Highlighting his administration's efforts to enhance broadband access in rural parts of Western Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker traveled to the Berkshires Tuesday to get a firsthand look at how a $1.6 million "Last Mile" grant has impacted local small businesses.

WEST STOCKBRIDGE -- Highlighting his administration's efforts to enhance broadband access in rural parts of Western Massachusetts, Gov. Charlie Baker traveled to the Berkshires Tuesday to get a firsthand look at how a $1.6 million "Last Mile" grant has impacted local small businesses.

Baker, who joined Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito and local lawmakers for a tour of West Stockbridge businesses, told reporters he was curious to hear feedback on how new broadband access has affected their operations and ability to compete.

"One of the reasons we wanted to get this project going and moving quickly was because he had been told by a lot of folks that, both in terms of existing businesses, business development...this was a really important element that just had to get done," he said.

The governor, who also touted the private sector partners working with his administration on enhancing broadband access in the Berkshires, stressed that his goal "is to get everyone wired."

The Massachusetts Broadband Institute, the state agency charged with expanding broadband internet, approved a $1.6 million grant to Charter Communications in August 2016 to upgrade and extend broadband internet in Hinsdale, Lanesborough and West Stockbridge.

The state grant, which was made under the Last Mile Initiative, sought to support upgrading the company's existing cable network to an all-digital network capable of delivering digital TV and broadband to households and businesses in the three Berkshire County towns, according to officials.

It was further expected to help extend broadband and digital TV service to 440 households in Hinsdale, Lanesborough and West Stockbridge that lacked any broadband or cable service. 

Joseph P. Roy, of The Floor Store, called the new access to broadband internet "a really amazing thing," saying it has transformed West Stockbridge and helped his business meet with and correspond with clients via the internet, particularly those who own second homes in the Berkshires.

"We would normally never be able to do what most businesses today take for granted," he told the governor.

Stone House Properties Owner Sheila Thunfors, who urged the governor to ensure all towns have access to broadband, said internet access has significantly affected real estate in parts of Berkshire County, with many buyers unwilling to purchase homes with connectivity issues.

"They can't come to their second home and not be able to do what it is they do that allowed them to earn that money in the first place to be a second home owner," she said. "So, it's great that we've got this going, but we've got to get it to all of the towns."

Bob Thibeault, owner of the Shaker Mill Inn, added that small businesses without access to broadband could lose customers to their larger competitors.

"We have 10 rooms, if they're all downloading stuff, the old system would crash and the next time people are deciding where to bring their kids, they're going to go to a bigger hotel," he said. "So this broadband allows us to be competitive it keeps people in town. When they come here, they go the restaurants, they go to the shops, they go to the museums. We all win from this technology. It's been a real good thing for us."

Jim Hallock, the owner of Shaker Mill Tavern Family Smokehouse, meanwhile, said the new broadband has helped enhance turnaround times and cut down on the amount his business spends on utilities.

"I'm down to $300 (a month) and that includes TV, internet and a phone versus about $700 I was paying for all three services," he told the governor.

The expansion of broadband into West Stockbridge, Lanesborough and Hinsdale was estimated to be completed in 18 months and deliver access to 3,400 residential and commercial entities, MBI announced. The total project cost was estimated to be $3.9 million.

Baker's West Stockbridge visit came one year after his administration announced a new strategic pathway for the Last Mile program.

Gov. Baker names new team to head 'last mile' broadband project in Western Massachusetts

The governor's administration announced $4.6 million in grants to support municipal broadband projects across Western Massachusetts earlier this month. 

The 2017 Springfield Puerto Rican Parade will be held Sept. 17, 2017.

SPRINGFIELD — Everyone knows someone in their circle of family, friends and colleagues who goes above and beyond for their community. The Springfield Puerto Rican Parade Committee is looking for those people.

The committee is now accepting nominations for ambassadors to march in the 2017 Springfield Puerto Rican Parade scheduled for Sept. 17.

"We look forward to recognizing the accomplishments of our fellow community members who are making great contributions to the Greater Springfield region," said Victoria Ann Rodriguez, chairwoman of the Honorees Selection Subcommittee.

The categories include:

• Madrina (female): Longstanding local leader who has made significant contributions to the Latino community.
• Padrino (male): Longstanding local leader who has made significant contributions to the Latino community.
• Youth Ambassador (female, age 12-24): Leadership role in a school or community setting or inspirational growth story.
• Youth Ambassador (male, age 12-24): Leadership role in a school or community setting or inspirational growth story.
• Civil Service Ambassador: Police officer, firefighter, nurse, doctor, EMT, emergency volunteer, veteran, etc.
• Cultural Ambassador: Raises awareness of Puerto Rican culture through arts, music, poetry, food and/or education.
• Sports Ambassador: Outstanding athlete, coach or individual who inspires fitness and health in the community.

"This is a very exciting process and we cannot wait to read all the amazing nominations," Rodriguez said.

Nominees must live, work or attend school in Greater Springfield. Nominees cannot be past honorees. Nomination forms may be downloaded or completed electronically at springfieldpuertoricanparade.com or may be obtained by emailing springfieldprparade@gmail.com. Nominations must be received by May 26 at 5 p.m.

