Latest news with #MichaelMason
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Hadley apartment complex evacuated due to sewage leak
HADLEY, Mass. (WWLP) – A sudden sewage backflow into an apartment complex in Hadley has left dozens of residents and their families without a place to call home. It happened at the Vesta Apartment Homes on Greenleaves Drive. Hadley interim town administrator, Michael Mason, told 22News that nine apartments on the first floor were affected with sewage coming from the pipes. Mason adds that after a brief inspection by public safety, the building inspector and Board of Health, it was determined that residents would have to be evacuated and move into local hotels. One resident, Craig Tela, mentioned that his girlfriend and her two kids were notified to move out by the leasing management just before 10 AM on Thursday. He described the apartment as having an inch of sewage, with bathroom tubs overflowing and water in the kitchen. 'It's been emotional. But yeah, it's been difficult,' says Tela. 'And the great thing is everyone's pulled together like some of us don't even know each other, even though we're neighbors, now we do. And everyone pulled together and pretty much helped each other out.' None of the residents on the upper floors required evacuation and have been cleared to remain in the building. The Amherst DPW superintendent says they were in there yesterday, helping to make repairs to both the clogged sewer and a large sinkhole that formed behind the building. DPW has been working with the apartment complex to get this issue resolved. They will be back on Friday. It is estimated that it will likely be days, if not weeks, before residents will be allowed to move back into their homes. We have reached out to the apartment complex for comment, but have yet to hear back. We will provide updates as soon as they become available. 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 This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Advertiser
17-05-2025
- The Advertiser
Under review: spotlight on SPL's management of vulnerable people in sublet properties
INDUSTRY insiders say illegal boarding house operator Sanctuary Place Living is running homes that flout laws against restrictive practices involving people with disability and fall short of requirements for parolees. While the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is continuing its investigation into SPL, Corrective Services NSW has announced it is also reviewing the organisation and its suitability to provide accommodation to parolees. Sanctuary Place Living, or SPL, run by Michael Mason and his partner Jacqui Whiteford, lease properties throughout the Hunter which they sub-let to NDIS participants, parolees, and people on workers compensation, disability pensions and unemployment benefits. Their occupancy agreements include rules against "unauthorised" guests entering their rentals, including disability support workers who in many cases are NDIS-funded to work with people in their homes. To deny their entry is in breach of laws designed to ensure people with disability are treated with respect and dignity, and have choice and control over how, who and when their supports are delivered, disability service providers say. "This is a restrictive practice, when they cannot access supports in the home, if they are funded to receive that," said one Hunter-based support coordinator. Having worked with numerous people who live, or have lived, in SPL-managed homes, the woman said she was disgusted with the way the organisation treated some tenants. "The fee structure, the agreement that leaves them with no rights ... they can be moved at any time of day, with a text message, from nobody, just signed SPL, and they have to pack up and they're moved," she said. "They get no say in it, they are thrown together, there is no matching that takes place." This week several residents were forced to move from an SPL-managed property at Rutherford to which police were called on Monday when SPL staff turned up unannounced, demanding access to the property to retrieve furniture. The residents had been given less than one business day's notice that they were being relocated. The week before that, SPL moved 20 people out of homes in Elemore Vale. They were given five days notice but SPL staff turned up without notice with a removalist truck two days early, at 6am on a Monday (May 5), the Herald was told. A number of other SPL-leased and managed properties have been vacated in the past two months. Multiple property owners who have leased houses to SPL have said the organisation was regularly behind on rent and bills, and did not cooperate with reasonable requests to conduct routine house inspections. In contrast, SPL demands the right to carry out inspections at will, whether or not people are at home, including opening fridges and cupboards and going through personal belongings, sources say. "They just come in whenever they want