Westfield's cost for the school will only be $13 million, but the state’s School Building Authority required the city to secure funding for the total cost. The authority will reimburse Westfield 62.7 percent or about $23 million for the project.

File photo | The RepublicanWestfield City Hall.

WESTFIELD – Construction of a $36 million elementary school is scheduled to begin in the spring and $3.4 million in repairs to City Hall are expected to begin immediately.

Both projects received final approval for funding, through bonding, Thursday by the City Council.

The School Department is scheduled to move from the former Ashley Street School to Hampton Ponds Plaza later this month, clearing the way for demolition of that building, the site of the new 660-pupil elementary school.

At City Hall immediate work will involve replacement of at least two sections of slate roof, deemed critical by Mayor Daniel M. Knapik and Purchaser Tammy B. Tefft before winter weather arrives.

Failure to secure the roof could force the closing of two areas of City Hall during the winter, Knapik and Tefft told councilors last month.

Those areas are a rear entrance to City Hall, one that leads to the Retirement Board and the other is an area that currently allows rain to seep into a records storage area.

Several city officials have said significant repairs and maintenance to the building has been lacking for at least the past 30 years.

The overall bond will allow the replacement of the entire slate roof which is beyond repair, Tefft has said. It will also allow repair or replacement of windows in the building, re-pointing of the brick facade and new gutters around the building.

Opening of the new elementary school will lead to the closing of Abner Gibbs and Franklin Avenue schools.

The new school may also house students from Juniper Park School, leased by the School Department from Westfield State University. The lease with WSU expires next year.

The new school is expected to be ready for use in September 2013.

According to the prosecutor, Rintala, killed her wife, Annamarie Cochrane Rintala, in their Granby home and tried to cover up the crime.

NORTHAMPTON – Cara L. Rintala has been invited to live at the parsonage at Westfield Advent Christian Church if the court decides it is safe to release her on bail, according to a memorandum filed by her defense.

The document filed this week by lawyer David P. Hoose includes a letter from the Westfield church’s board of elders informing the court that it has approved the arrangement. Rintala is currently being held without right to bail on a first degree murder charge in connection with the strangulation death of her wife, Annamarie Cochrane Rintala.

Last week, the Northwestern District Attorney’s Office outlined much of its case against Rintala at a dangerousness hearing in Hampshire Superior Court. According to First Assistant District Attorney Steven Gagne, Rintala, 45, killed Cochrane Rintala, 37, in their Granby home and tried to cover up the crime by pouring paint on the floor and making it appear that someone had broken into the house.

Gagne described a sometimes violent marriage in which each woman accused the other of physical violence. Cochrane Rintala at one point sought a restraining order against Rintala and Rintala once filed for divorce. Members of the victim’s family said the two remained together for the sake of their adopted daughter, Brianna, now 4.

Hoose’s memorandum also includes letters to the court from a pediatric office and a child care facility in Rhode Island, where Rintala was living with her daughter when she was arrested last month. Both letter speak of a strong bond between mother and daughter and recommend that the two be allowed to remain together.

According to the memorandum, Rintala was born in Springfield and raised in Westfield, where she graduated from Westfield High School in 1984. She earned an emergency medical technician certificate from Springfield Technical Community College. Both she and Cochrane Rintala worked as paramedics.

Rintala’s parents divorced and her mother remarried. She has one brother who lives in South Dakota. Hoose has asked the court to set bail at $100,000 cash, arguing that it is a burdensome amount for Rintala’s family and that she would not be a flight risk. Should the court agree to bail and Rintala is released, she would wear an electronic monitor to ensure she remains in the parsonage. The defendant is due back in court for a pretrial hearing on Feb. 7.

In true communal fashion, neighbors on Talbot Street in the Sixteen Acres neighborhood of Springfield are bringing all available resources to bear to buoy one another in the wake of the region’s latest weather crisis.

The Republican | Michael BeswickAmong the residents who have banded together to help each other through the snowstorm's aftermath are Margaret Doyle, left, Sue Hucul, Shirley Pease, Michael Greenwood, Larry Pease, and Dottie and Fred Rempp of the Sixteen Acres section of Springfield.

One offered a stockpile of handmade quilts. Another donated firewood. A third opened a warm home and family-style dinners to mitigate the cold, anxiety-ridden nights.

In true communal fashion, neighbors on Talbot Street in the Sixteen Acres neighborhood of Springfield are bringing all available resources to bear to buoy one another in the wake of the region’s latest weather crisis. After residents were plunged into cold and darkness in the early blast of snow, smaller-scale support networks are cropping up across the region as shelters and utility crews have been overwhelmed and seemingly slow to respond.

