Dwight may be mack on: WHMP manager, host talking it over

">

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON - The Bill Dwight Show may be back on the air after a public dispute between host Dwight and management at the radio station.

Dwight, who has had a talk radio program on WHMP-AM for four years, said Tuesday he hopes to return to the airwaves next Monday, after leaving the show Monday morning following a disagreement with management at the station.

WHMP general manager Sean O'Mealy said his conversation Tuesday with Dwight was productive, and that it is ongoing. He said he hopes it will come to "mutual understanding that will benefit both of our interests." He also stressed that Dwight hadn't been fired.

"Bill and I came to a few mutual understandings, and it looks like he will be back," O'Mealy said. "This is still a conversation that is currently in progress, so I would not be certain that he will be back on Monday, but as this continues to evolve we hope we will be able to work it out."

Dwight, 55, meanwhile, said he hadn't quit his job, but that he left the station Monday after receiving an ultimatum he couldn't live with: either cancel a guest he had lined up or leave altogether. He declined to reveal the name of the prospective guest.

"We had a public spat that was a little embarrassing, tempers flared, and when we should've stepped back and had a 10-count, we ended up making the front page," Dwight said. "Now we have a clear understanding as to what my status is at the radio station. I've asked for the final word as to who comes on my show and what we talk about on my show, and they have the right to fire me when they want to."

Dwight said after his conversation with O'Mealy Tuesday, he hopes to be back on the air as soon as next Monday.

"What makes this situation so mortifying is that now it looks like this was some kind of gimmick to put us in the news or something, when in fact it wasn't a gimmick, it was a hissy fit that had nothing to do with me," Dwight said.

Dwight's show airs weekdays from 9 to 10 a.m. Monday is his four-year anniversary with the station.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Minor injuries in two-car accident

NORTHAMPTON — A two-vehicle accident at the intersection of Elm Street and Henshaw Avenue sent two local residents to the hospital with minor injuries, police said.

According to Lt. Michael Patenaude, at 5:06 p.m., police responded to the intersection after it was reported that a 1996 Oldsmobile Ciera, driven by Christopher Wallace, 25, of Northampton, had rear-ended a 1996 Chevy S-10 pickup as it slowed approaching the stop sign at the end of Henshaw Avenue.

Although both cars sustained only minor damage, Patenaude said Thomas M. Moore, 44, and his passenger, Walter Harris, 46, both of Florence, were transported to Cooley Dickinson Hospital, where a hospital spokeswoman said they were treated and released Monday night.

— OWEN BOSS

WHMP's Bill Dwight show ends: policy dispute fuels newsman's departure

">

NORTHAMPTON - The Bill Dwight Show, a popular morning news program on local radio station WHMP-AM, is off the air beginning Tuesday after the host allegedly walked away from his show Monday following what the program director called a disagreement over "station policy."

Dwight, 55, who served as Ward 1 city councilor from 1996 to 2004 and had been doing the show for almost four years, said he left the show Monday following a disagreement with management about which "direction the program should go in."

"It was a disagreement about a programming decision that we were in conflict with and after I disagreed with management, we both agreed that this was probably the best time to part ways," Dwight said Monday, adding "As far as I know, the Bill Dwight show is pretty much done."

The show aired weekdays from 9 to 10 a.m. Chris Collins, WHMP's program director, stressed Monday that Dwight had not been fired but had left the station following a disagreement.

"Let me be very clear in saying that Bill was not fired, he was not dismissed. We love Bill and we are very sorry to see him go, but ultimately it was his decision to walk off the show," Collins said. "This is not a personal thing. There is no animosity. Bill gave us four good years, but policy is policy, and we need to adhere to the policies we have set."

Neither Dwight nor Collins was willing to reveal the station policy in question.

Dwight said he didn't know yet whether he would return to the airwaves.

"I had plans to show up and broadcast tomorrow morning, so right now things are way up in the air," Dwight said.

To fill the hourlong programming void left following Dwight's sudden departure, Collins said the Stephanie Miller Show, which was airing from 10 a.m. to noon, will now begin at 9 a.m. and last three hours rather than two.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Police arrest man with gun at the Hampshire Mall

By OWEN BOSS
Staff Writer

BELCHERTOWN — An Amherst man who was spotted in the parking lot of Dick’s Sporting Goods with a handgun tucked in his waist band Thursday night allegedly pulled the weapon when confronted by police and was arrested after a brief standoff.

Timothy Langdon, 42, of 85 Village Park Road, pleaded innocent Friday in Eastern Hampshire District Court to charges of assault with a dangerous weapon, carrying a firearm without a license and disorderly conduct.

At 8:30 p.m. Thursday, police responded to the sporting goods store’s Russell Street parking lot after receiving word that a man with a firearm tucked into the back of his pants was standing next to a gray car with its door open and loud music playing.

According to a police report written by Hadley Officer Adam J. Bartlett, who was the first on scene, Langdon stared directly at him when he was told to turn around and place his hands on the vehicle and after refusing to do so began moving toward him yelling “You want me? You want this?”

Despite being told to place his hands on his car, Langdon then reportedly pulled a black .22 caliber pistol from his waist band and refused to drop it, prompting Bartlett to draw his weapon, according to Bartlett’s report.

Soon after, officer Mark Ruddock arrived, also drew his firearm and began assisting Bartlett in ordering Langdon to drop his weapon, according to court documents.

After throwing his weapon to the ground, Langdon was reportedly placed under arrest without incident.

Langdon was later found in possession of a .22 caliber magazine.

Judge John Payne Jr. ordered Langdon released on his own recognizance and scheduled a pretrial hearing for June 17.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Area's food assistance roll growing

THE ISSUE: In response to a steadily increasing number of state residents depending on food assistance programs to keep their families fed, state officials have worked to make it easier for households to qualify and requalify for the state’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and that has led to a record number of recipients.

