PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Just a few months ago, the Berkshire Carousel was like a puzzle. There were a bunch of pieces just waiting to be put together.

 

But, that puzzle is nearly complete. The carousel featuring 33 hand-carved and painted horses and chariots and rounding boards is assembled. and the final touches of the enclosing building are nearly finished.

 

On July 1, the organization is planning to reveal the decadelong art project during a grand opening ceremony. 

 

"They look beautiful. The rounding boards look wonderful. The artwork is fabulous. We had over 400 volunteers working on all different pieces of the carousel and to then see it come together as one thing and actually work is just wonderful," Executive Director Maria Caccaviello said. 

 

The Center Street location is nearly built out for the first phase. The carousel is inside a pavilion that used to sit at the YMCA's Camp Ponterril. Walls have been configured and this week lighting was installed with more 700 bulbs. There is still painting and bathrooms to be built as well as the installation of a heating and cooling system. And a cupola is waiting to be rested on top. 

 

"We expect the siding to come in this week. We will be painting a trim, so the outside will be complete. Then we will finish up the inside," Caccaviello said.

 

The construction is slightly behind schedule because of issues arising with the land. It was envisioned that the site would be completed by the end of 2015 but Caccaviello says that timeline was "ambitious."

 

"The property has give us lots of challenges. We found Pittsfield's fourth lake. When they dug the hole, the water came gushing up," Caccaviello said. "The building is built almost like those oil barges out on the ocean. There are 19 caissons underneath that cement. That's not going anywhere. It is a sturdy, sturdy foundation."

 

Maxymillian Construction donated what would have been nearly a $500,000 expense for the foundation. Apparently the site used to be swampland and consists of some 17 feet of peat moss so water would flow through the ground when digging. The company dug some 25 feet down to rock to anchor the concrete foundation. Further, the location was windier than expected so the doors and windows had to be more firmly fixed.

 

The cupola was built by donations from L.P. Adams and will feature a copper cap and stained-glass windows, the windows crafted by a volunteer who owns a shop.

 

The nonprofit has jewelry cases purchased from Macy's to house the gift shop area. 

 

"I wanted to make it a venue for local artists. So we have people making jewelry, necklaces, all different kind of jewelries, trinkets, odds and ends for children, little puppets, and pillows and stuffed animals, all handcrafted, " Caccaviello said.

A shed has been ordered to serve as a concession stand, being named Ester's Table Cloth after a volunteer's mother. 

 

The Berkshire Carousel is already booking birthday parties, reunions, and wedding photo shoots. They've crafted programs for children focused on performance arts and painting classes for seniors. 

 

All of the operations will continue to be done by volunteers.

 

"What's great about having 400 volunteers is someone is from somewhere. We have a person who ran a restaurant. We have insurance people. We have artists, managers of gifts. They come from a wide variety professions and careers and we've been able to draw on that," Caccaviello said. 

 

Once the operation is given the go ahead to operate, volunteers will be taking classes to be certified to operate the ride. And already two volunteers have been certified as mechanics.

 

"For 10 years we've been saying, 'it's an art project, it's an art project, it's an art project,' and then I went to pay the insurance and now it's an amusement ride, which means I need certified mechanics who can do amusements. When they went for their training there was really very little about carousels, it was all Ferris wheels and that kind of thing," Caccaviello said.

 

Caccaviello hopes to have a soft opening in the spring. But the opening will be far from the final stage of the project that has been in the works for the last decade. Future phases will include the construction of a full cafe, a restoration shop, and a performance area. 

 

"I would like to get a full season under our belt before we start Phase 2," Caccaviello said.

 

The carousel project began in 2005 out of a one-car garage on Merrill Road where community volunteers began carving the pieces to the merry-go-round. Funding to support the project came from residents and area businesses. 

 

The workshop moved nearly a half-dozen times, as has the location of the finished product. The idea was for the carousel to be in Pittsfield, but when that fell through, the organization toyed with the idea of housing it at two different locations in Lanesborough and then one in Dalton.

 

Eventually, a private donor gifted the organization the money to build a home for it on Center Street in Pittsfield.