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News & Notes: Pittsfield Debates Set; Searles Developer SelectedBy Larry Kratka
Berkshire News Network
10:06AM / Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Pittsfield Preliminary Election Debates Take Shape
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The only mayoral forum planned before the Sept. 22 preliminary election was set Monday, Sept. 14, at Berkshire Community College. Now there is word that another mayoral debate will be produced and hosted by author and former radio talk show host Dan Valenti.
Valenti said all 10 mayoral candidates have been invited to attend and the debate will be recorded Friday, Aug. 28, at 2:30 p.m. at the Pittsfield Community TV studios on Frederico Drive. The date of broadcast is yet to be announced but Valenti said the debate will run about two hours.
The Pittsfield Gazette, meanwhile, has published the lineup of debates for ward races included in the preliminary election. The debates will all take place on Monday, Aug. 31, with Ward 7 candidates debating at 6, Ward 4 candidates at 7:05 and Ward 2 candidates at 7:50 p.m.
The debates will take place at Berkshire Community College in Room K-111, the small auditorium. PCTV will televise the debates. Additional ward debates are planned for Oct. 19, prior to the general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The Gazette will also host a mayoral forum on Sept. 14 at the Boland Theatre at BCC.
Gas Odor Forces Lanesborough Family Out Of Home
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The smell of natural gas forced a family of three out of their home early Monday morning. There were no injuries.
The gas leak occurred when the Water Department accidentally cut an unmarked natural gas service line while digging a path for a new water line near 44 Wabasso St. The gas leak was discovered by one of the residents of the house when he smelled the rotten egg odor of natural gas from a bathroom window. The leak was repaired by Berkshire Gas Co. crews by 11 a.m. on Monday.
Great Barrington Selects Searles Developer
GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — The Selectmen gave approval to one of several proposals for the Searles/Bryant school complex on Monday night.
By a vote of 4-1 they chose RiverSchool Development as the winning bidder. RiverSchool will pay the town $800,000 for the site. The firm's plans include developing the site into a mixed-use development with 40 housing units — 10 of which will be affordable housing units.
Great Barrington-based Jane Iredale Mineral Cosmetics will rent out space in the new complex and three additional building will be constructed to likely hold retail businesses. Another developer backed out of a $1.3 million deal with Great Barrington last year to develop the site. At that time a bid of $1.2 million by Riverschool Development was rejected.
Stockbridge Rejects Funding to Complete Water System
STOCKBRIDGE, Mass. — A special town meeting on Monday night rejected additional funding for a new water storage tank and extra piping.
The Berkshire Eagle reports this morning that the town's $3.4 million project to install a new 600,000-gallon water tank and 17,000 feet of new piping will have to go on the back burner for a while, as town meeting voters did not approve another $900,000 for the project. The extra funding was needed to cover the cost of additional piping.
The focus of the town now will have to be to work out what type of water improvement the it can afford using the money that was already approved by voters a year and a half ago. Selectmen Chairman Robert Flower says doing nothing is not an option.
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