| News and events in Pittsfield, Mass.
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Pittsfield Begins Review of $226M Budget for Fiscal 2026By Tammy Daniels , iBerkshires Staff
05:12AM / Tuesday, May 27, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — On the second night of fiscal year 2026 budget hearings, the City Council preliminarily approved 11 departmental budgets in 40 minutes. Conversation on Thursday began with a discussion about employee raises. Mayor Peter Marchetti explained that everyone's raises are different, but his, based on the consumer price index, is a 3.1 percent hike from $119,313 to $125,279. The budget was presented on Wednesday, May 21.
"For department heads and some middle managers, they're also with the same CPI index of 3.1 percent. According to the code, the mayor is entitled to give them a merit-based raise if he or she chooses to. I did for all
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Pittsfield's $226M Budget Mostly Personnel, Expenses, Debt ServiceBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
06:14PM / Monday, May 26, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Mayor Peter Marchetti said the $226 million fiscal year 2026 budget is mostly personnel, expenses, and debt services.
The total for city and school personnel is $110.6 million, health insurance is $33 million, the retirement contribution is $18 million, and debt service is $19.8 million. This represents $181.7 million, or 80 percent of the spending plan.
"So as we begin the conversation, we're talking about people, we're talking about benefits, and we're talking about debt service for the most part," he said to the City Council on Wednesday, the first day of hearings for the FY26 budget.
The proposed $226,246,942 budget is a nearly 4.8
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Berkshire County Towns Remember the Fallen on Memorial DayStaff Reports, iBerkshires Staff
02:50PM / Monday, May 26, 2025 | |
Dalton holds its annual Memorial Day parade. More photos here. DALTON, Mass. — Daniel Sargent's cousin inspired him to serve his country and he'll be off to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point this fall to join the class of 2029. "When I was young my cousin served in Afghanistan. At that time I didn't fully comprehend what he was doing. When he was home I would try to get his attention even if he was sleeping, I looked up to him and believed he was one of the coolest people. I didn't truly understand what he was willing to do, make the ultimate sacrifice for this country. As I got a little older I wanted to be a soldier just like him," the 0 Comments
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State Fire Marshal Highlights Summer Fire Safety| 08:23AM / Monday, May 26, 2025 | |
 STOW, Mass. — As Massachusetts approaches Memorial Day weekend and the unofficial start of summer, State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine is asking residents to practice outdoor fire safety in the weeks and months ahead. "As the weather gets warmer and we start spending more time outside, outdoor fires also start to increase," State Fire Marshal Davine said. "Unfortunately, many of these fires cause serious injuries and property damage – but almost all of them can be prevented." Grilling Safety About two-thirds of grilling fires in Massachusetts occur between May and August. About 75 percent take place on residential properties — most often one- and
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BEAT Queries Residents on Future of Pittsfield Peaker PlantBy Brittany Polito, iBerkshires Staff
05:32AM / Monday, May 26, 2025 | |
Participants indicated their feelings about the plant and its future. PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Environmentalists continue to push for the decarbonization of the last peaker plant in Berkshire County.
On Tuesday, the Berkshire Environmental Action Team solicited feedback about the future of Pittsfield Generating Co. at Allendale Elementary School, which neighbors the power plant.
Talks about transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable energy with battery storage are underway between the owners, state agencies, and other stakeholders. BEAT will present data from this meeting to inform the conversation.
