PITTSFIELD, Mass. - The former Lakeside Christian Camp in Pittsfield is being transformed into Camp Arrow Wood, a new sleep-away summer sports camp. 

What You Need To Know

  • The former Lakeside Christian Camp in Pittsfield is now Camp Arrow Wood
  • The new camp will be a co-ed youth sleep-away summer sports camp
  •  Several buildings need renovations, and new fields and courts need to be built
  •  The camp will open in June of 2022

“It’s an amazing piece of property,” said Carrie Holland, managing director for Mill Town Capital, which bought the property on Richmond Pond last winter. “A lot of people don’t even know it’s here. It’s here in Pittsfield, kind of tucked off on a side road. It’s got about half a mile of waterfront and some amazing structures.”

Over six weeks next summer, it will be home to more than 100 boys and girls ages 8 to 15, with programming focused on traditional high school sports, water sports, and even sports media and analytics.

“There’s a lot of camps in the Berkshires, and one of the things that is not really serviced very well is girls sports,” Matt Linick, the camp’s executive director, said. “There’s actually more girls playing high school sports than boys these days throughout the country, so I think there’s a need for a girls sports camp for sure.”

Before the campers arrive, a lot of work needs to be done. New sports fields and tennis courts will have to be built, and several buildings need renovations, including the historic cabins.

 “These cabins date back to the 1930s, 1940s, and they’re just super cool," Holland said. “Filled with character, all wood throughout. It kind of has that instant kind of Americana nostalgia feel of summer camp.”

Mill Town is still working with the city to get everything approved, and the conservation commission will visit the property on Friday for a site walk through.

It will be a sprint to the finish to get everything ready for next summer.

“We’re in October 2021, and opening camp in June 2022, so it feels like we have a lot of time," Holland said. "But we’re trying to slam a lot of work in that small period of time."