To the Editor:

This election season has brought about much discussion about the history of North Adams and our future direction. I am proud to have lived in North Adams my entire life and to now be raising my family here. With pride we should understand where we have come from. With greater pride we must know where our future is and work together to move toward that future.

The path to that future must be guided by a leader who is willing to listen to new ideas and be receptive to other views on how to get there. The future prosperity of North Adams will require all of us to look at ourselves in new and inventive ways. Just because we have always done it that way does not mean we can or should do it that way now or in the future.

Mayor Alcombright has been that leader. He has opened the doors of North Adams to the ideas of the many. We have set and completed the goal of creating a comprehensive Master Plan, a true roadmap for today and tomorrow.

Investors beginning projects at the Greylock Mill and the Redwood Motel have credited this Master Plan as one of the reasons for their investment in North Adams. Thanks to the efforts of many area youth and the guidance of the Northern Berkshire Community Coalition, we are working towards the development of a first class Skate Park. I welcome a future that allows our youth to partner with our great local agencies to find positive ways to encourage their involvement in community.

Thanks to the efforts of our School Building Committee over 300 children and their excellent teachers will move into a state of the art educational facility at the end of the year. My children are growing up in a North Adams that they know will allow them to be part of the future.

We cannot afford to spend the next two years with a leader who has said he is happier being retired and has made little effort to be part of the community over the past 6 years. A true leader will lead whether he is in a power of authority or not.

Ask yourself if you should reasonably expect to see your mayor at a local restaurant, Motorama, the Food Fest, a North Adams Chamber of Commerce event at Cloud 85 or a local charity fundraiser.

For North Adams to continue to grow and move toward that brighter future, we must continue with a leader that encourages all of us to be involved. We must continue with a leader who will listen to all ideas with an open mind. We must continue with a leader who is prepared to lead all of us, despite our differing opinions and ideas. We must continue with a leader who truly wants to lead North Adams to the brighter days that lie on the horizon.

Please join me in supporting Mayor Alcombright on Nov. 3.

Glenn Maloney
North Adams

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