“Anyone who needs anything, we go and get it for them,” said Shirley Pease, who lives with her husband, Larry, and her son, Michael Greenwood, at 98 Talbot St. “Food, blankets.”

Pease offered her collection of quilts to neighbors who had been shivering in their beds, while an elderly woman down the street lucky enough to have a generator in turn gifted her firewood to the Peases. The temperature in her home had dipped to 53 degrees by Tuesday, and the kind gestures brought her to tears.

“Everyone is just so cold. So, so cold,” Pease said.

On Tuesday, Sue Hucul and Margaret Doyle, their next-door neighbors, were hosting a community dinner for the third night running. The women shared the warmth of their wood-burning stove and food from their gas grill with more than a dozen people each night. Many of their guests have donated food - including 15 filet mignons in danger of spoiling. “Everyone’s been living for the daylight hours, and start to get anxious when the night’s coming,” Hucul said. “This seems to make it a little better.”

More intimate gestures of kindness have cropped up throughout the city and region as residents remain powerless for nearly a week in some cases, with the elderly being most vulnerable.

Shiloh Bradshaw, assistant pastor of the Church in the Acres, near Talbot Street, said secretary Cheryl Nacewicz began making about two dozen calls to elderly congregants when they discovered they regained power on Tuesday morning.

“I came in and said I don’t need all this heat for myself,” said Nacewicz.

The Republican | Mark M. MurrayThe Jason Holladay family plugs in at the Church in the Acres on Wilbraham Road in Springfield Tuesday. There is no power in the Springfield home of family members Timothy, 9, left; Michael, 13; Jason Holladay; and Jonathan, 11.

About a dozen members and neighbors came to get out of the cold and have a hot cup of coffee. Among them were Jane and Donald Gaines, of 58 Balboa St., who were virtually trapped in their home for two days before large limbs had been cleared away.

Friends from the church had been stopping over to put warm socks on Donald Gaines, who is 91 and had been hospitalized for a congestive heart condition and other problems recently, according to his wife.

In other areas of the region, some problems triggered by the storm and being housebound were even more dire. In South Hadley, Diane Chlosta, of Brittany Road, discovered her 84-year-old neighbor on the floor of her living room when she was bringing over hot coffee on Monday morning.

“I had gotten a Box ¤’o Joe from Dunkin’ Donuts for some workers that had arrived at our house to split wood. I might not have found her if it wasn’t for that Box ¤’o Joe. I’m keeping that box,” Chlosta said, noting that her neighborhood also has banded together in the wake of the storm.

Her neighbor received life-saving drugs after Chlosta called 911, and is recovering in the intensive care unit at a local hospital. Chlosta visits her each day.

In Easthampton, where power was still out in much of the city Tuesday, shopkeepers were keeping their doors open as they tried to help people get through the outage.

Mount Tom’s Homemade Ice Cream on Cottage lost 100 tubs of ice cream when the freezers stopped working Saturday. Owner James Ingram didn’t want the rest to go to waste.

“It was either going down the drain or I was going to give it away,” he said.

Ingram posted a notice for free ice cream on the store’s Facebook page, and Mayor Michael Tautznik spread the word on his own Facebook page Monday.

“Within half an hour the place was packed with people,” Ingram said.

He estimates that he served up 250 cups of free ice cream in every flavor from chocolate cake batter to burnt sugar.

Francic Phelps is a resident of Quarry Hill, senior apartments in East Longmeadow. The morning after the storm Phelps went from door to door, checking on all of the older residents and convincing many of them to head for the shelter at Birchland Park Middle School.

“I know a lot of them are much older and they didn’t want to leave their houses or their cats. I just tried to convince them to head for a warm place,” he said.

Phelps, who stayed in his apartment with no power, has shown up to the East Longmeadow shelter every day setting up cots, serving meals and helping people with whatever they need. He even brings meals back to residents who don’t want to leave their houses and charges their cell phones for them. “I just keep a smile on my face and help people however I can,” he said.

Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Dorothy Hall was found unresponsive Thursday morning by her son, who lives with her.

NORTH BROOKFIELD, Mass. (AP) — Authorities say an 86-year-old North Brookfield woman has been found dead in her unheated home.

Worcester County District Attorney Joseph Early Jr. said Dorothy Hall was found unresponsive Thursday morning by her son, who lives with her.