The 2017 Parade Honorees will be announced at the Springfield Puerto Rican Parade's kickoff event June 29 at 1600 Main St.

Senate Democrats on Tuesday unanimously approved a $40.3 billion spending plan for fiscal 2018 that they said recognizes the state does not have as much revenue as it needs to pay for desired programs and service.

By KATIE LANNAN

Senate Democrats on Tuesday unanimously approved a $40.3 billion spending plan for fiscal 2018 that they said recognizes the state does not have as much revenue as it needs to pay for desired programs and service.

With approximately $400 million in new revenues proposed, the budget tries to bridge some of that gap and invest in housing, health and education accounts, Senate Ways and Means Chairwoman Karen Spilka said. It raises spending by 3.3 percent over estimated fiscal 2017 spending, according to the committee.

Legislative budget writers and Baker administration officials all built their 2018 budgets on the assumption that revenue would grow 3.9 percent from the $26.056 billion expected in fiscal 2017, to $27.072 billion.But as senators discussed their proposal, they acknowledged uncertainty over whether that assumption will stand, after weak April revenue collections more than doubled this year's revenue gap to $462 million and Revenue Commissioner Michael Heffernan called for a second look at next year's revenue projections.

"We recognize that we may need to adjust, and there have already been discussions with the House chair of Ways and Means, the secretary of administration and finance," Spilka told reporters. "There's close contact and we're all monitoring it, and if we need to take action in June we will, but at this point there's no consensus as to how much even we would make adjustments, so we'll take a look in June."

The Senate Ways and Means Committee said its budget has a total of $40.79 billion in spending, a number that includes a $452 million transfer to a medical assistance trust fund. House lawmakers and Gov. Charlie Baker do not include that money in their bottom lines. The Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, which includes the transfer in its estimates, tracked the final House budget at about $40.8 billion and Gov. Charlie Baker's proposal at $40.9 billion.

Sen. Vinny deMacedo, the committee's ranking minority member, said the Senate budget represents "the fifth inning of a long process."

Massachusetts House wraps debate on state's first $40 billion budget

"There is a challenge in regards to the revenue picture that we're looking at," the Plymouth Republican said. "That's something that I think is going to be played out in the sixth, seventh and eighth inning, and we're going in next week, and we're going to debate some other priorities."

Budget deliberations are set to begin next Tuesday. Senators have until Thursday at 5 p.m. to file amendments, which will give a fuller picture of the full Senate's tax policy agenda.

Like Baker's and the House's budgets, the Senate spending plan calls for the state to collect sales tax from online retailers. It proposes to generate $18 million from taxing short-term vacation rentals through websites like Airbnb and $7 million from taxing online hotel room resellers like Expedia on the full price paid by consumers.

Spilka said the committee had "lots of discussion" around taxes and ended up with a plan for approximately $400 million in new revenue, consistent with what the House approved in its budget.

"There's a recognition by all that we don't have the revenue that we need to meet our obligations," the Ashland Democrat said.

With tax collections down, Massachusetts government 'reviewing all options'

Though Senate President Stan Rosenberg repeatedly has expressed interest in new revenues, the Ways and Means budget eschews broad-based tax hikes, which both Baker and House Speaker Robert DeLeo oppose.

Asked if Baker and DeLeo's stances influenced her committee's budget, Spilka said the panel "looked at the fiscal situation, and we based our recommendations accordingly."

"If you look at it, it's a little different," she said of the Senate's proposed new revenues. "There are some similarities, and the House is a little different than the governor, the Senate's a little different than the House and the governor."

The 2018 budget will be the state's first to surpass $40 billion, and the pressures of growing MassHealth enrollments, debt service, pension obligations and other fixed costs are again leaving little room for substantial discretionary spending increases.

"This budget demonstrates the commitment to the values we share, but it also demonstrates the lack of resources," committee assistant vice chair Sen. Patricia Jehlen said. "It shows that we have a revenue problem, not a spending problem."

What's going on with the Massachusetts economy?

Jehlen said the budget takes steps to implement the 2015 recommendations of the Foundation Budget Review Commission, which found the current school funding formula underestimates the cost of education by $1 billion to $2 billion per year, driven largely by health care and special education costs.

Like Baker and the House, Senate Ways and Means included funding to help school districts cover their health insurance costs. Spilka said there is also a "down payment" towards special education costs.

Spilka said the budget focuses on "education at all levels," including $15.1 million to expand preschool access; a minimum increase of $30 per pupil in aid to local schools; and workforce training programs. It includes $545.9 million for community colleges and state universities, and increases funding for the University of Massachusetts by more than $26 million over 2017 to $534.5 million. The House funded UMass at $513.5 million.

A statement from UMass President Marty Meehan's office said the Senate appropriation would "preserve affordability for students and their families."

The budget directs $98.4 million to the stabilization fund and takes $15 million from a race horse development fund to provide funding increases to the Department of Environmental Protection and Department of Conservation and Recreation, Spilka said.

Massachusetts Senate lays out $1 billion vision to help state's children

Spilka said the money in the race horse fund, created under the 2011 expanded gaming law, has "just been sitting there" and using it for conservation and recreation was consistent with the fund's purpose.

