Pittsfield Senior Tax Work-Off Program Now Accepting Applications

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Applications are now available for the City of Pittsfield's Senior Tax Work-Off Program for Fiscal Year 2027. 
 
Eligible candidates must be Pittsfield residential property owners 60 years of age and older at the time of the application.
 
Program applications must be postmarked or received by the Assessors' Office by May 31, 2026.
 
Active municipal employees are not eligible for the Senior Citizen Tax Work-Off Program.
 
There will be a limit of two participants per eligible property; however, the total abatement cannot exceed the maximum exemption of $2,000. The senior tax work off program alone or combined with any other exemption cannot exceed the annual amount of taxes due to the city. Income eligibility shall be determined by using the locally adopted income eligibility guidelines of Massachusetts General Law Chapter 59, Section 5, clause 41D (plus an additional $5,000). The selection of participants will be based on need and shall be valid for one year.
 
In the event that other opportunities become available, qualified volunteers not selected for this program will be placed on a waiting list in order of need. The city is not obligated to offer another position if a volunteer declines an assignment.
 
If you are married, your yearly income cannot exceed $47,217; for an individual, yearly income cannot exceed $39,711. All volunteer work must be completed between June 1, 2026 and November 30, 2026.
 
An application for this program can be found on the city website: Senior-Citizen-Tax-Work-Off- Program-for-FY-2027-PDF Applications are also available at the Assessors' Office, which is in City Hall, Room 108, 70 Allen St. For more information, contact the Assessors' Office at (413) 395-0102.
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15 People Displaced in Pittsfield Home Fires

Staff Reports

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Fifteen people were displaced after 2-alarm home fires this weekend on Springside Avenue and Elaine Drive. 

On Friday evening, the Fire Department responded to a structure fire at 209 Springside Ave., which took a four-hour battle to extinguish and resulted in a partial roof collapse. The next day, on Saturday evening, crews knocked down a fire at 121 Elaine Drive in about an hour. 

The garage and part of the single-family home on Elaine Drive were gutted to the frame, along with a vehicle parked in the driveway. On Springside Avenue, the top level and porch of the multifamily were burned through.  

A GoFundMe has been started for the family of the Elaine Drive home, which includes several young children.  The fundraiser, with a $5,500 goal, explains they lost their home and all of their belongings. (iBerkshires.com does not confirm or endorse fundraisers; they are provided as information only.)

There were no civilian or firefighter injuries, and both incidents are under investigation.  One dog was rescued on Springside Avenue. 

On Oct. 10, around 6:15 p.m., PFD responded to the Springside Avenue home for a reported structure fire and saw a 2 1/2-story wood frame multifamily with a heavy blaze showing from the second-floor front porch, extending out. 

The building suffered a partial roof collapse, which prolonged extinguishment. The fire was brought under control after about four hours.

“An aggressive offensive attack was mounted by first arriving crews stretching hose lines into the building as well as primary searches that proved negative. Ladders were placed around the structure to provide access as well as escape if needed. An off-duty Fire Captain had also been on scene early in the incident to help evacuate the structure and rescue a dog,” PFD wrote in a press release. 

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