STORY SO FAR: As the national and state economies continue to struggle to get back on their feet, more area residents than ever are relying on SNAP to feed themselves and their families.
According to Paulette Song, deputy communications director of the state’s Executive Office of Health and Human Services, the number of SNAP participants is on the rise.
The most recent statistics regarding program participants, Song said, show a month-by-month comparison from November 2008 to November 2009. According to that study, in November 2008, 4,737 households and 8,720 individuals across Hampshire County were enrolled in the program. Just one year later, 6,270 households and 11,207 individuals relied on SNAP.
That represents a 28 percent increase in individuals and a 32 percent increase in households across Hampshire County.

WHAT’S HAPPENING: The New York Times recently completed a study, following a stock market collapse in the fall of 2008, that looked at enrollment in food assistance programs by state and by county. According to an interactive map on the newspaper’s website, the number of participants in Hampshire County has steadily risen since then. According to the study, between 2007 and 2009 participation in the program jumped 41 percent.
Robin Claremont, development and communications manager at the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, noted that the study showed enrollment is relatively level across counties in the western half of the state.
The state Department of Transitional Assistance, which processes all Pioneer Valley applications, says that it is still seeing 500 new online applications per month. Statewide, the DTA estimates that there are about 20,000 new SNAP recipients each month.
SNAP, formerly known as the food stamp program, requires that residents apply locally to receive an electronic card that is then used like an ATM card to buy food at most grocery stores and some farmers markets. Households must meet eligibility requirements and provide information about — and verification of — their household circumstances.

WHAT’S AHEAD: State officials are continuing to spread the word about the SNAP program, and are passing legislation that will make it easier for food-insecure households to take part, Song said.
Massachusetts distributes $90 million each month in SNAP benefits, which are fully reimbursed by the federal government. To reach residents who may not know they qualify, state-funded outreach programs are seeking out low-income families and educating them about the benefits of participating and where to sign up. These same programs are also educating participants about finding essential nutrients in affordable food items and maintaining a healthy diet. The outreach programs, according to the office’s website, are working, showing that enrollment among targeted groups, such as senior citizens, rose significantly between 2008 and 2009.

RESOURCES: The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts has a SNAP outreach program, in collaboration with the DTA, to assist with application assistance. Residents with questions about the program are encouraged to call the food bank’s SNAP outreach coordinator at (413) 247-9738 x142.
Other local SNAP offices have a toll-free number (866) 950-3663) for people looking to get information.
Residents can also visit the program’s website: http://www.mass.gov/snap. To view an interactive map showing SNAP enrollment by county, visit http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009-foodstamps.html.

— OWEN BOSS

Issue tracker is a regular feature of the Gazette. To suggest a topic, contact Phoebe Mitchell by phone at 585-5249 or by email at pmitchell@gazettenet.com.

Forum focuses on tools to undo bullying

By OWEN BOSS
Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON — A panel of experts and area residents got together Thursday night to address bullying, legislation that is being crafted to address it, and the far-reaching and long-term effect it has had on local schoolchildren — and adults who have dealt with abuse in the past.

The public forum, which was sponsored by local radio station WHMP and the Daily Hampshire Gazette, drew a small crowd of about 30 residents to the Sanctuary inside First Churches on Main Street; where the group took part in a discussion with a panel of six experts in a variety of fields, each of whom offered their own take on bullying and how best to address and prevent it.

Throughout the two-hour discussion, area residents, including Christine Wu, 44, of Hadley, shared stories of their own childhood struggle with bullying and said the term “bullying” itself downplays the abuse and violence they suffered through.

“We need to give children the empowerment to say ‘hey, this is happening to me’ and to give other students the empowerment to be there for them when something happens,” Wu said. “I can count three people in the 12 years I was bullied who stood up for me, and I can’t begin to tell you the number of incidents I endured.”

Among the panelists was state Rep. John Scibak, D-South Hadley, a member of the House Conference Committee currently overseeing the reconciliation of the two anti-bullying bills passed recently by House and Senate. Scibak, who said he hopes to have the legislation out of committee by next week, said legislators have worked tirelessly to accurately describe what constitutes bullying.

According to the House version, Scibak said “bullying” has been generally defined as the severe or repeated use by a perpetrator of a written, verbal, or electronic expression or physical act or gesture or any combination thereof that causes physical or emotional harm to the victim.

Giving children the tools

Self-defense expert and trainer Lynne-Marie Wanamaker, who said she worries every day that her own children may one day be the victims of bullying, stressed that more has to be done to equip schoolchildren at a young age with the tools to combat the problem.

“We need to recognize how hard it is to be a bystander and the role they can play in interrupting what we are calling bullying but what is actually verbal and physical abuse and harassment,” Wanamaker said, adding “I think about the kind of courage, integrity and concrete skills it takes to step in in these situations, and I am aware of how much work it takes to develop these competencies to be that stand-up person.”

Telling children how to act when faced with bullying, Wanamaker said, is only part of the process, and more has to be done at a young age to ensure that abuse is confronted early and often.

“When I think as a parent about how I want my child to be in a school situation, I think about the skills I would want her to have,” Wanamaker said. She said she started reinforcing those skills at a very young age and has helped her rehearse them “in benign situations, like those a 5-year-old would encounter, so that when she gets into a high school situation she has the skills.”

Lauren Wadsworth, 22, who recently graduated from Smith College and now works in the psychology department at UMass Amherst, said she felt the focus should be on rewarding students for doing the right thing, rather than waiting for them to do something wrong to punish them.

