The Berkshire Edge On-Air - April 4

The Berkshire Edge LLC is a locally owned, regional publication. Our goal is to provide – regularly and in depth – content that truly reflects the life, interests and aspirations of this unusually rich and vibrant community.

Guided by respected journalistic standards, the principle of fairness, the quest for truth, a commitment to social, economic and environmental justice, and an abiding admiration for the independent spirit of the Berkshires, The Berkshire Edge offers in-depth local news reports and features, perspectives on the arts, wide-ranging commentary, and a comprehensive calendar of events – all written, illustrated, and, in some cases performed, with wit, intelligence, insight and humor.

This week we talk about:

1. Attorney Andrea Harrington is running for district attorney, pledging to reform the office and introduce new approaches to law enforcement prosecution. The current DA, David Capeless, has abruptly announced he wouldn’t run for another term in November but designated his assistant Paul Caccaviello, as his heir apparent.

2. Here we go again… The Berkshire Hills Regional School Committee has taken the first step in preparing a proposal to upgrade Monument Mountain Regional High School… two years ago, a $50 million renovation of the building — half of which was to have come from the state school building fund — was twice rejected by voters in Great Barrington — though approved in the two other towns in the district, Stockbridge and West Stockbridge.

3. Wilbur Ross, Donald Trump’s Secretary of Commerce, has purchased a house in Great Barrington for $3.2 million…. there goes the neighborhood! This story went viral, appearing in the Boston Globe, Politico, and was spread around by the AP… ironically, the owner of the property, Bobby Houston, an Oscar-winning film maker and founder of the insurgent Green Tea Party, is adamantly opposed to the Trump administration’s policies.

4. Sheffield distiller proposes to diversify his business, and open a marijuana emporium. Christopher Weld, owner of Berkshire Mountain Distillers and his business partner Michael Cohen are looking for a special permit from the Sheffield selectmen to construct a fancy head shop on the site of the abandoned Pine Tree Inn on U.S. 7 where they would grow and sell marijuana products. Sheffield voted for legalizing marijuana.

5. The Berkshire Flyer, a seasonal weekend rail service between the Berkshires (Pittsfield) and New York City, via Rensselaer, N.Y., is the route recommended by the a Working Group consisting of state Sen. Adam Hinds and representatives of Mass DOT and Berkshire County. It’s a far cry from the commuter service envisioned some years ago for the Housatonic line that would have connected the major towns in Berkshire County with the Metropolitan area… of course that route depended on a financial commitment from Connecticut.

6. Finally, we should mention our political analyst Dook Snyder whose ‘Smoke Signals from the Swamp’ series has highlighted the corruption of the Trump administration. His latest took on Trump Jared Kushner.