The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 3.36 points, or 0.09 percent, to 3,692.95.

By MATTHEW CRAFT

NEW YORK — A quiet day of trading left stock indexes mixed Monday.

There was little in the way of news to shake the market out of a summertime stupor, other than a report from the Institute for Supply Management that the U.S. service sector expanded in July, helped by a rise in new orders.

It was the latest piece of data that economists and investors puzzled through as they try to judge how well the U.S. economy is doing.

Last Thursday, the ISM reported that manufacturing increased last month. The next day, the government reported that companies weren't hiring as many workers as economists had predicted.

The report out Monday wasn't enough to drive the market above its already high levels.

"I think it's flat for a reason," said Terry Sandven, chief equity strategist at U.S. Bank's wealth management group. "With broad indexes near all-time highs, we're due for a pause."

The Standard & Poor's 500 index breached 1,700 points for the first time last week. An improving U.S. economy and rising corporate profits have helped push the index up 19.7 percent this year.

The S&P 500 index slipped 2.53 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 1,707.14 on Monday. Utilities led eight of the 10 industry groups in the index lower. Technology and consumer-staples companies eked out gains.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 46.23 points, or 0.3 percent, to 15,612.13.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index rose 3.36 points, or 0.09 percent, to 3,692.95.

Apple, the biggest company in the Nasdaq, rose after news that President Barack Obama's administration prevented a ban on imports of some iPhones and iPads. Apple gained $6.91, or 1 percent, to $469.45.

In June, the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled that the Apple devices violated a patent held by Samsung and issued the ban. The Obama administration had 60 days to decide whether to let it take effect.

Among other companies in the news, Berkshire Hathaway crept higher on the first day of trading after its earnings report. Warren Buffett's conglomerate posted a 46 percent rise in profit late Friday, easily beating Wall Street's estimates. Berkshire reported big paper gains on the value of its derivative contracts and higher earnings from its BNSF railroad. Its stock edged up 41 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $118.23.

Big companies have been reporting better second-quarter results. Analysts estimate that earnings for companies in the S&P 500 increased 4.4 percent over the same period a year earlier.

In the market for U.S. government bonds, the yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 2.64 percent from 2.60 percent in late Friday trading.

The dollar edged lower against the Japanese yen and rose slightly against the euro. Gold fell $8.10 to $1,302.40 an ounce and oil fell 38 cents to $106.50 a barrel.

Trading volume was well below average. Just 2.5 billion shares were traded on the New York Stock Exchange, versus a recent average of 3.4 billion.

Among other stocks making big moves:

• CBS and Time Warner Cable both fell. The companies are involved in a dispute over fees that left CBS signals blocked in Time Warner Cable's systems in New York, Los Angeles and Dallas. CBS fell 67 cents, or 1 percent, to $53.86 and Time Warner Cable fell 68 cents, 0.6 percent, to $116.42.
• Revlon jumped after announcing that it will buy Colomer Group, which sells hair dye and other products to beauty salons. Revlon rose $1.66, or 7 percent, to $26.16.
• Tyson Foods, the nation's biggest meat producer, rose after announcing that its quarterly profits more than tripled. Tyson rose $1.18, or 4 percent, to $29.69.

UMass seeking requests for proposal for potential Springfield satellite center.

SPRINGFIELD — The University of Massachusetts is taking yet another stride toward a greater presence in Springfield by requesting proposals for potential classroom and office space to establish a satellite center here.

UMass is looking for 25,000 square feet of space that it would use for classrooms, faculty offices and other uses, with the option of doubling the amount of space at a later date, UMass spokeswoman Ann Scales said.

“We’re dipping our toe in the water,” she said. They university needs to evaluate whether it can afford to create such a center here. UMass also needs to know what kind of space is available.

UMass and Springfield officials have been talking about creating a satellite campus for nearly two years, ever since UMass President Robert Caret took a tour of the state in October 2011. In June, UMass hired Jason Irizarry to the position of director of urban education as a way to build a stronger partnership between UMass and Springfield.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, who has been pushing for the campus here, was unavailable for comment.

Kevin E. Kennedy, Springfield's chief development officer, praised the university's plans.

"We are pleased they are initiating that step, and we look forward to a successful RFP process, and hopefully opening a satellite campus in Springfield in the fall of 2014," Kennedy said.

There have been ongoing discussions between the university and city officials, Kennedy said.

"The satellite campus in Springfield is as important as the casino, is as important as a revitalized Union Station," Kennedy said. "It brings a life of its own. It brings vitality, it brings youth."

Before creating the center, Caret had been looking at whether Springfield would support a center and determined that it can.

The UMass Donahue Institute identified Springfield as a viable site because the UMass Amherst campus already has a strong presence in the city.

"We very much want to open a satellite center in Springfield because an essential aspect of our mission of service to the Commonwealth is working to build better lives and futures for people and communities, which is what this would represent," Caret said in a statement. "We know that the demand is there and that the business and political leadership supports it. The questions before us now are whether it is feasible to do this and whether there are sufficient resources available to help us meet this challenge."

At this stage in planning, at least several and possibly all five of the UMass campuses would provide classes. Some classes would be taught on site and others through UMassOnline, Scales said. The program would possibly offer two-year associate’s degrees that could lead to bachelor degrees.

The satellite center would also serve as the new home for the UMass Amherst Springfield Partnership, a project designed to promote Springfield as a center of environmentally beneficial green industries, boost the city’s arts and creative economy and expand relevant university teaching and outreach initiatives.

UMass already has a design center at Court Square and is a partner with Baystate Health in the Pioneer Valley Life Sciences Institute research operation in the city’s North End. UMass also is a partner with Springfield Technical Community College at the Scibelli Enterprise Center and Business Incubator at Technology Park.

