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The New Kimbell Building, owned by David Carver for 20 years, has been sold to an out of town investor.

85 Main Street Bought by New York Man

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
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Crews have been working on 306 Union St. intermittently since it was bought from the city at auction last year.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A significant downtown building changed hands on Wednesday, the third notable structure to be sold in the past week. 
 
The New Kimbell Building, better known as 85 Main St., was purchased by PKC Capital LLC for $1.65 million from 85 Main Street Nominee Trust.
 
David Carver bought the building in 2001 for $1.3 million from Gabriella and John Bond. The property is most recently assessed at $988,500 and contains and estimated 55 units. 
 
The block that encompasses 81 to 91 Main St. was built at the turn of the last century by two daughters of Jenks Kimbell, owner of the "old" Kimbell building that had been the city's first commercial livery.
 
It's been the home of notable businesses over the past century, including Apothecary Hall and McClelland's. It currently hosts a variety of accounting, investment and insurance firms, and offices. MountainOne Insurance and Investments has taken over much of the first floor.
 
The principal of PKC Capital LLC also purchased a different investment property last fall. 
 
Charalabos P. Bakalis of Glen Head, N.Y., picked up 306 Union St., a decrepit apartment building, for $50,000 at the city's fall 2020 auction of municipal-owned properties.
 
Operating as KCS Materials LLC, Bakalis applied for demolition and construction permits for an estimated $300,000 worth of work. The seven-unit building has so far been gutted, had new windows and doors installed and the exterior repaired and painted. Work has not been consistent, but people have been on the site for bursts of construction over the summer. 
 
That property had been one of nearly three dozen in North Berkshire owned by Richard Doherty early this century. Many of those were cited for health and safety violations and eventually went into foreclosure within a few years or were taken for back taxes.
 
Another major downtown building, the hotel, was purchased by NA Hotel LLC on Friday for $4.45 million. The structure is being called Hotel Downstreet and is expected to undergo a renovation in the coming months. 
 
And the third address, albeit smaller, is just as well known. 
 
The former Molly's Bakery at 27 Eagle St. was purchased by Catherine Cusack of Lakeville, Conn., on Monday for $292,500 from 27 Eagle Street LLC.
 
The building dates to the early 19th century and was home to Molly's for 71 years until the business's closure in 2008. Since then it's been home to craft and novelty stores. 
 
There are rumors of several other ownership changes afoot, including a potential purchaser for the vacant TD Bank on Main Street that closed last year. 

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MCLA Selects Pennsylvania Educator as 13th President

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

 Diana Rogers-Adkinson

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The board of trustees on Thursday voted 8-2 to offer the 13th presidency of Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts to a Pennsylvania higher education executive.

Diana L. Rogers-Adkinson is senior vice chancellor for academic and student affairs and chief academic officer for the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, providing system-level leadership for 10 universities serving approximately 80,000 students.
 
"I thought she was really able to articulate the value of a liberal arts education and our mission to both society and, you know, to our students in their lives," said Trustees Buffy Lord before presenting the motion to offer her the post. "I think that she'll be a fantastic advocate for MCLA within Berkshire County, but also in Boston. You know, my sense is that she's going to be able to fight for us if it needs to happen."
 
Rogers-Adkinson accepted the post by phone immediately after the vote, pending negotiations and approval by the Board of Higher Education. 
 
She was one of four finalists for the post out of 102 completed applications. All four spent time on campus over the past month, speaking with students, faculty, trustees and community members. 
 
Trustees expounded on her experience, leadership and communication style. She was also one of two candidates, with preferred by the faculty, the college's unions and Higher Education Commissioner Noe Ortega.
 
The second candidate preferred, Michael J. Middleton, provost and vice president at Ramapo College of New Jersey, withdrew after consultation wiht his family, according to Lord. 
 
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