By: Rich Russell – January, 2019 On December 20, 2018, as Mayor Dan Rivera was having his annual Christmas party, a tragic event happened. The Lawrence Police Department ENCRYPTED all of their radio traffic including their routine dispatch transmissions. A new radio system was part of the City’s Capital Improvement Program. The upgrade was mentioned […]
THE CALM BEFORE THE STORM OR A NEW NORMAL IN LAWRENCE? It isn’t a sexy story, so you probably won’t read about it in the local daily newspaper, but violent crime in Lawrence is plummeting and the results are quite noticeable. Lawrence has a new Police Chief Roy Vasque who certainly can take credit for […]
By: Joe DAmore – Nov. 2018 Recently news reports – and explosive social media message decried Mayor Daniel Rivera, apparent uniliteral decisions regarding the use of the Buckley Bus Station as a staging area for feeding homeless people. He ordered that homeless people vacate the station and that a humanitarian group no longer offer dinner […]
If there is one thing that Michael Gorman and his volunteers at TMF (The Movement Family) have proved over the last six months, it’s that helping the homeless and making people’s lives better only takes one thing: effort. For six months TMF offered food, clothing, detox services, transitional housing, and other counseling services to the […]
“If Dan Rivera isn’t interested in feeding the homeless in Lawrence or helping them make their lives better, that’s fine. I just wish he would stop getting in the way of people who are willing to do his job for him at no cost.” ~ Valley Patriot Publisher Tom Duggan Nov. 28 ,2018 Nearly […]
Despite Proof That Photos of Garbage and Needles Were Not from TMF, Rivera Doubles Down For the past 6 months a volunteer group of teens and young people from Lawrence called “The Movement Family” (TMF) have been serving a family style dinner to the homeless at the Buckley Garage on Common Street. The group, run by […]
THE DISASTER Sitting in my office listening to the police scanner it was obvious from the time the first call went out that the explosion on Chickering Road in Lawrence was not a routine call. Not long after that call went out I was jarred out of my seat by the urgency and bewilderment in […]
By: Tom Duggan – Oct. 21, 2018 Just days after Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera ordered Dorchester Gas Contractor Feeney Brothers out of his city for their role in the gas explosions on September 13th, Valley Patriot news spotters sent us these photos of Feeney Brothers on Loring Street in Lawrence doing gas work Sunday. Within […]
By: Tom Duggan – Oct. 20, 2018 RIVERA THROWS FEENEY OUT OF LAWRENCE Despite denying responsibility for the gas explosions in the Greater Lawrence area on September 13th, and an NTSB preliminary report saying that sub-contractor Feeney Brothers may not have been responsible, Lawrence Mayor Dan Rivera has thrown Feeney Brothers out of Lawrence during […]
WHEN YOU THINK YOU HAVE IT WRONG BUT YOU DON’T On two occasions last month we reported a story on line that we thought we got wrong after it was posted. In one story we reported that a shooting victim from East Haverhill Street had died. Minutes after we reported the victim’s death we were […]
AG’s Office Sends Columbia Gas, NiSource Orders to Preserve Documents for Potential State Investigation BOSTON – Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey today announced new resources in her office to support Merrimack Valley residents and businesses recovering from the devastating fires and explosions that rocked the area two weeks ago. “I want residents and businesses […]
HELP THE HOMELESS Every Wednesday night a volunteer group called “The Movement Family” serves a family style meal for the homeless at the Buckley Garage on Common Street in Lawrence. In the last five weeks The Valley Patriot has put out a call on Facebook looking for local business in the community to help with […]
LAWRENCE, MA – Calling her a “woman who gets things done,” Lawrence Mayor Daniel Rivera announced that he is supporting local businesswoman Christina Minicucci (D-North Andover) for the open 14th Essex State House seat. The seat is currently held but being vacated by State Rep. Diana DiZoglio (D-Methuen) who is running for State Senate this […]
By: Kathy Runge – June, 2018 It’s budget season again. When Mayor Rivera and ex Alcalde Lantigua brag about “their” balanced budgets, they should be giving the credit to the Director of Budget and Finance, Mark Ianello, who has ultimate control of the budget. It is he who provides the balanced budget. It’s pretty clear […]
Earlier this month, newly appointed Lawrence Police Chief Roy Vasque appeared on the Paying Attention Podcast with Tom Duggan. (You can download it on Spotify, iHeartRadio, iTunes etc.) We asked the chief how he is changing the way the police in Lawrence do their jobs. “I think that the department is energized right now, it’s up […]