Foundations and Futures Homeownership Celebration

08:40AM / Sunday, July 13, 2025Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Central Berkshire Habitat for Humanity invites residents of Pittsfield and surrounding communities to join them at Durant Park for Foundations & Futures, a festive celebration of homeownership, community resilience, and shared aspirations for the future.

The event, taking place Saturday, July 19 from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM at Durant Park, 30 John Street, Pittsfield, will honor the journeys of local Habitat homeowners and open a conversation about what comes next for our neighborhoods.

Highlights of the celebration include:

Mortgage Burning Ceremony: A symbolic and emotional tribute to Habitat homeowners who have fully paid off their mortgages, representing full-circle stability and the power of perseverance.
New Homeowner Recognition: A celebration of Pittsfield residents who became homeowners in 2024–2025, recognizing new beginnings and the realization of dreams. Any new homebuyers from 2024 through 2025 are welcome to join in this celebration.
Free Community BBQ: Guests are invited to enjoy food and a family-friendly atmosphere alongside neighbors, friends, and supporters.
Community Visioning: Attendees will have the opportunity to share ideas and dreams about what the community should build next.

"This isn't just a party," said Carolyn Valli, CEO of Central Berkshire Habitat for Humanity. "It's a joyful affirmation that homeownership can and should be the norm. And we want our community to shape the next chapter with us."

The event is free and open to the public. Families are encouraged to attend and participate. RSVPs are appreciated and can be submitted by clicking on this link: https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/6aa6facda6a24336be2292b0f528bcf2

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Dalton Considers Updating its Municipal Code

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
01:21PM / Thursday, August 27, 2026

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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