WE ARE HOMETOWN NEWS.

Abutters object to location of new Longmeadow middle school at Williams site

LONGMEADOW — Members of the Middle School Building Committee hosted a meeting for the abutters of Williams Middle School on Aug. 15. The property at 410 Williams St. has been selected by the committee as the preferred location for the town’s future combined middle school. About 40 people attended the meeting, nearly all of whom were opposed to the project being built at the site.

Thousands of Springfield residents request ballots ahead of early voting in the state primary

SPRINGFIELD — Early voting is still a relatively new method of exercising the right to vote in Massachusetts. The first election in which residents could choose to cast their ballots early instead of on Election Day was in 2016. A 2014 state law made early voting a mandatory option for all municipalities, be it in person or voting by mail. The state does not differentiate between absentee and vote-by-mail ballots.