Spring 2018

Spring 2018

Fall River’s lightning rod

Politics

Fall River’s lightning rod

Mayor Jasiel Correia should be riding high, but these are trying times

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Photographs by Meghan Moore  FALL RIVER MAYOR Jasiel Correia’s voice was scratchy and raw. It was March 13, the day after yet another nor’easter, and he had spent a good part of the day, like many a mayor across the state, dealing with snow removal complaints and public safety issues. And then, probably unlike most mayors,(...)

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Hollywood haves and have-nots

Tax Credits/ Economy

Hollywood haves and have-nots

Film tax credit economic benefits flow primarily to Greater Boston

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 NEW BEDFORD MAYOR JON MITCHELL thinks his city, with its gritty harbor, its cobblestoned streets, its mill buildings, and its sweeping ocean views, has Hollywood appeal. Hollywood also appeals to him, not because he has any red carpet aspirations himself, but because of what he thinks a movie or a TV series could do for(...)

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Tax that dirty water

Environment/ Politics/ Technology

Tax that dirty water

Communities impose new stormwater fees to deal with pollution

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LISA MURPHY DOESN’T have any control over how much rain or snow falls on her property in Milton, but she is nevertheless being charged a special fee for stormwater runoff. The fee is calculated based on the amount of impervious surface on her property—her paved driveway and patio as well as the footprint of her(...)

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Three officials part of attempt to change the T’s culture

Tracking Transportation/ Transportation

Three officials part of attempt to change the T’s culture

Agency trying to shed its 'insular and slow-moving bureaucracy'

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Photographs by Frank Curran WHEN BRIAN SHORTSLEEVE took over as chief administrator of the MBTA in August 2015, he wanted to shake things up. The former managing director at the Cambridge venture capital firm General Catalyst saw the T as “a very insular and slow-moving bureaucracy,” so over about 18 months he replaced about half(...)

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Lottery winners not getting full prize value

Economy

Lottery winners not getting full prize value

Promised merchandise worth $548, but items worth far less than that

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THE WINNERS OF two second-chance drawings offered by the Massachusetts Lottery are getting shortchanged, collecting merchandise worth far less than what they were promised. Second-chance games do what the name implies, give losing instant ticket holders the opportunity to win in a second drawing that offers money prizes as well as “pick your prize” packages(...)

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Book review: Massport at 60

Uncategorized

Book review: Massport at 60

Independence has been Massport’s greatest asset and its chief vulnerability

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Massport at 60: Shaping the future since 1956 By Jim Aloisi Massachusetts Port Authority 262 pages YES, THIS BOOK commemorates the 60th anniversary of the Massachusetts Port Authority, but the story really begins almost a decade earlier, in 1949, when the city of Boston was a crony-encrusted economic backwater. That year, Boston voters denied James Michael(...)

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1099 Nation spreads its tentacles

Economy/ Politics

1099 Nation spreads its tentacles

Employees in every sense of the word — but without the benefits 

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JULIO BELDI SPENT more than 10 years working in the seamy underside of the non-union construction industry.  Paid $17-$22 an hour for his work as a carpenter across New England, Beldi was compensated either in the form of a check with no deductions or with straight cash. Some of his employers treated him as an “independent(...)

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Democrats have a lot to learn from Trump

Health Care/ Politics

Democrats have a lot to learn from Trump

He won’t drain the swamp, but they should  

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OUR DAILY FOCUS on Donald Trump’s narcissistic behavior diverts attention from something much more significant: the likelihood that his presidency may constitute an important historical transition for the United States. It is obvious that the election of Trump represented a departure from the norm. It is not obvious that his departure from the presidency will represent(...)

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Clark seems like she’s in a good spot

Politics

Clark seems like she’s in a good spot

Her stock will rise if Dems retake House, and maybe even if they don’t

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US REP. KATHERINE CLARK appears well positioned politically if the Democrats retake the House of Representatives in November—and even if they don’t. If Democrats win, Clark can take some of the credit and ride the coattails of her patron in the congressional leadership, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. If Democrats come up short and Pelosi(...)

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College math doesn’t add up

Education

College math doesn’t add up

For Amy Blanchette, juggling jobs, school, and family is herculean task

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AMY BLANCHETTE GRADUATED from community college a few years ago and applied to the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth as the next step in her long-term goal of attaining a master’s degree in public policy and ultimately running for public office. Her application was accepted, but when she sat down to do the math, the numbers(...)

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