A disturbance Monday evening at the Riverdale Street Quality Inn led to the arrest of 19-year-old Jacinda Rodriguez.

West Springfield police records list the following arrests for Monday, September 12:

Abshir Mohamed, 17, of 62 Washburn St. in Springfield, was charged with possession of a burglarious instrument, trespassing and furnishing a false name or social security number after he was arrested at the Main Street Cumberland Farms at 12:17 a.m. Monday.

A report of shoplifting at the Memorial Avenue Big Y led to assault and battery charges for a Springfield man Monday afternoon. Anthony Hart, 21, of 955 Sumner Ave. was arrested at 2:40 p.m. and charged with shoplifting by concealing merchandise and assault and battery.

A disturbance Monday evening at the Riverdale Street Quality Inn led to the arrest of 19-year-old Jacinda Rodriguez on a charge of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Rodriguez's address is listed at the 1150 Riverdale St. hotel. The arrest took place at 7:09 p.m.

Arraignment information for the three suspects was not immediately available Wednesday.

Toyen was killed on Sept. 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center, while attending a trade show at the Windows of the World on the 106th floor.

Amy E. Toyen

SPRINGFIELD – By Labor Day, Amy Toyen already had a very good year.

In March, her boyfriend made a surprise marriage proposal at the Gap of Dunhoe in Ireland, and her employer, Thompson Financial in Boston, had just promoted her in marketing division.

With her mother’s help, the 24-year old Bentley University graduate narrowed down prospective wedding dresses to three, finally choosing one in late August.

The wedding was set for June 16, 2002.

“Father’s Day,” her father, Martin Toyen of Avon, Conn., said Tuesday, recalling the highlights from his daughter last year during a panel discussion at Western New England University on the impact of 9/11 a decade later.

“Her wedding would have been on father’s day,” he added.

Amy Toyen was killed on Sept. 11, 2001 at the World Trade Center, while attending a trade show at the Windows of the World on the 106th floor. Her finance, Jeffrey Gonski of Newton, received her phone call at 8:58 a.m..

When he answered, there was nothing but static.

Toyen’s parents said the 10th anniversary of the terror attacks were an opportunity to show tell the stories of the victims.

“There were nearly 3,000 victims – that’s kind of hard to get your mind around,” said her mother, Dorine Toyen, a graduate of Longmeadow High School.

Like the other victims, Amy Toyen “was not just a number – she had a life, a family, a future and she had dreams,” her mother said.

“And those were all taken away from them,” she added.

Toyen’s grandparents, Ernest and Salena Blake of Longmeadow, also participated in the event at the campus center. Her sister, Heather, graduated in 1996 from the university.

The week before, Toyen lost a coin flip to decide who made the trip on Sept. 11; the night before, her flight from Boston to New York was canceled due to bad weather – but she was able to book a flight out of Logan International Airport at 6:00 the next morning.

After her death, Toyen’s parents would reflect on the luck that placed her in the worst part of the 110-story skyscraper, at the worst possible moment.

“It’s as if fate was telling her not to go,” said Toyen, adding that his daughter’s diligence pushed her to rebook the flight for 6 a.m. to get to the twin towers on time.

For the Toyens, reconciling their daughter’s fate with the generous, community-spirited life she led took time; both leaned on their Jewish faith, the support of friends and well-wishers, and the passage of time to manage their grief.

“The hardest part is never being able to see here again,” her mother, Dorine, said, adding “Amy will always be with us - we think about her every day, we talk about her.” Last weekend, the family made the trip to 9/11 memorial service in New York City, the first time they had visited since their daughter’s death.

“It was a draining day, physically and emotionally,” said Dorine Toyen, adding the most difficult moments came during the silences observed to mark the moments when the hijacked airliners hit the towers and when each tower fell.

Hearing her daughter’s name read in the roll of victims, and later seeing her name on the memorial were also difficult, but moving, Dorine Toyen said.

Toyen’s father said the lesson from 9/11, in part, was to “enjoy life, live it to the fullest, but help other people.”

The UMass lab is the only drug-testing facility in western Massachusetts.

A letter signed by 22 area lawmakers and sent to Sen. Stephen Brewer (D-Barre) and State Rep. Brian S. Dempsey (D-Haverhill) lobbies for funding to continue operations at a state-run drug-testing laboratory at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

The state Department of Public Health announced in August that the lab would close Sept. 30 due to an "unprecedented fiscal situation."

The UMass lab is the only drug-testing facility in western Massachusetts.

The letter, signed by state Sen. Stan Rosenberg (D-Amherst), Sen. James Welch (D-West Springfield), State Rep. Donald F. Humason, Jr. (R-Westfield) and a slew of other area legislators requests an allocation of $300,000 to maintain operations at the lab.

Read the letter below.

Town Council President Paul E. Burns last week released data that showed Palmer stands to gain $7.9 million in property tax revenue if the casino opened; that's based on the current tax rate.

File photo by Don Treeger / The ReppublicanPeter Shultz, of Mohegan Gaming Advisors, talks last month with Caron and Mark Campbell, of Brimfield, who own the Route 32 Driving Range in Palmer. Shultz was in town as officials from the Mohegan Sun hosted a summer barbecue at The Crossroads in Palmer to update residents on the status of the proposed casino resort.

PALMER - A Mohegan Sun official told the Town Council on Tuesday night that the Connecticut-based casino operator would be ready as soon as next week to start discussing a development agreement to bring a $500 million resort casino to Thorndike Street, across from the Massachusetts Turnpike exit.

Paul I. Brody, vice president of development for Mohegan, said Mohegan's attorney could meet with the town's attorney to start the process, a move that Town Council President Paul E. Burns later called "positive."

"We can set the perimeters now for a memorandum of understanding and negotiations," Burns said.

