Conte Community School Wins Safe Routes to School Bike Rack Grant

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BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has announced the winners of the 2024-2025 Bike Rack Grant through its Safe Routes to School (SRTS) Program.
 
Conte COmmunity School was one of the tree winners.
 
Now in its second year, this grant helps schools replace old, worn, and damaged bike racks, or acquire new or additional bike racks. 
 
"For students and staff who bike to get to school, a bike rack is just as essential as a traditional parking lot for those who drive," said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt. "We are pleased to continue to promote safe bicycling with grant programs like this and congratulate this year’s winners for their commitment to supporting school community members who walk, bike, and roll." 
 
All SRTS partner schools were encouraged to apply. The bike racks are intended to be ordered and installed within the current school year. Each selected winner receives the funding necessary for the acquisition and installment of two to five bike racks.
 
Over 60 applications were submitted. The other winners are: Blueberry Hill Elementary School, Longmeadow and Jenkins Elementary School, Scituate 
 
This is the first round of bike rack grant awardees, not including the successful pilot projects in Medford and Brockton during the 2023-2024 school year. Each of the pilot schools were given bike racks that could accommodate 15 new bike parking spaces. The selected bike racks were customizable, so schools could decide what colors they wanted and if they wanted the racks bolted into the ground or resting on pavement/grass. 
 
The Massachusetts SRTS Program, sponsored by MassDOT and with funds from the Federal Highway Administration, promotes safer routes for students to walk, bike, and roll to and from school by fostering partnerships between community-led organizations, local law enforcement, education leaders, and public health departments.  
 
The program currently serves more than 1,200 schools in more than 280 communities across the Commonwealth. Through these partnerships, the Massachusetts SRTS Program highlights the importance of pedestrian and bicycle safety. SRTS also provides information, materials, and resources to support schools and communities with their local SRTS initiatives. 
 
 

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BRPC Receives Grant for Alternative Mental Health Response Initiative

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The FY27 state budget includes $250,000 to establish a task force for an alternative mental health response in the hilltowns, such as Hinsdale, and beyond. 

State Sen. Paul Mark delivered this news to the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission last week. 

"I'm sure people are aware of what happened with the shooting under a mental health distress call in Hinsdale, and obviously there's been a lot of concern about what happened and how we should proceed," he said at the BRPC's July 16 meeting, as a guest speaker. 

"And so I'm glad to kind of announce tonight unofficially that Berkshire Regional Planning has actually volunteered to be the recipient of $250,000 to establish a task force that is going to work alongside the Brien Center and the Sheriff's Office to try to figure out how we come up with some kind of an alternative mental health response in the hilltowns like Hinsdale." 

In January, 27-year-old Biagio Kauvil was fatally shot by police while suffering a mental health crisis. 

District Attorney Timothy Shugrue cleared Hinsdale Officer Jeffrey Spratt of criminal charges; however, while non-criminal, Shugrue said the investigation revealed concerns surrounding the Hinsdale Police Department and urged a formal review of its internal policies and applications to the Jan. 7 call. 

Last month, Hinsdale residents aired policing concerns during an information session at Town Hall. Some attendees emphasized that people do not feel safe calling 911 if they are experiencing a mental health crisis. 

A consultant is in the beginning stages of an administrative review of the department, which the town authorized $25,000 to fund. 

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