Springfield

SPRINGFIELD, Vt. -- With a bowling alley, a pub, a prison, and a nuclear power plant just down the road, this city likes to think itself a real-life alter ego to the home of "The Simpsons. " Now, the city is going all out to prove it, joining Springfield, Mass., and 12 other Springfields from across the nation in a contest, with the winner hosting the big-screen premiere of "The Simpsons Movie" July 26. The public will choose the winner in a USA Today online poll. Voting ends July 9, with the winner announced the next day. The movie hits theaters July 27. The competition is stiff.

A tombstone -like historic mile marker on the edge of a sidewalk on Harvard Avenue in Allston hardly attracts glances from passersby, even after it was toppled last July and surrounded by a metal police barricade. In fact, most people walk by the Colonial relic — erected 283 years ago by John Paul Dudley, who would later become chief justice of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, as one in a series of mile markers between Boston and Springfield — without noticing it at all. The nonchalant attitude says something about Boston's perception of its rich history: A marker that would be...

SPRINGFIELD -- The temporary leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield urged churchgoers yesterday not to abandon their faith in light of allegations that outgoing Bishop Thomas Dupre molested two boys three decades ago. "I know a lot of people have said this is the last straw, that they're giving up on the church," Monsignor Richard Sniezyk told about 100 parishioners at St. Michael's Cathedral. "To them I say, 'don't throw the baby out with the bathwater.' This certainly is a sad chapter in the diocese of Springfield, but you know it's not the whole book.

The son of slain mobster Adolfo "Big Al" Bruno says that authorities improperly revealed that his father gave information to an FBI agent and that the FBI did not protect him before he was fatally shot outside a Springfield social club in 2003. "The FBI knew my father's life was in danger," Bruno's son, Victor Bruno, 40, of Springfield, said Wednesday in a statement. He declined to comment beyond the statement, when reached by phone. He has scheduled a press conference for Thursday to discuss his father's death.

SPRINGFIELD -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Springfield fell short of its annual fund-raising goal for the fifth straight year, according to church officials. The diocese raised $2.8 million dollars through its 2005 Annual Catholic Appeal, about $100,000 short of its goal and roughly $63,000 less than raised in 2004. The diocese raised an additional $1 million for hurricane and tsunami relief, but those efforts contributed to the Appeal's shortfall, said Virginia Webb, the diocese's director of stewardship and development.

SPRINGFIELD — Trees were falling well before the tornadoes hit. When the state took over this city’s finances in 2004, the result of multimillion-dollar deficits and years of mismanagement, the onetime manufacturing center faced lawsuits from residents angry about dead tree limbs falling on their cars and houses. The city, which at the time could not afford to prune its trees, emerged from state control in 2009, with an increasing budget, population, and tax base. More recently, city officials have been making long-needed improvements and have even amassed a rainy day fund of $30...

The Springfield Falcons will remain the Columbus Blue Jackets' American Hockey League affiliate for at least two more seasons. The Blue Jackets on Thursday announced an extension of their arrangement with the Massachusetts team through the 2013-14 season. In a statement, Blue Jackets General Manager Scott Howson calls Springfield "a tremendous hockey environment. " The Falcons are now in their 17th American Hockey League season and have served as the Blue Jackets' affiliate since last season.

Police say two people have been sent to the hospital after an early morning shooting in Springfield. The victims were shot at about 2:45 a.m. on Monday. One was shot in the arm and one in the leg. They are both expected to survive. No names were released. Police say they think the men were targeted but are not cooperating with investigators.

SPRINGFIELD -- Theodor S. Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, was a Springfield native who famously found whimsy and delight in his hometown haunts. Though Geisel long ago left town (and died in 1991), the city retains some of his spirit -- most evident in the annual holiday lights display in Forest Park. (Geisel's father was superintendent of Springfield parks.) Fittingly, the extravaganza begins at Seuss Land, which offers a virtual visit to Whoville, complete with the holiday-hijacking Grinch.

SPRINGFIELD -- The Springfield teachers union and city officials have reached a tentative settlement on a three-year contract. The contract was signed late Friday, Superintendent Joseph P. Burke told the Republican newspaper of Springfield, three days before teachers are scheduled to return to the classroom. Burke would not disclose details, but said the negotiations were intense and practical. "When you put an agreement together like this, you want to make sure its right," he said.