“We have to do more than simply reacting to bullying and more than teaching students how to react to bullying, but rather teaching students and even their teachers to model positive behavior, and each child how to respect each other,” Wadsworth said. “Because we all know that catching a child being good is a really good parenting technique.”

In response, Scibak said legislators working to reconcile the anti-bullying bill took Wadsworth’s concerns into consideration when working through language included in the legislation.

“Everyone is calling us and asking what the penalties are going to be for bullying,” he said. “They want to know if they are going to be suspended or if there are going to be criminal charges, and the focus of this really shouldn’t be on responding to bullying after it happens, it should be on preparing kids for it and preventing it from happening in the first place.”

Education, not enforcement

Although Greenfield Police Chief David Guilbault said he was glad legislation would require that teachers report severe instances of bullying to local police departments, he worried that criminal charges resulting from minor offenses would leave a permanent mark on a student’s record and could cost them when applying to colleges or for a first job.

“I think that this is going to place a tremendous burden on the schools, who are already going to be dealing with budget cuts,” Guilbault said. “Education is the main component that is going to make this legislation work, not enforcement.”

A point reiterated several times during the conversation was that bullying isn’t simply a school issue but is commonly the result of problems at home.

Providing what panelists called a “boots in the school” perspective was Southampton schoolteacher and 2008 Massachusetts Teacher of the Year Michael Flynn, who said he has noticed that as technology advances, his students appear to be losing the ability to interact face-to-face.

“One thing that as teachers we need to be aware of is the importance of children talking with one another, working together, learning to compromise, learning to disagree appropriately and resolve conflicts effectively,” Flynn said. “That is a big part of the issue of bullying, when you run into people who can’t communicate well or don’t have the skills necessary to do so. And technology has a way of compounding the problem by allowing them to be more critical without being face-to-face.”

Offering a possible solution to that problem was John Berkowitz, director of the Boys to Men Teen Mentoring Network of Western Massachusetts, who said the best way to solve communication problems is to regularly sit down and ask kids to share how they are feeling.

“I really feel like it is the old cliche that it takes a village to raise a child,” Berkowitz said. “Boys to Men feels that the family, the school — sometimes it’s just not enough any more when dealing with a tough economy and a difficult society that is affecting our teens and our children. We are going to have to take more responsibility as adults to do something.”

Residents interested in hearing the forum are encouraged to visit the WHMP website: http://www.whmp.com, where portions of the forum will be broadcast.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Experts gather tonight for forum on bullying

By Owen Boss
Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON — Area residents are invited to attend a forum focused on the impact bullying can have on local schoolchildren tonight at 7 in the sanctuary of First Churches on Main Street.

The forum, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by WHMP, a local radio station, and the Daily Hampshire Gazette, and will feature addresses from a wide range of experts on the topic.

Scheduled speakers include Mike Flynn, a Southampton schoolteacher who was Massachusetts Teacher of the Year in 2008; state Rep. John W. Scibak, D-South Hadley, a member of the House Conference Committee overseeing the reconciliation of the two anti-bullying bills passed recently by House and Senate; John Fanton, a child psychologist at Baystate Health Systems; Chris Overtree, professor of clinical psychology at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; John Berkowitz, director of the Boys to Men Teen Mentoring Network of Western Massachusetts and Southern Vermont; Lynne-Marie Wanamaker, trainer and self-defense expert; Northampton Police Chief Russell P. Sienkiewicz; and Greenfield Police Chief David Guilbault.

The meeting, which will allow for public comment, will be hosted by Chris Collins and Bill Dwight of WHMP radio and Larry Parnass, the Gazette’s editor-in-chief.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

DMH set on merger

Future of western Mass. office unclear; director steps down

By OWEN BOSS
Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON — A plan to consolidate state Department of Mental Health regional offices has a local advocacy group sounding the alarm, fearing that services for mental health clients in western Massachusetts will suffer.

The planned restructuring is a cost-cutting measure that will require consolidating DMH’s six regional offices statewide into three, according to DMH Commissioner Barbara Leadholm.

Although it remains unclear which of the six regional offices will close, the six in question are the central Massachusetts office in Worcester; metro Boston office in Boston; metro suburban office in Westborough; the northeast office in Tewksbury; the southeastern office in Brockton; and the western Massachusetts office in Northampton.

The consolidation, according to Leadholm, will not require closing any of the department’s 29 smaller offices statewide and is “wholly administrative and is not intended to affect services that DMH provides.”

Leadholm’s goal is to have the restructuring in place by December. But unhappy about their lack of involvement and the absence of a step-by-step plan for the consolidation, members of the Citizen Advisory Board for Western Mass. DMH are calling for a delay.

The board met with Leadholm April 9.

“What became clear to us at the meeting was that there isn’t really much of a plan in place for this,” said advisory board member John Hornick. “At best, she has a plan to make a plan. We asked her questions about exactly how these new area offices would look and she didn’t have a clear answer. She didn’t even have a clear number for us in respect to the anticipated savings.”

Sullivan leaves post

Hornick said board members were also shocked to find that Elizabeth Sullivan, who had been the department’s western Massachusetts area director in Northampton for 30 years, left her post Friday. The implication of her departure, Hornick alleges, is that DMH plans to consolidate the central and western regions.

“This is just a really odd time for Liz Sullivan to be stepping down,” Hornick said. “If anything you would think they would want to have an experienced leader in place in order to help with this transition — and frankly that announcement came as quite a surprise to the board.”

Another concern, board member Laura Prescott said, is how many staff positions will be eliminated in this area. Also, she said, advocates worry that more people being served by fewer offices will leave the department overextended.

Further, Prescott said she worries that if the Northampton office closes, area residents may have to travel to Worcester.

