Latest Lowell, Massachusetts Stories
By Matt Murphy, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 30--BOSTON -- Money is flowing in both directions on Beacon Hill in a final flurry of legislative activity. The Senate yesterday finalized an environmental bond bill funneling more than $10 million to Greater Lowell for improvements to parks and other local recreational and environmental projects. Meanwhile, the House approved a supplemental budget backing Gov. Deval Patrick's plan to ask hospitals, businesses and insurers to contribute millions...
By Chris Camire, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 29--BILLERICA -- Looking to avoid past mistakes, the Planning Board halted a presentation from representatives of the Billerica Energy Center last night until it determines if it has jurisdiction over the project. The issue was raised by Planning Board member Ed McLaughlin, who said he wants a written statement from town counsel or the building inspector indicating whether the power plant proposed for North Billerica requires a site-plan permit....
By Rita Savard, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 26--CHELMSFORD -- First came the closing of Westlands Elementary School. Now 26 jobs have been axed inside Chelmsford schools as officials move forward with budget cuts. "We've been cutting and it's deep," said Superintendent of Schools Donald Yeoman. "It's tragic when people lose their jobs. From cafeteria workers to teachers, this means every student is getting less." With a $2.2 million deficit, school officials said layoffs were unavoidable....
By Chris Camire, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 24--TYNGSBORO -- Residents may be able to enjoy the land formerly known as the Tyngsboro Campground by summer's end if a new plan to revamp the Frost Road parcel moves forward. Drawn up by Southboro design firm Beals and Thomas, the plan calls for picnic tables and a volleyball pit to be installed on the riverside property. The initial improvements are expected to cost $15,000, according to Beals and Thomas engineer Dan Feeney. A master...
By Danielle Sottosanti, The Arizona Daily Star, Tucson Jul. 21--An upcoming gathering of three Central neighborhoods and an out-of-town developer will continue years of communication and understanding, despite a separation of thousands of miles. Residents of the Campus Farm, Amphi and Limberlost neighbor- hoods originally wanted a park and a neighborhood center on about 15 acres of land on the northeast corner of East Limberlost Drive and North First Avenue. By the end of 2003, they knew...
By John Collins, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 18--CHELMSFORD -- Police Chief James Murphy said $15,000 a year is a fair price to pay for "CodeRED." And no, he's not referring to cherry-flavored soft drink, Mountain Dew Code Red. Murphy announced yesterday the town has implemented a new, "ultra, high-speed telephone communication system" that enables police to speed-dial -- at the rate of 1,000 calls per minute -- Chelmsford residents and business owners to deliver recorded messages about...
By Chris Camire, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 17--TYNGSBORO -- During her six years on the Tyngsboro School Committee, Diana Keohane watched a school system in distress. Athletic fees became the highest in the Merrimack Valley. Dozens of teaching positions were cut. Bus fees were instated at $200 a student. Keohane retired from the committee this year, and now she and a group of concerned parents are banding together to create a nonprofit organization to raise money for the town's...
By Alexandra Mayer-Hohdahl, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 16--TEWKSBURY -- Recycling offenders, beware. In just a few weeks, your trash may be left sitting at the curb. Selectmen voted unanimously last night to implement a visual recycling program starting on Sept. 1 to boost Tewksbury's recycling rate and save the town thousands of dollars along the way. "It doesn't mean that we're going to be opening people's trash bags," Carolyn Dann, the Northeast regional recycling director for the...
By Lisa Redmond, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 15--BOSTON -- The Tewksbury School Committee has filed a federal lawsuit against the state's Bureau of Special Education Appeals and the parents of a special-needs student after the state ruled the town must pay for private tutoring at a non-approved tutoring center for the student. In the lawsuit filed last Thursday, attorney Amy Rogers, on behalf of the Tewksbury School Committee, explained that on Dec. 19, Tewksbury schools convened a team...
By Jennifer Myers, The Sun, Lowell, Mass. Jul. 15--BILLERICA -- It's official. The selectmen ratified, and Bill Williams signed, an employment contract last night, locking the 60-year-old New York native in as Billerica's new town manager. Williams, who will retire from his position as the village manager of Port Chester, N.Y., at the end of the month, begins working in Billerica on Sept. 2 at an annual salary of $135,000. Former Town Manager Rocco Longo, who resigned in February to become...
