Peter Pan and the city plan to announce Tuesday the bus lines' deal to use Springfield Union Station as its Springfield hub Watch video

SPRINGFIELD -- Moving Peter Pan Bus Lines' Springfield hub into Union Station and out of the company-owned bus facility at 1776 Main St. it's used since 1969 is good for both the company and the community, Peter A. Picknelly, chairman & CEO of Peter Pan, said Monday night.

"We will bring life to that building," Picknelly said in an interview with The Republican. "We had to make a business decision, but we are also good corporate citizens."

A multi-modal transit center, which is what the redeveloped Union Station was designed to be, won't work without the intercity bus service -- Peter Pan -- that brings "by far" more passengers into Springfield than rail, he said.

Peter Pan has hundreds of departures and arrivals each day from Springfield, Picknelly said. The Springfield-based company services 100 cities in the Northeast and all can be reached from Springfield. 

The city announced Monday that it and Peter Pan had reached an agreement. A formal press conference is set for Tuesday morning with U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, who spearheaded the soon-to-be-completed $94 million rehab of the mammoth station built in 1926 but largely abandoned since 1973. A grand reopening is scheduled for late June.

Neither Picknelly nor the city discussed financial terms of the deal Monday. But the contract becomes public once acted upon by the Springfield Redevelopment Authority, which owns Union Station.

Picknelly said he'd like to have Peter Pan moved into Union Station as soon as possible after it reopens. But there is a lot of logistical work to do to make that happen.

He said Peter Pan is still in discussions about also moving Peter Pan's corporate offices into Union Station either on a temporary basis or for the long term. But that office space deal has not been signed.

Moving bus operations out of the current station clears the way for that property to be redeveloped. Picknelly said he doesn't have a lot of details to share now about that planned redevelopment of 1776 Main St. except to say he's talking with prospects.

"We don't want to see another empty building on Main Street," Picknelly said. "We are going to re-purpose it for another development. I think all the pieces are coming together for the redevelopment of our downtown."

That includes 31 Elm St. on Springfield's Court Square, he said.

"We are close to having an announcement there," he said.

The long-vacant six-floor former hotel at 31 Elm is owned by the Springfield Redevelopment Authority, which had named Picknelly and his real estate firm, the OPAL Real Estate Group, as the preferred developer.

In March, MGM Springfield president Mike Mathis said 31 Elm St. is the priority site for the casino to create 54 market rate apartments. 

MGM Springfield is required to build market-rate hosing downtown in its host community agreement with the city.

The department will begin with the 417 multi-family homes that have eight units or more.

CHICOPEE - The Building Department is beginning an effort to inspect all 417 of the largest multi-family apartment buildings in the city after realizing the required examinations haven't been done in some time.

The city is required to inspect multi-family homes at least once every five years to ensure a number of code requirements are followed, but it has been far longer since any inspections have been conducted, Carl Dietz, the building commissioner, said.

"It is not new but we are new, fresh eyes and we are making sure we are in compliance," said Dietz, who took over as building commissioner about two years ago. "It hasn't been a primary focus."

The city began in April with all complexes that have eight apartments or more. "We get the biggest bang for our buck and it is not a whole lot of extra work," Dietz said.

The Building Department will also inspect smaller multi-family homes during this time if there are suspected problem with the buildings, he said.

It isn't going to be easy to conduct all the inspections. The Building Department has requested $5,000 in overtime in the upcoming budget to allow employees to work extra to get them done. The work to inspect the 417 buildings is expected to take more than a year to complete, Mayor Richard J. Kos said.

"We are trying to squeeze it in when we can," Dietz said. "We are trying to schedule them for late afternoons and Saturdays."

The Department is trying to contact every building owner and set up appointments with them to inspect the buildings. There is also a $75 fee for the inspections. Building owners are also welcome to contact the Building Department and set up an appointment that is convenient for them, he said.

The Department also has a 21-item check list that it will share with owners before the inspections. The extensive list calls for ensuring all major building structural components including foundation, floor, wall, and roof systems meet code, all plumbing is installed properly and maintained, electrical fixtures meet code and there are no unapproved extension cords or adapters and gas piping and appliances operate properly.

