BOSTON—Under the cloud of the coronavirus, Massachusetts legislators took the oath of office marking the start of the 192nd General Court. Some reps and senators—all returning incumbents—took the oath of office through the miracle of Zoom. Others, universally masked, did so in person albeit in
The complete dominance of the coronavirus in Springfield, as with the world, almost compressed 2020 as much as it stretched it out. There were other happening afoot in the City of Homes and its state and nation. Many, however, the virus took over, like the
SPRINGFIELD—Aside from its atypical procedure to a select a new Council President, the City Council here glided through its last meeting of 2020. This Hell-spawned year had driven the body from its friendly-enough confines to cyberspace for nearly all of 2020. Monday was no different.
SPRINGFIELD—As the hoped-for vaccines to guard against COVID-19 appear on the horizon, officials here are preparing for their role in distribution. Supplies will be extremely limited in December if, as expected, the Food and Drug Administration authorizes emergency use. Hospitals like Mercy and Baystate Health
SPRINGFIELD—The City Council here rejected a Police supervisors labor pact Monday, primarily due to a provision that limits when officers can face discipline. The offending clause is not new. However, in the aftermath of this summer’s social justice protests, the were fears that some officers
WESTFIELD—The special senate election here did not have much drama. For much of the official campaign and nearly a year before that unofficially, the political soothsayers felt it was then-Rep John Velis’ to lose. They were right. There were prophecies about his former House seat,
SPRINGFIELD—Last week, it looked as though coronavirus cases in the City of Homes were cooling after the city into surged into the state’s red designation. Numbers from the weekend crushed those hopes. Mirroring recent case records the state reported, Springfield residents tested positive higher than
There was a crisis in America even before the shroud of the coronavirus fell upon us. But now, nearly eight months after COVID-19 seized the globe, it has never been more clear how grossly inadequate and incompetent our current leadership is and why Joseph R.
by Michael Lachenmeyer Correspondent-Intern Late last February, the 7th Hampden District’s State Rep. Thomas M. Petrolati announced that he would not be seeking reelection for the seat which he has held since 1986. Democrats have dominated the 7th Hampden District for fifty years. Yet, with
SPRINGFIELD—For only the third time since the city adopted the Community Preservation Act (CPA), the City Council here thumbed through and approved the recommendations. Councilors love the program as it lets them approve projects beyond the ambit of mayor. Meanwhile anybody—including some city organs—can suggest