There are places to get away from it all on Cape Cod, even during a holiday weekend in the summer. CapeCodOnline.com offers some serenity-now spots that are slightly off the beaten path.

AP file photoCoast Guard Beach, accessed only by shuttle bus during summer, is a popular -- yet relatively quiet -- spot in Eastham.

Editor's note: Conor Berry is a former Provincetown bureau chief for the Cape Cod Times and worked with Eric Williams.

Cape Cod, that popular appendage off the southeastern belly of the Bay State, isn't always a parking lot during the summer months. That is, if you know how to avoid the crowd.

If you're looking for salt water taffy, miniature golf or beach-themed trinkets and tchotchkes, then Route 28 on the regular-Joe South Side may be just the ticket. Or maybe you'll pilgrimage out -- way, way out -- to Provinetown, the Cape's version of Venice Beach and Greenwich Village rolled into one, where shops specializing in kitsch and no-frills wharfside dining bump up against upscale art galleries, boutiques and bistros.

Republican file photoA quiet stretch of beach in a remote section of Brewster, a Lower Cape town located on the North Side.

AP file photoYou're looking at Nobska Point Light, just outside the village of Woods Hole in the town of Falmouth. Nobska Road connects to the Shining Sea Bikeway, a 10.7-mile coastal road that cuts through salt marsh, cranberry bogs, ponds and woodlands and offers sweeping views of Vineyard Sound.

But, if you want to get as far away from the madding crowd as possible, the Cape still has some sleepy summertime spots that either (A) few people know about, or (B) few people, if any, visit on warm summer days. From fire trails dotting remote pine and scrub oak forests of the Outer Cape to quiet kettle ponds nestled in interior sections of the Mid Cape to rocky coastlines more reminiscent of Maine than the powder-sand beaches of Cape Cod National Seashore, there are plenty of places to escape to if you're not feeling particularly extroverted this holiday weekend.

CapeCodOnline's Eric Williams, a former Cape Cod Times reporter and Outer Cape radio personality, gives a guided tour of some of the Cape's "quiet" spots -- hidden jewels that will make you feel like Robinson Crusoe even if you're really only a stone's throw from civilization.

Two men reportedly stole two wheelchairs from an Upper Hill residence early Sunday morning.

Updates a story originally posted at 3 a.m. Sunday, July 3.

SPRINGFIELD -- Police have recovered a pair of wheelchairs taken from a residence in the city's Upper Hill neighborhood early Sunday morning.

"The wheelchairs were recovered and returned to the owner," Springfield Police Lt. Robert P. Moynihan said.

Moynihan said he was unsure of the condition of the chairs when they were returned, but they were recovered shortly after they were reported stolen.

No arrests have been made in connection with the case.

The mother of a disabled girl called police around 2:07 a.m. to report that two men had stolen her daughter's wheelchairs from their home at 456 Wilbraham Road.

It was unclear where the chairs had been stored prior to the theft, but the men were last seen with them around 1:50 a.m. as they headed north on Roosevelt Avenue, according to police reports.

A shooting in a rural area about 30 miles northwest of Philadelphia has left two people dead -- including a child -- and three others injured. A manhunt is under way for the killer, according to authorities.

GILBERTSVILLE, Pa. — A shooting in a rural area about 30 miles northwest of Philadelphia has left two people dead -- including a child -- and three others injured, and a manhunt is under way for the killer, according to authorities.

Police were sent to Douglass Township in Montgomery County late Saturday after reports of a shooting.

First Assistant District Attorney Kevin R. Steele confirmed with The Associated Press on Sunday that a child and an adult were slain and three other people were injured and hospitalized. Their conditions weren't immediately released.

Steele said all the victims appear to be from the same family. He said no suspect is in custody, and police don't have a description of the shooter.

THE MAP BELOW shows the location of Gilbertsville, Pa., where five people were shot -- two fatally -- on Saturday:


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America's longest space-flying streak ends this week with the smallest crew in decades — three men and a woman who were in high school and college when the first space shuttle soared 30 years ago.

AP Photo/John RaouxIn this Thursday, June 23, 2011, file picture, the crew of space shuttle Atlantis -- from left, mission specialist Sandy Magnus, pilot Doug Hurley, mission specialist Rex Walhiem and commander Chris Ferguson -- leave the Operations and Checkout Building on their way to board the shuttle for their final day of training during the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla. The launch of Atlantis, the final space shuttle mission, is scheduled for July 8.

MARCIA DUNN, AP Aerospace Writer

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — America's longest space-flying streak ends this week with the smallest crew in decades — three men and a woman who were in high school and college when the first space shuttle soared 30 years ago.

History will remember these final four as bookending an era that began with two pilots who boldly took a shuttle for a two-day spin in 1981 without even a test flight. That adventure blasted space wide open for women, minorities, scientists, schoolteachers, politicians, even a prince.

On Friday aboard Atlantis, this last crew will make NASA's 135th and final shuttle flight. It will be years before the United States sends its own spacecraft up again.

Commander Christopher Ferguson, co-pilot Douglas Hurley, Rex Walheim and Sandra Magnus are delighting in their good luck.

"We're very honored to be in this position. There are many people who could be here," said Ferguson, a retired Navy captain. "When the dice fell, our names were facing up."

NASA managers were looking for space vets when they cobbled together this minimalist crew with seven spaceflights among them, to deliver one last shuttle load of supplies to the International Space Station.

They are an eloquent, colorful bunch in their 40s, accepting if not embracing the spotlight.

Ferguson is a drummer for an astronaut rock 'n' roll band. Hurley is nuts about NASCAR; his cousin is married to crew chief Greg Zipadelli. Walheim is a former shuttle flight controller; his graphic designer wife creates the mission patch every time he flies, always on Atlantis. Magnus is arguably the first out-of-this-world chef: She whipped up Christmas cookies and Super Bowl salsa aboard the space station in late 2008 and early 2009, using — as all good chefs — ingredients on hand.

They were originally recruited to be a rescue team. The idea was that back in May, if anything seriously damaged Endeavour during its final flight, Ferguson and his team would have rushed to the space station and brought those astronauts home.

If no rescue was needed, the original plan went, Ferguson's crew simply wouldn't fly. And Atlantis would be sent to a museum along with the two other retired shuttles.

But early this year, NASA decided to add one more flight. Since Atlantis was being groomed for a potential rescue anyway, NASA reasoned, why not make a cargo run with a year's worth of food and other provisions to keep the space station well-stocked.

That added a new wrinkle: What if Atlantis were damaged? There are no more shuttles to rescue them.

AP Photo/John RaouxThe Final Four: The crew of space shuttle Atlantis, from left, mission specialist Rex Walhiem, mission specialist Sandy Magnus, pilot Doug Hurley and commander Chris Ferguson, are scheduled to take NASA's final space shuttle mission on July 8.

The only viable option is the Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The capsules can carry a maximum three people at a time, and at least one must be Russian. That's why Atlantis' crew was capped at four, instead of the usual six or seven.

