North Adams Receives $6K Safe Routes to Schools Grant
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — East Main Street will be getting new signage, including a solar-powered signal, to improve pedestrian safety near Colegrove Park Elementary School.
The improvements will be funded by a $6,000 Safe Routes to School grant accepted by the City Council on Tuesday.
The public schools have partnered with the state Department of Transportation program since 2016 and more recently was the recipient of a $622,000 project to reconfigure the entrance and sidewalks to the Northern Berkshire Family YMCA and Brayton Elementary.
The application for this latest grant from the federally funded program was accepted last fall. The Signs and Lines program is for low-cost infrastructure around elementary and middle schools.
A committee of school and city personnel made plans for the grant that have been approved by the Traffic Commission earlier this month. The city is responsible for implementing the plan and then applying for reimbursement from the grant.
The area affected runs from the entrance to the library up to the intersection with Miner and Pleasant streets. It will consist of reduced speed limit, new pavement markings for lines, crosswalks and bicycles, and new signage. The solar-powered, blinking radar sign will be programmable and operate between school hours of 7 a.m. and 4 p.m.
The grant was accepted overwhelmingly with Councilor Benjamin Lamb, whose wife Emily Schiavoni coordinated the grant, abstaining and Councilor Jason LaForest absent.
In other business during the brief meeting, the council:
• Approved extending the B-2 zone on Massachusetts Avenue east to include 1272 Mass Ave. The property is owned by Centerville Sticks LLC and adjacent to other properties owned or affiliated to Centerville that are in the B-2 zone. The Planning Board approved the change earlier this month after a joint hearing with the council.
• Confirmed Christa Sprague to the Human Services Commission for a term to expire Feb. 1, 2024.
• Approved the installation of a metal-frame awning at 85 Union St., property owned by Scarafoni & Associates. Proof of liability insurance and council approval was required because the awning will overhang public property.
• Referred to General Government and Community Development an ordinance change that would allow the city to revoke special permits if the holders fail to comply with conditions or to pay taxes and fees. The changes are recommended by the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission and were submitted by Councilor Wayne Wilkinson.
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