Public Input Sought on Endangered Pittsfield BuildingsBy Joe Durwin, iBerkshires Correspondent
02:23AM / Tuesday, March 22, 2016 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Private homes, commercial structures, social clubs, churches — if it's vacant or underutilized, the city wants to hear about it.
A grant-funded effort to inventory at-risk historic buildings is currently looking to collect additional information from city residents before establishing a final list of which properties will be included. The project is funded through a grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission.
Elizabeth Rairigh, the preservation planner hired to undertake the project, has heard from a variety of city staff and appointed officials in recent months, but is looking for more information and opinions from the broader community before deciding which buildings will be included in the final "casebook" of endangered properties.
"In a lot of ways this is a very unique project," Rairigh told iBerkshires. "There are few places that have taken this type of look at historic properties, to see how they might be reused, reimagined, or updated."
Boston is one example of this rare effort in the commonwealth, resulting in the Historic Boston Casebook that can be viewed online.
About 949 properties and districts are listed within the MACRIS, or Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System, index of properties, and 33 buildings or districts in the city are currently listed with the National Register of Historic Places.
Rairigh says a running list of about 100 properties has been put together as part of the current effort, which will eventually be narrowed down to about 25 properties that will be fully researched for the final casebook.
Casebook listings will include a variety of information about each building's construction, architecture, history and current condition — data that could help developers who might be interested in them.
For example, Rairigh says a similar casebook effort in New Bedford helped that city "right-size" real estate utilization of many former mills that were only partly in use.
Thus far, the properties of concern in Pittsfield that have received the most mention include the former fire station on Tyler Street, and the state-owned William Russell Allen House on East Street.
So far the main criteria that will be used to determine which buildings are ultimately included in the casebook include the building's community impact; structural condition; historic significance; and economic impact — but input from the public is also desired in setting any additional criteria.
As part of her preliminary assessment, Rairigh has heard from members of the Historical Commission, Community Development Board, and staff from the Community Development and Building departments. An initial open house held at City Hall last week sought to expand on this with additional perspectives from interested parties outside of local government, but failed to attract any new public interest, so Rairigh is now working with City Planner Cornelius Hoss to generate more participation.
Toward this end, maps and white boards have been set up in the Local History Room at the Berkshire Athenaeum, allowing for comments and suggestions to be made at any time during the Athenaeum's hours of operation.
A brief online survey is also being developed, and a new public meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 30, for those interested in speaking to Rairigh about buildings of concern in their neighborhoods. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in City Council Chambers at City Hall.
The project is funded through a grant from the Massachusetts Historical Commission.
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