SOUTH HADLEY — With town elections approaching on April 12, the only contested races in South Hadley are for two seats on the Municipal Light Board.

When voters cast their ballots next month, they’ll be voting on 13 townwide seats: one on the Select Board, two on the School Committee, two on the Board of Health, three on the Municipal Light Board, one on the Board of Assessors, three library trustees and one on the Planning Board.

Only two of those seats are contested, however. Three people are running for two three-year terms on the of the South Hadley Electric Light Department’s Municipal Light Board — Kurt Schenker and Ronald Coutu, both incumbents, and Paul Dobosh.

At the precinct level, each precinct will also vote for eight Town Meeting members. Those seats are being contested in three of the town’s five precincts: by nine candidates in Precinct B, 10 candidates in Precinct C and 11 candidates in Precinct D.

Christopher Geraghty is not running for reelection on the Select Board, announcing at the board’s March 1 meeting that he had to vacate the seat slightly earlier than expected after taking a job with SHELD.

Running unopposed for that Select Board seat is Renee Sweeney, director of advancement services at Hampshire College and a 2001 Mount Holyoke College graduate who moved back to the town in 2012.

On the School Committee, incumbents Lynda Pickbourn Smith and Eric Friesner are running unopposed for a one-year term and three-year term, respectively.

On the Board of Health, the body’s chairwoman, Johanna Ravenhurst, is not seeking reelection. Stephen Frantz and incumbent Christine McKiernan are running for the two three-year terms on the health board.

In addition to the two contested, three-year SHELD board seats, there is also a two-year term on the board up for election. Incumbent Denise Presley is running unopposed for that seat.

Only two people made it onto the ballot for the three open seats on the South Hadley Public Library board of trustees: incumbents Robert Berwick and Barbara Merchant. The two will serve three-year terms.

Lastly, Joanna Brown is running unopposed for reelection to the Planning Board. Brown will serve a three-year term.

The elections will be held at South Hadley High School, located at 153 Newton St, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The civic engagement organization Know Your Town will be holding a candidate forum on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the South Hadley Public Library on Canal Street. The forum will also be broadcast on local cable channel 15, and a recording will later be posted to the station’s website at shctv15.com.

Dusty Christensen can be reached at dchristensen@gazettenet.com.]]>