Prescott said the board is concerned that there is no plan for what will happen after the consolidation in terms of providing accountability for services to clients across the region.

Anna Chinappi, director of DMH’s office of communications and community engagement, said the restructuring plan is incomplete. Meantime, she said, until the DMH budget is released in June, an April 14 statement from Leadholm will remain the agency’s final comment on the matter.

According to the statement, Leadholm said she hopes to have the consolidation completed by December and in the coming weeks plans to decide the locations of the three remaining regional offices. She will name area directors for those locations.

“We will be working with unions and management throughout this process and will make changes in a way that will be least disruptive to employees, consumers, families and the provider community,” the statement reads. “I want to acknowledge the anxiety that we are all experiencing during this time of change for the department.”

Still, advocates say more work is needed to make the transition seamless. They are asking for 12 more months to do so.

“The reasoning behind the delay is to give DMH an opportunity to carefully consider how they plan to carry out all of these functions with consolidated area offices,” Hornick said, “and to allow us an opportunity to see what that plan is going to be and respond to it.”

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Defendant in Prince case arraigned on OUI charge

HOLYOKE — Austin Renaud, one of six students facing charges following the death of South Hadley High School student Phoebe Prince, was arrested Sunday morning for operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

Renaud, 18, of Springfield, who earlier this month pleaded innocent in Hampshire Superior Court to a charge of statutory rape, is expected to be arraigned on the latest charge today in Holyoke District Court, according to published reports.

Holyoke police reportedly found Renaud parked by the side of the road at 3 a.m. Sunday with his hazard lights on. After telling the officer he had a flat tire, Renaud was taken to the Holyoke Police Station where he reportedly failed a breathalyzer test and was released on $40 bail, according to published reports.

Prince, 15, hanged herself at her South Hadley home on Jan. 14 following several months of bullying authorities say was motivated by alleged dating relationships she had with Renaud and another high school boy.

— OWEN BOSS

Council to act on unwanted deliveries

By OWEN BOSS
Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON — Urged on by city residents fed up with the delivery of the Springfield Republican’s “Extra” supplement every week, City Council President David J. Narkewicz has proposed an ordinance aimed at dealing with “unsolicited publications.”

“I had hoped to avoid taking legislative action on the ‘Extra’ purple bag issue,” Narkewicz said in an email, “but after months of the city going back and forth with The Republican and fielding continued complaints from residents, I researched and proposed a new, stand-alone ordinance.”

The ordinance is co-sponsored by Ward 3 City Councilor Angela Plassmann. In coming months, members of the city’s Board of Public Works, the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Housing and Land Use, and the Subcommittee on Elections, Rules, Orders, Ordinances and Claims will consider the ordinance and make their recommendations before the proposal returns to City Council for debate and votes.

Rather than ban the delivery of free newspapers, supplements and other publications, Narkewicz said, the new ordinance imposes clear guidelines for how they can be delivered and requires that the publisher and its distributor respect requests from residents who no longer wish to receive a given publication.

“I believe it is completely reasonable for a Northampton resident to expect that, upon request, a newspaper publishing company will stop delivering a publication to which the resident did not subscribe and does not wish to receive,” Narkewicz said. “It is also completely reasonable for Northampton residents to not have unwanted, unsightly, and unrecyclable purple bags strewn around their property and city causing potential harm to the environment, public safety, and private property.”

The Republican Extra is a weekly commercial delivery system targeting 8,200 Northampton households each Wednesday with paid advertisements and store coupons.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Westhampton firefighters extinguish brush fire

WESTHAMPTON — Firefighters from three area communities extinguished a brush fire off of Tob Hill Road Thursday afternoon.

The fire, which was first reported from atop the Pelham Fire Tower around 3 p.m., was caused by the rekindling of ashes still smoldering from a permitted burn on Sunday, according to Westhampton Fire Chief Chris Norris.

“Staffers in Pelham noticed smoke coming off of the mountain from the top of the fire tower and after realizing there weren’t any active burn permits for the day we did some recon and were able to locate the fire from the smoke,” Norris said.

Firefighters from Westhampton, Chesterfield and Williamsburg, assisted by members of the District 10 Department of Conservation and Recreation, were able to extinguish the fire in about an hour, Norris said.

“We had one tanker truck, two pump trucks and three brush trucks out there as well as two additional state vehicles,” Norris said, “we got it under control pretty quickly.”

The fire burned approximately six acres of open land on the mountain and Norris said it will not result in any criminal charges.

— OWEN BOSS

Agricultural group eyes lawn care

By Owen Boss
Staff Writer

Grown in Westhampton, a collaborative aimed at bringing together local farmers and amateur gardeners, will focus on how to keep a healthy lawn at the group’s monthly meeting next Monday.

The roundtable discussion, held at the Town Library on Main Street, will feature a presentation on lawn care from Debra Young, Operations Manager of North Country Garden Center.

“I am going to discuss the four-step fertilizing process, answer any questions that those in attendance may have and show them some new methods for liming,” Young said, adding “We will also go over both the organic and inorganic options for lawn care and when is the right and wrong time to fertilize.”

Young, of Southampton, said a common mistake among area homeowners is to expect that with enough work they can end up with a golf-course quality lawn.

“Most people want a golf course in front of their house, and that is just not realistic,” Young said.
Kurt Heidinger, who helped organize the group, said Young’s speech will continue Grown in Westhampton’s effort to facilitate the exchange of information between local growers.

“Anybody in the world can pick out a book on perennials or how to compost or how to grow the perfect tomato but getting the local knowledge on how to do it from people who have grown here forever, you can’t get that in a book,” Heidinger said.

An added benefit to the monthly meeting, Heidinger said, is that it brings area farmers and their consumers closer together.

