On Tuesday, Great Barrington, Massachusetts voters elected 36-year-old copywriter Ben Elliott to a three-year term on the selectboard. With almost 580 votes, he fended off a challenge from Sharon Gregory by about 200 votes. Elliott succeeds the outgoing Ed Abrahams, who spent nine years on the body before stepping down. The first-time candidate lives in Housatonic, a community within Great Barrington that has suffered from a tainted water supply for years. Elliott centered his campaign on addressing both the village’s water issue and the town’s ongoing housing crisis. He spoke with WAMC Thursday after attending his first meeting as a selectboard member Wednesday night.
ELLIOTT: I grew up in Great Barrington, I'm a fourth generation Great Barrington resident. So, I've got a lot of history here. I moved back two years ago, after the birth of my daughter, and I moved to Housatonic. And Housatonic has a lot of projects going on. I live across the street from the old elementary school, redeveloping another building down the street, and there's just the ongoing crisis with the water in town. So, all of that and trying to provide a good future for her- That was really what inspired me to start getting involved in local politics. And really, if it hadn't been for the fact that the board is currently discussing the solution for Housatonic water right now, I don't know if I would have gotten into this race this year. But trying to provide clean, safe water for my family and my neighbors and just having another voice from Housatonic on the board as these negotiations are being made was really important to me.
WAMC: So obviously, the ongoing water crisis is one of your top priorities- What else is on your docket when it comes to issues you want to deal with on the selectboard for Great Barrington?
Affordable housing. Outside of the water, that's number one. I moved back in 2021, and learned just how hard it was to find housing in this town. I've lived here, like I said, as a kid, and as a student. I've lived here as a renter as well. And it's just been, it's so incredibly hard to get up on your feet here, to find housing and to get all the basic resources you need while you're starting in your careers. For us, we were coming back from Chicago at the time. And we thought, maybe we'll rent here while we're looking to buy a house. And the rents were just- We couldn't find anything that was less than what we're paying for an apartment in one of the biggest cities in the country here. We just don't have the resources in place for young people to really thrive in this town and to be a part of the community. And I don't think- If we don't get those pieces in place, then we're going to lose all of the things that we really love about Great Barrington.
So, with that in mind, what do you think is a reasonable path forward or an actionable policy that the selectboard can pursue to increase the availability and accessibility of affordable housing in Great Barrington?
So, I think the multiple unit projects that we've seen in town are a great first step that definitely serves one part of the population that’s looking for housing. I think we need to take a look at the way we do zoning in this town, to make it easier for people to build on their own property if they want to build an [accessory dwelling unit] or a tiny house so they don't have to go through so many hurdles to create a space like that, as well as finding, coming up with policies that put incentives in place for developers to include more affordable housing in their projects, and also to really improve tenants’ rights, to make sure that the people who are currently in our housing stock are able to stay here without getting pressured out. I think that's a huge part of it.
Is there anything that I've not thought to ask you about your candidacy electoral victory or goals as selectboard member that you want to get out to the public?
You know, last night was our first meeting, and I signed up to be the liaison for the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority. And that's something I think is a really important part of all of this as well, finding ways for people to actually get where they need to go without being car dependent here. I think we don't have those resources in place right now to really make this a true working-class community, and I think public transportation is a big part of that. So, I'm really looking forward to working on that.
