Letter: North Adams Parking Survey

To the Editor:

I am inviting North Adams residents and visitors to take part in a citizen-developed survey about parking in our city. As a new resident, I was surprised to learn about the winter nighttime parking ban only after receiving a ticket. My appeal was denied, despite the fact that the ban was not proactively communicated. Information online is scattered, and enforcement dates appear inconsistent. In five other Massachusetts communities where I have lived, I never encountered a total winter parking ban.

Conversations with neighbors and local friends suggest that communication failures are a recurring issue for drivers here. From parking meters without posted enforcement hours, to Mass MoCA event parking, to the winter overnight ban, residents and visitors alike are left confused. To encourage better communication, I believe tickets issued without clear notice should be waived. With the city already investing in CodeRed alerts and maintaining a downtown marquee, it should not be difficult to keep drivers informed of parking rules.

I know I'm just one person with a limited view of the bigger picture. That's why I'm hoping this survey will collect a wide range of experiences and ideas. I'll share the results with City Council so we can push for clearer communication and better parking policies. Please take a few minutes to fill it out and make sure your voice is heard.

The parking survey can be found here. 

Elizabeth Neiderman
North Adams, Mass. 

Clarksburg Students Write in Support of Rural School Aid

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
07:25AM / Sunday, March 15, 2026

Mason Langenback calculated that Clarksburg would get almost $1 million if the $60 million was allocated equally.

CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Eighth-graders at Clarksburg School took a lesson in civic advocacy this week, researching school funding and writing letters to Beacon Hill that call for fulling funding rural school aid. 

 

The students focused on the hardships for small rural schools and their importance to the community — that they struggle with limited funding and teacher shortages, but offer safe and supportive spaces for learning and are a hub for community connections.

 

"They all address the main issue, the funding for rural schools, and how there's a gap, and there's the $4 million gap this year, and then it's about the $40 million next year, and that rural schools need that equitable funding," said social studies teacher Mark Karhan.

 

A rural schools report in 2022 found smaller school districts cost from nearly 17 percent to 23 percent more to operate, and recommended "at least" $60 million be appropriated annually for rural school aid. 

 

Gov. Maura Healey has filed for more Chapter 70 school aid, but that often is little help to small rural schools with declining or static enrollment. For fiscal 2027, she's budgeted $20 million for rural schools, up from around $13 million this year but still far below the hoped for $60 million. 

 

Karhan said the class was broken into four groups and the students were provided a submission letter from Rural Schools Advocacy. The students used the first paragraph, which laid out the funding facts, and then did research and wrote their own letters. 

 

They will submit those with a school picture to the governor.