Inspectors at Los Angeles International Airport seized an unusually slimy package — 67 live giant African snails that are a popular delicacy across West Africa.

By KRYSTA FAURIA

LOS ANGELES — Inspectors at Los Angeles International Airport seized an unusually slimy package — 67 live giant African snails that are a popular delicacy across West Africa.

The snails — which are prohibited in the U.S. — arrived from Nigeria and were being sent to a person in San Dimas, said Lee Harty, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Customs and Border protection.

The snails were confiscated July 1 and a sample was sent the next day to a federal mollusk specialist in Washington, D.C., who identified them as a prohibited species, Harty said.

The mollusks are among the largest land snails in the world and can grow to be up to 8 inches long. They are native to Africa and can live for up to 10 years.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture incinerated the snails after they were inspected, Harty said. The animals are prohibited in the U.S. because they can carry parasites that are harmful to humans, including one that can lead to meningitis.

This undated photo provided by United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows a person using two hands to hold a single snail from an air cargo shipment of 67 live snails that arrived at Los Angeles International Airport on July 1, 2014. Officials said that the 35 pounds of snails arrived from Nigeria along with paperwork stating they were for human consumption. Officials say the snails were intercepted and they were subsequently identified after a sample was sent to U.S. Department of Agriculture specialists in Washington, D.C. Greg BartmanAP Photo/USDA, Greg Bartman 

The snails are also agricultural pests, said Maveeda Mirza, the CBP program manager for agriculture.

"These snails are seriously harmful to local plants because they will eat any kind of crop they can get to," Mirza said.

The person the snails were destined for is not expected to face any penalties, Mirza said. She said authorities are investigating why a single person would want so many snails.

"We're investigating what happened, but it doesn't seem like there was smuggling involved. When someone doesn't know a commodity is prohibited under USDA regulations there is usually no punishment," she said.

Although the agency has found one or two snails that may have accidentally gotten into a traveler's luggage in Los Angeles, this is the first time that they have confiscated the snails in such a large quantity, Mirza said.

With 17 days left until the end of the formal legislative calendar, lawmakers unveiled a response to a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down the state’s 35-foot buffer zone around reproductive health clinics.

By GINTAUTAS DUMCIUS

BOSTON — With 17 days left until the end of the formal legislative calendar, lawmakers unveiled a response to a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision striking down the state’s 35-foot buffer zone around reproductive health clinics.

A top Senate lawmaker on Monday filed a bill prohibiting a group of two or more people from blocking the entrance or driveways of the clinics, and allowing for law enforcement to disperse protesters at least 25 feet away from the entrance or driveway for a maximum of eight hours “or until the close of business of the reproductive health facility, whichever is earlier.”

Sen. Harriette Chandler, the assistant majority leader and a Worcester Democrat, filed the bill, and the Judiciary Committee scheduled a Wednesday hearing on the legislation.

“We only have a few weeks left in our session,” Chandler said. “Actually, it’s days rather than weeks we’re counting at this point.”

Chandler added, “We hope it will meet constitutional muster.”

The bill sets up civil and criminal sanctions for individuals who impede or restrict someone trying to enter a reproductive health clinic.

If a person does not comply with the dispersal order, the bill calls for a first offense to carry a fine of not more than $500 or not more than 3 months incarceration in a jail or house of correction.

Under the bill, if an individual tries to physically threaten or intimidate an individual entering or exiting the clinic, the attorney general or private entity such as Planned Parenthood is allowed to bring a civil action.

If the civil action is brought by a private entity, the entity would be able to receive injunctive relief and damages, along with coverage of attorneys’ fees.

“The Supreme Court gave us a road map of what this bill should say and we are following that road map with very narrowly tailored new tools for the police and the attorney general,” said Marty Walz, the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts.

Megan Amundson, executive director of the NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, said in a statement, “It provides additional tools to ensure that all women can access health care free from harassment and intimidation.”

“This legislation carefully balances public safety and access with free speech rights. We urge the Legislature to quickly take up this bill and ensure that it passes before the end of the legislative session to protect safe access to clinics,” Amundson said.

The Joint Committee on the Judiciary will meet on Wednesday at 10 a.m. in Gardner Auditorium to take general testimony on the Supreme Court decision, and at 3 p.m., it will hold a public hearing on Chandler’s bill. An executive session is expected to follow the hearings.

In a 9-0 decision released in June, the Supreme Court voided a 2007 state law that established a 35-foot protest-free zone around clinics that provide abortion services.

