Letter: Vote No on Oct. 8 Proposition 2 1/2 Exclusion

To the Editor:

North Adams voters have an important decision to make on Oct. 8. Will we approve a Proposition 2 1/2 exclusion authorizing a 30-year increase above real estate tax limits to fund the city's share of the cost to build a new elementary school? Or will voters decide there are other, more fiscally responsible options available?

While a new school would be nice, it's not that simple. Many North Adams residents live paycheck-to-paycheck. Others are limited to the amount of their monthly Social Security check to try to make ends meet. For homeowners, the additional tax will be a hardship. For renters, landlords will pass along the increase, raising rents when we already lack affordable apartments.

Even for those who could absorb the additional tax, approving the Proposition 2 1/2 exclusion would be a mistake. North Adams has other major expenses looming on the horizon.

North Adams needs a new fire/police station. NAPD now rents space. Our Fire Department remains in a building suffering from far too many ills to fix. They deserve better. The time is rapidly approaching when North Adams will no longer be able to put off building a new public safety facility. Another Proposition 2 1/2 vote.

Deborah Benoit
North Adams, Mass. 

North Adams Takes Possession of Historic Church Street Houses

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:30PM / Tuesday, April 22, 2025

The porch collapsed on 116 Church several years ago. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The state Land Court in February finalized the city's tax taking of four properties including the brick Church Street mansions.

 

The prestigious pair of Queen Anne mansions had been owned by Franklin E. Perras Jr., who died in 2017 at age 79. 

 

The properties had been in court for four years as attempts were made repeatedly to find Perras' heirs, including a son, Christopher. According to court filings, Christopher reportedly died in 2013 but his place of death is unknown, as is the location (or existence) of two grandchildren listed in Perras' obituary. 

 

Mayor Jennifer Macksey said the next steps will be to develop requests for proposals for the properties to sell them off. 

 

She credited Governor's Councillor Tara Jacobs for bringing the lingering tax takings to the Land Court's attention. Jacobs said she'd asked about the status of the properties and a few days later they were signed off. 

 

It wasn't just the four North Adams properties — the cases for three Perras holdings in Lanesborough that also had been in the court for years were closed, including Keeler Island. Another property on Holmes Road in Hinsdale is still in the court.  

 

The buildings at 116, 124 and 130 Church St., and a vacant lot on Arnold Place had been in tax title since 2017 when the city placed $12,000 in liens.