Great Barrington Community Preservation Committee Meeting - November 12, 2025

On November 12, 2025, the Community Preservation Committee met to review Community Preservation Act (CPA) funding applications. The chair said the committee would not discuss the merits of the 16 applications and would only decide whether to advance them to step-two consideration. The transcript covers 12 applications before ending mid-sentence. No public comment period was held; all members were present except Mr. Gila, who was excused.

Opening and Administrative Items

• The chair announced 16 applications and said all step-two paperwork must be returned by the stated deadline; the transcript reads "December 50," likely a transcription error for an early-December date.
• The minutes of the October 14 meeting were approved unanimously.

Applications Advanced to Step Two

• Old Maids Park design and engineering ($50,000) - Town planning staff described this as similar to earlier CPA-funded survey work, including rights-of-way, property lines, and wetlands, to inform future community decisions. An NDP grant funds only community outreach over the next six to twelve months, not the engineering and design work. Motion to advance was approved unanimously.
• Playground improvement - Parks staff described conversations about improving the playground/basketball court, aligning courts, possibly squaring the playing surface, and painting it as a multi-purpose surface. Advanced.
• Olympian Meadows fence replacement - There are three fields at that location; the middle field's fence is deteriorated and rusted, and the backstop remains fine. Advanced.
• Fabric shade sails at Housatonic and the Skate Park - Parks staff said park users had requested shade for years and that planting trees would take about 15 years to provide shade. The request includes engineering and a PE-stamped design; a member clarified the shade structure would be on an adjacent grass area, not over the skating surface. Advanced.
• Unitarian Universalist Meeting roof, third phase - The applicant said two of three roof phases had been funded and completed in September, and this request covers the third phase plus related exterior restoration work from 2024-2025. The chair said she would want to know about other funding at step two. Advanced.
• W.E.B. Du Bois Center foundation and water remediation - The center is a National Register site behind the Berkshire Bank parking lot. This third phase of stabilization would raise the building 24 inches, pour a new foundation because a structural engineer found the existing stone foundation insufficient, and address water issues; permits have been obtained. Advanced.
• 1100 Main Street exterior work - A representative described a mixed-use building with deteriorating exterior material and window issues; replacement and restoration options are being reviewed. Advanced.
• Brown Mausoleum roof - Applicants said a previous $20,000 allocation was rescinded after the town established ownership and no heirs were found; the earlier roof quote was about $41,000-$42,000, and the chair noted the current request was for $65,000. Advanced.
• Element Cemetery monuments (conditional) - The project was not yet eligible because the local Historic Commission had not voted; the committee conditionally advanced it to step two pending that commission's determination. One member voted no. In discussion, a member questioned whether resetting fallen stones is maintenance rather than preservation, and others noted other towns have used CPA funds for historic burial grounds.

Applications Determined Ineligible

• Indoor basketball hoops - The committee found the project ineligible because CPA funds outdoor recreation, not indoor recreation, and voted not to consider it.
• Community-center bleachers - The committee similarly treated this as an indoor facility ineligible for CPA funds and voted not to consider it.

Cemetery Finance Discussion

• While discussing cemetery requests, cemetery representatives and committee members reviewed perpetual care and lot-sale accounts. Perpetual care principal cannot be spent; interest generates only about $1,000-$2,000 per year.
• The perpetual care account is $272,000, invested at 0.0097, and has lost about $45,000 in purchasing power since 2020.
• One cemetery representative supported moving perpetual-care funds into the lot-sales account so the money could be used for projects. Another speaker argued that Great Barrington residents with perpetual-care funds in other cemeteries should not have to make up for Mahaiwe Cemetery's historical failures and supported using perpetual-care funds for repairs.
• Officials also described plans to remove unused cemetery roads and resell the areas as lots because plots on both sides of those roads have been filled.

Mason Library Exterior Painting Discussion

• The transcript ends during discussion of the Mason Library exterior painting application. A member questioned whether painting a historic building is maintenance, and another noted work on the widows walk and cupola. No vote is recorded because the transcript ends.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes of October 14 approved unanimously.
• Advanced to step two: Old Maids Park, playground improvement, Olympian Meadows fence, shade sails, Unitarian Universalist roof, W.E.B. Du Bois Center, 1100 Main Street, Brown Mausoleum, and Element Cemetery monuments (conditionally, with one no vote).
• Did not advance: indoor basketball hoops and community-center bleachers, both found ineligible under CPA.
• The committee directed applicants to return step-two paperwork by the stated December deadline.
• The meeting transcript is cut off before a vote on Mason Library painting.