Pittsfield Woman Victim of Colorado Homicide

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Jordan Labarre
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A former city woman was the victim of a homicide in Colorado last week. 
 
Jordan Elizabeth Labarre, 32, of Breckenridge, Colo., was found deceased on Monday, July 7, at a residence in Blue River, Colo. 
 
Labarre, a graduate of the former St. Joseph's High School, was the daughter and stepdaughter of Joann Shugrue and Berkshire District Attorney Timothy Shugrue. 
 
According to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation, police were called to the Blue River residence at 6:20 p.m. over reports of gunshots, and more were heard when they arrived at the scene. 
 
CBI said the home's occupant, Daniel Joseph DeVito, 46, came out when ordered and was taken into custody without incident.
 
DeVito was charged with first degree murder and is being held on $2.5 million bail. He also is facing charges for allegedly assaulting and threatening another woman three days earlier. 
 
The articles did not indicate what the relationship was between Labarre and DeVito but her brother, Joshua Labarre, wrote "her life was tragically taken in an act of domestic violence" on a GoFundMe page to help cover the costs in bringing her home. 
 
Labarre grew up in Chicopee until moving to the Berkshires with her mother and brother and attending St. Joe. She graduated from  Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts in 2015 and moved to Breckenridge not long afterward. She worked at a cleaning service. Her family said she loved the outdoors, the family she'd created in Breckenridge, and her dog, Lincoln. 
 
Besides her mother, stepfather and brother, she leaves a stepsister, Caitlin Shugrue. Her father, Kenneth E. LaBarre, died in 2010.
 
Calling hours will be Thursday, July 17, from 4 to 7 p.m. at St. Mark's Church, with Liturgy of Christian Burial on Friday at 11. Dwyer Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. More information can be found here. 

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Pittsfield Proposes 2.64 Tax Rate Hike

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The proposed tax rate for fiscal year 2027 is less than 40 cents per $1,000 valuation for residential properties and would increase the average property tax bill by about $146 per year. 

On Tuesday's City Council meeting agenda is a request from the mayor and Board of Assessors to use a residential factor of .8245 at a shift of 1.75, resulting in a residential tax rate of $17.88 and a commercial, industrial, and personal property tax rate of $37.95.

These matters are typically referred to the Committee of the Whole for deliberation. The proposed rates for residential and commercial are 38 cents and $1.05 more, respectively, from FY26. 

The average residential home, valued at $316,792 in FY27, has increased by about $1,500 from the previous fiscal year, and would pay $5,664.24 in yearly taxes.

This is a 2.64 percent, or $145.88, increase. 

The average commercial property worth $239,600 saw a $100 increase in value from the previous fiscal year, and would pay $9,092.82 in yearly taxes. This is a $255.27, or 2.89 percent, increase from the previous fiscal year. 

The FY27 tax levy of $124,468,317 is a $5.3 million increase from the previous year, or 4.45 percent. There is about  $388,000 in excess levy capacity, $2.3 million in new growth, and the levy limit is $124,856,412. 

According to the Massachusetts Department of Revenue, 11 single-family homes were added to Pittsfield's housing stock this fiscal year, increasing the city's total assessed value by $19,987,600 to $3,592,737,600. 

The city lost five two-family homes in 2027, and that housing type decreased by $3.2 million in assessed value, now worth $384,620,400. 

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