It will be NASA's first four-person shuttle crew since 1983.

Ferguson and his short-handed crew know there's a chance — about 1-in-560 — that they could be stranded at the space station because of flight damage to Atlantis.

If that happens, it will take close to a year to get the last person home. Hurley, a Marine, drew the long straw.

The travel sequence is based on robotic-arm and spacewalking skills, as well as accumulated exposure to cosmic radiation. That last factor alone prevents Magnus, a former space station resident, from spending too long a time in space.

Hurley — who is married to astronaut Karen Nyberg and has a 1-year-old son — looks at the bright side.

"If it works out that way, I get a yearlong expedition for nine months of training, so that's a pretty good return on the investment," he said. He points to Magnus, a scientist whose specialty is in cathodes and radar, who trained four years for a mere four-month station stay.

Yearlong space missions are exceedingly rare; only three Russian cosmonauts have attempted it. The longest an American has spent in space, at a stretch, is seven months.

That's how far NASA's astronauts are willing to go, these days, for a shot at space.

Until private companies get piloted spacecraft flying — an estimated three to 10 years out — NASA will have to stick with the pricey Russian Soyuz to get U.S. astronauts to and from the space station.

For Americans, that means just a handful of flying opportunities a year. Compare that with the 35 to 50 seats that the shuttles typically provided each year.

Little wonder, then, that NASA's astronaut corps has shrunk to 61 active members. Only the youngest and most patient are willing to wait out these conflicted, money-tight times.

Few people, it seems, can agree on where NASA should aim next. The moon, an asteroid, Mars? And how best to get there?

AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Smiley N. PoolThe "final four" crew members review procedures on the mid-deck of the Crew Compartment Trainer II mockup as they train at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The training marked the crew's final scheduled session before space shuttle Atlantis' scheduled liftoff on July 8.

As the debate and uncertainty drag on, Ferguson said he's seen no ill feeling toward NASA by those still toiling in the shuttle program. Thousands more layoffs are coming as soon as Atlantis lands, on top of the thousands of jobs already lost.

Ferguson rejects suggestions the U.S. space program is headed downhill with the shuttle's retirement. "Hopefully, we'll see 10 years of good quality science out of the space station," he said. "We still have a vibrant program going on."

Despite two horrific accidents that killed 14 astronauts and destroyed two spacecraft, the shuttle program has carried more people than any other space fleet — 355 people from 16 countries. That includes Saudi Arabia, which flew a prince aboard Discovery in 1985.

Space miles logged by the five shuttles: 537 million, with 4 million more to come this mission.

"There is not an American who doesn't look upon an ascending shuttle with a certain sense of American pride, hair on the back of your neck, chills, call it what you will," Ferguson said.

The space shuttle is "a quintessential American vehicle," said Walheim, a retired Air Force colonel who will serve as the flight engineer. "You point to that and people know it's from the United States, so I think we're losing that piece of identity."

The four astronauts feel the extra burden of putting "the best possible face forward for the last go-around of this," as Ferguson describes it.

This should not be a time of mourning, these astronauts say, or for second-guessing the shuttle retirement decision made seven years ago by President George W. Bush in the wake of the Columbia disaster.

Ferguson and his crew want this final flight to be a celebration. They point to the Hubble Space Telescope, which was launched and repaired by shuttle crews, as well as the International Space Station. Nearly one-third of the 135 shuttle flights were spent building or supplying the nearly 1 million-pound orbiting laboratory.

For now, Atlantis' astronauts are focused on the upcoming cargo mission, humble as it is.

They'll provide robotic-arm support for a spacewalk by two space station astronauts. But most of the work involves hauling supplies from Atlantis into the station, and carting out broken equipment and junk for disposal back on Earth.

One thing Ferguson didn't count on, when mapping out the training flow months ago, was all the emotional conversation that has added to the crew's already long workdays. Almost every shuttle worker they encounter wants to share a story: How long they've worked at Kennedy Space Center and what the shuttle program means to them.

"At the end of the day ... we're like, wow, there's a lot of emotion here," Ferguson said. "But they're all stories that we want to hear."

Ferguson expects "the enormity of it to hit us" at wheels-stop on landing day — July 20, the 42nd anniversary of man's first steps on the moon, if the schedule holds.

The astronauts say they will have to be pried from the cockpit. Magnus expects to shed tears as she sits on the runway, "contemplating 30 years of a spectacular program."

"We are blessed to have been a part of it. All of us, not just perhaps the chosen few who are lucky enough to fly it, but as a country," Ferguson said.

Until then, he said, "We're just trying to savor the moment. We want to be able to say, 'We remember when. We remember when there was a space shuttle.'"

Milestones in 30-year shuttle program:

NASA's space shuttle flights began three decades ago with Columbia and will end this month with the final voyage of Atlantis and the retirement of the fleet. Between, there were triumphs and tragedies. Some of the milestones of the shuttle era:

1981: Columbia makes first shuttle flight for two days.

1982: Shuttle declared operational, no longer experimental.

1983: Challenger's first flight with first shuttle spacewalk; America's first woman in space, Sally Ride; America's first black astronaut in space, Guion Bluford.

1984: Discovery's first flight, first untethered spacewalk by Bruce McCandless, the so-called "human satellite."

1985: Atlantis' first flight; first congressman in space, Sen. Jake Garn of Utah.

1986: Challenger destroyed after lift-off, seven killed including teacher Christa McAuliffe; shuttles grounded during investigation.

1988: Shuttle flights resume with Discovery.

1989: Launch of Jupiter probe Gallileo.

1990: Launch of Hubble Space Telescope.

1992: First flight of Endeavour, replacement for Challenger.

1993: Hubble repaired by spacewalkers.

1994: First Russian cosmonaut on shuttle.

1995: First female pilot, Eileen Collins; first docking with Russia's Mir space station.

1998: Mercury astronaut John Glenn returns to orbit at 77; first U.S. piece of International Space Station launched.

1999: First female commander, Eileen Collins.

2003: Columbia destroyed during re-entry, seven killed; shuttles grounded during investigation.

2005: Shuttle flights resume with Discovery.

2007: First teacher-astronaut Barbara Morgan.

2011: Last flights of Discovery, Endeavour, and soon, Atlantis.

___

Online:

NASA's Atlantis mission: http://1.usa.gov/9JytXV

Louis A. Calabrese, 69, of 198 Maple St., a 20-year member of the planning board, was arrested for allegedly failing to comply with police orders at the scene of a motorcycle accident on Maple Street Saturday night.

EAST LONGMEADOW -- It was a perfect recipe for calamity, according to police: a motorcycle accident, hundreds of people trying to exit a summer carnival and an impatient motorist who apparently couldn't wait his turn.

That was the scenario Saturday night on Maple Street in East Longmeadow, where police arrested a hot-headed motorist -- a former longtime town official -- for allegedly causing a disturbance as authorities were dealing with the double whammy of a motorcycle accident and large crowds exiting the Jaycees Summer Carnival in Veterans Park.

