image description — A fire at the back of the Old Forge Restaurant damaged the salad bar area and outside deck on Sunday morning.

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Olde Forge Owner Says Restaurant Will Recover from Sunday Fire

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
12:25PM / Sunday, August 28, 2022Print Story | Email Story

An image shared around Facebook shows the flames.

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — The popular Old Forge restaurant on Route 7 suffered severe damage in the rear of the building from a fire late Sunday morning.

There is damage in the salad bar and back of the building but owner Kirk Grippo said the eatery is going to be back open as soon as possible.

"I'm not sure exactly what happened," he said as firefighters checked the damage off the rear deck. "We're working on it already. I'm resilient. We're going to fix the damage to the end of the building, we've already been working together with the building inspectors, electrician, the insurance companies. We're going to figure it out real quick."

"They say it's OK from the salad bar forward, which may mean the downstairs is fine, too, so we're going to do everything we can to get it up and running and get back as fast as possible. I'm resilient. I'm not gonna let this go."

The Fire Department got the call about the blaze around 10 a.m. There were substantal smoke and flames were showing in the rear of the building. Several posts to Facebook showed black smoke and large flames coming off the deck area. The restaurant was not open at that hour and it's not clear if any employees were in the building. Its hours on Sunday are normally noon to 8.

The fire appeared to be contained by about 11 a.m. Fire Chief Jeff Dechaine reported that a majority of the fire was out and that firefighters were looking for extension in the building and hot spots in hard-to-reach areas because of the age of the building.

He said the cause and extent of the damage was not yet determined but that there were no reported injuries. The Berkshire Eagle later reported a firefighter was taken to Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield as a precaution.

The siding and decking on the rear of the building is charred and a hole is visible in the rear roof from the blaze.

Firefighters could be seen throwing what appeared to be charred furniture and wood off the deck.

Cheshire, Dalton, Hancock and Hinsdale fire departments responded to the scene. Route 7 was blocked off from traffic to accommodate response.

The Olde Forge is known for its chicken wings and extensive beer selection. It has been in business for more than 40 years.

Tags: structure fire,

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Dalton Board Signs Off on Land Sale Over Residents' Objections

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:50AM / Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Residents demanded the right to speak but the agenda did not include public comment. Amy Musante holds a sign saying the town now as '$20,000 less for a police station.'

DALTON, Mass. — The Select Board signed the sale on the last of what had been known as the Bardin property Monday even as a handful of residents demanded the right to speak against the action.

The quitclaim deed transfers the nine acres to Thomas and Esther Balardini, who purchased the two other parcels in Dalton. They were the third-highest bidders at $31,500. Despite this, the board awarded them the land in an effort to keep the property intact.

"It's going to be an ongoing battle but one I think that has to be fought [because of] the disregard for the taxpayers," said Dicken Crane, the high bidder at $51,510.

"If it was personal I would let it go, but this affects everyone and backing down is not in my nature."

Crane had appealed to the board to accept his bid during two previous meetings. He and others opposed to accepting the lower bid say it cost the town $20,000. After the meeting, Crane said he will be filing a lawsuit and has a citizen's petition for the next town meeting with over 100 signatures.

Three members of the board — Chair Robert Bishop Jr., John Boyle, and Marc Strout — attended the 10-minute meeting. Members Anthony Pagliarulo and Daniel Esko previously expressed their disapproval of the sale to the Balardinis.

Pagliarulo voted against the sale but did sign the purchase-and-sale agreement earlier this month. His reasoning was the explanation by the town attorney during an executive session that, unlike procurement, where the board is required to accept the lowest bid for services, it does have some discretion when it comes to accepting bids in this instance.

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