The Ways and Means Committee allocates $52.9 million for the Department of Environmental Protection, including a new investment of $500,000 to ensure compliance with the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, according to the committee.

Through a spokeswoman, Gov. Charlie Baker expressed concern that the Senate budget didn't allocate sufficient funding for numerous accounts and did not include savings measures favored by the governor.

"The Baker-Polito Administration proposed a balanced budget that reins in government spending while increasing investments in public education to historic levels and it is concerning that numerous accounts to pay for core services, like indigent legal services, are underfunded in this budget," Lizzy Guyton, Baker's communications director, said. "Additionally, the administration is disappointed that legislators dropped much-needed proposals to save taxpayers millions like the administration's bipartisan welfare reform. The administration looks forward to working with the Legislature on a final budget that continues Governor Baker's increased investments in public education while protecting the hardworking people of Massachusetts from tax increases."

Gov. Charlie Baker says capital plan will lead to $4 billion in investments

The $183.3 million project is expected to continue for the next two years with most of the highway reopening to traffic in May 2018.

SPRINGFIELD -- The Massachusetts Department of Transportation will close Exit 1A from Interstate 291 west to Interstate 91 south from 9 tonight until 5 a.m. Wednesday.

The closure is required for barrier work on the I-91 viaduct. The $183.3 million project is expected to continue for the next year, with most of the highway reopening to traffic in May 2018.

To reach I-91 south from I-291/Route 20 west during the closure, take Exit 2B off I-291 and follow signs for Dwight Street. Turn left on Dwight Street, then turn right on State Street. Turn left on West Columbus Avenue/Hall of Fame Avenue, and bear left after crossing Union Street, to merge onto I-91 South.

MassDOT advises drivers to plan for additional travel time through the area. Those traveling through the area should follow the reduced speed limits and use caution.

For more information about the project, MassDOt asks folks to visit its website at www.mass.gov/massdot/I91ViaductRehab. 

Fernando Jayma, 74, was sentenced Tuesday. He must permanently surrender his medical license, repay $9,778 to the state and serve three years of probation after his release from jail.

PITTSFIELD -- A former Ludlow doctor has been sentenced to two-and-a-half years in jail for illegally prescribing opioids to patients, some of whom had tested positive for heroin, and for defrauding the state's Medicaid program.

Fernando Jayma, 74, was sentenced Tuesday in Berkshire Superior Court. He must permanently surrender his medical license, repay $9,778 to the state and serve three years of probation after his release from jail.

In April, Jayma admitted to 22 counts of issuing false prescriptions for class B medication, 17 counts of medical assistance fraud and a single count of larceny of more than $250.

The Massachusetts Attorney General's Office said Jayma prescribed opioids, including oxycodone, morphine, methadone and fentanyl, to patients "for no legitimate medical purpose and to some who had documented substance use disorder." He also prescribed fentanyl to a patient who had overdosed on the drug "in the recent past."

"In several instances, while urine drug screens were negative for the prescribed opioids, Dr. Jayma continued to prescribe opioids to those patients even though they tested positive for heroin or other non-prescribed opioids," said the attorney general's office in a statement.

Pharmacies that unwittingly filled those illegal prescriptions billed MassHealth, leading to the fraud charges against Jayma.

In fiscal 2013, Jayma was the second-highest MassHealth prescriber of schedule II opioids.

The illegal prescriptions were issued between 2011 and 2015.

Insurance companies first brought Jayma to investigators' attention when it was determined he prescribed opioids at 11 times the state average.

In a separate case brought by the Hampden County district attorney's office, Jayma admitted in December to 19 false billing charges. At times when he traveled out of the country, he arranged for another doctor to treat his patients, then had his office staff falsely bill MassHealth as if he had seen those patients himself.

"The other doctor was not credentialed with MassHealth, and MassHealth would not have paid the claims if it knew that he, and not Dr. Jayma, had provided the services," said the attorney general's office.

The court was closed and everyone inside was sheltered in place while the investigation was underway.

SPRINGFIELD - The Hampden County Courthouse was closed for an hour on Tuesday afternoon as bomb squads investigated a suspicious bag outside.

Springfield Fire Department and state police bomb squads responded to 50 State St. at around 3:45 p.m.

A backpack was left on a planter outside the courthouse. It was determined that the bag posed no threat, according to Dennis Leger, executive aide to Fire Commissioner Joseph Conant.

The court was closed and everyone inside was sheltered in place while the investigation was underway.

The asparagus season "started off with a bang," said Hadley farmer Tom Waskiewicz, who sells the crop from his Middle Street stand.

HADLEY -- The asparagus season "started off with a bang," said farmer Tom Waskiewicz, who sells the crop from his Middle Street stand.

There was "early, heavy production and excellent quality," he said in an email. "But the recent cold spell put the brakes on the yield, but the quality remains and the demand is through the roof."

An early warm spell greeted the season, but then temperatures fell 10 to 15 degrees below normal with less sun. Asparagus loves both warmth and sun.