Early said 59-year-old Willis Hall called 911 when he found his mother sitting wrapped in a blanket in a living room chair. Hall told police the house had been without power since late Saturday afternoon, and his mother had complained of the cold Wednesday night. He was taken to a hospital for treatment of a medical condition and possible hypothermia.

Early urged people to check on elderly neighbors and contact police if they need shelter.

More than 140,000 Massachusetts utility customers still had no power late Thursday after a weekend snowstorm downed trees and power lines.

Authorities in Providence, R.I. last week arrested two Liberian nationals they say attempted to scam an undercover agent.

A bundle with a fake one hundred dollar bill on top, below, used by United States Secret Service agents while pursuing con artists trying to scam victims into receiving fake so-called "black money," top, rests on a table at the U.S. Secret Service office, in Providence, R.I., Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. Investigators say con artists convince victims to pay for chemicals to wash bank note-sized paper they claim to be real currency dyed black to avoid detection by customs officials. Except for a few genuine currency bills used to trap victims, the black money is usually construction paper. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

By LAURA CRIMALDI, Associated Press

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Anyone who has been given money-sized paper dyed in black should come forward because they're probably victims of a scam that has already claimed $170,000 from three people in New England, authorities pleaded Thursday.

The U.S. Secret Service called for victims of an international "black money" scheme to step forward because they believe many more people have been scammed.

"If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is," said Thomas M. Powers, U.S. Secret Service Resident Agent in Charge in Providence.

Powers is making the push after authorities in Providence last week arrested two Liberian nationals they say attempted to scam an undercover agent. Scam victims are typically too ashamed and embarrassed to come forward, but their knowledge is valuable to law enforcement, Powers said. He cited cases in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine where victims contacted authorities, but declined to be interviewed.

"We believe there are additional victims," Powers said. He added the scheme is mostly taking place in Rhode Island and Massachusetts and that investigators believe there are 20 scammers involved.

Investigators say con artists convince victims to pay for chemicals to wash bank note-sized paper they claim to be real currency dyed black to avoid detection by customs officials. The fraudsters claim they were forced from their country and cannot afford the materials required to cleanse their cash, Powers said.

In a case involving a Fall River, Mass,. auto body shop owner, one fraudster claimed he was the driver for the president of Liberia, according to an affidavit signed by Secret Service Agent Jon H. Ringel.

In other cases, the scammers tell victims they need real currency to effect the reaction that removes the dye. In the case involving the auto body shop owner, they promised to turn his $100,000 into $300,000, the affidavit said.

Providence, R.I., Secret Service Resident Agent in Charge Thomas Powers, center, faces reporters as R.I. State Police Captain James Demers, left, and R.I. U.S. Attorney Peter Neronha, right, look on during a news conference at the Secret Service office, in Providence, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011, as bundles of fake so-called "black money," rest on the table in front. Investigators say con artists convince victims to pay for chemicals to wash bank note-sized paper they claim to be real currency dyed black to avoid detection by customs officials. Except for a few genuine currency bills used to trap victims, the black money is usually construction paper. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Powers said the con artists visit nightclubs and other places, where they look for potential victims among people wearing expensive jewelry or driving luxury cars. The auto body shop owner was first approached by a con artist at a McDonald's, where he was asked about his Lamborghini, the affidavit said.

The fraudsters demonstrate the cleansing process with a few genuine currency bills that are used to trap victims, Powers said. An agent who witnessed the cleansing demonstration said the process is convincing, he added.

Victims withdraw money and provide it to the fraudsters who go to hotel rooms to wash the cash, which is dyed with black shoe polish, Powers said.

The washing solution is a mixture of chlorine, ammonia and laundry detergent that is mixed in a bathroom tub and gives off a powerful smell that usually overcomes victims to the point that they leave the fraudsters alone with the money, which is later locked in a safe, Powers said.

After the money is washed, the scammers and victims leave the hotel for a meal. Powers said they leave the victims with the hotel room and safe keys.

What they find in the locked safe, is usually black construction paper.

"The rate of return is zero," Powers said.

Investigators also believe the con artists are working as a team, with people playing different roles, Powers said. For example, one person will find possible targets, while another will close the deal.

The con artists are also brazen. Powers said in one case a victim was contacted shortly after being scammed by a person who claimed he heard that the washing process didn't work on his money. That person told the victim he could help him for $25,000 more, Powers said.

Authorities do not know how the scammers are spending their ill-gotten gains or where their orders are coming from. They said the scam is cyclical and now is spreading out over New England.

