REGIONAL – MEVA, the fare-free bus line that serves northeast Massachusetts, turned 50 last week with a celebration at the new McGovern Transportation Center. In 1974, the Massachusetts legislature created 10 regional transit authorities to take over for failing...
Stewart Lytle

Stewart Lytle is the lead reporter for The Town Common newspaper. Before joining The Town Common, he was a national correspondent for Scripps-Howard Newspapers in Washington, D.C., covering the Pentagon and Congress. He has also written for newspapers in Dallas, TX, and Birmingham, AL.
As a national reporter for the Scripps Howard newspaper chain, Stewart wrote the inside story on military life of soldiers and sailors and their families. He landed on aircraft carriers, experienced oxygen deprivation for high-altitude flight training and crawled through the mud with Marine snipers.
One of his proudest achievements outside of journalism was assisting USAA Chairman Robert McDermott in securing federal legislation that mandated air bags in vehicles.
Stewart is also a novelist and has written non-fiction books. He is currently working on a non-fiction book and screenplay about an incident that occurred in Boston.
His first novel, Iron City Conspiracy, explores power in a city. It features a black newspaper editor solving the bombing of a historic black church in a tough Alabama town.
Following in the footsteps of his idol, Ernest Hemingway, Stewart has completed a new novel about a love affair in the midst of the Spanish Civil War. The book, Montserrat, is based on a true story and has been made into a screenplay that will become an international feature film.
A graduate of Phillips Academy and Princeton University, Stewart lives with his wife, Mary, in Newburyport.
Will $1 Million Save the Iconic Pink House?
NEWBURY – If the old adage that ‘money talks’ is still true, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FW&S) may have a reason to reconsider its plans to demolish the Pink House. An anonymous local Pink House supporter has pledged in what is called a “game changer,”...
Construction on Mello Trash Transfer Station Begins
GEORGETOWN – A new era in trash management for North Shore communities is beginning with pre-construction of a new circular path through the land at the end of Carlton Drive, once owned by the Mirra Corp. Construction of the 500-ton transfer station near Interstate 95...
Tashjian Rescinds Beverly Homestead Exemption – Recently Married Rep. Candidate Staying in Georgetown
REGIONAL – Just over a year ago, Republican legislative candidate Mark Tashjian intended to reside in a home in Beverly, which is not in the Second Essex legislative district he is now seeking to represent in the state House. This month, after the chair of the town’s...
The Axe (and Demolition Crews) May Fall Soon on the Iconic Newbury Pink House
NORTH SHORE — The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (F&WS) is planning to demolish the iconic Pink House just before its 100th birthday. The remediation process on the house at 60 Plum Island Turnpike to remove asbestos and mold began last week. Matthew Hillman,...
Blackburn Energy Wins Award for Reduced Fuel Consumption, Capturing Wasted Energy
ROWLEY – Two Marines sit in the cab of a 1200,000-pound Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR), watching the enemy in Middle Eastern desert of the Middle East. In a program known in the Marine Corps as “Silent Watch,” they run their air conditioning, computers...
Update on 500-Ton Mello Trash Transfer Station
GEORGETOWN – The residents of this town are likely to get a large new business, collecting and transferring trash from around the region. Harry LaCortiglia, chair of the town’s Planning Board, said last week that his board, which has approved the 500-ton transfer...
Plum Island Property Owner Moves to Replace Closed 125-Seat Restaurant with Four Multi-Story Condos
NEWBURY – With the former owner of the Plum Island Grille facing a felony criminal charge for vandalizing the popular, but now closed restaurant, property owner Mark Friery is planning to tell the town in the next couple of weeks that he will seek permits to build...
Democrats Seek Limit to Open Meeting Law Complaints
GEORGETOWN – The state House Ways and Means Committee is considering a measure that would allow municipalities to request relief from the Attorney General from having to address complaints about open meeting violations from a single individual who files more than a...
Kassner Draws Opponent
REGIONAL — Two years ago in her first race for the state legislature, Kristin Kassner won by one vote. Now running for reelection, Kassner has the endorsement of Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. In the 2nd Essex District, which encompasses the towns of...
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