Stockbridge Select Board Study Group Sets June Meeting, Eyes Holliston for Guidance

STOCKBRIDGE -- May 7, 2026, Stockbridge citizen panel studies whether to expand its three-member Select Board to five. The Five-Member Select Board Study Committee held its second working session May 7, with Chair Georgia Marsden reporting that neighboring Lanesboro is currently running elections to fill two new board seats after completing state legislative authorization for expansion, a change driven by a single citizen petition and 10 signatories, with the town considering holding the combined member stipend flat at $1,600 across all five seats rather than increasing costs. Member Cheryl Russa-Turrett presented demographic data showing Stockbridge skews significantly older than most towns that have made the three-to-five transition, warning the committee to "set expectations appropriately." Member Peter Strauss was assigned to research whether Massachusetts law permits a non-voting alternate position on the Select Board, a structure the Conservation Commission uses but had to secure through state legislation. The committee agreed to read Holliston's published study and attempt to invite its former study-committee members to a future session; it also noted that Groton moved back from five members to three after the larger board failed to resolve the problems that prompted its expansion. The next meeting is set for June 29, 2026, at 11 a.m.