Powers said most of the schemes are non-violent and there's no evidence it's tied to terrorism.

The two men arrested by authorities are Anthony Chadheen, 31, of Providence, and Alvin Pennue, 33, of Indianapolis. They are charged with passing a fictitious obligation of the United States. No pleas have been entered.

Chadheen is free on $5,000 bail. Pennue has been ordered held awaiting trial.

If convicted, they face up to 25 years in prison.

In these tough economic times, West Springfield needs a leader with municipal experience and vision for the future.

The Republican | Dave RobackWest Springfield Town Councilor Gerard Matthews

West Springfield Mayor Edward J. Gibson, who decided to step down after more than a decade leading the city, cited the 24-hour nature of the job as a reason for his decision.

There is no question that the job of mayor is a 24-7 commitment. Just ask any of the Western Massachusetts mayors who have been handling citizen complaints in the wake of the freak October snowstorm that left much of the region without power.

When West Springfield voters go to the polls on Tuesday, they will decide between two candidates who are eager to take on the challenge. The contest to succeed Gibson pits Democrat Town Councilor Gerard B. Matthews against architect Gregory Neffinger, a Republican and political newcomer.

Matthews, a lawyer, is in his fourth term on the council, where he has served as president and is currently chairman of the council’s Ordinance and Policy Committee.

Neffinger believes his skills as a small business owner and architect would be valuable as West Springfield rebuilds portions of the city destroyed by the June 1 tornado.

We believe that Matthews is the better candidate to carry on in the tradition of Gibson, who has managed the city wisely during his tenure. As a councilor, Matthews has the experience and the knowledge that will allow him to hit the ground running.

In these tough economic times, West Springfield needs a leader with municipal experience and vision for the future.

Neffinger has criticized the “status quo” and casts himself as the tougher fiscal manager. While he has gone on record as favoring a new $107.1 million high school, Neffinger has questioned the wisdom of building a $13.4 million library.

Matthews supports both projects wholeheartedly. We do, too. Building a new high school and a new library are among the most worthy investments any city can make.

We urge West Springfield voters to cast their ballots for Matthews.

About 900 New Hampshire customers are still without power after a weekend snowstorm.

Public Service Company of New Hampshire crews work to restore power, Monday, Oct. 31, 2011, in Chester, N.H. Power is slowly coming back to New Hampshire homes and businesses after a surprise October storm dropped over a foot of snow throughout much of the state, leaving more than 315,000 customers in the dark. (AP Photo/Jim Cole)

CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — About 900 New Hampshire customers are still without power after a weekend snowstorm.

Public Service of New Hampshire, which serves most customers in the state, said it hopes to have nearly all of the service restored Friday.

As many as 315,000 New Hampshire households and businesses lost power during the height of the storm.

The utility, which is a division of Northeast Utilities, said Thursday afternoon that power had been restored to more than 50,000 customers in the last 24 hours.

On Wednesday, New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency to expand its emergency declaration for the state to cover more costs related to the weekend snow storm.

That request is yet to be approved.

Here are the average energy prices in the Pioneer Valley for the week ending today.

Angel Garcia, 19, was last seen on Oct. 21 while riding his dirt bike in Hartford, Connecticut.

Angel Garcia, 19, has been missing since Oct. 21, 2011. (Photo courtesy of Hartford Police Department)

HARTFORD, Conn. - Volunteers are needed for a community search this Saturday, more than two weeks after 19-year-old Hartford, Connecticut resident Angel Garcia disappeared.

Following a meeting with Garcia's family this week, Hartford Mayor Pedro E. Segarra and Police Chief Daryl K. Roberts announced their intentions to organize a search party as part of the investigation into the disappearance of the teenager.

"Volunteers are being asked to gather at the Tower Avenue entrance to Keney Park by 9:30 a.m. on Saturday," Segarra said. "While I know we, as a community, continue to grapple with the loss of power resulting from the recent storm, I hope individuals can find a way to contribute some of their valuable time to join Angel's family and friends to assist in this search."

Garcia was last seen riding this dirt bike in Hartford on Oct. 21, 2011. (Photo courtesy of Hartford Police Department)

Garcia was last seen on October 21 in the area of Newfield and New Britain avenues on his way to East Hartford. Police said he was riding a red Honda 85 cc dirt bike with a large yellow "Geico" logo on the sides while wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans, and black sneakers with a red design.

Police say Garcia liked to ride the trails along the eastern border of the Connecticut River in East Hartford.