Owners must also show fire safety measures are in place including having up-to-date smoke detectors and fire extinguishers in good working order, showing escape openings are provided and maintained and fire doors meet code.

"This is a focus on voluntary compliance. Each owner will get a check list with the letter informing them of the inspections," Dietz said.

If an inspector does find something that does not meet code, owners will be given time to make the repairs and then call for another inspection. No fines will be issued if the problem is corrected, he said.

"Periodic inspections will help ensure greater compliance with required life safety systems in multi-family structures, increasing the level of safety for occupants," Dietz said in writing.

Chicopee Building Inspection list by Todd Avila on Scribd

Components include informal precinct councilor meetings and ranked voting for local elections.

AMHERST -- The Amherst Charter Commission is changing course once again, this time suggesting a town manager-town council form of government, but no mayor.

Initially, the commission proposed a mayor and a 13-member town council, with 10 councilors representing each of the town's 10 precincts and three elected as at-large members.

The commission next considered a 60-member council, which would have been the largest in the United States, before returning to a 13-member model, this time with a mayor and manager.

But at a meeting on Saturday, the commission in a 7-0 vote, with one member abstaining and one member absent, approved presenting the council-manager model, with no mayor.

Components include informal precinct councilor meetings and ranked voting for local elections. 

Charter commission chairman Andy Churchill in an email said the latest plan for a new town government "can be seen as somewhat conservative, in that it keeps a professional manager which we are all familiar with.

"But it basically sets up the choice as being between a manager with a 240-person town meeting that meets twice a year and a manager with a 13-person (or less) council that meets regularly, can set its own agenda, and serves as a direct conduit for resident concerns and issues," he said.

The vote came after the commission discussed the roles of a mayor and a chief administrative officer, "trying to balance the political accountability of a directly elected mayor with the managerial expertise of a professional public administrator," Churchill said. Opinions varied about how much power to give to the administrator and how detailed to be in the charter about those powers.

Each councilor would hold a minimum of two precinct meetings per year -- akin to office hours -- for two-way communication with constituents about local issues, proposals and opportunities, according to the proposal.

Town-wide forums would also be held annually on the budget, the master plan and the schools.

The commission also expressed general interest in moving toward ranked choice voting, which ensures majority support for elected officials and saves money by combining primary and final elections in one, Churchill said.

Unless there's another Town Meeting session Thursday night, the commission plans to hold a feedback session Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Bangs Center.

The commission has until July 31 to submit a preliminary report. The final report is due Sept. 29. The commission would then make a recommendation that voters would consider in March.

A New Hampshire driver was charged with operating an unregistered vehicle once police realized her registration sticker was a cheese wrapper.

Officers cracked the case in an unusual traffic stop on Monday - cracked pepper sharp cheese, that is.

A driver in Alexandria, New Hampshire was issued a traffic violation on Monday when police found forged registration stickers on her car. The Alexandria Police Department shared photos of the fake stickers, made with red cheese wrappers that were in similar size and proportion to car registration stickers.

One license plate had a red sticker on it that read "These prices held until Jul 8," and the other license plate had "Cooper Cracked Pepper Sharp Cheese" sticker on it. The front windshield sticker had text on it reading "These prices won't last." 

Alexandria police say they towed the car, and the woman who was behind the wheel could be fined up to $2,400. In a post on Facebook, police reminded readers that driving an un-inspected or unregistered vehicle is a violation level offense.

As the suspect in the Friday killings of two South Boston doctors faced murder charges while laid up in a Tufts Medical Center hospital bed Monday, Boston police sought answers in two unsolved homicides that occurred the same night.

As the suspect in the Friday killings of two South Boston doctors faced murder charges while laid up in a Tufts Medical Center hospital bed Monday, Boston police sought answers in two unsolved homicides that occurred the same night. 

According to The Boston Herald, Servulo Galvao-Antunes, 18, died of multiple stab wounds outside 5 Groom St. in Roxbury at around 9:20 p.m. Friday.