“Everybody seems to be learning something,” Heidinger said. “The farmers get to pick the brains of their consumers and consumers get to know more about what is growing locally — both sides are finding it very helpful.”

Heidinger said all area residents are invited to the meeting, which is scheduled for Monday at 1 p.m.
•••
Annual variety show

Residents are invited to help raise money for a local church group and area emergency responders next weekend by attending the 24th annual Pilgrim Fellowship and EMT Variety Show at Town Hall.

Julie Holt, who organizes the show each year, said performances will include musical performances, dancing, singing and acting.

“We’ve been doing this for 24 years now and you know how it is in Westhampton, whenever you do something two years in a row it becomes tradition,” Holt said.

Proceeds raised from ticket sales, Holt said, will be divided evenly between the Pilgrim Fellowship, a local church group and area EMTs.

The show is scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 24. Tickets, which are $5 for adults, $2 for children, are available at the door.

People interested in performing are encouraged to sign up by calling 527-0294 or sending a request via email to julieholt@comcast.net.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Farmers get jump on year

Spring of 2010 could be grow season of the decade

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

This spring's unseasonably warm weather may mean it will be a banner year for area farmers, many of whom are expecting fresh local crops will be ready for the dinner table far earlier than in years past. One Westhampton farmer said he's seeing his fruit trees in bloom earlier this year than they have in five decades.

Thanks to a March that was one of the warmest in state history, local orchard owners are reporting their apples, peaches and plums are blossoming early, while others say that beets, peas and asparagus are growing in their fields more than two weeks ahead of schedule.

Russell Braen, owner of Park Hill Orchard in Easthampton, said that as long as a late frost doesn't knock out the peach buds growing on his trees, all signs are pointing to a great spring farming season.

"We have a ton of our plants up early, we have already planted all of our potatoes, our garlic came up really early and our peaches are all already out," Braen said. "My feeling is that this is going to be the growing year of the decade. Things are looking really good for local farmers."

Braen reviewed his records and said he began preparing his fields 17 days earlier than last year. He's hopeful that the head start will allow him to have fresh fruit and vegetables ready at his farm stand earlier than ever.

"Usually we can't bring our tractor or any of our heavy equipment into the fields this early in the season because the ground isn't ready, but now that the ground is firmed up, we are already mowing out there, which is pretty crazy for this time of year," Braen said.

Another area orchard owner reporting an early crop in his 1,000-tree orchard is Tom Bashista, owner of Bashista orchards in Southampton, who said he is glad to see blossoms but worries that if overnight temperatures drop below freezing he could lose all of his fruit.

"Just having blossoms out earlier than usual doesn't necessarily mean it will be a good year. It just means that you are in a position where you could fail if you catch a late frost," Bashista said. If he can avoid that, he said, "it will definitely be nice for local consumers to have our fresh fruit ready two weeks earlier than last year."

Bashista also noted that the Valley was unscathed by late-winter storm systems that dumped several feet of snow on states along the Eastern seaboard, which has put area farmers ahead of their competitors.

Although he said the Valley has had frosts as late as mid-May, News 22 meteorologist Brian Lapis doesn't expect to see one in the near future.

"I don't see that happening right now," Lapis said, "if we were going to have had a devastating frost this year it probably would have happened already on one of the chilly mornings we have had recently."

Despite a March that saw many daily high-temperature marks that toppled previous state records, Lapis said in New England the potential for unseasonably colder weather is unlikely but always possible.

"Overnight lows are looking like they could go down into the low 30s," Lapis said. "But I don't see a hard freeze in our future."

Brad Morse, owner of Outlook Farm in Westhampton, said his cherries, peaches and plums are blooming earlier than they have in 50 years.

"The earliest we've seen our trees bloom has been in the very end of April, and this year we saw it start to happen in the second week of April," Morse said, adding, "If we can get our crops out on the early market, that is always a good thing."

Also reporting the appearance of crops earlier than in years past is Joe Czajkowski. owner of Czajkowski's Farm in Hadley, who said in addition to the early appearance of his asparagus, peas and beets, he has noticed his peach orchard is already blooming.

"Having our vegetables out early is always a great sign for us," Czajowski said. "We just have to hope this weather holds up."

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Massachusetts House approves bill to add two resort casinos, racetrack slots

By Owen Boss and The Associated Press

BOSTON - House lawmakers approved a bill Wednesday to license two resort-style casinos and allow up to 3,000 slot machines at the state's four race tracks, bringing Massachusetts a step closer to the largest expansion of gambling since the creation of the state lottery in 1971.

The 120-37 vote marks a dramatic shift in the House, which just two years ago voted 106-48 against a similar bill by Gov. Deval Patrick to license three destination casinos. Dozens of lawmakers switched their vote to support DeLeo's bill.

The vote was a major victory for Democratic Speaker Robert DeLeo, who succeeded in persuading enough House lawmakers to back the measure to withstand a potential veto by Patrick, who opposes racetrack slots. Patrick has not said whether he would veto the bill.

DeLeo needed at least 106 votes to make the bill veto-proof. He called the bill "the envy of every other state."

The vote came after two days of impassioned debate during which lawmakers beat back dozens of amendments including a Republican-led effort to send the bill back to committee to allow a public hearing on the legislation.

The bill now heads to the Massachusetts Senate.

Supporters say the bill would produce a major economic jolt for the state, allowing it to recapture up to half of the money spent by Massachusetts residents at casinos in neighboring states.

House leaders say that translates into between $300 million and $500 million in added tax revenues each year, while creating up to 19,000 jobs.

Opponents say the promise of a revenue windfall and thousands of good-paying jobs is overblown.

