The Berkshires' Outdoor Recreation Website Sees Growth

11:00AM / Tuesday, January 13, 2026Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Over 100,000 people used Berkshire County's comprehensive outdoor recreation website in 2025, taking advantage of a broader array of activity categories as well as more links to resources like clubs, guides, and gear.

The website, www.berkshiresoutside.org, provides a centralized, comprehensive catalog of nearly 600 access points. This online portal to all things outdoors invites residents and visitors to discover parks owned and managed by nearly 100 different organizations, all within Berkshire County.

The site, which is managed by Berkshire Regional Planning Commission (BRPC) and was built by Gemini Creative of Stockbridge, launched on Jan. 1 of 2024. It provides information about trailheads, boat launches, and other access points, and users can narrow their search to specific activities – 15 options in all – including hiking, boating, cycling, camping, and winter sports.

"We're getting great feedback from the land managers and locations we help promote," said Laura Brennan, BRPC's Assistant Director and Economic Development Program Manager. "The site is far exceeding expectations and we're so pleased to provide this service to residents, visitors, and outdoor recreation organizations looking to share their assets with the public."

Traffic to the website increased significantly in its second year of operation, growth which BRPC staff largely attribute to early investments in making sure the website was optimized for search engines to find it, trust it, and suggest it to those looking for outdoor options in the Berkshires.

"We saw a 58 percent increase in users during our second year," said Mark Maloy, BRPC's GIS, Data and IT Manager who, with Brennan, was responsible for the creation of the site. "This translated to 205,000 page views."

Users can also now benefit from accessibility assessments detailing the availability of accessible parking, restrooms, and equipment, and helping to inform decisions about wheelchair and other assistive device use at each location. Several other filters provide users with the ability to focus on sites which are dog friendly, family friendly, have EV charging stations, or are near public transit. A low visitation filter helps guide users to the lesser known "hidden gems" of the region.

The website is serving as inspiration for other regions in the Commonwealth, and the state's Office of Outdoor Recreation is working with those regions to build inventories of their own outdoor recreation assets to populate a statewide website in the near future.

Tags: BRPC,

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The First's Housing Resource Center Opens in Pittsfield

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:17AM / Thursday, February 05, 2026

Tenants for the nine studio apartments will be moving in over the next few days.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The First's housing resource center opened its doors on Tuesday, drawing about a dozen people.

"I was hoping to do a soft open yesterday at The First. It became a little louder, which is fine," ServiceNet's Director of Shelter and Housing Erin Forbush told the Homelessness Advisory Committee on Wednesday.

"But we are open Tuesday through Saturday for the next few weeks, and that is really due to just onboarding staff and training."

The housing resource center is funded by Pittsfield's American Rescue Plan Act dollars in the basement of the Zion Lutheran Church, and there are nine permanent supportive studios at the rear of the building. On its opening day on Tuesday, Forbush estimated between 10 and 12 people utilized the resource center. There were about 15 people waiting to come in on Wednesday morning.

A ribbon was cut on the facility on Dec. 18. The other component of the project is 28 units on West Housatonic Street, which are scheduled to be completed this month.

The First's opening was announced on Facebook by Mayor Peter Marchetti, writing that it wouldn't have been possible without the city's ARPA funds, committed in 2022, and all of the partners who stepped up.

"It is my hope that this is a model that we can successfully replicate to provide more support for individuals and families in need," he wrote.

Located at 74 First St., the resource center will be open Tuesday through Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Available to community members are public restrooms and showers, a quiet room, warmth, and staff to connect them with resources. Laundry machines and lockers are upcoming.