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Weather Advisory: Snow, Rain, Wind on the Way

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Hope everyone enjoyed Wednesday's blue skies and Thursday's warmer temperatures because a "bomb cyclone" is about to go off. 
 
Accuweather is reporting that a strengthening storm could bring rain, snow and high winds into the Northeast this weekend. The storm would have to drop in barometric pressure over 24 hours to reach bomb cyclone level. "This storm may reach that criteria as it moves northward and intensifies from Thursday evening near Delmarva to Friday evening in southern Maine," according to Accuweather.
 
The Berkshires isn't yet listed as being in the snow zone but neighboring counties in New York and Vermont are now under a winter storm watch from Thursday night through Saturday morning. (Southern Berkshire was added to the advisory Thursday afternoon.)
 
The National Weather Service says heavy, wet snow of up to 7 inches is possible in the higher elevations of Southern Vermont and predicts 2 to 3 inches could fall over the Berkshires. 
 
And where there's no snow, there could be torrential rains and danger of flooding. 
 
Wind gusts could reach 40 to 50 mph or more. The last windstorm that roared through the county knocked down numerous trees, ripped off shingles and left hundreds without power, especially in North Berkshire. 
 
But there's good news ahead: later next week should see temperatures rising into the 50s, a sure sign that spring will finally bloom. Here's hoping March goes out like a lamb.
 
 

Tags: bad weather,   snowstorm,   

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Affordable Housing Advocates Look to Ballot Initiatives, State Legislation

By John TownesSpecial to iBerkshires
This five-part series looks at the challenges in building affordable housing and at some solutions in Berkshire County. Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4 and Part 5.
 
Regulatory reform is widely considered an important key in the overall effort to increase the supply and affordability of housing.
 
It's estimated that building a modest house can cost as much as $500,000 today.
 
While the rising price of materials and services are also responsible for this, a significant factor is the expense and delays that are required to meet stringent requirements and regulations. This impacts projects ranging from large developments to renovations by individual homeowners.
 
Despite differences and some controversies over specifics, there is widespread consensus on the need to streamline bureaucratic hurdles and red tape for new housing and rehabilitation of existing properties.
 
Reforms are intended to address excessive or unnecessary regulations and procedures in zoning, building codes and other requirements that proponents say stifle affordable construction and more efficient land-use.
 
One statewide advocacy group is Abundant Housing Massachusetts, a coalition of local community groups and others who
support pro-housing policies.
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