Earlier on Monday, before the bill was filed, Massachusetts Citizens for Life, which supports the Supreme Court decision, announced the placement of billboards at the corner of Cambridge and Bowdoin Streets, urging lawmakers not to pass new legislation and saying laws against the blocking of driveways and entrances already exist.

“Massachusetts Citizens for Life urges the legislature to let law enforcement apply existing laws before writing any new ones,” said Anne Fox, president of Massachusetts Citizens for Life. “Let's not waste the time of the legislators and the tax money of the citizens to end up before the Supreme Court again.”

Walz said law enforcement officials and the attorney general need “additional tools and that is precisely what the Supreme Court pointed out.”

Walz, who co-wrote the 2007 law, added, “The Supreme Court invited this response and we have taken the Supreme Court up on the invitation.”

The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. His name was being withheld Monday night pending notification of family.

MARLBOROUGH - A driver was killed Monday afternoon in a one-car rollover accident in the northbound lane of Interstate 495, Massachusetts State Police said.

The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. His name was being withheld Monday night pending notification of family.

There was no one else in the vehicle, a Ford pickup, police said.

The accident occurred at about 3:15 p.m. roughly a mile before exit 25A linking I-495 with I-290.

The crash closed the left two lanes, creating a traffic tie-up that at its peak was between 3 and 4 miles long.

The accident remains under investigation by state police troopers assigned to the Leominster barracks, as well as troopers with the state police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction and the Crime Scene Services sections

The Massachusetts Senate on Thursday will take up its version of legislation aimed at reducing gun violence as the local chapter of the National Rifle Association hardened its position on the bill just days after calling the House version a “victory” for the second amendment.

By GINTAUTAS DUMCIUS

BOSTON — The Senate on Thursday will take up its version of legislation aimed at reducing gun violence as the local chapter of the National Rifle Association hardened its position on the bill just days after calling the House version a “victory” for the second amendment.

The House passed its version in a 112-38 vote last week, after picking up support from anti-gun violence activists and a gun owners’ group.

The Senate bill, which is similar to the House version, requires Massachusetts to join the national instant background check system, authorizes licensed gun dealers to acquire criminal offender information and requires them to obtain the information prior to hiring new employees.

According to a Senate Ways and Means summary, the bill also requires the Executive Office of Public Safety to craft a biennial report with data and statistics on firearm crime and allows the State Police to establish a criminal firearms and trafficking unit, a provision lobbied for by gun rights owners and included in the House bill.

The Senate bill also establishes “unsuitability standards” that licensing authorities must use in doling out firearm licenses, and sets up a judicial review process for applicants and holders of a license-to-carry.

The Gun Owners Action League, which declared itself “neutral” on the House bill before House lawmakers cast their votes, shifted course on Monday and said it will push for the removal of the unsuitability standards in the Senate bill. The National Rifle Association opposed the House bill, which had the same language.

“We are pleased with many measures in the Senate version,” Jim Wallace, executive director of GOAL, said in a statement. “However, discretionary licensing for FID cards is not something we can live with or support.”

GOAL, the local chapter of the NRA, said it supported language that creates a new statute for assault and battery with a firearm.

The House bill (H 4285) was filed by House Speaker Robert DeLeo in the aftermath of a 2012 shooting inside a Connecticut elementary school. Input from a task force appointed by DeLeo was included in the bill.

Senators have until 5 p.m. on Tuesday to file amendments to the bill.

John Rosenthal, a businessman and founder of Stop Handgun Violence, said he was unhappy with the Senate version. “The House bill is far superior because it’s more complete and comprehensive,” he said.

Rosenthal disagreed with a Senate provision allowing licensing authorities to dispose of some firearms taken as evidence in criminal cases through a sale or trade a year after a case is over. “They should be destroyed,” he said. “These are crime guns.”

Rosenthal said he also disagreed with the bill’s elimination of a requirement in January 2021 that gun owners file with the state an FA-10 form, or a report of sale, once a real-time web portal on all sales and secondary market gun sales is functional.

The Senate bill, similar to a provision in a domestic violence bill passed in the House passed in April, includes language that removes pepper spray and mace from firearms identification card requirements for people 18 years and older.

“This would deregulate pepper spray and mace and I don’t see why we would do that,” Rosenthal said.

The Senate bill also has school safety provisions, such as expanding the school building assistance program to include safety and security upgrades and requiring school districts to have a school resources officer, to develop mental health plans for students and faculty, and to provide two hours of suicide awareness and prevention training to personnel every three years.

Firearms identification cards and licenses to carry would have to include phone numbers for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and the Samaritans Statewide Helpline. The 90-day renewal process for a FID card is eliminated.

