Council rejects civilian police review board
The Worcester City Council voted 8-3 Tuesday to file a proposal to create a civilian review board for the Police Department after a five-hour meeting dominated by public testimony and debate over police oversight. City officials defended an existing system that includes five civilian investigators outside the police department, while many residents argued Worcester needs a more independent and transparent process. Councilors Khrystian King, Luis Ojeda and Robert Bilotta voted against filing the proposal. Read more
Pride Worcester prepares to take over downtown
Pride Worcester returns Saturday from 2 to 7 p.m. on Worcester Common and surrounding downtown streets, with organizers expecting nearly 30,000 people. More than 200 makers, businesses and community organizations are expected alongside live music, dancing, drag performances, food, family activities and health resources. The free festival comes more than 50 years after roughly 100 people participated in Worcester’s first Gay Pride Week march in 1975. Read more
City View lands record $2.73 million energy grant
City View Discovery School undergoes a $2.73 million energy overhaul through the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center’s Green School Works program, the largest energy-efficiency grant Worcester has received for a single school. The project replaces heating equipment dating to the school’s 1991 opening with a high-efficiency electric heat pump system while also improving insulation and airflow. Work is expected to be completed by the end of 2027, with existing natural gas boilers retained as backup during extreme winter weather. Read more
Worcester marks 25 years since Sept. 11
Worcester commemorated the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks Friday with observances at the Grove Street Fire Station and Worcester Jewish Community Center. The anniversary carries a particular local connection through Worcester resident Juliana McCourt, 4, and her mother, Ruth, who were passengers aboard United Airlines Flight 175 when it struck the South Tower of the World Trade Center. The city’s ceremony included lowered flags, fire vehicles positioned outside the station and a moment of silence. Read more
Former RMV site draws ideas as Lakeside lands $21 million
Residents offered ideas ranging from housing and a grocery store to a pharmacy and parking garage for the former Registry of Motor Vehicles site at 611 Main St. The Worcester Redevelopment Authority plans to seek developers for the 1.5-acre property by the end of the year, with a minimum bid of $1.5 million. Meanwhile, the Worcester Housing Authority secured $21 million in state funding for a four-phase redevelopment of Lakeside Apartments that would replace its 202 existing units with 350 homes. Read more
More than $250,000 available for Worcester arts projects
The Worcester Arts Council opened applications for more than $250,000 in project and fellowship grants for artists, cultural organizations and community programs. The fiscal 2027 funding pool includes $244,500 from the Mass Cultural Council and another $15,000 from the Greater Worcester Community Foundation for individual artist fellowships. Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. Oct. 15, with funding decisions expected by late January. Read more
Canal Diggers race celebrates 20 years with Bill Rodgers
The Canal Diggers 5K returns Saturday for its 20th anniversary with four-time Boston Marathon winner Bill Rodgers joining the celebration. The race begins and ends at Fiddler’s Green at the Hibernian Cultural Center, with a kids run at 9:30 a.m., the 5K at 10:30 and food, refreshments and entertainment afterward. The volunteer-run event has donated more than $50,000 to local nonprofits over its first two decades. Read more
Golden Grain moves from home kitchen to downtown café
Golden Grain Artisanal Bread Café opened its first brick-and-mortar location this week at 250 Commercial St. after beginning as a home-based cottage food business in 2024. Owners Bryan Faucher and Leidy Cotrina expanded the concept beyond artisanal bread to include pastries, beverages and seasonal dishes drawing on several culinary traditions. The café is also sourcing espresso beans through a multigenerational farm in Honduras and building its menu around seasonal whole foods from independent farmers. Read more
Clark students use game design to confront schizophrenia and psychosis
Clark University students are working with clinicians, advocates, caregivers and people with lived experience to develop games aimed at reducing isolation and improving social connection for people with schizophrenia and psychosis. About 80 students developed prototypes last spring through a partnership between Clark’s Becker School of Design & Technology and the Schizophrenia & Psychosis Action Alliance. The collaboration continues Sept. 26 and 27 with Clark’s first Games Matter! Jamathon, bringing designers and people directly affected by serious mental illness together to develop new concepts. Read more
WPI researchers win $1.26 million for AI-related research
Two Worcester Polytechnic Institute researchers are getting more than $1.26 million in five-year National Science Foundation CAREER awards for projects involving artificial intelligence. Fatemeh Ganji received $624,083 to study security vulnerabilities in specialized AI hardware used in devices such as health monitors and security cameras. Fanglin Che received $637,801 to develop AI-assisted methods for studying and improving processes that capture carbon dioxide and convert it into fuels and other useful products. Read more
Electricity aggregation rates fall again in October
Worcester residents enrolled in the city’s Green Worcester ElectriCITY program will see lower electricity supply rates beginning with October bills. The most widely used Standard Green option will fall from 15.32 cents to 14.12 cents per kilowatt-hour, while Basic Green drops to 14.08 cents and the 100% Green option to 14.19 cents. The new rates will remain in effect through December 2027, although the city cautions that future savings compared with National Grid cannot be guaranteed. Read more
Library event puts freedom to read in the spotlight
The Worcester Public Library Foundation will focus on the freedom to read during its annual meeting Thursday, Sept. 17, at the downtown library. ACLU of Massachusetts Executive Director Carol Rose will discuss access to books and information, while the library’s Facilities Team receives the foundation’s 2026 Dr. William F. and Betty O’Neil Service Award. The free public event runs from 6 to 7:30 p.m. and also includes foundation business and a reception. Read more
Joe Morgan remembered through a lifetime of baseball stories
Former Red Sox and Pawtucket Red Sox manager Joe Morgan died Saturday at age 95, leaving behind a career that made him one of New England baseball’s most enduring figures. Morgan managed a franchise-record 1,259 games for Pawtucket and won 601 of them before taking over the Red Sox in 1988 and leading Boston to two American League East titles. Worcester Guardian columnist Bill Ballou, who called Morgan his closest friend in professional baseball, remembered a man whose interests ranged from baseball and hockey to gardening, mushrooms and candlepin bowling. Read more
Railers bring back Donhauser, add veteran Campagna
The Worcester Railers signed returning forward Cole Donhauser and veteran JC Campagna, bringing the club’s announced roster to 21 players for the 2026-27 season. Donhauser played 68 games for Worcester last season and recorded 27 points, while Campagna arrives with 214 ECHL games and nine professional seasons behind him. The roster now includes 13 forwards, seven defensemen and one goaltender as Worcester prepares for its first season as the ECHL affiliate of the St. Louis Blues. Read more
Pride, skating, jazz and more fill the weekend
Pride Worcester anchors a busy weekend Saturday, but several other events are spread across the city through Sunday. Skate Night Worcester takes over the Common Friday evening, Chet Williamson brings an all-original jazz performance to the WCUW FrontRoom Sunday and Holy Cross hosts its free Crusader Community Festival the same day. The JMAC also hosts “The Canvas Comeback,” an exhibition of nearly 200 works by suicide attempt survivor Mark Flanagan, with a Saturday evening reception. Read more
Have a story tip, community concern, or insight to share? Email Editor Charlene Arsenault at carsenault@theworcesterguardian.org.
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