John Osborn

At this year's annual tax classification hearing, held at this week's Select Board meeting Tuesday night, Nov. 19, the town's regional assessor, Michael Saltsman, estimated that the tax rate on residential property this fiscal year would need to increase from $14.90 per $1,000 of assessed property value to $15.65, an increase of approximately 5% over last year's rate.

After months of negotiation, the Massachusetts House and Senate, meeting in special session last week, passed and sent to Gov. Maura Healey the $4 billion “Mass Leads” economic development bill she proposed in February, including two provisions that could dramatically increase housing in Devens.

Led by senior captain Evelyn Wool and junior Rosie Bradley, the Bromfield girls cross-country team won second place in this year’s Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 3 state championship held Saturday afternoon at Devens.Wool placed second in her Division 3 race with a time of 18 minutes, 55.57 seconds. Bradley was fifth with a time of 19:39.01. Bromfield’s team score was 133.Abby Wool (right) photographs Roșie Bradley and Evelyn Wool displaying...

Bromfield girls soccer players were beaten 4-1 Thursday night, Nov. 14, by the No. 1 seed Douglas Tigers, ending a late-season winning streak and hopes for a trophy in this year’s Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 5 girls soccer tournament.Junior Darragh O’Connor scored the team’s lone goal, which came in the final minutes of the game. With the outcome all but decided, the team seemed to gain energy and confidence, and on a fast counter,...

Rising costs and lagging revenues are creating conditions for yet another budgetary storm in fiscal 2026.

State Rep. Margaret Scarsdale, D-Pepperell, announced today that the Nashoba Valley Working Group, established by the governor in October and of which she is a member, has formed a specialized subgroup to focus specifically on restoring emergency services and ancillary care to the 16 communities in North Central Massachusetts, including Harvard and Devens, left without an emergency room and other facilities when Nashoba Valley Medical Center closed abruptly in August.

It's been more than 100 days since Steward Health Care shuttered the 60-year-old Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer, a move that played havoc with the emergency services of 16 towns; disrupted the lives of the 600 doctors, nurses, technicians, and service employees who worked there; and threatened the health of the thousands of patients who depended on its services each year.

With time running out, municipal and state agencies scrambled this week to name representatives to the working group that will study the feasibility of building more housing in Devens, in an area that includes the iconic quadrangle of abandoned Army barracks known as Vicksburg Square.

The fire chiefs of 13 Central Massachusetts communities formerly served by the shuttered Nashoba Valley Medical Center have asked Gov. Maura Healey for an emergency appropriation of nearly $10 million.

The Executive Office of Economic Development released the names of the last two members of the Devens housing working group this week and set a date for the group's first meeting.