A dynamic new vision, strategy and implementation plan for future economic development in the Berkshires – Berkshire Blueprint – was touted this week by Tyler Fairbank, the president of the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation.
The Berkshire Blueprint consists of two projects, explained Fairbank. The Berkshire Strategy Project will evaluate the entire regional economy, as well as select industry clusters; the Creative Economy Strategy Project will focus on the “creative cluster†comprised of non-profit institutions, individual artists and commercial businesses that produce and distribute creative products and services.
The two projects, conducted as separate efforts, will intersect and be linked together throughout the process. The conclusions will be woven together into one comprehensive regional economic strategy: the Berkshire Blueprint. “This approach will provide the Berkshires with the best of traditional regional economic development methodology while also integrating a new ‘creative economy’ thrust,†said Michael Daly, president of Berkshire Bank and chair of the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation Executive Committee. “Most importantly, the Berkshire Blueprint is not simply a study, but rather leads to an implementation plan for economic growth. This is the result of having collaboration from one end of the county to the other.â€
Monitor Group, an international consulting firm, will provide the professional services for the Berkshire Strategy Project. J. Williar Dunlaevy, president of Legacy Banks, is chairing the Berkshire Strategy Project with the Steering Committee being chaired by Gene Dellea, Berkshire Health Systems; Rich Vinette, Lee Community Development Corporation; and John DeRosa, Freedman, DeRosa and Rondeau.
Mt. Auburn Associates, a leading consulting company in the “creative economy†arena, will provide the professional services for the Creative Economy Strategy Project. Michael Conforti, Executive Director of the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, is chairing the Creative Economy Project with the Steering Committee being chaired by Laurie Norton Moffatt, Norman Rockwell Museum and Ellen Spear, Hancock Shaker Village.
The region will benefit from more than $1 million in planning, organizing and implementation activities for the Berkshire Blueprint project. The John Adams Innovation Institute, the economic development arm of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, has invested $300,000 in grant money. About $450,000 is being provided by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. The remainder will be provided through in-kind contributions and private and public regional resources.
“Our investment in Berkshire Blueprint has leveraged about $450,000 in federal funds,†said Patrick Larkin, the director of the John Adams Innovation Institute. “It has also united the work of two of the nation’s top economic research groups -- Monitor Group and Mt. Auburn -- to create a collaborative, unified economic development strategy for the entire Berkshire region.â€
Both projects will simultaneously collect qualitative and quantitative data using the steering committees as a regional interface. As the project materials emerge, they will be available on the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation’s web site. The projects will formulate a new vision, strategies, and an implementation plan for future growth. The target delivery date is October 31, 2006.
“The Berkshire Blueprint Project will fill the need for a regional economic development strategic plan,†Fairbank commented. “The Berkshires must change and grow with the economy of the 21st century. I want to emphasize that this is not another study. We have been saturated with studies in the past. This is an implementation plan, through the Berkshire Blueprint project, for our future, and the Berkshire Economic Development Corporation is in place to facilitate and execute the plan.â€
Created through the collaboration of several key partners, the Berkshire Economic Development Corp. is the lead business development organization for Berkshire County and services the economic development needs of the entire region. The BEDC accomplishes this by facilitating, coordinating and leading countywide development efforts to attract and retain high quality employers and employees, to strengthen the economy of the Berkshires, and act as a catalyst for new endeavors.
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The Grand Coming to North Street, Bousquet Under New Food Management
By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Grand has secured its liquor license, and the McNinch Restaurant Group now operates Bousquet Mountain’s restaurant, its third eatery in the city.
On Monday, the Licensing Board approved the transfer of all alcohol-seven-day liquor licenses for The Grand on North Street and the ski area at 101 Dan Fox Drive.
The former Iztac Mexican Restaurant has given way to a more subdued, moody facade as local Gordon Hebler prepares to open as an oyster bar and piano lounge with seafood options. Its liquor license was transferred to Chesnut Catering doing business as The Grand, owned and managed by Hebler.
He envisions following the theater and music programs in the county, closing for a couple of months at the beginning of each year. Seating was also reduced from accommodating around 100 patrons to 60.
"We're going to be pretty busy. I have that feeling anyway," Hebler said. "…If the foot traffic is any indication of what we're going to see, I'm very excited."
An entertainment license was also approved for The Grand. A piano and vocalist are planned for Wednesday through Sunday evenings; an opening date has not yet been set.
"It’s not just a run in and grab a quick bite and run out," Hebler said. "It's a little bit more involved."
The board also approved an all-alcohol seven-day liquor license transfer from Fresh Powder LLC to the McNinch Restaurant Group for Drifters Bar and Restaurant, located in Bousquet’s ski lodge, and the ski area.
Cassidy Flynn scattered five hits in a complete-game effort in the circle as Lenox upset top-seeded Hoosac Valley, 3-2, in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament. click for more
Brayden Durant struck out seven and walked one in a complete-game effort on the mound Saturday to pitch the Drury baseball team to a 6-0 win over Keefe Tech in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament at Joe Wolfe Field. click for more
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
Gracelyn Wright struck out eight, and Genevieve Lagess went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in as the Hurricanes beat Monson, 17-3, to claim their first Western Mass title in four years. click for more
For the boys, Ward Bianchi helped lead the way with a win in the shot put and a second place in the javelin as the Mounties finished 16 points ahead of runner-up Pittsfield (pending the results of the pole vault, which were unavailable at 11 p.m. Friday night). click for more
