image description — Hearthway, in partnership with Causeway Development, has acquired the property for a 47-unit complex that maintains the historic building.

Hearthway Acquires Former Polish Club for Affordable Housing

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
06:05PM / Sunday, January 25, 2026Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— Plans are coming into focus for housing at 55 Linden Street, better known as the former Polish Community Club.

Hearthway, in partnership with Causeway Development, has acquired the property for a 47-unit complex that maintains the historic building. The former club will have six apartments, and the remaining units will be in new townhouse and apartment buildings.

Matt Kropke, Hearthway's director of real estate development, assured the Affordable Housing Trust that the lone existing building's facade will remain intact.

"For historic purposes, we want to keep the exterior of the existing building exactly the way it is, and just do a full gut rehab on the inside," he said during Wednesday's regular meeting.

The affordable housing nonprofit was allocated Community Preservation Act funds from Pittsfield's Affordable Housing Trust and is seeking Low-Income Housing Tax Credits from the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities.

Kropke reported waiting "anxiously" to hear back from the EOHLC. With the Affordable Housing Trust's support and the property acquired and fully remedied, he is feeling optimistic and thanked them twice over for the funding.

With the state's support, Hearthway plans to rent about eight of the 47 apartments to people earning around 30 percent of the area's median income. After financing is secured, the project is estimated to take about a year and a half to complete.

"This is a real benefit, I think, for the city, and also I appreciate you keeping the existing historic building," said Director of Community Development Justine Dodds.

"I think that is really important."

In late 2025, Heathway cut the ribbon on a nearly 40 supportive 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.

The Zion Church apartments have a Certificate of Occupancy, and Kropke expects people to be able to move in in the next couple of days. The units at 111 West Housatonic Street are about a month out, he reported.

"The city of Pittsfield is a place where things are actually being done to help with the homelessness and the near homelessness, and affordable housing issues that face us," Trust member Michael McCarthy said.

"And I congratulate you and your whole team."

He believes the measure of success will be sustainable and successful support services. Tenants will need and deserve those supports, he added, and if they fail or are mediocre, the project won't be as successful as it could be.

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Fenton: Governor's Council Must Deliver for the Berkshires

Community submissionGuest Column
10:22AM / Friday, August 28, 2026

I am a Springfield lawyer running for Governor's Council and I am asking for Berkshire County residents to support me over an incumbent from North Adams.

Here's why: Last year I learned about staffing issues in our regional courts that I could not ignore. In 2025, it was reported that four of Western Massachusetts' 11 Superior Court judgeships were vacant, all at the same time. A few weeks later, that grew to five vacancies. This meant there were only six Superior Court judges serving all of Western Mass at a time when Berkshire, Hampshire, Franklin, and Hampden counties had more than 100 pending homicide cases.

Those numbers were alarming to me, so I started to engage with leaders in the community who work most closely with the court system and I came to learn that these vacancies were only the tip of the iceberg here in Berkshire County.

I learned that no Superior Court or District Court judge had been appointed from the Berkshires since the current incumbent took office. As a result, there is not a single Superior Court judge who lives in the Berkshires today, and several of the District Court judges drive in from other counties to support Berkshire courts in Pittsfield, Great Barrington, and North Adams. Court staff also informed me about severe staffing shortages at the Berkshire Clerk of Courts office resulting in other counties needing to loan staff to the Berkshires just so hardworking employees can take a brief and planned summer vacation. This is not normal. These issues are a reflection of genuine problems with the Berkshire County court system and show a lack of proactive attention from our Governor's Councilor.

Instead of focusing on regional equity, I watched as the current incumbent celebrated that she has voted against the governor's nominees more than any other councilor, without much explanation as to why. Most recently, she voted against two extremely qualified former prosecutors for the Parole Board. This was despite an in-person plea from the governor and a letter of support from all the three of the district attorney's from Western Mass. Those votes do not show independence or standing up for principles, they demonstrate naivete, and an unwillingness to work with the key stakeholders.

I had seen and heard enough. I decided to jump in the race and challenge the incumbent to address these problems head-on.

I am a partner of a regional law firm. I understand our courts and the importance of having qualified, fair and hardworking judges. And I know how important it is to have judges from the Berkshires serving the Berkshires. To achieve that, you need strong relationships with the legal community and local stakeholders. You need to know how to use the power of the Governor's Council to fight forcefully for our region. And you need to be laser focused on identifying vacancies before they occur so that they can be filled quickly with local candidates.

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