A half-hour later, shots rang out in Mattapan around 46 Rexford St. and Antwan Stevenson, 25, fell dead. 

Boston police homicide detectives and homicide prosecutors with the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office are working both cases but have yet to make any arrests, according to the Herald.

Anyone with information concerning either of the killings is asked to contact the Boston Police Department.

"Elvers are, pound for pound, by far the most valuable marine resource in Maine," Operation Game Thief Board Chairman Greg Sirpis said.

A man is facing up to a year in prison and a hefty fine after he was allegedly caught with 16.5 pounds of Maine gold. 

More specifically, 51-year-old Joseph Starrett, of Middleborough, is accused of illegally possessing 16.5 pounds of elvers, or baby eels. The price per pound of elvers can climb up to $2,000, depending on how many are caught in a year, the Associated Press reports. 

According to the Maine Department of Marine Resources, elver fishing is highly regulated. Licenses to fish elvers are scarce, and there are strict quotas in place preventing overfishing.

"Elvers are, pound for pound, by far the most valuable marine resource in Maine," Operation Game Thief Board Chairman Greg Sirpis said.

Starratt was arrested in late April for the Class D crime. In addition to facing up to a year of prison, Starratt could face a $2,000 fine for illegal possession of elvers. 

Marine Patrol received a tip through their confidential tip line that Starratt was in possession of elvers. He was apprehended in Scarborough, Maine, allegedly carrying 16.5 pounds of elvers on his person at the time of his arrest. 

"Maine has done a great job of managing this resource and minimizing illegal activity in the fishery. But this case shows that the big bucks associated with this fishery will still tempt some to violate the law," Sirpis said. 

Elvers fetch a high price from eel farmers in Asia, hoping to get a batch of the eels when they are young so they can nurture them to maturity. The eels are then sold as food in different dishes, the Associated Press reports.

In 2016, more than 5,300 pounds of elvers was caught, a haul valued at $11.4 million, according to the Associated Press. That was 4,000 pounds less than that year's allotted quota. 

After decades of caring for children during difficult times in their young lives, Mariam Gannon passed away.

After decades of caring for children during difficult times in their young lives, Mariam Gannon passed away. 

Gannon served as a foster mother to dozens of children, opening her home in Braintree to those in need. 

She and her husband became foster parents in the 1960s after their priest spoke of the need for more foster families during Sunday Mass. 

Over the decades, she cared for more than 70 children, many of whom had disabilities. She expanded her four-bedroom home to eight bedrooms, had an elevator installed and expanded rooms to make them wheelchair-accessible to better accommodate children, the Boston Globe reports. 

"I believe each one of us was meant to be in the family because we fit together so well," the Gannon family's sole biological child, Maryanne Zeller, told the Globe.

Gannon died of lymphoma Friday in her home. She was 82 years old. 

Town Meeting on Monday night voted overwhelmingly -- 165 to 4 -- in favor of designating Amherst a Sanctuary Community, a move whose effect will be to forbid law enforcement probing people's immigration status and making noncompliance with federal immigration agents official town policy.

What was formerly in question is no more. 

Amherst residents at the Town Meeting on Monday night voted overwhelmingly -- 165 to 4 -- in favor of designating Amherst a Sanctuary Community, a move whose effect will be to forbid law enforcement probing people's immigration status and making noncompliance with federal immigration agents official town policy. 

Federal immigration requests to detain suspected illegal immigrants are voluntary. 

Before Monday night's vote, the major players in Town Hall and the police department seemed unsure of whether Amherst qualified as one. 

Although the town certainly did in spirit -- Town Meeting officially adopted sanctuary community-type language in 2012. 

But, as Town Manager Paul Bockelman pointed out in a February interview with MassLive, "There is no official list of sanctuary cities, no government designation. Communities tend to self-declare. Amherst has not."

Meanwhile, Police Chief Scott Livingstone around the same time said, "We're not sure what we are. From the perspective of popular beliefs and how the police department operates, we probably are a sanctuary city. On the other hand, we're not a city and we haven't made any official declaration."

Now, the town has. 