Wally Czajkowski of Plainville Farm, the largest grower in the area, said "the cold has slowed it down a lot."

But he said with the promise of warm weather in the days ahead -- temperatures are expected to top 90 degrees Thursday -- "we're hoping for full production," he said. "We're looking at beautiful soil moisture." Well irrigated soil is also vital.

Vanna Kong, who was clipping and cleaning asparagus at Alligator Farm or Route 47, said, "Last year no water, this year no sun." Alligator Farm had to close its stand four to five days this year because the cold cut production.

Hadley is known for is asparagus, often called "Hadley Grass." 

"People have been chomping at the bit," said Sandy Pipczynski, who along with her husband owns Pipczynski Farm on East Street.

With warm temperatures, asparagus can grow 2 to 3 inches in a day. If it gets really warm, farm workers have to harvest twice a day, she said.

The early cold snap has its upside, Pipczynski said. "The cold makes it nice and sweet," she said.

People can buy the crop at farm stands all over town, including one at the corner of East Street and Route 9.

The stand sells asparagus from four growers including Plainville Farm, said Janet Wanczyk, who runs the stand for her husband, Walter. They sell all kinds of Hadley produce and were expecting to sell spinach later in the day.

They augment the Hadley produce with other things people want, like strawberries, but their goal is to serve the Hadley farmers and offer what they grow, she said.

"The warm-up, starting today, combined with the recent rain will result in peak harvests for the next few days," Waskiewicz said. He and others expect the season will last at least until the third week in June.

Amherst Town Meeting voted to file legislation once again to allow legal permanent not citizens the right to vote in town elections, support an anti-corruption act and to push for the state to adopt legislation to cut carbon pollution.

AMHERST -- Town Meeting voted in its seventh and final night Monday to file legislation once again to allow legal permanent non-citizens the right to vote in town elections.

For years, the town has filed the special act with the state Legislature to allow non-citizens to vote, but it has not been acted upon.

State Rep. Byron Rushing, D-Boston, has filed legislation in the House that would allow local communities to adopt the rule without a special act of the Legislature, said Town Manager Paul Bockelman.   

The article was sponsored by the Human Rights Commission.

Town Meeting also voted to support an anti-corruption act and to push for the state to adopt legislation to cut carbon pollution.

Amherst joins other communities including Hadley and Leverett supporting "anti-corruption laws to close loopholes in Massachusetts' campaign finance regulations that currently allows unregulated out-of-state money to infiltrate state and local elections," according to the resolution passed under Article 41 on the Town Meeting warrant.

Voters agreed to "remove the corrupting influence of money on our political system," according to the resolution.

The act "prohibits politicians from taking campaign money from special interest groups including private industries and unions; increases transparency for campaign funding; empowers all voters through a tax rebate voucher to contribute to the candidates they support; prohibits representatives and senior staff from all lobbying activity for five years once they leave office; and places limits on super PACs," according to the resolution.

Town Meeting unanimously supported calling on the state and Congress to implement a carbon fee and dividend program.

State Rep. Solomon Goldstein-Rose, D-Amherst, is sponsoring carbon tax legislation in the state. "(Town endorsements,) especially if many towns do so, can help to highlight a state proposal and build support in the Legislature," he said, citing four other communities that have endorsed the proposal.

A carbon fee would tax energy generated from oil, natural gas and coal. The money raised would be returned to consumers through a rebate process.   

Goldstein-Rose said he is making his energy jobs bill, which includes carbon pricing as a major component, "my top priority this year because it is the biggest step Massachusetts could take to encourage job creation in clean energy technologies and to enable new industries such as batteries.

"Passage of the bill would keep more money in state by charging a price on fossil fuels (which come from out of state) and sending dividend checks to every resident and every employer, which in some cases will cover increased energy costs and in cases where people conserve they will spend the extra income in the Massachusetts economy," he said. 

The bills have not had hearings, but he expects they will this summer.

View obituaries from The Republican newspaper in Springfield, Massachusetts.

The Holyoke City Council will receive the proposed budget of $127.4 million from Mayor Alex B. Morse on Tuesday, May 16, 2017 and has 45 days to review and make cuts to the spending plan.

HOLYOKE -- Mayor Alex B. Morse will file a budget tonight with the City Council to run the city in the fiscal year that begins July 1 of $127.4 million.

That's an increase of $1.6 million, or 1.3 percent, above the $125.8 million budget with which the city began the current fiscal year on July 1, 2016.

"The city is in good financial shape. We are budgeting modest additional revenues from increased values of real estate and personal property, a sign of the city's improving economic health," Morse said in a letter to the City Council. (see budget and Morse's letter below).

The City Council meeting is at 7 at City Hall.

But Morse's budget also contains two points likely to prompt the City Council and others to pounce: a $1.3 million deficit and lower funding for the Fire Department than Fire Chief John A. Pond requested.

Council President Kevin A. Jourdain and Ward 2 Councilor Nelson R. Roman have called for an ordinance that would require the budget be balanced, so that expenses don't exceed revenues.

The Fire Department budget could lead to the continuation of the controversial step of brownouts, in which a fire truck is temporarily removed from service on shifts when staffing is thin to avoid paying overtime to off-duty firefighters.

