Javotte Ray, granddaughter of Sterling and Francine Clark, with the cake celebrating the 60th anniversary of the museum they founded.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Nearly one year after it completed a $145 million expansion and renovation, the Clark has the blessings of the Clarks.
Javotte Ray, the granddaughter of Sterling and Francine Clark, on Sunday visited the art museum they founded to help the Clark Art Institute celebrate its 60th anniversary.
Sixty years ago to the day, the Clarks welcomed the world to a white marble building on South Street that the couple built to house its private collection.
Six decades later, that white building is just as impressive and the paintings are just as memorable, but little else would be recognizable to Ray's grandparents.
On Sunday, she stood with Clark Director Michael Conforti on the Fernandez Terrace — one of many features added as part of the 15-year expansion of the Clark.
And she pronounced it good.
"She knew the Clark in its earliest years and she certainly knew her grandparents very well," Conforti told the crowd. "Do you think they would have wanted this to happen, Javotte?"
"I think they would have," the Swiss resident said. "I think they certainly must be looking at us and enjoying themselves.
"You see ... a museum is something to be seen by as many people as possible. Many people will be able to come to the museum and enjoy the pictures, enjoy everything.
"They certainly would be happy. This museum has been remarkably developed, and now it is known worldwide. I think my grandfather would be very happy about that."
Then Ray and Conforti cut a cake in honor of the 60th anniversary, and the crowd enjoyed the art — on view for free for the occasion — as entertainment was provided by two Williams College a cappella groups, the all-male Williams Octet and the all-female Ephoria.
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Williamstown Housing Trust Commits $80K to Support Cable Mills Phase 3
By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The board of the town's Affordable Housing Trust last week agreed in principle to commit $80,000 more in town funds to support the third phase of the Cable Mills housing development on Water Street.
Developer David Traggorth asked the trustees to make the contribution from its coffers to help unlock an additional $5.4 million in state funds for the planned 54-unit apartment building at the south end of the Cable Mills site.
In 2022, the annual town meeting approved a $400,000 outlay of Community Preservation Act funds to support the third and final phase of the Cable Mills development, which started with the restoration and conversion of the former mill building and continued with the construction of condominiums along the Green River.
The town's CPA funds are part of the funding mix because 28 of Phase 3's 54 units (52 percent) will be designated as affordable housing for residents making up to 60 percent of the area median income.
Traggorth said he hopes by this August to have shovels in the ground on Phase 3, which has been delayed due to spiraling construction costs that forced the developer to redo the financial plan for the apartment building.
He showed the trustees a spreadsheet that demonstrated how the overall cost of the project has gone up by about $6 million from the 2022 budget.
"Most of that is driven by construction costs," he said. "Some of it is caused by the increase in interest rates. If it costs us more to borrow, we can't borrow as much."
Developer David Traggorth asked the trustees to make the contribution from its coffers to help unlock an additional $5.4 million in state funds for the planned 54-unit apartment building at the south end of the Cable Mills site.
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The donors, who wish to remain anonymous, say the gift reflects their desire to not only support Williams but also President Maud S. Mandel's strategic vision and plan for the college.
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Neighbors of a proposed subdivision off Summer Street last week asked the Planning Board to take a critical look at the project, which the residents say is out of scale to the neighborhood. click for more
The Select Board and Planning Board this week clashed over a proposal that would add to the town charter a mechanism to ensure compliance with the foundation of town government. click for more