The warrant article adopted Monday affirms Amherst as "a welcoming town" seeking to "ensure public safety and trust between law enforcement and members of the community."

"No employee or agent of the town shall cooperate or enforce any federal program requiring the registration of individuals on the basis of religion, national origin, nationality, citizenship, race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation or age," the article stipulates. 

Watch President Barack Obama speak in Boston last weekend. Watch video

In one of few public appearances since leaving office, President Barack Obama visited Boston last weekend to accept the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. He spoke to a crowd at the JFK Library and Museum in Dorchester, subtly calling Congress to action just days after a controversial health care bill passed through the House of Representatives.

In a speech that was live-broadcasted online and drew national audience, President Obama did not explicitly make mention of any legislation or political officials, but instead focused on the topic of the award he was accepting: courage.

"I hope that current members of Congress recall that it actually doesn't take a lot of courage to aid those who are already powerful, already comfortable, already influential -- but it does require some courage to champion the vulnerable and the sick and the infirm," Obama said.

The formal event drew Massachusetts politicians past and present, including Congressman Joe Kennedy III, Attorney General Maura Healey, Gov. Charlie Baker, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh as well as former Gov. Deval Patrick. Other key Massachusetts figures like Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Patriots owner Robert Kraft and University of Massachusetts President Marty Meehan also attended the event. Musician James Taylor began the ceremony by performing some of his most popular songs.

The president accepted the award from Caroline Kennedy and her son Jack Schlossberg. Obama received the award based on his successful initiatives and victory as the African-American president, according to the JFK Library Foundation. The museum and library in Dorchester is hosting a year-long celebration to honor the centennial of honors the late 35th president's birth.

Two juveniles suspected of arson at a vacant former North Adams elementary school were arrested Monday, a few days after city firefighters spent hours canvassing the smoking school building, dousing multiple fires, The Berkshire Eagle reports.

Sullivan Elementary School, an inactive North Adams school where authorities extinguished six intentionally set fires Friday night. City of North Adams 

Two juveniles suspected of arson at a vacant former North Adams elementary school were arrested Monday, a few days after city firefighters spent hours canvassing the smoking school building, dousing multiple fires, The Berkshire Eagle reports. 

Police Director Michael Cozzaglio declined to release the names of the pair because of their young ages, but told The Eagle the two were "directly involved."

"On our scale of crimes, this is pretty high up there," Cozzaglio said. "This is serious. The fires were set intentionally."

A total of six fires were extinguished inside the former Sullivan Elementary School on Kemp Avenue on Friday night beginning shortly after 8 p.m. The perpetrators set fires on multiple floors of the 50,000-square-foot vacant school building.

Sullivan has not been closed for long. It was replaced when the newer Colegrove Park Elementary School opened on Church Street last January. 

The two youths have yet to be arraigned on charges related to the fires.

A school teacher discovered a threatening message at the end of the day on Monday and reported it. The school was searched as a precaution.

Patrick Johnson | pjohnson@repub.com 

SOUTH HADLEY - The discovery of a threat late Monday afternoon at the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School drew a heavy police presence Tuesday morning.

Police Chief Steve Parentela said South Hadley police, state police and South Hadley Fire District #1 were present to search the school thoroughly before the start of classes as a precaution. Nothing was found and classes were allowed to resume, he said.

He said a teacher discovered a message at the end of the day on Monday and reported it. The public safety response was taken as a precaution.

The origin threat remains under investigation, he said.

WWLP TV-22 is reporting that the head of the school, Scott Goldman, sent an e-mail to parents indicating the threatening message was found on a graphing calculator and it made reference to the 1999 mass shooting at Columbine High School.

Goldman said in his email it was not clear when the message was left on the calculator.

The Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School is a regional public charter school serving 400 students grades 7-12, from over 60 towns throughout Western 

Night one of Longmeadow's Annual Town Meeting will mostly cover department funding measures, while night two will delve into site planning for a new senior center.

LONGMEADOW — Night one of a two-night annual Town Meeting will mainly cover department budget appropriations, while night two will revisit funding for a new senior center.

