Pro Hockey Team to Hold Reception, Waiting on State's Blessing

By Stephen DravisIBerkshires.com Sports
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. -- The leadership of the pro hockey team hoping to hit the ice this winter will break the ice with Berkshire County fans on Wednesday evening at the Freight Yard Pub. 
 
The Berkshire Battalion of the Federal Hockey League will hold a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Team officials will be on hand to answer questions and take suggestions from fans. 
 
The FHL announced earlier this month that it plans to make the league-owned team the sixth franchise in the 5-year-old, unaffiliated league. The plan is to play a 56-game schedule with home games at the Peter W. Foote Vietnam Veterans Memorial Skating Rink. 
 
On Tuesday afternoon, rink manager Darin Lane said the FHL is awaiting final approval from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, which manages the North Adams rink and 40 others like it across the commonwealth. 
 
"We're positive it should be OK," Lane said. "[DCR] sent us what they expect, and we sent all the documentation back in. We don't see any roadblocks.
 
"Until we get the final word, we're just waiting. In all fairness to [DCR], they're pretty busy."
 
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Macksey Updates on Eagle Street Demo and Myriad City Projects

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

The back of Moderne Studio in late January. The mayor said the city had begun planning for its removal if the owner could not address the problems. 
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Moderne Studio building is coming down brick by brick on Eagle Street on the city's dime. 
 
Concerns over the failing structure's proximity to its neighbor — just a few feet — means the demolition underway is taking far longer than usual. It's also been delayed somewhat because of recent high winds and weather. 
 
The city had been making plans for the demolition a month ago because of the deterioration of the building, Mayor Jennifer Macksey told the City Council on Tuesday. The project was accelerated after the back of the 150-year-old structure collapsed on March 5
 
Initial estimates for demolition had been $190,000 to $210,000 and included asbestos removal. Those concerns have since been set aside after testing and the mayor believes that the demolition will be lower because it is not a hazardous site.
 
"We also had a lot of contractors who came to look at it for us to not want to touch it because of the proximity to the next building," she said. "Unfortunately time ran out on that property and we did have the building failure. 
 
"And it's an unfortunate situation. I think most of us who have lived here our whole lives and had our pictures taken there and remember being in the window so, you know, we were really hoping the building could be safe."
 
Macksey said the city had tried working with the owner, who could not find a contractor to demolish the building, "so we found one for him."
 
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