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Walts ‘nails’ gig at N.Y. Fashion Week
ANN MARIE WALTS
as though you were seeing it for the first time or the last time. Then your time on earth will be filled with glory.” - BETTY SMITH
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2015
VOL. 84 NO. 048
By PETER FRANCIS Staff Writer WESTFIELD – Ann Marie Walts, a local beautician, is looking forward to taking full advantage of a fantastic opportunity – one she has actually had several times before – providing manicuring services with several other area beauticians for the Sergio Davila show today at 3 p.m., one of the events headlining the annual Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York. The owner of The Loft Salon Studio on Westfield Street in West Springfield, Walts is also a published editorial manicurist who has been working on photoshoots in New York for five years and said working on Fashion Week is a dizzying experience, at times. “The buzz and energy that goes on behind the scenes is nuts,” said Walts, 44, who was born in Westfield and graduated from high school in the city. “You’ll have a model and she’ll be sitting in a chair with an octopus of makeup people, hairdressers and a manicurist at her feet.” Walts said she got into beauty work over 20 years ago and knew from a young age she wanted to make other people’s beauty her life, having worked as a hair color educator for Redken for a decade before getting consistent work with fashion photographers in New York City several years back. Over the past few years, Walts has manicured several entertainers, most notably actress Maggie Grace, recording artist Eve and model J. Alexander. She said Fashion Week has continued to grow bigger and bigger every year, and has become more selective about who is able to strut their stuff, on the runway and behind the scenes. “It has gone back to clamping down and it really has become an ‘invite only’ event and I hold my breath every year hoping I can get a chance to get in,” Walts said. A full service beautician, Walts specializes in extreme eyelash extensions in addition to being an accomplished hairdresser and manicurist and loves the feeling she gets from working with new clients. “Recently, I gave a haircut to a new client who works as a psychiatrist who said she hadn’t really liked her in a decade. She had shared with me about a week ago that she couldn’t believe how it made her feel on the inside,” said Walts. “After you do something for 22 years, you can get used to what you do, but then somebody says something like that and you think ‘yeah, yeah, that’s why I got into this.’” In terms of what she’ll gain from the three-hour Davila show this afternoon, which will see her manicure as many as 20 models, Walts said she hopes her efforts in the Big Apple will lead to more exposure and work for her and her salon, as well as more opportunities to speak with young people. “I’ve accumulated success and accolades, but I’ve also been invited to talk at schools. A long time ago I was told not to be a hairstylist and sometimes, it pays not to listen,” said Walts. “I still love what I do and getting to go to New York and do it, it’s like the icing on the cake.”
“Look at everything
RALPH FIGY
MARY O’CONNELL
MARY ANN BABINSKI
Aquifer protection compromise proposed By DAN MORIARTY Staff Writer WESTFIELD – Ward 4 Councilor Mary O’Connell urged the City Council’s Legislative & Ordinance committee to present a version of the Water Resource Zoning Overlay District amendment that could have the best chance of gaining support at Monday night’s City Council meeting. The committee has to submit a version of the ordinance change Monday because the clock is running out on the 90 days the council has to review a proposed ordinance change following its public hearing. The problem is that there is the current ordinance which needs to be revised and given teeth. Then there is the original amendment, which expands the protective zone to include any parcel of property where even a small area of that land is actually over the aquifer recharge zone. Then the Planning Board voted to eliminate the escape clause contained in the original amendment, deleting a special permit review process for commercial parcels of less than two-acres. The original permit prohibits development of commercial property of less than two acres, except through a special permit by the Planning Board. The proposed change has been discussed in committee and on the council floor where there has been criticism of the original amendment and even greater concern about the Planning Board’s version of the proposed ordinance change. Ward 2 Councilor Ralph Figy, the L&O chairman, opened the committee’s meeting to a wide range of city officials and several residents, allowing a very broad discussion at the meeting which was moved to the City Council Chambers because of the number of people attending. Two residents, Mary Ann Babinski of Rogers Avenue and Barbara Rokosz of Lockhouse Road, argued that the L&O should present the Planning Board version because it is the most restrictive. The two said they should adopt the version recommended by subject matter experts. Babinski and Rokosz said the Planning Board is the city’s zoning experts and that the board’s version, which includes recommendations of the
