Holyoke

Within hours of the United States capturing the head of Venezuela, and as questions emerged over what comes next, “emergency protests” came together across the country, including in western Massachusetts.Standing in the cold, many denounced the Trump administration, with many calling out the President’s rationale, including interests in Venezuelan oil reserves.

Considered one of the first planned industrial cities in the country, Holyoke, Mass. has its fair share of historic buildings and structures.Several make up the North High Street Historic District: a spot found on the National Register and also where a developer’s revitalizing 150-year-old structures, adding housing as the state confronts its housing shortage.

Months after the Trump administration pulled millions in grant funding, a Somerville-based startup with MIT roots says it’s pausing a $150 million factory project in Holyoke, Massachusetts. Plans for construction work have been iced while the company navigates its own cuts, as well. Local leaders tell WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief James Paleologopoulos that the stalled project is a blow to what had been promising plans.

Dozens of families in Holyoke, Massachusetts, are trying to pick up the pieces after two separate fires in less than 24 hours destroyed multiple apartment buildings.

In less than 48 hours, millions of American will likely face delays for one of the nation’s largest federal food assistance program. It’s prompting states across the country to take action, including Massachusetts, where at least a million residents will be affected, with some communities hit especially hard.

Several lots and an historic building in the heart of Holyoke will be the site of four new housing developments – adding more units to a city that leads much of the state in affordable housing stock, the mayor says. WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief James Paleologopoulos reports.

In Northampton, Massachusetts, the table appears to be set for this November’s elections. That includes the mayor’s race, with Tuesday’s preliminaries narrowing the field to the incumbent and a longtime local business advocate.

Voters in parts of the Pioneer Valley are once again casting ballots. Polls are open for preliminary elections in Chicopee and Holyoke, with the most crowded contests in Northampton, including the race for mayor.

Millions of dollars in low-income tax credits and subsidies have once again been awarded in Massachusetts, with a goal of creating or preserving 1,200 rental units. That includes over 200 in the Pioneer Valley and Berkshires.

A special collaboration in Western Massachusetts is giving college students valuable work experience while providing housing for a couple in Holyoke.