PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The future of WTBR-FM is still uncertain.
The radio station "Brave FM," stationed at Taconic High School, was once under threat of being silenced because of budget and interest. It is now facing the challenge of the new high school project's impacts on the tower location.
Now, with the construction of a new Taconic High School, Superintendent Jason McCandless is trying to find a solution as to where to put the tower.
"We could be looking at $125,000 to $150,000 expenditure to build a new tower for broadcast," McCandless said.
The district is now looking at the possibility of moving the tower and McCandless said he isn't sure if it needs to be affixed to the top of a building or not. There are also models of broadcasting from cell phone towers being looked at. But, in order to keep it going, there will be a cost to it.
"At some point it is hard to conceive a way this happens without some cost to somebody being involved," McCandless said.
The station operates on an education license from the Federal Communications Commission and that expires in 2022. The tower also is also used by United Cerebral Palsy to broadcast the Berkshire Talking Chronicle. McCandless said there is little interest from both staff and students to continue operating the station and it has come under scrutiny for broadcasting an array of shows that are adult-oriented.
Further, McCandless questions how it fits into the educational programming and mission of the school.
But, the community did strongly urge to keep the station as a community resource and not fall into the hands of private station. McCandless said the license wouldn't fetch much for money if auctioned.
"Right now we have this really nice communication tool that we could use and others could use and it would be a shame to go from a public station to a private one," McCandless said. "It seems to be very important in this community that it remains a community-based radio station."
The station runs on a budget of about $6,000 for equipment, fees and other expenses, and is really managed by two individuals - Brad Lorenz and Beverly Gans. It also carries some level of legal liability.
The station will remain on the air for at least the next two years, but the district is trying to come up with partnerships or models to keep the station going after that. The station first went on the air in 1973 and had its ups and downs. Participation from students dropped and operating budgets kept getting slashed.
In 2006, radio veteran Larry Kratka took over as an adviser and with that a new interest sprouted. Kratka headed efforts to refurbish equipment and student participation jumped. The station started broadcasting the Pittsfield Suns games and performed live broadcasts from community events as well as a number of student and adult radio programs.
In 2014, Kratka retired and since then, the participation has dropped again.
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No Charges in Fatal Pittsfield Crash
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The driver of a pickup truck involved in a fatal accident on West Housatonic Street last May will not be charged.
According to the Berkshire District Attorney's Office, the DA has declined to file criminal charges after an investigation demonstrated that the truck driver's operation of his vehicle did not meet the legal criminal standard of negligence for charges to issue.
John Tyska, 34, was driving his dirt bike west shortly before 7 p.m. on May 25 when he collided with the driver's side passenger door of a 2022 Honda Ridgeline operated by Peter Schettini, 53, also of Pittsfield, who was traveling south on Plymouth Street.
Tyska collided with the truck after taking a fast turn from Plymouth Street onto West Housatonic Street. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigation into the fatal collision uncovered the following facts:
Prior to the collision, the dirt bike was traveling at a high speed of between 55 and 65 mph on a street with a speed limit of 40 mph.
Prior to the collision, the dirt bike operator was driving in a manner indicative of avoiding the police. This included driving through a red light on West Street at approximately 60 to 70 mph when being followed by a police car that had activated its blue lights.
The lack of reaction time of the truck driver was due to the bike's operation.
The Pittsfield Police Department was the lead law enforcement agency on the case.
While the investigations may at times seem lengthy to the public, District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said he is committed to detailed investigations that thoroughly review all facts in a case.
The School Committee on Wednesday approved an ambitious timeline that could see the city's middle school reconfiguration implemented as soon as the 2025-26 academic year.
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A large limb from a 32-foot sugar maple in the park fell next to the fountain area over the weekend. Caution tape and traffic barrels now surround the aftermath.
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The last estimate for construction was overly optimistic because, at the time, it was unclear how long obtaining the two easements would take, Town Manager Thomas Hutcheson said.
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