NORTHAMPTON– As more incriminating evidence surfaces, the Drozdal family struggles to emerge from a 3-month long battle with city and state officials to legally open their funeral home doors. The Drozdal Funeral Home is located at 120 Damon Road in Northampton. On July 21st, the Drozdals sold another funeral home they operated at 129 Elm [...]

From Ryan Road Elementary to Martha’s Vineyard, and from “fine dining” to “no frills,” two old friends move up the food chain. NORTHAMPTON – Two professional chefs – longtime co-workers and best friends since kindergarten – have purchased Jake’s, the “no frills” breakfast-and-lunch joint at 17 King St. downtown, and plan to re-open it in two months, Northampton [...]

Sam’s Pizzeria must enclose outdoor seating, commission rules; all restaurants serving alcohol advised to bring their sidewalk seating into compliance with ABCC regulations   NORTHAMPTON — After four years of conflict, Urban Exchange owner Sherry Selmer and Sam’s Pizzeria restauranteur Sam Harbey stood before the city’s License Commission last week in hopes of resolving a [...]

With more common victualer and liquor licenses being issued, new businesses are springing up and old ones are adding to their repertoire. The License Commission is also looking to raise the cost of almost all licenses and permits it issues. NORTHAMPTON – Three new businesses will be opening soon on Crafts Avenue across from City [...]

Feds hedge on greenhouse gas; state grants air pollution permit; Springfield City Council sued by Boston law firm; Conservation Law Foundation at the ready; City Solicitor vows vigorous defense. SPRINGFIELD — Western Mass. biomass opponents suffered a setback in recent weeks as actions by state and federal regulators supported plans by Palmer Renewable Energy (PRE) [...]

Federal rail officials are poised to release $73 million in high-speed rail funds for Western Mass. With the long-awaited operating agreement OK’ed last week, local rail advocates can breathe easy – this project is now on track. NORTHAMPTON – High-speed trains linking Northampton with Springfield, Holyoke and Greenfield could be up and running by mid-2013, [...]

Longtime Hotelier and Restaurant Owner George Page Jr. Had Recently Re-Opened Page’s Loft on Route 5, Left a Lot of Friends, Some of Whom Were Unaware of His Problems. NORTHAMPTON – George W. “Bo” Page Jr., a longtime fixture in the area’s restaurant and hotel business, died Friday night in Springfield, Vermont, from a self-sustained [...]

After two police visits quieting loud night time “dance-style” music, the city’s newest vegetarian restaurant clears things up with the License Commission NORTHAMPTON — During their last meeting on June 1, the License Commission approved a measure that extends the entertainment hours for Karma, a vegetarian restaurant at 48 Main St., even though the venue [...]

NORTHAMPTON — “Once again, the Police Department is requesting a hearing before the Commission resulting from objects being thrown from the third floor balcony of Bishop’s Lounge at 41 Strong Avenue.” That’s the opening line of police chief Russel Sienkiewicz’ formal request to the city’s License Commission, dated March 23, for a hearing regarding a [...]

    SPRINGFIELD — The biomass wars in Western Massachusetts are being watched nationwide, as opponents and proponents of the wood-burning electricity plants duke it out on the local, state, and federal levels. Three industrial-scale biomass plants— in Russell, Greenfield, and Springfield — are currently under review in the Pioneer Valley. But the $150 million, [...]

Five months after the city License Commission gave him a slap on the wrist, restaurant mogul Guerra scraps his appeal to the state’s liquor regulators. NORTHAMPTON – When the city License Commission voted last November to suspend the Paradise City Tavern’s liquor license for two days, but suspended that penalty for one year, it seemed [...]

What Can the City Do When the Municipal Landfill’s Largest Customer Stops Hauling In Trash and Starts Its Own Waste Transfer Station? Reduce Prices and Hope Business Picks Up. NORTHAMPTON — The region’s biggest waste hauler has stopped dumping trash at the city’s regional landfill on Glendale Road, and public works officials here are trying [...]

Two public forums this week will focus on future city trash solutions, while one local company is already doing its part. ••• NORTHAMPTON – Even as a task force of mayoral appointees debates proposals for dealing with local trash and recycling after the city’s regional landfill closes next year, a new, privately run transfer and sorting station has [...]

Building Commissioner Orders Fewer Nightclub Patrons for Paradise City Tavern; Management To Seek Re-Hearing on Bathroom Regulations NORTHAMPTON – The Paradise City Tavern has lost its appeal before a state board that would have allowed it to operate as a nightclub without adding several new bathrooms as required by the state plumbing code. As a [...]

License Commissioners Find Illegal Alcohol Service, But Issue No Penalty to The Office Lounge in Baystate. NORTHAMPTON – It was shortly after 6:30 a.m. last Dec. 4 when two city police officers walked through the unlocked main door of The Office, a bar located at the old Cutlery Building at 320 Riverside Drive in the [...]