South Hadley candidates weigh in on the town’s financial future

SOUTH HADLEY — Candidates for municipal office are feeling the pressure of South Hadley’s precarious financial future as they vie for seats in an election that will decide the fate of multi-million dollar overrides.

On the same ballot as a $9 million and $11 million override, residents will choose between four candidates for two Select Board seats. The board will have at least one new member after Andrea Miles opted not to run for another term. Most candidates for other positions are running unopposed, and no one has stepped up to run for the second open Planning Board and Board of Health seats.

Know Your Town’s Candidates Night on March 18 featured 12 of the 16 candidates — its biggest turnout in the nonpartisan, community education organization’s recent history — ahead of the April 14 election. The majority of the attendee’s questions and concerns fell to the Select Board candidates, who each gave their vision for the town moving forward.

Incumbent Nicole Casolari previously voiced concerns about the timeline and cost of the override, but she ultimately supports the tax increase to maintain town services. First elected in November 2022 to complete the term of Sarah Etelman, Casolari said she used her time on the board to ask questions and improve transparency. If elected, her next term will continue this approach by examining municipal policy, the town charter and a Division of Labor Services review this summer.

“My hope is that this is an opportunity for us as a town to build,” Casolari said. “Change isn’t a bad thing, it just has to be thoughtful.”

For single mother, realtor and fourth-generation South Hadley resident Pricella Marion, the sustainability of South Hadley is her top priority. If elected to the select board, she said her focus would be the implementation of Budget Task Force recommendations. She wants the town to establish financial stability with outside audits, economic development initiatives and roundtable discussions with businesses before seeking an override vote.

“I think we need to consider what is best for the town as a whole, including the residents that live here and who it’s going to impact as well,” Marion said. “And if moving forward with a vote for a smaller amount makes sense, then yes, I would consider [and override].”

Lifelong resident Kevin Hennessey said he hopes to bring back the South Hadley he remembers from his childhood. The current Russell Police Chief would employ his knowledge of grants, state earmarks and municipal operations to revive South Hadley Falls. If elected, Hennessey plans to find other state and local funding sources instead of turning to taxpayers.

“Nobody wants to lose sports or senior centers,” Hennessey said. “We have to find additional ways to fund them. We’re a town right now that is in trouble and kicking the can down the road is not the answer.”

David King fears the consequences of a failed override vote, and plans to use his business and managerial experience to oversee town finances. He is the only Select Board candidate who grew up outside of the South Hadley, but settled in town 15 years ago to raise his children. King became very involved in the school district music, sports and theater programs. He is currently a Town Meeting member and chair of the Bylaw Review Committee.

“We can petition our elected representatives in the State House. We can work to get more businesses to relocate to town. We can build a PILOT program to raise much needed revenue, and we will.” King said. “These solutions are not going to occur soon enough or be large enough to remedy our short term budget issues.”

Many in the crowd also inquired whether two School Committee candidates, Tracie Kennedy and Nicholas Prentiss, had plans to remedy the school’s budget deficit. With his knowledge as a teacher in Westfield and former Budget Task Force member, Prentiss plans to expand vocational education offerings to reverse school choice numbers. Kennedy, who was appointed in September 2025 to fill Dan Vieu’s seat, wants to get two vocational programs Chapter 74 certified and bolster the special education program.

“We spend a lot of money on that program, and we’re hearing from parents that the quality of some areas of that program are not up to par,” Kennedy said. “That program needs a full, audit, for lack of a better term.”

Several unopposed candidates addressed the looming threat of service cuts and rising costs. Incumbent Free Public Library Trustees Susan Crowther and Gillian Woldorf highlighted the “cascading impacts” if the library loses its state certification. Without this accreditation, South Hadley would lose critical state aid and access to the interlibrary loan system — effectively cutting off residents from millions of shared items across Massachusetts.

“I just ask not to consider the things that are key to our town as a burden,” said David Penn, who is a also a candidate for Free Public Library Trustee. “It’s a privilege to fund our schools. It’s a privilege to fund our libraries. It’s a privilege that our seniors have a place to go that’s as nice as the senior center we have in town.”

As the only Municipal Light Board candidate, John Hine used his time to clarify the monthly cost of the SHELD building on rate payers. Both Fiberspring growth and a planned battery storage project will reduce the cost of monthly payments over time, from an average of $13 in the first decade to below $10 in the last 10 years of the loan.

“Reliability, service and low cost,” Hine said. “We’d like to continue that so that not only all of us, but people 10, 20 years from now will also be able to reap the benefits of that.”

Candidate for Housing Authority Richard Matteson and Board of Health Karen Walsh Pio gave information about their background and interest in the position.

Despite the tough decisions ahead weighing heavily on candidates, each thanked both the attendees and fellow candidates for getting involved to help South Hadley.

“This gives me hope seeing everybody here come together, they are coming together because we want to see this town succeed and thrive,” Marion said.

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