Pittsfield City Council Approves $179M Budget for FY22

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City Council approved both the operating and capital budget on Tuesday in a swift meeting that adjourned at 7 p.m.

The operating budget of $179,205,963.00 was approved in a 7-3 vote with Ward 1 Councilor Helen Moon, Ward 2 Councilor Kevin Morandi, and Ward 4 Councilor Chris Connell voting in opposition.

The budget was amended from the originally proposed $179,410,963 with $205,000 deducted from the Police Department budget: $15,000 from the contractual allowances and $190,000 from the patrol officers' allotment.

Ward 7 Councilor Anthony Maffuccio approved the budget with a disclaimer to his colleagues.

"I was not going to support this budget at the Committee of the Whole level but I am supporting this budget because I do believe the city administrative side, even though they were generous with their pay raises, did add quite a few positions that helped the city out and that the mayor does a good job and orchestrating and putting together a good budget for the city side," he said.

"I do not support the School Committee budget, I don't believe they did the teachers justice, they have failed the teachers year after year with pay raises, they continue to fail our teachers year after year."

Maffuccio added that he believes the Pittsfield Public School district has not addressed retention problems and that out-of-district transfers are "way too high."  

He also said a district of this size should not have underperforming schools.

The council also approved a number of orders within the school budget.  

Below are the budget sessions for fiscal 2022 in order of when they occurred, with the latest listed last.

• The first day of budget review on Monday, May 17, covered the Mayor’s Office, City Council, City Solicitor, City Clerk, Council on Aging, Veterans’ Services, and Cultural Development.
   
• The second day of budget review on Wednesday, May 19, covered RSVP, Information Technology, Berkshire Athenaeum, Maintenance: City, Maintenance: School, Airport, Human Resources, Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Community Development, Community Preservation, the Health Department, and Building Inspectors.
   
• The third day of budget review on Monday, May 24, covered the Pittsfield Public School budget.
   
• The fourth day of budget review on Tuesday, June 1, covered the Fire Department, Emergency Management, and the Police Department.
   
• The fifth day of budget review on Wednesday, June 2, covered Public Services, Worker’s Compensation, Finance and Administration, and Unclassified.

Pittsfield Celebrates Arbor Day at Taconic

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
06:10PM / Saturday, May 02, 2026

Mayor Peter Marchetti presented the framed original cover art for the day's program. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Generations of Taconic students will pass the tree planted on Arbor Day 2026 as they enter school. 

Pittsfield's decades-long annual celebration was held at a city school for the first time. Different vocational trades at Taconic High School worked together to plant the Amelanchier, or flowering serviceberry, mark it with a plaque, record the ceremony, create artwork for the program's cover, and feed guests. 

Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath said the students' participation reflects the spirit of Arbor Day perfectly: learning by doing, serving the community, and helping Pittsfield grow greener for generations to come.

"It's not unknown that trees help shade our homes, help clean our air and water, they support wildlife, and make our neighborhoods and public spaces more beautiful and resilient," he said. 

"And Arbor Day is our chance annually to honor that gift and to remember that when we plant something today, we are investing in the future of our green world."

The holiday was established 154 years ago by J. Sterling Morton and was first observed in Nebraska with the planting of more than a million trees.

CTE environmental science and technology teacher Morgan Lindemayer-Finck detailed the many skilled students who worked on the event: the sign commemorating this Arbor Day was made by the carpentry and advanced manufacturing program, specifically students Ronan MacDonald and Patrick Winn; the multimedia production program recorded the event, and the culinary department provided refreshments. 

The program's cover art was created by students Brigitte Quintana-Tenorio and Austin Sayers. The framed original was presented to Mayor Peter Marchetti.