The bank that loaned $1.7 million to a predominantly black church has declined to issue another loan after the congregation's planned new home was razed by arson just hours after Barack H. Obama was elected the country's first black president.

State legislators are scheduled to vote Thursday on a bill that would require certain elderly drivers to pass eye exams every five years for a license renewal and would give medical professionals immunity from reporting problems with any drivers.

Gov. Deval Patrick made a trip to Agawam Monday, while supporters and detractors of the budget proposal he unveiled Wednesday, which includes new fees and taxes, spoke out around the region.

Gov. Deval Patrick says the Democratic-led Legislature _ nervous going into an election year after Republican Scott Brown's U.S. Senate win _ needs to do ``the right thing'' when it comes to granting undocumented students in-state tuition rates.

Two Agawam mothers are hoping a community forum will help shed light on a dark issue.

The last time Scott Brown visited the Hu Ke Lau, a sprawling Chinese restaurant and comedy club along Route 33, he barely caused a stir, shaking a few hands in the dining room before settling into a booth with an aide for a quiet meal.

"I have to tell you I'm so humbled and I'm so honored to be here at our first stop to say thank you," Brown said as he stood underneath a sign declaring "Thank you Massachusetts" inside the Hu Ke Lau restaurant.

Like anyone else who was interested in a gaming industry job, Robert E. Brodeur was in the right place on Wednesday when he attended Mohegan Sun's "community conversation" here.

Mayor Edward J. Gibson may have surprised some listeners when he spoke openly about his religious faith during the town's inaugural ceremonies on Jan.

Personal testimony about the ravages of substance abuse will be part of the public drug-prevention forum that is scheduled on Wednesday at the Middle School.

Public school teachers might see more opportunities for merit pay if the federal education initiative Race to the Top comes to the West Springfield school district.

Though they originally planned Friday lunch as a holiday season-only initiative, Ralph Santaniello and his business partners at The Federal in Agawam were so gratified by the response that they've decided to continue right into the New Year.

In Agawam, Town Clerk Richard M. Theroux said more than 20 percent of the community's registered voters had participated in the U.S. Senate special election by mid afternoon.

A rainy mix is already transitioning over to snow across western Mass. Heavy wet snow will pile up over night across the area.

Candidates for the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., from the left, Republican candidate Scott P. Brown, Democratic candidate Martha M. Coakley, and Joseph L. Kennedy, a Libertarian candidate running as an independent and who is no relation to the late senator, make last minute preparations before a ...

Though January can often be a let down after December's round of festivities, there's no reason to mope about it.

The city's new animal shelter will open by Feb. 1, city officials said this week following completion of local permitting and building lease arrangements.

In the first major financial move of his administration, Mayor Richard A. Cohen has chosen not to fill the associate solicitor's job, but instead will use a Springfield law firm as needed.

A months-long investigation by police here, following a number of reported vehicle break-ins, yielded the arrest Friday of six suspects from Western Massachusetts.

Myrtle Reece Webb, 95, of Peru, N.Y., formerly of East Longmeadow and Springfield, Mass., passed away on Sunday, Jan.