Bissellville Campground

- 1109 Washington Rd, Hinsdale, MA 01235

For Massachusetts residents seeking information about the former Bissellville Campground in Hinsdale, it is important to know that the property at 1109 Washington Road has undergone a significant and inspiring transformation. While once a seasonal camping destination in the scenic Berkshire Mountains, the site is definitively no longer operating as a public campground for tents or recreational vehicles. Instead, the area is now known as Bissellville Estates, a thriving manufactured home community.

This change is more than just a name update; it represents a major success story for affordable, local housing in Western Massachusetts. Bissellville Estates is one of the Commonwealth's notable examples of a Resident-Owned Community (ROC). This means the residents themselves banded together to purchase the land under their homes, ensuring their long-term security, affordability, and local control over their neighborhood’s future. The historical campground, which was first developed as a private community in the 1960s, has now transitioned from a private business venture to a self-governed, cooperative housing model.

This pivotal shift occurred recently, allowing the community's homeowners to take charge of decisions regarding lot rent, infrastructure, and community rules. While we cannot offer information about camping or seasonal recreational stays at this location, we can provide factual details about the established residential community that now occupies this scenic spot in Hinsdale, a location once celebrated for its proximity to hiking and natural beauty.

Bissellville Estates is situated at 1109 Washington Road in Hinsdale, Massachusetts, with the ZIP code 01235. The community lies within Berkshire County, a region famous among Massachusetts locals for its stunning natural landscape, cultural venues, and abundant outdoor recreation opportunities.

Hinsdale itself is a charming town, often celebrated for its New England aesthetic and easy access to both nature and neighboring cultural hubs. The site's location on Washington Road places it in a beautiful, wooded area, typical of the mountain landscape of the Berkshires. It is conveniently located near various state forests, including October Mountain State Forest and Pittsfield State Forest, ensuring that while the community itself is residential, residents and local visitors have access to hiking, kayaking, canoeing, and other outdoor pursuits in the immediate vicinity.

The site is easily accessible via the major roads that traverse Western Massachusetts, making travel to the region's larger cities like Pittsfield or Great Barrington straightforward for residents. As an established manufactured home community, it benefits from year-round accessibility and municipal services, differentiating it clearly from its seasonal campground past.

Since it is no longer a public campground, the focus of the community is on residential living and the co-operative business model. As a Resident-Owned Community, it operates differently from a privately-owned park.

• Resident Ownership: The community is owned by a cooperative business formed by the residents themselves. This model gives homeowners, who already own their individual manufactured homes, ownership and control of the land and infrastructure beneath them.

• Community Governance: Decisions regarding community management, annual budgets, and maintenance priorities are made democratically by a resident-elected Board of Directors.

• Affordability Preservation: The cooperative model is primarily designed to preserve the long-term affordability of homes in the community by shielding residents from speculative rent increases common with third-party investors.

• Residential Infrastructure: As a permanent residential community, the site features year-round services necessary for daily life, including utility hookups (sewer, water, and electric) and maintained internal roads.

• Community Size: Bissellville Estates is a relatively small community, featuring approximately 29 manufactured homes nestled across a 46-acre lot, fostering a close-knit, neighborhood feel.

The features of Bissellville Estates highlight its status as a stable, resident-controlled community within a prime Massachusetts outdoor setting.

• Cooperative Success Story: The successful resident-led purchase of the park in late 2023—leveraging the state’s “right of first refusal” law—stands as a notable Massachusetts achievement in preserving affordable housing and local control in the Berkshires.

• Stability and Control: For the residents, the key highlight is the long-term security. Controlling the park ensures that home sites remain available and affordable, allowing residents to invest in their homes and community with greater confidence.

• Berkshire County Access: The location provides a permanent residential base with excellent proximity to major regional attractions. Residents are only a short drive from Tanglewood, the Appalachian Trail, and numerous lakes and reservoirs, including Plunkett Reservoir, offering a high quality of life with natural amenities.

• Rural Tranquility: Situated off the main thoroughfares, the community enjoys the quiet, forested environment that originally made it an attractive campground, providing a peaceful and serene place to live in Western Massachusetts.

Since Bissellville Estates is no longer a public campground, its contact information is focused on residential and cooperative management purposes. Inquiries regarding the community's operations or residency opportunities should be directed to the resident-run board or the organization that supports Resident-Owned Communities (ROC) in the region.

Community Address (Physical Location):

1109 Washington Rd, Hinsdale, MA 01235, USA

Phone:

A publicly listed number for the former campground is not the current contact for the residential community. For general inquiries about the Resident-Owned Community model in Massachusetts, residents are advised to seek out resources from the Cooperative Development Institute or ROC USA, which assisted the residents with their purchase.

While this location is no longer an overnight camping option for Massachusetts visitors, its current status as Bissellville Estates makes it uniquely suitable and important for local Massachusetts communities, particularly for those seeking stable and affordable homeownership. In a region like the Berkshires, where housing costs are a growing concern, Bissellville Estates provides a crucial residential resource.

The transition from a privately-run seasonal campground to a democratically-governed, year-round residential cooperative is a victory for local empowerment. For people currently living there, or for Massachusetts locals seeking to live in the beautiful, high-cost Berkshire County area, Bissellville Estates offers a model of housing security and community control. It demonstrates the success of Massachusetts laws and resident cooperation in preserving a vibrant and established neighborhood, ensuring that this scenic piece of Hinsdale remains a place where local people can build long-term, stable lives surrounded by the natural splendor of Western Massachusetts.

Bissellville Campground

1109 Washington Rd, Hinsdale, MA 01235, USA