Barnes Aquifer Protection Advisory Board, provides the greatest level of protection for the aquifer in the city, including the Barnes Aquifer which provides drinking water for Westfield, Southampton, Easthampton and Holyoke. City Advancement Officer Joseph Mitchell requested O’Connell to withdraw the zoning amendment to allow time to make it more development supportive in the protective zone, which will cover 8,153 acres of land in the city. “There is quite a bit of commercial development which could occur one the Northside,” Mitchell said. “My job is to promote (commercial) growth and this (ordinance) is a deal killer. We can protect the aquifer without tying our hands for development on the Northside.” Ward 6 Councilor Christopher Crean, in whose ward the aquifer is located, and Ward 5 Councilor Robert A. Paul Sr., took an even stronger position opposing the ordinance because of several concerns including the elimination of the special permit escape clause and the split zone which extends protection to an entire parcel if even a sliver is in the aquifer recharge area. “There is a fine line between conservation (of natural resources) and business development,” Crean said. “Now development is evil and bad. You can discuss and debate the way this is written, and then put up a sign saying we’re going out of business. This ordinance goes too far. Let’s take another look at it because as it’s written now there is no way I could support it.” O’Connell said she has been working to update the existing ordinance for 10 years. “If I withdraw it, it could be another 10 years before something is passed,” she said. “I’d rather see it amended on the floor than to see councilors say ‘No! No! No!,’” O’Connell said. “I’d like to see the (L&O) Committee bring out the ordinance as (originally) proposed and without the Planning Board’s recommendation. Can you live with that?” The L&O then voted to bring out the original version Monday night and that debate of the Planniing Board’s version could take place with the entire City Council membership participating.
Baker supports western Mass. Internet BOSTON – Yesterday, Governor Charlie Baker and Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito announced their commitment to broadband expansion initiatives designed to narrow existing gaps in high-speed Internet access for residents and businesses in western Massachusetts. Baker announced he will commit up to $50 million in existing capital funding to the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) for broadband expansion initiatives. These state funds will be used to catalyze significant additional municipal and private investment, and will support innovative, sustainable, locally-led projects. “Providing high-speed broadband access to all cities and towns is not only a matter of basic fairness, but it is an essential part of building stronger communities and a stronger economy,” said Baker. “It’s time that we connect cities and towns throughout Massachusetts to the high-speed broadband service that is critical in today’s digital world.” “This administration is committed to empowering residents and unleashing entrepreneurial activity throughout the Commonwealth,” said Polito. “With this funding, we are one step closer towards closing the digital divide that continues to hinder residents and businesses in western Massachusetts.” The announcement came after a joint meeting of the Executive Committee of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative Board of Directors and the MBI Board of Directors. The MBI, a division of the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative, is the state entity designated to partner with municipalities, residents, and providers to support development of these broadband expansion solutions. “Despite the current budget deficit, the Baker-Polito Administration remains committed to investing in our regional economies, and creating See Broadband, Page 3
JOE MITCHELL
CHRISTOPHER M. CREAN
ROBERT PAUL GOV. CHARLIE BAKER
Statewide candidates raised, spent about $33M in 2014 BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts candidates spent about $33 million during last year’s elections for statewide officers, a jump of about 9 percent from the 2010 total of $30.4 million. A report by the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance, released yesterday, also found candidates for governor in 2014 reported raising and spending a total of about $20 million. The 2014 figure was a significant drop from the record set in 2006, the last time there was an open race for governor. During the 2006 campaign, gubernatorial candidates raised and spent a total of more than $40 million. The winner of the 2014 race, Republican Charlie Baker, spent the most — about $5.6 million — followed by Democrat Martha Coakley, who reported spending $3.9 million. That doesn’t include the nearly $17 million spent by outside groups, including so-called super PACs.
Two statewide races broke campaign spending records. The three candidates for attorney general spent a total of $4.3 million for an open seat, the highest amount recorded by the political finance office. The seat was open because Coakley, the state’s former attorney general, was running for governor. The winner, Maura Healy, reported spending $1.4 million; her Democratic primary opponent Warren Tolman spent the most — $1.9 million. The Republican nominee, John Miller, reported $1 million in expenditures. The five candidates running for treasurer, also an open seat, broke a record by spending $4.6 million — the highest amount reported in a race for Massachusetts treasurer, according to the political finance office. The previous high of $4.2 million was set in 2002. The eventual 2014 winner, Deborah Goldberg, spent $2.4 million. Goldberg’s
In these 2014 photos, Massachusetts attorney general candidates Democrat Maura Healey, left, and Republican John Miller, right, speak in Framingham. (AP Photo/MetroWest Daily News, Art Illman)
Democratic primary challenger Barry Finegold came in second with $1.4 million in spending. Republican Michael Heffernan reported $430,604 in expenditures.