Holyoke

While progress has been slow and expensive, a Massachusetts city remains determined to cut back how much untreated sewage it dumps into the Connecticut River.

In Holyoke, there is no shortage of century-old buildings sporting architecture and details only 19th-century mill barons could afford.The Wistariahurst Museum is one of them. This week, the site will host a Civic Learning Week, taking part in a nationwide campaign to bolster engagement in local government – and the history that informs it.

A loud weekly tradition in Holyoke, Massachusetts recently went quiet, but instead of it being an end of an era, locals are filling the silence while calling for change at City Hall.

Following lengthy and often heated debates in Holyoke’s city council chambers, landmark financial reforms are now in place — and has the city searching for a Chief Administrative and Financial Officer. WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief James Paleologopoulos reports.

Officials say much of the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside will be closed to customers Wednesday, following an overnight fire

Less than a year after regaining control of its own school district, the school committee in Holyoke, Mass., marked a new milestone Thursday night. Following a monthslong search, committee members selected a new, permanent superintendent. As WAMC reports, the candidate is more than familiar with both the city and the school district’s struggles.

A Holyoke City Council member is stepping down from leadership roles and promising to make amends after a December drunk driving arrest. The pledge comes amid continued calls for his resignation from local police unions.

Two police unions in Holyoke, Mass., are calling for a city councilor to resign — citing the councilor’s drunk driving arrest in late-December.At-Large City Councilor Israel Rivera has said he’s looking to rebuild trust following the incident. With body camera footage of his arrest surfacing, police union members are calling for Rivera's resignation and an ethics review.

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.

Aaron Vega, a former Holyoke city councilor and state representative, is departing his current city role. The longtime community advocate will begin 2026 as the new president and CEO of the Western Mass. Economic Development Council - a job that will see him foster and support economies throughout the Pioneer Valley. This, after serving five years as Holyoke's Director of Planning and Economic Development. He sat down with WAMC Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief James Paleologopoulos to talk Paper City - both its progress and ongoing issues - as well as his new position.