Garcia is described as a Hispanic male, approximately 5-feet, 8-inches tall who weighs about 180 pounds.

Anyone with information about Garcia's disappearance or whereabouts is asked to contact Det. Ivys Arroyo with the Hartford Police Department's Juvenile Investigative Division at 860-757-4236, Sgt. Matthew Eisele at 860-757-4242 or Lt. Dustin Rendock at 860-757-4024.

"Information will be kept in the strictest of confidence, and no matter how insignificant one may think the information they have is," Roberts said, "it may be of great assistance to the investigation and ultimately help in locating Angel."

Nearly a week after an October nor'easter hit Massachusetts, more than 85,000 electric customers were still without power Friday morning.

BOSTON (AP) — Nearly a week after an October nor'easter hit Massachusetts, more than 85,000 electric customers were still without power Friday morning.

National Grid reports Friday morning that nearly 45,000 of its customers are still in the dark, concentrated in central Massachusetts and the Merrimack Valley.

Western Massachusetts Electric Co. says more than 40,000 of its customers are out. Springfield and Longmeadow have the highest percentage of customers without electricity.

NStar and Unitil have restored power to all their customers.

The storm was blamed for several deaths.

They mayor accused Sandlin of playing "dirty politics" and "extremely unethical behavior."

Agawam Mayor Richard Cohen is seen with challenger Rosemarie Sandlin.

AGAWAM – Mayor Richard A. Cohen has lashed out at his opponent, Rosemary Sandlin, in the Nov. 8 mayoral race, sharply criticizing a meeting she had with Department of Public Works employees.

Cohen accused Sandlin of playing “dirty politics” and engaging in “extremely unethical” behavior by meeting with the workers. Their collective bargaining unit, the unaffiliated Department of Public Works Union, is in mediation with the city over Cohen’s proposal to put GPS devices in department vehicles, according to the mayor.

Sandlin said she talked with workers because several of them had asked her to meet with them to outline her platform. Sandlin also said she did not discuss the contract or seek an endorsement.

“People invited me to come to address concerns. They do not want to be called out on this,” Sandlin said.

Sandlin argued that meeting with DPW workers was not unethical as she does not have a contract with them, but the mayor does.

“I meet with any anybody who asks me to sit down and meet with them,” Sandlin said. “I’m not elected. I’m a candidate and candidates meet with people.” Despite those statements by Sandlin, Cohen has continued to cry foul.

“If she becomes mayor she has to negotiate with them and that is why it is unethical because their contract is not settled,” Cohen said.

The mayor said he wants to put GPS devices in public works vehicles to increase efficiency, citing United Parcel Service and Fedex as companies that have saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by doing that.

“It is important to make sure the vehicles are going from job to job,” Cohen said. “This is not against anyone personally at all.”

The mayor said that, technically speaking, putting GPS devices in public works vehicles does not have to be negotiated. As for putting GPS devices in vehicles, Sandlin told a reporter that was news to her. “I truly don’t believe GPSs are the end all and be all, but I would have to look into it more,” Sandlin said.

The race between Cohen and Rosemary Sandlin has been one of the more contentious of the 7 mayoral contests in Western Massachusetts.

The Republican | Dave RobackAgawam Mayor Richard A. Cohen announces his bid for re-election at the Polish Club of Agawam.

On Tuesday, voters in Agawam will decide between longtime political rivals incumbent Mayor Richard A. Cohen and former state Rep. Rosemary Sandlin.

The race between the candidates has been one of the more contentious of the seven mayoral contests in Western Massachusetts.

In their most recent debate, Cohen accused Sandlin of “extremely unethical” behavior for meeting with Department of Public Works employees, who are in mediation with the mayor over a proposal to install GPS devices in department vehicles. Sandlin has countered by saying it’s a mayoral candidate’s prerogative to meet with any group that asks.

The animosity between Cohen and Sandlin dates back to 2007, when Cohen was ousted as mayor by Sandlin protégé Susan R. Dawson. Cohen made a comeback two years later, following a highly publicized feud between Dawson and her boyfriend’s estranged wife.

During his years in office, Cohen has managed the city’s finances well while holding the line on tax rates. He knows and understands municipal budgeting and how to deal with municipal unions. These are skills every contemporary mayor most possess. He is forthright and his administration has been open and transparent.

Sandlin, a former town councilor and longtime political activist, has been a good public servant. But we don’t think she’s made the case to unseat Cohen.

We urge voters to give Cohen a chance to continue leading the city of Agawam. He has done a fine job.

Follow live updates from the newsroom of The Republican as storm recovery continues.