to, whenever they wish," said one community support worker who did not wish to be named to protect her clients' identities. "They don't give them any warning. They turn their cars off and, when they get to the start of the driveway, they roll it down silently to sneak up on these people and give them no warning. "And they open the doors really quietly and go through their bedrooms. It doesn't matter if they're in there, it doesn't matter what they're doing. They let themselves in and they go through all their stuff." Some residents have had bedbugs in the mattresses they are provided with but are too scared to speak up for fear of being evicted or sent to the Alma Mater, she said. "Because that's what they've done to other residents living in their other homes that have had bedbugs," she said. "And at the Alma Mater .... the rooms are smaller than a jail cell. "We hear that they're being investigated .... Yet, these vulnerable people are still being taken advantage of. And no one's standing up for them. How can we stay silent?" In some houses where people pay between $335 and $370 or more per week for a room, some with an ensuite, SPL is set to make double the rent they are paying to property owners through their sub-lease arrangements, as well as in some cases also claiming a portion of tenants' NDIS-funded supports. In a statement to the Newcastle Herald, SPL said it did not engage in any unlawful restrictive practices. It denied it was running an illegal boarding house at Mayfield, the Alma Mater, and it denied robbing residents of rights under the Residential Tenancy Act. "Moreover, where appropriate, the circumstances of SPL's tenancy agreements have been determined by the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal to not constitute residential tenancy agreements," the statement said. "Moreover, no parolee has been moved from any residence without sufficient notice except in extreme circumstances where serious crimes have been committed or threatened, such as episodes of violence against other occupants." The City of Newcastle has confirmed SPL did not seek approval to run a boarding house at 88 Hanbury Street, Mayfield, a building now named 'Alma Mater', when it opened two months ago. Corrective Services NSW said following recent concerning reports about the operating practices of SPL, it is "reviewing its suitability as a place of accommodation for parolees". The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has also confirmed it is investigating concerns raised about SPL but is "unable to comment further". "Participants have the right to fair treatment, transparency, and quality services under the NDIS," a commission spokesperson said. "The NDIS Commission strongly encourages participants, their families, and advocates to report any concerns regarding unethical provider behaviour." INDUSTRY insiders say illegal boarding house operator Sanctuary Place Living is running homes that flout laws against restrictive practices involving people with disability and fall short of requirements for parolees. While the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is continuing its investigation into SPL, Corrective Services NSW has announced it is also reviewing the organisation and its suitability to provide accommodation to parolees. Sanctuary Place Living, or SPL, run by Michael Mason and his partner Jacqui Whiteford, lease properties throughout the Hunter which they sub-let to NDIS participants, parolees, and people on workers compensation, disability pensions and unemployment benefits. Their occupancy agreements include rules against "unauthorised" guests entering their rentals, including disability support workers who in many cases are NDIS-funded to work with people in their homes. To deny their entry is in breach of laws designed to ensure people with disability are treated with respect and dignity, and have choice and control over how, who and when their supports are delivered, disability service providers say. "This is a restrictive practice, when they cannot access supports in the home, if they are funded to receive that," said one Hunter-based support coordinator. Having worked with numerous people who live, or have lived, in SPL-managed homes, the woman said she was disgusted with the way the organisation treated some tenants. "The fee structure, the agreement that leaves them with no rights ... they can be moved at any time of day, with a text message, from nobody, just signed SPL, and they have to pack up and they're moved," she said. "They get no say in it, they are thrown together, there is no matching that takes place." This week several residents were forced to move from an SPL-managed property at Rutherford to which police were called on Monday when SPL staff turned up unannounced, demanding access to the property to retrieve furniture. The residents had been given less than one business day's notice that they were being relocated. The week before that, SPL moved 20 people out of