UMass Amherst Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy has said he supports the creation of such a center provided funding can be found.

UMass-affiliated New England Public Radio will be moving to Springfield in the spring.

Proposals for the classroom space are due at 2 p.m. on Sept. 3 and can be sent to Katherine Craven, executive director, UMBA Massachusetts Building Authority, 225 Franklin Street, 12th Floor, Boston, MA 02110.

Staff reporter Peter Goonan contributed to this story

Athletic director John McCutcheon says the 6-game home slate has created the opportunity to play three games at McGuirk Alumni Stadium in Amherst.

By PAUL BOWKER

The University of Massachusetts football team will be going “home” for at least a portion of the 2014 season.

The Minutemen, who are entering their second season in the Football Bowl Subdivision, will play all six home games this year at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough. They did the same for all five last year.

But athletic director John McCutcheon says UMass will split its home schedule next season, which would put the Minutemen at McGuirk Alumni Stadium in Amherst for the first time since 2011.

“We have worked it out to have three games here on campus next year and three at Gillette,” McCutcheon said in a phone interview Monday. “When you have a six-game home series like that, you can do that and meet the NCAA home-stadium attendance requirements. So that’s one of the options you have when you have six games.”

McCutcheon called the arrangement the “best of both worlds.”

“We think it’ll be great,” he said. “It’s going to enable us to bring a few games back on campus once the (stadium) renovations are done and still maintain that presence in the eastern part of the state, which we obviously want to do and maintain over the long term.”

UMass will have a few options for scheduling the series split. The two non-conference games against visiting Boston College and Colorado will certainly remain scheduled for Gillette. The other four would be Mid-American Conference games. The MAC schedule won’t be released until early 2014, but home opponents would include Bowling Green, Buffalo and Ohio.

When UMass joined the MAC and moved to the FBS, an agreement was made with the New England Patriots to play home games at Gillette Stadium. Gillette was an attractive venue because of its much larger seating capacity (68,756), and also its proximity to Boston and the Minutemen fan base there. McGuirk Stadium has a seating capacity of just 17,000, and is in the process of being renovated.

For students on campus, it’s a two-hour trip each way to Foxborough. The Minutemen’s largest crowd last year was 16,304 for the home opener against Indiana. The home finale versus Central Michigan drew about 10,000 fewer.

Even after some games return to McGuirk, it is likely the bigger matchups will always be played at Gillette.

“Hopefully, when the game is big enough, when the chips are high, regardless of where that next game is being played, the whole state unites and they’ll come to our game regardless of whether it’s in Western Massachusetts or eastern Mass.,” coach Charley Molnar said.

Fifth-year senior tight end Rob Blanchflower, a Bay State native, fondly remembers playing at McGuirk and seeing fans firing up grills for tailgate parties leading up to kickoff. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Mike Wegzyn has never played there, although he did suit up as a true freshman in 2011.

“I’m just looking forward myself when we go back there,” Wegzyn said. “Once it makes that move back in the future, it’s really going to be something where people will be excited to go.”

But he certainly enjoys playing in Foxborough.

“You can’t beat playing in Gillette,” he said. “We’re playing in an NFL stadium. That’s the best thing you can have in college football. I really enjoy playing out there.” 

Dan Malone contributed to this report.

BOSTON - The Massachusetts Gaming Commission Monday issued findings on the suitabililty of two applicants seeking a single slots-parlor license to operate in the state. Following it’s review, the commission made a negative recommendation on the suitability off Ourway Realty LLC (Plainridge Racecourse) and a positive recommendation on Raynham Park LLC. An application cannot proceed without a positive recommendation,...

BOSTON - The Massachusetts Gaming Commission Monday issued findings on the suitabililty of two applicants seeking a single slots-parlor license to operate in the state.

Following it’s review, the commission made a negative recommendation on the suitability off Ourway Realty LLC (Plainridge Racecourse) and a positive recommendation on Raynham Park LLC. An application cannot proceed without a positive recommendation, according to a press release from the commission.

"The first, called the Phase 1 application, essentially focuses on the qualifications and suitability of the applicants and its "qualifiers" (entities and individuals) to hold a gaming license.

"The Phase 2 application is "site specific;" and focuses on site, design, finance, operation, community mitigation and other attributes of the gaming facility itself. As one of the prerequisites to submitting a Phase 2 (and final) application to the Commission ... all applicants must first be issued a positive determination of suitability by the Commission," the release states.

Chairman Steven Crosby stated, “The Commission is painfully aware that these decisions impact the lives of many people and that the consequences may be difficult for many of those involved. But it has always been our commitment to establish that the integrity of this process is our single highest priority. No other considerations will compromise that commitment. I would like to take this opportunity to commend the tremendous work by the Investigations and Enforcement Bureau as well as our many partners in their ongoing efforts on these important matters. ” 

Seklecki is a 30-year veteran and previous head of the supervisors union.

Holyoke Police Capt. Frederick J. Seklecki. Dave Roback, The Republican 

HOLYOKE --The police supervisors unioni elected Capt. Frederick J. Seklecki, a 30-year veteran, as president recently.

Joining Seklecki as officers of Local 409 Holyoke Police Supervisors, International Brotherhood of Police Officers, are Lt. Laurence Cournoyer as vice president and Sgt. John Hart as secretary-treasurer, Seklecki said.

The union has 25 members, said Seklecki, who has headed the union in the past.

The mayor hopes to close on the purchase of the Elks Lodge property this week.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – Town councilors Monday took no action on the mayor's proposal to use the $400,000 Hard Rock Hotel & Casino New England has given the city to help purchase the Elks Lodge property on Morgan Road.

