Latest news with #Blais
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
These Massachusetts agricultural fairgrounds awarded funding for infrastructure repairs
GREENFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – A total of $1,167,272 in state grants was awarded to 14 agricultural fairgrounds in Massachusetts to support infrastructure repairs, State Representative Natalie Blais announced. Rep. Blais of Deerfield, who covers 18 communities of the 1st Franklin District, said the agricultural fairs infrastructure grant program is intended to fund capital improvement projects to rehabilitate existing buildings and build new construction. Meeting to be held on new Springfield Regional Justice Center 'Steeped in history, our agricultural fairs are a tremendous asset to the Commonwealth, not only acting as an economic engine but also as a unique place for visitors to learn about the importance of our local food systems,' said Blais, who serves as House Chair of the Joint Committee on Agriculture. 'I am proud to have worked alongside the agricultural fairs in the 1st Franklin District and across the state to lay the groundwork for this monumental investment. This would not have been possible without their involvement and the broad support of legislators and stakeholders statewide.' Agricultural fairs offer education on the farming lifestyle as well as demonstrations and skills competitions. It is said that the first agricultural fair on record in the U.S. was held in Pittsfield in 1811. The following are the Agricultural Fairs Infrastructure grant recipients for 2025: Bolton Fair: $100,000 Association of North Chester, Chester Hill, and Littleville, Inc- Littleville Fair: $100,000 Essex Agricultural Society dba Topsfield Fair: $85,595.68 Franklin County Fair: $100,000 Hampshire, Franklin & Hampden Agricultural Society- Three County Fair: $73,715 Heath Fair: $99,991.95 Highland Agricultural Society- Middlefield Fair: $23,995.01 Hillside Agricultural Society- Cummington Fair: $85,595.68 Marshfield Agricultural and Horticultural Society- Marshfield Fair: $100,000 Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Society- Martha's Vineyard Fair: $84,218 Middlesex County 4-H Fair: $50,000 The Westfield Fair Organization, Inc.- Westfield Fair: $100,000 Union Agricultural & Horticultural Society- Blandford Fair: $100,000 Williamsburg Grange Fair: $64,160.68 'Agricultural fairs are at the core of the communities they serve, bringing people together to enjoy and learn about agricultural traditions and practices and purchase locally produced food,' said Governor Maura Healey. 'Fairs have always been festive gathering spaces where attendees can learn more about our shared agricultural heritage while enjoying a fun atmosphere and where consumers can forge connections to the local food system by familiarizing themselves with how their local food is grown,' said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. 'Beyond the educational and entertaining factors that they bring, these events also boost economic activity which can trickle down to adjacent sectors increasing the overall economy in Massachusetts.' 'Agricultural fairs in Massachusetts are a cornerstone of our state's rich farming history and tradition,' said Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper. Funding was provided by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR). 'For hundreds of years, agricultural fairs have been a way for the public to understand the importance of farming and how a thriving agricultural sector benefits everyone,' said MDAR Commissioner Ashley Randle. 'The Franklin County Agricultural Society is incredibly appreciative of Rep. Blais and her colleagues in the Legislature for their support of this infrastructure grant' said Michael Nelson, president of the Society. 'The Franklin County Fairgrounds has a deep history of providing agricultural events as far back as the 1850s. Through this funding we will continue to make crucial investments in our facility to ensure this historic and beloved gathering space continues to enrich our community for generations to come' WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Central Falls students to hike through Grand Canyon during school vacation
CENTRAL FALLS, R.I. (WPRI) — Some Central Falls students are heading to Arizona next week for a unique trip. Ten students and 14 mentors will be hiking through the Grand Canyon thanks to Kids in the Canyon (KITC). The nonprofit is an experiential, education-based mentoring program for students that ends with a five-day hiking expedition. 'We work with a group of kids starting in September,' KITC Program Director Don Blais said. 'We mentor and train them for academic attendance and attitude so they can stay in school, get good grades, and start thinking about transitioning to the next steps in life.' What to do this April vacation in Rhode Island and Massachusetts Now in its 19th year, KITC teaches students the importance of responsibility and community. 'Just to get the kids out of Rhode Island, to get them to do something different,' Blais explained. 'I've liked the Grand Canyon, so I kind of threw it out there and it caught momentum, and we're still rolling today.' To qualify for the trip, students have to maintain academic excellence while participating in biweekly CrossFit sessions, weekly hikes, meetings, and multiple 5K races. 'My favorite part so far has been the 5K's around mostly Pawtucket and Providence. They are all insanely fun,' junior Eduardo Castro said. 