At the meeting's onset, Burns was presented with signatures from a pro-casino business group which wants Mohegan and the town to act quickly to enter into an agreement to present to the voters within 90 days after the approval of gaming legislation.

The meeting was held at the request of the Town Council, which wanted an update from Mohegan about the project's status. The meeting attracted few people other than town officials.

"This is the biggest thing that has ever hit this town," District 1 Councilor Philip J. Hebert said.

Mohegan officials were peppered with questions about their ability to finance the $500 million project, which they said they could have built within 18 to 24 months. They were asked about their "junk bond status" in reference to the springtime downgrade by Moody's Investors of Mohegan's long-term debt ratings. Brody said their colleagues in the casino industry have the same bond rating, as they are in the discretionary spending business.

"We are all processing through that roller coaster. We had two wonderful quarters," Brody said, adding "we are in the recovery side."

Mitchell G. Etess, chief executive officer for Mohegan, said there would be project financing, rated on how Moody's or Standard and Poors rate this particular project. No announcement was made regarding any other financial backer for the project. Etess said they intend to continue to lease the land from Northeast Realty.

A casino bill is pending that would create casinos in three separate regions in Massachusetts, including one in the four Western Massachusetts counties - Hampden, Hampshire, Berkshire and Franklin. The bill also calls for a single slot parlor.

"We're in it to win it," Etess said.

At-large Councilor Mary A. Salzmann asked if Mohegan would be prepared to negotiate with the surrounding towns.

"If the bill requires it, we certainly will," Brody said.

Brody said they are working on strategies to ensure that when the project comes to a vote in Palmer, that it will be positive, and to ensure that they win one of the casino licenses.

Burns asked if Mohegan would help pay for a negotiator for Palmer. He said it would bankrupt the town if it got through the negotiating process, only to lose the deal in the end.

Brody said Mohegan is on record that it would help pay for that.

Mohegan officials also were asked about the size of the entertainment venue. Etess said it would be a 20,000-square-foot multi-purpose space, with less than 1,000 seats, which conforms with the legislation. Brody said one of the 150 amendments being proposed wants to push that up to 1,500 seats, and they would be pleased if that passes. He added that they would like to see license terms be for 20 years, instead of 15.

Etess said choosing Palmer "was not accidental" and the location allows them to draw from the Vermont, New Hampshire and the Albany, N.Y. area. Brody explained that the project was first touted as a $1 billion resort casino to comply with the governor's bill of four years ago. He said the $500 million price tag is a reflection of the recession, and said the project has remained unchanged since 2009 and includes a luxury hotel, gaming and entertainment, as well as 5,500-square-feet of retail space.

Brody said the site has everything they need - power, water, municipal sewer. Brody said they are now projecting that the project will use 250,000 gallons of water a day, not 700,000 as originally estimated.

James Ammann, the Palmer Water District superintendent, later said he needs to see the study Brody is referring to regarding water usage. If the project's needs exceed what Palmer can provide, Ammann said they will have to look into potential connections with surrounding communities, or possibly utilize the Quabbin Reservoir.

Burns asked them what they think will be the most immediate infractruture impact.

"That's like saying which one of my vital organs is the most important . . . We have to have water. We have to have power," Brody said.

Iris L. Cardin, co-president of Quaboag Valley Against Casinos, asked Mohegan officials how they would alleviate her fears about increased crime and traffic and overcrowded schools and hospitals if a casino were to open in her hometown. Brody disputed her claims, and Cardin was told to call local officials where Mohegan operates casinos, in Montville, Conn. and Wilkes-Barre, Pa., along with the chambers of commerce.

Burns last week released data that showed Palmer stands to gain $7.9 million in property tax revenue if the casino opened; that's based on the current tax rate.

About 20 Republican lawmakers gathered at doorstep of House Minority Leader Bradley Jones’ Statehouse office to announce the first seven stops of a six-week “GOP Jobs Tour.”

By KYLE CHENEY

BOSTON - Arguing that Beacon Hill’s efforts to boost the economy have failed to address short-term unemployment issues, Republican lawmakers said Wednesday they hope to unveil a package of job creation policies later this year built on feedback from businesses and constituents in regions they represent.

About 20 Republican lawmakers gathered at doorstep of House Minority Leader Bradley Jones’ Statehouse office to announce the first seven stops of a six-week “GOP Jobs Tour,” including visits to Gardner, Agawam, Bridgewater, Attleboro, Andover, Sutton and Sandwich. During the tour, the lawmakers say they intend to talk to business groups and officials to gather policy ideas to unburden businesses from regulations, taxes or health care costs that are inhibiting their ability to make hires.

“We can’t presume to know all of the solutions as we stand here today. We do know that there are some critical things that are important, like the cost of unemployment insurance, like the cost of health care, like the tax burden,” said Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, of Gloucester. “It’s our hope that we will have a plan of action that will emanate from this that will demonstrate the results of the conversation.”

Democratic lawmakers and Gov. Deval L. Patrick have touted their efforts to create jobs, describing legislation to stave off steep hikes in unemployment insurance premiums for businesses, an August sales tax holiday and a plan to bring three casinos and a slot parlor to Massachusetts that is expected to pass the House this week. The governor has also pointed to the state’s investments in infrastructure and education, its balanced budget and its focus on knowledge and clean tech jobs as drivers of job creation.

Jones said he hoped that lawmakers don’t grow complacent with their efforts to date.

“We certainly don’t want to create expanded gaming, on top of the idea that we did a modest relief of unemployment insurance premium increase in January, coupled with a sales tax holiday, that that is all we could or should do to help the economy in Massachusetts. We think that would be a fundamental mistake,” he said. He added that any jobs created from casinos likely wouldn’t materialize for years, until casinos are constructed and operating.

