Dalton Fire District Annual Meeting May 12

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
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DALTON, Mass. — Fire District voters will convene Tuesday to vote on several funding articles, including a borrowing request to purchase property on Flansburg Avenue.
 
The annual meeting warrant contains 25 articles, including an $895,232 operating budget for the water department and a $1,763,008 operating budget for the fire department and ambulance service for fiscal year 2027. 
 
The district is requesting voters authorize the borrowing up to $350,000 for the purchase and related costs associated with acquiring 30-32 Flansburg Ave. 
 
The district is also seeking to establish a stabilization fund, along with requests to transfer $287,205 in ambulance user fees and $90,000 in FY24 free cash into the account.
 
There is a request for the appropriation of $2,500 for 50 percent match for the state Department of Conservation and Recreation’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant for the purchase of forest fighting equipment. 
 
Request to appropriate:
  • $6,000  for a copier machine 
  • $107,480 to pay the principal and interest of the ambulance loan
  • $356,429 to pay the principal and interest of district loans 
  • $12,999 for an audit for fiscal year 2026 for the period ending July 20 2026 
  • $20,000 for the administration reserve contingencies account
  • $50,000 for the water department’s contingencies account
  • $50,000 for the fire department reserve contingencies account 
  • $30,000 for a 5 percent match for the federal Assistance to Firefighters Grant.
  • $32,800 for the timber maintenance account 
  • $6,126 for the Board of Water Commissioners compensation
  • $199,506 for district administration 
  • $17,500 for FY27 water bills account 
  • $11,000 for the town of Dalton support fee 
  • $10,000 for the town of Dalton dispatch fee 
  • $50,000 to fund Other Post Employment Benefits 
  • $3,5000 for FY27 GASB 45 report 
  • $10,000 for FY27 Municipal Financial Consulting fees 

Tags: annual meeting,   fire district,   town meeting 2026,   

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Lanesborough OKs Open Space Plan, Short-Term Rental Forms

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The Select Board on Monday set fees for short-term rentals and adopted an Open Space and Recreation Plan.
 
Town Administrator Gina Dario discussed the draft for STR registration and certificate of inspection since the new bylaws were passed at the annual town meeting.
 
The draft shows the process to file for inspection through Permit Eyes, the town's online permitting system that includes the state building code and safety requirements. Dario said members of the Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals and the building commissioner looked at other town models to come up with the best process for registration.
 
Inspections will be annually for non-owner occupied units and five years for owner-occupied. The inspection fee is a flat $50. The last suggestion discussed was the posting requirements for key information.
 
Dario said they looked at about four other communities on how they used non-sensitive information on owner contacts. Chair Deborah Maynard motioned to have the information posted both inside and out to help with law enforcement if needed.
 
"I'm going to make a motion that we put that relevant information not only on the inside of the short-term rental but on the outside, so if the police need to respond, ambulance needs to respond, fire especially needs to respond, all that information is there, nobody has to go searching for it," she said. "If push comes to shove, and it's a matter of minutes, that's going to make a big, a big difference in the outcome of the incident."
 
The board then heard a presentation from Berkshire Regional Planning Commission's community planner Andrew McKeever and Open Space and Recreation Committee Vice Chair Mark Hawthorne.
 
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