WinterFest Set for Saturday in North Adams

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — North Adams will host its annual WinterFest on Saturday, Feb. 17, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., featuring sledding, snow building, hot chocolate, the annual Chowder Cook-off, ice sculpting, horse-drawn wagon rides, a community camp fire and the third annual WinterFest Farm & Artisan Marketplace.

Festivities will wrap up at the North Adams Skating Rink, with free skate rentals and rink access from 2 to 4 p.m. Due to expected warmer weather and rain this week, Sunday's activities at Windsor Lake have been cancelled for this year's event.

All events are free and the schedule is as follows:

* Ice Sculpting on Main Street and Eagle Street, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Watch artists along the street carve 300-pound blocks of ice into creative creatures and objects. This year's ice block sponsors are the Museum of Dog (x3), Empire Cafe, Berkshire Emporium, PopCares and Klipper Kingz.

* Fun in the Snow at Colegrove Park (weather permitting), 9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Self-guided fun in downtown's "backyard." Colegrove park offers great sledding. Bring your own sled.

* Community Conversation led by MCLA's Diversity Programs & Multicultural Education Center at the Design Lab, 49 Main St., 9-11 a.m.: In this community conversation, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail," which focuses on the four steps of non-violent protest — identify, negotiate, self-purify and direct action — will be discussed.

* Farmer & Artisan Market at 66 Main St., 10 a.m.-3 p.m.: Shop local at this indoor food and crafts market featuring more than 30 vendors and live music by Sandy & Sandy from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Shoppers can expect to find jewelry, ceramics, knit wear, handmade toys, home decor, natural skincare and remedies, winter produce, meats, cheese, eggs, jams, relishes, syrup, bread, granola, baked treats and pastries. The market will also offer prepared crepes and grilled cheese sandwiches from Natalya's Ethnic Cuisine and Cricket Creek Farm. Bright Ideas Brewing will be offer crowlers to purchase for home consumption and pints will be available to purchase for on site consumption. Attendees wishing to purchase alcohol must be 21+ and show valid ID. Open containers cannot be taken off the premises.

* Hot cocoa, cookies, and robotics at MountainOne, 93 Main St., 10 a.m.-noon: Event sponsor MountainOne will be offering free hot cocoa and cookies in their lobby, along with robotics demonstrations from the McCann Tech Robotics Team.

Cost, Access to NBCTC High Among Concerns North Berkshire Residents

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
06:15PM / Thursday, April 25, 2024

Adams Select Chair Christine Hoyt, NBCTC Executive Director David Fabiano and William Solomon, the attorney representing the four communities, talk after the session. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Public access channels should be supported and made more available to the public — and not be subject to a charge.

 

More than three dozen community members in-person and online attended the public hearing  Wednesday on public access and service from Spectrum/Charter Communications. The session at City Hall was held for residents in Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg and North Adams to express their concerns to Spectrum ahead of another 10-year contract that starts in October.

 

Listening via Zoom but not speaking was Jennifer Young, director state government affairs at Charter.

 

One speaker after another conveyed how critical local access television is to the community and emphasized the need for affordable and reliable services, particularly for vulnerable populations like the elderly. 

 

"I don't know if everybody else feels the same way but they have a monopoly," said Clarksburg resident David Emery. "They control everything we do because there's nobody else to go to. You're stuck with with them."

 

Public access television, like the 30-year-old Northern Berkshire Community Television, is funded by cable television companies through franchise fees, member fees, grants and contributions.

 

Spectrum is the only cable provider in the region and while residents can shift to satellite providers or streaming, Northern Berkshire Community Television is not available on those alternatives and they may not be easy for some to navigate. For instance, the Spectrum app is available on smart televisions but it doesn't include PEG, the public, educational and governmental channels provided by NBCTC.