'I get to break personal records for myself, and I get to help out in the community.' For the students, it's not just the trip they look forward to, but also the life lessons learned along the way. 'Definitely to commit and not procrastinate,' junior Teeghan Riley said. 'Procrastination is a big thing I've dealt with, but through Kids of the Canyon, I learned how to deal with it.' The group leaves Rhode Island on Saturday and will create a portfolio of their experience for a presentation. 'Being able to see the positivity and like the positive outcomes that come with each year and with each experience and watching the kids grow from September to April, it's amazing,' KITC mentor Allison O'Reilly said. The group fundraises throughout the year to make the trip possible and has been a recipient of grants from Mentor Rhode Island. A GoFundMe has also been set up to help raise money. Download the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tax amendment could safeguard state's small farms
BOSTON (SHNS) – A pair of western Massachusetts lawmakers made an urgent plea to their colleagues Tuesday to allow smaller farms to access property tax benefits currently available only to their larger peers. The state constitution allows farmland to be taxed based on its value for agricultural or horticultural purposes, not for residential or commercial use, effectively providing lower rates to eligible farmers. But the provision is limited only to areas of five acres or more, a threshold that forces many farmers to 'pay much higher commercial rates' for their land, Sen. Jo Comerford said. As a result, Comerford told the Legislature's Revenue Committee, that state constitutional measure now has 'the opposite effect' of its intent to protect farmland and is instead 'contributing to farmland loss.' 'Urban farmers can't find parcels of land larger than five acres. New farmers can't afford to purchase a large farm parcel. Even long-standing farms like Barstow's Longview Farm in Hadley are impeded,' Comerford said. The Northampton Democrat visited with the family that operates Barstow's over the weekend, and said they told her that they pay more in taxes for two acres that do not qualify for the property tax provision than they do on hundreds of other eligible acres combined. Comerford and other lawmakers filed a proposed constitutional amendment (H 71 / S 11) that would eliminate the five-acre requirement and allow any farmland to be taxed based on its agricultural or horticultural value, as long as it has been devoted to those uses for at least two years. The Revenue Committee gave a favorable report to a similar measure two years ago, but top Democrats opted against putting the measure to a vote during the joint House-Senate known as a Constitutional Convention. For the amendment to take effect, the measure would need to be approved at a Constitutional Convention in two consecutive legislative sessions, then ratified by a majority of voters. 'I do not take amending the Constitution of Massachusetts lightly,' said Rep. Natalie Blais, who filed the House version. 'I would not have proposed this piece of legislation with Rep. [Hannah] Kane and Senator Comerford if I did not believe it was necessary. And quite frankly, there's never been a more important time for us to take this step, as our local food system is really in crisis.' Blais, a Deerfield Democrat, cited statistics from the American Farmland Trust project that estimated nearly 15% of Massachusetts agricultural land will be converted to other uses by 2040 under the status quo — the third-highest percentage of any state. High home and farmland prices, combined with climate change threats and the prospect of federal funding cuts, continue to inflict pressure on the state's aging agricultural workforce, Blais said. 'If there was ever a time for Massachusetts to step up and say that we believe in our farmers, we believe in the local food system that we have fought to strengthen and build over the last decade or more, this is really the time to do it,' she said. The proposal won the support of Mass. Food System Collaborative Policy Director Rebecca Miller, who told the committee access to the tax benefit is 'a rural issue, a suburban issue and an urban issue.' Miller was the only other person besides Comerford and Blais to testify at Tuesday's hearing, which committee co-chairs pointed out was the first non-budgetary joint committee hearing of the 2025-2026 term that began Jan. 1. The panel faces an April 30 deadline to report on proposed constitutional amendments. Neither of the committee's new chairs, Rep. Adrian Madaro of Boston and Sen. Jamie Eldridge of Marlborough, indicated Tuesday whether they would mirror their predecessors and support the farmland tax rate measure. Both lawmakers are new atop the Revenue Committee. Madaro last term co-led the Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery Committee, while Eldridge co-chaired the Judiciary Committee. Their panel could be pushed to make difficult decisions this term if federal spending cuts materialize and reshape the state budget. 'I think the work of all committees is going to be increasingly more challenging given what is going on in Washington, D.C.,' Madaro replied when asked if he expects the Revenue Committee to consider any tax code changes to make up for decreased federal funding. 