Select Board Greenlights Three Complete Streets Safety Projects for State Grant Application

WEST STOCKBRIDGE -- August 21, 2023, West Stockbridge Select Board unanimously advances three Complete Streets safety projects toward a state grant application with an October 1 deadline. The board authorized submission of intersection improvements at Swamp Road and Main Street, including a relocated crosswalk, safety bollards, and new pavement markings estimated at $54,000, along with additional speed-feedback signs and a Depot Street parking lot pedestrian enhancement, drawing on a pre-approved $500,000 state Transportation Bond Bill grant. Residents along Pixley Hill Road arrived in force to oppose a rail-trail project but were told that item, ranked last among the town's 15 Complete Streets proposals, was not among those being advanced. The board also approved two one-day liquor licenses for Turnpark Art Space, unanimously passed a resolution honoring West Stockbridge Zucchini Festival volunteers led by Cultural Council Chair Marjorie Powell, and appointed Molly Meador to the Library Board of Trustees. A motion to extend the Affordable Housing Trust nomination deadline failed for lack of a second, with Member Tobias Casey citing process integrity: "When you set a goal, you don't move the goal line."