EASTHAMPTON — At-Large City Councilor William Lynch IV has resigned from the City Council, citing the need to devote more time to his work and family.
Lynch, 38, announced his resignation, effective immediately, in a letter delivered to City Council President Peg Conniff and City Council Vice President Dan Rist on Sept. 25. In the letter, he cited the increased demands of his work, where he’s been promoted, and the need to spend more time with his family as reasons behind his decision, as well as having to miss council meetings and not being able to respond to constituents swiftly.
“Because of the concerns listed above I do not feel that I am giving my family or the council 100% of the time needed,” Lynch wrote in his letter. “My family is my top priority and a change is needed. I feel that in order for me to be there for my family I will need to resign as City Councilor at large effective immediately. This decision was hard for me but I feel it is the right one.”
In an interview, Lynch said the tipping point for him was his eldest child starting first grade remotely. The council is planning to vote to fill the vacancy later this month.
“It didn’t come easy,” said Lynch, of his decision to walk away.
He also said that he hopes those who elected him will understand his decision.
Lynch, who works for Stop & Shop, filled the seat left vacant by state Rep. Dan Carey, D-Easthampton, in January of 2019, after Carey left the council for the state Legislature. He was offered the seat because he had been an unelected candidate for the at-large position in Carey’s last election and because another candidate who finished ahead of him didn’t want the job.
Lynch was then elected in 2019 in a race that drew five candidates for four at-large seats. The lone runner-up in that race was Laura Douglass, but in an interview, Douglass said she would not be accepting a seat on the council.
“I think the world is a very different place than it was last year,” said Douglass, who is a nurse manager at Baystate Medical Center and co-owner of Galaxy restaurant on Main Street.
She described the decision not to take the position as a hard one.
“I really regret that I can’t,” she said.
In the absence of a runner up from the previous election filling the vacancy, the city’s charter specifies that city councilors may nominate candidates to fill it. The candidate who gets the most votes from councilors is then installed. Conniff, the council’s president, has laid out a schedule for selecting the council’s newest member.
From Oct. 8-14, councilors will be able to submit nominations to Conniff. On Oct. 21 these nominations will be formally acted on and, if a candidate is seconded, they will be added to a list of people able to fill the seat. If only one or two candidates make the list at the Oct. 21 meeting, they will be voted on at that meeting. If there are more than two candidates, those candidates will be voted on using ranked choice voting on Oct. 28.
Regardless of when a winning candidate is chosen, they will be sworn in on Nov. 4.
On Lynch’s departure, Conniff said that she knew he’s been challenged by his new job.
“He’s done the right thing for his family,” she said. “I applaud him.”
She also said that the council will miss Lynch’s acute attention to financial details.
“He’s done a phenomenal job,” she said.
City Councilor Thomas Peake also spoke positively about his former colleague.
“I really appreciate the time that Councilor Lynch spent on the council,” Peake said. “He brought a really valuable perspective.”
Peake also said that he’s looking forward to the process of filling the vacancy left by Lynch, noting that there are a lot of smart and interesting people in Easthampton.
Bera Dunau can be reached at bdunau@gazettenet.com.