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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee on Wednesday approved a $78 million budget, which is a 7.86 percent increase over this year.

About $220,000 was cut from the initial draft budget after a conversation with Mayor Linda Tyer, bringing the ask from $78,310,016 to $78,088,016. With school choice and Richmond tuition funds, the total is $78,558,016.

Reductions include the $100,000 line item to replace Chromebook computers, $22,000 from the Career Technical Education supplies, $5,000 from the curriculum and instruction account, and the relocation of a $95,000 social emotional learning coordinator to Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) III

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council went through nine agenda items in under an hour on Tuesday.

This included the acceptance of a grant for MassDevelopment to create a possible Innovation District in the William Stanley Business Park and a transfer and appropriation of $200,000 from the Veteran Services Department to the Workers Compensation Department.

Under a project management and grant agreement, MassDevelopment will perform a strategic initiative to look into districting the business park. A communication from the mayor states that there will be no financial outlay involving the city.

Business Development Manager Michael Coakley explained that the conversation began several

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A North Street staple is expanding to the former Mission Bar and Tapas.

On Monday, the Licensing Board approved a transfer of premise, license, and pledge of license from On A Mission LLC to Dottie's Coffee LLC. Owner Jessica Rufo plans to reopen the eatery as "Dorothy's," an expansion of the business that is open later.

The wall between the two spaces will be taken down to allow access between them.

"Initially we're going to keep our regular hours from 7 a.m. until 2 o'clock then our hope once the liquor license transfers is that will be open later until 8 or 9 o'clock," Rufo said.

"Our current offerings at

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield High School's spring production will include singing, dancing, and a man-eating plant.

The PHS Proteus Theatre will present "Little Shop of Horrors" on April 28-29 and May 5-6 at 7:30 p.m.
and on April 30 and May 7 at 2:30 p.m.

The dark comedy is based on a 1986 movie by the same name and follows Seymour Krelborn, the protagonist, who discovers a "strange and interesting plant" that he soon realizes needs blood to survive.

"He's kind of down on his luck, he hasn't had the greatest opportunities in life, he works at a flower shop and he's really into strange plants," theater teacher and director Kyla

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To the Editor:

I want to thank the Pittsfield City Council Ordinance and Rules committee for hearing my two petitions, which would require the police to intervene when another police officer is perpetrating illegal violence against the public, and my other petition creating a duty to report such incidents codified in an ordinance instead of it being an informal police policy subject to change. I have a high opinion of the council, the chief, and the acting city solicitor.

As noted by the Congressional Research Service, "Incidents involving the use of force by law enforcement, such as the 2020 death of George Floyd and the 2023 death of Tyre Nichols, have raised questions regarding

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Licensing Board has decided that a popular bar's response to a fight that resulted in injury was appropriate and does not warrant a suspension.

On Monday, the panel filed a show cause hearing for Thistle and Mirth's liquor license related to two disturbances that occurred on Jan. 7 and Jan. 13. It had been continued from February because of the board's objection to the heavily redacted police report.

The first incident was an argument that took place outside of the West Street restaurant and the second, which prompted a referral to the Licensing Board, involved a stabbing and a window being broken.

"The Jan. 7 incident was only brought

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Crews can be seen at work on the Holmes Road Bridge with an expected opening late this summer.

But the state Department of Transportation warns the bridge will be closed for weeks beforehand.

"MassDOT is on schedule with the project and the new bridge is anticipated to be open for travel in August 2023," communications director Kristen Pennucci reported last week.

The bridge has been reduced to one lane for four years after being found structurally insufficient and needs a $3.5 million replacement of the overpass structure. This includes a new structure over the Housatonic Rail line, a restored sidewalk, improved bicycle access, new pavement, and

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — More than 20 groups across the county learned the story of a woman who breaks the stereotype of an intimate violence survivor during the third One Book, One Community read.

The Berkshire Domestic Violence and Sexual Task Force's annual event culminated this month with a webinar featuring writer and producer Tanya Selvaratnam, author of "Assume Nothing, A Story of Intimate Violence."

Selvaratnam spoke out about being abused by former New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman in 2018, which led to his resignation. At the time, he was publicly prosecuting celebrity film producer Harvey Weinstein for sexually assaulting his

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