homes in Elemore Vale. They were given five days notice but SPL staff turned up without notice with a removalist truck two days early, at 6am on a Monday (May 5), the Herald was told. A number of other SPL-leased and managed properties have been vacated in the past two months. Multiple property owners who have leased houses to SPL have said the organisation was regularly behind on rent and bills, and did not cooperate with reasonable requests to conduct routine house inspections. In contrast, SPL demands the right to carry out inspections at will, whether or not people are at home, including opening fridges and cupboards and going through personal belongings, sources say. "They just come in whenever they want to, whenever they wish," said one community support worker who did not wish to be named to protect her clients' identities. "They don't give them any warning. They turn their cars off and, when they get to the start of the driveway, they roll it down silently to sneak up on these people and give them no warning. "And they open the doors really quietly and go through their bedrooms. It doesn't matter if they're in there, it doesn't matter what they're doing. They let themselves in and they go through all their stuff." Some residents have had bedbugs in the mattresses they are provided with but are too scared to speak up for fear of being evicted or sent to the Alma Mater, she said. "Because that's what they've done to other residents living in their other homes that have had bedbugs," she said. "And at the Alma Mater .... the rooms are smaller than a jail cell. "We hear that they're being investigated .... Yet, these vulnerable people are still being taken advantage of. And no one's standing up for them. How can we stay silent?" In some houses where people pay between $335 and $370 or more per week for a room, some with an ensuite, SPL is set to make double the rent they are paying to property owners through their sub-lease arrangements, as well as in some cases also claiming a portion of tenants' NDIS-funded supports. In a statement to the Newcastle Herald, SPL said it did not engage in any unlawful restrictive practices. It denied it was running an illegal boarding house at Mayfield, the Alma Mater, and it denied robbing residents of rights under the Residential Tenancy Act. "Moreover, where appropriate, the circumstances of SPL's tenancy agreements have been determined by the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal to not constitute residential tenancy agreements," the statement said. "Moreover, no parolee has been moved from any residence without sufficient notice except in extreme circumstances where serious crimes have been committed or threatened, such as episodes of violence against other occupants." The City of Newcastle has confirmed SPL did not seek approval to run a boarding house at 88 Hanbury Street, Mayfield, a building now named 'Alma Mater', when it opened two months ago. Corrective Services NSW said following recent concerning reports about the operating practices of SPL, it is "reviewing its suitability as a place of accommodation for parolees". The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has also confirmed it is investigating concerns raised about SPL but is "unable to comment further". "Participants have the right to fair treatment, transparency, and quality services under the NDIS," a commission spokesperson said. "The NDIS Commission strongly encourages participants, their families, and advocates to report any concerns regarding unethical provider behaviour." INDUSTRY insiders say illegal boarding house operator Sanctuary Place Living is running homes that flout laws against restrictive practices involving people with disability and fall short of requirements for parolees. While the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is continuing its investigation into SPL, Corrective Services NSW has announced it is also reviewing the organisation and its suitability to provide accommodation to parolees. Sanctuary Place Living, or SPL, run by Michael Mason and his partner Jacqui Whiteford, lease properties throughout the Hunter which they sub-let to NDIS participants, parolees, and people on workers compensation, disability pensions and unemployment benefits. Their occupancy agreements include rules against "unauthorised" guests entering their rentals, including disability support workers who in many cases are NDIS-funded to work with people in their homes. To deny their entry is in breach of laws designed to ensure people with disability are treated with respect and dignity, and have choice and control over how, who and when their supports are delivered, disability service providers say. "This is a restrictive practice, when they cannot access supports in the home, if they are funded to receive that," said one Hunter-based support coordinator. Having worked with numerous people who live, or have lived, in SPL-managed homes, the woman said she was disgusted