Longmeadow residents will vote on the first 29 articles on the Town Meeting warrant at Longmeadow High School beginning Tuesday at 7 p.m. It will continue Wednesday at 7 p.m., when voters will take on the next 15 articles on the 44-article warrant.

Planned votes include a measure to appropriate $200,000 to the Longmeadow's Snow and Ice Removal fund for the fiscal year 2017, the warrant says. The fund already exceeded the $100,000 it was originally given, the warrant says, and the additional money will cover the deficit.

Town Meeting voters will also be asked to approve a $64 billion town budget for fiscal year 2018, which begins July 1, the warrant says.

The scheduled second vote on Wednesday will ask residents to decide whether to approve $250,000 for architectural and engineering services for the design of a new or renovated Adult Center at Greenwood Park, the warrant says.

At a Special Town Meeting in October, townspeople voted down a measure to make available $200,000 for site surveys, architectural analyses and other studies of a plan to build a senior center on the southwest corner of Bliss Park.

Before pitching the Bliss Park site to Town Meeting, the committee charged with finding a new site for the Adult Center considered issues such as deed restrictions, infrastructure issues, impact on sports fields, conservation considerations, historic considerations, neighborhood issues and Article 97 open land use implications.

In addition to causing controversy among residents, town boards were divided on whether to support further research into placing the senior center at Bliss Park with the Select Board taking no position, the Park Board supporting the measure, and the Finance Committee recommending Town Meeting members vote against it.

At the core of the Finance Committee's opposition to the measure was a recent survey taken by people who frequent the Adult Center, showing that a majority were happy with the current facility, Finance Committee member Maury Garrett, Jr. told voters at the time.

Voters rejected the measure by a margin of 2-1.

Mercy Medical Center held its fourth Run for the Gold 5K to benefit the Stroke Program at the hospital this past Sunday at Holyoke's Ashley Reservoir.

Mercy Medical Center held its fourth Run for the Gold 5K to benefit the Stroke Program at the hospital this past Sunday at Holyoke's Ashley Reservoir. 

The run brought together a couple hundred locals to run and walk the trail at the reservoir, with the weather cooperating for long enough to consider the event a success. 

Mercy Medical Center is a 182-bed acute care hospital in Springfield. A member of Trinity Health - New England, Mercy Medical Center has established itself as one of the leading providers of health care services in Western Massachusetts.

Providence Behavioral Health Hospital in Holyoke, also a part of Trinity Health, is licensed for 126 beds. Sisters of Providence also has:

• Weldon Rehabilitation Hospital on the campus of Mercy Medical Center
• Brightside for Families and Children, an outpatient service offering counseling and family support programs
• two outpatient substance abuse treatment centers
• Mercy Continuing Care Network, which includes skilled nursing facilities, residential care facilities, an adult day health program, Mercy Homecare, Mercy Hospice and Mercy LIFE, a Program of all-inclusive care for the elderly.

Trinity Health-New England recently named Mary Elizabeth (Beth) O'Brien interim president of Mercy Medical Center and its affiliates.

Although U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren has been coy about whether she will seek a 2020 presidential run, Republican officials are reportedly already keeping an eye on the Massachusetts Democrat as a possible 2020 challenger to President Donald Trump.

Although U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren has been coy about whether she will seek a 2020 presidential run, Republican officials are reportedly already keeping an eye on the Massachusetts Democrat as a possible 2020 challenger to President Donald Trump.

The Republican National Committee, in conjunction with the White House, has started a research file on Warren, along with other potential 2020 Democratic opponents, according to The Hill.

In addition to the reported file, White House and GOP officials have also followed and aggressively responded to the senator's criticism of the president, including Trump himself, who said in March that running against Warren would a "dream come true."

A White House official who requested anonymity told the news outlet that the administration felt compelled to rebut Warren's criticism given her rising profile in the Democratic Party.

US Sen. Elizabeth Warren questions President Donald Trump's military strategy after 'Mother of All Bombs' strike

"As somebody who is probably, in the hearts and minds of liberal activists, a leader of the party, that voice carries some weight, and we have to respond," the official reportedly told The Hill. "We don't think ignoring her is the right approach."

