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By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst’s strong financial position and prudent fiscal management are being recognized by S&P Global Ratings, which recently gave the town an AA+ bond rating with a stable outlook, the second highest rating it assigns.

Garden report: the peonies have bloomed. Several volunteer morning glories are up.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A ceremonial groundbreaking for the $46.1 million expansion and renovation of the Jones Library, which is already closed to the public to make way for the project, is set for June 18.

By CHRIS LARABEE

As the national art and celebrity worlds coalesced at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s annual Met Gala in early May, the exhibition coinciding with the event at the nation’s most-visited museum also featured several local ties.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Two canoes circling Lake Warner in North Hadley on a mild and sunny Wednesday morning last week provided a chance for those on board to paddle the 70-acre pond and appreciate the sights and sounds of the area, from fish swimming through the water to birds flying overhead, and even a large snake briefly coming onto the lawn next to the boat launch.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — An historic school building in town center that has been vacant for a decade could be rehabilitated into micro apartments, office space or classrooms and art studios at a cost of less than $10 million, according to a report presented to the Select Board last week.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — A five-year plan for addressing the continued growth of water chestnuts at Lake Warner in North Hadley will include use of the weed killer Diquat on nearly 11 acres of the 70-acre pond.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A presentation of the Human Rights Commission’s Youth Hero Awards and a picnic will highlight Race Amity Day: A Celebration of the Oneness of the Human Family, taking place Sunday at Mill River Recreation Area, 95 Montague Road.

By JOHN CARNEY

Proponents of Death with Dignity legislation in Massachusetts are heartened by positive feedback in the current session of the State House. At the present time, 10 states, and Washington D.C., have laws which allow terminally ill patients the legal option to end their lives with a physician-issued prescription. Massachusetts is not one of those states.

By NANCY E. GROSSMAN

In the end, the dispute came down to about 15 tents and a fence loosely constructed of wooden pallets that had collectively been up for less than a day. But this small encampment was enough to trigger an ill-considered decision by first-year UMass Amherst Chancellor Javier Reyes that cost taxpayers more than half a million dollars and drove a likely permanent wedge between the administration and some of the UMass community.

I have written in these pages that the demolition and rebuilding of Amherst’s Jones Library is based on a design that is already out-of-date. The Covid pandemic changed how we create, store and retrieve information. The number of in-person visitors to the Jones each year has declined from about 325,000 to 175,000.

Shortly after dawn on Thursday, May 22, the Republican-held House of Representatives approved, strictly along party lines and by a single vote, a budget bill that is cruel, anti-democratic, and dangerous for our economy. Every person in this country must be aware of how, exactly, this group of legislators turned against America.

By ALEXA LEWIS

HADLEY — Beneath rows of glowing lanterns and string lights, students of the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School bustled about Wednesday evening — untangling multicolored cords, securing pins and caps, and taking photographs with both the families they live with at home and the family they built during their time at the school.

By EMILEE KLEIN

BELCHERTOWN — When the high school’s television projected 941 votes in favor of the School Department’s $34.54 million fiscal year 2026 budget to 154 votes against, a majority of the nearly 1,100 in attendance at a packed Town Meeting on Saturday erupted into cheers.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Asparagus and polka music, which have helped define Hadley culture in recent generations, are coming together during New England Public Media’s Asparagus Festival on Saturday, June 7, being held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on the historic Town Common on West Street.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst officials are notifying the community about U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement actions in which two individuals were taken into custody, in separate incidents on May 28 between 7 and 8 a.m.

By GARRETT COTE

NORTH ANDOVER — It only took a handful of regular season dual meets for Amherst Regional track and field coach Chris Gould to realize just how special his ‘Canes girls team could be in 2025. After blowing out teams throughout the spring, including rival Northampton in early May, Gould tabbed this Amherst girls squad as the program’s “best team ever.”

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — Police Chief Kristin Burgess has been placed on administrative leave, according to a message sent to the community by the Select Board on Friday.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — Describing the 2025 Hopkins Academy senior class as one that persevered, innovated and always gave back, those who spoke during Friday evening’s graduation ceremony recognized the support received from their families, their teachers and the community.

Garden report — I am at least 10 days behind in planting delayed by the cold and wet weather. However, the tomatoes and peppers are finally in. I planted asters, dahlia, snap dragons, celosia and phlox. There are still two flower areas to do. Some seedlings in front of my sliding glass door still need to get bigger.