Pond requested a budget for the new fiscal year of $9.9 million and Morse has cut that to $8.4 million.

Morse said that the context includes that 10 additional firefighters are being hired, the city has purchased three new fire trucks in the past six years and firefighter response despite the brownouts remains sufficient, though critics dispute that last point.

As authorized by the city charter, the City Council has 45 days from the receipt of the budget to review it and hold public meetings to question department heads such as the police and fire chiefs. The Council can cut but not add to the proposed budget.

"I'm very proud of the process we did this year," Morse said in an interview in his office at City Hall. "It's an honest budget. It's not unusual to submit a budget to the Council in May that's not balanced."

The budget process includes awaiting final state funding totals, revenue from changing property values, the state Department of Revenue's (DOR) certification in late fall of the amount of free cash the city will have to use in the next fiscal year and the City Council's setting of the new tax rate in December.

"The budget process is a collaborative process and this is the beginning of that process," Morse said.

Free cash is money left unspent in accounts from the previous fiscal year. Morse said he expects the free cash total to be about $2 million.

Department heads submitted requests that if fully funded would have shown a $5.6 million deficit. That was cut to a deficit of $1,313,261, he said.

"The deficit shown in the attached budget is driven by two areas of the city government that do not pay their way: the sewer fund and the downtown parking garages. Combined these two entities account for 66 percent of the budget," Morse said in the letter to the Council.

The Council on its agenda tonight will consider the parking garage deficit in a memo submitted by City Auditor Joshua Pueschel, who projects a deficit in that account of $399,000. An option is to raise the metered rate to 75 cents an hour from the current 25 cents an hour to draw more revenue, he said.

More than half the proposed budget, $64.1 million, is funding for the public schools. The remaining $63.3 million pays for public safety, snow removal, parks and other services, Morse said.

The 1.3 percent increase is because of fixed costs such as health insurance and union wage increases. Health insurance for current and retired municipal employees will increase to $8.7 million in the next fiscal year above the current $8.2 million, he said.

Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse letter to City Council: by Mike Plaisance on Scribd

Holyoke Fiscal 2018 proposed budget: by Mike Plaisance on Scribd

Work will include building envelope repairs, window replacement, roof replacement, boiler replacement, HVAC upgrades and apartment upgrades.

SPRINGFIELD -- MassHousing, the state's quasi-public housing finance agency, has provided $21 million to First Resource Companies for extensive renovations at the 173-unit Maple Commons Apartments in downtown Springfield.

In total, the cost is expected to reach $35 million.

The Maple Commons Apartments are in a number of buildings scattered on High Street, School Street and Union Street with a total of 102 one-bedroom apartments, 63 two-bedroom apartments and eight three-bedroom apartments.

Work will include building envelope repairs; replacement of windows, boilers and roofs; upgrades to heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems; and apartment upgrades.

First Resource will install a state-of-the-art security system, with 150 cameras over two city blocks, connected to the Springfield Police Department, according to a news release issued Tuesday by MassHousing.

Work is going on now.

MassHousing provided a $21 million bridge loan with a 2.40 percent interest rate to First Resource. That bridge loan will fund the project until First Resource can monetize its tax credits.

The Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development allocated a total of $35 million in state and federal low-income housing tax credits to Maple Commons, according to MassHousing. This transaction also received an allocation of federal historic tax credits and HOME financing from Housing and Community Development and the city of Springfield.

All 173 apartments at Maple Commons are covered by a federal Section 8 Housing Assistance Payment Contract with Wayfinders, formerly HAP Housing, through 2021. First Resource Companies plans to extend the contract for an additional 20 years, according to MassHousing.

"We were excited this year to hear that Maple Commons was funded,'' First Resource Companies President Gordon Pulsifer said in a statement. "Our development plan in Springfield for Maple Commons, as with our other neighborhood projects in this area, has been to work closely with Mayor (Domenic) Sarno and the Springfield Planning Department and City Council, all of whom have placed this neighborhood as high priority. With the funding recently received from DHCD and MassHousing, the First Resource development team will be able to move forward with the renovation plan for 11 buildings and the redesign of this entire neighborhood."

"Maple Commons is in downtown Springfield in its own historic district known as the Lower Maple Historic District," Pulsifer said. "This neighborhood in recent years has been hit hard with crime, and with this funding we will be bringing significant change not only with the complete renovation to all apartments and common areas but also with the installation of surveillance equipment and increasing the visibility of management."

Based in Hanover, First Resource also has the Outing Park housing project in the South End, Worthington Commons, Concord Heights, City View Commons I and II and High Street Commons, and is working to redevelop the old Indian Motorcycle site in Mason Square.

A state fund that helps Massachusetts cities and towns buy Narcan, which helps reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, is almost empty, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said Tuesday.

A state fund that helps Massachusetts cities and towns buy Narcan, medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, is almost empty, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said Tuesday.

She asked the Greater Boston business community to pitch in.

"Think about the fact that Narcan is administered 60 times a day in this state," Healey told business leaders who attended a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce breakfast.

According to Healey, 2016 figures show Massachusetts first responders administered more than 20,000 doses of Narcan, the brand name for naloxone.

