Cultural Grants Awarded To Northern Berkshire Communities

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — State Representative John Barrett III and the Northern Berkshire Cultural Council jointly announced the award of 63 grants totaling $72,500.00, for cultural programs in Northern Berkshire Communities. 
 
These eleven communities are comprised of ; Adams, Cheshire, Clarksburg, Florida, Hancock, Lanesborough, Monroe, New Ashford, Savoy, Williamstown, and the City of North Adams. A complete list of recipients and grant amounts can be found here. http://Www.mass-culture.org/ccnb
 
"It's the local volunteers who really make this system work," said State Representative Barrett. "They make limited resources go as far as possible, and they make the tough decisions about which projects should be supported. Thanks to them, the arts, sciences, and humanities are part of people's everyday lives in communities across the state."
 
The Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils serving all 351 cities and towns in the Commonwealth. The LCC Program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences, and humanities every year. The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency, which then allocates funds to each community.
 
Decisions about which activities to support are made at the community level by a board of municipally appointed volunteers. The members of the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire are:
 
Arthur De Bow, Co-Chair - North Adams               
 
Lorna Gayle - Lanesborough      
 
Cecilia Hirsch, Co-Chair - Williamstown
 
Henry Klein - Adams     
 
Donna Motta - North Adams      
 
Barbara Proper - Cheshire          
 
Linda Rhoads - Adams  
 
Mark Siegars - Lanesborough    
 
Sally Sussman - Williamstown
 
Peter Traub - Savoy
 
Erica Jane Wetherell - Hancock
 
Maureen Riley Moriarty, Staff/Administrator
 
Statewide, more than $3.3 million will be distributed by local cultural councils in 2021. Grants will support an enormous range of grass-roots activities: concerts, exhibitions, radio and video productions, field trips for schoolchildren, after-school youth programs, writing workshops, historical preservation efforts, lectures, First Night celebrations, nature and science education programs for families and town festivals. Nearly half of LCC funds support educational activities for young people.
 
The Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire will seek applications again in the fall. For guidelines and complete information on the Cultural Council of Northern Berkshire, contact us at the email or number above.  Applications and more information about the Local Cultural Council Program are available online at www.mass-culture.org .  Applications are due Oct 15.
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Parks Commission OKs Wahconah Park Event, Clapp Park Dugouts

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Baseball dugouts are planned for Clapp Park, and in April, the community will have one last look inside the historic Wahconah Park grandstand before it is demolished. 

On Tuesday, the Parks Commission approved a "Farewell to the Grandstand at Wahconah Park" event to be held on April 11 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. 

Recreation and Special Events Coordinator Jennifer VanBramer explained that the event will allow the community to see the more than 100-year-old structure before it comes down later in the spring. 

"Attendees will be able to go up to the top of the ramp to get a look into the grandstand for one last chance and quick photo op, but they can't get any further due to safety concerns," she explained. 

The property at 105 Wahconah St. has drawn attention for several years after the grandstand was deemed unsafe in 2022. Planners have determined that starting from square one is the best option; a $15 million rebuild is on the table. 

There will be speeches from city officials and Baseball in the Berkshire Director Larry Moore, a slideshow with old photographs and memories shared from the community, a table with renderings of the new grandstand, a memory table, and a story booth where short interviews can be recorded. 

"Ernie the Hot Dog Guy" is also confirmed as a food vendor. 

"We're looking forward to great weather, and unfortunately, we won't be able to get everyone fully into the grandstand, but certainly we'll be able to have folks view the grandstand from the safe areas of the grandstand," Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath explained. 

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