Lanesborough Select Board Launches Open Space Plan, Approves $1.3 Million in Warrants

LANESBOROUGH — July 28, 2025 — Lanesborough Select Board establishes open space planning committee and approves more than $1.3 million in warrants. At its July 28 meeting, the three-member board — Chair Debra Maynard, Michael Murphy, and Jason Breault — unanimously voted to form a temporary Open Space and Recreation Plan Steering Committee, appointing Mark Hawthorne, Deanna Smith, Stacey Parsons, and Tom Boyzen as initial members; the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission's Andy McKeever, who is leading the process, said a completed plan submitted to the state by May 2026 would make Lanesborough eligible for up to $450,000 in land acquisition grants and another $450,000 for park improvements. The board also approved two warrant packages totaling roughly $1.36 million, covering fiscal years 2025 and 2026, including a single $890,348 accounts payable warrant dated July 24. Town Administrator Gina Dario presented a Chapter 30B procurement evaluation defending the July 14 EMS lease award to Lanesborough Plaza over a competing bid from Scott Graves, explaining that evaluation authority rests with the administrator, not the Select Board. The board tabled a permit application for the Berkshire 40 Mountain Bike Race — scheduled for August 31 and routed more than 75 percent through Lanesborough despite a Cheshire mailing address — pending receipt of course maps and emergency plans, with action expected at the August 11 meeting.