Berkshire County Historical Society Celebrates Plant a Tree Day

11:45AM / Wednesday, September 27, 2023Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Join the Berkshire County Historical Society on Thursday, Sept. 28, at 5:30 pm as they celebrate Plant a Tree Day with a ceremonial planting of a young American elm "Jefferson" on Park Square.

The tree will be planted to honor the Berkshires' first known environmentalist Lucretia Williams. Williams threw herself before the woodsman's axe to save a towering elm known as the Pittsfield Elm on Park Square in 1789.

"BCHS is very grateful to the Pittsfield Parks Department and George and Alice Wislocki for helping make this possible, said Executive Director Lesley Herzberg. "It is a fitting and lasting tribute to Lucretia Williams whose story resonates with us today over one hundred years after her efforts to save the Pittsfield Elm."

This free event is open to the public.

Tags: park square, trees,

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Residents, Officials Say 'No' to Proposed Berkshire Gas Rate Hike

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
07:12AM / Saturday, February 07, 2026

The hearing included representatives from state's rate division, the hearing officer and Department of Public Utilities Commissioners, at right, Chair Jeremy McDiarmid and Liz Anderson

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Local officials and residents argued against Berkshire Gas's proposed 22 percent increase on the average customer's bill during a public hearing on Wednesday evening at Berkshire Community College.

State Sen. Paul Mark and state Reps. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, John Barrett III and Leigh Davis stood before members of the state Department of Public Utilities in "strong opposition" to the rate hike.

The Berkshire delegation joins Gov. Maura Healey, local higher education institutions, and community members who find the increase, estimated to be about $54 a month for residential heating, unaffordable for a vital service.

"While there was a time that this was our hometown Berkshire Gas, in reality, it is not anymore. This is a multinational company. It's a multinational company whose CEO makes $3.23 million a year. That's $62,000 a week," Farley-Bouvier said.

"Now that is more than what most people in Berkshire County make in a year."

The proposed increase has been attributed to capital investments and rising operational costs, and Barrett said a significant driver of those costs is the Gas System Enhancement Program, which "has raised serious concerns for years."

GSEP costs passed down to ratepayers have increased by more than 300 percent without clear evidence of proportional improvements in safety or leak reductions, he added, and the Attorney General's Office is reviewing those concerns as they relate to Berkshire Gas's 2026 GSEP spending.

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