Louis A. Calabrese, 69, of 198 Maple St., was handcuffed and charged with disorderly conduct and disturbing the peace for allegedly causing a scene as police and medical personnel were tending to an injured motorcycle rider on Maple Street around 10:25 p.m. Saturday.

"When the officer told him to get back in his car, he repeatedly refused to do so," East Longmeadow Police Sgt. Patrick Manley said Sunday. "None of this would have happened if he had listened to the officer's instructions."

Police claim Calabrese exited the parking lot of Sunny's Mart, 43 Maple St., then cut across traffic to the parking lot of a catering business across the street from the convenience store. Manley said Calabrese was attempting to reach Maple Court, a narrow lane abutting the catering business that connects Maple Street to Shaker Road.

"He didn't want to wait," Manley said, noting that public safety officials were simultaneously contending with carnival traffic and a motor vehicle accident .

When an officer ordered Calabrese to stop, the senior citizen exited his silver sedan and proceeded to swear at the officer, according to Manley.

"He said, 'Who the (expletive) are you yelling at' to the officer, then told him, 'I pay your (expletive) salary,'" Manley said.

Manley described a chaotic scene, with an injured motorcyclist "lying on the ground" and carnivalgoers heading home for the night.

"(Calabrese) ended up getting arrested because he refused to comply with the officer's directions, and he continued to cause a scene," Manley said.

Calabrese was a 20-year member of the East Longmeadow Planning Board, serving from 1987 to 2007. His family were longtime owners of the Countryside Store on Somers Road in East Longmeadow.

Meanwhile, the motorcycle rider was taken to Baystate Medical Center with serious but non-life-threatening "leg and back injuries," Manley said.

Other than the alleged disturbance involving Calabrese, the annual summer carnival went off without a hitch. The carnival and accompanying fireworks are a major fundraiser for the Jaycees, an organization that donates thousands of dollars annually to civic organizations, agencies, and schools.

The fireworks are scheduled to begin at dusk on Sunday at East Longmeadow High School's athletic field.

"He did tell two lifeguards — one said she was on break, and had to leave and the other told him they were going to do a pool check," said the woman.

View full sizeAssociated PressThis Sunday, June 26, 2011 photo provided by Candella Matta shows Marie Joseph, foreground, holding family friend Dalianys Melendez, daughter of Candella Matta, in the public swimming pool at Lafayette Park in Fall River, Mass. The body of Marie Joseph, 36, was found floating in the pool late Tuesday. She was last seen at the pool Sunday and had not been seen since. Officials are investigating whether her body was in the pool for more than two days while other people continued to swim. (AP Photo/Candella Matta)

FALL RIVER, Mass. (AP) — A 9-year-old boy told two lifeguards that a woman had not resurfaced after entering the murky waters of a public swimming pool and appearing to struggle, his mother said.

The body of 36-year-old Marie Joseph was found in the Veterans Memorial Pool two days later, on Tuesday night. Officials have been investigating how she could have been in the pool for so long without being noticed.

The boy's mother told the Boston Herald for its Sunday edition that the woman had bumped into her son on a pool slide before she disappeared underwater.

"He did tell two lifeguards — one said she was on break, and had to leave and the other told him they were going to do a pool check," the woman told the newspaper. "But he told me they never did."

The Associated Press, which does not report the names of children who may be witnesses to a crime, is not identifying the woman to protect the privacy of her son.

The state Department of Conservation and Recreation is investigating issues related to Joseph's death, including the clarity of the pool water and whether quality protocols were followed. No one has been charged in the drowning.

His mother said her son is undergoing counseling.

The Fall River pool is 12 feet deep and employs 12 staffers, six of whom are lifeguards and are certified by the Red Cross. All six were on duty last Sunday, the Herald reported.

"Those lifeguards need to be fired," the boy's mother told the Herald. "He's stressed out. He keeps crying, and he thinks he could have saved this lady."

The medical examiner's office has labeled the death an accidental drowning.

Commissioner Edward M. Lambert Jr. with the state Department of Conservation and Recreation said they don't know whether any of the lifeguards looked for Lambert.

"We hope to learn that from the investigation," Lambert said. "We are as anxious as anybody to get answers to this."

An initial investigation showed the water in the pool was murky from the time the pool opened for the season last Saturday. Visibility tests conducted Wednesday revealed a diver couldn't be seen at a depth of 3 1/2 to 4 feet below the surface of the water.

Joseph was a hotel housekeeper in Newport, R.I. She was from Haiti and had five children. Her body was discovered after it floated to the surface shortly before some youngsters sneaked into the pool for a clandestine swim Tuesday night.

___

Information from: Boston Herald, http://www.bostonherald.com

"He did tell two lifeguards — one said she was on break, and had to leave and the other told him they were going to do a pool check," the woman said.

View full sizeAssociated PressThis Sunday, June 26, 2011 photo provided by Candella Matta shows Marie Joseph, foreground, holding family friend Dalianys Melendez, daughter of Candella Matta, in the public swimming pool at Lafayette Park in Fall River, Mass. The body of Marie Joseph, 36, was found floating in the pool late Tuesday. She was last seen at the pool Sunday and had not been seen since. Officials are investigating whether her body was in the pool for more than two days while other people continued to swim. (AP Photo/Candella Matta)

FALL RIVER, Mass. (AP) — A 9-year-old boy told two lifeguards that a woman had not resurfaced after entering the murky waters of a public swimming pool and appearing to struggle, his mother said.

The body of 36-year-old Marie Joseph was found in the Veterans Memorial Pool two days later, on Tuesday night. Officials have been investigating how she could have been in the pool for so long without being noticed.

The boy's mother told the Boston Herald for its Sunday edition that the woman had bumped into her son on a pool slide before she disappeared underwater.

"He did tell two lifeguards — one said she was on break, and had to leave and the other told him they were going to do a pool check," the woman told the newspaper. "But he told me they never did."

The Associated Press, which does not report the names of children who may be witnesses to a crime, is not identifying the woman to protect the privacy of her son.

The state Department of Conservation and Recreation is investigating issues related to Joseph's death, including the clarity of the pool water and whether quality protocols were followed. No one has been charged in the drowning.

His mother said her son is undergoing counseling.

The Fall River pool is 12 feet deep and employs 12 staffers, six of whom are lifeguards and are certified by the Red Cross. All six were on duty last Sunday, the Herald reported.

"Those lifeguards need to be fired," the boy's mother told the Herald. "He's stressed out. He keeps crying, and he thinks he could have saved this lady."

The medical examiner's office has labeled the death an accidental drowning.

Commissioner Edward M. Lambert Jr. with the state Department of Conservation and Recreation said they don't know whether any of the lifeguards looked for Lambert.

"We hope to learn that from the investigation," Lambert said. "We are as anxious as anybody to get answers to this."

An initial investigation showed the water in the pool was murky from the time the pool opened for the season last Saturday. Visibility tests conducted Wednesday revealed a diver couldn't be seen at a depth of 3 1/2 to 4 feet below the surface of the water.

