Lanesborough Planning Deliberates Sign & STR Bylaws

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Planning Board is a step closer to finishing draft bylaws for short-term rentals (STR) and signage to be voted at the annual town meeting.

The planners took up the bylaws  after contentious interpretations by the town of the existing signage bylaw and over the lack of STR regulations. 

They started work on the drafts in February but some elements were tabled for this month's meeting, held last week. 

They first rewrote the parking at a rental to three or more rooms must have three spaces and two or fewer rooms having two spots.

The board debated on the definition section, which was tabled last month. After some deliberation, members decided to remove a requirement for all short-term rentals to prominently display signage containing the owners' name, property address, 24-hour contact information for the property manager, and legal occupancy limit of the building.

Member Joe Trybus argued that the enforcer, Building Commissioner Brian Duval, should be the contact and that owners shouldn't have their information out there for anyone to contact.

They also discussed the registration and inspection sections, rewording and adding some language to state: All operators of short-term rentals shall register with the town clerk, who shall maintain a registry of all approved STRs in the town of Lanesborough, and may set reasonable fees for maintenance of registry applications for registrations shall include the following, owner name and property address, local property management and contact information, copy of currently valid STR certificate of registration with Massachusetts Department of Revenue, copy of current valid certificate of inspection from the building commissioner.

Chair Courtney Dondi said she agreed the town should be the one to decide on the fees.

The members debated how they should write the ownership and entity limits. Trybus argued that non-owner occupied buildings would be limited to one STR in a residential zone while Leanne Yinger thought it should be based on units, not the building.

The board determined an owner-occupied property in a residential zone could rent all units on that property short-term, though there were  couple no votes on this.

It also finished the purpose and intent section stating: This section regulates short-term rentals, STRs of residential properties in a way that clarifies where these uses are allowed in Lanesborough and regulates them in a manner that retains the character and safety of neighborhoods and the community while preserving an important resource for the local tourism dependent business community. 

Members plan to review these new changes with the expectation of finalizing them on April 13.

The board had also discussed signage bylaws at the last meeting and completed language on the sizes and limits.

There will be one banner per business that must be attached to the building. The total banner area must not exceed 25 percent of the street-facing façade. 

Open, closed, and  menu signs will be explicitly allowed as part of normal business signage and businesses can only have one sandwich board (A-frame) sign. These will be a max of 36 inches high and a max 12 square foot of the total area.

One feather flag would be allowed per business with a maximum size of 12-feet high and 3-feet wide. Inflatable tube men will not be allowed.

Community Meeting Addresses Prejudice in Pittsfield Schools

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:49PM / Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Johanna Lenski, a special education surrogate parent and advocate, says there's a 'deeply troubling' professional culture at Herberg that lets discriminatory actions and language slip by.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Around 60 community members gathered at Conte Community School on Monday night to discuss issues with prejudice in the district. 

The event was hosted by the Pittsfield Public Schools in partnership with the Berkshire NAACP and the Westside Legends. It began with breaking bread in the school's cafeteria, and caregivers then expressed fears about children's safety due to bullying, a lack of support for children who need it the most, and teachers using discriminatory and racist language. 

"One thing I've learned is that as we try to improve, things look really bad because we're being open about ways that we're trying to improve, and I think it's really important that we acknowledge that," interim Superintendent Latifah Phillips said, reflecting on her work in several other districts before coming to PPS last summer.  

"It is very easy to stay at the surface and try to look really good, and it may look like others are better than us, when they're really just doing a better job of just kind of maintaining the status quo and sweeping things under the carpet."

Brett Random, the executive director of Berkshire County Head Start, wrote on her personal Facebook page that her daughter reported her math teacher, "used extremely offensive language including both a racial slur (n-word) and a homophobic slur (f-word) and then reportedly tried to push other students to repeat those words later in the day when students were questioning her on her behavior."

The school department confirmed that an eighth-grade teacher at the middle school was placed on leave.  

The Berkshire Eagle, which first reported on the incident, identified the teacher as Rebecca Nitsche, and the teacher told the paper over the phone, "All I can tell you is it's not how it appears." Nitsche told the paper she repeated the words a student used while reporting the incident to another teacher because officials needed to know it happened. 

Johanna Lenski, speaking as a special education surrogate parent and parent advocate, on Monday said there is a "deeply troubling" professional culture at Herberg that has allowed discriminatory, racist, non-inclusive, and ableist treatment of students.

She said a Black transgender student was called a "piss poor, punk, puke of a kid," and repeatedly and intentionally misgendered by one of the school's teachers, and then wrongfully accused of physically assaulting that teacher, which resulted in a 10-day suspension. 

Another Herberg student with disabilities said the same staff member disclosed to an entire classroom that they lived in a group home and were in state Department of Children and Families' custody. When the teacher was asked to come to an individualized education program meeting for that student, Lenski said he "spent approximately 20 minutes attacking this child's character and portraying her as a problem, rather than a student in need of services and protection and support."