Most of the banners have pictures but where that was not possible, an appropriate shadow image was used.
ADAMS, Mass. — Banners featuring some of the Mother Town's sons who marched off to war lined Park Street on Monday.
"Banners for Fallen Heroes" is the endeavor of George Haddad and Selectman James Bush, who worked with volunteers and American Legion Post 160 to honor those from Adams who died in service for their country.
The group had hoped to get the banners up in time for Memorial Day but the novel coronavirus slowed things down, said Bush, and were only put up on Monday.
"It was a long road but we got there," he said of the 32 banners featuring serviceman from the Civil War on.
Bush credited Haddad for coming up with the idea after seeing similar banners in town in eastern New York. By chance, Post 160 had just celebrated its centennial anniversary in 2019 and installed a photo retrospective in the main lobby of Town Hall. Part of this exhibit was a booklet of baseball card-like photos of hundreds of local service members dating from World War I.
"We actually had a very good group. We had people from the Legion very involved," Bush said. "Everybody worked very hard at it."
He particularly pointed the almost encyclopedic knowledge of local historian and Legionnaire John Bordeau.
"John Bordeau has a wealth of knowledge on veterans -- it was unbelievable. He was such a tremendous help," Bush said, also pointing to the efforts John Moyer, Keith Mclear and others.
In addition to COVID-19, which cancelled most Memorial Day events, the project also had to deal with getting permission from families for all the banners.
"It's tough to 32 people to make out the paperwork," Bush said.
The graphic design is a picture (or shadow if no image) of the serviceman and the symbol of the armed force they served in, name, age, military unit and year they died. The background is a flag and the main colors red and blue with gold lettering.
The banners were printed by Callahan Signs of Pittsfield and the major sponsor was Adams Community Bank.
They run on lightpoles along both sides of Park Street from Center to Hoosac Street. The Legion estimates around 70 Adams natives have died in service so Bush said they're prepared to add more along connecting streets.
"I'm sure once people see it ... I'm sure there'll be more coming down the road," he said. "I'm proud of it. I think it came out fantastic."
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Greylock Glen Outdoor Center 90% Complete
By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
ADAMS, Mass. — The Greylock Glen Outdoor Center is about 90 percent finished with an anticipated completion date in August.
Matthew Sturz of owner's project manager Colliers International updated the Selectmen on the project's progress via Zoom on Wednesday.
"We'll work with the town to determine exactly the logistics of that," he said in response to questions about the opening. "I think that there's certainly interest in getting the facility open as soon as it can open. But we do need to conclude the construction activities ... it's not federally advisable to have construction activity going on with the public."
The completion will depend on getting a certificate of occupancy for the 10,000-square foot facility.
The $8.3 million project is running eight months behind the expected schedule, Sturz said, largely because of permitting with the state Department of Environmental Protection that required an extensive environmental review of endangered species, working with National Grid to determine how solar will be integrated into the project, and the need for a water system for both potable water and fire suppression.
"Transformers and all manner of electrical switchgear is being significantly impacted by supply chain issues throughout the construction industry," said Sturz. "So coordinating those items up front took a little bit longer than anticipated."
A 350,000-gallon water tank is being constructed on the grounds to provide water with completion expected by July or August.
Michael Wynn, who was selected in January to run the center, submitted a level operating budget of $57,500 but said he could pull funding from different lines to ensure there was money for advertising this fall.
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The Selectmen on Wednesday night voted to award the bid to Mackin Construction Co. Inc. of Greenfield, which plans to invest $11 million to build out 20 or more one- and two-bedroom apartments in the three-story classroom wing that parallels Columbia Street.
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The Selectmen two weeks ago had requested the utility appear before the board after receiving numerous complaints over flickering lights, including in Town Hall.
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Taylor Garabedian scored a team-high 22 points and grabbed five rebounds, and Abby Scialabba scored 16 points for the ‘Canes, who got 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists from Ashlyn Lesure. click for more
On Saturday afternoon at Lowell’s Tsongas Center, the Hurricanes will take aim at Division 5 State Championships in girls and boys basketball. click for more