The money was given to the city as part of the host community agreement the casino company has with regard to the $800 million casino complex it would like to build. The council took no action pending a Aug. 19 public hearing.

The issue was discussed for an hour during a meeting called by the mayor.

Mayor Gregory C. Neffinger wants to buy the former clubhouse property for $450,000 and earlier this summer got permission from the Town Council to use $100,000 in free cash to that end. Neffinger seeks a total of $500,000 to cover any expenses associated with the purchase.

The mayor wants to use the building at the property to temporarily house the collection of the West Springfield Public Library while its quarters on Park Street are renovated and expanded. He has also said he wants to use land at the site to create new playing fields to ease the load on the city’s existing playing fields.

Neffinger called Monday night’s after trying unsuccessfully to get Town Council President Kathleen A. Bourque to call a meeting at that time to vote on his request.

In a letter dated July 29, Bourque responded to the mayor’s request for a meeting on Monday by explaining council procedures. She wrote that the special meeting for Monday that she had scheduled earlier to set a date for a casino referendum and approve wording for a ballot question was canceled.

Late last month, councilors called a special meeting for that purpose for July 23 and a referendum date of Sept. 10 was set for voters to decide whether they will approve Hard Rock Hotel & Casino New England building an $800 million casino. Bourque wrote that council rules call for a new appropriation to appear on two council agendas as well as be the subject of a public hearing.

“Although we have been asking for council approval on your request before a formal referral, I have decided to forego this step in the process as long as there is no objection from the town councilors,” Bourque wrote. “The request for the appropriation will appear on the agenda on Aug. 19, 2013 and we will schedule a public hearing for that same evening. It will also be referred to the Budget Subcommittee that same evening. The request will be under new business on Sept. 3, 2013 for discussion and vote.

Neffinger had hoped to close with the Elks on the purchase of the building this week.

Kaylynn Small drowned in Winooski, Vt., while she was swimming with friends.

SPRINGFIELD – When Antionette Freeman returned home after the worst trip of her life, she was greeted by a rainbow stretching across the sky over her house.

That rainbow she felt was a sign from her daughter Kaylynn Small, 12, who died while swimming in the Wisnooski River in Vermont Saturday evening.

“She loved rainbows and all the way home we kept seeing them and when I got home there was a rainbow over my house,” Freeman said.

Small was visiting her paternal grandmother for part of the summer when she left the house with two friends to go swimming. The youths were riding the current downstream when two of the children saw their friend carried into the middle of the river and go under water, Wisnooski Deputy Police Chief Richard Benoit said.

The two youths called for help immediately. Police, with the assistance of the Vermont State Police Dive Team and Colchester Technical Rescue Team, searched the river Saturday until after dark and returned Sunday morning when they found the child’s body at about 10:30 a.m.

Freeman said she got a call about 7:30 p.m. Saturday with the news that her middle child was missing. She and other family members drove to Vermont and were there when Kaylynn was found.

Freeman said she is devastated about the death of her daughter.

“She was a free spirit,” Freeman said. “She loved all the little kids. She was a good-hearted kid.” Freeman said.

Her daughter, who lived in Springfield, attended the Mary M. Walsh School and just finished the fifth grade. She was assigned to M. Marcus Kiley Middle School for the sixth grade.

She described Kaylynn as a pretty girl who loved to dance and draw. She also played soccer.

“She loved her friends and she was the big sister to a lot of the younger children,” Freeman said.

When she and her family arrived home after a long drive from Vermont, they were greeted with the rainbow and a memorial Kaylynn’s friends had set up in front of her house.

“It was very nice. It is so pretty,” she said, of the efforts of her daughter’s friends.

Kaylynn leaves two brothers, who are 10 and 19, and her father Maurice Small, who lives in Ludlow.

Family members are finalizing details for funeral services, but Freeman said she expects them to be held on Friday.

The event started nearly 30 years ago as a show of force against gangs, drugs and crime.

Communities across Western Massachusetts are planning National Night Out Against Crime activities Tuesday night.

 

The National Night Out, which started nearly 30 years ago, encourages communities across the country to get together in a show of force against gangs, drugs and crime.

Springfield is planning events at different locations across the city to strengthen neighborhood spirit and partnerships between the police and community.

Events are planned in East Springfield at Marshall Roy Field at St. James Boulevard from 5:30 to 7 p.m.; for the Indian Orchard community at Myrtle Park from 5 to 9 p.m.; at Mason Square at 837 State Street from 3 to 6 p.m.; at City View Commons/Worthington Commons at 26 Federal Court from 3 to 6 p.m.; and at the North End at Kenefick Park on Plainville Street from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

Also, at Allen Park Apartments at 251 Allen Park Road from 5 to 9 p.m.; in East Forest Park in Nathan Bill Park from 6 to 8 p.m.; at Seniority House at 307 Chestnut Street from 4 to 7 p.m.; and at Old Hill/Upper Hill/Maple High Six Corners at 721 State Street from 6 to 8 p.m.

As part of National Night Out Against Crime residents also are encouraged to leave a light on outside their home for the evening.

Agawam will participate in National Night Out activities for the first time this year, Mayor Richard A. Cohen said.

The Agawam event will be held at athletic fields at Agawam High School from 5 to 8 p.m.

The event will include live entertainment from Corey and the Knightsmen Band; free hot dogs, popcorn and beverages; a dance school presentation; face painting; a puppet show; and safety-oriented activities for children and adults.

The National Night Out Against Crime program is in its 30th year.

Palmer Events Planning and the Palmer Domestic Violence Task Force will sponsor this year’s National Night Out event at the Palmer Historical and Cultural Center Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m.

