The Williamstown Select Board met on Sept. 27 to discuss the implementation of Article 37 and the ongoing search process for a permanent Town manager. Article 37 is a citizen’s petition — passed during the August 2020 Town Meeting — that aims to promote racial and socioeconomic equity within Town government.

Over the summer, the Select Board hosted Berkshire County District Attorney Andrea Harrington to answer Town residents’ questions about policies concerning police officers who have committed or been accused of committing misconduct. The board also confirmed new members to the DIRE committee and announced plans to release the findings of an investigation into WPD misconduct.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a national civil rights organization that focuses on racial justice, published a letter on Monday calling for the removal of Officer Craig Eichhammer from the WPD for the officer’s display of a photograph of Adolf Hitler in his station locker.

WPD Officer Craig Eichhammer admitted in 2011 to misconduct involving a civilian and to lying about it during an investigation, and he remained on the force with apparently minimal punishment, according to a document obtained by the Record this week through a public records request.

A wildfire burned nearly 1,000 acres over the weekend, tearing across East Mountain, Pine Cobble, and Clarksburg State Forest to become the largest fire in Massachusetts since 1999.

At the Select Board’s May 10 meeting, Interim Town Manager Charles Blanchard announced that after receiving six applications, he had chosen Acting Williamstown Police Department (WPD) Chief Mike Ziemba as interim police chief. 

Jeff Johnson and Wade Hasty defeated Tony Boskovich ’74 and Albert Cummings IV after a hotly contested campaign in yesterday’s double-header Select Board election. Johnson and Hasty were informally aligned in a progressive-leaning slate that emphasized the need for racial justice in the Town.

As Election Day fast approaches, the Record spoke with three Select Board candidates, as well as local advocates and activists, to better understand the dynamics of two races that will define the Town government for years to come.

The owners of the now-closed Sweet Brook Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Williamstown reached a settlement last month of $110,000 with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts after repeated allegations of failure to care for residents.

The Select Board reviewed proposed articles in the draft warrant that will be presented at the annual Town meeting on June 8. The board also heard updates on the searches for the permanent town manager and interim police chief.

After a turbulent year for Williamstown marked by reports of police misconduct, the continued hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the resignation of several Town officials, Williamstown voters will go to the polls on May 11 to vote for two new members of the Williamstown Select Board alongside several other local races.

The Williamstown CO2 Lowering (COOL) Committee is pushing the Town to adopt its Net Zero Resolution, which calls for action to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions and begin implementing a comprehensive climate action plan by 2023.