Tom’s Top 3 for 12/19: New Look Tax Bill Coming For Pittsfield

Pittsfield residents will see a change in the look of their city tax bills when they receive them in January. IBerkshires.com reports that the city unveiled the new look on Monday and officials believe they will be easier to read and provide more pertinent information. Tax Collector Lisa Lewis says she spent the last month working with the city's billing vendor Kelley & Ryan to make the change. Lewis said the old bill has some confusing information – such as the deadline for abatements printed on bills sent out after that deadline, or late payment interest rates on bills that weren't late. The city has reformatted those bills and tied the pertinent information to the quarterly ones. Matt Kerwood, the city’s director of finance, says that Lewis has been working on modernizing the office and that includes a more user-friendly tax bill. A poster-sized version of the new bill will be on display outside of the collector's office at City Hall.

Northern Berkshire Bike Path Projected To Start Work In 2019

Now that a parcel of land has been donated to the effort, design of the bike path through Williamstown and western North Adams is now approaching the benchmark of being 25 percent complete by the end of January. The Berkshire Eagle reports that construction work on the $7.9 million state-funded project is anticipated to begin in 2019. According to city and town officials, the project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2021. The donation of more than 10 acres to both Williamstown and North Adams by Fusco Properties along the Chenaille Terrace corridor was the final piece of the land puzzle, according to North Adams Mayor Richard Alcombright.

Richard Neal Being Challenged By Springfield Attorney

A Springfield attorney who serves on the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women says she will run against Congressman Richard Neal to represent the 1st Congressional District. The Berkshire Eagle reports that 44 year old Tahirah Amatul-Wadud made her announcement yesterday. She was making a stop Tuesday at Dottie’s Coffee Lounge to mark her campaign’s first public appearance. Amatul-Wadud has served the Commission on the Status of Women for nearly four years and in her work as an attorney fights for the civil rights of marginalized communities. Meanwhile Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Jay Gonzalez was in the city of Pittsfield yesterday. Gonzalez met with the group “Indivisible Pittsfield” at The Berkshire Athenaeum to deliver his platform and also to take some questions.