Over 85,000 Massachusetts residents remain without power Friday as utility companies promise to have all of Western Mass. back online by Saturday.

The death toll in the Commonwealth has risen to six, after a North Brookfield woman was found dead in her home, which had been without power since Saturday night.

Meanwhile, The Republican reports that line crews from as far as Kansas have been working around the clock to restore power to the region.

We'll be following developments and answering your questions throughout the day. To join in, follow the live updates blog embedded below.

View Live Updates on a mobile device »

Putnam is using an armored car to transport cash to the bank, rather than the past practice of having employees deliver it, School Superintendent Alan Ingram said.

The Republican file photo | Mark M. MurrayThe Roger L. Putnam Vocational Technical High School on State Street

SPRINGFIELD – Rampant financial abuses identified in an audit of Roger L. Putnam Vocational Technical High School were corrected long before the report’s release last week, School Department officials said Thursday.

Appearing before the School Committee, Superintendent Alan J. Ingram provided a point-by-point response to the audit’s claim that employees siphoned school funds for home improvement projects, interrupted classes to sell items to students, mishandled student funds and other abuses.

The 57-page audit – which led to seven employees resigning, being fired or demoted – was turned over to the state Attorney General and Hampden District Attorney’s office for possible criminal prosecution.

Ingram said school officials became aware of financial and management trouble at Putnam in June 2010, before new principal Gilbert E. Traverso took over and requested an audit.

His predecessor, Kevin McCaskill, left at the end of the school year to take a job in the Hartford school system.

Ingram said a team of school officials began working with Traverso to shore up accounting and inventory controls while eliminating abuses as they were uncovered.

Currently, the school has standardized prices for oil changes; installed cash registers in the cafeteria; shut down the student store, and taken control of the student activity account to insure the funds will be used properly, Ingram said.

“Non-negotiable,” was how Ingram described the new fee system in the auto repair program.

The school is also using an armored car to transport cash to the bank, rather than the past practice of having employees deliver it, Ingram said.

The overhaul at Putnam is not yet complete, but the reforms should be in place by the end of the school year, according to Ingram and Timothy J. Plante, the school system’s chief financial officer.

School committee members expressed relief that the worst of Putnam’s problems were corrected as soon as possible.

“Thanks for jumping the gun, so to speak,” said Norman Roldan.

Town Council President Kathleen A. Bourque says there were 176,000 visitors to the West Springfield Public Library in fiscal 2011.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – This fall’s Town Council race will consist of seven candidates vying for five at-large seats and two contests in the districts.

Seeking another two-year term as at-large councilors are incumbents Robert M. Mancini, Kathleen A. Bourque, Brian J. Griffin and George R. Kelly. Newcomers Bruce L. Gendron, Michael E. LaRiviere and Anthony Cestari will offer them opposition.

In District 3, School Committee Vice Chairman Daniel G. Sullivan will vie with George D. Condon III.

In District 4, incumbent Town Councilor John R. Sweeney will fend off competition from Mark D. Bergeron.

One of the major issues debated by council candidates has been the wisdom of building a new library at $13.4 million. The city has been awarded a $6.3 million grant for the project from the state and there is a campaign to raise $2 million for the project locally. The balance would be raised by the city.

Current plans call for building the library on the site of Mittineague School, an elementary school that the School Department has planned to eventually close for several years now. Some candidates have objected that it is important to keep Mittineague open because it is a neighborhood school.

Others have objected that the library should not be moved from Park Street, which they consider a central location as it is the city’s commercial district near the municipal building.

Bourque is one of the staunchest defenders of the library project. During one recent debate, she cited statistics that include the fact that 500 people a week use the Internet at the library, which boasts about 17,000 cardholders. She also said there were 176,000 visitors to the library in fiscal 2011.

As for the location, Bourque said, “Where it should be is a decision we will make when the time comes.”

LaRiviere is among those opposed to the project. He has argued that library use is declining. Kelly has also opposed the project, arguing that taxpayers can’t shoulder carrying the cost of a new library on top of a new $107.1 million high school.

There will also be a little competition for the six seats on the School Committee, with seven candidates on the ballot. They are incumbents Kathleen A. Alevras, Patricia A. Garbacik, Nancy M. Farrell and Dr. Joseph Foresi Jr. as well as challengers Joey Sutton, Tina Marie Heinrich-Stewart and Michelle M. Serafino.

"If you do not have power yet, please call National Grid daily to notify them," Ware's public information officer said.

