Congratulations to the city of Pittsfield for winning the Massachusetts Cultural Council Mayor's Art Challenge. The three-minute video of "The Art of Revitalizing a City" will be showcased at the State House this coming February at the Commonwealth Awards, the state's highest honors in arts and culture.

The awards are presented every two years and, in 2009, the city was recognized as the state's most Creative Community for its efforts in using arts and culture to advance its goals as a vital community.

Pittsfield was one of 16 videos entered in the contest and features Mayor James M. Ruberto talking about the city's revitalization from a booth in Dottie's Coffee Lounge. The video's racked up more than 2,700 views to date and garnered 219 "likes" on YouTube. That seems a small amount, but voters had to have a YouTube account to vote. It still outpaced the larger cities of Lowell and Melrose (both with 186) and Haverhill (132). See all 16 videos here.

These four top vote-getters were reviewed by a panel at MCC and Pittsfield declared the winner.

Berkshire County's other city, North Adams, also vied in the challenge but couldn't come up with enough votes for the final. Featuring North Adams Mayor Richard Alcombright, the Steeple City's video picked up 72 likes and more than a 1,000 views. See that one below.

The Pittsfield video will be also be shown next year to the U.S. Conference of Mayors as part of the Americans for the Arts annual presentation. The video was created by Jennibeth Gomez, and AmeriCorps-VISTA intern in the city's Office of Cultural Development.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Carousel Art Committee is seeking volunteers to continue work on its project of creating the first wooden hand-carved carousel in New England in almost 100 years, specifically for the 28 panels that will decorate space around the horses.

Some 130 volunteers thus far have been involved in the carving and painting of carousel figures, fundraising and designing for the project. The first finished horse, "Kali," was unveiled in March.

The panel design phase involves the creation of 28 panels, 14 of which will form the upper border of the carousel; the other 14 panels will be placed in the upper center of the ride and below smaller panels surrounding the ride's operating mechanism.

The committee seeks "realistically historic" scenic depictions from the Berkshires' Gilded Age, painted with a palette that is true to the color of the subject. For examples, guidelines and other information, click here.

The application deadline is Monday, Nov. 22;  Reviews and selections by the committee will be completed by the end of the year, and artists will be asked to complete paintings by June 1, 2011.

RICHMOND, Mass. — The town will be bidding a final farewell Friday to its building inspector, Walter S. Potash.

Potash died Sept. 1 at his Lee home at age 77. His funeral will be held on Friday, Sept. 10, at 10 a.m. at St. Peter's Church in Great Barrington. There were no calling hours scheduled.

The Pittsfield High School gradutate had owned A & P Builders during the 1970s. He'd been the inspector for Richmond for the past seven years and had also been a building inspector for Lanesborough and Monterey. He was a member of the Building Officials of Western Massachusetts.

Potash had worked for many years at the former GE in Pittsfield. He'd lived in Great Barrington before moving to Lee in 2002. He loved animals and nature, particularly feeding wildlife, so family has asked that contributions in his memory be made to the Berkshire Humane Society in care of Dery Funeral Home, 54 Bradford St., Pittsfield.

Staffing at the Richmond Town Hall will limited Friday morning because many employees will be attending the service. The town is arranging for an interim inspector until a permanent one can be appointed.

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — You know fall's around the corner when the inevitable lists of the best schools start appearing. And, inevitably, the Williams College is on them.

This month, Williams' selection as one of the "New Ivies" by college-rater Unigo.com comes on the heel's of its top ranking as America's best college by Forbes Magazine.

The private liberal arts institution, and the second-oldest college in the state after Harvard, has been a perennial top-lister in various "best of" lists, including U.S. News and World Report's annual rankings. Forbes ranked Williams as No. 4 last year; this year, it popped to the top, beating out archrival Amherst at No. 3.

Forbes ranks colleges on academics and students' experiences and achievements. Unigo.com's rankings are similar and it gleans all of its information directly from students. The site offers information to help collegebound students choose the right school. The list of "The New Ivies" is among the site's "10 for 10" that includes ranking for the 10 safest, best party, most intellectual and sports.

The information culled from some 30,000 respondents placed Williams among the New Ivies with Duke and Johns Hopkins for its low student-instructor ratio, communal atmosphere and emphasis on academic experience over grades.

Williamstown is isolated. But the athletic, outdoorsy and social students don’t seem to mind spending time on campus together. 'We come here for the academics, and for one another.' That, in a nutshell, is Williams' largest selling point.