PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city has received $238,826 for Shared Streets and Spaces projects from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to support 20 placemaking projects.
The city announced Tuesday that the state Department of Transportation approved and funded the its grant application for the Shared Streets and Spaces Program in the amount of $238,826.
The grant program was instituted in part to aid communities in developing areas for pedestrian access and outdoor economic activities, such as outdoor dining, during the novel coronavirus pandemic. However, applications were weighed on the potential and intent for making these improvements permanent.
This program will support 20 placemaking projects in the downtown corridor designed to enhance mobility for pedestrians and bicyclists, integrate additional open and public spaces for community life, and improve navigation.
The grant program provides grants as small as $5,000 and as large as $300,000 for cities and towns to quickly implement or expand improvements to sidewalks, curbs, streets, on-street parking spaces and off-street parking lots in support of public health, safe mobility, and renewed commerce in their communities.
Projects are split into two categories:
Enhanced Mobility Components: Projects that will enhance mobility by taking paved space typically used for car travel and altering it for more diverse use.
These projects include traffic calming measures, bicycle and pedestrian-friendly paths and improvements, parking changes, and traffic changes.
Placemaking Components: Projects that draw foot traffic by creating focal points throughout the downtown to create a more inviting outdoor experience.
The projects include the installation of various parklets and plazas throughout the downtown as well as interactive play streets. Projects also include gateway intersections and corridors that invite pedestrians to explore and continue their walk through the downtown.
Projects vary in cost from $4,000 to just over $20,000
A full outlay on the projects can be found here but some highlights are protected bike lanes from Maplewood Avenue to Wahconah Street, a play street installation on Melville Street, and the North Street gateway enhanced corridor that will include shade structures, bike racks, public art, and seating.
Work is expected to begin now and continue through early October, adhering to the grant's required timeline.
One of the projects would push parking away from the curb on the south side of Bank Row, opening it up for public and dining space.
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Soccer Hall of Fame Adds Members, Awards Scholarships
Community submission
PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- The 2026 CIAO Soccer Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place at Berkshire Hills Country Club on Thursday.
The Hall of Fame's mission is to preserve the sport's history in Berkshire County, to honor excellence within the game and to make a connection between the generations that bring communities together. With players who last played on a soccer field in Berkshire County in the 1960s to the scholarship winners at the banquet on May 14th who played their last high school game in the fall of last year, we are achieving our goal.
It is worth noting that this class of inductees is stellar. We have four County MVP selections, 14 All-Berkshire selections, eight All-Western Mass selections and, and nine captain honors, five four-year varsity starters and one five-year varsity starter.
The players were introduced by committee chairmen Al Belanger and Patrick West. The scholarship winners were introduced by Chris Dumas, a member of the CIAO Soccer Hall of Fame committee. The photographer for the evening was Ricco Fruscio. Over the past 21 years, the scholarships awarded to high school seniors in Berkshire County have topped $250,000.
The 2026 Inductees:
Katie Dumas Sturm (Wahconah 2015) was a hard-nosed, and relentless four-year starter for Wahconah. She was a two-year captain in the middle of the field, scoring and assisting on clutch goals in big games. She was rewarded with being named All Berkshire, and All Western Mass in her senior year. She is married to Brent Sturm (who is also being inducted into the hall of fame this year) and has a son Banks and a 7-week-old Everett Michael. She works at General Dynamics.
Brent Sturm (Wahconah 2009) was named to the All Berkshire Team in both his junior and senior years and won a Western Mass championship during his time at Wahconah. He also went on to have a stellar career at Wentworth Institute. He and his wife, Katie, are the first husband and wife inductees into the CIAO Soccer Hall of Fame in the same year. After college, he helped coach the Wahconah Soccer and basketball teams. He works at General Dynamics.
Nicole Gamberoni (Lenox 2019) was an impact player on her team for five years while at Lenox making All-Berkshire teams four times. She was captain twice, finished with 107 points, and was the league MVP two times. She also went on to play soccer at AIC. She is working at Lenox High School while she is getting her master’s degree.
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