LEYDEN — Incumbent Selectman William Glabach has competition in this year’s town election, with Nikolas Adamski also running for the one available seat with a three-year term.
While the town caucus initially produced no contests, Adamski was able to collect the necessary 25 signatures to be put on the ballot. There are now two contests in the town election, with the other being for one Planning Board seat with a five-year term between Peter Tusinski and Arthur Baker.
The election will be held Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Town Hall.
In addition to serving on the Selectboard since the mid-1990s, incumbent Glabach previously served nine years on the Board of Assessors, and has been a member of the Agricultural Commission for a decade.
Glabach said Leyden is “right in the middle of a lot of things” that he hopes to see to fruition, such as bringing broadband to town and finding a solution for the lack of storage for town records and Historical Commission archives.
“It’s hard to leave right when all of those things could be resolving,” he said.
At the same time, Glabach said keeping the tax rate affordable has “always been a goal.”
Adamski has been on the Finance Committee for one year, a volunteer firefighter for five years and a constable for two years. He holds positions with the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s Office of Waste Management and as a building maintenance technician for The Recorder.
Should he be elected, Adamski said he would advocate for preventive maintenance on town buildings and look out for the future of all Leyden residents, especially children, elders and veterans. He said he would also maintain town traditions, such as community suppers offered by the Leyden United Methodist Church, and advocate for more open government.
“I like everybody knowing what’s going on,” he said.
Peter Tusinski, who is currently Planning Board chairman, has served on the board for more than 30 years. He also served as selectman in the late 1980s, and on the Finance Committee.
Tusinski said should he be re-elected, he would continue the board’s work of forming a policy governing commercial solar arrays and continually reviewing the bylaws, seeking to “preserve the natural resources of the community.”
“It’s a beautiful community and most people want to see it stay that way,” Tusinski said.
The second candidate, Arthur Baker, has experience as a project engineer and is a former Greenfield Department of Public Works director, according to Baker’s submission to May’s Leyden Life newsletter.
“I have always wanted to serve my town and feel that my 11 years of private construction experience combined with my 12 years of municipal experience, working closely with Planning Boards and several other boards and commissions, would make me a valuable asset to the town of Leyden,” Baker wrote. “I enjoy working as a team and believe in fair and reasonable decision-making.”
The remaining candidates are:
Katherine DiMatteo for moderator with a one-year term.
Robert DePalma for one vacancy on the Board of Assessors with a three-year term.
Cornelia Reid for one vacancy on the Robertson Memorial Library Trustees with a three-year term.
Ellen White for one vacancy on the Board of Health with a three-year term.
Erik Johnson for constable with a three-year term.
Nicole Glabach for town clerk with a one-year term.
David Brooks for tree warden with a one-year term.