Healey said the state fund, created in 2015 with the help of the state Legislature and the Department of Public Health (DPH), is running low.

"This fund helped supplement and expand resources already being invested by DPH and by district attorneys in counties across the state," she said. "But with thousands of doses already distributed to police and fire departments, this fund has almost run out."

Healey's office said the fund started at $425,000, with payments made by towns for naloxone also heading into the fund. The fund now stands at $44,000.

In August 2015, Healey announced that they had received a $325,000 payment from Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a naloxone manufacturers, after the price of the opioid reversal medication spiked. The Legislature also threw in $100,000.

Healey continued: "So, today, I am asking you, this community, to consider making donations to this fund to keep this valuable resource available as long as we need it."

Healey urged interested attendees to speak with one of her staffers at the end of the breakfast or visit a section on her site dedicated to the Narcan fund.

According to the site, "Under state law, funds from public or private sources or from appropriations authorized by the Massachusetts Legislature and specifically designated to be credited to the fund are applied to provide price reductions for municipalities purchasing naloxone through the program and are not subject to further appropriation."

Amid opioid epidemic, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey launches fentanyl 'strike force'

A group that is trying to buy the closed Mater Dolorosa Church in Holyoke, Massachusetts will hold an update meeting on May 25, 2017 at 6 p.m. in the Mater Dolorosa School cafeteria, 25 Maple St., an official said Tuesday.

HOLYOKE -- A group that is trying to buy the closed Mater Dolorosa Church will hold an update meeting on May 25 at 6 p.m. in the Mater Dolorosa School cafeteria, 25 Maple St., an officials said Tuesday.

The announcement about the previously scheduled meeting came because the location of the meeting had changed. Previously, the session was to be at he Pope John Paul II Social Center on St. Kolbe Drive, said John Fydenkevez of the Mater Dolorosa Church Preservation Society of Holyoke Inc.

The group is negotiating with the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield to buy and preserve the 116-year-old church at 71 Maple St., which the Diocese closed in 2011.

The Holyoke Historical Commission rebuffed the Diocese's application for an emergency order to demolish the church. The commission voted 4-0 on March 29 to impose a six-month demolition delay with the intention of working with the Diocese to try to find an alternative to demolition, commission co-chairman Joseph Paul has said.

Diocese consultants have said the building and particularly the steeple needs $5.3 million in repairs, though Diocese critics disagree the cost would be so high.

The Holyoke Board of Assessors has assessed the church and the acre of land it sits on at $1,660,800.

The Diocese closed Mater Dolorosa Church in June 2011 because Diocese officials said the declining parishioner numbers and the steeple was unstable. The decision has been fought and criticized since. The church was built and paid for by Polish immigrants.

The Diocese combined Mater Dolorosa with the former Holy Cross Church to form Our Lady of the Cross at 23 Sycamore St.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito joined Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse at Gateway City Arts to announce the second round of grants.

HOLYOKE - The Baker administration on Tuesday announced $2.15 million in grants to help companies create shared workspaces in Massachusetts, part of a growing trend of support for artists and entrepreneurs.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito joined Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse at Gateway City Arts to announce the second round of grants under the Collaborative Workspaces Program, run by MassDevelopment.

The funding includes $1.5 million in state money and $645,000 from the Barr Foundation, a Boston-based nonprofit organization. The Barr Foundation has pledged to contribute nearly $2 million over the next three years for arts-related collaborative workspaces.

These workspaces usually feature open floor plans, communal meeting rooms and equipment that anyone in the space can use.

Last year, the program gave out 23 awards totaling $950,000 "that are helping build a strong pipeline of compelling projects across the state," said Polito. The Holyoke Creative Arts Center and the Holyoke Workforce and Innovation Center were among the recipients. 

Morse hailed the program as "an extraordinary opportunity for cities like Holyoke to jump-start their local entrepreneurship initiatives."

"The Baker-Polito Administration has done an outstanding job at providing the resources Holyoke needs to allow community businesses, artists, and entrepreneurs to make a positive impact," said Morse.

MassDevelopment President and CEO Marty Jones said the new funding will support existing workspaces and help launch new ones across Massachusetts.

The Holyoke City Council decided on Tuesday, May 16, 2017 to continue discussing a proposal to use the public notification system to alert residents when a fire truck is browned out, by referring the matter to committee.

HOLYOKE -- The City Council Tuesday sidestepped a probable defeat related to the controversial Fire Department brownouts.

The Council referred to its Ordinance Committee a veto that Mayor Alex B. Morse had issued of an order the Council had approved on May 2 about using the city notification system to alert residents whenever a fire truck is temporarily removed from service.

Morse said phoning, texting and emailing residents whenever a fire truck was browned out was an improper use of the Everbridge public notifications.

The most common use of the notification system is to inform people about parking bans during the winter.

Councilor at Large Diosdado Lopez, who is among critics of the management tool of brownouts, had proposed the use of the system to alert the public about fire truck brownouts.