TD Bank, the fourth-largest retail bank in the state, confirmed Wednesday that it plans to close a customer call center in Springfield by the end of the year, eliminating 200 jobs. Bank spokesman Jimmy Hernandez said the regional bank plans to shift the call center operations from Western Massachusetts to Greenville, S.C., in December. He said the bank decided to make the move because it owns 467,000 square feet of office space in Greenville and received state and local financial incentives to expand in Greenville, which is located in the Appalachian foothills, between Atlanta...

It's encouraging to hear about the rebuilding of Springfield and the city's use of the arts and cultural community as a core driver for its plan to recover from last year's tornado (" Springfield's reemergence ," Metro, April 27). Springfield is following the path laid out by other Massachusetts Gateway Cities, such as Worcester, New Bedford, and Lowell, which have placed arts and the development of the creative economy as a driver of their economic revival. The focus on arts and culture not only brings business and innovation to town; it creates spaces...

SPRINGFIELD - Marialyn, 20, knows that many people didn't expect her at a rally for Charles Wilhite, a man convicted of murder in December 2010. The woman's uncle, Alberto Rodriguez, was the victim - but her family does not believe Wilhite is guilty. So on Saturday Marialyn joined about 50 others who believe that Wilhite, 29, was wrongly convicted in the October 2008 killing for which he was sentenced to life imprisonment. Some members of the rally at Gerrish Park in Springfield's Six Corners neighborhood said they think Wilhite, who is black, was convicted because of his race.

The highest court in Massachusetts has ruled in favor of a Springfield church that challenged a city ordinance requiring the installation of new fire detection systems. The Supreme Judicial Court ruled Friday that the regulation requiring the St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral and other sites to install one specific kind of system violated state building code that allows the installation of any one of four approved systems. The church sued the city in 2009, arguing that the city's requirement placed an unnecessary hardship on the church, which has a different, less...

Springfield Public Schools today defended the use of police in their buildings in the wake of a report by two nonprofits that found that Springfield, Boston, and Worcester arrest too many students for misbehaving in school. Springfield Superintendent Alan Ingram said in a statement that the report was misleading and inaccurate. "The report attempts to paint a picture of an overaggressive, unorganized approach to school-based policing in our district and nothing could be further from the truth," Ingram said "While we are not willing to let the actions of...

A Springfield man was charged with cruelty to animals Tuesday after two police officers said they saw him attack a red-tail hawk on a sidewalk on Pearl Street. Around 7 a.m., Detectives Robert Bohl and Mike Goggin were heading to the Springfield Police Department headquarters in an unmarked cruiser when they spotted a hawk eating a pigeon on the sidewalk near Federal Street. Bohl and Goggin stopped to snap pictures of the bird with their cellphones. "All of a sudden, a man came up on the sidewalk and struck the hawk by throwing a large...

SPRINGFIELD -- About 600 teachers streamed into City Hall yesterday to protest their lack of a contract with the city as both sides continued renewed negotiations. The crowd stood outside Mayor Charles Ryan's office clapping and chanting "we want a contract, we want it now," after staging a rally a few blocks away in front of school department headquarters. The teachers have not had a raise in four years and have sued the city for $6 million in frozen back wages.

It's encouraging to hear about the rebuilding of Springfield and the city's use of the arts and cultural community as a core driver for its plan to recover from last year's tornado (" Springfield's reemergence ," Metro, April 27). Springfield is following the path laid out by other Massachusetts Gateway Cities, such as Worcester, New Bedford, and Lowell, which have placed arts and the development of the creative economy as a driver of their economic revival. The focus on arts and culture not only brings business and innovation to town; it creates...

Less than a year after a violent tornado devastated their city, Springfield officials unveiled a sweeping master plan Thursday for structural rebuilding and cultural revitalization. Using residents' feedback culled from months of neighborhood meetings, the plan aims to serve as a guide for how officials and residents can use disaster funds to not only rebuild but make Springfield a more vibrant city than it was before the June 1 tornado ripped through. "I hope the legacy is that we were not only able to rebuild the storm-damaged areas, but also build on the positive...

Springfield officials say they've finished designing a plan to rebuild the city after tornado touchdowns that wreaked havoc last June. They'll release details of the rebuilding plan in a 3 p.m. meeting Thursday at Springfield City Hall. Plan manager Kevin Sweeney says the initiative was based in part on input from 3,000 residents. It combines rebuilding with economic development ideas. Sweeney says they'd "like to see Springfield not just where it was on the day of the tornado, but in a better place.