Allegrone Requests Tax Incentive for North Street Project

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A tax increment exemption has been proposed for Allegrone Construction Co.'s $18 million overhaul of two North Street properties.

Tuesday's City Council agenda includes a requested 10-year TIE for the $17.8 million project that redevelops the historic Wright Building and the Jim's House of Shoes property.

The project will combine the two buildings into one development, retaining the commercial storefronts on North Street and providing 35 new rental units, 28 of which will be market-rate units and seven of which will be affordable units.

"Both buildings are underutilized and in need of significant upgrades," Director of Community Development Justine Dodds wrote in a communique to the council.

"The current economic conditions — locally, regionally, nationally— make it difficult for private investors to secure the commercial financing requires for redevelopment."

Both buildings were shuttered around the time of the pandemic, with Jim's House of Shoes closing its doors after about 80 years in business.

The TIE would freeze the current property values and base value, and phases in the increased property taxes that result from the upgrades, beginning at 100 percent forgiveness in the first year and decreasing by 10 percent each subsequent year over the term.

It is a requirement to receive state tax credits through the Housing Development Incentive Program.

The current assessed value of the properties is $497,900 for the Wright Building and $229,900 for the former Jim's House of Shoes property. The redevelopment of these buildings is projected to increase the assessed value of each property to more than $2.5 million and more than $1.9 million, respectively.

The city approved a Housing Development Zone in 2012 to take advantage of the state Housing Development Incentive Program that supports market-rate housing development in gateway cities. The city can provide a TIE for newly created market-rate housing in the zone to private developers and for the projects to be eligible for up to $1 million in tax credits from the state through the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities and the Department of Revenue.

"A total of 166 new units of housing in 9 projects have been created through this program. In addition, all but 16 of those units were former commercial properties that were not housing prior to their redevelopment. These properties include former church buildings, vacant commercial space in the upper level of commercial buildings in our downtown, and a vacant firehouse," Dodds reported.

Earlier this year, the council voted to amend the HD Zone to include a Wendell Avenue property and a Linden Street property, both of which are staged for housing development. It was expanded to Tyler Street and other locations with updates in 2017, 2018 and 2020.

It is requested that the TIE proposal be referred to the subcommittee on Community and Economic Development before coming back to the council.

Also on the agenda is an order to rescind $1,119,471.50 of authorized but unissued debt for projects that are now complete or were never advanced.

This includes $725,000 for temperature controls at Pittsfield High School and $120,000 for three Fire Department generators.

"The rescinding of these unissued amounts on a regular basis is a critical component of our overall
debt management strategy," Mayor Peter Marchetti wrote.

Another Holmes Road Bridge in Pittsfield Down to One Lane

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
03:33PM / Tuesday, February 24, 2026

The location of the bridge on Holmes Road. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Another bridge on Holmes Road will be reduced to one lane indefinitely beginning next month and closed for the rest of the week. 

It's the third bridge so far in the Berkshires that's been downgraded in the past month: The Briggsville bridge in Clarksburg is set to be replaced by a temporary bridge and the Park Street bridge in Adams has had weight restrictions placed on it.

On Tuesday, Pittsfield announced that the bridge over the Housatonic River, located between Cooper Parkway and Pomeroy Avenue will be reduced to one lane of traffic from Monday, March 2, until further notice.

"Due to a recent inspection by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation," a press release stated, it will be closed in both directions from Wednesday afternoon (Feb. 25) to Sunday, March 1, so that barriers and a signal can be installed. 

Two years ago, a bridge farther down the road over the rail line reopened after a partial closure since 2019 and a full closure of more than 60 days. 

The bridge over the Housatonic is identified as being structurally deficient by the state based on an inspection last October. Built in 1962, the 35-foot steel-and-concrete span has an overall condition of 4, or poor. 

Pittsfield has identified a temporary detour during this work, using Pomeroy Avenue, Marshall Avenue and Cooper Parkway.

On March 2, two-way traffic will be restored in one lane and directed with a temporary signal. 

Pittsfield reported that the state has selected this bridge for repair as part of the Funding for Accelerated Infrastructure Repair program and will take responsibility for design and repair "in an accelerated way." Gov. Maura Healey announced the program last month using funds from the Fair Share Act, and is part of the governor's $8 billion transportation plan.  

iBerkshires has reached out to MassDOT for more information on this project. 

Residents and officials celebrated the reopening of the bridge over the railroad in August 2023. It had been reduced to one lane since 2019 after being found structurally insufficient and in need of a $3.5 million replacement of the overpass structure. This included a new superstructure over the Housatonic Rail line, a restored sidewalk, improved bicycle access, pavement, and traffic barriers.