Much like the attraction at the center of debate, Pittsfield is running in circles about whether it should accept the long-shuttered Berkshire Carousel at 50 Center Street as a gift with some major stipulations. Former shop teacher Philip O'Rourke was a volunteer on the original project that closed its doors in 2019, and appeared at Tuesday night’s meeting to implore the city council to accept the donation.
“Operating expenses are projected to cost approximately $61,000 per year," said O'Rourke. "We are confident we can raise the balance through donations, fundraisers and income from operating the carousel. The carousel was built at no cost to the city. It was a $3 million project, not counting the thousands of hours of volunteer time over 10 years of building the carousel.”
O’Rourke said that the Harvey and Virginia Kimmel Foundation has pledged support for the project, and that no taxpayer dollars would go into the carousel’s operation.
“Harvey and his wife have a foundation primarily dedicated to helping children," he continued. "We met with Harvey, and he helped us understand what we would need to do to set up a nonprofit organization. He has also offered to provide $15,000 each year for three years to support the carousel.”
The council heard a motion that calls on Mayor Peter Marchetti to form a committee to study the situation.
Ward 1 City Councilor Kenny Warren motioned to make three amendments to the order:
“That the mayor, through the Department of Community Development or its designee, obtain the following information by the first meeting in January: One, information concerning any state grants and their conditions, including, but not limited to the fiscal 2013 state grant in the amount of $250,000," he read. "Two, a reasonable list of carousel operations, including the following the ownership and details for any municipal-run operation, and three, an informal determination of the cost of removal of the carousel operation to an alternative site by inquiry of the local builder.”
Warren said the donation offered by Berkshire Carousel Inc. founder Jim Shulman comes with too many strings attached to take seriously.
“I don't want to waste a lot of time if Mr. Shulman says, I want this, this, and this, and we can't afford to do it, no matter what," he argued. "These questions can be easily answered in a month's time so we don't go on a fool's errand.”
Shulman’s demands include that the city run the carousel for 25 years and turn its location on Center Street into Shulman Park.
Council Vice President Earl Persip said he wouldn’t back the measure, saying it was unlikely for the questions to be answered over the holiday season in time for the committee’s first meeting in January.
“I agree with Councilor Warren, there's a lot of nonstarters, and there's a ton of red flags," he said. "But let's have all the information, all at once, all in one place so we can actually make a decision that we think the community wants. Let's hear community input.”
Ward 5 city councilor Patrick Kavey noted that the land the carousel currently sits on could be a valuable part of Pittsfield’s ongoing efforts to build new housing, especially on property near downtown.
“We could increase the density in that area so much with some of the parcels that are around there, and the idea that we could potentially move this carousel to another city park and then watch that property sit there as a city park and have us maintain it, instead of us being able to sell it, generate revenue by selling the parcel to a developer when there's developers interested in changing that area already, and those developers potentially being able to build housing and then generate more revenue for our commercial tax base and our residential side- It's just, that's a nonstarter for me,” Kavey said.
Marchetti said despite Shulman’s objectives, the city is in no rush.
“Mr. Shulman has made it very clear that I need to do everything as quick as possible so that it can be open in the spring of 2025," he said. "I don't know that I share this concern. If we're going to do it and do it right, if it opens in the spring of 2026 I've succeeded.”
The mayor said his major goal is to transform the dormant space into something that contributes to Pittsfield.
“20 years from now, when we have a piece of property that's still sitting there doing exactly what it's doing today, I'll feel like an utter failure that I didn't attempt to try to do something to save a piece of property," said Marchetti. "Because in 20 years, if it looks the same way it does, you can't sell it and put something out there. There's no housing, it will be a piece of property that could be tied up in probate forever, and we know how that story goes with a number of other properties in Pittsfield that we've had that problem with. So, this is an attempt to try to salvage something.”
The council ultimately rejected Warren’s amendments and unanimously voted for Marchetti to form the carousel committee to further study the donation.