Supporters say brownouts save the city from overtime costs incurred when off-duty firefighters are called in to work on shifts when staffing is thin. Instead, firefighters on a truck are temporarily reassigned for a shift and the truck is shut down for that shift. Fire protection remains sufficient because of strategically located and staffed stations around the city, supporters say.

Critics say brownouts unnecessarily weaken fire protection because it means not all trucks are available for immediate responses.

But Lopez' measure was approved by a vote of only 8-6, with one member of the 15-member board absent. Overrides require 10 votes and it was unclear whether any councilors would have switched sides to ensure the override.

Ward 7 Councilor Todd A. McGee said the order should go back to committee where he has a previously filed order about the public notification system. McGee's order proposed shifting control of the public notification system from the mayor's office to the Department of Public Works and to ensure that the system provides alerts in Spanish as well as English.

Check back with MassLive.com for additional coverage of this issue.

The Holyoke City Council on Tuesday, May 16, 2017 at City Hall unanimously approved a moratorium on recreational marijuana businesses here until Dec. 31, 2018 so officials can ensure zoning and other rules are established to regulate such enterprises.

HOLYOKE -- The City Council Tuesday at City Hall unanimously approved a moratorium on recreational marijuana businesses here until Dec. 31, 2018 so officials can ensure zoning and other rules are established to regulate such enterprises.

"I wanted to make sure Holyoke is prepared with all of our laws in place before any recreational marijuana companies come in, with our zoning ordinance in place for recreational retail shops," said Ward 2 Councilor Nelson R. Roman, who proposed the measure.

As in other communities, officials here said they wanted to see what the state Legislature does in terms of laws governing recreational marijuana businesses and install local controls before opening the door for such businesses.

The moratorium affects only retail marijuana sales, not facilities proposing medical marijuana operations.

Massachusetts voters approved a ballot question on Nov. 8 that permits the use and sale of pot for recreational use. But talk of and establishment of regulations soon followed, with Gov. Charlie Baker signing a law that allow for drafting of rules and banning retail pot sales until 2018.

One person was killed when a tornado swept into a mobile home park in Wisconsin Tuesday and another person died when a twister hit a housing subdivision in Oklahoma, as a massive severe storm system battered an area stretching from the South Plains of Texas to the Great Lakes.

CHICAGO -- One person was killed when a tornado swept into a mobile home park in Wisconsin Tuesday and another person died when a twister hit a housing subdivision in Oklahoma, as a massive severe storm system battered an area stretching from the South Plains of Texas to the Great Lakes.

In Wisconsin, Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald told several media that the tornado damaged the Prairie Lakes Estates trailer park north of Chetek. The National Weather Service reported the tornado touched down in the area just after 5:30 p.m.

Helicopter video from WCCO-TV and KARE-TV shows extensive damage at the trailer park, with several homes reduced to rubble.

"It's a mess," Fitzgerald told the Leader-Telegram of Eau Claire. "It's pretty bad. We have at least one deceased so far and we're still in a search pattern."

Fitzgerald described the scene to KMSP-TV as "total devastation" and said first responders could hear people yelling for help when they arrived. He said at least one child was among the injured.

Chetek is about 110 miles (177 kilometers) northeast of Minneapolis/St. Paul, and about 40 miles (64 kilometers) north of Eau Claire.

The Oklahoma storm struck about 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, wrecking much of a subdivision on the southern fringe of Elk City, Oklahoma, about 110 miles west of Oklahoma City.

The storm knocked out telephone service into and out of the city. But Fire Chaplain Danny Ringer told reporters at the scene late Tuesday that one person was known dead from the twister. He also said the storm destroyed 40 homes and damaged 50 to 75 others severely.

The mayor of the hard hit Wisconsin town, Jeff Martin, told KSTP-TV that numerous emergency vehicles went to the trailer park. He estimated the park had around 50 homes.

Devin Feuerhelm told KMSP-TV that his sister, Lenna Samuelson, lives in the park with her two daughters, Ashley and Brenna. He said her sister also had her 2-month-old grandson, Nolan, in the home when the storm hit, and they had nowhere to go but the bathtub.

Amazingly, Nolan escaped with just a couple of scratches, he said. Samuelson's daughters suffered minor injuries, and the mother suffered a gash on her head, but he said all are expected to be fine.

While their home was flattened, the SUV next to it was untouched.

A mobile home is a particularly dangerous place to be during a tornado, according to the National Weather Service. The Storm Prediction Center, which specializes in forecasting and gathering data on tornadoes, says that high winds during a tornado can rip a mobile home without a foundation from its moorings. In 2011, when devastating tornadoes struck in Joplin, Missouri, and in Alabama and Mississippi, 111 of the 551 people killed nationwide in tornadoes, or 20 percent, were in mobile homes, according to the Storm Prediction Center website.

The Wisconsin tornado was part of a huge swath of the Plains and Upper Midwest threatened with severe weather. The area stretches from the Texas Panhandle through Oklahoma, western Kansas, Nebraska and Iowa into Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Other tornadoes in western Oklahoma and the eastern Texas Panhandle have downed power lines and utility poles, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.

By evening, the National Weather Service listed more than 20 reports of tornadoes from Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and Wisconsin, although some of those could be multiple reports of the same tornado.

