Hadley Select Board Elects Parsons Chair, Joins Statewide Water Mutual Aid Network

HADLEY -- May 20, 2026, Hadley Select Board reorganizes under new chair Amy Parsons after Tuesday's elections, which also seated new member Jason Kostick. The board, meeting Wednesday, voted unanimously to make Violet Souska the permanent Council on Aging Director after a year in an interim role, combining her prior Program Coordinator duties into the position with union approval. The board also voted to join the Massachusetts Water and Wastewater Agency Response Network, a formal statewide mutual aid agreement for water and wastewater utilities, after DPW Director Scott described chronic staffing shortages at the wastewater plant and the collapse of informal aid arrangements with neighboring Amherst. In a report from outgoing Town Administrator Mike and Scott, the board learned that Hadley has secured a roughly $98,000 sidewalk-clearing machine at no cost through a MassDOT grant, and that MassDOT has agreed to bear financial responsibility for snow removal on approximately five miles of new Route 9 sidewalks from Middle Street to the Amherst line, removing an undefined but potentially large recurring expense from the town's budget. A separate $758,000 culvert grant for East Street was also announced.