Letter: Petition to Have Police Body and Dashboard Cams

To the Editor:

I have put together a petition put before the Pittsfield City Council to have the Pittsfield Police equipped with body cameras and car dashboard cameras, which they currently do not. The petition has 105 signatures. The signatures were gathered at a "Justice for Miguel" demonstration in Pittsfield.

The petition reads as follows, "We, the undersigned, in light of the shooting of Miguel Estrella and Daniel Gillis where there was no body camera footage, hereby petition the City of Pittsfield to equip Pittsfield Police Officers with body cameras and police cruisers with dashboard cameras. Video footage greatly assists in the preservation of the truth with respect to police encounters. It neither favors the citizen interacting with the police or the police officers themselves — it neutrally captures what actually occurred."

It is expected that the item will be placed on the Pittsfield City Council Agenda for Tuesday, April 26, at 6 p.m. Those members of the public who wish to speak must arrive before 6 p.m. and sign in at the podium in the front or they might not be able to speak. We will have a gathering at 5:30 p.m. in front of City Hall beforehand before going up to speak. Proponents of body cameras and dashboard cameras for police officers are expected to attend.

Unlike what we constantly see in the media across the nation, the shootings of Pittsfield citizens Miguel Estrella and Daniel Gillis were not caught on body cameras. There is only a distant video footage of the shooting of Mr. Gillis and none of Mr. Estrella. This is not acceptable. Police body cameras can both inculpate and exculpate police officers — its beauty is that it preserves the truth when there are competing accounts of a shooting. If we as a society will be using deadly force upon our citizens with mental health issues, the least we can do is to record the incident so that there is a complete, accurate record of what has occurred."

Rinaldo Del Gallo
Pittsfield, Mass.

Allendale Pines North Affordable Manufactured Homes Sell Fast

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
05:17PM / Saturday, August 22, 2026

Developer Teton Management cut the ribbon on the first six hopes in the manufactured housing community earlier this year. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Just a few months after Allendale Pines North cut the ribbon on its first six homes in the new manufactured home community, units in the planned development are selling fast with both first and second phases all but sold out.

 

For several years, Teton Management Corp. has been planning to expand its existing Allendale Pines Mobile Community with the development of 22 planned manufactured housing units. The new development has its own entrance at 395 Cheshire Road. 

 

The need for attainable housing has never been higher, Teton President George Whaling said. 

 

"And where we sought the opportunity to help with that demand is, we can get folks into a home at Allendale Pines North for essentially a couple of $100 less than what it would cost for someone to rent a three-bedroom of the same quality," he said. 

 

The corporation took over Allendale Pines, now referred to as Allendale Pines South, about 6 1/2 years ago, Whaling said. 

 

Since then, the corporation has invested $1,000,001 in infrastructure improvements, including replacing all water and sewer lines, paving the community and installing the infrastructure needed for 10 additional units, he said. 

 

Additionally, it has been working to clean up and improve the community, which was lacking during previous ownership, said Jason Nocher, owner of Nocher Realty, which has been hired to help sell the units.