The official added that although the White House is focused on governing, it believes casting Warren as being out of touch could mitigate the risk she poses to Trump's re-election, the news outlet reported.

"Frankly speaking, having a pretty extreme, ideologically left-wing individual forming a role as the leader of the party is not the worst thing," the official continued. "The point is to engage her directly when she engages the White House because doing that does raise her profile [and] does increase the amount of attention this stuff receives."

Aides said the majority of campaign work is taking place at the RNC, according to The Hill. 

Warren, who recently embarked on a book tour which some have speculated could jumpstart for her 2020 White House bid, has largely dismissed the idea of a presidential run and stressed that she's focused on her re-election campaign.

"What I'm thinking about is what Donald Trump is doing to this country today. That's what really, really has me up and working hard," the Democrat told reporters when asked in late March if she would challenge the president in 2020.

US Sen. Elizabeth Warren says she's 'focused on what Donald Trump is doing to this country today'

Republican Super PAC America Rising, however, has launched "The Elizabeth Warren Initiative," as part of an effort to make the senator's "life difficult during her 2018 Senate re-election contest" and to "continue developing the long-term research and communications angles to damage her 2020 prospects."

Those tactics, PAC Executive Director Colin Reed said, include building a opposition research profile, video tracking, public records request and messaging.

The East Forest Park Civic Association is hosting a meeting regarding the issues of medical and recreational marijuana.

SPRINGFIELD - The East Forest Park Civic Association & Nextdoor Neighbor have a community meeting scheduled Wednesday, May 10, featuring a guest speaker on the topics of recreational and medical marijuana.

The event is at 6:30 p.m., at Nathan Bill's Bar and Restaurant, 110 Island Pond Road, in the Thomas J. Sullivan Banquet Room.

The guest speaker is Ezra Parzybok, a certified cannabis consultant advocate for the use of medical marijuana.

City officials who are expected to participate in the meeting include: Philip Dromey, deputy director of planning; Edward Pikula, city solicitor; Helen R. Caulton-Harris, commissioner of health and human services; and Ward 7 City Councilor Timothy Allen.

One week after three people were killed when a Jeep went out of control on the auction floor, Lynnway Auto Auction in Billerica will hold another auction, to begin with a prayer service.

One week after three people were killed when a Jeep went out of control on the auction floor, Lynnway Auto Auction in Billerica will hold another auction. This one will begin with a prayer service.

On May 3, a Lynnway employee who was driving a 2006 Jeep Cherokee drove into a crowd of people at the auction, injuring eight people and killing Leezandra Aponte, a 36-year-old mother of three from Lowell, along with Brenda Lopez, 48, and Pantaleon Santos, 49, both of Rhode Island.

A prayer service will be held at Lynnway at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday. The auction will start at 8:30 a.m. Lynnway posted a tweet on Tuesday that noted only licensed dealers can attend.

The Wednesday morning auctions are a weekly event at Lynnway, in addition to other auctions.

Lynnway President Jim Lamb did not answer a phone call seeking comment.

Lynnway will conduct a prayer service Wed. May 10 starting at 8:15 am. Auction will start at 8:30. Licensed dealers only may attend.

-- Lynnway Auto Auction (@LWAA1) May 9, 2017

Lynnway officials told The Lowell Sun that there will be safety improvements following the crash, including barriers to prevent cars from traveling out of auction lanes.

The Sun has identified the driver of the Jeep as Roger Hartwell, 76, of Quincy.

On Friday, Lamb announced that the driver, who he did not name, had a suspended license.

"We were informed by the police on Wednesday that the driver of the Jeep had a suspended license," Lamb said in a statement. "We were unaware of the change in status of the driver's license until the police told us after the accident."

The 76-year-old driver told Boston 25 News that the vehicle just began to accelerate when he was driving it in the building. The television station did not identify the driver by name.

The driver told the television station he was, "A thousand percent sorry that anybody who got hurt...and anybody who got worse than hurt...I wish I could have changed it."

The driver told NECN he didn't know his license was suspended. He told the television station he didn't check it. The driver broke bones in his arm and leg.