Joseph was a hotel housekeeper in Newport, R.I. She was from Haiti and had five children. Her body was discovered after it floated to the surface shortly before some youngsters sneaked into the pool for a clandestine swim Tuesday night.

___

Information from: Boston Herald, http://www.bostonherald.com

Norquist's power derives from his relentless pressure on state and federal officials to sign his group's anti-tax "pledge" and his thinly veiled threats to support primary opponents against them if they break it.

View full sizeFILE - In this April 14, 2011 file photo, Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist, left, and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., center, wait on Capitol Hill in Washington for the start of the Americans for Tax Reform's annual Tax Day Eve news conference. For two decades Norquist has been the driving force in pushing the Republican Party toward an ever-more rigid position of opposing any tax increase, of any kind, at any time. (AP Photo/Lauren Victoria Burke, File)

By CHARLES BABINGTON, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Without a bipartisan agreement this summer to reduce the federal deficit and raise the debt limit, the economy could suffer a horrendous blow, leaders of both parties say. If that happens, some will point fingers at a bearded, slightly disheveled man who's barely known outside political circles in Washington.

For two decades, Grover Norquist has been the driving force in pushing the Republican Party toward an ever-more rigid position of opposing any tax increase, of any kind, at any time. He has been so successful that some GOP officials fear they've let Norquist squeeze them into a corner where they'll be unable to declare victory even if they win the great majority of their budget demands in negotiations with congressional Democrats and President Barack Obama.

Democrats, meanwhile, use Norquist to paint the GOP as an unreasonable party that kowtows to billionaires at the expense of middle-class Americans.

Obama is insisting that even if a deficit-reduction accord relies overwhelmingly on spending cuts, it also must have some revenue increases. Democrats say they should start with eliminating some not-so-popular tax breaks that Norquist and his allies stoutly defend.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell "has decided to walk out on the same limb as Grover Norquist," Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters last week. "It seems leader McConnell is willing to tank the economy for the sake of protecting tax breaks for oil companies and corporate jets."

Obama didn't name Norquist in his feisty news conference Wednesday, but he cited the same tax breaks.

"I've said to some of the Republican leaders: You go talk to your constituents, the Republican constituents, and ask them, are they willing to compromise their kids' safety so that some corporate-jet owner continues to get a tax break?" Obama said.

Republican lawmakers scoff at the notion that killing a $3 billion tax break for small jets would make a dent in the $14 trillion debt. But they have complicated their ability to parry the Democrats on such matters by signing the famous anti-tax "pledge" of Americans for Tax Reform, which Norquist heads.

All but a handful of House and Senate Republicans have signed it. By doing so, they vow to oppose any effort to increase marginal income tax rates and "any net reduction or elimination of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing tax rates."

In other words, even a "temporary" tax cut cannot be undone. Even a tax break that seems to have lost its purpose, when economic conditions change, cannot be touched unless it is offset elsewhere.

Some Senate Republicans have grown weary of Norquist's strict interpretation of the pledge, and a mini-revolt occurred in mid-June.

Thirty-four of the Senate's 47 Republicans voted to end a tax break for ethanol production, which has come under political fire in recent years. Norquist strongly opposed the move, and denounced its leader, conservative Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla.

Coburn, who says some revenue increases must join deep spending cuts to reduce the deficit, claimed a turning point.

"You've got 34 Republicans that say they're willing to end this, regardless of what Grover says," he told reporters. "That's 34 Republicans that say this is more important than a signed pledge" to Norquist's group.

Norquist denies suffering a setback. He said the GOP senators willing to end the ethanol subsidy have also backed a proposed end to the estate tax, a favorite Republican target. The two tax moves, if enacted, would offset each other, Norquist said, fulfilling the pledge's demand to avoid "any net reduction" of tax breaks.

"We are pleased as punch. The pledge is defended," he said in an interview. With the 2012 presidential race gearing up, and Congress facing high-stakes decisions on spending and deficits, the anti-tax pledge "has never been more important, and it has never played a bigger role," he said.

Few elected Republicans will openly feud with Norquist. His power derives from his relentless pressure on state and federal officials to sign his pledge, and his thinly veiled threats to support primary opponents against them if they break it. His website names 41 senators, 236 House members and 1,263 state legislators who have signed the pledge.

"We list who has taken the pledge, and who has not," said Norquist.

Most Republican lawmakers, and many Democrats, innately oppose tax hikes, so Norquist's achievements are unremarkable in some respects. But the pledge's rigidity tends to squelch even modest flexibility. Die-hard conservatives such as tea party activists see that as an asset. Others, however, say the inflexibility hampers GOP efforts to negotiate tough agreements with Democrats.

"It's a disservice to our nation for someone to be allowed to set a standard which really could threaten our economy," said Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois. "I've grown up in life with bullies, and there's a point that you just have to say, 'I'm not going to be frightened by them anymore.'"

Norquist focuses less on the deficit than on his relentless campaign against federal spending, which is fed by taxes. This troubles some lawmakers, who note that both parties historically have been willing to cut taxes while doing little or nothing to reduce spending, causing the deficit to soar.

Partly because of this, federal tax collections, as a proportion of the overall economy, are the lowest since 1950, at 14.9 percent. Yet Congress's Republican leaders say tax increases of any type cannot be part of a deal to resolve the debt-ceiling showdown this summer.

It's the type of scenario the Harvard-educated Norquist had in mind when he founded Americans for Tax Reform in 1985. He says the pledge helps "brand" Republicans as the anti-tax party, clarifying voters' choices.

The image ignores the fact that Republican presidents including Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush raised taxes at times as economic conditions changed. It was Bush's 1990 reversal of his "read my lips" vow not to raise taxes that outraged many conservatives.

Several factors contributed to Bush's 1992 loss to Bill Clinton, but Norquist pins it almost entirely on the tax decision. Since then, he said, the anti-tax pledge "has become a powerful tool for any candidate."

Norquist is delighted that the pledge is making it harder for Republicans and Democrats to reach a spending accord that might include small tax hikes along with larger spending cuts.

"The Democrats have run into a brick wall," he said, "and the pledge is there."

Green estimates they've cleared more than 40 Monson properties for free since the tornado.

View full sizePhoto by Neil HawleyJustin Green of Whately, a leader of the Chainsaw Response Team operates a chainsaw at a home on King Street in Monson.

MONSON – Justin Green got a call from his aunt on East Hill Road after the tornado struck, asking if he would help clear her property. She knew he was handy with a chainsaw.

“I go up King Street and said, ‘Oh my God, this is like a war zone,’” Green, a University of Massachusetts at Amherst police officer, said.

That was how Green’s “Chainsaw Response Team” got its start.

He talked to the men he worked with, along with firefighters and police officers, family and friends, and got the Chainsaw Response Team rolling.

Since early June, the team has focused on helping the people of Monson.

Green, of Whately, estimates they’ve cleared more than 40 properties for free since the tornado ravaged parts of the town on June 1, saving homeowners thousands in tree removal expenses in the process.

