Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 10/3/2023
WARE — Thousands of migrant families have arrived in Massachusetts and state officials are trying to get creative as they attempt to set them up with temporary shelter.
With that in mind, members of the Selectboard addressed concerns and rumors related to mirgrant relocation in Massachusetts and how it would impact Ware at its Sept. 19 meeting.
On Aug. 8, Gov. Maura Healey declared a state of emergency due to the influx of migrant families arriving in Massachusetts. At the time of the declaration, the Healey-Driscoll administration reported nearly 5,600 families — roughly 20,000 individuals including children and pregnant women — were in state shelters. By the end of August, the number of families had swelled to more than 6,000, prompting the governor to activate as many as 250 National Guard members to support shelters hotels at which there is not a contracted service provider. The state also launched Regional Rapid Response teams to assist in overseeing shelter sites. By Sept. 8, the administration said the number of migrant families in shelter spaces was up to roughly 6,200.
Board member John Cascio opined the board should discuss and develop a plan so it would be prepared should migrants arrive seeking shelter, pointing nonspecifically to reports of large numbers being transported to small towns without warning.
“Instead of waiting, I think we should be looking at a plan for immigration,” he said. “I don’t want to go to the extreme, but I’ve read too many and seen too many stories about buses pulling up unanounced and illegal immigrants let go. It’s a lot of small towns, so I’m hoping that we can address that as some kind of a policy that we might be able to put into effect so that we are prepared for it instead of being caught off-guard.”
Board member Keith Kruckas added he received a phone call from someone asking about whether the Massachusetts National Guard Armory on West Street could be used as a shelter. He said he passed the inquiry on to Town Manager Stuart Beckley, who subsequently learned that space was not considered favorable, primarily due to its restrooms. Kruckas added he shared Cascio’s concerns and that “it’s happening everywhere, such as Sturbridge,” claiming “they’re having major problems and [have] no way to fund it.”
On Sept. 6, Sturbridge Town Administrator Robin Grimm wrote a public statement reporting that 36 hotel rooms were taken by the state for the purpose of housing migrant families, but she did not know how many people would occupy those rooms. She stated that while given little information, the town was told nine rooms at the Days Inn were expected to occupied until Sept. 12 and 24 rooms at the Super 8 would be occupied into November. Grimm noted the arrangement was a private deal between the hotel owners and the state and the current state of emergency could mean the town’s laws regarding issues such as duration of stays could be superseded.
Additionally, she said she met with state Rep. Todd Smola (R-Warren) and state Sen. Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) to express concerns about the loss of room tax revenue for the town and costs associated with first responder calls and educating school-aged children staying at the hotels. The commonwealth indicated it would give the town $1,000 per child to help defray the educational costs, but Grimm posited that reimbursement should be at least the same amount the district would pay to send a resident child out of district. She also was planning to attend an informational meeting with Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll on the subject.
When asked if the town had any control in whether migrant families are relocated to Ware, Beckley said it does not. However, he indicated he did not see it as a strong possibility.
“I think that if you had adequate facilities, like if there was a hotel here in town and vacancies, then they would look to place people,” he said.
With that said, he also acknowledged that “everyone recognizes that it’s not funded,” and said he and the board could start discussing a plan.
Gail Gramarossa, a member of the Quaboag Hills Substance Use Alliance, also met with the Selectboard to discuss the use of the town’s share of funding from the settlement of a national lawsuit against drugmakers, pharmacies and other companies that were prosecuted by state attorneys general for their role in the opioid crisis.
Gramarossa was accompanied by Kirsten Krieger, public health nurse for the Quabbin Health District, Alyssa Curran, community coordinator for the HEALing Communities Study for Belchertown and Ware, local HEALing Communities Study communications consultant Randy Gratton, and Ware police officer and Drug Addiction Recovery Team member John Cacela.
According to previous reporting by the State House News Service, states participating in the lawsuit had argued that pharmaceutical companies understated the addictiveness of opioid painkillers, leading to their over-prescription by doctors, and that distributors failed to question suspicious orders, resulting in drugs reaching the streets for recreational use.
The settlements are being paid to the 13 state governments that brought the lawsuit. Gov. Maura Healey, who was the state’s attorney general at the time, announced last year that she would direct 40 percent of Massachusetts’ share of the settlement to be split among the 351 cities and towns. The remaining 60 percent will be spent at the state level, on anti-addiction and anti-overdose programs. Since 2000, more than 21,000 deaths in Massachusetts have been blamed on opioid abuse.
“I see tonight as just an opening conversation,” said Gramarossa, who noted Ware has placed awarded money in a separate account, as recommended, putting the town ahead of many other communities in that respect.
The state, she explained, suggest that communities build on what is already available, such as the Ware Recovery Center, the HEALing Community Study and the DART team, instead of duplicating efforts.
Curran suggested several ways the funding could be put to use including safer prescription practices and more Naloxone boxes around town. Naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose.
Curran noted the coalition is also talking with area pharmacies about better practices including co-prescribing Naloxone when prescribing an opioid.
Curran also noted that the purchase of a van was approved to be able to bring citizens to medical services.
“We want to do something to connect with community members and teach them about harm reduction,” said Krieger. She suggested the idea of harm reduction kits, which would reduce the rate of opioid-related deaths and sicknesses. “It’s a very inexpensive way to bridge the gap.”
Items in the kit would include information pamphlets, alcohol swabs, cleaning supplies, fentanyl test strips, non-latex condoms, and two doses of Naloxone.
“One of the largest barriers for someone using a fentanyl test strip is not having the supplies to do so,” said Kriege. If each kit contains one item, the cost would range from $10 to $20 per bag. “We would hand them out all around town … Any tabling event that I can be a part of, I will do.”
“What is your greatest challenge to get your message out there and educate the public?” asked Cascio.
“Stigma,” answered Krieger. “No one ever wakes up and chooses to become an addict.”
The Selectboard also approved the a warrant for special state primary on Tuesday, Oct. 10. The primary will decide whether state Rep. Peter Durant of Spencer and Bruce Chester of Gardner will represent the Republican ticket for the Worcester and Hampshire District seat in the state Senate the Nov. 7 state election. State Rep. Jon Zlotnik of Gardner is running unopposed on the Democratic ticket.
The Senate seat was vacated by Anne Gobi, who stepped down to take the position of director of rural affairs for the Healey-Driscoll administration.