The event will feature food, fire trucks, ambulances and police cruisers.

The Wisniowski Park wading pool had to be drained so the glass could be removed.

CHICOPEE – Vandals who dumped broken glass into the wading pool at Wisniowski Park two days in a row have forced the pool to be closed for the rest of the summer.

In the past few days, the Ray Ash Park was also sprayed with obscene graffiti on the entrance sign and locker room building, said Richard Maciolek, acting Parks and Recreation Department superintendent.

“Here we have a neighborhood pool that is now shut down and they can’t use it,” Maciolek said.

While all parks face vandalism occasionally, Maciolek said putting glass in a pool is dangerous and Ray Ash Park has been hit many times with the same type of graffiti.

“Vandalism is usually limited to graffiti and trash but breaking glass causes a public safety issue that will not be tolerated,” Mayor Michael D. Bissonnette said. “It is unfortunate that a few knuckleheads spoil it for everyone else.”

In light of the glass dumped in the pool, Bissonnette said he is working with Police Chief Thomas Charette to place security cameras in key areas of parks that link directly to the Police Station. They are also discussing using auxiliary police to patrol parks in the summer.

Cracking down on park problems works. Last year, the city removed basketball hoops from several parks after having issues with trash and graffiti. There have been few problems since they were returned, he said.

“The kids have been good about self-policing to keep the hoops up,” he said.

Parks employees occasionally find debris in the Wisniowski pool, but Thursday they found broken glass in and around the three-foot wading pool, Maciolek said.

They were able to sweep the pool and remove the glass but the next day they found more glass and bigger shards that were hard to remove, he said.

“You cannot assume you are getting all of it. You can’t take a chance,” Maciolek said. “This time we had to drain the pool.”

It is too expensive to fill and treat the pool again, which takes 25,000 gallons of water, so Maciolek decided the pool would close. The rest of the city pools will close Aug. 16.

“It is too bad, a lot of young kids can’t go into the big pool and the closest place there is another pool is Szot Park,” he said.

By Monday, parks employees painted over graffiti at Ash Park. While it is not expensive to paint, it is time consuming and takes away from other jobs, he said.

Vandals have sprayed Ray Ash Park with graffiti many times, but there have also been problems elsewhere, he said.

The skate park at Sarah Jane Sherman Park was sprayed with graffiti about two weeks ago and racist slurs were sprayed around Garrity Grove park about six weeks ago, Maciolek said.

Marconi Beach was closed at about 1 p.m. Monday. The shark moved north along the beach for about 10 minutes, staying on top of the water in behavior similar to a basking shark.

This Saturday, June 26, 2010 photo released by Bruce Sweet shows a juvenile great white shark swimming in the Atlantic Ocean about 20 miles off the coast of Gloucester, Mass., in the rich fishing ground known as Stellwagen Bank. The shark was pulled up by Gloucester-based Sweet Dream III, tagged, and returned to the sea. (AP Photo/www.SportFishingMA.com) 

SOUTH WELLFLEET — A Cape Cod National Seashore beach was temporarily closed to swimming after visitors and lifeguards saw a shark about 30 yards offshore.

Chief Ranger Leslie Reynolds tells the Cape Cod Times* Marconi Beach was closed at about 1 p.m. Monday. Reynolds said the shark moved north along the beach for about 10 minutes, staying on top of the water in behavior similar to a basking shark.

Reynolds said the beach was reopened an hour later after no more sightings were reported. It was the first confirmed sighting off the National Seashore this summer.

Nauset Beach was closed for an hour in June after a great white shark sighting. Great whites have been seen off Cape Cod in recent years, apparently hunting for seals.

A great white bit a man swimming off Truro's Ballston Beach last year.

*-Cape Cod Times articles might require a subscription

Areas outside the nearby Long Island Sound islands that are deeper than 20 feet remain open because water at that depth is cooler than in shallow areas.

State agriculture officials on Monday announced a first-ever recall of shellfish and the shutting of most shellfish harvest locations due to naturally occurring bacteria. File Photo 

By STEPHEN SINGER

HARTFORD — Warm water in Long Island Sound is being blamed for naturally occurring bacteria that sickened at least five people who ate oysters, clams and other shellfish from shallow areas near Norwalk and Westport.

State agriculture officials on Monday announced a first-ever recall of shellfish and the shutting of most shellfish harvest locations due to naturally occurring bacteria. The agency has acted before due to pollution from storm water runoff or similar reasons.

David Carey, director of the agency's Bureau of Aquaculture, said the extreme heat in mid-July is partly to blame for the warm water in shallow areas of the Sound. The state shut shellfish harvesting areas in Norwalk and Westport until September, when the water is expected to cool down.

Areas outside the nearby Long Island Sound islands that are deeper than 20 feet remain open because water at that depth is cooler than in shallow areas. Shellfish beds in southeastern Connecticut also are not affected because the Long Island Sound there is cooler due to its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and potentially swifter current.

Shellfish affected by the recall include hard clams and oysters harvested between July 3 and Friday. If ingested, the bacteria known as Vibrio parahaemolyticus can cause acute stomach illness.

Clamming by residents is banned, restaurants are removing the shellfish from their kitchens and supermarkets are taking the food off their shelves.

"I'll have to stay with lobster, I guess," Norwalk Mayor Richard A. Moccia said.

Health consequences were kept to a minimum, he said, though the monthlong shutdown of harvesting areas will hurt the two large shellfish companies that harvest oysters and clams.

Hillard Bloom Shellfish Inc. and Norm Bloom and Son did not immediately return calls seeking information on Monday.

