Gabrielle Senza checks in at the Great Barrington Fire Station to vote in the town elections Tuesday. BEN GARVER â THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE
GREAT BARRINGTON â Garfield Reed beat incumbent Kate Burke by a 20-vote margin in a tight three-way contest for two Select Board seats that centered on the marijuana industry, as well as diversity at Town Hall.
Eric Gabriel won the second vacant seat on the board with 649 votes. Reed received 619 votes, and Burke 599, according to unofficial results released by Town Clerk Jennifer Messina on Tuesday night. There were 10 write-in candidates and 295 blanks.
Philip Orenstein secured one of two Finance Committee seats with 745 votes. In a last-minute contest that began Monday with two write-in candidates, Michelle Loubert received 149 votes, beating Karen Smith by 19. Loubert had decided not to run for reelection, then changed her mind.
The state of disrepair of the former Housatonic School is one major issue that newly elected Great Barrington officials will have to grapple with. EAGLE FILE PHOTO
GREAT BARRINGTON â The only contested seats during town elections next week are those on the Select Board, and a newcomer with extensive banking and investment experience is the lone candidate on the ballot for Finance Committee.
Town elections will take place from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the fire station and the Housatonic Community Center.
Select Board incumbent Kate Burke, and newcomers Eric Gabriel and Garfield Reed, answered questions about hot and controversial topics at Tuesdayâs candidates forum, via Zoom. Burke is running to hold her three-year seat for a second term, and another seat is vacant, since Bill Cooke is not running for reelection.
3 Great Barrington Residents Compete for Two Selectboard Seats wsbs.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from wsbs.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.