Letter: Re-Elect Christine Hoyt in Adams

Letter to the Editor02:00PM / Wednesday, April 22, 2026Print Story | Email Story

To the Editor:

The financial health of the Town of Adams has improved greatly in the nine years since Christine Hoyt was elected to the Board of Selectmen, and I am voting for her re-election so that Adams will continue to benefit from her expertise.

Here are two examples of better financial management during Christine's tenure on the board.

Our Stabilization Fund has increased by 264 percent. The Stabilization Fund is the state's name for what is considered a savings account for rainy days. When Christine was first elected in 2017, the Stabilization Fund had only $331,968 in it. For the past nine years, Christine has supported fiscal policy that resulted in a Stabilization Fund certified in July 2024 at $1,207,110.

Our residential tax rate has decreased by 27 percent, from $21.37 when Christine was elected in 2017 to $15.63 in 2026. Adams' commercial, industrial, and personal property tax rate has gone down by 12 percent, from $24.55 to $21.51 over that period. Christine has contributed to the decrease in the rate by supporting level-service budgets and conservative budgeting. I know that increases in property values have meant increases in tax bills, but they would have been worse had the rates remained higher.

If she is re-elected, Christine supports a plan to further help the tax rate by addressing the inequity that causes some taxpayers who do not live within the Adams Fire District to pay taxes to support the wastewater treatment plant. Implementing a sewer-use fee means that those taxpayers will no longer pay for sewer services they can't use. And, the fee would allow the town to recoup costs for sewer use by nonprofit properties that don't pay for the sewer services they use because they don't pay property taxes.

Please join me in voting for Christine Hoyt on May 4 so that she can continue working on behalf of our town.

Dianne M Cutillo
Adams, Mass.

Tags: election 2026, town elections,

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After More Than a Century, Heating Failure Puts Adams Turners' Future at Risk

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
07:20AM / Sunday, September 27, 2026

ADAMS, Mass. — For more than a century, generations have gathered for dances, community gatherings and bowling at Turn Hall, but that longtime tradition is now in jeopardy after the building's aging heating system failed.

The Adams community is known for rallying behind local people and organizations in times of need, and now Adams Turners is asking for that same support said Gail Burda, the group's financial secretary.

The boiler, referred to as "the Beast" by board members, is as old as the building itself, which was constructed in 1902. It started out burning coal, was later switched to oil and then to gas President Virginia Fuller said.

For several years, the nonprofit social club, a 501(c)7, has struggled with the aging system, with members periodically checking on it throughout the day during the winter to ensure it was still operating, she said.

Now, "the Beast" has reached the end of its life but the Adams Turners don't have the funding to replace it, prompting them to establish a GoFundMe.

At the time of writing, the GoFundMe has raised $1,750 and members have donated more than $2,500 toward the $30,000 needed to secure an additional $25,000 grant and $25,000 loan from American Turners, the national organization under which the club operates.

The nonprofit hopes to hire a contractor to install a multi-zone hydronic system, a project estimated to cost $81,443. The work would include new heating systems for the apartment, bar area, gym and bowling alley, along with new baseboards, gas lines, permits and other necessary fittings.

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