Defense lawyer Mark Esposito said his client buys and sells cars at auction, and the $36,000-plus in cash found in his vehicle was earmarked for such purchases.

SPRINGFIELD -- It wasn't just that Angel Pizzaro allegedly ran a red light while driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle the wrong way down a one-way street.

And it wasn't just the 12 narcotic painkillers -- eight Percocet, four oxycodone -- allegedly found in Pizarro's pockets and underwear.

Angel Pizzaro 

As Springfield police searched Pizzaro's Land Rover on Pasco Road on Monday night, they also found a bag of cash -- $36,874, to be exact, according to the arrest report.

Hades, of the Springfield Police K-9 Unit, discovered the cash as he nosed around in the back seat sniffing for drugs, the report noted.

Arrested at the scene, Pizzaro, 29, of Springfield, was held overnight and arraigned Tuesday in Springfield District Court. He pleaded not guilty to possession of Percocet and oxycodone, both with intent to distribute, and five traffic charges.

Assistant District Attorney Cary Szafranski requested $5,000 cash bail on the new charges and asked Judge Michael Ripps to revoke Pizzaro's bail in a Holyoke drug case filed seven weeks ago.

Pizzaro's passenger, Javier Gonzalez-Rivera, 29, of Springfield, was arrested three weeks ago for cocaine trafficking and was out on bail, Szafranski said. Given the backgrounds of the two men, the bag of cash was likely "related to drug dealing," she said.

On Monday night, police filed a new charged against Gonzalez-Rivera -- failing to wear a seat belt -- and then allowed him to leave the scene.

Defense lawyer Mark Esposito said his client owns a car wash and detailing business in Hartford and also buys and sells vehicles at auction. The vehicle Pizzaro was driving Monday night had just been purchased, according to Esposito, who said his client didn't have time to register and insure it.

Similarly, the $36,000-plus in cash found in the vehicle was earmarked for auto purchases, Esposito said.

"There is no evidence that the money has anything to do with drug dealing," he said.

As for the painkillers, Pizzaro suffers from chronic back pain and has become addicted to them, Esposito said. Considering that only 12 pills were found on his client, Esposito said the case was "only a Class B possession case."

He asked for $1,000 cash bail, and opposed revoking Pizzaro's bail in the open Holyoke case.

Ripps set bail at $5,000 on the new charges and revoked Pizzaro's release in the pending drug case, jailing him for 60 days.

A 26-year-old Brown University graduate named Ram Jayakumar drove off Thursday and never returned, according to his parents.

A 26-year-old Brown University graduate named Ram Jayakumar has disappeared, according to Lexington police.

Jayakumar's parents say he drove off around 7:15 p.m. Friday and never returned, NECN reports.

That's not when he was last seen, though. Witnesseses saw Jayakumar park the car at the Vedanta Society on Deerfield Street in Boston a short time later on Friday, according to India New England. 

Saturday morning, Jayakumar's car turned up on Bay State Road, near Silber Way, in Boston. 

Lexington police say a search is on for the young man, an Indian American who wears glasses, has black hair, stands five-foot, six-inches tall and weighs around 120 pounds. He was wearing a blue backpack when last seen. 

According to NECN, Jayakumar had told his parents he would return in an hour before leaving departing Friday night. 

Poorna Jagannathan, the HBO actress, is apparently a cousin to Jayakumar. 

"Need your help urgently. Please share this in your communities. Please be on the look out and let the Lexington police know if you have any leads," Jagannathan wrote on Facebook.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Lexington Police at 781-862-1212.

Joesiah Gonzalez is a native of Springfield and a graduate of the High School of Science and Technology.

SPRINGFIELD -- Joesiah Gonzalez is still a teenager, but he's hoping voters will see that as a strength when it comes to being in touch with the educational system in Springfield.

"As a high school student, I always advocated on behalf of the student body. I would contact the superintendent, contact my School Committee representative," said Gonzalez, who is running for an at-large seat on the School Committee.

Gonzalez is a lifelong Springfield resident and a 2015 graduate of the High School of Science and Technology. He is a student at Western New England University, pursuing a degree in political science, and hopes to attend law school after he graduates. Gonzalez also works for the city's Department of Economic Development.

He said he comes from a family of public servants.

"My biggest inspiration is my father, who is a Springfield police officer," he said.

Gonzalez said that his youth works to his advantage because he is familiar with the experiences of Springfield students. He said he believes student input should be considered by the School Committee.

"I don't want to wait for someone else to do the job that I know I can do based on my own life experience, graduating from the Springfield Public Schools," he said. " I have an opportunity to represent students, put them at the forefront, and not leave them marginalized, because their voices are really important."

Gonzalez, who spent Saturday morning campaigning at the World's Largest Pancake Breakfast, said he will campaign across the city.

"We are not only going to hit those areas that are usually targeted. We are going to hit those areas where people really aren't voting, because at the end of the day, win or lose, what we want to do is provoke more civic engagement in our city," he said.

Gonzalez's campaign has a Facebook page and Twitter account at @Gonzalez4school.

The Springfield preliminary election, if required, will take place on Sept. 19. The municipal election, meanwhile, is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 7.