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By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A large gateway sign to greet visitors to the Amherst College campus coming from points west and north, better announcing the college’s presence at the southern edge of downtown, is again being proposed for installation by college officials...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A town website focused on the municipal work related to addressing climate change and making Amherst more sustainable recently went live.“It’s pretty much a one-stop opportunity to access information on what has been done, what is being...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — With the Conservation Commission and Board of Health registering objections to the proposed poured-in-place rubber surface of a playground at the town’s new elementary school, the design team is asking the Elementary School Building...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A contractor to demolish the former VFW building at 457 Main St. is being sought by the town, the next step in redeveloping the site for supportive affordable housing and a permanent homeless shelter.The town recently posted a bid soliciting...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — The Town Council could vote as early as Feb. 26 on adopting a “Resolution for a Cease-fire in Gaza,” a measure that not only calls for a cease-fire, but the release of hostages and detainees on both sides, ensuring humanitarian aid enters...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Annual events that draw in excess of 1,000 spectators, like the Country in the Country concert and spring and fall festivals for area college students, will continue to be held at the Young Men’s Club, pending approval of one-day liquor...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A year after 300 people came out to celebrate the Lunar New Year at Spring Festival with music, dance and food, a similar event to commemorate 2024 — the Year of the Dragon — takes place Saturday.The get-together, running from 10:30 a.m. to...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Even with continued concerns over having just a small pool of applicants to be Amherst’s next police chief, a search committee is forging ahead with interviews.Five candidates, culled from 11 who submitted letters of interest in the job,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — An 85-unit mixed-use project is being proposed for the corner of Amity Street and University Drive, but the potential development may depend on variance requests coming before the Zoning Board of Appeals later this month.UDrive Amity LLC,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — A proposed $21.7 million operating budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2024 maintains all municipal and school programs and current staffing levels, according to a presentation by Hadley’s financial team last week.“There’s no...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — As subdivision roads in one housing development are nearing acceptance as town ways, roads in another subdivision, completed by the same developer several years earlier, are in increasingly poor condition, frustrating homeowners who continue...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Plans for the redevelopment of a Route 9 Subaru dealership, including a new 31,568-square-foot showroom and service area and a reconfigured parking lot, are being filed with town planners.As the Steve Lewis Subaru at 315 Russell St.,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — A historic guideboard on the Shutesbury Town Common since 1837, helping travelers navigate to Massachusetts communities both near and far, is temporarily absent from the green as a restoration project begins.The wooden guideboard was...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — A new climate-controlled storage building rising on commercial- and industrial-zoned farmland, affecting the vista of the Holyoke Range for those biking and walking on the nearby Norwottuck Rail Trail, is putting a 2021 Planning Board...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Some students let their instruments do the talking at a marathon Amherst School Committee hearing Tuesday at which dozens of people pleaded against a plan to eliminate an instrumental music teacher for the town’s three elementary...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Chicken cordon bleu pizza and slices topped with tortellini are among the food offerings J. Mascis, an Amherst native and founder of the rock band Dinosaur Jr., says he can get when dining in town, likely a reference to what is available at...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — On his first day at Shutesbury Town Hall, a week before officially being sworn in as the Police Department’s first K-9 officer, Charlie provided a calming distraction for a stressed and flustered resident who had come to the town...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Books associated with Amherst College’s 2021 bicentennial are earning the college the Amherst Historical Society’s annual Arthur F. Kinney Conch Shell Award.The historical society will present the award during its annual meeting, which...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A new five-story apartment project that would rise behind and be connected to the back of the former A.J. Hastings building is receiving a favorable recommendation from an Amherst town committee.Before site plans for the development at 45-55...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — In a region where most businesses are small, with 20 or fewer employees, having an organization to advocate on their behalf, help market them and assist them through unforeseen challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic is critical, says Amherst...