Asked why Republicans only planned visits to districts they represent, Jones took a swipe at Democrats before saying that organizing events in GOP-represented communities was the “easiest way to go.”

“Sometimes, quite frankly, Democrats don’t like to engage us in the conversation up here until the end,” he said. “Having a dialogue is a two-way street.”

Rep. Brad Hill, of Ipswich, added that he intends to invite business interests from surrounding communities – including Lawrence – join him at a tour stop in Andover.

“We’re starting with the people we know and the places that we know and getting these things facilitated as quickly as possible,” Tarr said. “I think this is a very open-ended process. If other legislators from the other party would come, we would welcome that.”

The GOP tour includes the following stops: Sept. 20, 6 p.m., Mount Wachusett Community College; Sept. 26, 6:30 p.m., Agawam Senior Center; Sept. 27, 7 p.m., Memorial Building, Bridgewater; Oct. 3, 6 p.m., Attleboro High School; Oct. 3, 6:30 p.m., Andover Public Library; Oct. 3, 7 p.m., Sutton Senior Center; and Oct. 4, 7 p.m., Sandwich Town Hall.

The cause of the blaze remains under investigation. Watch video

SPRINGFIELD – Thirteen-year-old Demetrius Faust, awakened early Wednesday by the smell of smoke inside his Forest Park neighborhood home, is credited with helping nine others safely escape from the blaze.

Fire Department Capt. Michael R. Richard said that Demetrius Faust, of 51-53 Daystona St., relied on the fire safety training that he received in school to rouse those sleeping inside the two-family home and see that they all got outside safely.

“If it wasn’t for him we would still be inside,” said Lee Hutchins, the boy’s father and owner of the 2½ story wood-frame home. The fire was reported about 4 a.m.

DeLeo said he understand the concerns of gambling opponents, but said he is as concerned when he walks into union halls and sees “30 percent, 40 percent, 50 percent of those people unemployed.”

File photo / Associated PressMassachusetts House Speaker Robert DeLeo is seen during a press conference at the Statehouse in Boston in April.

By MATT MURPHY

BOSTON - As the House launched into its latest expanded gambling debate Wednesday afternoon, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo viewed the creation of casinos in Massachusetts as the best opportunity the state has to create 15,000 new jobs and bring additional revenue to the state.

“The biggest thing on people’s minds right now is employment and I don’t know of any better place, or any other way, we can talk about creating a minimum of 15,000 jobs as we’re doing with this legislation. That’s what this legislation is all about,” DeLeo said, after huddling for over an hour with fellow Democrats behind closed doors to discuss the legislation.

DeLeo, for whom expanded gambling has been a top priority since he ascended to the speakership in 2009, said he understood the concerns of gambling opponents, but said he is as concerned when he walks into union halls and sees “30 percent, 40 percent, 50 percent of those people unemployed.”

“This is a House that’s concerned about jobs, and I think of all the issues that are going to be before the House that is the issue that is overriding with this membership, that they feel they have to do something for their constituents and the economy of the state, so I feel pretty good about it,” said DeLeo, who appears to have resolved his dispute with Gov. Deval L. Patrick over racetrack slots that led to the demise of gambling legislation more than a year ago.

Critics of expanded gambling fear casinos will suck business away from other sectors and, noting the state’s falling jobless rate, have instead promoted efforts to grow other parts of the state’s economy.

The House at about 1:30 p.m. began debate on legislation that would license up to three regional, resort-style casinos and one competitively bid slot parlor that advocates estimate could return up to $300 million a year in annual taxes on gross gambling revenues.

Rep. Joseph F. Wagner, a Democrat from Chicopee, the co-chairman of Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Committees, said Tuesday that it was possible that the House could wrap up debate within a day, but lawmakers are prepared for the debate to carry over until Thursday.

Neither Wagner nor DeLeo would take a position Tuesday on a Republican-sponsored amendment that would force casino operators to use the federal eVerify system to check the immigration status of prospective employees.

Wagner also said it was a possibility that amendments could be bundled into consolidated amendments on the floor to expedite the process. Consolidating amendments behind closed doors has been criticized as secretive, while supporters of the process say it enables the House to more efficiently deal with large numbers of amendments.

As Democrats held their closed-door caucus Tuesday to discuss the bill and potential amendments, a coalition of gambling opponents gathered outside the State House to voice their distaste for bill, bemoaning the gambling addiction, substance abuse and crime often associated with expanded gaming.

DeLeo also rebutted criticism that the gambling bill has been largely hatched behind closed doors among top Democratic leaders without allowing public input. “Each and every person, I presume out there if they’re from Massachusetts, will have a state representative who will be taking part in the debate tomorrow,” he said.

Opponents have also called for an updated cost-benefit analysis, suggesting that revenue and job estimates have been overstated by gambling proponents. DeLeo, however, said the estimates that were updated last year, in his opinion, are conservative.

“I, for one, have not seen a whole lot of the casinos in Connecticut or wherever they may be closing down right now. I think actually when we talk about a $300 million possibility into the state coffers I think it’s actually on the low side, but time will tell,” DeLeo said.

The Speaker said he also spoke last week with the House speaker in Rhode Island, where lawmakers have approved a 2012 ballot referendum to add table games at Twin River Gambling Casino, and described his counterpart as “very concerned about what we’re about to do here in Massachusetts and his state sort of being a little bit behind in the issue.”

Democrats in the House described the conversation during the caucus as heavily focused on trying to understand the Indian gaming provisions in the bill, as well as how eventual revenues from casinos and slots will be spent.

