Berkshire Benchmarks Releases State of the County Update

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Benchmarks data team recently released a State of the County Update for 2023. 
 
This brief report builds on the Berkshire Benchmarks State of the County Report published in May 2022 and highlights notable changes in regional indicators over the past year. The berkshirebenchmarks.org website has also been updated to reflect the most current available data. 
 
The purpose of the Benchmarks initiative and report is to highlight the region's successes and challenges.
 
The 2022 Berkshire Benchmarks State of the County report provided a comprehensive overview of our region's performance across eight sectors: Economy, Education, Environment, Government, Health, Housing, Social Environment, and Transportation.  
 
In the future, the Berkshire Benchmarks team will continue to monitor these and other indicators to aid with the regional understanding of changes in these sectors and whether the work happening throughout the region is having the intended impact. 
 
Berkshire Benchmarks is a collaborative initiative managed through Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC). Our sources are publicly available data, including the U.S. Census Bureau, the American Community Survey, various Massachusetts data sets, and periodic surveys of Berkshire County residents. 
 
Berkshire Benchmarks aims to work with the community to understand priorities and help inform the region on how we are doing and if we are improving. Berkshire Benchmarks enhances the region's access to quality data and analysis. 

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Dalton Fire District Faces Major Decision on Future of Station

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff

Select Board Chair Robert Bishop brings up the potential of collaborating with the Fire District on a combined public safety building, which would solve both the fire and police station problems.
DALTON, Mass. — For several years, the Dalton Fire District has emphasized the fire station's space limitations, and a recent community and space needs analysis further demonstrated that significant decisions need to be made about the facility's future.
 
The district was established in 1884 after rapid growth strained the town's limited water supply for drinking and fire protection. After a fire destroyed seven paper mills, local leaders began searching for new water sources. Check out our story on the district's charter. 
 
MissionCIT (Critical Immersive Training) LLC was contracted by the district to conduct the needs assessment, with its findings presented during last Tuesday's Board of Water Commissioners meeting. View the full report here
 
Over the last century, the department has evolved alongside advances in firefighting technology and practices, with changes in staffing, training, equipment requirements, and call volume and types ultimately causing it to outgrow its facility, Mark Waters of Mission CIT said. 
 
The most recent change came in 2022, when the district assumed control of the ambulance service following the closure of the Dalton Ambulance and Rescue Association and added Advanced Life Support to its services.
 
The department now provides both Advanced and Basic Life Support services.
 
"The bottom line is that this building is being used for something today that it wasn't built for almost 70 years ago," Waters said. 
 
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