A new generation of leaders in the city's Hispanic community will unveil plans for this year's Puerto Rican Parade during a business reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday on the 9th floor art gallery at The Santander Bank Building in downtown Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD — A new generation of leaders in the city's Hispanic community will unveil plans for this year's Puerto Rican Parade during a business reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Wednesday on the 9th floor art gallery at The Santander Bank Building in downtown Springfield.

The parade is scheduled for Sept. 14 in downtown Springfield. The route will begin on Main and Wason streets and continue to Boland Way, according to mayoral aide Jose Delgado, a member of the parade committee.

Ivette Cruz, executive director of the Puerto Rican Cultural Center, which organized the parade in the past, said she is passing the baton to new parade committee members.

“I always envisioned a process in which young capable individuals in our community would work together with respect and harmony and produce something that every person in our community can be proud of,” Cruz.said in a press release. “Today, as I receive reports of the committee's progress with the parade, I am so glad it is working so well and I know this is going to be our best parade ever."

Planning Committee member Edward Nuñez says that the newly established team has been working during recent months organizing a parade with a deep focus on inclusiveness while honoring Springfield’s Puerto Rican community’s history.

“We are thrilled to be working together to deliver this historical parade that means so much to our community,” said Nuñez. “It is our goal to produce a parade that is embraced and supported by families from all ethnic backgrounds as we believe that one of the strengths of our region is its richness in diversity.”

It won't be long now before Massachusetts residents will be able to buy booze before noon on Sunday.

BOSTON — It won't be long now before Massachusetts residents will be able to buy booze before noon on Sunday.

The Massachusetts State Senate approved a bill on Tuesday that will move the sale of liquor up two hours to 10 a.m. on Sunday.

The House approved a similar bill in March.

The law is one of the remnants of the state's so-called "blue laws" that strictly limited the sale of alcohol. A law banning the sale of liquor completely on Sundays and most holidays was overturned in 2003 by Governor Mitt Romney. Laws blocking happy hour and other liquor promotions remain on the books.

The bill goes back to both chambers for enactment before, and from there it will go to Governor Deval Patrick's desk for a signature.

The hours of operation for liquor stores will still be ultimately determined by local municipalities.

Miguel Valentin is accused of attacking and robbing a downtown parking lot attendant and then fighting with police when they attempted to arrest him.

SPRINGFIELD - A homeless man accused of attacking a parking lot attendant Monday night on Taylor Street fought with police after they apprehended following a foot pursuit through downtown, police said.

Miguel Valentin 

Miguel Valentin, 32, who gave his address as the Friends of the Homeless shelter at 769 Worthington St., was charged with unarmed robbery and two counts of assault and battery on a police officer, said police spokesman Sgt. John Delaney.

He was also charged in connection with two arrest warrants for rape and indecent assault and battery on a person over age 14, he said.

Police were called to Ken’s Parking Lot, 73 Taylor St. just before 7 p.m. for a report the parking lot attendant had just fought with someone who tried to rob him. The suspect made off only with the car keys for a customer’s car parked in the lot, Delaney said.

A description of the suspect was broadcast over the police radio and a short time later, officers spotted Valentin near Kimball Towers, 140 Chestnut St., and noticed he matched the description of the suspect in the Taylor Street robbery, he said.

As officers approached, he bolted toward downtown and the officers ran after him.
Delaney said the foot pursuit lasted several minutes. Officer Don Denault cut off his path in his cruiser, but Valentin ran up to the car and punched Denault in the face through the open window, Delaney said.

Valentin tried to run off again but was tackled by Sgt. Christopher Hitas, Delaney said.
Valentin continued to fight with police and spit at officers as they placed him in custody.

The set of keys stolen from the parking lot was found in his pocket, Delaney said.

Valentin was scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Springfield District Court. Information from his appearance in court was not available.

Residents have complained drivers of motorized vehicles have been causing a problem.

CHICOPEE - Concerned about problems with all-terrain and other motorized vehicles driving on the dikes off Raymond Avenue and George Street, the City Council will take extra measures to try to prevent the problem.

The council voted to install no access signs at the end of the streets, ask the Department of Public Works to cut down brush in that area and urge residents to contact Chicopee Police any time they see the vehicles.

Residents in the area have complained the vehicle drivers speed up the streets and have torn up lawns trying to seek access to the levies that run along the Connecticut River, Councilor John Vieau said.

"We spent millions of dollars to protect the levy and they are damaging it, Councilor James K. Tillotson said.

The city spent about $5 million to upgrade the seven miles of dikes that run along the Connecticut and Chicopee Rivers to meet federal standards about five years ago.

Northampton resident Barbara Madeloni, a foe of standardized testing, took office on Tuesday as the president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, promising to lead a grassroots effort that will give more voice to teachers.