As drafted, the bill would give Native American tribes in southeastern Massachusetts until July 31, 2012 to purchase land and negotiate a revenue-sharing compact with Gov. Deval Patrick. That compact also would have to be approved by the Legislature.
Should the July 31 deadline pass without a compact, a newly created state Gaming Commission would be authorized to consider proposals for a casino from commercial developers in the southeast region - which includes Bristol, Plymouth, Barnstable and Dukes counties - as long as the commission doesn't anticipate the tribe taking land into federal trust by Congress.

Several amendments have been filed by lawmakers related to Native American gaming, including one by Rep. Demetrius Atsalis, a Democrat from Barnstable, that would require a court, and not the Gaming Commission, to rule that a tribe was entitled to land in trust.

Another amendment filed by Rep. Antonio Cabral, a Democrat from New Bedford, would extend the deadline to a tribe to put together an application by three months to Oct. 1.

House leaders described the debate in caucus over Indian gaming as one more of interest rather than opposition as members tried to gain a better understanding of the provisions of the bill.

“We believe it’s in the best interest of the commonwealth given what’s happening in Washington that we be well positioned going forward as we embark on legalizing gaming that we are making certain that we’re putting the Commonwealth in a position, both from a legal perspective and from a financial perspective, that we can work out a compact that is mutually agreeable both to the Commonwealth and a Native American tribe,” House Ways and Means Chairman Brian Dempsey said.

Asked why the House bill – which requires an $85 million upfront casino licensing fee and taxes gaming revenue at 25 percent – fell short of the $200 million application fee and 27 percent tax structure proposed by Gov. Deval L. Patrick four years ago, Wagner credited the struggling economy.

“Market conditions are very different and you can build something for less in a more difficult economy than you can in an economy that’s humming and people sharpen their pencils in a difficult economy,” said Wagner, noting the $85 million license fee is a “floor” that could climb as applicants compete for the three casino licenses.

Proceedings are being streamed on the Legislature's website.

Former state Sen. Susan Tucker, D-Andover, speaks against casino gaming at a rally outside the Statehouse as the legislature's Democratic caucus began discussing legislation in Boston, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)

Members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives are debating a bill that would allow expanded casino gambling in the Commonwealth today.

Representative Joseph Wagner, D-Chicopee, started off the proceedings by outlining the bill, which he says goes beyond last year's failed attempt in that it "significantly increases mitigation funding for impacted communities."

"I think it's a fair statement to say expanded gaming has been studied exhaustively, session after session," Wagner said.

Wagner is co-chairman of the Joint Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies, which sent the bill to the House earlier this month.

Opponents to casino gambling would argue there should be more study — and more public debate — on the process. The Republican reports that protesters made a last-ditch effort to make their opposition to expanded gaming known during a protest Tuesday.

"In the long term, the bill will only create more economic turbulence, more problems for families, and more new addiction than our state can afford," said Alison Digman, a member of the National Association of Social Workers during the Statehouse protest.

Watch a live video stream of the proceedings on the Legislature's website, and follow our coverage of casino gambling legislation.

An Act establishing expanded gaming in the commonwealth

Obituaries from The Republican today.

Michael J. Blanchard

AGAWAM - Michael J. Blanchard, 58, of Feeding Hills, died Monday. A son of the late Richard M. and Alice V. (Cull-inan) Blanchard, he was born in Springfield on June 29, 1953. Raised in Springfield he graduated from Springfield Technical High School in 1971. Michael was employed by the city of West Springfield as a code enforcement officer from which he recently retired. He served as a constable for Hampden County for many years, and resided in the Feeding Hills section of Agawam for the past 17 years. He was an avid race fan and Jaguar enthusiast and spent many years as a accomplished artist and sign designer. He was a member of the Dante Club and the John Boyle O'Reilly Club.

Obituaries from The Republican:

• Baba, Robin Gail
  




• 
  Blanchard, Michael
  



• 
  Blanchard, Michael J.




• 
  Blanchette, Gerard O.
  



• 
  Boyer, Elizabeth "Betty"
  




• Brunelle III, Arthur J. "Sonny"
  




• 
  Congdon, Phyllis (Young)
  



• 
  Corbin, Lillie Belle




• 
  Danasko, Francine M. "Franny" (deBlois)
  



• 
  Fern, Emilda G. "Pat" (Emard)
  




• Fiala, Sheila M. (Aubrey)
  




• 
  Igel, Edith J. (Hoppe)
  



• 
  Klimkowicz, Mary G. (Daborowski)




• 
  Langlois, Bessie E.
  



• 
  Lareau, Clarence "Chuck, Clary"
  




• Loving Sr., Minor S. "Butchie"
  




• 
  Mochak Sr., Edmund P.
  



• 
  Napolitan, Mary (Nelen)




• 
  Pudlo, Irene Zajchowski (Midura)
  



• 
  Rogers, Rosemarie A. (Ducharme)
  




• Schott, Richard
  




• 
  Shinners, Jeanne (Hull)
  



• 
  Sullivan Jr., Edward F.




• 
  Watts, Joyce E. (Peters)
  



• 
  Westbrook Jr., Cooper
  




• Whitney, Lydia (Anderson)
  




• 
  Woodham, Samuel T.
  



• 
  Zielinski, Walter F.

Brown said the program "plays an important role in keeping America safe."

(AP Photo)U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, R-Mass., and Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.

Sen. Scott Brown sent a letter to Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick Wednesday, urging Patrick to reverse his stance on Secure Communities, a controversial federal program that seeks to better identify criminals who are in the country illegally.

The program asks state and local law enforcement agencies to share data about criminal suspects with immigration authorities at the federal level.

Patrick's administration announced earlier this year that it would opt out of the federal program, citing a "lack of clarity." City councils in Springfield and Northampton, as well as Boston and other communities in the Commonwealth, have voted in opposition to Secure Communities as well. Critics have said the program amounts to racial profiling.

