THE HAWLEY SELECTBOARD HAS BEGUN DISCUSSIONS on whether Hawley should join the Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership (MTWP).
After 4 years of preparation, the Partnership has been legally designated by the state, with the purpose of bringing recognition and financial and technical resources to the 21-Town region, which is situated in Berkshire and Franklin Counties. The MTWP area comprises the towns in the Northwestern corner of the State and is heavily forested.
The stated goal for MTWP is to “. . . increase sustainable economic development related to forestry and natural resource-based tourism, support forest conservation on private lands, and improve the fiscal stability and sustainability of the municipalities”.
Each town in the region has 2 years to decide if it wants to join the Partnership. Twelve towns (of a total of 21) have joined so far. No information was immedicately available on which Towns have joined. Eligible Towns in Franklin counnty include Ashfield, Buckland, Charlemont, Colrain, Conway, Hawley, Heath, Leyden, Rowe and Shelburne.
