FOX Undercover hammers Worcester Airport

Go figure. Days after the first real commercial service from Worcester Regional Airport in two years, FOX takes the opportunity to do a “undercover” report on how the “Empty airport [is] costing you millions.” The report focuses on the millions of tax dollars spent, the lack of access, etc…basically everything we’ve been writing [...]

Worcester City Council liveblog 11/25/08

7:15: And off we go.

Rushton: Release the records!

Councilor Rick Rushton is staying the course, once again hammering the City Manager in regards to public records requests from the Telegram.
He has filed an order for tonight’s meeting, asking the City Solicitor, “what basis the City is using to deny the public records request by the Worcester Telegram.”
We wouldn’t be surprised if, like last [...]

Are the Surge powering down?

The New England Surge, Worcester’s own low-rent indoor football team, has certainly had its share of problems since their initial season two years ago.
And with a poor financial picture for the team and the league there’s been a lot of speculation about the future of Worcester’s Surge.  An announcement today just raises more questions.
The release [...]

Irish Times and Nick Fiorillo, together at last

Since the Irish Times building was bought at a foreclosure auction last month, the bar and its upstairs club REHAB has lain dormant.  And over that time, there’s been a lot of speculation of who would take over the space and what would happen.  And although legal proceedings are reportedly still underway for Irish Times [...]

Clark prof. to be named Commissioner of Higher Education

Clark University professor Richard Freeland, the former President of Northeastern University, is set to be named the next Commissioner of Higher Education for Massachusetts after a search committee unanimously recommended him this morning.
Freeland holds an endowed chair at Clark, where he has worked, int part, to help the Mosakowski Institute “establish a presence within the [...]

Worcester: A kind-of safe city

CQ Press has released their annual – and annually controversial – list of the cities with the most and least crime in the United States.
And Worcester….well, we’re just about average.  Of the 385 cities over 75,000 people ranked, Worcester is the 222nd safest city, finishing just behind Seattle, WA and just ahead of Gresham, OR.
How [...]

First lady of Beetles

By Owen Skoler
Donna Massie was your average housewife until she unwittingly discovered a national crisis in her backyard.
In early August, Massie earned the honor of being the first resident to identify and report the ALB’s presence in Worcester. With the discovery came calls from media outlets, including National Geographic and the Associated Press.
Suddenly Massie had [...]

Federal Square, center of the politically corrupt universe

Worcester’s Federal Courthouse is the center of political corruptness today, as Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner has his initial court date on bribery charges stemming from the Dianne Wilkerson investigation.
If you enjoy a circus, go check it out.

Glodis fires 25; none of them union employees

In a press release posted on their blog, the New England Police Benevolent Association reveals that Worcester County Sheriff Guy Glodis laid off 25 employees earlier this week. But, in a congratulatory note, the release “salutes” Glodis for not including any union workers in the cuts.
“Today, the Sheriff laid-off over 25 members of his [...]