WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The former Taconic Restaurant building on Cold Spring Road is on track to be used as a dog daycare and training facility.
Michelle Marrocco last week obtained a special permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals to operate Pup Place at 1161 Cold Spring Road, at the junction of Routes 7 and 2.
"The Pup Place helps 'pup parents' of Northern Berkshire County build trusting relationships with their dogs through training and daycare services, so they can live their happiest lives together," Marrocco wrote in a letter accompanying her application to the board. "The Pup Place's model ensures that dogs get the exercise and stimulation they need without building super-athlete levels of endurance, fear or anxiety."
Marrocco talked to the ZBA about her plan for the business, which will have up to 10 staff on site at any time and provide boarding and training from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Monday through Friday and 10 to 5 on weekends.
She and trainer Tiffany Boyden told the board that the facility will have a capacity for up to 30 dogs, and will include a fenced-in area for a dog run.
Richard Sutter, who owns the A-Frame Bakery across Route 7 from the former restaurant, went to the podium to ask several questions during the board's public hearing, inquiring about how Marrocco's business, Berkshire Pup People, planned to deal with dog waste, whether Marrocco had conducted a traffic study and potential noise from the dog daycare.
"What do you plan to do with barking dogs?" Sutter asked. "We have the house across the street. I don't know how you can keep that from annoying us."
Marrocco said dogs will not be unattended while outside and Pup Place staff will clean up dog droppings as they are generated. She plans to hire a waste disposal service to remove animal waste from the site.
Marrocco said that with, at most, 30 cars arriving at the business in the morning for dropoff, she did not expect Pup Place to significantly add to the traffic count at the intersection of Cold Spring Road (U.S. Route 7) and the Taconic Trail (Route 2).
"Our practice is to divide dogs into smaller packs based on play style and temperament," Marrocco said, addressing the barking issue. "Thirty dogs at a time would be broken into three to five groups. Outside at any given time, there won't be more than 20 dogs, which means less opportunity to bark, and they'll be supervised.
"If play gets too rowdy or too loud, we'll step in. Our goal is to help dogs be well-adjusted. Our goal is to really limit the amount of parking that happens, period. Beyond that, we're across a highway from you. The noise from traffic will probably be worse than the noise from dogs."
Later, Boyden elaborated.
"Some amount of parking can be normal, but excessive barking is not normal dog play," she said. "It could happen, but as soon as it does happen, we intervene."
The pair have been operating their business remotely to date, going to clients' homes and collecting dogs or taking dropoffs for sessions at one of their homes. Marrocco told the board there have been no complaints about noise in the residential setting.
One of their clients, a Williamstown resident, came to the hearing to support their application.
"I have total confidence in them," the resident said. "I have watched the playgroups. I have maybe heard a bark, but, immediately, they were extremely responsible people. I have no question they would take care of any issue immediately. I'm very excited as a community member to have something in town that can help a lot of people."
The board voted 5-0 to approve a special permit for the Pup Place.
According to the business' website, walkbrk.com, Berkshire Pup People has organized a Gofundme campaign to support the new dog daycare. As of Monday morning, it had received about $18,000 in donations toward a $30,000 goal.
Most of the ZBA's Thursday meeting was dedicated to an administrative appeal from Williams College regarding its planned indoor practice facility on Stetson Road.
The third item on the agenda was a request for a variance to install an in-ground pool at 1589 Green River Road.
Kira Wells explained that the property's topography and shape would make it a hardship to put the pool anywhere but within the 50-foot setback from the road required by the bylaw.
She said the planned 12-by-26 foot pool, which will be 4 feet, 6 inches deep, will be, at its nearest point, 28 eight feet from the road. The pool, she said, is critical to allowing her husband practice aquatherapy.
"It doesn't need to be a huge pool, but I'd love to put this pool in our back yard, and it would improve our quality of life," Wells said.
That information appeared to help sway the board, whose members initially expressed hesitancy to grant a variance — essentially official permission to violate the bylaw.
"This is necessary for the quality of life for this particular homeowner," ZBA Chair Keith Davis said. "I think that's a key piece of information. It's not just so the kids can go out and frolic."
Another factor working in Wells' favor was the context of the neighborhood, where much of the historic development predates zoning and violates the setbacks put in place when the zoning bylaw was enacted.
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Williams College Gets $105M in Bonding for WCMA, Capital Projects
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Williams College has received more than $105 million bonding toward construction of the new art museum and other campus capital projects.
The college announced on Monday that MassDevelopment has issued a $105,820,000 tax-exempt bond on behalf of the president and Trustees of Williams College.
The organization will use bond proceeds to finance several projects on the college's campus, including (1) building and equipping a new art museum and multipurpose recreation center, (2) implementing the college's energy and carbon master plan, (3) renovating and equipping dormitories and dining facilities, (4) reimbursing the college for costs incurred to build and equip the Davis Center, and (5) completing other miscellaneous capital projects. The bonds were sold through a public offering with Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC serving as lead underwriter and B of A Securities, Inc. and Samuel A. Ramirez & Co., Inc. serving as co-managers.
The new Williams College Museum of Art off Field Park is expected to cost $175 million with the college planning to raise $100 million through donations; another $25 million toward the project was gifted in April 2024 by an anonymous donor.
"From our new art museum and multipurpose recreation building, to commencing campus decarbonization efforts, the new bond issue will fund work that supports our educational mission, fuels employment and benefits the culture, economy and people of western Massachusetts," college President Maud S. Mandel said. "MassDevelopment's program is helping us manage costs while investing in academic excellence, so that Williams can remain affordable to talented students from all backgrounds."
The Davis Center will include new construction between Jeness House and Rice House off Walden Street; the new build will be located where Hardy House was, behind the Purple Pub. It replaces the Multicultural Center and will provide a home to more than 20 student affinity groups along with academic support programs.
"The college is an important part of the town and a valuable asset for our community," said Town Manager Robert Menicocci. "We are pleased to see the college's continued investment in these past and future projects which will benefit both the college and the community as a whole."
Williams College on Thursday received the final town approval it needed to proceed with building a new art museum on the former site of the Williams Inn. click for more
Nora Schoeny, Gianna Love and Elyssa Scrimo Sunday led the Lenox girls cross country team to a narrow victory in the Division 2 race at the Western Massachusetts Championships at Stanley Park. click for more
The goal was to fill a trailer with 7,000 pounds of food, clothing, necessities and tools to help North Carolinians, thousands of whom are still dealing with power outages, road washouts and flooding after Hurricane Helene hit the Appalachian region on Sept. 26. click for more