Greenfield and Orange District Court Logs: Oct. 9-15, 2019

Holly A. Boisvert, 49, homeless of Greenfield. Charge of possession of a Class B drug and possession of a Class E drug. Released on personal recognizance. Pretrial conference set for Dec. 6. The counsel fee was waived.Judge William Mazanec III...

Greenfield and Orange District Court Logs: Oct. 15 to Oct. 18, 2019

Judge William MazanecGreenfield, Oct. 15Kevin K. Smith, 34, of Oak Grove Avenue, Springfield. Charges of resisting arrest, intimidating a witness/juror/police/court official, a marked lanes violation, failure to stop or yield, improper operation of a...

‘A catalyst to a vibrant downtown’: Ja’Duke opening Greenfield location next week

By CHRIS LARABEE

GREENFIELD — The transformation of 270 Main St. is complete, as Ja’Duke Inc. is ready to open its downtown Greenfield location next week.

McGovern calls on voters to resist federal cuts to food services

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — In his address to food cooperative members at the 14th annual Neighboring Food Co-op Association meeting, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern rallied his constituents to fight back against federal cuts to food and agriculture programs under the Trump administration.

North Quabbin Notebook: March 18, 2025

WENDELL — The Wendell Meetinghouse needs two actors who can play a man and a woman, mid-20s to 50, in a production of “Swamped,” a full-length play written and directed by Court Dorsey.

Health care cost surge adds to Mass. affordability woes

By CHRIS LISINSKI

BOSTON — Health care costs in Massachusetts surged at “unsustainable” levels in 2023, adding more pressure to strained household budgets, according to new state data.

Montague Police Logs: March 3 to March 8, 2025

5:13 p.m. — Caller reports a dog is wandering around in the area of Crescent Street. He went to the house at 3 Crescent St. and saw a dish with food and a tether, but the owners weren’t home. Officer advising the dog was just hanging out at his own property.

Franklin County’s YMCA sets $160K fundraising goal for annual campaign

By CHRIS LARABEE

GREENFIELD — Ahead of the kickoff event for its annual fundraising campaign to raise money for membership, child care services and youth programming, representatives from Franklin County’s YMCA shared how increasing access to its programs benefits the whole community.

FirstLight Sustains grant program accepting applications through April 4

By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN

Applications for grants of up to $5,000 to support sustainability and community-building projects are being accepted through FirstLight Hydro Generating Co.’s FirstLight Sustains program, with a deadline of April 4.

Break-athon organizers donate $4.4K to Warm the Children

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — In its 22nd year raising money for the Warm the Children clothing drive, the Greenfield Tae Kwon Do Center raised $4,400 with its annual Break-athon event in November and subsequent kindling sales.

Pioneer Valley upgraded to critical drought status, months of sustained precipitation needed

By ALEXA LEWIS

Despite a recent increase in precipitation, the Connecticut River Valley region has been designated as experiencing critical drought conditions, which will continue to persist until sustained precipitation over a much longer period of time is able to restore water table levels.

Greenfield Community Preservation Committee denies applications for pickleball, greywater system

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — The Community Preservation Committee voted to decline funding for three proposed projects this year — one for the construction of a greywater system for a proposed housing development at Stone Farm Lane, and two for the renovation and expansion of the city’s pickleball courts — while fully funding the remainder of project applications for $158,162.

East-west rail funding uncertain under Trump administration

By MITCH FINK

President Donald Trump’s return to office has raised questions about the future of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding Massachusetts secured for its east-west rail plan.

Franklin County towns get $350K for climate change planning

By MADISON SCHOFIELD and CHRIS LARABEE

Four Franklin County towns have received Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Planning 2.0 (MVP 2.0) grants totaling $350,000 for climate change planning projects.

Colrain Central School teacher recognized for work with school’s youngest learners

By MADISON SCHOFIELD

COLRAIN — In her fifth year teaching kindergarten and fostering independence in Colrain Central School’s youngest learners, Grace Ahrensdorf has been named a winner of the 2025 Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Award.

Shutesbury poised to hire Amherst Senior Center director as new town administrator

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — Hayley Bolton, who for the past six years has led senior centers in Amherst and Bernardston, is poised to become Shutesbury’s town administrator in April.

Greenfield Police Logs: Feb. 24 to March 2, 2025

9:04 a.m. — Report of forgery/fraud investigated on Phyllis Lane.

Greenfield moves to third round of Strongest Town Contest

By ANTHONY CAMMALLERI

GREENFIELD — Of the 16 American and Canadian municipalities nominated to the Strongest Town Contest, Greenfield has advanced to the third round as one of the remaining eight.

MDAR commissioner pens letter to USDA over uncertain funding and impact on farmers

By CHRIS LARABEE

BOSTON — As farmers prepare to head out to the fields for the season, Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources Commissioner Ashley Randle sent a letter to the new U.S. agriculture secretary expressing concerns over uncertain federal funding and other actions taken by the federal government.