DALTON, Mass. — Attention Dalton voters, iBerkshires is asking the public to submit questions for the upcoming Select Board Candidate Forum at the Senior Center on Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. 

 

During the event, Pittsfield Bureau Chief Brittany Polito will ask the four Select Board candidates questions curated from voter submissions. 

 

Submit a question by emailing our Dalton reporter, Sabrina Damms, at sdamms@iberkshires.com

 

The number of questions will be limited to the 90-minute time limit. 

 

In this forum, each candidate will begin with a two-minute opening statement. Following this, Polito will ask questions. 

 

For every question, the candidates will each have up to 1 1/2 minutes to answer, followed by 30 seconds each to rebut or follow up. The moderator can allow for further debate on a particular question if needed. 

 

At the conclusion of the event, we will allow each candidate up to 90 seconds to deliver a closing statement.  

 

The candidates will not been given the topics or questions in advance. We will rotate which candidate is the first to answer each of the questions. 

 

The special election will be held on Monday, Feb. 3, to decide who will fill the vacant seat left open in October when Joseph Diver stepped down. 

 

The Select Board voted in December to have mail-in ballots available for the special election to fill its vacant seat if more than one candidate is on the ballot. 

 

The mail-in applications are currently available in various town buildings, including the Senior Center, library, and the Town Clerk's office in Town Hall. 

 

The town has four candidates on the ballot: Robert Collins, Rich Haley, Levi Renderer, and Patrick Carsell. 

 

Candidates' Background

 

Robert Collins 

 

Collins has been making waves within the town, spearheading the citizen's petition for a special election alongside Thomas Irwin and several other supporting town members. 

 

"If elected, my vision for our community is to foster an environment of accountability with easy accessibility to me as a Select Board member," he said. 

 

Collins said he has a "sense of commitment"  to the town and a strong desire to contribute to making its future as strong as possible. 

 

He currently serves on the Planning Board after a failed run for Select Board during the elections last May, where he ran against incumbent Robert Bishop under a campaign focused on the need for a new voice on the board and the need for more discussion.

 

He also currently serves as the town's delegate for the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission. 

 

Additionally, he has been a member of the Massachusetts Association of Professional Foresters since 2001 and served as its president from 2006 to 2013. 

 

He also highlighted how he has run his environmental and landscape construction company, REWC Land Management, Inc., for the past 24 years. 

 

Collins said running his "successful business" has taught him how to budget, plan for projects, negotiate with state entities and those in the private sector, and given him knowledge of state ethics in procurement. 

 

If elected, his priorities will include ensuring governance that is easily accessible, responsive, and transparent. He aims to improve financial stability through long-range planning in an effort to slow the rate of tax increases.

 

Additionally, he will focus on increasing community engagement and advocating for an expanded green energy footprint in Dalton. 

 

Rich Haley

 

Haley was inspired to run because of his love for the town. 

 

"I want to give back to the town and its great residents. I want to make sure the great things we do in this town we are able to keep doing them for generations to come," he said. 

 

Haley said he does not have any experience in government but, for the last 8 years, has been volunteering in running the youth football program in town and is the president of the non-profit 12th-Man program. 

 

The nonprofit oversees all the fundraising efforts for Dalton's grades K through 12 football program. 

 

"This program has really taught me how, when a group of people work together as one, they can achieve great things," he said. 

 

If elected, his main goal is to ensure town residents have their voices heard. 

 

"We need to make sure we are doing things in the best interests of all our residents, young and old. I want to ensure Dalton stays one of the best and safest communities in Berkshire County," he said. 

 

"Also, we need to make sure the youth in our town have the necessary resources to be successful. And lastly, we need to make sure we maintain communication and transparency within our town."

 

Levi Renderer 

 

Renderer highlighted his experience in leadership, which he wanted to share with the town he grew up in and loves. 

 

"My goal is to inspire the future generations to get involved in the decisions that will shape their futures," he said. 

 

"I believe Dalton and all the communities in Berkshire County have a huge untapped potential. The people here are unlike any other people I have met living across this country."

 

Renderer graduated from the Pittsfield Citizens Academy in 2023, during which he had the opportunity to work as an election official for Pittsfield, first as an inspector, then as a clerk, and as the warden at Columbia Arms. 

 

While working the elections, he saw who participated and emphasized his desire to get total involvement from the community in the elections at local, state, and federal levels. 

 

Renderer said he has experience in production, quality assurance, safety, and process improvement and showcased his time on the Dalton Fire Department. 

 

Additionally, Renderer has volunteered as a Restorative Navigator with the Center for Restorative Justice in Bennington, Vt., during which time he visited the unhoused population living in emergency shelters.

 

"If elected, I will work for the people of Dalton to best communicate their needs to the town. I will ask people to step up and get involved in helping me make Dalton a town our kids don't want to move away from. But rather stay and be a part of a great community with everything to offer for their families for the next 100 years," he said. 

 

Patrick Carsell

 

Carsell is a longtime resident of the Dalton community, where he has built friendships, gotten to know the residents, and raised his kids. 

 

He has been interested in participating in town government for many years but refrained from doing so to avoid any potential conflicts of interest that may have arisen from owning a dental practice in town.

 

Carsell was encouraged to run by his longtime friend and current board member, John Boyle. 

 

One of Carsell's main priorities, if elected, would include maintaining the town's "excellent school system."

 

"My wife Laurel and I bought a home in Dalton in 1992, where we raised two children Emilie and Blake. The children attended our public schools in town, a primary reason for living in Dalton," he said. 

 

He also expressed his support for a new police station and keeping the town's emergency and first response employees and volunteers updated with current standards. 

 

"Roads and sidewalks must be properly maintained to keep our town a safe place to live. I realize that there are many other issues that a Select Board member would need to be concerned with, and I would look forward to serving the residents of Dalton," Carsell said. 

 

In 2022, Carsell retired after operating his dental practice, which he established in 1989. Throughout his career, he was actively involved in several committees within his field. 

 

He served on the Massachusetts Dental Society for ten years, participating in the Membership and Manpower Committees. 

 

Additionally, he held various leadership roles in the Berkshire District Dental Society, including executive board member, vice chairman, chairman-elect, and two terms as chairman.

 

"The skills I have developed as an Executive Board member are the ability to listen to the concerns of members, the ability to lead discussions as an involved group member, and the ability to use parliamentary procedure to handle motions on important issues facing the group," he said. 

 

Carsell also served on the continuing education committee and was its chairman for several years. 

 

Beyond his profession, he was on the Stewardship Committee for a year and the Pastoral Search Committee as a member of First Congregational Church of Dalton for a year.