| News and events in Pittsfield, Mass.
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FEMA Awards Funds to Massachusetts for COVID School Testing Costs| 08:00AM / Saturday, February 10, 2024 | |
BOSTON — The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending more than $64 million to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to reimburse it for the cost of contracting to provide testing services in public schools during the COVID-19 pandemic. The $64,144,440 Public Assistance grant will reimburse the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services for the cost of contracting to provide testing at schools and in public buildings in surrounding communities between February 2021 and June 2022. The contractor provided services which included operations and logistics of pooled testing, training, software, and technical assistance to school personnel. The 0 Comments
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@theMarket: Melt-up in Markets Fueled by MomentumBy Bill Schmick,
01:44PM / Friday, February 09, 2024 | |
Stocks are climbing, scaling new heights while euphoria abounds. Momentum is pushing the technology sector, and AI stocks in particular. How long can it last and how high can it go? It is the question on the minds of many on Wall Street. At this point, the consensus opinion is that we are due for a pullback. Even the bulls are getting worried as valuations become stretched. However, valuations are in the eye of the beholder. While the price-earnings ratio of the market is about 21 percent, if you remove a handful of mega-cap stocks the average is only 17 times earnings. That handful of stocks has accounted for more than 50 percent of the gains this year in the S&P 500 0 Comments
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Seiji Ozawa, Longtime BSO Conductor, Dies at 88| 10:00AM / Friday, February 09, 2024 | |
 LENOX, Mass. — Longtime Boston Symphony Orchestra conductor Seiji Ozawa died Feb. 6 in Tokyo at the age of 88. Ozawa was the orchestra's longest serving conductor and held the title of music director for 29 years until stepping down in 2002. Seiji Ozawa Hall on the grounds of BSO's summer home Tanglewood was opened in his honor in 1994. One of his generation's most sought-after and celebrated conductors, Ozawa was born in Shenyang, China, in 1935 and from a young age studied piano and then conducting (under Hideo Saito) in Japan. He burst upon the musical scene in 1959, winning First Prize at the International Competition of Orchestra 0 Comments
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Buds, Twigs, and Bark: How to Identify Trees and Shrubs in Winter| 08:01AM / Friday, February 09, 2024 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Join Chelsey Simmons of Berkshire Environmental Action Team (BEAT) for the February Berkshire Green Drinks virtual event to explore the buds, twigs, and bark of common trees seen in the New England landscape. It may be surprising, but winter is actually an excellent time to learn how to identify woody plant species. The absence of leaves allows for the opportunity to take a closer look at the characteristics that are often overlooked, like the subtle features of a twig, the arrangement of buds, and the overall form and structure of a tree. Chelsey will go over the steps to tree identification, break down twig morphology, and give helpful hints on 0 Comments
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Roots Rising Secures Land for Youth Farm| 08:00AM / Friday, February 09, 2024 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — After an extensive, multi-year search, Roots Rising announced the successful acquisition of 923 Barker Road in Pittsfield, marking a milestone in their journey towards launching the Youth Farm. The process of finding the right location for the Youth Farm involved years of searching and the exploration of over twenty parcels. Roots Rising ensured that the selected land was not only viable but aligned with their vision. Serious consideration was given to several potential locations, including a thorough exploration of a parcel within Springside Park. The Youth Farm will be teen-powered and community-centered, integrating Roots Rising's longstanding 0 Comments
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Pittsfield Health Board Plans Mosquito Task Force, Public OutreachBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:28AM / Friday, February 09, 2024 | |
 PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Board of Health will establish a task force to handle mosquito control after efforts to resume to spraying were not supported by the City Council. This part of the panel's path forward after unsuccessfully recommending that the city resume mosquito spraying, which was discontinued in 2021. Last summer, six mosquitos tested positive for West Nile virus but there were no reported human cases.
After members are added to the subcommittee, it plans to meet in early March ahead of the BOH's April meeting — also ahead of mosquito season.
"I would also want to have someone that has consistently and historically expressed articulated concerns
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Making the Loop | We had some free time this week to walk the 2-mile loop through the downtown. Here's a few of things that caught our eye. (In between taking photos, we were heel-toeing and arm-pumping as prescribed.)
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Let's Go Paperless | This is from Ward 6 Councilor John Krol's eblast today. His switch to digital immediately caught our attention. With the associated costs - nearly $4,000 a year for paper alone! - zipping councilors "the packet" (as we in the know like to call it) over the ether makes loads of sense.
Digital also means the average citizen gets far better access to these public documents than ever before. The city clerk's office has been diligent about posting meeting agendas and, where possible, relevant documents. So in terms of saving money and time and getting information out efficiently, digital is the way to go.
I would like to thank City Clerk Linda Tyer for agreeing to print out one less city council packet, as I have officially gone paperless for council meetings - which I hope will be a trend that can be extended throughout city government.
 The bulky (and often, very bulky) city council packet that councilors use for a reference costs an average of $170 per meeting for paper alone. Add the additional costs of ink/toner, wear and tear on city hall copiers, and the time and energy of staff who put it all together - and a simple transition away from paper benefits everyone.
With the packet now fully digital in pdf form, all councilors, and everyone with an internet
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Berkshire Music School Kicks Off 2012 Classes With Open House | The open house featured a sample class, access to musical instruments, information for parents, refreshments ...and more than a few delighted squeals.
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January 29, 2011
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Dozens of youths, many of them under the age of 5, attended an open house at the Berkshire Music School Saturday, as the educational nonprofit enters its 70th year at its 30 Wendell Avenue home.
The open house featured a sample class, access to musical instruments, information for parents, refreshments... and more than a few delighted squeals, proving once again the inherent interest in making a joyful noise is not generational, and will never go out of style.
 The open house featured a Music for Preschoolers class, designed to "children’s awareness of rhythm, ability to sing and move creatively to music," which |
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