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| News and events in Pittsfield, Mass.
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Donations Sought For Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade| 08:12AM / Friday, March 17, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade is nearing and as organizers put the event together, they are still in need of donations. A check may be mailed to the Parade Committee at PO Box 1738, Pittsfield 01202. They also may be mailed to the Berkshire Eagle at 75 South Church St. Pittsfield 01201. Donations also may be dropped off at the Eagle building. Online users may go to the parade web site, pittsfieldparade.com, clicking Support, scrolling down and clicking Donate. The parade committee uses PayPal. The same page shows ways to become a sponsor. Donations of $25 or higher will receive a free 0 Comments
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Berkshire Athenaeum Seeks to Expand Social Support AdvocacyBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
05:30AM / Friday, March 17, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Athenaeum has been doing working on providing a lot of advocacy for more social support in the library, Director Alex Reczkowski said during the meeting last week The result of this has "borne fruit" he said, so the library has a stronger infrastructure. It has been collaborating with community organizations to provide these type of services. Recently, a case worker from ServiceNet has spent a lot of time doing direct care and getting people into housing. And Berkshire Harm Reduction's van, Better Life Partners, and the the Community Health Program's Mobile Health Unit are at the library on a rotating 0 Comments
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The Retired Investor: U.S. Treasuries Not Risk FreeBy Bill Schmick,
04:11PM / Thursday, March 16, 2023 | |
 The recent calamity in the banking sector is complicated, but one issue stands out. Even the safest of investments have risk. Understanding the relationship between bond prices and interest rates is extremely important. Bonds, overall, are considered safer investments than stocks and history indicates that bonds have been less volatile than stocks most of the time. However, when interest rates rise, bonds can get hurt for a variety of reasons, and credit risk is at the top of the list. Credit risk refers to the possibility that a corporation (or a government entity) could default on a bond they have issued. That happens when the issuer fails to pay back the principal or cannot 0 Comments
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Pittsfield School Committee Split on Future of ChromebooksBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
03:13PM / Thursday, March 16, 2023 | |
See the full presentation here. PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The School Committee is split on whether to continue to supply students Chromebooks after taking a $1 million hit in lost devices. Superintendent Joseph Curtis wants the discussion sooner rather than later because the district will need $500,000 to continue the one-to-one program. The school district purchased 2,500 Chromebooks in 2020 as schools shifted to online learning during the pandemic. The laptops were purchased with federal and state grants that have now ended. Curtis reported the cost of the lost and damaged devices last month. This school year, the district has already 3 Comments
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Vibe North Street Storefront Recruitment Grant | 08:17AM / Thursday, March 16, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass — The Berkshire Black Economic Council (BBEC) will lead the "Vibe North Street" storefront recruitment grant program in collaboration with Downtown Pittsfield Inc. (DPI). The grant, which is funded by Mass Development's Transformative Development Initiative (TDI), will offer businesses the opportunity to receive TDI Local funds in amounts between $7,500 and $25,000 to help cover the costs of relocating to currently vacant storefronts in the North Street district. On March 15, businesses interested in moving to the North Street district can apply for the grant, which will be awarded to businesses that demonstrate the passion and capability 0 Comments
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Pittsfield Affordable Housing Trust Looks to ResourcesBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:31AM / Thursday, March 16, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Established last year with an initial $500,000, the Affordable Housing Trust soon expects to see additional resources to aid its mission.
"There are a few pieces that are coming into play," Director of Community Development June Dodds said to the panel on Wednesday.
Pittsfield received a technical assistance grant for three years through MassHousing's Neighborhood Hub program for the effort and will kick off a public input process next month. The trust is seeking $150,000 in Community Preservation Act funds this year with an aim to determine priority housing needs by July and award project funding in the fiscal year 2024.
Trust members have
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Dalton Police Officers to Go Live With Body CamerasBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:01AM / Thursday, March 16, 2023 | |
The cameras which look like smart phones, are worn on the front of the uniform and can communicate with each other. DALTON, Mass. —The police force is expected to go live with body-worn cameras once the officers are ready. Officers could be ready to use the cameras in the field at the end of next week and on Wednesday, officers got hands-on training in the high-tech devices. Chief Deanna Strout said the cameras will provide transparency and the ability to have video documentation of what happens on a call, which is helpful to the department. She has been looking into body cameras since taking over leadership two years ago. The chief feels there is no downside to the 0 Comments
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Dalton Finance Committee Amends Police Department Budget By Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
05:56PM / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | |
DALTON, Mass. — The Finance Committee voted last week to amend the Police Department expenses line item decreasing it from $190,741 to $183,541. Following the amendment the committee voted to approve the new budget total in the amount of $1,501,152, a 11.4 percent increase from the previous year. The amendment removed a $900 a month line item for fiber connectivity so that it can be placed in the proper budget. American Rescue Plan Act funds were used to upgrade the dispatch system because dispatch could not hear the Police Department. "We worked hard to upgrade their system so we could communicate with them because it was an 0 Comments
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Pittsfield Trash and Recycling Schedule| 01:20PM / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — In the wake of overnight snowfall, strong wind gusts, and additional downed wires and trees, travel conditions remain difficult, resulting in continued cancellations and closures. This includes trash and recycling pickup that is canceled today, Wednesday, March 15. The trash and recycling schedule in the city of Pittsfield will be as follows for the remainder of the week: Tuesday and Wednesday routes: rescheduled for collection on Thursday. Locations not serviced from previous days and Thursday route: will be collected on Friday. Friday route: will be collected on Saturday. 0 Comments
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Governor Announces End of COVID-19 Public Health Emergency| 09:07AM / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | |
BOSTON — Today, March 15, the Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that the state's COVID-19 public health emergency will end on May 11, 2023, to align with the end of the federal public health emergency. The announcement this week, ahead of the 45-day notice required by state law, allows additional time for impacted organizations to prepare for the end of the public health emergency. Governor Healey will also file legislation that would extend key flexibilities provided by the public health emergency, particularly around staffing for the health care industry and emergency medical services (EMS). The Governor also announced that on May 11 she plans to 0 Comments
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BCC Taking Applications for Nursing Programs | 08:21AM / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College (BCC), which offers a range of nursing classes, is now taking applications for the fall 2023 semester. BCC offers financial aid and college credits for all courses, allowing students to easily continue their education at BCC or transfer to four-year schools. Practical Nurse (PN): BCC offers a 10-month certificate program as a lead-in to licensure as a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN). Prerequisites include Biology 150, English 101 and Psychology 107, and applicants must score a 258 or higher on an Accuplacer math exam. Admission is rolling, with an application deadline of July 1, 2023. The cohort begins in 0 Comments
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Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum Can't Find ParkingBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
05:20AM / Wednesday, March 15, 2023 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Some Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum volunteers have been having trouble finding parking in the upper lot upon arriving in the morning, one board member said during the Library Trustees meeting last week. After much frustration one volunteer did a “robust investigation, into what the cultpet and determined that the parking issues occur after district court starting time. The volunteer suspects that the spaces are being taken up by people who have court appearances at 9. She arrived at this conclusion because the upper parking lot is full when the library has yet to be open but when the volunteer returns at 10 0 Comments
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