State Reviewing Dalton's Proposed Second Historical District

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
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DALTON, Mass. — The State Historical Commission has received the preliminary documentation required in the process of establishing the town's second historical district. 
 
The proposed district starts at Park Avenue, where Main Street Cemetery is, and goes down to Depot Street. It then goes up High and North Streets.
 
Based on photos and by following the district subdivision plans or other development patterns, the state will determine whether there is enough historical significance to be considered a district. 
 
If they deem there is, the State Historical Commission will request an area form that they will use to evaluate the area for National Register eligibility, National Register Director Ben Haley in an email update to the commission.
 
"After we review the photographs, we may have questions about boundaries and may do a site visit," he said. 
 
The email did not include a timeline of this process, said town Historical Commission Secretary Nancy Kane. 
 
When the commission sent the files to the state, there was a request to define the area, Kane said. 
 
Kane said she defined it as a classic New England mill town characterized by residential areas, such as mill worker housing and homes of prominent citizens. 
 
Additionally, she demonstrated how the district had all the basic services and needs they would need to provide, such as schools, businesses, banks, and churches. 

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ServiceNet Hopes to Open Pittsfield Warming Center in Nov.

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass.— A warming center is again planned in the First United Methodist Church for the cold months. 

During last week's Homelessness Advisory Committee meeting, Erin Forbush, director of shelter and housing at ServiceNet, reported that they hope to begin operating the nighttime center in mid-November. 

It would operate from 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. in the church, which abuts The Pearl shelter. Forbush said the warming center would be the same program as in the past. 

"Again it's a warming center, so there's no cots or beds, but it is certainly a place to come in, and we'll have a hot coffee or cocoa ready for folks," she explained. 

"It will be a place to be inside and warm."

This year, ServiceNet hopes to secure full funding from the state so the warming center can open on Sundays at 5 p.m. In years past, they found that Sunday is the most challenging day for unhoused individuals because many community spaces aren't open. 

The First Housing Resource Center, managed by Hearthway, opened earlier this year as a low-barrier option for people to rest and access amenities. It is open seven days a week, and Forbush said if people could come to the warming center on Sundays at 5, there would be a fuller day of coverage. 

"It does still leave a little gap for Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, as spaces like the library close at five, but we know that Sundays were something that people were looking for," she said. 

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