with the way the organisation treated some tenants. "The fee structure, the agreement that leaves them with no rights ... they can be moved at any time of day, with a text message, from nobody, just signed SPL, and they have to pack up and they're moved," she said. "They get no say in it, they are thrown together, there is no matching that takes place." This week several residents were forced to move from an SPL-managed property at Rutherford to which police were called on Monday when SPL staff turned up unannounced, demanding access to the property to retrieve furniture. The residents had been given less than one business day's notice that they were being relocated. The week before that, SPL moved 20 people out of homes in Elemore Vale. They were given five days notice but SPL staff turned up without notice with a removalist truck two days early, at 6am on a Monday (May 5), the Herald was told. A number of other SPL-leased and managed properties have been vacated in the past two months. Multiple property owners who have leased houses to SPL have said the organisation was regularly behind on rent and bills, and did not cooperate with reasonable requests to conduct routine house inspections. In contrast, SPL demands the right to carry out inspections at will, whether or not people are at home, including opening fridges and cupboards and going through personal belongings, sources say. "They just come in whenever they want to, whenever they wish," said one community support worker who did not wish to be named to protect her clients' identities. "They don't give them any warning. They turn their cars off and, when they get to the start of the driveway, they roll it down silently to sneak up on these people and give them no warning. "And they open the doors really quietly and go through their bedrooms. It doesn't matter if they're in there, it doesn't matter what they're doing. They let themselves in and they go through all their stuff." Some residents have had bedbugs in the mattresses they are provided with but are too scared to speak up for fear of being evicted or sent to the Alma Mater, she said. "Because that's what they've done to other residents living in their other homes that have had bedbugs," she said. "And at the Alma Mater .... the rooms are smaller than a jail cell. "We hear that they're being investigated .... Yet, these vulnerable people are still being taken advantage of. And no one's standing up for them. How can we stay silent?" In some houses where people pay between $335 and $370 or more per week for a room, some with an ensuite, SPL is set to make double the rent they are paying to property owners through their sub-lease arrangements, as well as in some cases also claiming a portion of tenants' NDIS-funded supports. In a statement to the Newcastle Herald, SPL said it did not engage in any unlawful restrictive practices. It denied it was running an illegal boarding house at Mayfield, the Alma Mater, and it denied robbing residents of rights under the Residential Tenancy Act. "Moreover, where appropriate, the circumstances of SPL's tenancy agreements have been determined by the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal to not constitute residential tenancy agreements," the statement said. "Moreover, no parolee has been moved from any residence without sufficient notice except in extreme circumstances where serious crimes have been committed or threatened, such as episodes of violence against other occupants." The City of Newcastle has confirmed SPL did not seek approval to run a boarding house at 88 Hanbury Street, Mayfield, a building now named 'Alma Mater', when it opened two months ago. Corrective Services NSW said following recent concerning reports about the operating practices of SPL, it is "reviewing its suitability as a place of accommodation for parolees". The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has also confirmed it is investigating concerns raised about SPL but is "unable to comment further". "Participants have the right to fair treatment, transparency, and quality services under the NDIS," a commission spokesperson said. "The NDIS Commission strongly encourages participants, their families, and advocates to report any concerns regarding unethical provider behaviour." INDUSTRY insiders say illegal boarding house operator Sanctuary Place Living is running homes that flout laws against restrictive practices involving people with disability and fall short of requirements for parolees. While the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is continuing its investigation into SPL, Corrective Services NSW has announced it is also reviewing the organisation and its suitability to provide accommodation to parolees. Sanctuary Place Living, or SPL, run by Michael Mason and his partner Jacqui Whiteford, lease properties throughout the Hunter which they sub-let to NDIS participants, parolees, and people on workers compensation, disability pensions and unemployment