Economic Recovery, Public Health.. Both Priorities

Reviving the Berkshires' economy will require a balancing act, a panel of experts agreed on Friday morning.

Ben Sosne, the executive director of the Berkshire Innovation Center.

Sosne joined state Sen. Adam Hinds, Hancock Shaker Village President and CEO Jennifer Trainer Thompson and Williamstown Town Manager Jason Hoch for a virtual town hall hosted by 1Berkshire President and CEO Jonathan Butler.

The topic was "Reopening the Berkshire Economy," but the hour-long session started with some sobering statistics from Hinds. He noted that, nationwide, retail sales plunged 16.4 percent in April, according to the Commerce Department's Friday morning report, and, in Massachusetts, 1 million of the commonwealth's 7 million residents have filed for unemployment.

In Berkshire County, the unemployment rate is 27.8 percent, Hinds said.

Read this riveting story and more on iBerkshires.com now.