Rep. Daniel Bosley, D-North Adams, a longtime foe of expanded gambling, said lawmakers have failed to have a serious debate about the basic assumptions about how much money casinos may or may not bring into the state.

"This does not have to be our economic future," Bosley said. "I'm not morally opposed to casino gambling, it's just lousy economic policy."

Bosley and others said House leaders should have commissioned a new fiscal review of the bill that looked at the potential costs of casinos, both in social woes like divorces and bankruptcies and the financial hit to some local businesses and performing arts centers.

But those concerns largely fell on deaf ears as lawmakers, facing tough re-election campaigns in the fall, groped for anything they could help boost tax revenues and create jobs.

Rep. Kathi-Anne Reinstein, D-Revere, a backer of casinos, said the state's racetracks, which would benefit under the bill, have provided good jobs for generations of workers. Reinstein herself worked at the Wonderland Greyhound Park.

"These facilities, these businesses, were never considered albatrosses," she said. "They brought opportunity to the district."

The debate turned emotional at times.

Rep. Matthew Patrick, D-Falmouth, was near tears as he recalled the struggles his family went through as his father, a World War II veteran and biology teacher, lost money at a nearby horse track, leaving his 10 children on the brink of poverty.

"This has real dramatic impacts on families," Patrick said. "It's going to hurt families."

Chip Tuttle, chief operating officer at Suffolk Downs, one of the state's two horse tracks, welcomed the vote and said the track, in partnership with Wonderland Park, is "committed to building and operating a world-class entertainment complex that combines restaurants, retail, racing, gaming and a hotel."

During the debate, lawmakers rejected a series of amendments.

One would have barred casinos from pumping pheromones into the air to encourage patrons to keep gambling.

Other failed amendments would have set a $500 limit on how much an individual could lose in a single day, prohibited the use of "luck ambassadors" to urge people to keep betting, placed warning labels on all casino marketing materials and required a public health official to intervene if someone continued betting for more than 12 hours straight.

Rep. Brian Dempsey, House chairman of the Committee on Economic Development Committee, defended the bill and the decision to rely on an updated version of a 2008 economic study of Patrick's three-casino bill. Dempsey said that while the two bills are different, the updated study showed "a very strong marketplace" for casino gambling in New England.

Under DeLeo's proposal, all the revenues from the racetrack slots, up to $100 million a year, would be returned to cities and towns as local aid. Two of the state's racetracks are located in the Winthrop Democrat's district. The state's two dog tracks have struggled since Massachusetts voters opted to ban live dog racing.

The bill requires a $500 million private investment from each of the resort casinos and $75 million from each of the race tracks and would deliver $260 million in upfront licensing fees to the state.

The lure of casinos has drawn millions in lobbying dollars to Massachusetts.

The amount spent by firms, unions and interest groups hoping to influence the debate has grown from just more than $800,000 in 2006 to more than $2 million in 2009, according to an Associated Press review of records filed with the Secretary of State's Office.

The vast majority of the lobbying dollars are being spent by groups hoping to get a piece of the gambling pie if lawmakers ultimately vote to expand gaming.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Amherst shopkeeper charged in credit card fraud

By Owen Boss and Scott Merzbach

Staff Writers

AMHERST - A local shopkeeper, charged with using Bill Belichick's daughter's credit card to buy more than a thousand dollars of merchandise at stores in Hadley, denied his involvement at his court appearance Tuesday.

Mohamed S. Nagooradumai, 39, of 42 Palley Village Place, who owns Amherst Grocery Store at 319 Main St., pleaded innocent in Eastern Hampshire District Court to charges of committing credit card fraud over $250 and receiving stolen property valued over $250.

In December, Amherst resident Amanda Belichick, daughter of New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, went to the local police station to report several unauthorized transactions on her Bank of America checking account.

Her debit card, she said, had either been lost or stolen, according to police.

A police inquiry revealed that last year, during November and December, unauthorized charges were made on her card at Old Navy, Sears and Wal-Mart in Hadley and at Nagooradumai's grocery store, according to court documents. The largest transaction, made at Sears, was for a Kenmore washer and dryer set reportedly valued at $616.23.

After obtaining surveillance video from Sears, police identified Nagooradumai and his wife, Zuharia Mohamed, whom they recognized from past dealings, waiting in line just moments before the transaction was made, according to police.

On Tuesday at 11 a.m., police executed a search warrant obtained Monday in Eastern Hampshire District Court at Nagooradumai's Palley Village Place home and seized a Kenmore washer and dryer set and a variety of clothing as evidence.

Lt. Ron Young, head of the police detective bureau, said the investigation is ongoing and the credit card used in the alleged thefts has not been recovered.

Young said additional charges may be filed against Nagooradumai as the investigation continues.

Contacted Wednesday, Amanda Belichick, who is the assistant coach of the women's lacrosse team at the University of Massachusetts, declined to comment. A call to the number listed for Nagooradumai's residence was not answered, and a message left there Wednesday evening was not immediately returned.

Judge Laurie MacLeod released Nagooradumai on his own recognizance and ordered him to return to court for a pretrial hearing on May 18.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Springfield man faces several charges linked to stolen weapon

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

AMHERST - UMass police say a Springfield man who discarded a loaded firearm while being pursued by officers early Saturday morning unwittingly led them to the stolen gun after being bailed out of jail the following morning.

Lamont Thomas, 20, of Springfield, pleaded innocent Monday in Eastern Hampshire District Court to charges of carrying a firearm on school grounds, carrying a firearm without a license, receiving stolen property over $250, and possessing an unregistered firearm.

Thomas is not enrolled as a student at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst.

