Pittsfield's West Street Topic of Forum

05:55AM / Thursday, July 20, 2023Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A community forum will take another look into the proposed changes for slowing traffic on West Street.

The public meeting will be held in the Crosby Elementary School auditorium, 517 West St., on Monday, July 24, at 6 p.m. It is being hosted by he city's Department of Public Services, the Pittsfield Community Design Center and City Councilor Dina Lampiasi.

An overview of the proposed changes for traffic-calming measures for West Street between Valentine Road and Government Drive will be provided. Attendees will also have an opportunity to share their thoughts and provide input on the project.

Proposed improvements that were presented earlier this month include narrowing the road, reconfiguring travel lanes into 10- to 11-foot travel lanes, upgraded Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant ramps, rapid flashing beacons at mid-block street crossings, re-aligning crosswalks, shortening pedestrian crossing distances, eliminating dedicated turn lanes and reducing turning radii.

The safety of the West Street corridor was fast tracked earlier this year when a mother was killed and her young daughter injured when they were struck while crossing the street. The Pittsfield Community Design Center is a non-city affiliated group advocating for safer streets and has

For additional information on these meetings, please contact Tyler Shedd, city engineer, at 413-499-9417.

Tags: road safety,

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Pittsfield Seeks CPA Funds for Bike Racks, AED

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
07:17PM / Sunday, October 25, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The city plans to apply for Community Preservation Act funds for park bike racks and an AED machine at the pickleball fields.

On Tuesday, the Parks Commission endorsed Pittsfield’s applications for CPA funds.

"Both of those projects are certainly, relative to CPA funds, low cost but high benefit," Commissioner Anthony DeMartino said.

Through CPA, bike racks are proposed for a few city parks, and the Berkshire Mountain Pickleball league is looking to place an automatic external defibrillator at the Benedict Avenue pickleball fields.

Parks, Open Space, and Natural Resources Manager James McGrath and Recreation & Special Events Coordinator Jennifer VanBramer presented the two small project applications, which will go through an eligibility period before full consideration in the spring of 2027.

During the city’s free, six-week, summer playground program, it was observed that many kids access parks by bicycle. The plan is to buy between six and eight racks to be placed at Durant Park, the Common, and Clapp Park; other parks are being considered as well.

McGrath explained that the three parks hosting the playground program don’t have bike racks, and they wind up on the ground and sometimes become a distraction.

"The ancillary benefit to having bike racks is that it encourages that mode of transportation for folks that want to come to the park on their bike," he said.

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