Sometimes as many as 40 team members – clad in their trademark fluorescent green T-shirts and chainsaws in hand – descend on the properties and go to work, removing trees and tornado debris in their way.

“They just attack the streets . . . They have pretty much taken care of King Street. If they had not been on the street, it would not look like it does today. There were trees everywhere,” said Lynn M. Taylor, a tornado volunteer who helped connect Green with problem areas.

“They are our angels,” said fellow volunteer, Alison C. Hill.

“The pictures don’t do it justice. The damage, it’s just total devastation. It’s amazing what Mother Nature’s capable of,” said Mark J. Wesoloski, a fellow UMass police officer who is part of the team. “Justin spearheaded everything. He’s been the leader.”

“I don’t want to stop,” Green said.

Green’s taken time off his job and invested his money into the response team. But it costs at least $1,500 a day to do the work, and he is accepting donations, so he can keep the team going. All donations are going to the volunteer effort.

Any questions can be directed to Green at (413) 387-7722. And anyone wishing to make a financial contribution can make donations payable to “LE Chainsaw Crew Monson Tornado Relief” at any Florence Savings Bank; more information is available on the Chainsaw Response Team’s Facebook page. They are also selling Chainsaw Response Team T-shirts as a fundraiser.

Their next stop in Monson is Tuesday, starting at 7:30 a.m., at a location to be determined. Updates will be on the Facebook page.

“We’ve met so many wonderful people . . . I’ve told people, ‘I’ve got an army up the street waiting to cut wood.’ People, when they see us, are so happy they are in tears,” Green said.

In addition to King Street and East Hill Road, the team has done work on Ely, Cote, Upper Hampden and Wood Hill roads.

For Green, a Marine sergeant who went to Iraq twice, Monson represents another challenge.

“You can’t stop a mission until it’s done, and we’re not done,” Green said. “There are months and months of work still left.”

He’s had help from the sheriff’s department - his father Tony Green, a lieutenant and day shift commander at the Western Mass Regional Women’s Correctional Center, brought female prisoners out to assist one day.

They helped catch a goldfish in a crushed ornamental pond at Elizabeth “Bobbi” Williams’ damaged home at 21 King St. on a recent weekday.

Green said he’s been back to the Williams’ house several times, and has helped remove trees all over the property, sometimes using heavy equipment.

“We lost pretty much every tree on the property,” Williams said.

She said most of the homeowners lack enough insurance coverage to deal with such extensive tree removal, and that’s where Green’s team helps the most.

When Williams first walked into her home 21 years ago, she said it was her “dream house.” Now there is a chunk of the roof missing, cracks in the ceilings and walls. They are unsure if they can repair it.

Williams said they are so grateful to Green and his team.

“We call him our fifth son,” Williams said. “Once they cleared away a lot of the wood, they really gave us hope.”

“It’s been humbling . . . the amount of compassion total strangers have for you when they see you in need,” Williams said.

Neil Hawley photoJustin Green of Whately, a leader of the Chainsaw Response Team operates a chainsaw at a home on King Street in Monson.

Our Lady of the Cross held its first official Mass on July 1.

07/04/11 Holyoke- Republican Photo by Mark M.Murray- Mass at the Our Lady of the Cross Parish was held Sunday. The combined parishes of Holy Cross and Mater Dolorosa took part in the service.

HOLYOKE – Kevin Rodgers, 15, of Holyoke, stood at the doors of the former Holy Cross church with a sign reading “Celebrate with our Lady of the Cross” in honor of the first big Mass since the church joined with Mater Dolorosa.

“It’s an exciting day. We are going to have many new parishioners and hopefully I’ll meet some new people and make new friends,” Rodgers said.

The church held its first official Mass on July 1, but Sunday’s Mass was the first large one for the two parishes.

Fr. James McCurry, who led the service, told the crowded church that while the two parishes are unique, they will be stronger together.

“ We recognize that each parish has its own shape, size, character, history and traditions. Jesus loves the uniqueness of each and has yoked them together as one new parish,” he said.

Dorothy Skibel, of South Hadley, has been a member of Mater Dolorosa on Maple Street for 74 years. The church officially closed on Thursday. As chairman of the parish council Skibel felt it was important to make a smooth transition.

“I have gotten to know a lot of the parishioners at this church and we have worked closely together,” she said.

While she will miss the building, she is glad that Fr. Alex B. Cymerman, the pastor at Mater Dolorosa, will be coming to the new church.

“It will be different, but sometimes you have to step outside of your comfort zone,” she said.

At Mater Dolorosa some parishioners are participating in a continuos vigil. They do not want the church to close and most have decided not to attend Our Lady of the Cross.

“After being here all these years all of a sudden without any real information given to parishioners directly, they took it upon the themselves to close the church,” said Edward Wytrych, of Holyoke, who has been a member of the church for more than 50 years.

He said he wants a meeting with Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell to discuss the closing.

“We will not give up the church,” he said. “We will stay and fight until the church reopens or we will seek other churches to attend.”

Phyllis Babula, of South Hadley, has been a member of the church her whole life.

“My grandchildren are the fifth generation affiliated with this church. My family has been affiliated with the church for over 100 years. The kids have gone through communions, confirmations and weddings here,” she said. “We are all very heartbroken. This beautiful church is filled with very happy memories we thought we could continue to enjoy for years to come.”

Mitch Sroka has been a member of the church for 35 years. He moved to the United States from Poland when he was 21 years old.

“This has become my community, like family,” he said.

Sroka said he does not believe the concerns cited by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield regarding $750,000 worth of repairs to the church are a reason to close.

“We collect over $5,000 every week in donations. Where does the money go?” he said.

He is also concerned about the older Holyoke residents who walk to the church.

“They are not gong to drive to the other church and they are not going to go at all. It’s like they (the diocese) don’t care if we go to church or not,” he said.

Mark Dupont, a spokesman for the diocese, said pastoral planning is about making churches sustainable.

“We don’t want parishes to rely on fund raising to keep their doors open,” he said.

While joining the two churches was not an easy decision to make, Dupont said it had to be done.

“This is the goal of pastoral planning, to create strong, vibrant, Catholic communities that can sustain themselves for years to come,” he said. “We want the church community to express their faith inwardly in parish celebrations, but also to take the faith outside the church doors into the community.”

Obituaries from The Republican.

John J. Howard Jr.

John Joseph Howard, Jr., 71, of Springfield, passed away on Tuesday. He was born in Worcester and moved to Springfield at the age of 10. He attended Lincoln School, Chestnut Junior High School and graduated top of his class from Springfield Technical High School in 1957. Howard graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnical Institute in 1961 with a bachelor of science degree, and in 1963 he earned his master's degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He worked for GE in Pittsfield, before beginning a teaching career, during which he taught at UMass, Mitchell Junior College, Western New England College, Springfield and Greenfield Community College.

Obituaries from The Republican:

• Allair, Cynthia J.
  




• 
  Bresnahan, Dr. Thomas P.
  



• 
  Cavanaugh, Loraine A.




