Reminder looks back at Top 10 stories of 2009Date: 1/5/2010 Jan. 6, 2010
By Katelyn Gendron
Reminder Assistant Editor
This year was one of mayoral scandal, heartbreaking loss, feats of innovational engineering and hopeful new beginnings for those in Agawam, Westfield and West Springfield.
Looking back on the stories in 2009, few garnered more attention than the state's financial crises, the debate over the proposed biomass plant or Agawam's heated and highly controversial mayoral race. Here's a recap of 10 of the most captivating stories that kept people reading the MetroWest Reminder.
1. Agawam Mayoral Election
Candidates came out of the woodwork for the mayoral race in Agawam, creating a field of seven, the largest in the town's history.
Long before the campaign season was to begin, six candidates -- City Council Vice President Cecilia Calabrese, City Councilor Paul Cavallo, former mayor Richard Cohen and residents Derek Benton, Peter Boadry and Alan Griffin -- announced their intentions to oust first-term Mayor Susan Dawson.
A combination of personal scandals, highly publicized altercations with her boyfriend's wife and a comical September debate, which caused those in attendance to laugh at certain candidates, ousted Dawson and narrowed the field to Cohen and Benton after the Oct. 6 preliminary election.
Cohen came out the victor, beating Benton 4,278 to 3,012.
"It feels great," Cohen said of his victory on election night. "I'm really excited to have the opportunity [to be Agawam's mayor again]."
Cohen took the oath of office on Jan. 4.
2. Gov. Deval Patrick's 9-C Cuts
Cities and towns felt the brunt of the governor's 9-C cuts this year, which plunged already struggling communities into financial chaos.
Government officials in Agawam, Westfield and West Springfield told Reminder Publications in February they saw the mid-year cuts coming and instituted spending restrictions. They added that despite cost-saving measures, fiscal year 2011 looks bleak.
West Springfield Mayor Edward Gibson said his town received a midyear cut of $434,668 and projected a reduction of $1.2 million in state aid for FY10.
Agawam Mayor Susan Dawson explained that in anticipation of the midyear cuts, she instituted a spending and hiring freeze so that no town department would incur any layoffs. This move also ensured that the town would be able to absorb the $446,796 midyear budget cut.
Westfield Mayor Michael Boulanger said in February, "I'm fairly confident that we can absorb the midyear cuts but the problem will be when you get into fiscal year 2010 it will be about a $3.5 million problem. We'll have to take a close look at jobs as well as services. We're paired to the bone now."
Government officials in Agawam, Westfield and West Springfield navigated their community's financial survival in FY10, each having ratified balanced budgets. However, it's anyone's guess as to the financial complications that may arise in FY11.
3. Proposed Biomass Plant
Residents throughout the Pioneer Valley have expressed concerns about the proposed Palmer Renewable Energy Biomass Plant, which would burn construction and demolition waste to fuel the area.
Some residents and health officials have criticized the project, noting the burning of such waste could significantly deplete air quality in the region.
State officials have since agreed to an environmental and health impact study before granting Palmer Renewable Energy any final permits.
4. Westfield's Fiscal Crises
The city's financial woes caused contention between the City Council and the mayor's office this year. Superintendent Shirley Alvira and the School Committee were also forced to make tough decisions in light of the financial crunch, and there was major restructuring within the Westfield Public School district in 2009.
In order to meet the city's demand for cost-cutting measures of approximately $2 million in FY10, Moseley Elementary School closed its doors at the end of the 2008-2009 school year.
Moseley students were split by neighborhood and sent to Southampton Road or Paper Mill elementary schools, bringing class sizes to 21 students or more in third, fourth and fifth grades.
Alvira noted closing Moseley Elementary will save $545,779.
The School Committee passed on the department's trimmed budget to Mayor Michael Boulanger and the City Council. The council voted to take no action on Boulanger's proposed $115 million FY10 budget during an emergency meeting on June 30.
Boulanger explained that the FY10 budget process was challenging because of inconsistent local aid figures from Beacon Hill. He said the goal was to "minimize the loss of jobs," adding that he believes the city was successful.
Boulanger lost his bid for re-election in November to Ward 2 City Councilor Daniel Knapik. The mayor-elect said a thorough review of the FY10 budget will be a top priority when he takes office in order to prevent shortfalls. The FY11 budget is likely to be tighter and require more cuts from departments, including schools.
5. Homelessness in W. Springfield
In July, State Sen. Stephen Buoniconti and State Rep. James Welch discussed their efforts to crack down on those abusing the state's welfare system via new legislation.
Buoniconti said West Spring-field had become a "dumping ground" for the homeless receiving transitional assistance.
He added that 11.6 percent of the state's needy families are currently housed in hotels and motels within town limits -- such as the Quality Inn on Riverdale Street -- costing taxpayers approximately $2 million per month. Calls to the Quality Inn were never returned.
Buoniconti and Welch's proposed legislation would require Transitional Aid to Families with Dependent Children (TAFDC) to be used and monitored by a card, rather than cash withdrawals; the use of TAFDC funds to purchase alcohol, lottery tickets or tobacco would also be prohibited.
The bill would also eliminate certain work exemptions such as recipients who home-school a child or baby-sit, those who participate in substance abuse programs or vocational rehabilitation programs or those attending post-secondary education.
Last week, Welch told Reminder Publications he and Buoniconti will meet with Under-secretary Tina Brooks, housing policy chief in the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, sometime in January to discuss the department's policies on the placement of those receiving transitional assistance. The bill has been filed by Buoniconti and is maneuvering through the legislative process.
