Cathy Moulton behind the counter at Moulton's General Store.
NORTH ADAMS - Area residents now have two places downtown to pay their utility bills.
Moulton's General Store on Main Street is accepting payments for telephone bills and, in the next few days, expects to begin taking electric bill payments as well.
"It's about being a good community member," said owner Cathy Moulton. "We're doing this out of the kindness of our heart to help the community."
Nassif's Professional Pharmacy had accepted utility bills for years until dropping the service after Verizon began charging customers $1 to pay their bills there. The phone company had been absorbing that charge by the bill payment service. Customer complaints and a drop in the number of people using the service led the pharmacy to stop taking payments July 1.
Moulton said Western Union had approached her and her husband, Mark Moulton, about setting up an electronic payment service at the general store. After talking it over, they decided it was good for customers and good for the downtown.
"This is another reason for people to come to Main Street," Cathy Moulton said.
In addition, TD Banknorth is continuing to accept Berkshire Gas bills.
City Councilor Marie Harpin thought it was great news. "Now there are two places people can go right on Main Street to pay their utility bills," said Harpin, who also is head of Northern Berkshire Community Action. She wanted to make sure people knew the service was available again.
Western Union installed the payment machine three months ago but it only recently came online. Verizon, MCI and AT&T payments are being accepted now; technical issues have delayed adding National Grid but it should be online shortly.
There is a dollar fee still being charged by the phone companies to make an electronic payment. Once up and running, National Grid payments will be free.
Moulton said the dollar fee must be in cash and is nonrefundable - if a customer cancels the payment, he or she won't get their dollar back.
The dollar fee upset customers when it was instituted earlier this year but other options - paying by phone or writing a check and mailing - can also be costly. Moulton believes the convenience will be worth the price for many.
Cash or check can be used to pay the utility bill. Checks will be run through a scanning machine and voided on site; the account information will be electronically sent to the utility. Customers will get their voided checks back right at the counter. Moulton said the payments should post the next day.
The store is accepting payments Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 to 2 for now. Moulton is the only one trained to process the payments and she wants to make sure it operates smoothly before training her employees. She hopes to be able to accept payments weekdays and Saturdays soon.
People could once pay their utility bills at a range of venues - from banks to supermarkets. Harpin recalled how utilities used to have their offices on Main Street or close by. Now, many people are turning to the Internet, paying bills through online banking or directly to companies.
But not everybody - some people don't have access to computers or trust their finances on them. Others may be trying to avoid the delay of mailing a payment. Moulton hopes some of those people will benefit from the service, especially once National Grid is added.
That won't be soon enough for one disappointed customer, who was turned away Thursday morning. She was hoping to pay her electric bill before heading out of town. "But where else can I pay it?" she asked plaintively.
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I thought this was going to be a nice, cute general store..but recently, the scratch tickets, the cigarettes...its all seeming a bit tacky and just wrong if you ask me!
Isn't that what a General Store is supposed to be? In the old days the General Store was the place to do all of your business. At least SOMEONE is willing to step up to the plate and fill a need in the community. It's even in the center of town so everyone is able to get there.
A general store is just that "GENERAL". The Moulton's have a great store with alot more than scratch tickets and cigarettes. People who aren't into the lottery or smoking seem quite pleased with all the other GENERAL items the store has to offer. Not to mention the great food, fudge, chocolates and gift line!!!
Its good to see that someone in the downtown will take on more work to benefit the people of the area. The girls behind the counter at Moulton's seem to have enough to do now but are adding more to their workload. The girls have a ready smile for all of the customers even when there's a line of us. I hope this new service runs smoothly as I have been there when people complain to them about not being able to pay yet. This is not in their control but they keep explaining it with a smile. These girls work hard. I wish them luck with everything they are trying to do. We all need to support the downtown merchants to have a downtown. The mall might be convenient but if we want a Main St. these mom and pop stores need our business.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Trump administration's cut $90 million in disaster prevention aid for the state including a culvert project on Galvin Road.
The Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities grant program was providing funding to 18 communities, the Central Massachusetts Regional Planning Commission, the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, and the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.
Engineering for the Galvin Road culvert was one of only two Berkshire projects being funded. The other was $81,720 to Hinsdale to power a public safety building.
The two largest disbursements were $50 million to Chelsea and Everett for flood resilience that was approved during Trump's first term, and $12 million to DCR for a waterfront project in Boston.
Many of these endeavors have been years in the making and the funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency has already been appropriated.
The governor's office said cities and towns have moved forward with expensive permitting applications and engineering and design plans because of FEMA's identification of their project as a future recipient of federal BRIC funds.
"In recent years, Massachusetts communities have been devastated by severe storms, flooding and wildfires. We rely on FEMA funding to not only rebuild but also take steps to protect against future extreme weather," said Gov. Maura Healey.
"But the Trump administration has suddenly ripped the rug out from under cities and towns that had been promised funding to help them upgrade their roads, bridges, buildings and green spaces to mitigate risk and prevent disasters in the future. This makes our communities less safe and will increase costs for residents, municipalities and businesses."
U.S. Rep. Richard Neal noted the difficult flooding and wildfires the state has had to deal and said the funds would have provided assistance to at-risk communities.
"The BRIC program was established by Congress in 2018, during the first Trump administration, to reduce the hazard risk of communities confronting natural disasters," said the congressman.
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Award-winning author and Rice University professor Kiese Laymon will be the speaker at the 126th commencement exercises at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
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Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll kicked off "413 Day" at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art on Sunday before heading to three more locations. click for more
School officials say the fiscal 2026 budget is up by less than one percent — if they didn't have to carry nearly $200,000 for retirements and FICA. click for more