The New York Department of Environmental Conservation imposed an emergency closing of shellfish beds in Oyster Bay Harbor and Cold Spring Harbor effective June 29 as a precaution following reports of shellfish illnesses from consumption of oysters and hard clams, a spokeswoman said in an email. It did not recall shellfish from the area.

Some of the illnesses were confirmed as Vibrio parahaemolyticus.

Last year, federal officials warned against eating raw or partially cooked shellfish harvested from Oyster Bay Harbor because they were linked to the Vibrio bacteria. Oyster Bay is across Long Island Sound from Norwalk. New York officials closed the site to shellfish harvesters at the time.

Connecticut closed shellfish beds in July 2012 as a precaution, Carey said. One person was sickened by the bacteria, which doesn't qualify as an outbreak. The five confirmed cases and a possible sixth rise to the level of an outbreak, Department of Agriculture spokesman George Krivda said.

The state this winter will set up a monitoring program that will be put into effect next year, measuring Vibrio levels in shellfish and determining if areas need to be closed, Carey said.

Springfield television station owner John Gormally, West Coast investment executive Robert Loring and U-T San Diego chief executive John Lynch all said their groups’ bids bested Henry’s.

BOSTON – Three bidders who fell short in their attempts to purchase the Boston Globe say they offered more than Boston Red Sox owner John Henry’s winning $70 million bid and criticized the decision of the seller, The New York Times Co., to make a deal with him.

Springfield television station owner John Gormally, West Coast investment executive Robert Loring and U-T San Diego chief executive John Lynch all said their groups’ bids bested Henry’s.

Henry agreed to pay $70 million to buy the Globe, the Boston Metro and the Telegram & Gazette in Worcester, about 50 miles from Boston. The bid, announced Saturday, was a fraction of the $1.1 billion the Times Co. paid 20 years ago.

Lynch said his group offered “significantly more” than Henry and wondered how the Times Co.’s shareholders would react after learning the company accepted a lower offer.

“I’m just stunned,” Lynch told the Boston Herald. “I thought this was a public company that had a fiduciary duty to get the most by its stockholders.”

Lynch and Gormally also criticized the bidding process, with Gormally saying he was kept in the dark for a week after the July 26 bid deadline, until learning in an early morning email Saturday that Henry was chosen.

Gormally said he offered $80 million. But, he added, “putting aside price,” Henry was the best choice to own the paper, given his smarts, local connections and ability to assemble a team to make the paper work.

Loring, founder of Revolution Capital, a West Coast investment company that owns the Tampa Tribune in Florida, told the Globe that his bid included $80 million in cash.

“We felt we had a strong offer for the company and we had a strong offer for management,” he said. “We felt we were the best buyer for the business.”

In a statement, Times Co. spokeswoman Abbe Serphos said Henry’s bid was selected after a “full and active sales process” but did not offer any specifics.

“We took many factors into consideration and at the end of the process concluded, along with our board of directors, that this agreement to sell the New England Media Group to Mr. Henry was in the best interest of our shareholders as well as of The Boston Globe, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette and the Boston community,” she said.

One of the chief questions raised by Henry’s purchase of the newspaper was how his ownership will affect the Globe’s coverage of the Red Sox, one of the city’s most popular institutions.

Addressing those concerns, Globe editor Brian McGrory said the paper had no plans to change its coverage, nor will it be asked to.

“The Globe’s sports reporting and commentary is the gold standard in the industry,” McGrory told the newspaper over the weekend.

On the third pitch, Rodriguez dunked a hit into shallow left field. He made it to third base with no outs, but was stranded.

CHICAGO -- Alex Rodriguez stepped up to the plate greeted by a standing boo-vation and blooped a single in his first at-bat of the season.

Hours after Major League Baseball suspended the New York Yankees star through the 2014 season in the Biogenesis drug case, Chicago White Sox fans got their say Monday night.

And, boy, did they let him hear it.

They jeered him during pregame warmups and introductions, and they really tore into him when he walked to the batter's box leading off the second inning.

On the third pitch, Rodriguez dunked a hit into shallow left field. He made it to third base with no outs, but was stranded.

Rodriguez flied out in his next two at-bats and then took a called third strike in the eighth inning. He also handled a couple of early grounders at third base.

At 38 and coming back from hip surgery, he said he's fighting for his career.

Rodriguez did not deny using performance-enhancing drugs in a news conference at U.S. Cellular Field after the punishment came down, and he said he will talk about whether he used PEDs at another time when he is more free to speak.

He did, however, dig in for a battle, saying no one else will defend him unless he stands up for himself. Then, he took to the field, batting fourth against the White Sox.

"There's nothing about it that's been easy," Rodriguez said. "All of it has been challenging. I'm sure there's been mistakes made along the way. We're here now. I'm a human being. I've had two hip surgeries. I've had two knee surgeries. I'm fighting for my life. I have to defend myself. If I don't defend myself, no one else will. There's a process. I'm happy with the process. In due time, hopefully whatever happens, happens."

The Yankees are hoping something good happens with him on the field. They're out of playoff position and desperate for power, especially their third basemen -- the players they've had playing that spot this season had a combined 32 RBIs, fewest in the majors according to STATS, and were hitting .215 with four homers.

Rodriguez, with 647 career home runs, arrived at the ballpark in a dark gray Cadillac around 3:10 p.m. CT and waved when a fan shouted "A-Rod!" on his way into the stadium.

In the clubhouse, his locker was jammed with the usual clothing and equipment, and there was a scouting report on his chair.

It all looked so ordinary, yet there was nothing ordinary about this day.

The three-time MVP was one of 13 players disciplined on Monday, one of the biggest mass suspensions in the history of the game.

All-Stars Nelson Cruz, Jhonny Peralta and Everth Cabrera were banned 50 games each. Rodriguez, however, got 211 games, due to start Thursday.

