Nicholas Russo, design center founder, discusses the area where the fatal accident occurred.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. —  A group of concerned community members walked a portion of Dalton Avenue on Sunday to see how it could be made safer for pedestrians. 

Late last month, a man died after being struck at the corner of Dalton Avenue and Dartmouth Street. On Sunday, the Pittsfield Community Design Center hosted an on-site community crash analysis for possible long-term and short-term solutions. 

"I think the idea that everything can be done immediately, instant gratification, is tough to overcome, but if you can take short, medium, and long-term actions over time and keep that momentum going, I think that's important," said Nicholas Russo, founder of PCDC. 

The group met in the corridor and, using AARP's Walking Audit Toolkit, identified areas needing improvement on clipboards from the intersection of Dalton Avenue and Benedict Road to the roundabout. 

On June 20, a 2013 Chevy Impala being driven by John Clark, 93, was westbound on Dalton Avenue when it collided with Luis Chin, 87, who was crossing the street, according to the District Attorney's Office. Chin died after being taken to Berkshire Medical Center. 

One suggestion that came out of the walk was for the Traffic Commission to evaluate the city parking ordinance and see if visibility on the curved corner could be improved. Parking is supposed to be set back 15 feet, but there was a question of where the setback would start because of the curve. 

Council President Peter White and Ward 2 Councilor Brittany Noto, who participated, were open to bringing forward a petition. White explained, "We could either look at that and make it blanket for across the city, or we could look at doing it just for this spot and doing a traffic order." 

Russo explained that these are unobtrusive and quick moves that could be done before any infrastructure work.