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The Jones Block is envisioned by town officials as a cornerstone to downtown revitalization.

Work Resumes On Adams' Jones Block

By Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
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Photos courtesy of Polonia Restoration.
Recent work has included insulation, planning and inspections.
ADAMS, Mass. — Work on the Jones Block has resumed after town officials recently voiced concern over its progress.

According to Director of Community Development Donna Cesan, the developer sent an email to the town outlining a schedule for future work.

The outline, which is expected to be updated in two weeks, calls for the upstairs apartment to be completed by the end of May and the entire building to be renovated by the end of the year.

"He's really focused on trying to finish it up," Cesan said on Friday. "We conveyed to him a number of times that we want him to finish it."

Town officials were concerned with the project because work had stopped and the town was losing contact with developer Gerry Sanchez, president of Polonia Restoration.

Two years ago, the town used a $1 million grant for exterior work on the Park Street building, envisioning the historic building would be vital to its downtown revitalization plans — leaving some with a fear that the investment had gone to waste.

However, the Monday email has changed things in Town Hall. Cesan said the delays were caused partially in regard to finances. The local bank the developer was using had new personnel working on the project, she said, and they were sorting out finances with him.

"I've heard there has been a lot of talk with the bank," Cesan said.

In Monday's email to the town, Sanchez said he was scheduled to meet with the town building inspector to approve insulation and a vapor barrier so wallboard could be installed in the apartment.

He also outlined a series of interior work that has been completed since the last time he met with town officials. Sanchez was in a conference on Friday and could not elaborate on the work.

The completed work includes plumbing, insulation and vapor barriers in all of the first floor and preparation for the completion of the apartment.

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Berkshire Museum Donates Cheshire Crown Glass to Town

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff

Historical Commission Chair Jennifer DeGrenier and Jason Vivori, Berkshire Museum collections manager, present the antique glass to the Select Board. 
CHESHIRE, Mass. — A piece of history has found its way back to the town with the donation of a well-preserved pane of bull's-eye glass made at Cheshire Crown Glass Works. 
 
Manufactured in 1814, the artifact was donated by the Berkshire Museum, where it had been since 1910. 
 
The glass will be on display at the town's new museum, located in the old Town Hall at the junction of Church and Depot Streets, alongside research and photographs gathered by the town's local historian Barry Emery.
 
Prior to being housed at the museum, the piece was at the Berkshire Athenaeum prior to the museum's founding, said Jason Vivori, the museum's collections manager. 
 
The glass was originally used in window making. Its distinctive bull's-eye center was formed when the molten glass was spun on a long rod to form large sheets, Vivori said. 
 
The bull's-eye rendered it unsuitable for windows today, but local historians admire the piece for its preservation, making it unique. 
 
There is another piece of Cheshire Glass in the old Reynolds store, Historical Commission Chair Jennifer DeGrenier said. 
 
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