BOSTON — Northampton resident Barbara Madeloni, a foe of standardized testing, took office on Tuesday as the president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, promising to lead a grassroots effort that will give more voice to teachers.

In a press release, Madeloni and newly elected MTA Vice President Janet Anderson pledged to undertake a "course of membership-driven activism that focuses on resisting corporate-driven policies and reclaiming a democratic vision of public education for students, schools, colleges and communities." To keep that pledge the MTA's new leaders are planning member-led forums throughout the state in the fall.

Delegates who elected Madeloni and Taunton resident Anderson at the MTA's annual meeting earlier this summer also passed items that call for a three-year moratorium on PARCC testing and the initiation of member-led forums to discuss the impact of testing on students, teachers and schools.

The Springfield School Committee recently approved the adoption of the nationally created PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for Colleges and Careers) test in city schools. About two-thirds of Springfield schools will give some form of the PARCC test next spring. Many other local school districts plan to use the PARCC test also.

Massachusetts is in the middle of a two-year tryout of the PARCC. The PARCC test is aligned with the Common Core standards Massachusetts adopted a few years ago. The Common Core is a set of clear college and career-ready standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts/literacy and mathematics developed by state education chiefs in 48 states.

“Our public schools are the cornerstone of democracy,” said Madeloni, who is on leave as a senior lecturer in the Labor Studies Department at the University of Massachusetts- Amherst. “Educators make an incredible commitment to our students and their future every day. We need trust, autonomy and respect to create conditions in which all students can succeed and thrive.”

“We will ally with parents, students and community members to defend our public schools and colleges from dehumanizing accountability systems pushed by corporate and undemocratic interests,” Madeloni said in the press release.

“Together we will reclaim our schools as places of joy, creativity, imagination and critical engagement for every child.”

Beginning in 2004, Madeloni worked at the University of Massachusetts School of Education, where among other responsibilities she coordinated the Secondary Teacher Education Program. As a teacher educator, Madeloni worked with hundreds of prospective educators who now teach in schools throughout Massachusetts and across the country. Prior to teaching at UMass, she was an English teacher at Northampton High School and at Frontier Regional School in South Deerfield.

Madeloni has a bachelor's of arts degree from Hamilton College, a master’s degree in education from UMass-Amherst and a doctor of psychology degree from the University of Denver.

The 110,000-member MTA is the state's largest union.

City Councilor Thomas Ashe praised the focus on stepped up police patrols and neighborhood outreach efforts by police.

SPRINGFIELD — City councilors praised Police Commissioner John Barbieri on Tuesday after hearing that his first five weeks on the job have him on course for “incremental change” including increased street patrols and expanded engagement with the neighborhoods.

The council’s Public Safety Committee hosted the meeting with Barbieri at City Hall to ask him for his plans and strategies relating to crime in Springfield.

“Of course, my plan involves incremental change, and obviously you are not going to see change overnight,” Barbieri said.

However, the department is working toward a gradual reorganization to have more officers on the streets and less in the bureaus and to increase collaboration with state and federal law enforcement agencies, the commissioner said.

A recent sweep resulted in more than 20 arrests, including many “prolific offenders,” Barbieri said.

Councilor Thomas Ashe, chairman of the committee, said it was important to hear from Barbieri about stepped-up patrols in “hot spot” areas of the city, but also to address the needs of other neighborhoods.

“The commissioner certainly demonstrated that he understands that balance needs to be met and we’re working towards that,” Ashe said.

Barbieri said that crime is actually down by 23 percent this year, and violent assaults are down by 6 percent. The perception might be different, particularly as some of the crimes such as shootings get publicized, he said.

The department does address hot spots and high crime areas through a “data driven” police approach, Barbieri said. In addition, he said he believes that a combination of walking patrols and stationary posts adds to the sense of security in areas such as the downtown.

Councilor Timothy Rooke said the police presence does add to the sense of security, which he has seen himself, and with others downtown.

Rooke, however, said there is a “cry for action and leadership within the city to disrupt the supply chain of the gangs within the city of Springfield so that they find it difficult to provide their daily services and move elsewhere.”

“You can’t be friendly with the enemy,” Rooke said.

Rooke said that residents and business owners are questioning “when did it become acceptable in the city of Springfield to have 17 murders a year?’

Barbieri said that in addition to working with state and federal law enforcement agencies, he is promoting more training in areas such as forensics and fingerprinting, and expanded data analysis to help combat crime.

Regarding community policing, Barbieri said the department has staffing constraints, but he is working to ensure more police supervisors attend neighborhood meetings and share neighborhood concerns with the department.

