“I feel my district, I think, is in very good shape," he told WAMC. "There's going to be some challenges, like the housing affordability, which every community from Lenox to Egremont and everywhere in between, they're talking about it, they’re trying to develop plans. I've been advocating for them for years to- The state government is not going to fund ideas or concepts, we're going to fund products, we're going to fund shovel ready programs. So, position yourself to get a program ready to go, and then come to me, ask for some money.”
He says whoever steps into the county’s four-member legislative delegation will have their work cut out for them.
“Housing insecurity is a real serious problem, our lack of legitimate public transit is a problem here, and trying to fill the economic void of the unfilled jobs all throughout the Berkshires has to be a priority, making sure whoever it is stays focused on those issues,” said Pignatelli.
After a three-way Democratic primary in September, the final choice comes down to the victor of that race, Leigh Davis of the Great Barrington selectboard, and independent candidate Marybeth Mitts of the Lenox select board.
Both have flexed their experience in the housing sector.
“I believe that I have the fortuitous circumstance of having been able to work for the citizens of Lenox, to get things done for the people who want things done here in the town of Lenox, of getting new housing for folks," said Mitts. "I've gotten 65 units of new mixed income housing, there's 68 units currently in a housing round at the [Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities], so we may have 133 new units of housing here in the town of Lenox.”
“I work in housing, I advocate for housing, and I actually qualify for the housing that I advocate for," said Davis. "I am a single mom with three kids, all in college. I'm on a nonprofit salary, so I have a lot of insight about the difficulties in housing. Housing is tied to economic development. It's not about housing necessarily- It's about the challenges, it's about job growth, it's about incentivizing families to move here, okay? It's about allowing seniors to age in place, so that we can take care of our seniors, and we can make sure that they're not forced to move away or go to a nursing home if they don't want to.”
Mitts has explained that she registered as an independent candidate due to missing an enrollment deadline. At a Becket forum in June, the candidate articulated where she stands on key social issues in the 2024 election.
“I'm probably going to align myself with the Democrats, because they're the majority. My personal agenda is very progressive," said Mitts. "I have three daughters, two of them are queer. I believe very strongly in a woman's right to choose, because I have three daughters, and I had that right growing up and they don't. It's really, really frustrating. So, I am going to be fighting tooth and nail to preserve women's health, to making sure that there are housing options available for everybody at every income level, and that there are mental health resources available for everyone in the community.”
At a Lenox debate in early October, Davis pushed back against the suggestion that she caters to special interest groups that have backed her candidacy.
“I am very, very grateful to have received the endorsements from environmental groups to animal rights groups to unions to the Massachusetts Nurses Association, the AFL-CIO, to reproductive health organizations, Planned Parenthood, Reproductive Equity Now," said the candidate. "So, I am not beholden to these. These are values that I deeply hold, values that are dear to working families, about making a living wage, that ensuring that there's equity, that there's social justice. So, these are values that are meaningful to me, so I am not beholden.”
Pignatelli has not endorsed in the contest.
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday.
