If you're a restaurant owner who wants to stay open in the midst of a public health crisis such as the coronavirus pandemic, you essentially have one choice: trying to eke out a living by offering take-out, and perhaps delivery.
New York City-based John Gordon Gauld holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts with honors from the Rhode Island School of Design and is a recent recipient of the Martha Boschen Porter Grant from the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation.
2018 has provided enough Great Barrington news to keep journalists busy and observers of town politics highly amused, signaling that the community dubbed "best small town in America" by Smithsonian Magazine continues to be a place in transition.
In “Southern Berkshires Through Time,” Leveille has examined almost 200 sites, ranging from historical homes, businesses and intersections, to one of Leveille's other passions: unusual rock formations.
"We all love living here and want to be able to work downtown, go downstairs and get coffee and go across the street and get food. I like to go next door to buy my clothing."
-- Asa Hardcastle, whose Tonic 5 software development company is on the floor above Tom’s Toys on Main Street
"In general, this is much less intense than the Main Street reconstruction ... Primarily because the rights of way are limited, the funding source is not MassDOT ... which gives us a lot more flexibility in what we can do." --Great Barringtn town planner Chris Rembold
While a long list of businesses and other organizations said they supported the new bylaw, it did not sit did well with a number of other merchants, who felt the ban would harm their businesses or who objected on the grounds of legislative overreach.
The birthday events for Great Barrington's most famous native son seem to signal a newfound appreciation of the civil rights leader, who had not been fully embraced by the community because of his sometimes-controversial past.
"If you don't think we have a problem, watch drivers circle our streets on Saturdays like desperate sharks.”
--- Writer and downtown resident Mickey Friedman
“The trend nationally is that both baby boomers and millennials are migrating back to downtown centers for greater mobility options, access to shopping, restaurants, cultural venues, recreational facilities and healthcare options.”
--- Ian Rasch
Video cameras will be observing vehicular (and pedestrian) traffic during the Main Street Reconstruction. But who will be watching, and who will watch them?
