News
Orange Selectboard declares armory as surplus property
By DOMENIC POLI
ORANGE — The Selectboard has voted to designate the Orange Armory as surplus property, the first step for the town in ridding itself of the 111-year-old structure.The armory, located at 135 East Main St., has fallen into disrepair. The Selectboard...
Court rulings may force action on home equity theft
By SAM DORAN
BOSTON — After a state judge ruled this month that Massachusetts law governing municipal home equity takings “requires Legislative correction,” a state senator who has filed a related bill for years said Monday that he is ready to start demanding roll...
Partnership hopes to address Lake Ellis stormwater runoff
By GREG VINE
ATHOL – Steps are being taken to reduce the amount of stormwater runoff that makes its way into Lake Ellis.Planning and Development Director Eric Smith told members of the Lake Ellis Watershed Management Partnership that the town plans to apply for a...
Pro-Palestinian protesters set up encampment at UMass flagship, joining growing national movement
By ALEXA LEWIS
AMHERST — Student protesters at the University of Massachusetts began pitching tents near the W.E.B. DuBois Library Monday morning in solidarity with Palestinians, following the example of many of their peers at campuses across the country who have...
Franklin Tech student welds ‘artistic’ bench for French King Bridge
By LIESEL NYGARD
ERVING — Drawing inspiration from the French King Bridge, Franklin County Technical School senior Laynie Coates, 17, put her welding skills to the test.The result, a green bench with lettering that says “Gateway to the Mohawk Trail” and a bridge-like...
Wendell Special Town Meeting to decide on battery storage bylaw
By DOMENIC POLI
WENDELL – Residents are being summoned to Town Hall on Wednesday to have their voices heard on a bylaw proposed to regulate battery energy storage systems.A Special Town Meeting is slated to begin at 7 p.m., with two articles on the warrant – one...
McGovern, Gobi visit development sites in Greenfield, Wendell
By DOMENIC POLI
Though they lay dormant now, the former Wilson’s Department Store in downtown Greenfield and the former depot store and post office in Wendell were once bustling hubs of thriving communities.On Friday, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern and Director of Rural...
North Quabbin Notes, April 27
Town Of Athol Cemetery Division noticeATHOL – The Town of Athol, Department of Public Works – Cemetery Division, is requesting that all baskets and winter arrangements be removed from town cemeteries before Saturday, May 4, to allow the department to...
Cannabis sales in Massachusetts top $1B for third straight year
By Alison Kuznitz
BOSTON — Looking to sidestep controversy over the Cannabis Control Commission leadership, regulators highlighted the increasing profitability of the industry Thursday while discussing their work to implement a state law promoting diversity in the...
Athol town-wide cleanup deemed ‘a huge success’ by organizers
By GREG VINE
ATHOL – Green Clean Athol, the annual town-wide cleanup campaign, was, according to event co-organizer Heidi Strickland, “a huge success.”Approximately 90 volunteers showed up outside the Athol Senior Center at Lord Pond Plaza on Saturday, April 20,...
PHOTO: A valuable simulation
What are the protocols for emergency transport of infants?
By LIESEL NYGARD
When it comes to protocols for providing emergency medical transportation to infants, the Massachusetts Office of Emergency Medical Services, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and ambulance manufacturers voice similar expectations.But...
State documents show Northfield EMS chief’s paramedic license suspended over failure to transport infant
By LIESEL NYGARD
State regulators suspended Northfield EMS Chief and Orange EMS Capt. Mark Fortier’s paramedic license over his alleged failure to properly assess a 2-week-old infant during a house call and for refusing the child transportation in an ambulance,...
Over $400M in shelter funding, new limits approved
By CHRIS LISINSKI, COLIN A. YOUNG, MICHAEL P. NORTON
BOSTON – The House voted 117-36 and the Senate 29-9 to approve a supplemental budget steering $251 million more into the family shelter system and calling for new limits on how long families may stay in shelters.The agreement announced Wednesday...
Royalston’s FinCom debates proposed salary increases
By GREG VINE
ROYALSTON – The Finance Committee Thursday night reviewed the FY25 budget proposed by the town’s Selectboard and offered a couple of changes.The committee held off on making a recommendation on a proposed $75,411 Proposition 2 ½ override to fund the...
PHOTO: Spectacular spire
Locking up carbon for good: Easthampton inventor’s CO2 removal system turns biomass into biochar
By JAMES PENTLAND
HOLYOKE — Like many people, Michael Garjian believes global warming is a pressing issue of our times.Unlike most, he’s putting his ideas for reducing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere into practice — and at the same time bidding for a share of the $100...
Students plant red maple outside Athol Community Elementary School
By GREG VINE
ATHOL – Arbor Day was celebrated a day early Thursday morning as fourth-graders from Athol Community Elementary School joined town officials and public works employees for the planting of a tree at the school.A red maple sapling now graces a strip of...
Mass Dems propose nine-month shelter stay limit
By SAM DORAN
Senate and House negotiators on Wednesday proposed a new nine-month limit on how long families can stay in the state’s emergency shelters, while authorizing withdrawals up to $426 million from a state savings account to spend on the ongoing crisis.Top...
Federal probe targets UMass response to anti-Arab incidents
By JAMES PENTLAND
AMHERST — Federal civil rights officials are investigating the University of Massachusetts for allegedly dragging its feet over complaints of anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian harassment on campus amid the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza.An official...