• 
  Ferriter Jr., John R.
  



• 
  Friss, Angelina M. (Staccio)
  




• Garelli, Matthew J.
  




• 
  Howard Jr., John J.
  



• 
  Kafantaris, Michael G.




• 
  Keough, Shirley E.
  



• 
  Nietupski, Edward W.
  




• Orlowski, Dorothy M. (Curran)
  




• 
  Reynolds, Inez "Tiny" (Wayne)
  



• 
  Sarno, Carmine




• 
  Senko Jr., Edward W.
  

The Massachusetts National Guard is the oldest military organization in the United States.

U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. James C. Lally, Task Force Yankee Public AffairsCommand Sgt. Maj. William M. Davidson, Command Sergeant Major of the 26th "Yankee" Brigade, Task Force Yankee, Massachusetts Army National Guard, thanks Monson resident Sgt. Peter M. Uliana for his service during a Combat Patch Ceremony in Patriot Square, Camp Phoenix on April 28, 2011. The 26th held the ceremony to present Soldiers with their unit patches that signify wartime service.

Nearly 2,000 members of Massachusetts' National Guard are now on duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, and crews from the Air Reserve’s 439th Airlift Wing at Westover Air Reserve Base in Chicopee continue weekly duty to help ship personnel, equipment and supplies for the war effort.

As the nation celebrates Independence Day, the National Guard troops and Reservists carry on roles as “citizen soldiers” here at home and around the globe, a tradition established centuries ago.

The oldest military organization in the country, the Massachusetts National Guard was founded in 1636, and its members have provided combat and support services in every major conflict since the War of Independence.

In 2011, the Guard, with its more than 8,700 members, provided assistance to Western Massachusetts communities hit by the June 1 tornadoes. The state’s Army Guard has 6,593 members, while the Air Guard, established in 1921, has 2,113 members. Of the total, an estimated 80 percent remain available to respond to emergencies across the state.

Currently, more than 1,400 Guard members are stationed in Afghanistan and another 231 are on duty in Iraq. Services provided by the Guard range from security to infantry.

Air National Guard commander Brig. Gen. L. Scott Rice, a Southampton resident, said members of the 104th Fighter Wing at Barnes Regional Airport, have had a presence in the Middle East long before Sept. 11, 2001 and will continue to be involved in military efforts there for “some time to come.

“Our security forces have assumed a lot of responsibility there during deployments of six months to a year at a time,” said Rice. “The Guard strives for excellence, service above self and integrity. The 104th Fighter Wing is the top Guard unit in the nation.”

Rice acknowledged there is a “toll” taken on the families of Guard members as they deploy and leave their civilian lives.

“Deployment is harder on our families,” said Rice. “When airmen and warriors are deployed, we know where we are, but it is the strength of our families that allow us to do what we do,” the commander said.

A Guard public affairs officer, 1st Sgt. Pallas A. Wahl said the National Guard carries out both federal and state roles. “It supports both military operations oversees as well as domestic situations, most recently the tornado damage to Western Massachusetts,” she said. “The men and women of the Guard are truly a valuable asset to the commonwealth and the nation, and their family members are our family members."

The C-5 Galaxy cargo aircraft of the 439th Airlift Wing are making weekly treks in support of the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns, according to Master Sgt. Andrew S. Biscoe. Most recently about 300 of the 2,500-member airlift wing saw security and aerial port (cargo handling) duty in Afghanistan. That activation was part of the U.S. military’s surge during the spring of 2010. Those troops returned home last fall, Biscoe said.

During the same time period, members of the 439th manned staging operations in Spain, responsible for transporting heavy equipment to Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the sergeant.

File photo | The RepublicanMembers of B Company, 181st Engineer Battalion, a Massachusetts Army National Guard unit based in Springfield, salute during the retirement of the colors portion of their formal homecoming in 2007 at the MassMutual Center in Springfield.

Among the Army Guard units on duty in Afghanistan now are members of the famed 26th Yankee Brigade. Those soldiers, including some from across the region, are currently providing command, control and security in and around Afghanistan’s Kabul province.

Wahl said more than 200 soldiers of the 26th Brigade Headquarters and 26th Signal Company, under a one-year mobilization, joined 700 members of the grigade’s 1st Battalion, 181st Infantry Regiment in Afghanistan in the spring.

Another nearly 700 Army Guard members of the 1st Battalion 182nd Infantry Regiment have been mobilized to provide additional security for reconstruction efforts throughout Afghanistan. That deployment was initiated in March to replace members of the 181st Infantry Regiment who have been in Afghanistan since last August.

The 104th Fighter Wing, meanwhile, continues to supply “small increments” increments of air support in both Iraq and Afghanistan, according to wing executive officer Maj. Matthew T. Mutti.

Currently, 28 unit members are in Iraq and another eight in Afghanistan. Another 58 are expected to deploy to Afghanistan within the next two months and about 200 unit members are expected to deploy for duty over the next year, Mutti said.

The 104th has just over 1,000 members, including security manager Chief Master Sgt. Jeffrey C. Johnson, who was recently awarded a Bronze Star for service during his second tour of duty in Iraq.

Rice, who received the Bronze Star himself for a leadership role during deployment in Iraq in 2003, said, “It is an honor and humbling to receive such an award. I am proud to serve with Chief Master Sgt. Johnson, and he now joins the Bronze Star family.”

Highlights from events in South Hadley and Westfield.

Here are photo highlights from some of the Independence Day 2011 festivities in the Pioneer Valley.

» Upload your own Fourth of July photos to MassLive.com!

Police have closed off parts of Lincoln Street.

This story was updated at 8:45 p.m.

Republican staff photo by Michael BeswickSpringfield Police search for bullet casings in the killing of a man in his 20s on Lincoln Street.

SPRINGFIELD - Police are investigating the murder of a man on Lincoln Street, near Springfield Technical Community College.

The shooting happened at about 7:20 p.m. Police are on the scene looking for shell casings and other evidence.

When officers responded to the shooting, the man was already dead, said Sgt. Christopher Hitas.

"He was walking down the street and he got shot and he ran to a house," he said.

Police blocked off the house and driveway at 54 Lincoln St. as well as closed parts of the street and sidewalk to motorists and pedestrians.

They also were investigating an area across the street, which appeared to be the back of a Springfield Technical Community College building.

Neighbors gathered for a short time around the scene. The shooting happened while people were outside celebrating the holiday weekend.

"We heard three shots and we thought they were M-80's (fireworks)," said Darwin Dawkins, who lives one street over.

Even when police arrived, they thought a child may have gotten hurt from setting off fireworks.

Quentin Foster said he is concerned the killing is a sign the violence is moving closer to his neighborhood.

"Pretty much in this area it is OK. There is more violence down the street," he said.

The Rev. Paul Archambault was ordained in 2005.

Photo by Michael Beswick / The RepublicanOur Lady of Sacred Heart Church in Springfield

SPRINGFIELD - A priest who was reported missing after he failed to show up to say Mass Sunday morning, was found dead later in the afternoon in a closet of the church rectory.

