Pittsfield Road Work and Construction Updates: May 18-22

04:44PM / Saturday, May 16, 2026Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The City of Pittsfield shares the following updates of road work for East Street and West Street that are scheduled for the week of May 18:

Road Work:

May 18 and 19: First course paving of Beacon Avenue; Bradford Street (between Francis Avenue and Center Street); Crane Avenue (Unkament Park Drive to about 567 Crane Ave); Fairfield Street, Charisma Drive and Auburn Street
May 20: Raising structures on the streets above plus the installation of curbing on Crane Avenue and Charisma Drive.

East Street Project (State Project):

East Street, between Merrill Road and Lyman Street, will be milled followed by the installation of a temporary layer (overlay) of pavement. Traffic will be reduced to one-lane alternating traffic within the work area. Traffic delays should be expected.

It is important to note this layer of pavement is temporary in nature and will not be the final course. There is additional underground utility work expected later this year and into the following construction cycle for this project. Once all utility work is finalized, East Street, between Merrill Road and Lyman Street, will be fully resurfaced. MassDOT has experienced several unexpected delays for this project due to the presence of contaminated materials which require additional handling.

West Street Project:

Raised structures are present between Backman Avenue and College Way. Please proceed cautiously through this area and seek alternate routes if possible. The paving schedule will be announced soon.

Fenn Street Project:

Eversource continues their underground utility work on Fenn Street between North Street and Allen Street. This work is expected to continue over the next several weeks. The westbound lane on Fenn Street between Allen Street and North Street remains closed.

Sidewalk Repairs:

Sidewalk replacement will occur at Appleton Avenue between East Street to Dawes Avenue to replace the asphalt sections along the east side of the street. This work will take place over the next several weeks.

It is important to note that the schedule for each project is subject to change based upon weather conditions.

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Free Vaccinations Available Throughout Berkshire County

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
10:30AM / Saturday, October 10, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Fall season is also the flu season, which means vaccine clinics are now available.

The Berkshire Vaccine Collaborative will provide public vaccination clinics in Berkshire communities this fall, including the influenza and COVID-19 vaccines. There are about 49 clinics.

The collaborative began during COVID-19 to help vaccinate people across Berkshire County. Berkshire Health Systems started the Get Vaccinated Berkshires website and still manages it. The group works with the Pittsfield Public Health Department, Community Health Programs, and the Southern Berkshire Public Health Collaborative.

"The majority of people will always get the flu [vaccine] because, as I said, if you've ever gotten the flu, you will always get a flu vaccine because it's so bad. And just so you know, the flu is already in Berkshire County. It's an early season this year," said Leslie Drager, who is the senior public health nurse at Berkshire Regional Planning Commission.

Drager said last year they issued 2,705 vaccines, with more than 1,100 of them being for COVID-19 and more than 1,500 being flu. In total, they were able to vaccinate 1,669 people in Central and North County, in addition to Pittsfield.

Drager also said she will be carrying three types of COVID vaccines this year, which is in high demand.

"We have a high demand of COVID vaccine, which is awesome," she said. "So we're doing a lot of COVID vaccines. Also, I provide Pfizer, and this year I have Moderna and the Novavax, which I think is real important to get out there because the Novavax, a lot of people want, people with long COVID. So I'm carrying all three vaccines this year, which I normally only carry the Pfizer."

Public health departments also can help people access other vaccines such as for measles or meningitis when they cannot get them through a pediatrician, she added.

Using the website, people are able to get vaccines even if they are homebound by filling out a form.

All public Berkshire Vaccine Collaborative clinics are free of charge, but registrants are asked to provide insurance information, when available, in order to defray costs. The clinics are open to anyone 6 months of age or older, the age group recommended to receive an annual flu vaccine and the latest COVID-19 vaccine.

"I always encourage everybody to wear a short sleeve shirt because it makes it a heck of a lot easier to get at," Drager said. "And children, we do carry the nasal flu, the live virus of nasal flu for kids that are afraid to get needles."

Registration is highly recommended for the clinics. Walk-ins may be accepted depending on the number of vaccine doses available at each clinic, with preference given to those who are registered.

"It's really important. I'm really encouraging vaccinations for the schools, because not only you know if the kids are vaccinated and the teachers are vaccinated, the schools won't have the flu go wild right through it," Drager said. "And of course, the best way to prevent infections: washing your hands. So don't touch your face, and wash your hands."

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