'So I look forward to working with Senator Eldridge and committee members to thoroughly review each and every proposal before us, and I know many of our fellow chairs are feeling the same way.' Eldridge added, 'The financial picture is still uncertain — will there be serious Medicaid cuts? Will there be other cuts to, say, the Department of Education? I think it's still uncertain how that will impact the budget and therefore the work of the Revenue Committee.' Roughly 10 of the committee's 17 members attended the 20-minute hearing. Madaro said at the start of the event that 'all members of the committee are expected to participate in person,' and that remote access was only available to the public and to lawmakers who are not on the Revenue Committee but wanted to testify. He also announced that the committee would make any written testimony available 'at the discretion of the chairs,' with any limitations and redactions of sensitive information 'per committee rules.' Remote participation and publishing written testimony are two areas of disagreement as House and Senate negotiators work to iron out a final package of joint rules governing committee operations this term. The House joint rules proposal (H 2026) would require committee members to be physically present at hearings, while the Senate plan (S 18) would allow lawmakers to participate virtually. On written testimony, the House proposal leaves any redactions up to individual committees, and the Senate measure would instruct the Rules Committee with crafting overarching guidance. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
US decision to limit Canadian access to border-straddling library prompts outpouring of emotion
STANSTEAD, Quebec (AP) — For more than 100 years, people in Stanstead, Quebec have been able to walk into Derby Line, Vermont to enter the border-straddling Haskell Free Library and Opera House – no passport required. But municipal and library officials said on Friday that U.S. authorities have unilaterally decided to end the century-old unwritten agreement. Coming at a time of heightened tensions between the two countries, the decision is prompting an outpouring of emotion in communities on both sides of the border, which in places has been marked simply by flower pots. Inside the library celebrated as a symbol of international friendship, Pauline Lussier and Chris Blais put their arms around each other's shoulders Friday as they stood on either side of the line taped down the floor marking the border. Lussier, a Canadian, and Blais, an American met for the first time that day. 'A line doesn't separate us, it never has,' said Blais, who held an American flag in her hands while Lussier held a Canadian one. 'Our kids have gone back and forth over this border without any problem at all ... this is all going to change now, and there's no reason for this,' Blais added. Once inside the library, Canadian and American citizens have been able to mingle freely across the border line drawn on the floor – as long as they return to the proper country afterward. In 2016, then-president Barack Obama hailed the symbolic importance of the library, built in 1901. 'A resident of one of these border towns once said, 'We're two different countries, but we're like one big town,'' Obama said. A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, CBP, confirmed that the divide is about to become more pronounced. Starting in the coming days, only library card holders and employees will be able to cross over from Canada to enter the building through the main door on the U.S. side. And as of Oct. 1, no Canadians will be able to enter the library via the United States without going through the border checkpoint, though there will be exceptions for law enforcement, emergency services, mail delivery, official workers and those with disabilities. The statement acknowledged the library as a 'unique landmark,' but said the border agency was phasing in a new approach for security reasons. 'Due to the library's location, and convenience of local populations, CBP has allowed customers of the library to access its sidewalk, without inspection, for decades,' the agency said in a statement. 'However, during that time, this area has witnessed a continued rise in illicit cross-border activity.' It noted there have been a number of incidents in and around the library that resulted in apprehensions in recent years, including a person attempting to smuggle firearms in the past year. Town and library officials say Canadian visitors without a library card will have to enter by a back door on the Canadian side, across a muddy stretch of grass. The library announced Friday that it was launching a GoFundMe to raise the estimated $100,000 Canadian (US$69,000) it will cost to build a sidewalk, new parking lot and wheelchair access. Stanstead Mayor Jody Stone said the U.S. decision 'makes no sense.' However, he said the decision from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration would not affect the close bond between the communities, which share municipal services and facilities. 'No matter what this administration does, it will not change the fact that Stanstead and Derby Line are partners and friends forever,' he said. Several residents, some in tears, gathered at the border to denounce the decision. Penny Thomas stood on the American side, holding up a sign with a maple leaf on it that said 'Keep Haskell open.' In February, the Boston Globe reported that the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the library and repeated Trump's taunts about making Canada the 51st state as she stepped back and forth across the line that marks the border. According to the library's website, Canadian visitors had been allowed to enter the library by the main entrance on the U.S. side. While passports or visas were not necessary, library officials had warned that U.S. Border Patrol and RCMP would monitor movements and could request to see identification.
