PreviousNext

First Annual 'Running With The Law Race' Takes Off

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Dozens of runners escorted by a police motorcade sped off from Colegrove Park Elementary School on Saturday morning for 5-kilometer "Running With the Law" road race to benefit PopCares.

PopCares raises funds to aid Northern Berkshire individuals and families affected by cancer.

Before the inaugural race, Mayor Richard Alcombright thanked the group of North Adams Police who organized the event that stemmed from a police-student running program at Colegrove.

"Our police are our first line of defense in our community ... and they deserve our thanks and they deserve our respect. I am so proud of the officers of the North Adams Police Department who, in my opinion, have established a model for how cops should be viewed in their communities," the mayor said. "They are stepping outside of the box of traditional law enforcement ... our guys are going to schools, they are going to neighborhoods, and connecting with kids."

Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
06:15PM / Thursday, April 25, 2024

Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.

 

More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing  Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.

 

Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.

 

One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly. 

 

"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."

 

Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.

 

Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.