He will appeal his suspension, and that means he will likely be able to play the rest of this season while his case winds through arbitration.

Prior to his first game since last Oct. 18, Rodriguez signed autographs and drew a crowd -- of both fans and photographers.

Rodriguez said "a lot" went into his decision to appeal his case but added "I'm not going to get into any of that today."

"What we've always fought for was for the process, and I think we have that and at some point we'll sit in front of an arbiter and give our case," he said. "And that's as much as I feel comfortable telling you right now."

Asked if he denies using PEDs, Rodriguez said, "Like I said, we'll have a forum to discuss all of that and we'll talk about it then."

If he hasn't used PEDs since then, why not say it?

"There's a lot of things that have been thrown to the wall, and I think when the time is right, there will be an opportunity to do all of that," he said. "I don't think that time is right now. And I don't want to interfere or get in the way of anything that -- with the process."

On Friday, Rodriguez hinted that the Yankees did not want him back and were trying to avoid paying him the $94.5 million they still owe him through 2017.

Union executive director Michael Weiner said those comments were probably out of frustration and that Rodriguez would probably agree they were "counterproductive."

Weiner also said he and Rodriguez have talked since then -- but not about those comments.

"But I would guess that all things considered, and having thought about it a little bit, he's probably not very happy with those comments," Weiner added.

Rodriguez, meanwhile, brushed off a question about his comment on Friday, saying "Today is another day, and I'm focused on what my job is and my responsibilities to the New York Yankees and to the fan base of New York."

He thanked the fans, media, people from the Dominican Republic and Hispanics "all over the world" for the support.

Whether he has the Yankees' support is another issue.

"If I'm productive, I think they want me back," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez batted .120 (3 for 25) with no RBIs last postseason, including 0 for 18 with 12 strikeouts against right-handers.

"It's been a long time for me, and the last time I was on the field it wasn't pretty," he said. "I was horrific."

Officials have yet to publicly identify the man, who apparently drowned after falling into the river at Sportsman's Marina, 1 Russell St.

First responders at the scene of an apparent drowning involving a male victim near Sportsman's Marina, 1 Russell St., Hadley, early Tuesday morning. (CBS3 Springfield) 

HADLEY — Authorities have recovered the body of a man who apparently drowned after falling into the Connecticut River late Monday night near Sportsman's Marina, 1 Russell St.

Hadley police and fire officials responded to the incident, which was reported around 11 p.m. Monday. The body was found just after midnight Tuesday, but police remained on scene as of 3 a.m., according to a Hadley dispatcher.

Massachusetts State Police assisted with the search, a trooper from the Northampton barracks confirmed.

Officials have yet to release any information about the victim, the latest in a string of drownings this spring and summer.

The landmark marina is located on Russell Street (Route 9) near the base of the Coolidge Bridge.

MAP showing location of Sportsman's Marina, 1 Russell St. (Route 9), Hadley, where a man reportedly drowned in the Connecticut River:

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Former East Longmeadow Selectman Enrico Villamaino pleaded guilty to 11 charges related to a voter fraud scheme before last year's statewide primary.

These were the most read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

1) Princeton Review releases Top 20 party schools, Top 20 sober schools; 3 Massachusetts school make sober list [The Republican Newsroom]

2) Springfield child drowns in swimming accident in Vermont [Jeanette DeForge]

3) Enrico Villamaino, former East Longmeadow selectman, pleads guilty to 11 charges in voter fraud scheme [Buffy Spencer] Photo gallery above.

4) Report: Sen. Michael Knapik, R-Westfield, to resign post for new job at Westfield State University [Conor Berry]

5) Chicopee man injured in fireworks accident [Jeanette DeForge]

The mayor had hoped to close on the city's $450,000 purchase of the Elks Lodge property by Friday.

WEST SPRINGFIELD – Town councilors Monday delayed voting on the mayor’s request to use the $400,000 Hard Rock Hotel & Casino New England has given the city to help purchase the Elks Lodge property on Morgan Road.

The money was given to the city as part of the host community agreement the casino company has with regard to the $800 million casino complex it would like to build.

The vote came after an hour of discussion during a meeting called by Mayor Gregory C. Neffinger. He said the delay endangers a $20,000 deposit the city has on the land.

At the close of the session, Town Council President Kathleen A. Bourque said councilors delayed the vote to hold a public hearing on the purchase during the board’s next meeting. That session will take place Aug. 19 in the auditorium of the municipal office building.

The mayor wants to buy the former clubhouse property for $450,000 and earlier this summer got permission from the Town Council to use $100,000 in free cash to that end. Neffinger seeks a total of $500,000 to ensure he has enough money to cover any expenses associated with the purchase.

Neffinger, who has put down a deposit of $20,000 on the property, said that the purchase and sale agreement calls for a closing by Friday. Otherwise, he said the Elks can keep the deposit.

However, Town Attorney Simon J. Brighenti Jr. said the Elk’s lawyer has indicated the organization will work with the city in the matter.

The mayor wants to use the building at the property as temporary quarters for the West Springfield Public Library while its building on Park Street is renovated and expanded. He has also said he wants to use land at the site to create new playing fields to ease the load on the city’s existing playing fields.

Neffinger called Monday night’s after trying unsuccessfully to get Bourque to call a meeting at that time to vote on his request.

She had argued that a public hearing must be held before the council can vote on an appropriation and she could set that hearing for Aug. 19.

Town Councilor John R. Sweeney said the city charter requires that any request for an appropriation be the subject of a public hearing of which the public is given notice.

“The intent of the charter is to let the public know what we are doing,” Sweeney said, objecting to voting on the request Monday night. “Hopefully, we will take this up on the 19th.”

