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“Give me the liberty to know, to utter, and to argue freely according to conscience, above all liberties.” — JOHN MILTON
MONDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2013
VOL. 82 NO. 287
75 cents
Valley Gives ups prize ante By PETER FRANCIS Staff Writer WESTFIELD – As 350 local nonprofits and programs gear up for Valley Gives, western Massachusetts’ big 24-hour e-philanthropy event, it appears that the pot has been sweetened considerably. An additional $25,000 has flooded in from area donors, bringing the prize pool to a whopping $225,000, which will be distributed among the NPOs with the three largest donation hauls on December 12. These last minute gifts are a repeat of last year when donors stepped forward days before the inaugural event to pledge their additional support. Valley Gives’ original plan was to give out $150,000 in unrestricted cash to participating nonprofits in the form of bonus matches and to those that raised the most money from their donors, old and new. Now only a year later, the project is able to give out an additional $75,000 in 2013. Instead of a small number of large-dollar Golden Tickets like last year’s event, this year will see more smaller tickets given away, which means around 30 percent of all the participating nonprofits will be eligible to win a Golden Ticket. “Each nonprofit will only be able to get one Golden Ticket this year, which means more will benefit,” said Communications Director Michael Kusek. This year’s structure groups NPOs into two budget categories, budgets greater than $300,000, and budgets less than $300,000. NPOs will compete for bonus grants presented to the top three slots for “Most Money Raised” and See Valley Gives, Page 7
Brothers charged in $12K burglary
Ice spreads Craig McLaughlin, a maintenance employee for the Southwick-TollandGranville Regional School District, uses a hand spreader to distribute an ice melting agent to the sidewalks around the Powder Mill Middle School this morning where a two-hour delay was implemented due to icy conditions around the region. (Photo by Frederick Gore)
Phelps to fill ConComm vacancy By HOPE E. TREMBLAY Staff Writer SOUTHWICK – The Board of Selectmen appointed Marcus Phelps to the Conservation Commission this week. Phelps, retired town planner, will serve the remainder of a term vacated by Robert Baribeau. The appointment was surrounded by some confusion because the commission originally posted a vacancy due to the resignation of member James Parent. “Originally we had what was thought to be a vacancy with the resignation of James Parent,” explained Chief Administrative Officer Karl Stinehart. “We advertised the position and received no response, so we re-advertised.” During that time, Parent asked to stay on the commission and Baribeau submitted his resignation. In order to appoint Phelps to the proper seat, the board had to rescind the resignation of Parent
MARCUS PHELPS and accept the resignation of Baribeau. Duties include attendance at meetings and administering the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act. Phelps will be eligible for reappointment in June 30, 2014. Conservation Coordinator Dennis Clark said the group meets
the first and third Wednesday of every month and conducts a few site visits, as well. The Commission is comprised of seven members who are appointed by the Board of Selectmen for a three-year term to oversee the requirements of the Massachusetts Wetland Protection Act, and other activities that potentially impact the environment. Clark said there are no background requirements for the position, just a willingness to serve and learn. “The credentials are not as important as an interest in nature and preservation,” said Clark. Commissioners do need to know the Wetlands Protection Act and other laws pertaining to conservation, but the Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissioners conducts regular training sessions available to all commissioners that are paid for by the local commission, not the indi-
vidual. “People can learn about wetland delineations and the laws,” said Clark. The Southwick Conservation Commission’s mission is to serve as the conservation conscience of the town, providing leadership for natural resources planning. The Commission works to protect, and where possible enhance plant and wildlife habitat to maintain Southwick’s natural resources. The Commission, together with the Mass DEP, reviews applications for work to be undertaken in or near a wetland. The Commission is entrusted with the application of the Wetland Protection Act, the Rivers Protection Act, CMR Wetlands Regulations, Storm Water Management Policy and Southwick Local Wetlands Bylaws. There are two application types for work in a wetland area – a request for determination and a notice of intent.
