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Nursing Program Building Approved for McCann School

Superintendent James Brosnan explains the need for a dedicated space for McCann Technical School's nursing program at Monday's Planning Board meeting.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Planning Board on Monday night approved a 2,700 square foot addition to the McCann Technical School for its practical nursing program.

With the closing of the North Adams Regional Hospital, the program was left with incomplete facilities.

Northern Berkshire Vocational School District Superintendent James Brosnan said renting a facility is not an option, and it would be more effective to add an addition onto the building. Although the students are able to use the available hospital resources as well as other care providers in the area for the clinical aspects of the class, a designated area for the program is a must.

"We have 20 students and two faculty; it's a very small number, but we just need the space to set up a lab area so all the equipment can go with them," Brosnan said. "We have to have a lab facility with beds, nursing facilities, computers and surgical suites."

The one level, 30-by-90 foot addition will be built in front of the gymnasium facing Hodges Cross Road. Brosnon said it will be "self-sustaining" and will have its own bathrooms, two offices, storage, and three labs. He added that parking will not be an issue because the program takes place in the evening.

Darren Harris, of building designer Hill Engineering, said the addition is small compared to the rest of the building.  

"It is probably a 2.5 percent expansion of the campus so we really don't feel it's any detriment to the neighborhood, to the utilities, to the city, to the traffic, or anything like that," Harris said. "It's basically the size of a large house."

Brosnan said the addition will not just benefit the practical nursing program, but many other students in McCann.

"The idea is that our students working with staff, or electricians, our carpenters, and our metal fabrication students will build out on the inside," he said. "It's an excellent project for the students, and it is certainly cost effective for us."

Brosnan said the program had used labs housed in the old Doctors Building on the NARH campus in an area renovated by McCann students eight years ago. He said the old space was closer to 3,000 square feet, but much of it was used for storage that is no longer needed.

Brosnan said the construction should start quickly because he would like to have the facility opened by Thanksgiving so students can use it. Bids for the project will be determined at Thursday night's School Committee meeting.

Planners also approved special permits for the relocation of two local businesses in the downtown.

Shima, operating as Alastair Grace LLC, has moved to 15 Eagle St. The children's clothing store is sharing space with Persnickety Toy.

Computer Bug, a retail computer business, will move from 91 Main St. to Shima's former location at 65 Main St.

Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
06:15PM / Thursday, April 25, 2024

Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.

 

More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing  Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.

 

Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.

 

One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly. 

 

"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."

 

Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.

 

Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.