On Thursday, a dozen volunteers constructed a temporary improvement to the Eagle Street parklet.

NORTH ADAMS — “I didn’t even know what a pocket park was until I showed up here today,” said Lou Gertje, laughing while cutting squares of landscaping fabric.

Meanwhile, a dozen other residents of North Adams ambled about the grassy parcel Thursday morning, carrying potted flowers, piecing together a stage, and chatting about the neighborhood.

Gertjie heard that the city was organizing a volunteer effort to revitalize Eagle Street’s parklet — or pocket park — and that they needed all of the manpower and tools they could get.

“I was like, ‘I have a shovel,’” Gertjie said.

The project is the result of a collaboration between the city and the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission meant to convert otherwise unused areas into green space. The initiative, known as Gray to Green, also aims to find out what locals would like to see in the parklet, and other public spaces, in the future.

“When I came here it was very dead — there were no shade areas, no seating, nothing,” said Pallav Savaliya, the city’s new community planner. “We are trying to bring aliveness."

Savaliya is originally from India, where he studied architecture before receiving a degree in urban planning from the State University of New York at Albany.

Pallav and Hitesh Savaliya build a temporary parklet on Eagle Street in North Adams on Thursday to illustrate a revitalization of the park. The space includes a deck for a stage, flowers, and string lights and fabric awnings between the planter box pillars to make a public space.

During the rest of the week, Savaliya coordinated volunteers at the Windsor Mill to build planter boxes. On Thursday, he worked to set up the park, planting flowers and arranging benches under drapery and string lights.

He said he hopes this first phase of the project will inspire community members to spend more time in the park, and to offer feedback for a more permanent improvement.

Marya Kozik, director of community development, also rolled up her sleeves alongside volunteers. In 2025, her office partnered with the BRPC to assess which streets and neighborhoods in North Adams might benefit from revitalization — a process modeled after the Gray to Green initiative that began in Pittsfield in 2020.

“You can transplant something from another community, but if your community hasn’t had involvement in creating it then they won’t have the connection to it,” she said. “I hope the community embraces it.”

Virginia Riehl, a North Adams resident, plants flowers during the Eagle Street parklet revitalization.

Virginia Riehl, another resident and volunteer, helped the city identify areas needing improvement during a Gray to Green neighborhood audit last year. Now, she is seeing the results.

“This park has so much potential,” she said. “With this project it’s going to become a day-to-day place for people in the community to sit and relax.”

Francis Kakande, right, and Tina Stone, left, work to install a temporary deck for The Eagle Street parklet.

Francis Kakande, a volunteer tasked with laying tiles in between boxes, said that the event allowed him to meet new members of his community.

“I feel amazing about myself because this is the first time I am doing volunteering work,” he said. “It’s good to give back to the community.”