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By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A lone $42.7 million bid by a general contractor for expanding and renovating the Jones Library building, coming in more than $7 million over cost estimates, could be putting the entire project at risk.“We are disappointed to have received...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

A new retail store carrying assorted Amherst College merchandise, as well as school supplies, tech accessories and snacks, is open at 45 South Pleasant St., as demolition of a building immediately to the south, and removal of an attached ell to the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A foundational skills reading program, known as Magnetic Foundations, is being piloted by eight teachers in the four Amherst and Pelham elementary schools as the focus of an elementary literacy curriculum review this school year.Mary Kiely,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Significant work and time for municipal staff associated with preparing for New England Public Media’s annual Asparagus Festival is prompting Hadley officials to examine whether fees should be increased and other adjustments made to how...

By STEVE PFARRER

The Holyoke Civic Symphony has titled its 2023-2024 season “The Brass Menagerie,” not to be cute but to highlight a series of concerts dedicated to celebrating the family of brass instruments: the horn, the tuba, the trumpet, and the trombone.On May...

By STEVE PFARRER

Call it an encore performance.“The Spiderwick Chronicles,” the bestselling series of fantasy books by Amherst writers Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black, has just been turned into a streaming series on The Roku Channel.That comes 16 years after a feature...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — The tiny number of emergency dispatch calls directed to the Community Responders for Equity, Safety and Service since mid-December, when the department began taking 911 calls, is prompting worries by members of the Community Safety and...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — With 12 collisions between 2021 and 2023 and likely an even greater number of close calls at the intersection of Routes 5 and 10, North Main Street and Mill Village Road, two residents have launched a petition asking the state Department...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A townwide cleanup day, organized by Amherst’s community participation officers and University of Massachusetts work study students, is taking place Saturday.Rain or shine, volunteers will fan out in town to remove trash and debris beginning...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — A bylaw that would allow standalone energy storage systems in most zoning districts in Hadley, but which would prohibit them in aquifer protection areas, is being brought to annual Town Meeting next month, with an endorsement from the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A revised plan for investigating bullying and stopping such incidents at the Amherst-Pelham regional schools is raising concerns for some members of the Regional School Committee, who see the changes as taking a backward step.“This new...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Fire Chief Walter O. “Tim” Nelson, who has led the department since early 2010, will retire from the position at the end of June, bringing to a close a more than 43-year career in fire services in which his emphasis has been on helping...

By STEVE PFARRER

A lot can change in 20 years: Presidents and other politicians come and go, new cultural fads and technologies emerge, clothing styles morph, and music and movies take on different dimensions.In these parts, one tradition hasn’t changed. Since 2005,...

By CHRIS LARABEE

In partnership with the American Folk Art Museum, Historic Deerfield is presenting an exhibition on the unexplored histories of Black people in early America.“Unnamed Figures: Black Presence and Absence in the Early American North” explores Black...

By EMILEE KLEIN

BELCHERTOWN — Jake Hulseberg won’t let his children play on the swing set he built them in their backyard on Mountain View Drive because of bullets that shattered glass doors on two houses on the street.Instead, Hulseberg keeps his kids in the front...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

Editor’s note: The first of three finalists for the job of superintendent was interviewed last week. Stories about visits of the other two finalists will appear when they interview the week of April 22.AMHERST — A strong work ethic, an ability to...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A Puffer’s Pond improvement plan, with recommendations for enhancing both the dam and the dike surrounding the body of water, could be developed through funding from a state grant program.Assistant Town Manager David Ziomek announced to the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Family fun, education and entertainment are expected to be part of the Amherst Sustainability Festival, being held for the 12th time on the Town Common on Saturday.Running from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the festival will have a number of vendors,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — An unfolded brown paper bag is being transformed, through use of crayons, pencils and paint markers, into a banner showcasing an acclaimed American naturalist, artist and academic.“I think Anna Comstock was very impressive in her work,” says...

By STEVE PFARRER

’Tis the season of gigs by artists dropping new albums.In early April, the Valley indie-folk band Cloudbelly celebrated a new disc, “i know i know i know,” with back-to-back shows at The Parlor Room in Northampton, and Natalie Cressman & Ian Faquini,...

By STEVE PFARRER

Not so long ago, there was a general lament sometimes heard among Valley musicians: “There aren’t enough places to play around here.”That might have been true for professional players who wanted to be paid — and maybe, despite the opening of new local...