Councilor Orlando Ramos said he is disturbed that there is “a stubborn no-snitch code” in which witnesses refuse to assist police after crimes occur. He suggested that the city’s Text-a-Tip system to encourage people to help solve crimes could be aided by a reward system, possibly funded privately or through the district attorney’s office.

Shawn Allyn, a Democratic candidate for Hampden County District Attorney, participated in the meeting, saying he is a strong proponent of an effective “Gun Court” to specifically handle gun-related cases and that he supports community policing, among law enforcement strategies.

A lawyer for a suburban Atlanta woman whose husband was arrested after their son was left for hours in a hot SUV said Tuesday that she is devastated by the boy's death.

By PHILLIP LUCAS

ATLANTA — A lawyer for a suburban Atlanta woman whose husband was arrested after their son was left for hours in a hot SUV said Tuesday that she is devastated by the boy's death.

Criminal defense attorney Lawrence Zimmerman said Leanna Harris is "living every parent's nightmare" after the death of her 22-month-old son, Cooper.

The woman's husband, Justin Ross Harris, 33, was arrested on charges of murder and child cruelty after the boy's death June 18. The father told police he left his son in the backseat of his SUV for about seven hours after forgetting to drop him off at day care and going to work, investigators in the Atlanta suburb of Cobb County have said.

Leanna Harris has not been charged in the case.

Zimmerman criticized media coverage of her reaction to her son's death, saying speculation over a perceived lack of emotion in the case thus far is similar to what 1996 Olympic bombing hero Richard Jewell faced after an attack that year on the summer games in Atlanta.

Jewell led people away from a suspicious backpack before a blast killed one and left more than 100 people injured. He became the target of intense scrutiny after an unattributed news report said he was the focus of the investigation into the attack. Jewell's name was cleared in 2006 and he died the following year at age 44.

"Newspapers, television and online media have fostered a poisonous atmosphere in which Leanna's every word, action and emotion — or failure to cry in front of a crowd — is scrutinized for some supposed hidden meaning," Zimmerman said.

He added that the media has dug into his client's upbringing, marriage and sex life. Zimmerman also said Leanna Harris has been unable to return to work and she's asking to be allowed to grieve her son privately.

During an hourslong probable cause hearing on July 3, prosecutors said evidence shows Justin Ross Harris had been leading a double life and was sending nude photos with several women — including at least one teenager — even on the day his son died. The couple had two life insurance policies for the toddler, one for $2,000 and one for $25,000. After his son's death, Harris talked with relatives about what they needed to do to file claims, investigators have said.

Harris' defense attorney Maddox Kilgore has argued that evidence in the case is insufficient and the boy's death was a tragic accident.

Justin Ross Harris remains jailed without bond.

R&R Window Contractors failed to pay workers correct prevailing wages on nine public construction projects, Coakley said.

EASTHAMPTON — R&R Window Contractors of Easthampton will pay more than $109,000 in restitution and penalties to settle claims it violated the Massachusetts prevailing wage law, Attorney General Martha Coakley announced Tuesday.

The One Arthur St. business was cited for failing to pay proper prevailing wages to some of its workers and failing to submit true and accurate payroll records regarding nine public works projects throughout Massachusetts.

In April 2013, the Attorney General’s Fair Labor Division investigated after receiving complaints that R&R was not properly paying workers performing carpentry and glazier work.

The probe revealed that between June 1, 2010 and March 28, 2014, R&R failed to pay workers the correct wage and failed to submit accurate payroll records related to work done on the projects across the state.

Coakley said employees classified by R&R as Carpenter-Tenders were at times performing work in other trade classifications that would require a higher rate.

“The prevailing wage law ensures a level playing field for contractors and their workers who build our public schools, libraries, police stations and other public facilities,” Coakley said in a news release. “The enforcement of these laws protects workers’ rights and our taxpayer dollars.”

The projects included work at Greenfield Community College, Longmeadow High School, the Commonwealth Honors College at UMass-Amherst, and more.

R&R cooperated fully with the AG's investigation, according to the news release. Restitution will be paid to 43 current and former employees.

The case was handled by Assistant Attorney General Barbara Dillon DeSouza and was investigated by Inspector Brian Davies, both of the Fair Labor Division in the Western Massachusetts Regional Office.

2 firefighters used an aerial ladder to rescue a trapped cat on the third floor and the owners standing across the street cheered as their pet was carried to safety.

This is an update of a story that was posted at 4:24 p.m. Tuesday.

WEST SPRINGFIELD - A three-family home at 94 Chestnut St. sustained approximately $100,000 in damage and eight people were displaced Monday in a fire that officials say was likely caused by a propane grill on a rear porch.