The Independent
22-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
US decision to limit Canadian access to border-straddling library prompts outpouring of emotion
For more than 100 years, people in Stanstead, Quebec have been able to walk into Derby Line, Vermont to enter the border-straddling Haskell Free Library and Opera House – no passport required. But municipal and library officials said on Friday that U.S. authorities have unilaterally decided to end the century-old unwritten agreement. Coming at a time of heightened tensions between the two countries, the decision is prompting an outpouring of emotion in communities on both sides of the border, which in places has been marked simply by flower pots. Inside the library celebrated as a symbol of international friendship, Pauline Lussier and Chris Blais put their arms around each other's shoulders Friday as they stood on either side of the line taped down the floor marking the border. Lussier, a Canadian, and Blais, an American met for the first time that day. 'A line doesn't separate us, it never has,' said Blais, who held an American flag in her hands while Lussier held a Canadian one. 'Our kids have gone back and forth over this border without any problem at all ... this is all going to change now, and there's no reason for this,' Blais added. Once inside the library, Canadian and American citizens have been able to mingle freely across the border line drawn on the floor – as long as they return to the proper country afterward. In 2016, then-president Barack Obama hailed the symbolic importance of the library, built in 1901. 'A resident of one of these border towns once said, 'We're two different countries, but we're like one big town,'' Obama said. A spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, CBP, confirmed that the divide is about to become more pronounced. Starting in the coming days, only library card holders and employees will be able to cross over from Canada to enter the building through the main door on the U.S. side. And as of Oct. 1, no Canadians will be able to enter the library via the United States without going through the border checkpoint, though there will be exceptions for law enforcement, emergency services, mail delivery, official workers and those with disabilities. The statement acknowledged the library as a 'unique landmark,' but said the border agency was phasing in a new approach for security reasons. 'Due to the library's location, and convenience of local populations, CBP has allowed customers of the library to access its sidewalk, without inspection, for decades,' the agency said in a statement. 'However, during that time, this area has witnessed a continued rise in illicit cross-border activity.' It noted there have been a number of incidents in and around the library that resulted in apprehensions in recent years, including a person attempting to smuggle firearms in the past year. Town and library officials say Canadian visitors without a library card will have to enter by a back door on the Canadian side, across a muddy stretch of grass. The library announced Friday that it was launching a GoFundMe to raise the estimated $100,000 Canadian (US$69,000) it will cost to build a sidewalk, new parking lot and wheelchair access. Stanstead Mayor Jody Stone said the U.S. decision 'makes no sense.' However, he said the decision from U.S. President Donald Trump's administration would not affect the close bond between the communities, which share municipal services and facilities. 'No matter what this administration does, it will not change the fact that Stanstead and Derby Line are partners and friends forever,' he said. Several residents, some in tears, gathered at the border to denounce the decision. Penny Thomas stood on the American side, holding up a sign with a maple leaf on it that said 'Keep Haskell open.' In February, the Boston Globe reported that the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the library and repeated Trump's taunts about making Canada the 51st state as she stepped back and forth across the line that marks the border. According to the library's website, Canadian visitors had been allowed to enter the library by the main entrance on the U.S. side. While passports or visas were not necessary, library officials had warned that U.S. Border Patrol and RCMP would monitor movements and could request to see identification.