Brown joined the Obama administration in supporting the measure, which he wrote, "plays an important role in keeping America safe." He cited recent instances in Eastern Massachusetts where deaths involving illegal immigrants occurred. Brown wrote:

Recently, three tragic deaths at the hands of illegal immigrants in Brockton and Milford have highlighted the clear need to address this very serious problem. In both cases, the perpetrators were in the country illegally and had amassed violent criminal histories.

Had the Secure Communities program been in place, it is possible that law enforcement would have been able to identify and remove them from the country before they tragically took three lives. Read Brown's letter in full »

The Boston Herald reports that one possible challenger to Brown in 2012, Elizabeth Warren, is opposed to Secure Communities.

The imposition of a $100 fee for taking part in a team sport, capped at $200 per student and $400 per family, upset many parents whose children are very active in sports, according to School Committee member Shelley Reed.

File photo by Michael S. Gordon / The RepublicanLiz Gale, left, of Westfield High School, and Meg Cecchi, right, of Agawam High School joust during a field hockey game Friday at Agawam High School. The Agawam School Committee this week voted to repeal a fee it had planned to impose for athletics.

AGAWAM – The School Committee Tuesday unanimously approved a request by the mayor to repeal fees it adopted earlier this summer for students taking part in team sports as well as a steep increase in the fee charged students for parking at the high school.

Mayor Richard A. Cohen got the board to accept $97,000 in additional and unanticipated state aid to allow for those changes subject to approval by the City Council. The $97,000 would make up for School Department revenues that would have been generated by imposing a $100 fee per student per team sport and increasing the parking fee from $40 to $160. The fee schedule, adopted earlier this summer to take effect this academic year, capped sports fees at $200 per student and $400 per family.

“I don’t think there was one School Committee member in favor of fees, nor was I,” Cohen told the committee. “In these difficult economic times, we had to make difficult decisions.”

School Committee member Shelley Reed said, “A lot parents were very upset about the fees, especially parents whose children play a lot of sports.”

Cohen commented that the School Committee had made preserving the jobs of teachers and teachers aides a priority this year.

“I support this. It is a great idea,” School Committee Vice Chairman Anthony C. Bonavita said of the proposed repeal.

Some committee members voted to impose the athletic fee and to increase the parking charge as “a last resort,” Bonavita said.

School Committee member Kathleen Mouneimneh said she would support the request, but with reservations because she would like to see a $50 athletic fee so the School Department could restore a high school math teacher position eliminated through a retirement.

“That is not going to happen, unfortunately,” Mouneimneh said.

The action was taken by a 7-0 vote on a motion by School Committee member Roberta G. Doering that was seconded by Bonavita.

The regional training facility will be built on the grounds of the Springfield Fire Training facility.

09/14/11 Springfield- Republican Photo by Mark M.Murray - West Springfield Fire Chief William M.Flaherty, left holds a plague made in honor of his father, John J. Flaherty ,center the retired West Side Fire Chief as Massachusetts State Fire Marshall, Stephen D. Coan, right looks on following a ceremony at the Norris J. Quinn Fire Training Center, where a classroom is being named after the former Chief. The event was held Wednesday at the Indian Orchard site.

SPRINGFIELD – Scores of fire officials from throughout the region and beyond gathered at the Springfield Fire Training facility Wednesday to honor retired West Springfield Fire Chief John J. Flaherty and his commitment to the creation of a regional training facility here.

Flaherty, who served as chief from 1986 to 2003, was a long-time member of the state Fire Training Council and a strong advocate for the creation of a regional training facility.

“We are here today to honor a great fire chief and a great friend, and I have to say what touches me the most, the patriarch of a great American family,” State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan said.

The regional facility, to be built on the grounds of the city’s current facility on Grochmal Avenue in Indian Orchard, is edging closer to fruition. Coan told those attending the ceremony that he has long thought of naming a classroom inside the facility in honor of Flaherty.

Coan said Flaherty regularly brought up the issue during the training council’s monthly meetings in Stowe.

“At each one of those meetings, Chief Flaherty would advocate very strongly for the needs of fire training in the western part of the state, most particularly in the creation of a Western Massachusetts Fire Academy,” said Coan. “It’s John and others with him, over the many years of planning that kept us focused on this very important project.”

“They worked tirelessly and never gave up on the dream of having a Western Massachusetts academy,” said Flaherty’s son, William M. Flaherty, current chief of the West Springfield Fire Department.

Gov. Deval Patrick included a $10 million appropriation in the state’s capital budget plan several years ago for the regional academy.

Flaherty, accompanied by his wife, Mary, his children and grandchildren and numerous well-wishers, attended the ceremony.

“John, we are happy to report that the negotiations with the state are almost over and the reality of locating a regional training center right here is just around the corner,” said Springfield Fire Commissioner Gary G. Cassanelli.

Afterwards, Flaherty described the honor as “Overwhelming....I really don’t feel that the honor should go to me,” he said. “It should go to all the Western Mass chiefs who have been working on it for the last 20 years.

Other speakers included Greenfield Fire Chief Michael J. Winn and president of the Western Massachusetts Fire Chiefs’ Association; Longmeadow Fire Chief Eric Madison of the Hampden County Fire Mutual Aid Association and West Springfield Mayor Edward J. Gibson.

"We're waiting to receive word from the town on what the future holds," the police chief said.

Photo by Lori Stabile / The RepublicanMonson Police Chief Stephen Kozloski Jr. stands outside the temporary trailers that now house the Monson Police Department. The Monson Police Station previously was located in the Town Office Building on Main Street which was badly damaged by the June 1 tornado and cannot be used.

MONSON - After the tornado left its building unusable, the Monson Police Department now operates out of a series of six temporary trailers next to the old station.