Two people were injured in the 1:45 p.m. fire, said Deputy Chief Steven Manchino.

A resident suffered minor burns to his head, arms and legs from the grill and a West Springfield firefighter was treated for heat exhaustion. Each was brought by ambulance to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield for treatment.

Firefighters also rescued a cat that was trapped inside a third-floor apartment, he said.

Manchino said the firefighter responded to treatment and has since been discharged from Baystate.

The first fire crews on scene reported the rear of the house was engulfed in flames and the fire was starting to push its way inside.

“Firefighters did a great job in keeping (the fire) from reaching into the building” he said.

There was some fire damage to a kitchen area, a stairway and the eaves in the rear of the building. Firefighters also had to cut a hole into the roof in order to vent smoke and apply water to the eaves.

The eight residents were all displaced until repairs can be made. The property owners will be making arraignments for temporary shelter for them, he said.

Manchino said it was a difficult fire to fight given the amount of heat and humidity Tuesday afternoon. Firefighters in full turn-out gear had difficulty dealing with the conditions and had to be cycled in and out of service frequently to rest.

The fire department’s thermal imager recorded temperatures inside the house at between 130 and 140 degrees, Manchino said.

The rear stairs to the house were beginning to collapse and it was no longer safe for firefighters to use them. To rescue the house cat that could be seen in the third floor window, Lt. Scott Chapman and firefighter Robert Brown used the department’s aerial ladder, Manchino said.

Brown grabbed the cat and wrapped it in his turnout jacket before climbing down the ladder to prevent it from scratching him, Manchino said.

The family who owned the cat watched the rescue from across the street and cheered loudly as Brown brought their pet down the ladder to safety. The cat had to be treated at the scene for some breathing issues but seemed fine otherwise, Manchino said.

The Westfield Fire Department ambulance assisted at the scene under mutual aid.

West Springfield city records show the property has a total assessed value of $215,000 and is owned by Philip J., Joel and Philip Catanzarite.

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Fire Chief Mark Babineau recommended Codding for the job.

LUDLOW – The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday accepted the recommendation of Fire Chief Mark Babineau and voted 4 to 0 to hire Ludlow native Jason Codding as a firefighter.

The board interviewed two applicants for the position – Codding and Ian Hogan of Easthampton.

Babineau said Codding received an extremely strong recommendation for the job from his current place of employment where he is in charge of security for Smith & Wesson.

“Jason is already involved in the community and has a vested interest in the community,” Babineau said.

Selectman Aaron Saunders said he has “100 percent confidence that Codding will make an excellent firefighter.”

Codding, who graduated from Ludlow High School and who coaches teams in the community, called Ludlow “a close-knit community and a great community.”

“If given the opportunity, I look forward to the opportunity to succeed,” he told the Board of Selectmen.

Hogan, a paramedic in Pittsfield, said he would like the opportunity to come to Ludlow. Hogan said he knows the firefighters in Ludlow are of a “top notch caliber” and he told selectmen he would be willing to move to Ludlow if he were given the job.

The applicants are seeking approval to build a pair of 30 feet by 90 feet concrete/steel buildings to house the tanks with 60,000 gallons of total capacity at 1066 Federal St.

Photo courtesy of Springfieldgasprices.com 

BELCHERTOWN – A Zoning Board of Appeals hearing last month to consider underground storage of two 30,000 gallon propane tanks - that was canceled at the last minute, even though about 60 residents had shown up - has been rescheduled for Wednesday at 6:35 p.m. at Lawrence Memorial Hall.

The applicants are seeking approval to build a pair of 30 feet by 90 feet concrete/steel buildings to house the tanks with 60,000 gallons of total capacity at 1066 Federal St.

The site is adjacent to Diamond Fuel on Route 9, in the village of Dwight in Belchertown.

Benjamin A. Surner Jr. is the owner, according to a meeting notice provided by the town.

The property owner a couple of weeks ago told Johnson Family Mortuary to vacate the building.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Police are investigating after finding eight bodies unattended Tuesday after a mortuary service was told to move out of its building in Fort Worth, Texas.

The property owner a couple of weeks ago told Johnson Family Mortuary to vacate the building, Police Sgt. Raymond Bush said. He said the owner returned Tuesday morning to find eight bodies in the building but no workers. Bush says the bodies were in various stages of decomposition and ranged from infants to adults.

No charges have been filed. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office has taken custody of the bodies.

Texas Funeral Service Commission attorney Kyle Smith said the mortuary's state license expires this month and it's the focus of five commission investigations.

Calls to the business Tuesday found the line disconnected.

