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The historic mill is home to some 40 businesses and will welcome a new one this fall.

Wayfair Finalizes Lease For Clocktower Building

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Wayfair has finalized a lease in the Clocktower Building and expects to move in this fall.
 
Spokeswoman Molly Delaney said on Friday that the lease has been finalized at 75 South Church St. in Building 3. The company will occupy 40,000 square-feet.
 
The former Sheaffer-Eaton Mill, now known as the Clocktower Building, is owned by CT Management under the holding company Clocktower Partners LLC. The company purchased the building for $1 million in 2016.
 
Wayfair  is planning a service center in the portion of the building which sits between the Clocktower Condos and the main office space area. The expansion into Pittsfield will come with the creation of 300 new jobs to the city, which is considered one of the city's biggest economic development wins in a number of years.
 
Wayfair's total expansion will be 3,300 after the state approved $31.4 million in tax breaks to the Boston-based retailer. The majority of the jobs will be in the Boston area with 300 coming to Pittsfield. The home-decor company is owned by Niraj Shah, a Pittsfield native, who has reportedly teased the idea that there could be more expansion into the Berkshire in the future.
 
The e-commerce company is expected to hire 265 customer service representatives and 35 managers at the Pittsfield location. It will be the company's ninth call center.
 
When the announcement was made in December there was no location identified though it was widely known that the Clocktower building was the leading potential location. 
 
The mill was constructed in 1883 by Eli Terry. A decade later it was sold to Arthur W. Eaton who turned it into the Sheaffer-Eaton mill (after a merger with the Sheaffer pens) and employed a total of 900 people at one point.
 
In 1987, the mill was sold to Miller family, then owners of The Berkshire Eagle. In the 1990s, the Millers renovated the entire building into offices and moved paper's operation there. Miller sold the building and business to Media News Group, which then sold it to CT Management.
 
The large complex houses around 40 businesses but was reportedly only about 60 to 75 percent occupied when CT Management purchased it. Delaney said she expects the company to move into the location this fall.

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Pittsfield's Christian Center Announces Community Day, 'Big News'

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— After collecting community input about a potential new name and programming opportunities, the Christian Center says it will make a big announcement this summer. 

The nonprofit plans to unveil "big news" during its annual Community Day on Aug. 22, Executive Director Jessica Jones told the Homelessness Advisory Committee on Wednesday. 

To accommodate different work schedules, Monday through Friday pantry hours were extended to include the second and fourth Saturday of every month; the pantry and lunch open from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.  

"Having some Saturday availability, we're hoping, is going to be helpful for those whose work schedules don't allow for weekday visits to the pantry," Jones said. 

"And we also know that more and more working people are having to make tough decisions about whether or not they spend their money on food or gas or rent or any of the other things that they have to make decisions about." 

HAC Chair Kim Borden said the Saturday hours are very exciting. 

"And I love your thinking on that, because you're right, limited hours when folks are working and picking up kiddos from daycare, there isn't always enough time," she added. 

The Christian Center was incorporated in 1974, but it dates back to the early 1890s, when it was the Epworth Mission, founded by the Methodist Church. 

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