BOSTON – Today, the State Senate passed an omnibus property tax relief bill S2124 – An Act improving real property tax abatements, application deadlines, and deferrals. This bill improves the property tax deferral program for active military personnel, senior citizens and for persons who are deaf. O’Connor Ives filed a bill for an Amesbury resident […]
By: Beth D’Amato – July, 2017 NORTH ANDOVER – As far back as the American Revolution, the bravest of men would run onto the battlefields under enemy fire to provide aid and comfort to the wounded and dying. By the time the Civil War broke out, the realization that medical treatment and the evacuation […]
North Andover Police are looking for the public’s help identifying and locating a man who broke into the Richdale convenience store at 75 Chickering Road. The B&E occurred sometime around 1am on Monday, May 22nd while the store was closed. At least one suspect entered the store, attempted to destroy on site video surveillance equipment, […]
$1,600 from BASH Proceeds Donated to Veterans for Wheelchairs and Groceries Each year The Valley Patriot holds a charity BASH on the anniversary of the newspaper’s birth. “I’m so privileged and honored to be here. I’m so privileged and honored to support this BASH. And I will continue to support this BASH every year,” […]
NECC TO START 2 FREE SKILLS TRAINING PROGRAMS Two, free, grant-funded educational programs designed to train unemployed and under-employed individuals in high-demand manufacturing positions, will be offered through Northern Essex Community College’s Center for Corporate and Community Education beginning in May. Individuals who have graduated from high school or have a high school equivalency, are […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives – April, 2017 Early Voting passed into law in 2014 and this past presidential election was the first in which residents were allowed to vote before Election Day. This is an advantageous concept for many people that want to vote but can’t get to the ballot box on one given […]
By: State Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives – Feb. 2017 Last session, as co-chair of the Joint Committee on Community Development and Small Businesses, I was tasked with reviewing proposals for a major overhaul of the state’s zoning laws which have become strained under modern housing pressures. The goal of the comprehensive bill passed by the […]
By: Senator Katy Ives – Feb. 2017 As regular readers of this column may know, last session I filed a bill to reduce housing costs for veterans by offering a tax rebate to landlords who rent dwellings below market rate to individuals who receive state Chapter 115 veterans’ benefits. In the past legislative session, a […]
Each year the Lawrence Exchange Club bestows their highest public safety awards to Police Officers, Firefighters and EMTs in Andover, Lawrence, and North Andover. Last month, The Exchange Club held their annual award dinner at the Double Tree Hotel in Andover. These are the winners and their stories. NORTH ANDOVER FIREFIGHTER OF THE YEAR Fire […]
BUY NOW Each month since March of 2004, The Valley Patriot newspaper has published a front page story about the bravery and dedication of a local veteran called “Valley Patriot of the Month, Heroes in Our Midst”. In the 13 years we have been publishing The Valley Patriot, we’ve amassed quite a collection of stories […]
BOSTON – The Massachusetts Senate unanimously passed a resolution Thursday to condemn the recent Executive Order issued by President Donald J. Trump which bars entry to the United States for certain nationals from seven Muslim-majority nations. The resolution recognizes the unique importance of immigration to the history of Massachusetts since its founding, through the present. […]
By: State Senator Katy Ives (D-Newburyport) In my effort to continue to focus these columns on bills that I will file in the next legislative session, I want to discuss in this edition a bill I sponsored last session which sought to reduce human exposure to a dangerous chemical hidden in many items of daily […]
Hindus are urging renowned Merrimack College in North Andover (Massachusetts) to add “Hindu” to its Jewish-Christian-Muslim Relations Center to be inclusive for its Hindu students and the community. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada today, said that by including Hinduism, oldest and third largest religion of the world with about one billion […]
HEROES AND BOZOS OF 2016 HERO CHARLIE BAKER – One of the most important things that happened in Massachusetts this year was the passage of a new public records law that actually holds public officials accountable for concealing public documents. When Charlie Baker was running for the governor he said on my radio show that […]
Dec. 19, 2106|10PM Former Lawrence City Councilor Sandy Almonte has been arrested again, this time in Lawrence after police learned she had a warrant for her arrest out of North Andover for driving without insurance. The former District “A” (Prospect Hill) councilor resigned back in August of this year after being arrested in Nashua, NH, […]