At 3:22 a.m. Saturday, officer Jonathan Hall responded to an on-campus disturbance where witnesses claimed Thomas had brandished a handgun, cocking it to show it was loaded. Witnesses on scene led police to Thomas, who was arrested for disorderly conduct after a brief foot pursuit.

Although officers were unable to locate the weapon, they believed that Thomas had discarded it during the chase, according to court documents.

At 5:30 a.m., after being released on bail from the UMass Police Department, Hall followed Thomas to a grass embankment near Patterson dormitory and saw him searching through two bushes on the east side of the building.

When approached, Thomas reportedly told Hall he was just looking for his car keys and began acting "nervous and had difficulty standing in one place," according to court documents.

After issuing Thomas a trespassing notice and telling him to leave the area, Hall reportedly found an unsecured and loaded AMT Automag 2 pistol with a silver slide, a round in the chamber and seven more in the magazine. UMass dispatch ran the serial number found on the gun against the National Crime Information Center's database and found that it had been reported stolen out of Sidney, N.Y., in 1978.

Thomas was subsequently summoned to appear Monday. Judge John Payne Jr. released Thomas on his own recognizance and scheduled him to appear in court for a pretrial hearing on May 10.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Living wage advocates check on city's progress

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON - The Northampton Living Wage Coalition celebrated the first annual Northampton Living Wage Week at Smith College Monday night and honored the memory of Frances Perkins, a Mount Holyoke College graduate who fought for the first national minimum wage after becoming the nation's first female Cabinet member.

The meeting drew about 20 people to the Neilson Library, including Mayor Clare Higgins and City Council President David Narkewicz, and featured speeches from Dan Czitrom, professor of History at Mount Holyoke College, Stephanie Luce, associate professor at the University of Massachusetts' Labor Center and Dale Melcher, labor extension coordinator at UMass Amherst.

Living Wage Week in Northampton was established as part of a Living Wage Resolution passed unanimously last fall by the City Council. The week commemorates the April 10 birthday of Perkins, who was labor secretary under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and who successfully fought for the first national minimum wage and overtime laws, unemployment insurance and the 40-hour work week.

Prior to the addresses, Higgins took to the podium and declared that from now on, the week including April 10 will be recognized as Living Wage Week and noted the importance of local residents asking that area employers offer their workers a base wage of at least $11.90 an hour.

"Earning a living wage is a struggle in this economy and it is going to continue be a struggle in the future," Higgins said. "We need to recognize that we have employers here in Northampton who are willing to meet that challenge and willing to help folks who are having a hard time."

Coalition steering committee member Kitty Callaghan stressed that offering workers a living wage in today's economy will go a long way to fueling an enduring economic recovery.

"This coalition believes that workers shouldn't have to struggle to find food to eat," Callaghan said, adding "We have people right now who are working two or three jobs and still have to go to the Survival Center at the end of the day to get their food for the week."

In a creative twist, Melcher channeled her inner Perkins and spoke as if she were able to comment on the nation's current economic woes. "I urge you to give this ordinance you have passed some teeth," she said, adding that "Poverty is always preventable" and encouraging voters to support the Employee Free Choice Act, currently making its way through Congress.

During her turn at the podium, Luce acknowledged that with a nationwide unemployment rate of 10 percent, now may be a difficult time to petition for higher wages, but it is the appropriate time to do so. "This is the time to recognize that this system isn't working and to reshape the rules of the labor market so that when this economy recovers, it will do so on a foundation that is focused on the needs of the American worker," she said.

Also announced at the meeting was the inaugural list of 14 city businesses that have been certified by the coalition as official living wage employers. They are: Allcroft Facial Plastic Surgery, The Center for New Americans, Fly By Night Inc., The Jamrog Group, Ostrander Law Office, The Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence, Valley Community Development Corp., Western Mass Legal Services, Webber and Grinnell Insurance Agency, Spoleto Restaurant, Paradise City Tavern, Mama Iguana's Restaurant and Spoleto Express.

Residents interested in joining the coalition are encouraged to contact Callaghan at 413-584-4034 or kcallaghan@wmls.org.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Granby death a homicide: Autopsy determines woman was strangled

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

GRANBY - Authorities say an autopsy has shown that a woman found dead in her Granby home Monday night was strangled.

After reviewing final autopsy results, Northwestern District Attorney Elizabeth D. Scheibel said Friday night that an inquiry into the unexplained death of Annamarie Rintala would be deemed a homicide investigation.

Scheibel told the Gazette Friday night that there are no suspects at this time, and that the investigation is active and ongoing.

Rintala, 37, was found dead inside her Barton Street home Monday by police responding to a 911 call placed at 7:12 p.m. Dr. Joann Richmond of the medical examiner's office, who reported the results of Rintala's autopsy, told Scheibel that Rintala's death was a homicide by strangulation.

Granby police said the investigation is ongoing and all inquiries will be redirected to Scheibel's office.

Rintala was an emergency medical technician for American Medical Response of Western Massachusetts. According to the Hampshire County Registry of Deeds, Rintala's wife, Cara Rintala, bought their Barton Street property in 2002. They were married in Northampton in 2007, with Annamarie Cochrane taking the last name of her spouse, according to municipal records.

Cara Rintala has been an employee of the Ludlow Fire Department for the past 10 years, working as a firefighter and paramedic, Ludlow Fire Chief Mark Babineau said earlier this week.

According to court documents, in October 2008, Cara Rintala was charged in Eastern Hampshire District Court with domestic assault and battery following an Oct. 27 incident during which Annamarie Rintala told police that Cara Rintala had struck her hard in the back of the head with a closed fist during a domestic incident in their home. All charges in that case were dismissed at the request of the victim.

