The candidates set up prior to the debate at MCLA's Church Street Center on Monday night. Kate Merrigan and Nancy Bullett, right, are at the end of the table.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — There was a lot more agreement than disagreement at Monday night's City Council candidate forum at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts' Church Street Center.
Still, nine of the candidates running for council broached a broad range of questions during the 75-minute forum.
Seven of the incumbents appeared — Eric Buddington, Wayne Wilkinson, Lisa Blackmer, Joshua Moran, Benjamin Lamb, Kate Hanley Merrigan and Nancy Bullett — as did challengers Robert Moulton Jr. and Joseph P. Gniadek. Candidates Ronald A. Boucher and Robert Cardimino were unable to attend; Boucher had a brief statement read and Cardimino sent a message saying the budget would be his top priority if elected. Incumbent Keith Bona did not attend.
The candidates were asked specific questions by MCLA students Zoe Schwartz and Kate Rowell, members of professor J. Benjamin Taylor's local politics class that sponsored the debate. Classmate Zac Furey was the moderator; the Berkshire Eagle's Adams Hinds and iBerkshire's Tammy Daniels also participated.
In regard to their specific questions, Buddington, running for a second term, said he supported the proposed bike path and while believing the running it through the Greylock neighborhood was a good choice, supported a new route along the highway or river after residents objected. He also supports greater governmental transparency primarily through posting documents such as board minutes, contracts, budgets, and salaries online.
Wilkinson, also running for a second term, said it was important to look at the tax situation and find constructive ideas to lower the burden on residents. He also thought the Armory will be a "perfect building for youth activities," and believed non-sports programs, such as chess and computers, should be offered.
Blackmer, current council president and running for a fourth term, said the tax base needed to be expanded. She felt the council under her direction had been very active over the past two years, especially since it had been made up of very new members. "I'd like to see that kind of activity continue," she said. "No matter who is the president, who is the mayor, or who is on the City Council."
Moran, running for a second term, spoke to his efforts to see the city designated as an Appalachian Trail Community, one of only two in Massachusetts. That and the bike path were both good marketing for the city and attractive to young people looking for an affordable place to live. "I think things are heading in that direction when people kind of note it's time to come back home," he said. "It happened to me."
Moulton, a former councilor, said some of the issues he ran on as mayor two years ago convinced him to run again. "I wanted people to be aware of things," he said, adding that he strongly felt the public safety department needed to be looked at. "It's almost like the elephant in the room."
Gniadek, a retired city educator, said the city should use Community Development Block Grants to eliminate blight. "I can't see going through and allowing the city to deteriorate the way it is," he said. He also advocated for "excellent teaching staff who have given beyond what one would expect from what they get paid," feeling funding was divvied out unfairly and too much to the administration.
Lamb, also running for a second term, spoke to the idea of adaptive reuse to sustain and redevelop historic structures. "Working to establish the Historic District Commission is the first step in a long process," he said. He also said the community can't rely just on the Police Department to combat crime. "We all have to be engaged in this process."
Merrigan, running for a second term, said she still thinks of her self "as a voice for youth." She said she would like to do more outreach, such as a YouTube video to recap City Council meetings, to engage with young people who may be renters and not thinking taxes or other municipal issues. She also advocated for the proposed skate park at Noel Field.
Bullett, running for a third term, said the arts have had a positive effect on the city by stimulating activity and drawing on the variety of the community. "It drives the city to be more open and opens our world to others who might not have been able to engage in these activities," she said. She also vowed to continue to lobby for a volleyball pit at Windsor Lake, which received donations from the college.
The candidates strongly agreed that the city needs to develop its assets and attract businesses, particularly in the downtown. While they noted it might be difficult for the council to work on economic development, they offered some ideas of how might be effective.
For Buddington, running for a second term, it was using the council's policy power to streamline regulations and smoothing the way for business.
"I think one thing that the council could very easily do is to ensure regulations for businesses are simple enough ... to reduce the uncertainty because the uncertainty is very expensive," he said.
Blackmer agreed, also pointing to the need for collaboration
"I think we have to advocate regionally. ... We have to have a comprehensive but easy to use permitting process, so that people who come here wanting to open a business know what to expect ... continuity of government," said the three-term councilor. "We have to sell the city - we have to get out there."
Lamb, owner of Oh, Crepe on Main Street, also put regulations as key ("so they're easier to digest") but added shop owners had to look at what MCLA students need as a way to bring them into the downtown area by changing hours and offerings.
"We don't have any businesses that are going to attract MCLA students," said Gniadek, a newcomer who retired after nearly 50 years as an educator. "We should talk to the landlords to find shops that are needed."
Moran said the community as well as the college needed to support local business.
"I think it's kind of if we want it, we have to be down there and support it," he said.
Moulton, a former councilor and mayoral candidate, pointed to some of the new ventures such as the redevelopment of the Greylock Mill and the Redwood Motel as proof the city can lure new business.
"You can do anything you want but you have to be an attractive city," he said, calling for the resurrection of the long-dormant Mohawk Theater and a community "think tank" to brainstorm downtown development ideas.
Wilkinson, a real estate appraiser and former Planning Board member, did not think the regulations and process of starting a business to onerous since "99 percent" are approved by planners at first blush. But one obstacle to bringing in young people and small business, he said, is "we have one landlord that owns 80 percent of the buildings downtown."
Merrigan, who is completing her first term, said the city's future development would be around "cultural recreational tourism" and thought a full-time planner should be added when the city could afford it. "They get to think big and we need that," she said.
"I think it's important to engage the folks who have their business downtown and see what we can do as a community together," said Bullett. "We have to be willing to put ourselves out there."
The candidates also agreed that infrastructure and budgetary issues were critical elements of the city's future that had to be addressed.
Bullett and Buddington, however, took issue with Gniadek's assertion that there was a lack of transparency in the budget process, noting the Finance Committee meetings had been posted, covered by the press and shown on Northern Berkshire Community Television.
Each also stated that no matter who was elected mayor, the council would be able to work with the executive and represent the voters.
"The council doesn't work for the mayor, we're an autonomous body, we work for the people who elect us," said Wilkinson. "We work for you."
The forum was recorded by NBCTV for later rebroadcast.
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The candidates set up prior to the debate at MCLA's Church Street Center on Monday night. Kate Merrigan and Nancy Bullett, right, are at the end of the table. 
