Downtown Pittsfield Announces 'Hey Neighbor!' Summer Marketing Grants

10:33AM / Friday, May 16, 2025Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. (DPI) is offering the 2025 "Hey Neighbor!" Summer Marketing Grant for downtown storefront businesses.

Funded by MassDevelopment's Transformative Development Initiative (TDI), the grant aims to support businesses through coordinated cinema and radio marketing campaigns.

Ten businesses in downtown Pittsfield will be awarded marketing grants. Recipients will receive custom video advertisements to be shown before films at the Beacon Cinema and radio advertisements to air on WUPE/WBEC FM from June through August 2025. The initiative seeks to increase foot traffic, raise community awareness, and highlight the stories of local small businesses.

Applications for the grant are due by Friday, May 30, 2025, at 11:59 PM. Grant awardees will be announced on June 6, 2025.

Eligibility Requirements:

Must be a for-profit, storefront business located on or within a five-minute walk of North Street in Downtown Pittsfield.
Must have an active lease or own/operate a storefront in the district.
Must be independently owned (no franchises or chains).
Eligible business types include retail, restaurants, hospitality, bars, and other customer-facing service businesses (e.g., repair, salons, barbers, massage therapy).

Selection Priorities:

Strong storytelling and positive representation of Downtown Pittsfield.
Ability to highlight another neighboring business.
Availability for filming between June 9–13, 2025.
Responsiveness to the radio content production team.

Grant Awards by Business Size:

4 awards for businesses with 1–3 employees
3 awards for businesses with 4–9 employees
3 awards for businesses with 10+ employees

Selected businesses will be required to participate in filming coordination and provide input on campaign messaging. A final review meeting will be held at the end of the summer campaign.

Applications can be submitted at https://downtownpittsfield.com/2025/05/hey-neighbor-grants/.

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Pittsfield Housing Project Adds 37 Supportive Units and Collective Hope

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:01PM / Monday, December 29, 2025

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— A new chapter in local efforts to combat housing insecurity officially began as community leaders and residents gathered at The First on to celebrate a major expansion of supportive housing in the city.

The ribbon was cut on Thursday Dec. 19, on nearly 40 supportive permanent housing units; nine at The First, located within the Zion Lutheran Church, and 28 on West Housatonic Street. The Housing Resource Center, funded by Pittsfield's American Rescue Plan Act dollars, hosted a celebration for a project that is named for its rarity: The First.

"What got us here today is the power of community working in partnership and with a shared purpose," Hearthway CEO Eileen Peltier said.

In addition to the 28 studio units at 111 West Housatonic Street and nine units in the rear of the church building, the Housing Resource Center will be open seven days a week with two lounges, a classroom, a laundry room, a bathroom, and lockers.

Erin Forbush, ServiceNet's director of shelter and housing, challenged attendees to transform the space in the basement of Zion Lutheran Church into a community center. It is planned to operate from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. year-round.

"I get calls from folks that want to help out, and our shelters just aren't the right spaces to be able to do that. The First will be that space that we can all come together and work for the betterment of our community," Forbush said.

"…I am a true believer that things evolve, and things here will evolve with the people that are utilizing it."

Earlier that day, Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus joined Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll and her team in Housatonic to announce $33.5 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funding, $5.45 million to Berkshire County.

He said it was ambitious to take on these two projects at once, but it will move the needle. The EOHLC contributed more than $7.8 million in subsidies and $3.4 million in low-income housing tax credit equity for the West Housatonic Street build, and $1.6 million in ARPA funds for the First Street apartments.

"We're trying to get people out of shelter and off the streets, but we know there are a lot of people who are couch surfing, who are living in their cars, who are one paycheck away from being homeless themselves," Augustus said.

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