Annamarie Rintala's is the first homicide investigation in Granby since 1980, when Reinhold P. Kruger, 49, of East Longmeadow, was found in the woods off of Carver Street two months after he went missing, according to published reports.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Hurry up and wait! Traffic snarls region

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON - The closure of a single southbound lane on Interstate Route 91 Friday afternoon caused rush-hour traffic across the city to come to a standstill and resulted in headaches for motorists looking to get a jump on the long weekend and some sunny spring weather.

At 6 p.m. Friday, snarled lines of traffic inched their way across the city center, and motorists like Sean Walsh, of Easthampton, suffered through what he called a "nightmare of a ride home from work."

"I don't understand why the state couldn't have waited to do the work at a time when there would be far fewer people looking to get on 91," Walsh said outside the Sunoco gas station on Pleasant Street. "My ride home has never ever taken this long."

The root cause of the traffic, according to Maureen Glenn of the State Police in Northampton, was the closure of a southbound lane so workers could pour concrete near the East Street Bridge in Easthampton. Glenn said the site had been cleared by 5:30 p.m., far later than the Massachusetts Department of Transportation intended to have the lane closed.

"I don't know if they had a problem with the concrete or what," Glenn said.

Also sitting in traffic on Pleasant Street Friday was Mary Charlemont, of South Deerfield, who said it took her about 45 minutes to get through the heart of the city.

"This is the worst I've seen traffic in Northampton in a long time," Charlemont said. "We came into Northampton for lunch and we've been trying to get out ever since."

Police said at the peak of rush hour, traffic extended several miles down Route 9 into Hadley, and motorists traveling on the highway sat bumper to bumper for several miles leading up to the Interstate 91 entrance ramp in Northampton.

Many motorists interviewed Friday evening were bewildered that the state would approve a highway project during rush hour right before Easter weekend, and when many college students in the five-college area would be heading home for the holiday.

The project, over East Street in Easthampton, is in its final phase and is expected to be completed this year, the state Department of Transportation says.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com

Fairgrounds project gains preliminary approval

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

NORTHAMPTON - The Three-County Fairgrounds redevelopment project took a small step forward Thursday night as the Conservation Commission unanimously approved a notice of intent to begin preliminary deconstruction on the site.

The fairgrounds are off Route 9 between Fair Street and Old Ferry Road, in the city's Meadows section.

After deliberating for more than three hours, commission members carefully changed language included in the 52 conditions attached to their approval to guarantee that the commission will have another chance to weight in before the project moves to its second stage.

"We want to make sure we get another bite at the apple," said commission member Kevin Lake, adding, "We want to be sure that we are comfortable enough with these plans and to be sure that it has to come back to us."

One condition in particular, regarding the progression of the project following the initial demolition of existing horse barns on the property, was rewritten several times before commission members were comfortable giving their seal of approval.

The condition required that before any other work can take place, other than horse barn demolition, construction of new barns and related drainage improvement, commission members must approve an order of conditions submitted by the developers.

Prior to their decision, commission members heard from a handful of fairground abutters, including Maria Tymoczko, who said she worried for surrounding wildlife and that runoff from a nearby parking lot would end up in her backyard.

"I think this could be a great project for Ward 3 and I also think it could be a disaster for all properties south of the fairgrounds," Tymoczko said. "It could end up impairing the fertility and arability of the surrounding land."

Representatives from Northampton's Berkshire Design Group, who are planning the $40 million redevelopment project, were on hand and asserted that when completed, the finished stormwater management system at the site would store more water and would function better than the current detention basins. The 51-acre redevelopment site lies within the 100-year flood plain.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.

Officials: Beware swollen rivers, streams

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

As one of the wettest Marches in state history came to a close, emergency crews statewide were warning residents about risks associated with flooding. Now, the state's Environmental Police are calling on residents to be extra cautious around swollen rivers and streams, some of which are running faster than usual and are expected to reach record depths this weekend.

According to the National Weather Service, two major storm systems that pummeled the state with more than 2 inches of rain at the end of March resulted in record-breaking rainfall totals. As runoff from the storms finds its way into area rivers and streams, conditions can become extremely dangerous.

"Right now we are just reminding people to use extreme caution when dealing with streams and rivers. It is swift water and it is cold water, and people should know that putting on a life vest is the most important thing they can do to stay safe," said Catherine Williams, an Environmental Police spokeswoman.

The weather service reported that on March 29, a record one-day rainfall of 1.67 inches was recorded at Worcester Airport, breaking a record set in 1986 of 1.46 inches. Then, the following day, the airport recorded receiving 2.43 more inches of rain, shattering the previous daily record of 1.78 inches set in 2001. Over the span of the month, the airport recorded 10.15 inches of rain, making 2010 the second wettest March since record keeping began in 1892. The record rain total for March is 11.13 inches in 1936, according to the service's Web site.

The record rainfall has caused area rivers and stream to swell to dangerous levels, and when combined with warm weather and cold water, Williams said the potential is there for danger. "This time of year our rivers are running an average of 40 degrees and at that temperature people can become hypothermic and that can weaken even a strong swimmer's ability to get themselves out of a dangerous situation," Williams said.

She noted that state law requires people kayaking or canoeing to wear life jackets between Sept. 15 and May 15, when rivers are particularly dangerous. On Thursday, the Connecticut River was the only local river above flood stage, measuring 113 feet, more than 6 feet higher than usual for this time of year. Other local river levels include the Mill River, 7.9 feet; the Deerfield River, 5.7 feet; and the Westfield River, 10.2 feet.

As the river depths decrease over the weekend and temperatures continue to rise, Williams said area residents who feel the urge to cool off in local waterways should remember that it is not the depth but the speed at which the river is moving that can get people into trouble.

"Sometimes, the safest decision a person can make with conditions like these is to not get into the water at all," Williams said.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com.