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said last week that her office was investigating whether the driver had a medical condition or if the Jeep malfunctioned. The driver was not taken to the hospital after the crash, she said.

Lynnway was fined by OSHA for two "serious" level violations in 2014.

A classic car sale scheduled for May 20 has been postponed until the fall, Lynnway announced in a tweet on Tuesday.

Green, a past president of the Lions Club and a well-known figure around town, received the honor at Monday's annual town meeting at TWB Middle School.

HAMPDEN -- Rick Green, a former Hampden selectman, has been named "Citizen of the Year" by the Hampden Lions Club.

Green, a past president of the Lions Club and a well-known figure around town, received the honor at Monday's annual town meeting at TWB Middle School. Rick Rubin, a local newspaper columnist and the current president of the Lions Club, made the announcement prior to the start of the annual meeting.

Green, co-founder of Richard R. Green Insurance Agency Inc. with his wife, Marcia S. Green, launched his career as a public servant "30 years ago this day," he told the crowd in TWB's auditorium on Monday evening.

Green gave thanks and praise to the Lions Club, supporters, and his family, including his wife and three daughters. He also praised his past mentors, including the late George K. Stone Jr., Hampden's longest-serving police chief, and the late John M. Flynn, Hampden's longest-serving selectman.

Green has called Flynn, the father of current Board of Selectmen Chairman John D. Flynn, "the most pragmatic selectman the town has ever had."

Hampden's new police station on Allen Street is officially known as the George K. Stone Public Safety Complex.

In addition to his affiliation with the Lions and his past service as a selectman, Green has been involved with the Hampden Parks & Recreation Association and is currently seeking re-election to the Planning Board. 

His insurance company has offices at 32 Somers Road in Hampden and at 170 Main St. in Monson. 

Springfield Union Station opened 91 years ago. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD -- The deal bringing Peter Pan Bus Lines along with its Springfield ticketing, dispatch and driver's lounge into Union Station means the ground floor of the sprawling intermodal transportation hub is 91 percent rented.

The deal, formally announced on Tuesday, also means that Peter Pan will soon bring 100 long-distance intercity buses through Union Station a day, said Brian Stefano, president and CFO of Peter Pan Bus Lines. The company expects to carry more than 1 million passengers a year through Union Station.

All told, planners expect five-to-eight million passengers and other guests to pass through Union Station, its grounds and the 377-space parking deck each year.  

Built in 1926 to replace an earlier train station, Union Station helped define central Springfield. From its construction until after World War II, rail travel thrived with more than 130 passenger trains passing through daily.

The station closed in 1973 except for a small area which was still used by Amtrak. Today, as the $94 million rehabilitation of Union Station nears completion, it is the Springfield Redevelopment Authority, which owns the complex, that buttons up the last few details.

A grand reopening is planned the weekend of June 24-25.

Springfield Mayor Dominic J. Sarno thanked locally-owned Peter Pan Bus Lines and the Picknelly family that owns the company, saying they could have their headquarters anywhere but they choose to be committed to Springfield. 

"It's a major step forward, bringin them into Union Station," Sarno said at Tuesday's news conference. "Don't those Peter Pan buses look nice."

Peter Pan is renting nine bus berths and 2,000 square feet of interior space, said city chief development officer Kevin Kennedy.

Union Station has a 27-bay open-air bus terminal with the Pioneer Valley Transportation Authority, the local bus operator, taking 18 berths.

Terms of Peter Pan's deal with the city won't be public until next week when the SRA is expected to approve the contract at a meeting, said SRA Executive Director Christopher J. Moskal.

The PVTA will rent 18 bus berths at $18,000 a year- a total of $324,000 a year. For office and service center space, it will rent 4,100 square feet at $13.50 per square foot a year, a total of $55,350 a year.

The PVTA has 12 million passengers a year. Union Station will be its Springfield hub and management at the transit agency says ridership will likely increase once the modern, comfortable and attractive Union Station is open and connected. Passengers will also have the convenience of intercity long-distance buses, intracity transit buses, rail, parking and a rental car agency in one place.