The priest died in the Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Parish rectory on Rosewell St. Police are investigating the cause of death, Sgt. Christopher Hitas said.

The priest, Rev. Paul Archambault, 42, said Mass at 4 p.m., Saturday at St. Mary’s Parish in Hampden. He was scheduled to return Sunday morning, said Mark E. Dupont, spokesman for the Springfield Roman Catholic Diocese.

When he did not arrive, parish members contacted priests at Sacred Heart. Another came to the church to conduct the service and a search was started, he said.

“He was one of our younger priests. Most recently he had been instrumental in organizing the Eucharist Procession in Northampton,” Dupont said.

Archambault was not the regular pastor at St. Mary’s, but said Mass there occasionally. He also served as a chaplain for Baystate Medical Center in Springfield and did many special projects including recently serving at an all-night vigil in honor of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

A native of Northampton, Archambault, graduated from St. John’s Seminary College in Brighton in 2000 and earned a master’s degree in divinity from Holy Apostles Seminary in Cromwell, Conn. He was ordained in 2005.

The elementary school still has the original windows installed in 1955.

Republican file photo

GREENFIELD – The Discovery School at Four Corners will get a roof repair, a new boiler and modern windows thanks to a grant from the state School Building Authority.

Last renovated in 1991, the elementary school still has its original windows from 1955. The boiler is about 20 years old, and there are holes in the roof. Upgrading these could help the district consume less fuel and therefore save money, said municipal finance director Lane Kelly.

The grant will fund the project to an estimated maximum of $1,474,447 through the Green Repair program, which promotes energy efficiency improvements. Greenfield will pay the total $1.9 million and then receive a reimbursement of about 79 percent from the building authority.

In January, the Town Council approved the spending.

The project will take at least a year and will mostly work around the students’ schedule.

“The roof will go on while the children are in school,” said Kelly. “It won’t disrupt them too much. They won’t have to leave the building.”

Re-roofing will last about through the end of September, and the other work likely will be done when the students aren’t in the building, she said.

Kelly said there was no risk to students. If there were any hazardous materials used, they would be in small amounts and the children would not be exposed to them, she said.

Four Corners is a Massachusetts Innovation School that teaches students using more flexibility and creativity than a traditional school. Kelly said the construction could offer an opportunity for education about green energy, but “that’s just a guess on my part.”

An application for renovation of the high school is active with the state. The city has also submitted Green Repair Statements of Intent for Newton School, Federal Street School and the Academy of Early Learning at North Parish.

The Jaycees have held a carnival before the July Fourth holiday sicne the 1960s.

The sun peeked out from behind the clouds just as the last day of the East Longmeadow Jaycees Summer Carnival was firing up rides and the band was starting to play.

“It is great seeing everyone coming out and having a good time especially in a bad economy,” said Max Davis, of Longmeadow.

He had gone to the event with his family Saturday night but his young daughter fell asleep and missed most of it. They decided to return for the rides and fireworks on Sunday, Davis said.

East Longmeadow is one of the communities which celebrate July 4 in a big way. The four-day carnival ended Sunday night with rain-or-shine fireworks and then at 10 a.m., Monday one of the largest Fourth of July parades will step off from Birchland Park Middle School.

But the town isn’t alone. Springfield’s annual Fourth of July celebration will go on as usual at Riverfront Park, despite the fact the area was damaged by the June 1 tornado. The event will start at 7:30 p.m. with a performance by the Dan Kane Singers and a children’s chorus. The largest fireworks display in Western Massachusetts will start at 9:30 p.m.

That event, called the Star Spangled Springfield is organized by Spirit of Springfield.

Amherst will also celebrate the holiday with a variety of events such as a corn husking contest and entertainment by the Amherst Community Band behind Alumni Stadium on the University of Massachusetts campus. It culminates at 9:30 p.m. with fireworks.

West Springfield will celebrate on the town common from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a chicken dinner served by the Unico Club and a variety of performances.

East Longmeadow Jaycees has been holding its carnival from June 29 through July 3 annually since the 1960s. Once it moved it to different dates only to be bombarded with complaints.

“We had people telling us we ruined their Fourth of July. We moved it back the next year,” said Maureen M. Basile, of East Longmeadow, a former chapter president for the Jaycees.

Then the Jaycees realized the carnival, full of games, rides, music and food, had become part of many people’s holiday, she said.

“It is a traditional, all-American night out for everyone,” she said.

Even before the carnival opened at 6 p.m., people were streaming through the gates. By the time fireworks started an estimated 30,000 people had gathered around the area.

Matt Martin and Joel Clay, both 13, came early to check out some of the games. They planned to stay for a while, then go to a friend’s house and return later for the fireworks.

“It’s fun ... all the rides and the games,” Martin said.

As is tradition, the East Longmeadow All-Stars gathered to entertain before and during the fireworks. The band is made up of members of a variety of different bands, including the four members of the Opie Reid Band. This year there were a total of 11 members of the group, said Greg Trelease, a drummer and one of the organizers.

The extra members allow the group to play music they typically cannot while playing with a smaller group.

“Because we are from town our neighbors and kids come and this gives them a chance to see us old farts play,” he said.

Here is a list of major municipal meetings for the coming week: Amherst Tues.-Select Board, noon, Town Hall. Jones Library Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., Jones Library. Wed.-Planning Board Zoning Subcommittee, 5 p.m., Town Hall. Planning Board, 7 p.m., Town Hall. Thu.-Town Meeting Coordinating Committee, 2 p.m., Town Hall. Finance Committee, 7 p.m., Town Hall. Chicopee Tues. - City...

Republican file photo

Here is a list of major municipal meetings for the coming week:

Amherst

Tues.-Select Board, noon, Town Hall.

Jones Library Board of Trustees, 7 p.m., Jones Library.

Wed.-Planning Board Zoning Subcommittee, 5 p.m., Town Hall.

Planning Board, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Thu.-Town Meeting Coordinating Committee, 2 p.m., Town Hall.

Finance Committee, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Chicopee

Tues. - City Council, 7:15 p.m., City Hall.

Wed. - Conservation Commission, 6:15 p.m., City Hall.

School Committee, 7 p.m., 180 Broadway .

Thurs. - Planning Board, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Granby

Tues.-Board of Assessors, 7 p.m., Town Hall Annex

Sat.-Selectboard Office Hours, 9-11 a.m., Aldrich Hall.

Greenfield

Wed.-Youth Commission, 6:30 p.m., 20 Sanderson St.

Board of Health, 6:45 p.m., Town Hall.

Thu.-Planning Board, 7 p.m., police station.

Hadley

Tues.-Board of Health, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Planning Board, 7 p.m., Senior Center.

Huntington

Wed.-Board of Selectmen, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Monson

Tues.-Tax Assistance Committee, 9 a.m., Senior Center.

Finance Committee, 4:30 p.m., Granite Valley Middle School.

Community Preservation Committee, 7 p.m., Hillside School.