"The reason we're holding meetings like this is to let
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Eversource Recognizes National Electrical Safety Month with life-saving tips| 12:16PM / Sunday, May 25, 2025 | |
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. With warmer weather returning and many people turning their attention to outdoor projects and seasonal home maintenance, it's critical to keep safety top of mind—especially when working around electricity. In recognition of National Electrical Safety Month, Eversource is reminding customers that without proper precautions, contact with electric lines or equipment can be dangerous or even fatal. "Safety isn't just something we do—it's who we are," said Eversource Vice President of Safety, Training and Fleet Operations Cliff Williams. "It's built into every step of our work and every decision we make. Our crews are trained
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Berkshire County Historical Society Announces Summer Event Schedule| 12:31PM / Saturday, May 24, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire County Historical Society has announced its schedule of summer events, which will include new programs, collaborations, and returning annual favorites. The events are scheduled to take place at Arrowhead, Herman Melville's historic Pittsfield home, located at 780 Holmes Road in Pittsfield, unless otherwise specified. The summer programming aims to explore various aspects of Berkshire history, the natural world, and the works of Herman Melville, while also commemorating the bicentennial of the Marquis de Lafayette's visit to Pittsfield. "Berkshire County Historical Society is offering a robust series of 0 Comments
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Berkshire Community College Graduates Physical Therapist AssistantsBy Sabrina Damms, iBerkshires Staff
10:29AM / Saturday, May 24, 2025 | |
President Ellen Kennedy, program instructors and speakers pose with the graduates. See more photos here. PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Berkshire Community College graduated six physical therapist assistants during an intimate ceremony on Thursday. "This is a meaningful and, I hope, memorable evening for you, your families, our healthcare partners, this college, your very proud faculty, and most importantly, your future patients," BCC President Ellen Kennedy said. "In the years ahead, you will implement plans of care for people who are overjoyed to regain movement, for those coping with diminished capacity, and for others who are angry and grieving 0 Comments
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Front Porch Feature: Cape With Ample OpportunitiesBy Breanna Steele, iBerkshires Staff
05:30PM / Friday, May 23, 2025 | |
The home is located at 387 North St. DALTON, Mass. — This sweet renovated Cape on a generous corner lot is a perfect starter home, or a great pick for downsizing or sharing with mom. Our Friday Front Porch is a weekly feature spotlighting attractive homes for sale in Berkshire County. This week, we are discussing a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home built in 1940. The first floor has an eat-in kitchen and a living room, plus a bedroom, bathroom, and laundry. there are two more bedrooms, kitchen and a large bathroom upstairs. The house is 1,676 square feet on 0.15 acres, with an unfinished basement and a garage. It comes with a washer and dryer, refrigerator, range,
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Pittsfield Street Improvement Project: May 27 to May 30| 04:12PM / Friday, May 23, 2025 | |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The following street improvements are scheduled from May 27 to May 30: May 27-28: Loam and seed Backman Avenue, Daniels Avenue and Jason Street May 27-30: Raising structures on Newell Street May 29-30: Final course of paving on Orlando Avenue, Ridge Avenue, Backman Avenue and Jason Street On-street parking, for the above streets, is prohibited during this work between the hours of 6 a.m.- 6 p.m. In addition, MassDOT will be conducting the following work: Adjusting structures and fixing curbing on North Street from Lanesborough town line to Berkshire Medical Center entrance (5/27-5/30) Traffic loops at various intersections on First Street 0 Comments
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@theMarket: Trump Tariff Escalation Sinks Markets (Again)By Bill Schmick,
02:50PM / Friday, May 23, 2025 | |
On Friday morning, Donald Trump decided to ruin investors' Memorial Day holiday weekend by threatening Apple with 25 percent tariffs on foreign-made iPhones and 50 percent tariffs on Europe. Stocks sank worldwide in response. Whether the president will carry through on his threats remains to be seen. His track record for implementing such actions in the recent past has been spotty at best. Nonetheless, the armies of proprietary traders and algorithmic computers that control markets always shoot first and ask questions later. I must confess that the timing of these announcements is somewhat suspect. Throughout the week (until Friday morning), the serious issues we face in 0 Comments
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Conte Community School Crossing Guard Recognized| 10:45AM / Friday, May 23, 2025 | |
BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation, through its Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program, announced Soleil Hanger of Conte Community School in Pittsfield as one of the winners of the 2025 Safe Routes to School Crossing Guard Awards. Hanger, along with other winners, will be recognized at the annual Safe Routes to School Awards Ceremony, scheduled to be held on June 2, 2025. This annual contest, which began in 2021, recognizes and highlights the important role crossing guards play in helping students and families safely travel to schools. "Crossing guards are essential to the safety of students walking to and from school," said 0 Comments
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