Police Chief Stephen Kozloski Jr. showed officials the new facility, set up on the former skate park, on a recent weekday, and said it's possible that they could be in the trailers for a year.

Dealing with the aftermath of a tornado was hard enough - more than 200 homes were damaged, some blown totally apart by the force of the twister - and public safety officials woked non-stop to help the residents.

Power was out in some parts of town, trees blocked roadways, residents were displaced and the police no longer had a building - the tornado ripped the roof off the Town Office Building that the police shared with municipal offices, and it was deemed too unsafe for use.

So the officers resorted to working in the cruisers, or in the parking lot, until a single camper trailer arrived within a week of the disaster. The six 12x60-foot trailers the police are using now arrived in July; the department moved in later that month.

"We're waiting to receive word from the town on what the future holds," Kozloski said.

Kozloski said that he would like a new station for his 10 full-time officers, and 10 to 12 part-timers.

While the new station is about the same size as the old one, there are some changes, and challenges. They have a smaller locker room now, and it's also co-ed. Before, the department had separate locker rooms for its male and female officers.

The dispatchers can no longer shout to the officers - they cannot hear them because of the way the trailer is laid out.

There have been leaks, electrical outlets not functioning. There also is a shortage of storage space. Some rooms that were separate before now are combined, such as the interview and booking room.

"It really has been a huge challenge. We still have day-to-day business," Kozloski said.

"At least it's as functional as what the old place used to be," he added.

"It's a different look for us, but we believe we tried to as closely mirror our original facility as possible so there was no reduction in our ability to provide services to the residents," Kozloski said. "It's starting to feel more like our normal work space."

Still, there is a lot of wasted space, he said, pointing to an open area they call "the dance floor" that has a conference table. The officers have moved everything out of 110 Main St.

"So this is home," Kozloski said to the officials on the tour.

"It's not as bad as I thought it was going to be," Selectman John F. Goodrich II said. "It's clean. It doesn't smell. It's not dark and dingy."

Party Chairwoman Jennifer Nassour urged Scott Brown supporters to send between $5 and $50 to the state party to “push back against the D.C. machine.”

Jennifer Nassour

BOSTON – Republicans are hoping to cash in on the decision of Harvard Law professor and consumer advocate Elizabeth Warren to jump into the Democratic race to challenge U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown.

Massachusetts Republican Party Chairwoman Jennifer Nassour sent out a fundraising email Wednesday just hours after Warren officially announced her candidacy. She urged Brown supporters to send between $5 and $50 to the state party to “push back against the D.C. machine.”

Nassour said Washington insiders are backing Warren so she can push “their failed agenda here.”

Nassour pointed to Warren’s sometimes blunt rhetoric, calling the 62-year-old “a one track minded extremist who will stop at nothing to demand obedience to her tax and spend ideology.”

Nassour said the party needs the money to help re-elect Brown in 2012.

The neighbors accused Caraballo with breaking into a home of a 51-year-old woman and stealing jewelry. He was arrested when police found a stolen bracelet in his pocket.

Joel M. Caraballo

SPRINGFIELD – A robbery suspect accused of breaking into a home on Hyde Avenue in the city's Plainfield neighborhood was apprehended by several neighbors who apparently tracked him back to his home one block away on Demond Avenue.

When police arrived at 73 Demond Ave. for a reported disturbance, they found several people pinning Joel M. Caraballo to a chair, said Sgt. John M. Delaney, spokesman to Police Commissioner William Fitchet.

Caraballo, 22, was charged with felony breaking and entering during the daytime, and larceny of more than $250.

The neighbors accused Caraballo with breaking into a home of a 51-year-old woman and stealing jewelry. Caraballo was arrested after officers found a bracelet in his pocket that the woman on Hyde Street identified as her property.

Caraballo denied the charges at his arraignment Wednesday in Springfield District Court. He was ordered held in lieu of $2,500 cash bail. He is due back in court for a pre-trial conference on Sept. 24.

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The Select Board will appoint two School Committee members to fill vacant seats on the committee.

LONGMEADOW- Seven candidates are being considered for two seats on the School Committee after Gwen M. Bruns and Thomas M. Brunette resigned for personal reasons.

The Select Board and School Committee conducted interviews with the candidates on Monday. Applying for Thomas Brunette’s seat are James A. Cass, Daniel J. Zwirko, Owen J. Humphries Jr., Gerard D. Kiernan and Jeremy B. Powers. Zwirko, Humphries, Kiernan and Powers are also applying for Bruns seat along with Diane B. Nadeau, Hal Etkin and James G. Desrochers.

The person appointed to Brunette’s seat will have to run for the seat in the June 2012 election to maintain the position for one more year. The person appointed to Bruns’ seat will run in June 2012 for a two-year seat. All of the candidates said they would consider running for reelection next June.

Cass is a theater teacher in Springfield who said he believes the town has a great school system. As a teacher he said he has seen the problems faced in city schools from lack of funding to overcrowded classrooms. He would like to see class sizes lowered.

Zwirko, aide to state Rep. Brian M. Ashe, a Democrat from Longmeadow, said he has attended many School Committee meetings and is passionate about serving his community and working with the school department. Zwirko said he considers the School Committee to be a cohesive unit and hopes his experience as a legislative aide will help the committee.

Kiernan has been a facilities director at the Eastern States Exposition for 23 years. Asked why he did not join the Capital Planing Committee because of his experience in building maintenance Kiernan said he loves children and finds the committee more interesting.

Powers has small children and moved to Longmeadow in January. Powers worked as a teacher and a legislative aide before becoming a lawyer. He does not support overrides and believes he can help the committee obtain state and federal grants to help balance the budget.