benefits. Their occupancy agreements include rules against "unauthorised" guests entering their rentals, including disability support workers who in many cases are NDIS-funded to work with people in their homes. To deny their entry is in breach of laws designed to ensure people with disability are treated with respect and dignity, and have choice and control over how, who and when their supports are delivered, disability service providers say. "This is a restrictive practice, when they cannot access supports in the home, if they are funded to receive that," said one Hunter-based support coordinator. Having worked with numerous people who live, or have lived, in SPL-managed homes, the woman said she was disgusted with the way the organisation treated some tenants. "The fee structure, the agreement that leaves them with no rights ... they can be moved at any time of day, with a text message, from nobody, just signed SPL, and they have to pack up and they're moved," she said. "They get no say in it, they are thrown together, there is no matching that takes place." This week several residents were forced to move from an SPL-managed property at Rutherford to which police were called on Monday when SPL staff turned up unannounced, demanding access to the property to retrieve furniture. The residents had been given less than one business day's notice that they were being relocated. The week before that, SPL moved 20 people out of homes in Elemore Vale. They were given five days notice but SPL staff turned up without notice with a removalist truck two days early, at 6am on a Monday (May 5), the Herald was told. A number of other SPL-leased and managed properties have been vacated in the past two months. Multiple property owners who have leased houses to SPL have said the organisation was regularly behind on rent and bills, and did not cooperate with reasonable requests to conduct routine house inspections. In contrast, SPL demands the right to carry out inspections at will, whether or not people are at home, including opening fridges and cupboards and going through personal belongings, sources say. "They just come in whenever they want to, whenever they wish," said one community support worker who did not wish to be named to protect her clients' identities. "They don't give them any warning. They turn their cars off and, when they get to the start of the driveway, they roll it down silently to sneak up on these people and give them no warning. "And they open the doors really quietly and go through their bedrooms. It doesn't matter if they're in there, it doesn't matter what they're doing. They let themselves in and they go through all their stuff." Some residents have had bedbugs in the mattresses they are provided with but are too scared to speak up for fear of being evicted or sent to the Alma Mater, she said. "Because that's what they've done to other residents living in their other homes that have had bedbugs," she said. "And at the Alma Mater .... the rooms are smaller than a jail cell. "We hear that they're being investigated .... Yet, these vulnerable people are still being taken advantage of. And no one's standing up for them. How can we stay silent?" In some houses where people pay between $335 and $370 or more per week for a room, some with an ensuite, SPL is set to make double the rent they are paying to property owners through their sub-lease arrangements, as well as in some cases also claiming a portion of tenants' NDIS-funded supports. In a statement to the Newcastle Herald, SPL said it did not engage in any unlawful restrictive practices. It denied it was running an illegal boarding house at Mayfield, the Alma Mater, and it denied robbing residents of rights under the Residential Tenancy Act. "Moreover, where appropriate, the circumstances of SPL's tenancy agreements have been determined by the NSW Civil Administrative Tribunal to not constitute residential tenancy agreements," the statement said. "Moreover, no parolee has been moved from any residence without sufficient notice except in extreme circumstances where serious crimes have been committed or threatened, such as episodes of violence against other occupants." The City of Newcastle has confirmed SPL did not seek approval to run a boarding house at 88 Hanbury Street, Mayfield, a building now named 'Alma Mater', when it opened two months ago. Corrective Services NSW said following recent concerning reports about the operating practices of SPL, it is "reviewing its suitability as a place of accommodation for parolees". The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has also confirmed it is investigating concerns raised about SPL but is "unable to comment further". "Participants have the right to fair treatment, transparency, and quality services under the NDIS," a commission spokesperson said. "The NDIS Commission strongly encourages participants, their families, and advocates to report any concerns regarding unethical provider behaviour."
