Downing & Pignatelli Announce State Funds for Capital Repairs

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. - State Senator Benjamin B. Downing (D-Pittsfield) and State Representative William “Smitty” Pignatelli (D-Lenox) announce today that the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) awarded technical assistance and capital improvement bond funding to the Berkshire County Regional Housing Authority (BCRHA) and Lenox Housing Authority.

“With these important investments in our public housing stock, DHCD continues to prioritize and ensure safe and comfortable housing throughout the region,” said Downing.

BCRHA was awarded $12,500 to help supplement its own capital reserves for a study to investigate a possible septic failure at the Authority’s Dewey Court development. Lenox Housing Authority was awarded $6,250 to repair damaged laundry room flooring at the Authority’s Curtis Building development.

“We’ve experienced some ongoing septic and drainage issues at the Dewey Court site and this study will help us get to the root of the problem,” said BCRHA Executive Director Brad Gordon. “This work is necessary for the continued viability of the development. We deeply appreciate the ongoing support of Senator Downing to fight to preserve valuable housing opportunities throughout the community.”

“This is welcome news and further testament of the great work DHCD has done to maintain the wonderful facilities we have here in the Berkshires,” said Pignatelli.

DHCD is transitioning to a new system to allocate funding from the 2008 Housing Bond Bill. Funding to all Local Housing Authorities (LHA) will be determined by a formula based on a state-wide Capital Planning System (CPS), using a uniform methodology for building condition assessment, locally determined priorities, and good property management practices. CPS assessments will be complete this summer and DHCD will use that data to allocate formula funding to all LHAs. BCRHA and Lenox Housing Authority may then plan projects based on its prioritized needs, subject to DHCD’s approval of their overall capital plans.
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A Boutique Hotel is Bringing Guests a Luxury Stay in Lenox

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

LENOX, Mass. — A new Inn is bringing a boutique-style stay for visitors and locals to enjoy.

Owners, Sullivan Capital LLC, purchased the property, located on 135 Main Street, in 2024. After a year or renovations, Garden Gables Inn is open for business. 

"Garden Gables started off as one of the many Berkshire cottages, 1790 was the date on that, and it's always operated as an inn," said Hospitality Manager Yvonne Walton. "It's just a great gathering place and relaxation spot for people to come and get the feel of Lenox, and just slow down and enjoy the nature and the surrounding area...get culture and art and see some great concerts. I think it'll be a wonderful place, definitely does more of the upper-scale hospitality." 

Owners Niko Giallouis and Eric Sullivan bought the property from the former owner. Sullivan had his eye on Lenox since attending a wedding almost 10 years ago.

"I came to a wedding in Lenox, probably six or seven years ago. Personally, just kind of fell in love with the area, and I guess that's kind of how it got on my radar. So you know from that perspective, as we got into the hotel business out towards an area, it was a place I was kind of monitoring and waiting for the right property to show up."

After purchasing the two underwent a full renovation, a project that cost around $1.5 million. The building, first built in 1780, required some TLC. Sullivan's wife, Jessica, who owns Jessica Sullivan Design, designed the inn.

Sullivan said they installed a new roof, repainted everything, renovated the bathrooms, installed new floors, a new HVAC system, and new plumbing.

"We really touched everything from the outside...I mean, all the aesthetics and layouts changed a bit," he said. "As I said, put about a million and a half into it. All new furniture, fixtures, everything. The design's completely different. It wasn't a full gut, but it was a heavy, heavy renovation."

The two like to collaborate with local businesses, and they make a point to direct visitors to local restaurants, businesses, and attractions.

"If guests are asking for recommendations, our customer service team, our guest services team, will relay that kind of information. Even if we can call and make a reservation for somebody, happy to do it," he said. "We aren't doing breakfast, but what we do is we have partnerships with a lot of the breakfast places downtown. We actually purchase a gift certificates for each person each day, so that they can use that to go downtown."

Sullivan hopes that guests don't see their inn as just a place to sleep and dump their bags, but make it an experience for anyone who stays.

"We really focus on kind of the experience side of things, so again, we want to give you the best experience you can have here...and we want that not just to be the place you put your bag and go do things. It's important to think of everything," he said.

Sullivan said partnerships are important to their business and are a way to connect with locals.

"The local partnerships, I can't stress that enough, because no matter how much and how great the room is, people are still going to want to go do other things," he said. "So, I think it just benefits everybody if we're all working together and so forth, and supporting the community, being neighborly too, because we are surrounded by residential homes...But we really try to put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, a lot of love into the building, all the details, really care about the senses," Sullivan said.

The Inn's check-in and reservations are completely online. When guests arrive, all they have to do is check in online and receive their code that they will use to enter their room. Sullivan hopes this helps create less stress for guests and gets them to their room as fast as possible, especially after a long trip.

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