pathways to opening.

 

One possibility was creating an economic development position, a question posed to the candidates in terms of how to more aggressively market the town. 

 

Socolof said the community development director has been framed as a grant writer and administrator and it may be time to re-evaluate that position rather than adding on another salaried post.

 

"I very much agree that is a role that we need to fill. And I think the fact that we're actually in the process of hiring a development director provides us a relatively natural opportunity to do so without greatly expanding cost in town," he said. 

 

Nowak said he had "mixed feelings" about more marketing because of the number of ventures that have come into the town with nothing to show years later. 

 

"We have to show that we're a place where people want to come," he said. "We have to make our town look better before people will want to come in, into this community."

 

The town could tap into the Economic Development Fund rather than adding another salary, said Meczywor, but he leaned more toward the concept of a small business advisory council that could work with business and promote the town, and less costly social media. 

 

"I think the town of Adams can build on the social media aspect and its presence for the community and going forward, hopefully we can market the town in a way that people would want to come here," he said. 

 

One of those marketable aspects is the Greylock Glen, which they all agreed with take a few years at least to become sustainable. They also questioned whether further development like a lodge or amphitheater was appropriate now, with Socolof saying, "I think that might be a bit excessive."

 

Nowak, who retired from state Department of Recreation and Conservation, wondered if it would be more a propos to keep the glen in its natural state, rather than further development, but acknowledged "I'm also aware that we need some type of economic stimulus in this community. So it's really a juggling act."

 

Meczywor said it was imperative to get contracts signed and tenants in the Outdoor Center, but he was open to hearing what the citizens wanted and "hopefully we can come up with a strong, sustainable solution for the Greylock Glen." 

 

The candidates were also asked to give some examples of how they were able to win others over to their side and where they had split with the majority. 

 

Nowak, who's served on a number of civic boards, told how he had tried to explain the federal Farmlands of Local Importance program to his fellow board members, who declined to support it over fears it would lock up too much land. He went to the Aggie Commission, which reviewed and recommended it, and it was then approved unanimously by the board. 

 

Socolof, associate professor in arts management at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, recalled how he had been able to bring the factions of a financially fragile Vermont nonprofit together over three days to find a sustainable way forward. 

 

Meczywor, a physical therapist, joked he had to convince "people every day to exercise." But he had a better illustration of when he'd been on Student Advisory Council for a physical therapy program and had been able to explain to professors why an aspect of the curriculum wasn't working — and the program was changed. 

 

Nowak said he'd veered from his colleagues at town meeting to vote for movement on a Greylock Glen commission; Meczywor said he would support using Chapter 90 funds on road rather than equipment, and Socolof referred to allegations made at a Selectmen's meeting against a town employee who was approved in a new position, saying he would have voted to table until they could be investigated. 

 

The annual town election is Monday, May 5, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Memorial Building.