The city of Pittsfield celebrated the opening of a once dangerously contaminated lake Friday.
Community members, business leaders and state and local officials gathered on the banks of Silver Lake marking the completion of revitalization work that began nearly two years ago.
“It is a symbol of what I think is going to be the next chapter in the city of Pittsfield and a bright future for generations to come,” said Pittsfield Mayor Dan Bianchi.
The 26-acre lake is open to swimming, boating, fishing and maybe even skating in the winter. A paved walkway with benches runs around the lake as vegetation is taking root on its banks. The project was part of an agreement with General Electric to remove the cancer-causing chemicals, PCBs, discharged into the lake in the 1970s from the company’s neighboring site.
