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Great Barrington Asks Landlords To Freeze Rents During Pandemic

The Great Barrington Town Seal
Town Of Great Barrington

The town of Great Barrington, Massachusetts is calling on its landlords to seek relief from mortgage lenders and pass it on to their tenants. 

Selectboard chair Steve Bannon says the request is intended to alieve the financial strain for business owners and working people in the town of around 7,000.

“The Congress and the president are about to sign a bill that’s going to give relief to commercial landlords and to landlords of apartments and we’re asking that they consider also passing that on to their tenants," said Bannon. "Many, many, many people are unemployed – we see the number in the United States, it’s just staggering – and will not be able to pay their rents. So we’re hoping that they will be able to forgive those for a month or to.”

The town is also considering delaying tax and license deadlines by an additional 30 days when Massachusetts assents.

Josh Landes has been WAMC's Berkshire Bureau Chief since February 2018 after working at stations including WBGO Newark and WFMU East Orange. A passionate advocate for Berkshire County, Landes was raised in Pittsfield and attended Hampshire College in Amherst, receiving his bachelor's in Ethnomusicology and Radio Production. You can reach him at jlandes@wamc.org with questions, tips, and/or feedback.
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