BRPC Home Modification Loans Available

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Berkshire Regional Planning Commission closed a total of nine Home Modification Loan Program projects in Berkshire County throughout fiscal year 2025. 
 
These loans ranged in size from $4,555 all the way to the program limit of $50,000. The project components included items such as stair lifts, bathroom modifications, driveway improvements, fencing, ramps, and one accessory dwelling unit. 
 
All these projects were completed to allow aging individuals and individuals living with disabilities to remain in their home and communities of choice.
 
BRPC will continue to accept applications to the loan program in FY26 beginning July 1. 
 
HMLP is a state-funded no-interest loan program to provide modifications to those in need of accessibility improvements to their homes. Eligible applicants include homeowners and landlords (with fewer than 10 units) with necessary changes needed to their homes to keep disabled or elderly family members in their own homes.
 
Possible modifications include bathroom and kitchen modifications, ramps, stair lifts, platform lifts, sensory/therapy spaces, hard-wired alarm systems, fences, accessory dwelling units, and more. 
 
This is not a home repair program; repairs to roofs, windows, and heating are not eligible. All work must be completed by licensed and insured contractors.
 
For property owners, zero-interest loans range between $1,000 and $50,000. For manufactured or mobile home owners, zero-interest loans range from $1,000 to $30,000. No monthly payments are required but repayment is required when the property is sold or transferred. 
 
All applications are subject to HMLP eligibility requirements. The program income guidelines are based on household size and are generous. For example, a household of two can make up to $264,800 per year.
 
For more information or eligibility questions, visit www.cedac.org/hmlp or contact Brett Roberts at HMLP@berkshireplanning.org.

Tags: accessibility,   BRPC,   loan progams,   

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Pittsfield Says Goodbye to Wahconah Park Grandstand

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

Mayor Peter Marchetti and 'Banjo Joe' Ryan lead a chorus of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' with a nod to the Pittsfield Suns. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Dozens of people bid farewell to the Wahconah Park grandstand on Saturday with a round of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," hot dogs, and stories about the ballpark. 

"Sometimes you felt like you were at Fenway Park, but mostly it just felt like home," Parks Commissioner Clifford Nilan said. 

"How lucky the players were to be playing in this park, and how lucky we were to be able to watch." 

Wahconah Park's 75-year-old grandstand was deemed unsafe in 2022, and planners have determined that starting from square one is the best option; a $15 million rebuild is on the table. Demolition is expected to begin soon, and the city planned the "Farewell to the Grandstand" event to celebrate its past and look forward to the future. 

The old grandstand also had to be redrafted when estimates for construction came in at more than $200,000. It would be built at about half the length of the wooden structure it replaced for a sum of $115,000.

"In the early 1900s, Wahconah Park went from concept on paper to construction. The grandstand was built between the 1949 and 1950 seasons. It was designed to seat about 2,000 fans. A few decades later, in 2005, Wahconah Park was listed in the National Register of Historic Places," Mayor Peter Marchetti said. 

"That longevity matters because it connects today's games, school events, and community gatherings to more than a century of shared memories." 

Marchetti and "Banjo Joe" Ryan led a verse of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," adding "Root, root, root for the Suns, if they don't win it's a shame." Pittsfield and its longtime summer collegiate baseball team, the Pittsfield Suns, have signed a negotiating rights agreement, solidifying that the two will work together when the historic ballpark is renovated. 

Artifacts of the ballpark were displayed in cases outside of the grandstand for the event, along with banners depicting the park's history and a roped-off area for community members to see the structure one last time. 

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