Pittsfield City Council Calling For Answers From PEDA
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The council voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of a petition from at large Councilor Melissa Mazzeo asking PEDA board members to present a report on a life sciences incubator building that the group hopes to bring to the William Stanley Business Park.
PEDA Director Cordyon Thurston previously appeared before the council six weeks earlier to summarize their economic development progress and fielded more than two hours of questions. In some cases, Thurston was unable to shed light on decisions made prior to his taking the job in May 2011.
"Especially after the last time, we had Mr. Thurston here, who did a great job articulating what he knew in his short time being there, but this really took place some time before he got there," Mazzeo said. "So I'm hoping in the letter we draft that we really explain to the rest of them that we really would like a good representation of them to come."
As early as March 10, former councilor Michael Ward had suggested that PEDA should be brought back in front of the council answer questions about the project. His suggestion came in the form of a Facebook note to Mazzeo and fellow councilors John Krol and Barry Clairmont, in response to coverage of confusing dialogue at the board's March 7 meeting suggesting that $6.5 million in funds earmarked for such a project might be claimable by other towns.
The 6.5 million authorization for a life sciences incubator was secured by state Sen. Benjamin Downing, D-Pittsfield, in March 2008 but to obtain it PEDA must solicit serious interest from a sufficient amount of prospective tenants.
"I think that with all of us getting more involved, I think everyone is kind of wanting to know exactly what we're looking for. We don't want to lose this [6.5 million dollar earmarked funds], we're starting to get companies coming into the William Stanley Business Park, and so I think the time is right now to really get ourselves up to speed on exactly what is going on," Mazzeo said.
