By his reckoning, Harry Berkowitz first got involved in town politics in Northbridge in 1972, when he served on a study committee for Lasell Field—prior to the complex being turned over to the School Department.

So even though the plaque Mr. Berkowitz received recently from the Northbridge Board of Selectmen in appreciation of his more than thirty years of service to the community was entirely fitting, he has actually been active in municipal matters for a much longer period of time.

He still is, in fact. Yes, he has shed some of the roles and responsibilities he previously shouldered. But he remains a member of the Cable Advisory Committee and president of NCTV. He remains a stalwart supporter of Town Meeting and a dedicated voter. He also hosts several local-access television shows and a radio show on WCRN 830 AM. He has forged strong connections with the Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Northbridge Senior Center.

Many residents of Northbridge will undoubtedly associate Mr. Berkowitz’s name with the Planning Board, for good reason. As a former member and former chair of the Planning Board, he has consistently advocated for development and growth in the interest of making Northbridge a more desirable place to live and work.

“I want people to know we are not anti-business. I have always been pro-business for Northbridge,” he said during a conversation in the living room of his home on Benson Road on April 25th.

During his lengthy stint as a community warrior, he has served in a number of capacities. None of these are dearer to his heart than Planning Board and NCTV.

With the Planning Board he has led the applause for creation of a new police station and a new Walmart, redevelopment of the Linwood Mill and the Whitinsville Plaza, and construction of a new fire station—which is now underway. He has championed such projects as the Stone Hill Condominiums on Church Street for 55-and-over adults and is eager to see “retail and condos” come to land opposite the sewer beds on Providence Road.

With NCTV, working in concert with Director Bill Tartaglia and his team, he has overseen the steady expansion of the station’s programming lineup—one of the most diverse around.

NCTV owes much to Mr. Berkowitz’s influence during its transition from a small storefront on Church St. to Providence Road and eventually to more suitable quarters at the American Legion Post in Rockdale; and to establishing itself as a nonprofit, independent of the Board of Selectmen and the town.

“It has been easy for me to be involved because I love it,” he says.

“It keeps me young.”

 

Contact Rod Lee at [email protected] or 774-232-2999.