Flushing of Pittsfield's Water System to Begin Tuesday

Staff Reports 08:00AM / Friday, September 01, 2023Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city of Pittsfield's Department of Public Utilities announced flushing of the city's water system will begin Tuesday, Sept. 5.

Water mains throughout the city will be flushed through hydrants over the course of four weeks to remove accumulations of pipeline corrosion products. Mains will be flushed Monday through Friday each week, except holidays, between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.

The upcoming flushing for the week of September 5 may be expected to affect the following areas:
Starting at the town line on Dalton Avenue working west through Coltsville including lower Crane Avenue, Meadowview neighborhood, following Cheshire Road north.
Hubbard Avenue and Downing Parkway.
Starting at the town line on East Street working west through the McIntosh and Parkside neighborhoods.
Elm Street neighborhoods west to the intersection of East Street.
Starting at the town line on Williams Street working west including Mountain Drive, Ann Drive, East New Lenox Road, and Holmes Road neighborhoods.

Although flushing may cause localized discolored water and reduced service pressure conditions in and around the immediate area of flushing, appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that proper levels of treatment and disinfections are maintained in the system at all times.

If residents experience discolored water, they should let the water run for a short period to clear it prior to use.

If discolored water or low-pressure conditions persist, please contact the Water Department at (413) 499-9339.

Tags: hydrants,

iBerkshires.com Text Ads

Greylock Youth SummerFest

Come join in on the wealth building fun! August 3-8. Click for event details. Insured by NCUA.

www.greylock.org

rk MILES Blding Materials

Are You Ready to Update Your Home? Start With rk MILES. 4 Locations (800)670-7433

www.rkmiles.com

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Recent E. Coli Detection in Pontoosuc Lake Confined to Lanesborough

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:05AM / Tuesday, August 04, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Only Lanesborough's portion of Pontoosuc Lake had a bacterial exceedance last week.

During the Lake Management Commission's second meeting on Thursday, members received an update on the situation.

On July 22, the Lanesborough Board of Health closed the Sunrise Street and Narragansett Avenue beaches due to high E. Coli levels. They have since cleared.

"We didn't have any bacterial exceedance in Pittsfield, so there's no concern at all last week for any E. coli concerns in Pittsfield,” Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath reported.

Regular monitoring for bacterial exceedances at swimming beaches across the Commonwealth is required. Pittsfield's Board of Health tests Pontoosuc and Onota Lake weekly on Wednesdays throughout the summer.

Lanesborough also conducts weekly testing through its Board of Health, and an exceedance was reported to the state at Sunrise Beach, at the very north end of Pontoosuc Lake.

McGrath noted that he did not see Narragansett Beach on the state's dashboard.

"The City of Pittsfield was made aware of the bacterial exceedance and we, of course, were concerned,” he said.

"Our weekly testing happened the next day on Wednesday. Our results were returned Thursday morning. We did not have a bacterial exceedance at Pontoosuc Lake Park, where we test off of the wall on the north side of the channel, and also proximate to the boat ramp, at this point in time.”

View Full Story