Tuesday, December 3, 2024

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

Bill Shein

Bill Shein is the founder and editor of The Berkshire Argus, a new publication that provides in-depth, long-form reporting. (http://www.berkshireargus.com). Email: billshein [ahtt] outlook.com

written articles

THE AIRPORT (Part Eight): The arc of Great Barrington’s zoning history is long. With respect to the airport, which way does it bend?

In the final installment of THE AIRPORT, Bill Shein presents a detailed history of Great Barrington’s zoning bylaw and its key role in the past, present, and still-unknown future of the town’s 92-year-old country airport.

THE AIRPORT (Part Seven): Flight lessons, aviation careers, and questions about safety are all part of the conversation

The Great Barrington Airport offers lessons to those interested in aviation as a hobby and, in some cases, a career with the airlines. Whether the flight school creates safety risks for those living nearby has long been a concern of some of its neighbors.

THE AIRPORT (Part Six): A noisy debate about more than noise

The debate over the airport’s level of activity and the noise and disturbance it produces has been contentious for decades. Better information and consistent zoning enforcement would help.

THE AIRPORT (Part Five): Helicopter air-ambulance flights are fast, vital, and expensive. How do they work?

According to Fairview Hospital officials, each year 15 emergency helicopter air-ambulance flights lift off from Great Barrington Airport to rush Fairview patients to other hospitals. Here’s how those flights work—and how they fit into our rural health-care system.

THE AIRPORT (Part Four): Atop a vital aquifer, the airport’s environmental compliance has been spotty. Who’s been watching?

The airport sits atop an aquifer that supplies Great Barrington’s water. Over the decades, it has stored as much as 54,000 gallons of petroleum in underground tanks—and for years failed to fully comply with state environmental regulations. It's in a zoning district with strict water-protection rules. Is the town doing enough to monitor its activities?

THE AIRPORT (Part Three): How busy is Great Barrington Airport?

With its level of operations at issue in court and in front of town boards, why has there been so little effort to document what's actually happening at the airport?

THE AIRPORT (Part Two): Rick Solan’s story begins with Robert Wheeler’s in 1929

The complicated present of the Great Barrington Airport is deeply rooted in its equally complicated past. Rick Solan had little to do with what happened before 2008, but it’s what threatens his present and future.

THE AIRPORT (Part One): It’s not just about aviation

As Berkshire Aviation Enterprises goes in front of the Great Barrington Selectboard for the third time seeking release from zoning restrictions, a contentious community discussion is again underway. In this in-depth series, Bill Shein examines the issues, people, and history swirling around a small-town airport.

THE DEVELOPER (Part Seven): Whose vision, which ideas, and where’s the action plan for housing?

With other similarly challenged communities around the country taking far bolder action on housing, when will Great Barrington and the southern Berkshires do the same? Meanwhile, Alander Group’s Ian Rasch wants to facilitate a broader community conversation around housing as he pushes ahead with two high-end downtown projects. The final installment of Bill Shein's "The Developer" series.

THE DEVELOPER (Part Six): A different Prospect Lake campground is coming into view. Does it matter whom it’s for?

In addition to his downtown Great Barrington projects, Alander Group’s Ian Rasch has set out to transform the century-old Prospect Lake Park campground in Egremont into an upscale "park model RV" resort. The change is a shock to those who spent summers there for years. Rasch says he has plans to make space for the community.

THE DEVELOPER (Part Five): If nothing else, a pivot to upscale apartments at 343 Main Street made good business sense. Here’s when and how...

As developer Ian Rasch’s negotiations with the BCC Foundation dragged on through 2020 and 2021, and some proposed tenants dropped out, the hot real-estate market and an unexpected expense may have combined to nudge the project from health-and-wellness center to large, luxury apartments. In part five of seven of this Edge In Focus series, more details about the evolution of this Alander Group project.

THE DEVELOPER (Part Three): Ian Rasch is relocating his Mahaiwe Block residential tenants. What should other downtown tenants expect?

Now that he owns the historic Mahaiwe Block at the corner of Main and Castle streets, Rasch will shortly begin a significant two-year renovation project. He’s offered financial and relocation assistance to the few remaining tenants. What should other downtown tenants expect if their buildings go up for sale—like the Gorham & Norton building did this week?

THE DEVELOPER (Part Two): Alander’s Ian Rasch champions a ‘mixed-income’ downtown. But who’s likely to rent his upscale apartments?

Developer Ian Rasch says his formula for acquisition and redevelopment will enable Alander to contribute to a “mixed-income” downtown in Great Barrington. How accurate that is, and what it means for affordable and workforce housing, may depend in part on whether the town steps up soon with effective housing policy, financial resources, or both.

IN FOCUS: Pending sale of downtown building may add to Great Barrington’s housing woes

Concerns regarding the affordability of living in Great Barrington continue amidst reports that the 117-year-old Mahaiwe Block at the corner of Main Street and Castle Street may be sold to real-estate developer Ian Rasch of Alander Group.

REASON GONE MAD: An interview with the spongy moths

Since they arrived en masse in the Berkshires earlier this spring, the spongy moth (née gypsy moth) has taken over social media just as...

ANALYSIS: The short-term rental debate: A Reason Gone Mad series (Part 4)

Discussion about the two bylaws on Monday night will surely focus on the effectiveness and potential impacts of each proposal, and if they’ll do what proponents say they will. Bill Shein offers a recap of all that's happened so far.
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