Half-day Business Expo in Dalton on August 9

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Entrepreneurship for All Berkshire County is coordinating a half-day Business Resource Expo on Tuesday, Aug. 9, at the Stationery Factory in Dalton from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.  

A collaborative effort of EforAll, 1Berkshire, Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corp. and Berkshire Regional Planning Commission, the event will feature booths from more than 25 organizations that support small business, panel discussions and plenty of opportunities for networking. The event is free and open to the public.   

Business owners and managers will be able to connect with organizations and programs that have resources to help them – whether with technical assistance, funding or grant programs, marketing or other advice or support. The program will be valuable for existing businesses, would-be entrepreneurs and solo service providers and consultants.

Participants will be able to access experts through a series of panel discussions led by regional experts:

  • "Which organization can help me with what?" moderated by Ben Lamb of 1Berkshire.

  • "Fueling Your Business: Where’s the Money?" moderated by Raymond Lanza-Weil of Common Capital

  • "How can I find more customers ... What marketing works?" moderated by Noah Cook-Dubin of Kanoa Consulting

A networking area will be open throughout the event for one-on-one conversations and meetings. The list of exhibitors, as of July 11, includes:

EforAll, Berkshire County, 1Berkshire, Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corp., Berkshire Innovation Center, TD Bank, Mountain One, Mass Health Connector, Massachusetts Small Business Development Center, Greylock Federal Credit Union, Berkshire Bank, Adams Community Bank, CDC of Southern Berkshire, Common Capital, North Adams Chamber Franklin County CDC, Downtown Pittsfield Inc., Schumacher Center, Lever Inc., Berkshire Community College, Berkshire Eagle, MassHire, Berkshire Agricultural Ventures, Forge, Berkshire Immigrant Center, Mass Development, Berkshire Black Economic Council, Aligned Workplace, Center for Women & Enterprise.
 
Those interested can register for the event at http://bcbizexpo.com
 

Tags: Business Resource Expo,   EforAll,   

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Lanesborough to Vote on 34 Articles at ATM

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Voters will decide 34 warrant articles at the annual town meeting on June 11.

The Select Board endorsed a long list of articles during its regular meeting on Monday, most without discussion. 

A $11,846,607 spending plan has been proposed for fiscal year 2025, a 4.3 percent increase from the this year. The budget includes a net increase of $237,129 in education costs for the Mount Greylock Regional School District and McCann Technical School, less than the $271,478 increase in FY24. 

Three articles are related to short-term rentals, or Airbnbs: To impose a local excise tax of up to 6 percent of the total amount of rent for each occupancy, a 3 percent impact fee on "professionally managed" short-term rentals, and a 3 percent impact fee on short-term rentals in two- or three-family dwellings.

"These are the proposed language as provided by town counsel," Town Administrator Gina Dario explained.

Included in the 34 articles is one citizen's petition, which the board was not required to endorse. If passed, this petition would increase the Select Board from three to five members with an annual election of the chair. The candidate receiving the highest number of votes in that election would serve a three-year term, the candidate receiving the second highest number of votes would serve a two-year term, and the candidate receiving the third highest number of votes would serve a one-year term, with three-year terms to follow.

Two articles needed clearance from the Planning Board before coming to the Select Board, one being a request to amend the town's zoning bylaw to raise the cap on accessory dwelling units from 900 to 2,500 square feet.  

The proposal is in response to the lack of housing availability in the community and is the second go-around.

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