“It is important we have public input before taking a vote,” Bourque said.

“We really need to get our act together,” Town Councilor George R. Kelly said. “I hope we can find a way to make this go smoothly. We all need to work together.”

“If this had been presented properly to the council, we would be all done with this,” Town Councilor Angus M. Rushlow said.

Bourque asked that the city ensure in buying the property that the Elks pay the city for money owed for taxes and sewer and water bills.

Police donated $1,000 to the Boys and Girls Club of proceeds from a road race.

HOLYOKE -- Armando Lopez enjoys going one-on-one with a police officer.

Playing basketball, that is, as Lopez, 19, and other young people recently played hoops with officers at the Holyoke Boys and Girls Club .

The game was part of a regular round of activities intended to foster familiarity between the public safety enforcers and the people from the neighborhoods they police.

"It's really fun because it makes people get active and it shows they're not just authority figures, that they're real people, too," Lopez said recently.

"I think it'll help, that young people will be more willing to talk to police and they won't be scared to call them," he said.

Police at the event also announced a donation to the Boys and Girls Club of $1,000 raised from entry fees at the "3rd Annual Holyoke Police Foot Pursuit" run and walk on May 11.

Police want to increase awareness in the community about the variety of activities the club offers, Lt. Matthew F. Moriarty said.

"You try to get them while they're young and let them know what's going on at the Boys and Girls Club," Moriarty said.

Moriarty also credited the work of the officers on the Holyoke Police Officers Ball Committee: Shaun Kelley, Dorata Beben, Jared Hamel, Andrew DiNapoli and Joseph Wilson.

Moriarty is right, said Ann Mann, the club's director of operations and athletics, the club at 70 Nick Cosmos Way does have an activity for seemingly everyone's interest.

Police play basketball and other sports with youths the third Wednesday of the month. Spaghetti dinners are cooked on other nights. There's a swimming pool with life guard, a robotics program, Xbox-game tournaments, a media room with "green screen" technology where young people can film video, areas for reading and after-school programs, Mann said.

Among the most popular programs are when members of the University of Massachusetts women's basketball and men's football teams hang out at the club, she said.

"It's really cool," Mann said.

Local businessman Mark E. Benoit would like to develop a condominium project on South Street.

 

AGAWAM - The City Council Monday approved creation of a new zoning designation with an eye toward helping local businessman Mark E. Benoit develop land he owns on South Street.

Councilors voted 8-0, with City Councilor Cecilia P. Calabrese abstaining, to create the A-6 zoning designation for multifamily developments. It is similar to the existing A-5 zone, but without age restrictions.

Like A-5, the new designation calls for limiting the number of housing units per acre to 2.5 and allows individual buildings to contain no more than two housing units. But A-6 does not require that a project be limited to people 55 and older.

Benoit owns 29.6 acres at 164-194 South St. that is zoned A-5 that he would like to develop.

The Planning Board in 2008 approved site plans for a 60-unit housing project for people 55 and olde there.

Benoit initially asked the Planning Board to help with this project, Twin Brook Farm, by changing the wording of the Residence A-3 zoning designation. However, he later told the City Council that it would better serve the interests of the city if it created a new zoning designation entirely.

Benoit asked that the new designation not have the requirement that housing be limited to people 55 and older.

The developer has said that without the age restriction he would have more opportunities to develop his land on South Street in the current housing market.

Calabrese said Tuesday she abstained from voting because she did not have strong feelings one way or another about the measure, as well as the fact she is working to develop a trash collection proposal for condominium complexes.

Attorney Jeffrey Denner said Alemany, accused of killing Amy Lord, was in and out of hospitals and was failed by the state's mental health system.

BOSTON - The defense attorney representing Edwin Alemany, the man accused of murdering Amy Lord, called Alemany a “deeply ill” person who was failed by the state’s mental health system.

“My understanding is he was a very mentally ill person,” said attorney Jeffrey Denner. “He would appear to have serious psychiatric problems where the system let him down.”

“He was in and out of hospitals, in and out of the custody of the state of Massachusetts in a variety of venues, and rather than treat him successfully, they let him go,” Denner said.

Alemany has been charged with kidnapping, beating and murdering Lord, a 24-year-old Wilbraham native living in the South Boston neighborhood. He is charged with assaulting two other South Boston women within hours of Lord’s murder.

His arraignment in the assault cases was postponed after a court-appointed psychiatrist said Alemany was suicidal and not competent to understand the charges. He is currently confined at Bridgewater State Hospital undergoing a mental health evaluation, and is scheduled to be arraigned on all the charges Aug. 14.

“I am heartsick, as is my entire law firm, about the death of this wonderful young woman,” Denner said. “We also think the person accused of this may well be a very mentally disturbed individual with an incredible psychiatric history that largely went untreated.”

Defense attorney Jeffrey DennerCourtesy Jeffrey Denner 

During a court hearing relating to the charges that Alemany assaulted the South Boston women last month, a psychiatrist testified that Alemany removed stitches from his hand and said he wanted to kill himself.

Denner said he has not seen the evidence against Alemany in the murder or assault cases and cannot judge the truth of the allegations.

However, Denner is the first person connected with the case to comment publicly about Alemany’s mental health. Denner, in a phone interview with The Republican/MassLive.com, said Alemany has been hospitalized multiple times for mental illness.

Prosecutors previously testified that Alemany had his first brush with the juvenile justice system in 1999, when he was around 15. Prosecutors said he was charged as a juvenile with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and robbery.

Denner said Alemany’s mental health issues date back at least to that time, when Alemany was 14 or 15 years old, and it had come to the attention of the Massachusetts Department of Youth Services. Denner said Alemany had been in a state hospital and had been diagnosed with “serious psychotic illness.” Denner would not provide additional information about Alemany’s diagnoses, which hospitals he was committed to and for how long.