The man is being kept of observation at Baystate Medical Center and once he is released, he will be booked for multiple charges including assault and battery on a police officer, police said.

File photo | The Republican 

SPRINGFIELD – One police officer suffered a shoulder injury Tuesday night during a disturbance in the city’s North End that was started when an unruly man that police believe was high on drugs fought with police, an official said.

Lt. David Martin said it took several police officers to put the man into custody during the disturbance at Calhoun Park at Jefferson and Dwight streets.

He was taken to Baystate Medical Center for observation and will be booked on several counts of assault and battery on a police officer, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, Martin said.

The man’s identity was not being disclosed late Tuesday night.

The incident occurred just before 8 p.m., Martin said.

The man was creating a scene in the park and when an officer approached him to instruct him to calm down, the man refused. A struggle ensued, and the officer called for assistance, resulting in a large police response to the scene.

The man continued to fight and several officers were needed to restrain him and place him in custody. During the struggle one officer suffered a shoulder injury that required treatment at Baystate Medical Center, Martin said.

Martin said the man was clearly under the influence of some kind of narcotic that affected his behavior.

The library announced the second floor of the library will be closed temporarily while clean-up and repairs are made

NORTHAMPTON – Police are investigating a report that someone intentionally set a stairwell carpet at the Forbes Library on fire Monday night, according to published reports.

The Daily Hampshire Gazette of Northampton is reporting a custodian and a library patron discovered the carpet burning and put it out with fire extinguishers.

Damage was estimated at $5,000

The Gazette quotes Assistant Fire Chief Duane Nichols saying damage was limited to the rug and a wooden banister on the staircase inside the front door.

The fire is being investigated by Northampton police and the state Fire Marshal’s Office.

The library announced the second floor of the library will be closed temporarily while clean-up and repairs are made.

The Forbes Library, which opened in 1894, is the home of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum.

One police officer suffered a shoulder injury Tuesday night during a disturbance in the city’s North End that was started when an unruly man that police believe was high on drugs fought with police, an official said.

The update about projects held at Prospect Heights was the first of what the mayor said will be numerous community meetings.

HOLYOKE -- Mayor Alex B. Morse Tuesday listed dozens of projects happening or about to happen that he said will catalyze different parts of the city.

The number of projects could be considered impressive -- it took Morse nearly an hour to list them -- from the second phase of the Canalwalk to the resumption possibly this year of passenger rail service to renovation of the old Holyoke Catholic High School campus into apartments, but not everyone agreed the list added up to progress.

Morse, state Rep. Aaron M. Vega, D-Holyoke, and other officials held the community projects-update meeting at Prospect Heights apartments, 41 Chestnut St.

The meeting was the first of what Morse said will be a series of such updates given at spots around the city.

"Some of these things are covered in the media," Morse said. "Some of them aren't."

The Canalwalk is a pedestrian walkway along the scenic canals that serve the hydroelectric dam owned by the Holyoke Gas and Electric Department.

Federal and state money are funding the multiphase project that officials envision as a promenade linking City Hall, Holyoke Heritage State Park, the Holyoke Children’s Museum, businesses, artists’ studios, galleries and other destinations.

The Canalwalk’s Phase I is done and is at the first-level canal across from Heritage Park and between Appleton and Dwight streets.

The $3.5 million project to extend the CanalWalk, into what is called CanalWalk Phase II, is expected to last two years, officials have said. The contractor is ET & L Corp of Stow.

Phase II will go along the entire Race Street block between Appleton and Dwight streets. The work will include improvements to the former rail bridge and to sidewalks on Appleton and Dwight streets.

The goal is to make the CanalWalk a destination like WaterFire in Providence, R.I. or the San Antonio (Texas) Riverwalk, Morse said.

Construction is scheduled to be done in December of a a 400-foot-long concrete platform with a roofed waiting area at Dwight and Main streets -- near the north-south tracks owned by Pan Am Railways -- where passengers will take and depart from trains headed to New York City, Montreal and other places, he said.

The platform is part of the $17 million the state plans to spend on train tracks between Springfield and Vermont.

"I'm hoping the first train comes through in December, although it's possible spring of next year at the latest," Morse said.

Work began last month on a $2.7 million conversion of the former Holyoke Catholic High School campus into 55 apartments on Chestnut Street overlooking Veterans Park, Morse said. The developer is Weld Management Co. Inc., which has offices here and in Boston.

Funding for that project of affordable housing consists of $1,694,534 in housing subsidies from the state Department of Housing and Community Development and $990,000 in federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, officials have said.

"Affordable housing" is the term that describes a place to live that someone whose income is in the bottom third of a community's income levels can pay for and still eat and clothe himself or herself.