6. Westfield State versus the City
School and city officials lobbied hard on behalf of Juniper Park Elementary School in 2009. Their efforts could not stop Westfield State College (WSC) from taking back one-quarter of the property currently leased by the city, however.
WSC claimed it needed part of the building for administrative and academic purposes, displacing the school's fourth and fifth graders for the 2009-2010 school year.
At a Feb. 12 Ad Hoc Juniper Park Committee meeting, Committee Chair and City Councilor Christopher Keefe explained the city leases the building from WSC for $454,000 per year. He added that in 2008, WSC made an initial offer of $820,000 per year for five years but have been bartered down to $327,000 per year for the next three years.
During negotiations, Kenneth Lemanski, WSC vice president of Advancement and College Relations, issued the following statement: "The college will continue to respond openly and supportively to whatever solutions the School Board identifies as necessary to maintain its academic priorities at Juniper Park as long as Westfield State College students bear no additional costs."
Additional negotiations in March yielded an offer of $269,649 per year for three years allowing WSC to access to one-third of Juniper Park Elementary School, requiring fourth and fifth graders and teachers to be moved to Highland Elementary School.
The lease agreement between Westfield State and the city will expire in three years, at which time city officials hope to have a new school built with financial assistance from the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA). School and city officials are waiting to hear back from the MSBA about their proposal for new academic facilities.
7. Sewer Extension Project
Phase I of the six-phase Feeding Hills Sewer Extension Project broke ground in the fall of 2009, finally delivering on a 30-year promise to aid those with failing septic systems.
Town officials participated in a ceremonial groundbreaking on Oct. 30.
"It's extremely gratifying to have taken this project off the cutting room floor and work this into a reality," City Councilor Robert Rossi, chair of the Ad Hoc Sewer Committee, said.
Rossi added breaking the Feeding Hills Sewer Extension Project into six phases has proven more cost-effective with Phase I totaling $1.8 million as opposed to the estimated $3.6 million.
He noted the initial project created under the previous administration called for the completion of the sewer extension in its entirety, totaling $31 million and at a cost of $19,650 to each affected homeowner. The project will now cost homeowners $2,557 each, in addition to the Special Benefit Assessment of $1,750, the General Benefit Assessment of $807 and the optional sewer hookup.
The projected completion date for Phase I is late 2010. Members of the City Council's Ad Hoc Sewer Committee said they plan to have Phases II and III shovel-ready by the time Phase I is finished.
8. Refugee Resettlement
Local organizations such as Lutheran Social Services (LSS) in West Springfield serve as resettlement sites for refugees who've waited years to call America their chosen home.
In April 2009, Reminder Publications sat down with those at LSS to learn about how those in the area aid refugees now living in the Pioneer Valley.
Ram Kumar Rai is a 29-year-old refugee from the Kingdom of Bhutan and Ammar Obaid Mahmood, a 29-year-old surgeon from Baghdad, Iraq, shared their stories of escape and resettlement.
Rai explained he and his family have spent the past 18 years in a refugee camp in Beldangi, Jhapa, Nepal, with 30,000 other Bhutanese fleeing persecution by the country's monarchial government.
He said he's working hard to gain employment and better his life. Rai said he wants to be a journalist so he may share his story.
Mahmood has known since childhood that he's wanted to become a doctor and neither war nor senseless killings of his family members have stopped him from achieving his goal.
Mahmood is employed as a case manager at LSS during the day and spends his evenings studying for medical exams that will allow him to work as a surgeon. He constantly glances at his watch, ensuring that he remains on task and on schedule.
"Work here [at LSS] is enjoyable ... the work atmosphere is good," Mahmood said, adding that it's not as fulfilling as his work in the medical field, however.
The LSS site in West Springfield aids in the resettlement of approximately 30 people each month, mostly refugees from Iraq, the Kingdom of Bhutan, Somalia and former Soviet bloc countries.
9. Green Automotive Technology
The Scuderi Group of West Springfield made significant progress in 2009 to create the most fuel-efficient automobile engine in existence.
Members of the group traveled to Frankfurt, Germany, in September to reveal their findings at the International Motor Show. The Scuderi Split-Cycle Engine produces 80 percent fewer emissions than today's internal combustion engines thanks to the brainchild of the late Carmelo Scuderi.
According to information released by the Scuderi Group, "the Scuderi Cycle is a split-cycle design that divides the four strokes of a conventional combustion cycle over two paired cylinders ... Besides the improvements in efficiency and emissions, studies show that the Scuderi Cycle is capable of producing more torque than conventional gasoline and diesel engines."
The Scuderi Group has been in talks with the world's top manufacturing companies and projects that the first vehicle using the Scuderi engine should be operational in 2012.
10. Agawam Senior Center
The long-awaited $8 million Senior Center on Main Street officially opened its doors on Jan. 20, 2009.
The new facility is twice the size of the former center on Meadowbrook Manor and boasts a variety of rooms for individual and group activities such sewing, exercise, dancing, crafts, billiards, ping-pong and computer tech-nology.
Senior Center Director Joan Linnehan explained that personnel hit the ground running on their first official day, providing over 300 meals to incoming seniors and Meals on Wheels.
The new Senior Center has allowed for expanded programming and membership including a new theater group and performance space. The facility also allows for an increased number of home meal deliveries.
|
