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The new pharmacy, to be called the Williamstown Apothecary, will be located at 72 Spring St. in Williamstown, a property owned by the college.

BHS, Williams College Collaborate on Retail Pharmacy on Spring Street

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WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Berkshire Health Systems and Williams College have announced the development of a new retail pharmacy in Williamstown, expanding access to prescriptions, over-the-counter medications and many other products, in close proximity to the Williams campus.

The new pharmacy, to be called the Williamstown Apothecary, will be located at 72 Spring St. in Williamstown, a property owned by the college.

The Williamstown Apothecary is scheduled to open in early spring, following the completion of renovations to the property being undertaken by Berkshire Health Systems and municipal permitting.

"Williams has been excited to work with BHS to bring pharmacy and related services to the heart of Williamstown," said Matt Sheehy, Williams College's associate vice president for finance and administration. "This should be a major convenience for the community, including Williams' students, faculty and staff. It also will complement nicely the goods and services available in the middle of town."


"We are pleased to partner with Williams College in an effort to expand the Williamstown community's access to prescription and other pharmacy needs," said Darlene Rodowicz, Berkshire Health Systems' chief financial officer. "In discussions with Williams College leadership, the desire to have a pharmacy in easy walking distance from the college campus was cited as a significant need for students, faculty and staff, and will also greatly benefit the overall community."

The Williamstown Apothecary will be operated by Berkshire Health Systems through its Berkshire Community Pharmacy, as a full retail pharmacy with access to prescription medications and over-the-counter pharmaceuticals, including an automated system allowing for pick-up of prescriptions after-hours.

"The Williamstown Apothecary will carry a variety of vitamins, supplements and medications that are common to pharmacies, but also will have several items of interest to the college community," said David MacHaffie, BHS's director of retail and specialty services. "We will also have a selection of herbal medications and teas, flower essence tinctures, a line of high-quality skin care products, local organic hand-made soaps, and essential oils and diffusers, among other items of interest."

The Berkshire Community Pharmacy currently operates two other pharmacy locations that are open to the public: at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield and the North Adams Campus of BMC.


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Mount Greylock School Committee Votes Slight Increase to Proposed Assessments

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Mount Greylock Regional School Committee on Thursday voted unanimously to slightly increase the assessment to the district's member towns from the figures in the draft budget presented by the administration.
 
The School Committee opted to lower the use of Mount Greylock's reserve account by $70,000 and, instead, increase by that amount the share of the fiscal year 2025 operating budget shared proportionally by Lanesborough and Williamstown taxpayers.
 
The budget prepared by the administration and presented to the School Committee at its annual public hearing on Thursday included $665,000 from the district's Excess and Deficiency account, the equivalent of a municipal free cash balance, an accrual of lower-than-anticipated expenses and higher-than-anticipated revenue in any given year.
 
That represented a 90 percent jump from the $350,000 allocated from E&D for fiscal year 2024, which ends on June 30. And, coupled with more robust use of the district's tuition revenue account (7 percent more in FY25) and School Choice revenue (3 percent more), the draw down on E&D is seen as a stopgap measure to mitigate a spike in FY25 expenses and an unsustainable budgeting strategy long term, administrators say.
 
The budget passed by the School Committee on Thursday continues to rely more heavily on reserves than in years past, but to a lesser extent than originally proposed.
 
Specifically, the budget the panel approved includes a total assessment to Williamstown of $13,775,336 (including capital and operating costs) and a total assessment to Lanesborough of $6,425,373.
 
As a percentage increase from the FY24 assessments, that translates to a 3.90 percent increase to Williamstown and a 3.38 percent increase to Lanesborough.
 
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