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Renzi Retro and Repair owner Christian Richardson opened his video game and card store last Friday at 150 American Legion Drive.
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Renzi's has sports and Pokemon cards and other games.
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Richardson also offers retro games and game consoles.

North Adams Shop Offers New & Vintage Games to Play

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
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The shop is located in the corner of the Oasis Plaza, next to the ice cream shop. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A new card shop is bringing old and new games and trades to Oasis Plaza.

Renzi Retro and Repair owner Christian Richardson opened last Friday at 150 American Legion Drive, right next to the ice cream shop. 

Richardson grew up collecting and playing different types of video games. He was recently selling games and cards on Facebook before deciding to find a space last month.

"I really just liked video games. I play a lot of video games, and I just started collecting them. And then one day, I was like, Oh, why don't we try seeing if I can make some money doing it?" he said.

His shop is filled with older game consoles, Pokémon cards, sports cards, and video games new and old. He hopes to give people a better deal than other places.

"We're just trying to be different. We're trying to give people better prices than they're given other places. Since prices have got kind of crazy and it's hard to live nowadays, so we're trying to make it a little bit easier," Richardson said.

His shop will also take in items like consoles, cards, and other game accessories for trades or cash back.

"We pretty much take anything in, from cards to retro to modern games to consoles, accessories," he said.

He plans to get televisions and host tournaments on Sundays in the future.

"Tournaments are going to be a big thing that we're going to be working towards. We're also be working on getting TVs set up for certain days so people want to come sit down," he said.

Richardson wants his shop to be a space for people to gather and have fun.

"I just want to get more people off the streets. I mean, the area is not always the best, and people get involved in the wrong things around here," he said. "I just want to be able to bring people in at a younger age and give them a place to be able to play cards, or at some point, we're going to get TVs up so they can play video games. And I just want not everybody to be stuck on the streets and give them something to do in the community."

He hopes to one day expand and create a room dedicated to game play.

"I really want to get a whole store set up just for people to be able to come and play video games and and that's it not to buy things, but more of a place with a membership where you come and you play games, or you you do tournaments all day," he said.

His store is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.


Tags: new business,   video games,   

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McCann Tech Deems Social Media Threat 'Not Credible' After Police Investigation

Staff Reports

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — McCann Technical School officials confirmed Thursday that a threatening social media post directed at the school was found to be a illagitaemt following an investigation by the North Adams Police Department (NAPD).

School administrators notified families that the NAPD determined the social media account responsible for the post was not legitimate and there is no credible threat to the campus.

"The post did contain threatening content to McCann Tech, but after investigation by NAPD it was found that the threat was NOT credible and that the social media account was NOT legitimate," the school stated in a message to the community.

While authorities have concluded that students and staff are not in any danger, McCann officials have requested an increased police presence at the school Thursday morning. The school emphasized that this measure is being taken out of an "extreme abundance of caution" to help students and families feel comfortable starting the day.

The NAPD is asking anyone with information regarding the origin of the post to contact the department directly.

Following the internal notification from McCann, North Adams Public Schools (NAPS) issued an "all-call" to its own district families Thursday morning.

"North Adams Public Schools will continue to operate using its standard safety procedures," the NAPS statement read, echoing the police department's conclusion that there is no active threat to local students.

McCann is part of the Northern Berkshire Regional Vocational Technical School District, not NAPS.

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