EforAll Announces Prize Winners

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Entrepreneurship for All (EforAll) Berkshire County awarded nearly $10,000 in prizes to the Spring 2022 Business Accelerator Cohort at an awards ceremony held on Zoom.
 
The awards were granted as follows:
  • Jenny Gitlitz (Dalton) of Berkshire Family Advocates received the Paula Buxbaum Award–established in honor of a member of the Fall 2021 cohort who died in a car crash in October 2021.   This award in Paula's memory is granted to an individual making a career pivot and incorporating a social mission into their business.
  • $1,000 to Rachel Hailey (North Adams) for DEI Outdoors.
  • $2,300 to Deirdre Horan (Great Barrington) of Dri Ocean Products.
  • $2,500 to Jackye Stoddard (Hudson, NY) for Hierba Buena Foods.
  • $3,500 to Elizabeth Heller (Pittsfield) for The Kids Super Journal.
The celebration and gala began with remarks from Massachusetts State Representative Tricia Farley-Bouvier who spoke about the public-private partnership that supports EforAll's regional efforts and lauded the efforts of the 12 businesses that completed the program.
 
The Class Speaker, Rachel Hailey of DEI Outdoors was chosen by her colleagues and shared many of the lessons of the program for future EforAll participants.
 
The virtual event was also simulcast on Pittsfield Community Television.  The recording is available to view here.
 
EforAll's next Accelerator class will begin in September 2022 and applications are due at www.eforall.org before August 25th.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Pittsfield Cannabis Cultivator Plans Dispensary

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD. Mass. — A cannabis cultivator and manufacturer has opted to sell its products on site in Downing Parkway. 

The Zoning Board of Appeals this month approved a special permit for J-B.A.M. Inc. to operate a dispensary out of its existing grow facility. There will only be changes to the interior of 71 Downing Parkway, as there will be less than 500 square feet of retail space in the 20,000-square-foot building. 

"My only concern would be the impact, and really would be traffic, which I don't think is excessive, the odor, if there was one, but that doesn't seem to be an issue, and I think it's a good location for a marijuana facility," board member Thomas Goggins said. 

The company's indoor cultivation site plan was approved in 2019, an amendment to add manufacturing and processing in 2021, and on the prior day, a new site plan to add a retail dispensary was approved by the Community Development Board. 

J-B.A.M. cannabis products are available in local dispensaries. 

The interior of the facility will be divided to accommodate an enclosed check-in area, front entrance, retail lobby, secure storage room, offices, and two bathrooms. There are 27 parking spaces for the facility, which is sufficient for the use. 

No medical or recreational cannabis uses are permitted within 500 feet of a school or daycare, a setback that is met, and the space is within an industrial park at the end of a cul-de-sac. 

"The applicant desires the restructuring of the business to be more competitive in the industry with the ability to grow and sell their own cannabis products so they have more financial stability," Chair Albert Ingegni III, read from the application. 

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