Humphries is a retired father who worked for the Community Development Block Grant program in Hartford. He said some of his strengths include grant writing and working well in a group.

Powers and Kiernan said they are against raising taxes, but Kiernan said he would consider a Proposition 2 1/2 if the time was right and the unemployment rate in the state goes down.

All of the candidates except Powers and Nadeau said they supported and voted in favor of the high school. Powers said he supports the high school project, but did not live in town at the time of the vote. Nadeau, a mother and business owner, said she believed a renovation would have been a better option, but now that the people have chosen she supports the project.

Derochers said he would like to see mentor programs between local colleges and the schools. As an engineer, he said he would be interested in looking at technology and securing STEM grants for the district.

Etkin, an attorney in Springfield, said he supports the use of technology in the classroom and would work with the committee to find ways to be fiscally responsible and maintain the quality of education that exists today.

The board plans its decision during a meeting Oct. 3.

The trial is expected to take at least a month.

File photo by Mark M. Murray / The RepublicanEric B. Denson, of Springfield, is seen during his arraignment in Springfield District Court last year in the slaying of Conor W. Reynolds.

SPRINGFIELD – More than 50 witnesses are expected to testify at the Oct. 3 murder trial of Eric B. Denson in the fatal stabbing of Conor W. Reynolds.

Prosecution and defense teams reported that number Wednesday to Hampden Superior Court Judge Peter A. Velis, as each side complained it has not gotten required pre-trial information from the other.

Velis admonished prosecution and defense, saying most pre-trial matters being argued over now should have been dealt with previously.

“I set the date and I’m sticking to it,” Velis said.

Extra jurors have been called in for Oct. 3 as jury selection is predicted to be difficult in the much-publicized case which is expected to last at least a month, Velis said.

Reynolds, 18, a Cathedral High School soccer standout, was fatally stabbed while attending a crowded party for another student at the Blue Fusion night club March 13, 2010.

Denson, 22, of Springfield, is accused of killing Reynolds and wounding Cathedral student Peter D’Amario, with a knife.

David Rountree was recently added to Denson’s defense team, joining Harry L. Miles and Bonnie G. Allen.

Hampden District Attorney Mark G. Mastroianni is prosecuting the case, aided by Assistant District Attorney Karen Bell.

Bell told Velis the defense owes the prosecution reports on what defense experts will be saying at trial. Miles said he will call four or five experts covering DNA, crime scene analysis, digital analysis of surveillance videotape and forensic pathology.

Bell and Miles sparred about whether the other has met their duty to provide witness lists and statements. Velis gave both sides until Sept. 21 to provide the information.

Velis asked prosecution and defense to work together in logistics of getting witnesses, some of whom are Catheral High School graduates now at out-of-state colleges, to court for testimony.

In light of the recent deaths of three Massachusetts residents, allegedly at the hands of illegal immigrants, Brown is calling on the federal government to activate the program statewide and for Patrick to help facilitate its expansion.

U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown, left, is seen with Massachusetts Gov. Deval L. Patrick in this composite photo.

By KYLE CHENEY

BOSTON - U.S. Sen. Scott P. Brown urged Gov. Deval L. Patrick Wednesday to ensure Massachusetts’ “full and immediate participation” in a federal program aimed at identifying and deporting illegal immigrants who commit additional crimes, flee arrest or present a security threat.

Six weeks ago, federal immigration authorities informed all 50 governors that they no longer are seeking state participation in the program, known as Secure Communities, and would move ahead unilaterally. But according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the program is only active in Suffolk County, one of Massachusetts’ 15 public safety jurisdictions.

In light of the recent deaths of three Massachusetts residents, allegedly at the hands of illegal immigrants, Brown is calling on the federal government to activate the program statewide and for Patrick to help facilitate its expansion.

Under Secure Communities, the FBI shares its fingerprint files with U.S. immigration authorities in an effort to identify people arrested in the country illegally and tee up many of them for deportation. The Obama administration initially asked states to sign agreements to join the Secure Communities Program, but after some governors objected and criticized the program – including Gov. Patrick – the Obama administration reversed course and announced plans to implement the program on its own.

According to, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the subdivision of the Department of Homeland Security that administers Secure Communities, the program has resulted in the deportation of 86,000 “criminal aliens.”

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano reiterated Tuesday at a hearing held by the Senate Homeland Security Committee that states are no longer asked or able to participate in Secure Communities.

“It’s an interoperability operation between [the Department of Homeland Security] and the FBI. It doesn’t require the specific agreement of a state or locality in order to deploy Secure Communities,” Napolitano said, adding that her agency hopes to have the program implemented in every jurisdiction in the country by fiscal year 2013, which begins at the federal level on Oct. 1, 2012.

Currently, she said, Secure Communities is operational in 1,200 jurisdictions across the country.

Napolitano was responding to a question from Brown about governors who have been reluctant to support Secure Communities.

“How do you deal with states – for example, my state –where you have a governor or others who don’t support it?” he asked. “Is there a way to convince them or cajole them or incentivize them to really get with the program so to speak?

Although not required, the support of state and local governments is “helpful,” Napolitano replied.

A spokesman for Patrick said the governor is precluded from joining Secure Communities but law enforcement officials in Massachusetts already share all the fingerprint data collected by State Police and communities across the state with federal authorities.

“As Senator Brown should be aware, in August the Department of Homeland Security sent a letter to the nation’s Governors announcing that states have no role whatsoever as relates to whether or not to implement the federal Secure Communities program,” said the spokesman, Alex Goldstein. “Memoranda of Agreement are no longer required or sought by the Federal Government from individual states or jurisdictions in order for the Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement to operate and implement the program, and previously signed agreements have been terminated by the Federal Government.

