ADAMS, Mass. — The Hoosac Valley Elementary School finally has a structurally sound roof over its boiler room.
"This has been around for a while now, but we did allocate money for it and we knew it needed to be done," Chairman John Duval said at last week's meeting of the Selectmen.
Discussions about repairing the roof go back to 2016, when the Adams-Cheshire Regional School Committee began the process of closing one of its two elementary schools.
The roof on the formerly named C.T Plunkett boiler room was in disrepair and with the cost likely to have some effect on the School Committee's decision, the town of Adams pledged to fund the repair.
Initially, the project was estimated to cost nearly $400,000, however, then town Administrator Tony Mazzucco thought this amount was not realistic. The project was held up until this past fall, when the town brought on Souliere & Zepka Construction who could do the repair for $198,000.
With Cheshire Elementary School's untimely closing, this delay did deepen the rift between the two towns. Cheshire had concerns that Adams did not actually intend to repair the roof.
Interim Town Administrator Donna Cesan's written report to the Selectmen stated that the lengthy project is essentially complete. She wrote that a final punch list needs to be formed and after those items are completed, the project can be closed out.
"If you have been by there, I am sure that you have seen the fence surrounding that building," Duval said. "We thank the [Department of Public Works] for taking care of that for us and it is coming down."
Cesan, who did not attend the meeting, wrote that the demolition will go out to bid this week.
Late last year, the town gave owner Charles Ransford 30 days to demolish the building on his own because it was a public safety concern. Ransford did not do this.
Cesan wrote that the town is still waiting on approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection because the building does contain hazardous materials and whoever is awarded the demolition bid will have to remove all the debris.
The demolition will be paid out of the slum and blight removal line item in the budget, however, a lien will be placed on the property in an attempt to recoup costs.
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Suspect in High-Speed Adams Chase Arrested
ADAMS, Mass. — A suspect test-driving a pickup truck who led police on a wild high-speed chase on Tuesday was arrested in Adams early Wednesday morning.
The incident began at about 11:41 a.m. on Tuesday when an officer conducted a motor vehicle stop on Howland Avenue. During the stop, the operator was positively identified and was determined to have a suspended license. When ordered out of the vehicle, he fled, said police, leading law enforcement on a multijurisdictional pursuit toward the town of Florida.
A number of people posted about seeing the black pickup truck enter the Walmart parking lot; a video shows the driver surrounded by cruisers as they try to exit the parking lot at the light. Witnesses say the pickup backed into cruiser to get around the block.
The driver headed up West Shaft Road and toward Florida with Adams and North Adams Police in pursuit. The pursuit was called off at the city line.
The suspect was able to elude police but his vehicle was found abandoned in a remote location in the Savoy State Forest. It was later learned this vehicle was being test driven from a local auto dealer. With the assistance of the State Police Airwing, K9 Unit and drone unit, officers canvased the wilderness for the suspect but were unsuccessful.
Officers received information at about 3:14 a.m. on Wednesday that the suspect was in the area of Glen Street. Police say he fled on foot as officers secured a perimeter.
K9 Adam and his handler Sgt. Curtis Crane began an area search. K9 Adam was able to locate the suspect hiding in a back yard, but the suspect again ran — straight into officers on the perimeter who took him into custody.
The suspect faces a litany of charges pending from the previous day's encounter as well as the early morning contact with officers. Additional charges are pending as well from North Adams Police Department and their involvement in the apprehension.
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The Selectmen on Wednesday night voted to award the bid to Mackin Construction Co. Inc. of Greenfield, which plans to invest $11 million to build out 20 or more one- and two-bedroom apartments in the three-story classroom wing that parallels Columbia Street.
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The Selectmen two weeks ago had requested the utility appear before the board after receiving numerous complaints over flickering lights, including in Town Hall.
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Taylor Garabedian scored a team-high 22 points and grabbed five rebounds, and Abby Scialabba scored 16 points for the ‘Canes, who got 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists from Ashlyn Lesure. click for more
On Saturday afternoon at Lowell’s Tsongas Center, the Hurricanes will take aim at Division 5 State Championships in girls and boys basketball. click for more