UMass Study Shows Impact by Mill Town Capital in Berkshire County

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — An analysis by the UMass Donahue Institute (UMDI) indicates that Mill Town Capital generated a total economic impact of $132 million across Berkshire County, Massachusetts, between 2017 and 2023. 
 
The independent study examined the effects of Mill Town's investments in local businesses, real estate, and infrastructure, as well as its philanthropic activities.
 
According to the UMDI, the investments resulted in a 1.42x economic multiplier, meaning that every $100 generated by Mill Town Capital led to an additional $42 in local economic activity. The study also found that the number of workers connected to Mill Town Capital's activities increased from 3 in 2017 to 672 in 2023. Additionally, the analysis suggests that $5.1 million in local tax revenues were generated through investment and job creation. The report states that $107.3 million (81 percent) of the total economic impact occurred in Pittsfield.
 
Tim Burke, CEO of Mill Town Capital, stated that the report confirms the impact of community-based investment. The UMDI report suggests that Mill Town Capital's approach, combining private investment, public-private partnerships, and community engagement, has produced measurable returns. Rod Motamedi, Assistant Director of Economic and Public Policy Research at UMDI, noted that Mill Town Capital's business model demonstrates how mission-driven capital can contribute to economic change and that community engagement can foster momentum for Pittsfield and the region.
 
Mill Town Capital, founded in 2016 by Dave Mixer, describes itself as an impact investment platform focused on the revitalization of Pittsfield and Berkshire County through investments in real estate, businesses, and community initiatives.
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Dalton Considers Updating its Municipal Code

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — The town is considering updating its original 18-year municipal code to 2026 standards. 
 
During a recent Select Board meeting, General Code New England account manager Zach Dumont outlined the 18- to-24 month process. 
 
General Code New England is a division of the International Code Council, which writes all the statewide building codes across the United States. For the last 18 years, the organization has been the codifier for municipalities. 
 
"We work with communities to build, maintain, and update your local municipal code. That is your collection of bylaws, ordinances, regulations, and any other legislation you've ever adopted," Dumont said. 
 
Once the project is complete, the town would have a fully updated set of books and an improved eCode360 site, he said. 
 
"The way the process would work is we would put together a scope of work, a timeline, a price point, and everything that we would want to touch or do as a part of the code project," Dumont said. 
 
When a municipal code is built, it has a general lifespan of about 15 to 20 years, and although that is a long time, it goes by very quickly, he said. 
 
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