But Denner said if the evidence pointing to Alemany in the Lord case is correct, that raises questions about the accountability of the state’s mental health system, which should have treated him. “The question is what is the failure of the system when they had him there, not to recognize this and deal with it responsibly,” Denner said.

Health records are confidential by law. Representatives of the state Department of Health and Human Services and the Suffolk County House of Corrections could not immediately be reached. Advocacy groups, including the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Massachusetts, have long charged that the state’s mental health system is underfunded.

Laurie Martinelli, NAMI’s executive director, said there is “a perennial problem” with adequate state funding and services for people with mental illness in Massachusetts. She would not comment on the Alemany case.

Attorney James Greenberg represented Alemany as a public defender at Alemany’s first court appearance. Denner said Alemany’s family has since hired him, and he has met with Alemany and his family.

Denner said he has not made any decisions about Alemany’s defense, but he left open the possibility that he could present an insanity defense.

Denner is a high-profile criminal defense attorney, who is a founder and partner at Denner Pellegrino in Boston. He represented Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter, also known as Clark Rockefeller, the Boston man arrested for kidnapping his daughter, then convicted of killing a California man decades earlier. He represented former state treasurer Timothy Cahill, whose corruption case ended in a mistrial, and is representing a Massachusetts probation department employee on charges of running a system that hired politically connected job candidates.

Denner said his heart goes out to the Lord family. “My breath is taken away by the ferocity of what happened to the poor girl and the others,” he said. He said if he takes the case, he will do it to find out whether there is a systemic problem that must be fixed to ensure that others with mental illness are better able to get treatment.

“You have someone obviously sick, not receiving the right kind of treatment, and if he’s the person who did this… all I can say is what an extra tragedy that is because perhaps it didn’t have to happen,” Denner said.

Some property managers and Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said the university could bring added economic benefits and vitality to downtown Springfield.

SPRINGFIELD – Downtown property managers said Tuesday they are excited about the University of Massachusetts’; effort to bring a satellite center to Springfield for classroom and office uses, and will be ready to offer prime space.

 

In addition, the university’s Board of Trustee chairman, Henry M. Thomas, of Springfield, joined in praising the newly issued request for proposals. The university is seeking to lease approximately 25,000 square feet of space in the downtown, and to have the ability to double that space at a later date.

“I feel confident we will have good news to announce in the very near future,” Thomas said. “As a native son from Springfield that loves Springfield, I’m extremely excited about the prospect going forward.”

The satellite in Springfield has been “something that we have been discussing and planning for a couple of years,” Thomas said.

“It’s important that we are moving from discussion to action,” Thomas said. “The Board of Trustees is very focused on this.”

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said the initiative “fits into our other economic development plans — Union Station, market rate housing, a casino proposed by MGM Resorts International, and “our objective of creating a more eclectic mix in our downtown area.”

It benefits both Springfield and the university, he said.

Evan Plotkin, president of NAI Plotkin, said he will be offering a lease proposal to the university for space at One Financial Plaza, 1350 Main St., at Court Square. Plotkin has already provided free space to the university on the ninth floor for an art exhibit and studio space for students the past two years, along with an annual art exhibit on the first floor in recent years.

“Having students and teachers working and attending classrooms in the downtown creates an atmosphere down here that is needed,” Plotkin said.

The increased foot traffic will promote existing retail businesses, attract new retail to Springfield, and bring people spending disposable income to stores and restaurants. It will also support banking and other economic development activity, he said.

Demetrios N. Panteleakis, chief operating officer of OPAL Real Estate Group, planning to redevelop a six-story vacant office building at 13-31 Elm St., at Court Square, said his group will also submit a proposal. The group already provides space to the university at the adjacent Byers building, 3-7 Elm St., for a university urban design center.

The university’s effort “is fundamentally the correct way to redevelop Springfield,” Panteleakis said.

“It brings faculty, students and talent to the downtown, not to mention jobs,” Panteleakis said. “For long-term economic development, the role universities play in cities this size far exceeds in my opinion anything we gain from a casino.”

Fred G. Christensen, property manager at Tower Square on Main Street, said the Request for Proposals from the university was just released, and is under review. A proposal is likely, he said.

“The amount of space they are looking for would certainly be of interest to us,” Christensen said.

He joined in praising the university’s plans, saying that “an educational presence in the downtown is certainly a positive, and should have a significant impact for the downtown.”

Tenants of Tower Square include Cambridge College.

MassDevelopment, which owns the former federal building at 1550 Main St., is not expected to file a proposal because its building is almost fully leased. However, the agency is excited about the university’s efforts and would welcome working with the university on its future in Springfield, spokeswoman Kelsey Abbruzzese said.

The university’s programs in Springfield, in addition to the Court Square ventures, include a program in the Springfield public schools for teacher preparation, a small business development center in the Springfield Technical Community College Technology Park, and a partnership with Baystate Health in the Pioneer Valley Life Sciences Institute research operation in the North End.

The university is a $3 billion enterprise, including more than a $1 billion enterprise in Amherst. That is a “major economic and social engine sitting in our midst,” Thomas said.

The effort in Springfield helps fulfill its mission to promote the full academic experiences of its students and “to be a major asset to the development of the quality of life in the community in which it sits,” he said.

Jason Irizarry, recently hired as the university’s director of urban education at the university’s College of Education, said the effort in the downtown “is certainly an exciting endeavor and demonstrates UMass’s commitment to Springfield.”

UMass RFP for lease of classroom, administrative and research space in Springfield, by Patrick Johnson