WARE - The emergency shelter that opened at the high school in the wake of last weekend's snowstorm is scheduled to close at 4 p.m. on Friday, and residents who need shelter are encouraged to go to shelters in Palmer, at Converse Middle School, or Monson, at Quarry Hill Community School.

Karen M. Cullen, information officer, said the town may be able to assist with transportation to the Palmer or Monson shelters, and those who need help can call the emergency operations number at (413) 967-5661.

She reminds residents to not put storm debris from their property onto sidewalks or the side of the road for the town to pick up, as the town will not pick it up. Information on where to dispose of debris will be made available as soon as possible, she said.

As for the power situation, she said National Grid has requested that if residents have had their power restored, they should leave an outside light or an interior light easily visible from the street on, so the crews can identify areas that are still without power.

More than half the town is still without electricity from Saturday's snowstorm, and power is expected to be restored late Friday night, according to National Grid's website.

"If you do not have power yet, please call National Grid daily to notify them," Cullen said.

Updates about the storm recovery are being posted on the town's website, www.townofware.com

WMECo's latest estimates for power resoration in Western Massachusetts.

Belchertown, 11/02/11, Staff Photo by John Suchocki - Verizon crews from the Boston area were setting utility poles and raising wires along rt.9 that were downed by the October Noreaster

Here are WMECo's latest estimates for power resoration in Western Massachusetts, as of Friday at 12 p.m., courtesy of WMECo's Facebook page:

Estimates from other companies:
CL&P
National Grid

For other updates, follow our ongoing live blog.

TOWN -- 99% RESTORATION ESTIMATE

AGAWAM -- Friday 11/4, 11PM
AMHERST -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
CHESTER -- Friday 11/4, 11PM
EASTHAMPTON -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
GRANVILLE -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
HADLEY -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
HATFIELD -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
HUNTINGTON -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
LEVERETT -- Friday 11/4, 6PM
LONGMEADOW -- Saturday 11/5, 11PM
LUDLOW -- Saturday 11/5, 11PM
MONTAGUE -- Friday 11/4, 12 PM
NORTHFIELD -- Friday 11/4, 11 PM
PELHAM -- Friday 11/4, 12PM
RUSSELL Friday 11/4, 11PM
SOUTHAMPTON -- Saturday 11/5, 12PM
SOUTHWICK -- Saturday 11/5, 6PM
SPRINGFIELD -- Saturday 11/5, 11PM
SUNDERLAND -- Friday 11/4, 11PM
WEST SPRINGFIELD -- Saturday 11/5, 11PM
WESTHAMPTON -- Friday 11/4, 12PM
WHATELY -- Friday 11/4, 12PM

Services provided at the Western Avenue campus served more than 500 people during the week.

WESTFIELD – Something good comes out of everything and Saturday’s storm has brought the city and Westfield State University closer together as a single community.

The university has been serving as shelter, eating and meeting place for residents without power since Sunday at 1 p.m. and is continuing to offer its services at Juniper Park School, Scanlon Hall and its dining commons.

The shelters, managed by the city’s Medical Reserve Corps have assisted more than 300 people with meals, medical attention or just providing a place to recharge cell phones as of Wednesday afternoon, said Ernest W. Iannaccone, shelter manager.

On Wednesday, 39 people were being housed at Juniper Park School and another 34 were at Scanlon Hall.

Also on Wednesday, the university extended housing services to utility workers who traveled to Westfield from North Carolina to assist the city’s Gas and Electric Department. Thirty-five workers took advantage of the offer.

“Everyone has been really nice here but I just want to go home,” said Joyce M. Ahlberg, 62, of Hampden Village. “It is nice here and I have no complaints but I did want to stick it out at home,” she said.

Ahlberg’s dog Ramos was being cared for at the city’s Animal Shelter.

Karen Kohanek also wanted to return to her home on King Place.

“I’ve been here since Monday and we are being treated very nicely but I miss my place,” she said.

The shelter stay was a first for both Kohnaek and Ahlberg.

At the dining commons John F. and Ursula K. Tuohey of Holyoke Road were enjoying a “late breakfast.” They have been night-time guests at Scanlon Hall since Sunday.

“They have been extraordinary and out of their way to keep us warm, fed and safe,” said 82-year-old Ursula Tuohey. “This is an experience but we have met some old friends and made some new ones,” she said of the stay.

John Tuohey, 84, said they have gone home “to check things” each day. “Everyone here has been fabulous and we are just waiting for that phone call telling us our power is back on,” he said.

