image description
The apartment buildings at White Terrace were the scene of two fires in the past week. A city man has been arrested in relation to the latest one on Thursday.

Pittsfield Man Charged in Second Fire at White Terrace Building

Print Story | Email Story
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A Pittsfield man is being charged with arson after firefighters responded Thursday to a second blaze at the large apartment building on White Terrace and North Street.
 
Police say Joseph Stone, 43 was taken into custody on Thursday and will be arraigned on Friday in District Court on a single charge of arson.
 
The fire was called in at about 2:17 p.m. on Thursday at 8 White Terrace. Firefighters were quickly able to extinguish the fire, though the building did suffer damage. No injuries were reported and the investigation led to Stone, said police.
 
The vacant building was the site of a major structure fire on Wednesday, Sept. 8, at 6 White Terrace, the neighboring building. The multi-apartment structures have been vacant since another major fire in 2017 that was deemed accidental.
 
The investigation into both fires this September is being conducted by members of the Police Department, Fire Department, and fire marshals assigned to the Massachusetts State Police. Anyone who witnessed these incidents or wishes to provide additional information is asked to contact the lead investigator, Detective James Losaw, at 413-448-9700, Ext. 572.

Tags: arson,   structure fire,   

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Dalton Prepares for Challenging Budget Season

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — As the town embarks on a challenging budget season, the new town manager has already put forth cost mitigation options. 
 
It has been demonstrated by both the Finance Committee and Town Manager Eric Anderson that this budget season will be full of obstacles and tough decisions. 
 
During the Select Board meeting on Monday night, Anderson explained that the town is going to be very close to its levy limit with the increases in the school district budget, health-care costs, and cost-of-living increase for employees.
 
Health insurance costs are projected to increase roughly 16 to 18 percent for next year, which will be a "big hit" to the town, he said. 
 
The town currently pays about $1.2 million total for employee health insurance. Employees are responsible for around 27 percent of the health-care costs, Anderson said. 
 
The board approved setting the cost of living adjustment for town employees to 3 percent for fiscal year 2027. 
 
The board felt that the 2 percent COLA combined with the 1.75 percent step or grade increase was in line with the consumer price index of about 2.7 percent. 
 
View Full Story

More Pittsfield Stories