Historical Commission, 3 p.m., Hillside School.

Wed.-School Committee, 7 p.m., Quarry Hill Community School.

Board of Health, 6 p.m., Hillside School.

Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Hillside School.

Thu.-Cemetery Commissioners, 6 p.m., Cemetery Dept., 32 Wilbraham Road.

Northampton

Thu.-City Council, 7:15 p.m., City Council Chambers.

Palmer

Tues.-Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Town Building.

South Hadley

Wed.-School Building Committee, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall

Capital Planning Committee, 6 p.m., Town Hall.

Master Plan Implementation Committee, 7:30 p.m., Town Hall.

Thu.-Fire District 2, Prudential Committee, 6:30 p.m., 20 Worthington St.

Fire District 1, Water Commissioners, 6:30 p.m., 438 Granby Road.

Southwick

Tues.-Planning Board, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Thu.-Historical Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall .

Water Commission, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Board of Health, 7 p.m., Town Hall.

Warren

Wed.- Sewer Commissioners, 8 a.m., Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Westfield

Tues.-Planning Board, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Wed.-School Building Committee, public information session, 6 p.m., South Middle School.

Arts Council, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Westfield Municipal Light Board, 7 p.m., 100 Elm St.

Thu.-City Council, 7 p.m., City Hall.

Coldwell Banker sampled 88 communities across the Commonwealth for the snapshot survey of asking prices collected in May.

Mark M. Murray/ The Republican07/01/11 Springfield- Republican Photo by Mark M.Murray- Christian Faustmann, a new Springfield home owner shown infront of his home.

SPRINGFIELD – When Christian E. Faustmann’s employer transferred him from Upstate New York to the Pioneer Valley last year, he and his wife Michele for homes not just in Springfield, but in Hadley, East Longmeadow and a number of nearby towns.

They now live on Plumtree Road in Springfield’s Sixteen Acres neighborhood.

“I would almost have to pay double the amount in a nearby home that’s not in Springfield,” he said. “It’s a nice neighborhood. My wife fell in love with it.”

The Faustmanns aren’t the only people finding Springfield an affordable place to buy a home these days. The average four-bedroom, two bathroom home in Springfield listed for $133,404 making the City of Homes the least-expensive housing market in the state and the 133rd least expensive place to buy a home in the country, according to a recently released study by Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC that proves the old chestnut about location, location and location.

Coldwell Banker sampled 88 communities across the Commonwealth for the snapshot survey of asking prices collected in May, according to a news release. Weston was the most expensive community in the state at an average listing price of $1.22 million.

Westfield was the sixth-least expensive at $302,170. Sturbridge was the ninth most affordable at $323,500. East Longmeadow was 15th at an average asking price of $357,893. Wilbraham was 17th at $367,942. Belchertown was 19th at $373,663. Longmeadow was 30th most affordable at $423,384 and Southwick was 36th least expensive at $456,264.

Nationally, Niagara Falls, N.Y., is the most affordable community in the country according to Coldwell Banker with an average listing price of $60,820. Utica, N.Y., the city the Faustmanns lived in before moving here, was the 14th least expensive housing market in the country with an average listing price of $84,195.

Newport Beach, Calif., led the list of most expensive U.S. real estate markets for the second year in a row, with an average home listing price of approximately $2.5 million, according to Coldwell Banker.

Kevin M. Sears, an owner and broker at Sears Real Estate in Springfield and a former president of the Massachusetts Association of Realtors said Boston’s near suburbs are always going to lead the list of the most expensive communities in which to live. He said he’d like to see the more Western Massachusetts communities, like Northampton or Amherst, included in the survey.

“I’m thrilled that Springfield is an affordable community,” he said. “That promotes renters becoming owners. When renters become owners, it builds a sense of community.”

Despite the widespread tornado damaged the city suffered June 1, Springfield has very good housing stock, Sears said.

“If you took a house from the historic district in Forest Park and dropped it in Newton, it would be worth $1 million to $2 million,” Sears said referring to a Boston suburb. “It’s $175,000 here.”

Karl J. Petrick, an assistant professor of economics at Western New England University said the bad part about being affordable is that it indicates that there is just little demand for homes in Springfield.

“This place should be very attractive,” he said. “But where are the jobs?”

Springfield’s median household income is $38,155 a year compared with a national average of $53,712 and a statewide average of $63,477

“The Holy Grail would be attracting people because it is so cheap to get property here,” Petrick said. “That has worked elsewhere. But it is also something that Springfield has been trying to do for a very long time.”

Connecticut Consumer Counsel Mary Healey and Attorney General George Jepsen argued the merger would create a $17 billion giant that could squash in-state customers

By HARLAN LEVY
Special to The Republican

State Consumer Counsel Mary Healey has filed an appeal in Superior Court of the Department of Public Utility Control’s June ruling that it doesn’t have authority to review Northeast Utilities’ proposed $4.3 billion purchase of Boston-based electricity and gas utility NStar.

Healey and Attorney General George Jepsen had asked state regulators to review the merger, which they said will create a new $17.5 billion giant and could hurt Connecticut customers.

But the DPUC commissioners ruled that they have no legal authority to review the merger because NU is acquiring another company. Under state law the DPUC would have jurisdiction only if a another company is “acquiring or exercising authority or control” over NU and its subsidiaries, Connecticut Light & Power and Yankee Gas.

But Healey argues that NU would become a new company with different directors and management.

“This merger transaction between NU and NStar is of such an enormous magnitude that it should not escape rigorous review by the DPUC,” she said.

Healey noted that Massachusetts is conducting an extensive review of this merger, including public hearings.

Connecticut should do the same, she said, to be sure “citizens would continue to receive safe, reliable service, effective customer service, and an appropriate share of the economic benefits arising from the merger.”

An analysis by NU and NStar concluded that over 10 years the merger would save consumers as much as $780 million, including labor savings from the elimination of duplicative operations, “especially in corporate and administrative areas, not in customer-facing positions or in operations,” the report said, adding that “no broad-based, corporate-wide layoffs or early retirements are planned, and all union contracts will continue to be honored.”

The report also said that NU is a strong “green” company “signing long-term contracts with wind developers and consistently taking a leadership role in energy-efficiency programs” as well as constructing solar generation plants and projects that will bring low-carbon power from Canada into the region.

NU and NStar already have a working relationship in a joint venture owned 75 percent by NU and 25 percent by NStar to build a 140-mile transmission line bringing hydro-electric power from Canada to New England. An estimate of regional savings is as much as $325 million along with lower electrical bills in each of the six New England states when it’s up and running, in five years at the earliest.

In early February the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved the financial part of the merger, and shareholders of both companies approved the deal.

NU operates New England’s largest utility with annual revenues of $5.4 billion and assets of $14.2 billion. It serves more than 2.1 million customers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire.

NStar is the largest Massachusetts-based, investor-owned electric and gas utility serving 1.4 million customers in Eastern and Central Massachusetts, including more than one million electric customers in 81 communities and 300,000 gas customers in 51 communities.