Education

Whittier Tech Advances Feasibility Study While Payment Divide Remains

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The Whittier Regional Vocational Technical School Committee voted unanimously Wednesday night to move forward with the next step in repairing or replacing the school, while at the same time acknowledging money challenges ahead. The vote to spend up to $2.5 million on a feasibility study to repair or replace the 50-year-old school and its aging sewage treatment plant on Amesbury Line Road in Haverhill, puts the 11-community school district in line to receive reimbursement from the Massachusetts School Building Authority. As part of that process, however, the state board is requiring communities to update the compact that specifies how capital and operational costs are apportioned. Assigned to suggest improvements to the agreement, the advisory Regional Agreement Amendment Committee, is stalemated. Retiring Committee Chair Angus G. Jennings, former West Newbury town manager, said Newburyport and Rowley are pressing for Haverhill to pay a greater portion of any new building than it would under the 1967 pact.

Crime

Grand Jury Indicts Four of Six Men in Alleged Haverhill Gang Shootout

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Four of the six men allegedly involved in a daytime gang-related shootout last spring in downtown Haverhill were indicted by an Essex County grand jury over the last several weeks. Victor Ernesto Deaza was arraigned before Judge John C. Fraser in Salem Superior Court Thursday, July 27, and due back in court Thursday, Sept. 3, for a pre-trial conference. Evan M. Carlisle, Riley A. Quinn and Timothy Mossey were arraigned Wednesday, Aug. 5, in Salem Superior Court.

Haverhill

Haverhill Councilors Green Light 7 Affordable Homes

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The Haverhill City Council Tuesday granted a special permit to Essex County Habitat for Humanity to convert a single-family home on upper Washington Street into three affordable homeowner units and add two duplex units to be sold to low-income residents. Members also approved a private developer’s plans to replace a dilapidated single-family home on the Merrimack River with three condominiums.

The city blessed the seven-unit, Washington Street, project last year when the Community Development Department approved $250,000 from the city’s federal HOME grant allocation towards the purchase. Community Development Division Director Andrew K. Herlihy endorsed the project. “I don’t come up here for every housing project, but I’m proud of this project. This project represents exactly the type of housing that we need.

Haverhill

Haverhill Council Debates Security vs. Surveillance Cameras

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With one vocal exception, Haverhill city councilors agreed Tuesday night the city’s Flock license plate readers are a valuable tool, but expressed worries about how data might be used. After 90 minutes of discussion before a standing room only crowd, councilors also agreed strict guidelines must be in place to prevent misuse of surveillance cameras. Members voted unanimously to ask City Solicitor Lisa L. Mead to draft an ordinance spelling out how cameras can be used and what guardrails are needed. They also voted to send the matter to the council’s Public Safety Committee for further study and debate. Similar to the technology used to collect highway tolls, Flock cameras have proliferated in recent years as a policing tool because they transmit the location of a specific vehicle in real time.

Education

Public Meetings This Week: Officials Review Path Forward for Whittier Tech

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The public has opportunities to shape policy this week as various Haverhill boards meet. In the interest of transparency in government, WHAV provides this list of upcoming meetings every week on air and online. The next step towards bridging remaining differences between the 11 communities sending students to Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School Committee are likely to be heard Wednesday night. Members of the Whittier Tech School Committee are expected to vote on a feasibility study that would review options for repair or replacement of the more than 50-year-old old high school. An agreement on the study is a requirement of the Massachusetts School Building Authority.

Haverhill

Flock Camera Controversy Comes Before Haverhill Councilors

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The growing controversy over the use of public surveillance cameras makes it way to the Haverhill City Council Tuesday night. The American Civil Liberties Union, among other critics, recently took aim at the cameras and one vendor, saying on its website, “If there are Flock cameras in your city, they are tracking, logging and sharing your movements without a warrant. But we’re not powerless. More and more communities are rejecting these creepy cameras—and yours can be one of them! Haverhill’s Acting Deputy Police Chief Meaghan Paré is scheduled to tell city councilors how the Haverhill Police Department is using the cameras’ license plate recognition.

Haverhill

Area Veterans Relax, Mingle and Learn at Haverhill Resources Fair

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(Additional photographs below.)

Local veterans had the opportunity to learn about services and resources, connect with old friends and even get a free haircut at the 2026 Merrimack Valley Stand Down hosted Friday by the New England Center and Home for Veterans in Haverhill. Twenty-seven vendors ranging from the Bedford Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the state Department of Telecommunications and Cable to Charles River Recovery in Weston and AgeSpan in Lawrence were on hand to explain to those veterans who stopped their tables the special programs their agencies offer. There was also a chance to get a free haircut provided by barber Jennifer Nowak, pick up a free pair of socks, a T-shirt or sneakers and enjoy a hot dog or hamburger. “Today is a veteran’s stand down and essentially it is an opportunity to bring a number of providers together in a sort of one-stop forum so that veterans who are seeking services are able to access them all at once and in one location,” explained Andrew McCawley, president and CEO of the New England Center and Home for Veterans. The Haverhill site on Reed Street is one of two the organization operates.

Haverhill

Haverhill’s Sarah’s Place Faces 1/3 State Medicaid Cuts

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Haverhill-based Sarah’s Place Adult Day Health Center is facing a potential shortfall in state Medicaid reimbursements. In a letter to caregivers and supporters, Executive Director Amy Anwyl told WHAV she received notice from the state that beginning next Jan. 1, Medicaid reimbursement rates could fall by as much as 34%. She said, currently, the state has two levels of care for its adult day health clients—basic and complex. Sarah’s Place receives $99.42 a day for basic clients and $136.72 for complex clients.