Teen Charged After Barracks Crash

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CHESHIRE, Mass. — A Pittsfield teenager is facing multiple charges including driving under the influence after crashing her car into the State Police barracks. 
 
According to State Police, the 17-year-old was traveling southbound on Route 8 at about 6:22 p.m. on Saturday when her 2000 Nissan Altima left the road and struck the east front corner of Cheshire barracks. 
 
The girl and her passenger, another 17-year-old Pittsfield girl, were taken to Berkshire Medical Center for minor injuries. 
 
The car crashed through the building's brick exterior wall and damaged a kitchen area. 
 
After being treated at the hospital, the driver was returned to the barracks and booked on charges of operating under the influence of liquor; negligent operation of a motor vehicle; speeding; and marked lanes violation.
 
A bail clerk released her on the standard $40 bail fee; she is scheduled to appear in Pittsfield District Court for arraignment on Tuesday. 
 
No troopers inside the barracks were injured. The State Police Facilities Section and a contractor responded and performed emergency repairs. Additional repairs will be required. Troopers were able to continue working in the building, which remains in operation. 

Tags: motor vehicle accident,   OUI,   

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Pittsfield Community Development OKs Airport Project, Cannabis Amendment

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Community Development Board has supported plans for a new hangar at the airport and a change to the cannabis ordinance.

Lyon Aviation, located in the Pittsfield Municipal Airport, plans to remove an existing "T" style hangar and replace it with a new, 22,000-square-foot hangar.  The existing one is said to be small and in poor condition while the new build will accommodate a variety of plane sizes including a larger passenger jet.

"There's no traffic impacts, there's no utilities to speak of," Robert Fournier of SK Design Group explained.

"I'll say that we did review this at length with the airport commission in the city council and this is the way we were instructed to proceed was filing this site plan review and special permit application."

The application states that the need for additional hangar space is "well documented" by Lyon, Airport Manager Daniel Shearer, and the airport's 2020 master plan. The plan predicts that 15 additional hangar spaces will be needed by 2039 and this project can accommodate up to 10 smaller planes or a single large aircraft.

Lyon Aviation was founded in 1982 as a fuel-based operator that provided fuel, maintenance, hangar services, charter, and flight instruction.

This is not the only project at the Tamarack Road airport, as the City Council recently approved a $300,000 borrowing for the construction of a new taxi lane. This will cover the costs of an engineering phase and will be reduced by federal and state grant monies that have been awarded to the airport.

The local share required is $15,000, with 95 percent covered by the Federal Aviation Administration.

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