North Adams Awaits State Regs on Wood Furnaces

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
Print Story | Email Story
NORTH ADAMS — The city is holding off on creating rules for outdoor wood furnaces until the state releases its own regulations, likely by the beginning of October.

The City Council declared a moratorium on the shedlike furnaces last month until in anticipation of regulations limiting their use. A number of other municipalities and states across the nation have begun regulating the furnaces, which have been cited as neighborhood polluters.

The Public Safety Committee recommended the delay after meeting with two owners of the wood-burning furnaces earlier this month and reviewing a rough draft of rules being considered by the Department of Environmental Protection.

"Mount Williams Greenhouses and Mr. [Richard] Sheehan are the basically the only two individuals the city who have those outdoord wood-burning furnancs right now," Councilor Ronald Boucher, chairman of the Public Safety Committee, told his colleagues on Tuesday night. "According to Mount Williams, they've had theirs for about four or five years, and burn somewhere near about 20 cord a year any without complaints."

Boucher did not know how long Sheehan had been using his furnace, but the East Main Street resident had said it had not been an issue.

Councilor Richard Alcombright, who submitted the resolution seeking a moratorium and regulations, said he'd like to see what the state came out with and maybe the city "could play around with that a little bit."

There are certain circumstances in which the city can be tougher than the state with regulations, said Councilor Clark Billings. "I'd like to see what the state has to offer first."

Alcombright agreed, adding, "I think there may be a need for us to look at something a little more restrictive."

Councilors had discussed at an earlier meeting the possibility of banning the furnaces in densely populated areas, or limiting their use to a minimum lot size.

Clarksburg has also suspended permits for outdoor-furnace installations until the state releases its code.

In other business:
  • The council postponed action again on an ordinance amendment related to maintaining vacant and foreclosed properties because the city solicitor had not yet provided a legal opinion.
  • Approved hookups to the city's waste-water system by two homeowners in Clarksburg: Kilian J. Flynn of 115 Fieldwood Drive and Mark and Robbin Simonetti of 105 Fieldwood Drive. Final approval for the hookups is up the Hoosac Water Quality District, which oversees the system owned jointly by Williamstown and North Adams.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Armed North Adams Man Arrested Following Domestic Standoff

Staff Reports

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Matthew Parker, a 44-year-old North Adams man, is set to face multiple counts of attempted murder and weapons charges in Northern Berkshire District Court on Friday morning following an hours-long, armed standoff at a Houghton Street home.

The defendant is being arraigned for:

  • Domestic Assault and Battery
  • Assault with the Intent to Murder (3 counts)
  • Carrying a Firearm While Under the Influence of Alcohol (3 counts)
  • Possession of a hi-capacity firearm (4 counts)
  • Improper Storage of a hi-capacity firearm (2 counts)
  • Improper Storage of a firearm (6 counts)

According to a report, on June 10, at approximately 8:42 p.m., officers responded to 365 Houghton St. following a report of a domestic assault and battery. The caller said she and her husband had been involved in a physical altercation.

She said her husband was intoxicated, making suicidal statements about shooting himself, and had access to both a shotgun and a pistol.

Upon arrival, officers made contact with both the caller and Parker. During the encounter, Parker threatened to shoot officers before retreating into the home and refusing to exit.

Officers believed that Parker was armed.

To ensure public safety, police established a perimeter around the home and requested assistance from the Berkshire County Special Response Team (SRT) and North Adams Police crisis negotiators. The Brien Center was also contacted and promptly provided an emergency mental health clinician to assist with the incident.

Special Response Team personnel deployed drones to monitor the residence and provide aerial illumination. During the operation, officers saw Parker exit the house carrying a rifle. He pointed it at the drones, stated a report. Parker subsequently pointed the rifle toward several officers positioned behind their cruisers. After officers attempted to de-escalate the situation, Parker returned inside the residence.

Trained crisis negotiators maintained communication with Parker for several hours in an effort to peacefully resolve the situation. At approximately 2 a.m., Parker ceased communication with negotiators.

Drone operators later observed Parker unconscious in a recliner on the first floor of the residence, with a rifle and shotgun on the floor nearby.

Members of the Berkshire County SRT then executed a coordinated operation. Diversionary devices were deployed through a window while an entry team simultaneously entered the home, secured the firearms, and took the defendant into custody.

A search warrant was executed after Parker was in custody. North Adams Police seized four shotguns, six rifles, two handguns, and thousands or rounds of ammunition from the home.

During the operation, one SRT member sustained a minor injury related to a less-lethal bean bag deployment. Parker also sustained non-life threatening injuries during the arrest and was transported to Berkshire Medical Center for medical evaluation.

"We thank the community for its patience and cooperation throughout this incident, particularly residents in the affected area who complied with temporary shelter-in-place requests," Police Chief Mark Bailey said.  "The North Adams Police Department extends its sincere appreciation to the agencies that provided mutual aid and assisted by handling calls for service during this incident. We are especially grateful to the Berkshire County Special Response Team for its professional and decisive response, the Brien Center for the rapid deployment of a mental health clinician, and our crisis negotiators whose efforts helped maintain dialogue and contributed significantly to the safe resolution of this incident."

View Full Story

More North Adams Stories