Airport board approves land lease By DAN MORIARTY Staff Writer WESTFIELD – The Airport Commission voted Wednesday night to approve a 50-year lease to Whip City Aviation, LLC, which plans to rehabilitate existing structures and develop new facilities over the next 10 years. The lease of 16 acres of land on the airport was the subject of an executive session held by the commission Monday night. Whip City Aviation is also scheduled to appear before the Planning Board at its Dec. 17 session and the City Council on Dec. 19. The City Council is required to approve all leases over 20 year in duration. Most of the airport leases are for terms longer than the 20 year limit. The Planning Board will conduct a public hearing on a special permit, site plan and
stormwater permit originally filed with that board on June 18, 2013. The public hearings were continued while the lease agreement was negotiated, but the Planning Board notified the parties that the continuance granted at the Nov. 19 meeting would be the last and if the public hearing was not conducted, the applicant would have to initiate a new petition process. City Advancement Officer Jeff Daley said the lease both provides additional income to the airport and has a cost avoidance benefit, as well. “The 16 acres of dirt now has T-hangars that are in deplorable condition,” Daley said. “Under the terms of the lease they will be responsible for the maintenance of those hangars and will have to invest in bringing up the present facilities. “There will be additional investment in new
facility construction over the next 10 years,” Daley said. “That could be construction of additional T-hangars or corporate aviation facilities. There will be some serious capital investment.” Daley said that the current T-hangars are now the responsibility of the city. “If this deal does not go through, (Airport Manager) Brian Barnes and I will be going to the City Council in the spring for funding because something has to be done quickly,” Daley said. “Both of the principals are pilots. Both have a passion for aviation. Both are successful business owners who have the capital needed for this kind of investment,” Daley said. “They want to bring a sense of community back to the general aviation population at Barnes.”
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By CARL E. HARTDEGEN Staff Writer WESTFIELD – Two city teens are facing the consequences of bad decisions they appear to have made in 2011 now that they have been arrested for stealing thousands of dollars from a neighbor. Det. Sgt. Stephen K. Dickinson reports, in a document filed in Westfield District Court last week, that a two-year investigation into an Old Park Lane burglary has been completed and two brothers have been arrested for the crime. Michael Joseph Grant, 17, of 141 Bates Road, and Paul Andrew Grant, 19, of the same address, were arrested Monday and charged with larceny of property valued more than $250, breaking and entering a building in the nighttime with intent to commit a felony and conspiracy to commit those crimes Dickinson reports that in November, 2012, he took up the investigation which recently retired Det. Sgt. Ray Manos had initiated. Dickinson found that the victim had discovered that, on three separate occasions between March and June of 2011, thousands of dollars in $100 bills had been stolen from his home. He told police that a total of $12,000 had been stolen. Manos had discovered that the victim and his wife had hired a neighbor’s daughter to take care of their pets when they went away and they had left a key hidden in their unlocked garage to allow her access. They also, Manos was told, had not activated their alarm when they left in order to accommodate the girl. Manos had discovered that a large number of phone calls had been received at the victims’ house. When the female victim had called the number in an attempt to learn who had been calling repeatedly, she reached a neighbor, the mother of the cat-sitter, who said she had not called. The woman heard her neighbor ask her son, Michael, if he had called and heard him say no. Manos continued to investigate the calls and learned from Michael’s mother that he used the cellular phone associated with the number in question. Michael and his mother came to speak with Manos and during that interview she allowed the detectives to administer a voice stress interview. The results, Det. John Barnachez reports, suggested that Michael lied when he denied both making calls to the victims’ house and stealing money from them. Manos also found reason to believe that both brothers had a history of stealing. Their father owns a business in the city and told Manos that he once brought home the store’s receipts. “By morning cash was missing. He eventually got his sons to admit where they hid the money,” Manos reported. In addition, Manos found that, when Michael was employed at a Pleasant Street business, money was found to be missing there and he later admitted that he stole those funds. In June, 2013, after Dickinson took over the case, he called Michael’s mother to schedule an interview but she demurred and said she would call him again in a week. She didn’t call and instead Dickinson heard from a local lawyer who told him See Brothers, Page 3
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