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Renovations Planned for Park Street Landmark

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
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The former Woolworth building was purchased for $60,000 last Friday. Its new owners plan to renovate and lease residential and commercial space in the 1920 building.

ADAMS, Mass. — The former Woolworth's building, a Park Street anchor, will be brought back to life under new owners.

Braytonville Properties LLC, a real estate holding company with properties in North Adams, purchased the Mausert Block for a bargain price of $60,000 — 90 percent off its sale four years ago — last Friday with the intent to completely renovate and lease the structure. Braytonville's real estate and property management firm REDPM will develop and renovate the brick building's apartment units and four storefronts.

"It's a wonderful building to be working with; it's part of the fabric of the town," said Holly Stenson, who oversees construction and property management with REDPM, on Thursday. "It will be really good to put life back in that section of Park Street."

The 90-year-old building has lain fallow for several years after being purchased for $600,000 from the Hawke family by Boston architect Chiong Lin as an investment in spring 2007. What plans Lin may have had for the building never materialized as the economy soured, she fell behind on taxes and eventually declared bankruptcy.

Stensen said the building needs to be brought into code compliance, including the installation of a fire escape. Work is expected begin this summer on the renovation of the retail spaces for leasing in the fall; the target date for completion of the living units is late summer or fall 2012.

The building's 18 apartments will be reconfigured into high-quality residential units; the building also has 23 storage units. Stenson said her company is working on design plans and discussing options with the town.

"We want to make sure everyone's happy and on board," she said. "We'll have some images out soon ... we have a lot of ideas going around."

Braytonville, whose principal is Stephen Stenson of Belmont, picked up the 1920 brick structure from IBMA Property Holdings, the real estate holding company for Bayview Financial Services of Coral Gables, Fla. Bayview took over Lin's mortgage in 2008. The purchase was brokered by Peter West of the Bishop West Team in Adams.



The property is assessed at $229,400 and had been listed at $750,000 on Zillow.

The town had an enjoinder placed on the property in 2008 by Housing Court requiring Lin to place $60,000 in escrow for the installation of a fire escape and it condemned the property in 2009. The enjoinder was recently removed to clear the way for the sale. The apartments have been unoccupied for at least three years and the storefronts have seen a handful of tenants come and go after Woolworth's left nearly two decades ago.

REDPM has renovated and operated a number of apartment units in North Adams for Braytonville; this is its first venture in Adams and first to include commercial property in the area.

West, who also brokered the building's sale four years ago, said there would be announcements in the coming weeks of leasing opportunities.

"We've got some prospects we're going to show it to," said West, who is the contact for retail tenants. "We've got a guy who texts me every three days."

Officials have hoped the refurbishment of the landmark building across from Town Hall will lift the downtown.

"We're really excited about this building," said Stenson. "You just want to breathe life into it."


Tags: historical building,   Mausert Block,   Park Street,   redevelopment,   

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Hoosac Valley High School is Moving and Shaking

There have been some major shifts within the Hoosac Valley Regional School District recently, all of which have focused on enhancing the student experience to make it a place where ALL students can find their path.
 
In 2023, Hoosac Valley High School was designated an Innovation Pathway School by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and has since restructured the Program of Studies, utilized creative scheduling, and expanded internship opportunities. Part of this transformation includes participating in a "Portrait of a Graduate" cohort alongside four other Berkshire County schools to determine a collective vision for student success, in partnership with the BARR Foundation.
 
The Innovation Pathways at HVHS are designed to give students coursework and experience in a specific high-demand industry, such as technology, engineering, healthcare, or life sciences. Currently, Biomedical Science & Healthcare and Environmental Studies have received official state IP designation. In addition to the IP designated pathways, HVHS offers programs in Engineering & Technology, Business & Entrepreneurship, Arts & Entertainment, Education, and Sports Medicine. The result is that students have an opportunity for a transformative experience – enabling them to build essential skills, gain awareness of future career opportunities, and make informed choices about post-secondary education in promising fields.
 
Principal Colleen Byrd notes, "What makes our program special is that entry into the Pathway of your choice allows a student to access Advanced Placement and dual enrollment college courses, as well as internships in the community to set them up for success after high school."
 
The Portrait of a Graduate initiative consists of a team of Hoosac educators and students who exemplify the essential skills, practices, and beliefs that define learning experiences across the district. They work to outline the competencies, values, skills, and knowledge that define our vision for student success – keeping in mind that not every student's pathway will look the same. The District's goal is to ensure that all students graduate as responsible people, prepared individuals, lifelong learners, global citizens, critical thinkers, and thoughtful communicators.
 
Another recent change district-wide in grades K-12 is the "Crew" culture. Teachers and students now have time each day to create positive connections and build authentic relationships with one another. Through Responsive Classroom at the elementary school and Crew at the middle and high schools, students and staff gather for 30 minutes each day to engage in meaningful experiences rooted in mutual and shared interests. 
The Crew block is a prioritized structure that allows staff to support all students socially, emotionally, and academically – anchoring them and promoting the Portrait of a Graduate competencies. Crew takes many forms at the high school, such as gardening, bird watching, yoga, and sports talk with visits to college games.
 
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