Dining commons manager Marie Lees said the dining room was open “around the clock” Saturday, Sunday and Monday. “We remain open 6:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. providing three meals a day and everyone is welcome,” she said. She was unable to provide an estimate on the numbers of meals provided for area residents.

“I have been here 17 years and this is the first community effort involving the campus dining facility. The community now realizes we are here and they are welcome,” said Lees.

The weekend storm closed the campus for classes until Nov. 7. About 200 of the university’s 5,000 students remained on campus.

WSU president Evan S. Dobelle said a decision during the recent $6 million dining facility expansion and renovation to include a generator capable of powering the commons aided in allowing the campus to serve the community.

“This is a time of need, we are here and this is something we must do,” said Dobelle.

Dobelle said student members of WSU’s Emergency Medical Technical and Public Safety clubs volunteered their services for 18-hour shifts since Sunday to assist the community at the shelters.

Mayor Daniel M. Knapik called the university’s effort “an amazing response. The response from the college as well as our community has allowed the city to take care of its residents.

“Westfield State University is a wonderful asset for the city. There are other communities with colleges and universities but the difference in Westfield is that Evan Dobelle was a mayor and he knows the problems communities face in emergency situations. Evan is one of us,” said Knapik.

Dobelle is a former Pittsfield mayor.

University resident assistants to the student population provided security and access to residence halls for students and to other buildings as necessary.

WSU senior class president Meaghan B. MacDonald, 21, a resident assistant, said about 40 of the total 65 assistants were on campus when the storm knocked out power to the region.

“The need was there and everyone did what had to be done. It also brought the resident assistants closer together and we all made new friends,” MacDonald said.

The campus shelter services were also enjoyed by staff as well as those whose homes were without electricity.

Professors Vanessa H. Diana, English, and Aaron O. Reyes, geology, were at the dining commons enjoying a bite to eat and opportunity to recharge laptops and cell phones Wednesday. They reside on Park Drive, across Western Avenue from the campus.

Joining Diana were her daughter Amaya and son Graham, both students at South Middle School. Westfield public schools were also closed for the week because of the storm.

“It has been OK. But the nights are not fun,” said Amaya.

“It has been boring with not much to do and cold,” added Graham.

Of the 176 Massachusetts cities and towns served by National Grid, 172 of those communities suffered power failures.

WILBRAHAM — National Grid hopes to have power substantially restored by Friday, but isolated pockets of outages in some neighborhoods will persist through he weekend, Marcy L. Reed, president of National Grid in Massachusetts, said Friday morning following a meeting with town officials.

Reed explained and defended the utility’s storm response in a town where many were still without power Friday, more than five days after an unusually heavy, wet October snowfall brought trees down on wires and utility poles around the region.

“This is the biggest storm we’ve ever had,” Reed said. “I know I said that after the tornado and I said it again after hurricane Irene. But this is the biggest.”

Of the 176 Massachusetts cities and towns served by National Grid, 172 of those communities suffered power loss. In 38 of those towns 90 percent of the people were without power.

“I think we have a fairly aggressive tree-trimming program,” Reed said.

Many at Wilbraham Town Hall complained that they had yet to see a National Grid truck in their neighborhoods.

Reed said National Grid has 3,300 workers on the ground and as they restore more power in lighter-it eastern Massachusetts more of those workers are coming to the Pioneer Valley.

More workers would be available but they are tied up with outages in Connecticut.

National Grid started bringing in crews from outside the region on Wednesday, October 26, three days before the storm hit.

Many have complained that utilities could have prevented outages by trimming trees before the storm. Reed said National Grid spends $23 million a year trimming trees in a program she called aggressive. But this storm took down substantial trees those crews never would have touched.

Patrick J. Brady, chairman of the Wilbraham Select Board, said it is hard to find fault with National Grid given the scope of the damage. The town was pleased with the utility’s responses to the June tornadoes, the subsequent microburst and Hurricane Irene in August.

But the town will do an after action report critiquing all responses to this snowstorm.

He said he’d like to see better and more thorough communication between the utility and the public.

Also, Wilbraham will look at the feasibility of burying transmission lines in order to prevent further damage.

The power company hoped to restore electricity to all of them by the end of Friday.

NORTHAMPTON – Fewer than 100 houses were still without power in Northampton Friday as National Grid crews worked to hook up the last customers without power.

Acting Mayor David J. Narkewicz said the houses were mostly in remote areas.

The power company hoped to restore electricity to all of them by the end of Friday.

Republican file photoNorthampton City Hall