The SRA also has a master lease with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation which in turn will sublease to Amtrak and to the Connecticut Department of Transportation.

ConnDOT plans to bring its new Hartford-New Haven commuter train service to Springfield in 2018 with 12 north-south trains a day. Those trains will connect with Metro North service to New York City and Metro North will sell tickets at Springfield's Union Station, Kennedy said.

Kennedy said there is one 1,100-square foot retail space on the first-floor concourse yet to be leased and he expects an announcement soon. One retail kiosk is also available.

Already leased is space for a Dunkin Donuts, a Subway sandwich shop, a newsstand and a car rental service. Kiosks have also been rented to a cellphone shop and an eyeglass shop.

Upstairs, Dietz & Company Architects has rented office space. 

Peter A. Picknelly, chairman & CEO of Peter Pan, said Monday night that Peter Pan may move its corporate offices to the upper floors of Union Station once plans to redevelop the current bus station at 1776 Main Street are final and move forward.

Stefano said he recalled Picknelly's father telling him 30 years ago when Stefano joined the company, that then-Mayor Richard Neal would have Union Station rebuilt soon and that Peter Pan would move.

It was a joke pointing to the on-again, off-again rehab process at Union Station.

"That's why I don't support term limits," Neal joked.

Referencing the long negotiations between Peter Pan, the SRA and the city, Neal said the company has an obligation to get the best deal it can get and the city had an obligation to get the best deal it can get.

The center is looking for people who are not too competitive and want to get a little exercise.

CHICOPEE - The RiverMills Senior Center is looking for men and women to play and compete in table tennis.

The teams will play between 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday, Thursday and Friday at the center on West Main Street.

Organizers are looking for people who are not too competitive to play with people of all levels and have fun.

One of the benefits is table tennis is an aerobic activity which helps with hand-eye coordination, agility, balance, mental alertness and focus. It is also fun and a life-long game people of all ages can play together.

To register call Violet Suska, the health and fitness coordinator for the Council on Aging at 534-3698 ext. 117

Despite being in office for just over 100 days, President Donald Trump's re-election campaign unveiled a new website design Tuesday that aims to give supporters a behind-the-scenes look into his work in the Oval Office.

Despite being in office for just over 100 days, President Donald Trump's re-election campaign unveiled a new website design Tuesday that aims to give supporters a behind-the-scenes look into his work in the Oval Office and combat the message of the "mainstream media."

Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., which recently released its first 2020 campaign ad, announced the launch of the new DonaldJTrump.com, which officials said "will provide a one-stop online destination to learn the facts about President Trump's actions that are enabling new economic growth and changing the American political landscape."

Michael Glassner, executive director of the president's campaign, said the website comes as part of Trump's efforts to speak directly with the American people.

"That is the very purpose of this new campaign website - it is an extension of the president's plan to reinvent the American political system to benefit all Americans," he said in a statement. "The new website will present fact-based information about the president's policy positions and achievements since he took office. It will also provide visitors a picture window that will take them behind the scenes at Trump rallies and other campaign events, and much more."

The website will specifically offer "acts the mainstream media is hiding about policy positions and actions by President Trump," as well as new photos from campaign events and rallies, new campaign merchandise and news announcements, according to the campaign.

The announcement came just days after Trump's campaign accused CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and other television networks of blocking a paid campaign ad touting the president's achievements during his first 100 days in office.

Lara Trump, the president's daughter-in-law and a campaign consultant, called the networks' failure to air the ad "an unprecedented act of censorship in America that should concern every freedom-loving citizen."

CNN said it would not air the ad because it superimposes the word "fake news" over images of various TV network anchors.

"CNN requested that the advertiser remove the false graphic that says mainstream media is 'fake news,'" CNN said in a statement. "The mainstream media is not fake news and therefore the ad is false. Per our policy, it will be accepted only if the graphic is deleted. Those are the facts."

In response to the Donald J. Trump for President campaign's accusations of ad censorship: pic.twitter.com/0Rbanpf0dn

-- CNN Communications (@CNNPR) May 2, 2017