Morse also discussed:

--the plan to sell the former Lynch School at Northampton and Dwight streets to Frontier Development of Florida, which has proposed 25,000 square feet of retail at the site with three or more tenants;

--the $28 million trek to rejuvenate the Victory Theatre. The theater at 81-89 Suffolk St. opened in 1919 and closed in 1979. Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts, the organization here that owns the Victory Theatre, recently received $260,000 for the project from the state Cultural Facilities Fund.;

"It's an expensive project, about $28 million. We're moving forward," Morse said.

--Shield Hotel Management, which has developed hotels in the region and wants to convert the Holyoke Hotel, which used to be a Holiday Inn, at 245 Whiting Farms Road into a new hotel, restaurants and retail businesses. Officials hope to hear the company's plans in a few weeks, he said.

"Hopefully, we'll get that moving sometime later this year," Morse said.

When Morse came to a vacant lot that a city board is trying to get developed, at Pleasant and Hampden streets, Alan Clark, one of about 30 people in the audience, spoke up.

Clark, a principal in Quabbin ACM LLC, a group that has bid to develop the site, questioned Morse's assertion that the Holyoke Economic Development and Industrial Corporation (HEDIC) is trying to work with developers.

Clark said HEDIC hasn't been helpful and in fact asked that the group modify its proposal -- for a gas station-convenience store -- into a project without a gas station.

"How are they (HEDIC) 'working' with them?" Clark said.

Tessa Murphy-Romboletti, development specialist with the city Department of Planning and Economic Development, told Clark someone from the department would contact him soon about the project.

Morse said HEDIC is still considering the proposal from Quabbin ACM and another from Frontier Development, the group that wants to buy the old Lynch School. No decision has been made, said Morse, who said the decision is HEDIC's and not the mayor's.

The 1.1 acre property consists of three parcels. It used to be owned by Eric Suher, the local entertainment venue owner. But HEDIC took it back in June 2013 , exercising what is known as a reverter clause, after Suher was unable to get the property developed for nearly eight years.

Suher told The Republican and MassLive.com at the time: "Finding the right mix of tenants to support this type of project was the only way it would have been prudent for me to invest the money necessary to properly build on this site. Having the pressure of a reverter doesn't necessarily allow for the right project, but I understand HEDIC's desire to see the project underway,"

Later Tuesday, Matthew Donohue, a lawyer who also is a principal with Quabbin ACM, said in a phone interview his group's project would be a $2 million investment that would produce 14 jobs.

"It's a gas station and convenience store. They go hand-in-hand now," Donohue said.

Donohue questioned Morse's position that economic development is happening in the city. He said that in fact, the city thwarts development, noting that Walmart, Lowe's and Big Y all have had trouble with projects here.

"There is no economic development going on in Holyoke now. There's not," said Donohue, a lawyer.

Donohue also questioned why HEDIC, which is supposed to focus on industrial and manufacturing properties, is involved in the vacant parcel.

"I don't understand how they ended up with the property in the first place," Donohue said.

HEDIC is following an economic development plan approved by the City Council, said Marcos A. Marrero, director of the city Department of Planning and Economic Development.

Quabbin ACM, Marrero said, "never questioned HEDICs ability to do the deal until the board asked whether they'd be able to develop a project that wasn't a gas station."

Carl Mortensen, 90, of Prospect Heights, asked why so little has been done on reconstruction of the small bridge on Lyman Street over the first-level canal.

"That's been that way for 20 years," Mortenson said.

Morse said work on that bridge is a state project but that his understanding was that the work is several years away. In May, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation told The Republican and MassLive.com that the $11,762,602 reconstruction of the bridge isn't scheduled to begin until the winter of 2018-2019.

After the meeting, Raymond Guevin, 45, a Prospect Heights resident, was asked his thoughts about the presentation. He said he has the onset of cerebral palsy, making walking difficult, and he wishes that more sidewalks were less bumpy and that City Hall had a push-button door opener.

"There's a lot that needs to be done," Guevin said.

City Hall does have power buttons to open doors, said William D. Fuqua, general superintendent of the Department of Public Works.

Vega said he was available mostly to answer questions. The Legislature's formal session will be ending soon, he said, but being Holyoke's legislator is "a full-time job."

"It's a real honor to represent this city," Vega said.

Similar community meetings will be held Wednesday (July 16) at Elmwood Towers, 485 South St. at 10 a.m. and Thursday (July 17) at Holyoke Towers, 582 Pleasant St. at 10 a.m., said Rory Casey, Morse's chief of staff. Additional meetings are being scheduled.