Christopher Silvia, the owner of a restaurant on South Main Street known as “Christopher’s”, is challenging Democratic incumbent Mayor Paul Coogan. Silvia had originally announced his intentions to run for office via a Facebook post on July 10. Coogan is vying for his fourth term, while this is Silvia’s first run for public office — […]
South Coast Bureau
Posted inLocal, South Coast Bureau, Stories
Despite budget cuts, New Bedford’s Casa da Saudade library will remain open
A week after New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell said he would close the Casa da Saudade library in response to $10.2 million in budget cuts for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, he announced that the library branch will remain open but with reduced hours. According to the mayor’s press release, Casa da Saudade’s new operating hours […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
Medical oxygen, smoking materials may have caused Gabriel House fire, investigators say
Investigators believe the deadly fire at the Gabriel House assisted living facility in Fall River started in a resident’s room from either a failed oxygen concentrator or smoking materials later found in the room. “During this past week, investigators have retrieved and recovered more evidence, reviewed video footage, and spoken to witnesses,” Bristol County District […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
The Bristol County DA says it incorrectly declared a 10th person dead in Fall River fire
The Bristol County District Attorney’s office said Friday it had mistakenly announced that a 10th person had died in the fire at the Gabriel House assisted living facility in Fall River. The DA’s office said yesterday that 66-year-old Brenda Cropper had died. But now, the DA said that mistake was due to “a miscommunication with […]
Posted inArts And Culture, Local, South Coast Bureau
City council vote may decide the fate of New Bedford’s Zeiterion Theatre
UPDATE: During its July 17, 2025 meeting, the New Bedford City Council voted to restore $495,000 to the Zeiterion Theatre Inc. The Zeiterion Theatre opened in 1923 as the State Theater, a lavish vaudeville and movie house. It hosted the 1956 premier of “Moby Dick” with the movie’s star, Gregory Peck, in attendance. But by […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Local, South Coast Bureau
9 dead, 30 injured after five-alarm fire at assisted living facility in Fall River
Nine people are dead and at least 30 injured after a five-alarm fire at an assisted living facility in Fall River on Sunday night, according to city officials. “This is an unfathomable tragedy for the families involved and the Fall River community,” Fall River Fire Chief Jeffrey Bacon said in a statement early Monday morning. […]
Posted inLocal, Politics, South Coast Bureau
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell announces ‘austerity measures’ in response to budget cuts
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell announced a series of “austerity measures” on Friday. The moves are a response, he said, to the City Council recently cutting $10.2 million out of his proposed city budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Among the service reductions announced were a hiring freeze for non-public safety agencies for the first […]
Posted inImmigration, Local, South Coast Bureau
Can a bill protect New Bedford’s migrant teens from dangerous jobs?
Early morning on the New Bedford waterfront looks like a quaint New England scene, with colorful fishing boats lining up at warehouses to unload basket after basket of fresh fish. But a 2023 investigative series by The Public’s Radio revealed some of these seafood processing factories illegally employed migrant teenagers in roles where they worked […]
Posted inLocal, South Coast Bureau, Transportation
Extreme heat forces closure of New Bedford-Fairhaven bridge
The extreme heat wave this week has forced the New Bedford-Fairhaven bridge to close for a second day in a row, halting marine traffic into the nation’s highest-earning fishing port and forcing cars and trucks to avoid a main artery into the South Coast city. Starting on Tuesday as temperatures creeped above 100 degrees, the […]
Posted inArts And Culture, Local, South Coast Bureau
Nonprofit plans community process to reimagine New Bedford’s Star Store
The Star Store began as a humble dry goods shop in New Bedford’s whaling era, evolved into a grand downtown department store that died when the malls arrived, and re-emerged as a state arts college, only to close abruptly in 2023 with little notice. New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell recalled this winding history as he […]