“The Patrick-Murray administration currently sends all fingerprints that we receive from local law enforcement to the federal government as we have in the past, and will continue to do so for our law enforcement needs,” Goldstein added.

Republicans in the Massachusetts Legislature announced plans in late August to file legislation forcing the governor to join the Secure Communities program, but they pulled back after acknowledging that states are no longer able to participate.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 140.88 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 11,246.73.

Associated Press photoGreek Prime Minister George Papandreou laughs during a ceremony at the presidential palace in Athens, Wednesday. The leaders of Greece, France and Germany pledged to seek ways to contain the spiraling debt crisis and prevent it from further roiling global financial markets during a teleconference on Wednesday evening.

NEW YORK – A promise by European leaders to help Greece avoid default sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday, the third day of gains in a row.

The leaders of Greece, France and Germany agreed in a teleconference that Greece was an “integral” part of the 17-country bloc that uses the euro. Greece also said it would stick to agreements to trim its debts, a condition for getting more financial help. The statements were intended to calm fears that Greece was headed for default or might be forced to drop the euro.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 140.88 points, or 1.3 percent, to close at 11,246.73. It was another day of choppy trading in the stock market. The Dow sank as many as 112 points within the first hour of trading, then rose steadily through the rest of the day.

“The news out of Europe is beginning to sound a bit more friendly,” said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital, a brokerage in New York. Investors remain far from convinced that Europe’s debt crisis will be solved. “Once they are, some of this fear will dissipate.”

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 15.81 points, or 1.3 percent, to 1,188.68. The Nasdaq composite rose 40.40, or 1.6 percent, to 2,572.55.

European stock indexes rose sharply in the hours leading up to the meeting as investors hoped the talks would be productive. Germany’s DAX gained 3.4 percent and France’s CAC-40 1.9 percent.

The threat of a Greek default and the damage it could wreak on financial markets has had investors on edge in the past two weeks, lifting Treasurys and weighing on stocks. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note hit a record low on Monday of 1.87 percent and the S&P 500 has only risen three days this month.

Uri Landesman, president of the New York hedge fund Platinum Partners, said worries over Greece have gone too far. Landesman thinks European countries won’t let a Greek default create a larger financial crisis. “They’re just not going to let them go under,” he said. “That’s just not happening. I think people have learned the lesson from letting Lehman Brothers fail.”

German Chancellor Angela Merkel distanced herself from comments this week by her vice chancellor and others who suggested a Greek bankruptcy was possible. European finance ministers will meet on Friday in Poland.

ConAgra Foods Inc. said it would withdraw its $5.17 billion bid for Ralcorp Holdings Inc. if the company doesn’t consider its bid by Monday evening. Ralcorp has already rejected several bids from ConAgra since March. Ralcorp’s stock dropped 7 percent to $79.11. ConAgra fell 2 percent to $23.45.

Computer maker Dell Inc. rose 3 percent to $14.86. Dell said Tuesday it will add $5 billion to its existing $2.1 billion stock-buyback plan. Dell bought $1.1 billion of its stock in the second quarter.

Staples Inc. rose 3 percent to $14.60 after the company said it will buy up to $1.5 billion of its own stock. The office-supply company’s stock has dropped 36 percent this year.

The gains came despite a report that retail sales were flat in August. People spent less on autos, clothing and furniture as fears mounted that the country was slipping into a recession and as the stock market took a steep fall. Economists had expected a slight gain.

That report helped push oil prices down $1.30 to $88.91 a barrel. Weak retail spending suggests Americans will consume less fuel.

All three stock indexes are still down for the month. The Dow has lost 3.2 percent and the S&P 500 index 2.5 percent. The Nasdaq has fared better, losing just 0.3 percent.

The center received a $16 million grant five years ago.

AMHERST - The University of Massachusetts Center for Hierarchical Manufacturing has received a five year $20-million grant from the National Science Foundation to continue work it began when the center was first created five years ago.

The grant will pay researchers and staff to improve upon the existing roll-to-roll nanomanufacturing technology to make it less costly and more available to companies wishing to use it, said the center’s director James Watkins, something that’s key for manufacturers in this country to stay competitive.

Nanotechnology works with particles that are thousands of times smaller than a human hair.

The grant was announced Wednesday at a press conference at UMass that was attended by two companies who are working with the center as well as UMass Chancellor Robert C. Holub, Eric T. Nakajima, from the state’s executive office Housing and Economic Development and Watkins among others.

The technology factors into many products used today such as cell-phones, laptops and solar cells. In his remarks, Holub said technology that allows for “cheaper and easier ways to manufacture amazing things to improve our lives.”

Five years ago, the center received a $16 million grant. The grants are extremely competitive, Watkins said. The center is one only 14 such centers in the country.

“If you look to the future, UMass’ impact on manufacturing and innovations is going to be profound,” Nakajima said.

The center has a number of partners including FLEXcon - a Spencer based company that manufactures pressure-sensitive films and adhesives, and E-Ink of Cambridge which makes the screens for e-readers.

Michael D. McCreary from E-Ink said researchers have been able to use the facilities at UMass and like FLEXcon has hired UMass graduates. The company has a facility in South Hadley and is expanding there as well.

“This is a really significant research grant,” said Michael F. Malone, vice chancellor for Research and Engagement.

Most of the money will fund graduate and post doctoral students and staff. Watkins said there are about 32 graduate students, six or seven post-doctoral students and about 25 faculty involved.

Malone pointed out that has an immediate effect on the economy, with every dollar brought in means more than $2 in spending.

Mount Holyoke College is a partner in the grant. Watkins said they are also working with Springfield Technical Community College along with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Michigan, among others.

On Tuesday, UMass received $1.3 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to train graduate and undergraduate engineering students in industrial energy efficiency.