News
Belchertown eyes regionalizing dispatch services with Wilbraham
By EMILEE KLEIN
BELCHERTOWN — The town this summer is likely to become the latest to follow a growing trend in the region of outsourcing emergency communications to regional dispatch centers.Staffing shortages for dispatchers and $7.6 million in upcoming radio...
Last look at old library: Amherst’s Jones giving tours through March
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — Final opportunities for patrons to get an inside look at both the original 1928 Jones Library building and its 1990s addition, before work commences on an expansion and renovation project at the 43 Amity St. site this spring, are taking...
Postmarking history: Leverett kicks off 250th anniversary celebration
By SCOTT MERZBACH
At one time, the U.S. post office in town center doubled as a general store, a place where adults picked up and sent their mail or filled their gas tanks and children could choose from a wide variety of penny candy on their way to and from elementary...
Designer picked for geothermal project at Hopkins Academy
By SCOTT MERZBACH
HADLEY — A designer will soon be on board to oversee a project that could bring a geothermal heating and cooling system to Hopkins Academy, reducing the use of fossil fuels in the 70-year-old school building.The School Committee at its Feb. 26 meeting...
Hadley will continue to collect inspection fees for events at Young Men’s Club
By SCOTT MERZBACH
HADLEY — The town will continue to collect municipal fees associated with inspections for concerts and events drawing in excess of 1,000 people at the Young Men’s Club, with Select Board members saying the town can’t subsidize events at a private club...
The Lehrer Report: March 15, 2024
Garden report: If the weather reaches 50-60 degrees this week, my daffodils should open. The daffodils are in a bed on the south side of the house, close to the foundation, so get the warmth. The tulips and daylily shoots are also up several inches.If...
Phelps House fixes, Town Hall repair plan in line for $190K in Hadley CPA funds
By SCOTT MERZBACH
HADLEY — Community Preservation Act money for an initial phase of fixing up an early 19th-century farmhouse at the Porter Phelps Huntington Museum and hiring an architect to evaluate and prepare the 1840 Town Hall for renovations is being recommended...
Slavery North: Researcher brings initiative, $2.65M grant to UMass to explore, tell story of enslaved people in northern U.S. and Canada
By SCOTT MERZBACH
In film, literature, paintings and other forms of art, palm trees and warm climates are almost always the settings depicted for slavery in North America, from the plantations of the American South to the transatlantic ships transporting human cargo...
A dream fulfilled: Aaron Lansky, whose Yiddish Book Center helped reclaim a culture, stepping aside
By STEVE PFARRER
AMHERST — Aaron Lansky, founder and president of the Yiddish Book Center, began his 2004 memoir about his work, “Outwitting History,” with a memorable anecdote: how he’d taken a dead-of-night train from the Valley to Manhattan in 1980 and, with the...
Amherst Regional School Committee will seek financial lift from Amherst College
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — Both short- and long-term financial contributions and other collaborations with Amherst College will be sought through a new negotiating subcommittee being established by the Amherst Regional School Committee.On a night when students,...
For second time in 12 years, neighbors mobilize against proposed gravel pit operation in Granby
By EMILEE KLEIN
GRANBY — It’s deja vu for many residents who live in the northeast section of town, where plans have been submitted for the operation of a gravel pit some 12 years after a group of neighbors successfully sued the town to thwart a similar...
Jones trustees short on expected library project contribution
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — Even though an end-of-January commitment from the Jones Library trustees to provide the town $2 million for the $46.1 million project to expand and renovate the 43 Amity St. building wasn’t met, town officials are anticipating no impact on...
The Lehrer Report: March 8, 2024
Reminder: Change your clocks Saturday night so that you will be ready for the new daylight saving time time Sunday morning.In good news, we have over 11 hours of daylight now. Commuting is now done completely in the light, no headlights...
Around Amherst: Tibetan march on Sunday commemorates uprising
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — Local Tibetans will commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Tibetan National Uprising on Sunday, beginning a march at 9 a.m. from the steps of Amherst Town Hall that will take them along Route 9 in Hadley to Northampton City Hall, and...
Amherst board relaxes zoning for big project next to UMass
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — A large mixed-use development next to the University of Massachusetts, providing both market-rate and affordable housing, can proceed to the next phase of municipal review after receiving Zoning Board of Appeals variances that will allow the...
Committee searching for new Amherst superintendent to begin screening 10 applicants
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — A search committee for identifying the next superintendent for the Amherst, Amherst-Pelham Regional and Pelham schools can begin screening among 10 individuals who have applied for the leadership position.“We believe there are many strong...
Rural issues on a global stage: Renowned climate justice activist Flowers gives keynote at UMass for Black History Month
By EMILEE KLEIN
AMHERST — Before acclaimed environmental activist Catherine Coleman Flowers said one word about herself at the outset of a talk at UMass on Feb. 29, she expressed gratitude to marginalized communities across the country who trusted her to share their...
Natural history, art museum leaders at UMass raise concerns about storage of collections
By NAILA MOREIRA
UMass does not have a natural history museum, something of a quirk of history.Specimens from the university’s collection were once stored and displayed in large glass cases in South College, which burned down in the late 1800s. The collection was...
Amherst school union demands action on racism concerns
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST — Already having an active Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination lawsuit against the Amherst-Pelham public schools, a middle school teacher recently brought concerns about a hostile work environment for herself and other Black staff...
Sweet spot: Area sugarhouses start tapping season early after warm winter days
By DIANE BRONCACCIO
The groundhog predicted an early end to winter: did that also mean an earlier start to maple sugaring? Apparently so, according to several maple sugarers in the region.“This is the earliest we’ve ever started,” remarked Chip Williams of the...