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Fury over LSE launch for new book that ‘whitewashes' Hamas
A leading university has been criticised for hosting the launch of a new book accused of 'whitewashing' Hamas. Understanding Hamas and Why That Matters, which claims the proscribed terror organisation is subjected to vilification, will be launched at the London School of Economics (LSE) next month. Campaigners have accused LSE of disregarding the group's violent history, including the Oct 7 massacre, and have urged it to cancel the event. The Campaign Against Antisemitism claimed that the book is 'an outrageous attempt to whitewash Hamas' barbaric acts of horror', and the LSE event itself is further evidence of how British universities 'have become epicentres of Jew-hatred'. Anti-Semitic abuse on campuses in the UK has reached record levels following the Hamas attacks against Israel on Oct 7, according to a report by the Community Security Trust (CST). In December, the CST found that widespread pro-Palestine activism led to many Jewish students feeling university life had become increasingly 'hostile' towards Jews. Students at LSE slept in the university's atrium for more than a month in support of Palestine and only left after losing a legal challenge. A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: 'This book's synopsis describes Hamas as 'a widely misunderstood movement' and says that 'the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has been subjected to intense vilification'. Perhaps that is because it capped decades of lethal suicide bombings with the massacre of 1,200 and the abduction of some 250 people. 'Is such conduct not worthy of 'vilification'? 'This appears to be an outrageous attempt to whitewash Hamas's barbaric acts of horror. 'For all their virtuous anti-racism rhetoric, our universities have become epicentres of Jew-hatred and this event is yet another example of how bad the problem is. We will be writing to LSE, which must cancel this propaganda event immediately.' The university's Middle East Centre, which is hosting the event on March 10, said the book explores Hamas's 'shift from social and religious activism to national political engagement'. The talk will feature the book's author and academics researching the Middle East. The centre's director Michael Mason, who will chair the book launch, said the event is 'covered by LSE's commitment to academic freedom and free speech'. In a statement to The Jewish Chronicle, he said: 'The Middle East Centre does not (as with LSE as an institution) take a formal position on political or international issues. 'We endeavour to provide a platform to facilitate discourse on contemporary matters by encouraging critical debate, within the law, where the views of all parties are treated with respect.' He added 'Nothing from the hosting of this event can reasonably be construed as the Middle East Centre or LSE condoning Hamas and its actions on October 7.' The Telegraph contacted LSE for comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Fury over LSE launch for new book that ‘whitewashes' Hamas
A leading university has been criticised for hosting the launch of a new book accused of 'whitewashing' Hamas. Understanding Hamas and Why That Matters, which claims the proscribed terror organisation is subjected to vilification, will be launched at the London School of Economics (LSE) next month. Campaigners have accused LSE of disregarding the group's violent history, including the Oct 7 massacre, and have urged it to cancel the event. The Campaign Against Antisemitism claimed that the book is 'an outrageous attempt to whitewash Hamas' barbaric acts of horror', and the LSE event itself is further evidence of how British universities 'have become epicentres of Jew-hatred'. Anti-Semitic abuse on campuses in the UK has reached record levels following the Hamas attacks against Israel on Oct 7, according to a report by the Community Security Trust (CST). In December, the CST found that widespread pro-Palestine activism led to many Jewish students feeling university life had become increasingly 'hostile' towards Jews. Students at LSE slept in the university's atrium for more than a month in support of Palestine and only left after losing a legal challenge. A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: 'This book's synopsis describes Hamas as 'a widely misunderstood movement' and says that 'the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has been subjected to intense vilification'. Perhaps that is because it capped decades of lethal suicide bombings with the massacre of 1,200 and the abduction of some 250 people. 'Is such conduct not worthy of 'vilification'? 'This appears to be an outrageous attempt to whitewash Hamas's barbaric acts of horror. 'For all their virtuous anti-racism rhetoric, our universities have become epicentres of Jew-hatred and this event is yet another example of how bad the problem is. We will be writing to LSE, which must cancel this propaganda event immediately.' The university's Middle East Centre, which is hosting the event on March 10, said the book explores Hamas's 'shift from social and religious activism to national political engagement'. The talk will feature the book's author and academics researching the Middle East. The centre's director Michael Mason, who will chair the book launch, said the event is 'covered by LSE's commitment to academic freedom and free speech'. In a statement to The Jewish Chronicle, he said: 'The Middle East Centre does not (as with LSE as an institution) take a formal position on political or international issues. 'We endeavour to provide a platform to facilitate discourse on contemporary matters by encouraging critical debate, within the law, where the views of all parties are treated with respect.' He added 'Nothing from the hosting of this event can reasonably be construed as the Middle East Centre or LSE condoning Hamas and its actions on October 7.'
