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The historic mill is home to some 40 businesses and will welcome a new one this fall.

Wayfair Finalizes Lease For Clocktower Building

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Wayfair has finalized a lease in the Clocktower Building and expects to move in this fall.
 
Spokeswoman Molly Delaney said on Friday that the lease has been finalized at 75 South Church St. in Building 3. The company will occupy 40,000 square-feet.
 
The former Sheaffer-Eaton Mill, now known as the Clocktower Building, is owned by CT Management under the holding company Clocktower Partners LLC. The company purchased the building for $1 million in 2016.
 
Wayfair  is planning a service center in the portion of the building which sits between the Clocktower Condos and the main office space area. The expansion into Pittsfield will come with the creation of 300 new jobs to the city, which is considered one of the city's biggest economic development wins in a number of years.
 
Wayfair's total expansion will be 3,300 after the state approved $31.4 million in tax breaks to the Boston-based retailer. The majority of the jobs will be in the Boston area with 300 coming to Pittsfield. The home-decor company is owned by Niraj Shah, a Pittsfield native, who has reportedly teased the idea that there could be more expansion into the Berkshire in the future.
 
The e-commerce company is expected to hire 265 customer service representatives and 35 managers at the Pittsfield location. It will be the company's ninth call center.
 
When the announcement was made in December there was no location identified though it was widely known that the Clocktower building was the leading potential location. 
 
The mill was constructed in 1883 by Eli Terry. A decade later it was sold to Arthur W. Eaton who turned it into the Sheaffer-Eaton mill (after a merger with the Sheaffer pens) and employed a total of 900 people at one point.
 
In 1987, the mill was sold to Miller family, then owners of The Berkshire Eagle. In the 1990s, the Millers renovated the entire building into offices and moved paper's operation there. Miller sold the building and business to Media News Group, which then sold it to CT Management.
 
The large complex houses around 40 businesses but was reportedly only about 60 to 75 percent occupied when CT Management purchased it. Delaney said she expects the company to move into the location this fall.

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Toy Library Installed at Onota Lake

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Feel free to use or leave a toy at Onota Lake's newest infrastructure meant to foster community and benefit kids.

Burbank Park now has a toy library thanks to Wahconah Regional High School senior Alexandra Bills. Located along the wall at the beach area, the green and blue structure features two shelves with sand toys that can be used to enhance children's visits.

The Parks Commission supported Bills' proposal in February as part of her National Honors Society individual service project and it was installed this month. Measuring about 4 feet wide and 5.8 feet tall, it was built by the student and her father with donated materials from a local lumber company.

Friends and family members provided toys to fill the library such as pails, shovels, Frisbees, and trucks.

"I wanted to create a toy library like the other examples in Berkshire County from the sled library to the book libraries," she told the commission in February.

"But I wanted to make it toys for Onota Lake because a lot of kids forget their toys or some kids can't afford toys."

Bills lives nearby and will check on the library weekly — if not daily — to ensure the operation is running smoothly.  A sign reading "Borrow-Play-Return" asks community members to clean up after themselves after using the toys.

It was built to accommodate children's heights and will be stored during the winter season.

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