Greenfield designated "BLIGHTED COMMUNITY" by State (Pittsfield: low income, houses)

[teachertype]

I just heard on the local radio station that Greenfield has been getting special MA community block grant funds for "blighted" communities from the state for several years now.

The town council president says he's happy to take the money from the state, but he doesn't see any blight. How about the decaying, run down slum buildings as you drive into Greenfield on Rte 5&10? How about the ramshackle, run down buildings on Hope Street where they've found dead bodies dumped after murders? How about driving some of the neighborhoods with the run down depressed looking halfway houses, methadone clinics, and alcoholism treatment centers?

I'm one of the lucky teachers. When all the administrators quit the system en masse last spring, and the pink slips went out to every teacher except a core SPED staff, I got a better job in a functioning town's school system. You don't have to work very hard to convince me that Greenfield is a blighted community.

[willdufauve]

Hopefully, being a redneck hillbilly will be a less attractive option after this coming election period.

[teachertype]

The administrators didn't all quit because of budget problems. No one was laid off at the time and no one ever missed a pay day.

They all quit for morale reasons...the constant meddling and politicking by the mayor and a former mayoral candidate who chairs the School Committee; the incompetence at the mayoral/school committee level,; the old boy network; the hostility.

[ChrisA70]

Whew! Glad we didn't move to Greenfield! I heard the school system there is pretty bad. We moved to Pittsfield instead and my daughter is in a really good school here.

[globalView]

The town was dominated once in buildings and town council by a single family. The town government bought the movie theatre from them renovated it on state funds and gave it back... Its one corrupt town. The theft and misappropriation of the people in office consumes the funds and nothing happens.. There were event cases with the school system recently where someone stepped down amidst accusations of a million in missing funds. They told the parents of the town to take turns buying supplies for the other students and punished students who's parents did not comply. Ie.. low income exc..