Impact of DEI on Berkshire Economic Development Topic of Forum

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Massachusetts LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Alexandra Eberhardt and North Adams City Councilor Andrew Fitch, a business owner, will participate in a panel discussion on Wednesday, May 21, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Heart's Pace Teahouse on Eagle Street.

The panel is part of the Berkshire LGBTQ+ Business, Professional & Community Leaders Networking Event. 

The discussion will focus on how the Berkshire region's ongoing commitment to Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) is attracting new businesses, leaders, economic development, and innovation. The speakers will also address the potential acceleration of this trend due to North Adams and Pittsfield's designation as Sanctuary Cities for Trans and Gender Diverse People.

Berkshire LGBTQ+ business owners and professionals have been convening on the third Wednesday of each month for networking events aimed at fostering connections and increasing the community's capacity to address political, economic, and demographic challenges relevant to the rural LGBTQ+ community and its businesses. These events also serve to highlight new LGBTQ+ businesses and leaders establishing themselves in the Berkshires, attributed to the region's public support for diversity and equity.  

The monthly networking event is a collaboration between the Massachusetts LGBT Chamber of Commerce, Q-MoB, and media sponsor Berkshire Magazine. It aims to provide a platform for local LGBTQ+ business owners, professionals, community leaders, and allies to connect and engage in dialogue.  

"In this time of tumultuous change, it's vital that our local LGBTQ+ business owners and professionals come together to support one another and work in solidarity with our many allied businesses, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to improve the region’s economic development and creative economy, particularly as LGBTQ businesses and business owners from more repressive parts of the country look for a place where they will be welcomed," said Q-MoB Executive Director Bart Church. 

Registration for the May 21 Networking Event is free and can be accessed here.

 

 

 

 

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Main & Mill: A Vibrant New Restaurant on Main Street

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — You can now enjoy another eatery on Main Street by well-known restaurant siblings Colleen and Sean Taylor.

Their restaurant Main & Mill opened for the first time Tuesday, bringing their vision of creating something vibrant and new to downtown North Adams.

"We have created Main & Mill to be part of our day. It's very seasonal ingredients, thoughtful cooking, beauty, beautiful presentation and dishes. And we really wanted to be part of the community, the downtown area, and start a vibrant area on this end, which has been shuttered for a while," said Colleen.

The building is owned by Ginko on Main Street LLC, which has granted 20 years exclusive possession of the property to Latent Builds as the developer. Jack and Suzy Wadsworth, behind Ginko, are development partners with Karla Rothstein and Salvatore Perry of Latent.

The bank closed in early 2021 and was purchased by Ginko late that year. Plans for the property unveiled three years ago envisioned a restaurant, retail, a park and rooftop bar. 

Colleen saw potential and said she initially wanted the building when it first went up for sale. Being good friends with Rothstein and Perry, she helped them design the kitchen and the bar before learning in March that she could lease it as a restaurant space, something she told them would be a great idea.

She said one of the most important things about the restaurant was the collaboration between Rothstein, Perry, and the Wadsworths, who put a lot of time and energy into the building.

"If Sean and I had done it, we would not be able to do what the collaboration supported. The collaboration of the three of us being able to really have that kind of money to put in down here. The design that the architecture firm that Carla and Sal own is stunning," she said. "The time and effort, everyone came together to do this in a really trusting manner."

The two wanted the restaurant to be an all-day venture, so people could eat at any point throughout the day, all week long.

"We wanted it to be open for coffee and socialization in the morning where people can meet, have their cup of coffee, have a quiche, a vegetarian quiche, or croissant or yogurt. Something intentional with their coffee," she said. "Then move into a lunchtime for the downtown business or anybody, and then go into supper, dinner, with drinks later into the evening. So have it really be open all day long, so that there wasn't a void on any particular day."

They also wanted to do something different than the other restaurants they owned.

"We didn't want to mimic any other restaurant in town. We wanted to bring something that was inspiring, something that had some familiar things that people would see, and other things that we would bring to them for them to experience," she said.

As a woman business owner, Colleen said she wanted to bring a female chef into the kitchen. 

Colleen brought on Chef Anna DeRose, who she said puts twists on a lot of her dishes.

"So we have a creme brulee, but our creme brulee is topped with marshmallow," she said. "Our creme brulee is like almost two desserts in one. It's a s'mores creme brulee. So you could have a s'mores, and you could have a creme brulee - but when you put both of them together, fireworks go off."

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