Council panel OKs dozens of city code fixes

Select Board · Meeting of July 31, 2026

North Adams's Codification Review Committee approved dozens of ordinance fixes, including dog-licensing changes and a smaller Youth Commission. Council President Ashley Shea, Councilor Breen and Councilor Blackmer voted unanimously on changes including moving dog licensing fees to Appendix D, cutting the pound holding period from 10 to 7 days, and shrinking the Youth Commission from nine to seven voting members. The panel also voted to drop a provision letting the city banish dangerous dogs, after noting it conflicts with state law, and to move the Traffic and Parking Control Department into the Department of Public Safety's Police Division.

A participant separately raised concerns that the ordinance's six-month deadline for the mayor's capital improvement plan does not match state Division of Local Services recommendations, though the committee adopted only clarifying language and left that policy question for the Finance Committee. The committee did not finish reconciling Chapter 27's fee tables and will continue that work next meeting.

In the full story:

• Personnel Ordinance and Holiday Pay
• City Solicitor Compensation
• Treasurer and Tax Collector Consolidation
• City Auditor and Board of Assessors Housekeeping
• Board of Health Director Title and Fee Reference
• Conservation Commission and State Agency References
• Capital Improvement Plan Timing
• Disposal of Personal Property and Procurement Thresholds
• Council on Aging Membership
• Industrial Development and Financing Authority Repeal
• Human Services, Historical and Disabilities Commissions
• Traffic and Parking Control Department
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,584 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of July 31, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.