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Staff Report

NORTHAMPTON — Twelve Massachusetts farms, including three in Hadley, will share in $4.7 million in Agricultural Preservation Restriction funds announced Friday by the state.The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources’ APR program purchases...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Superintendent Michael Morris will leave his position after seven years in the role, a mutual departure announced by the Amherst-Pelham Regional and Union 26 school committees on the afternoon of Aug. 18.The announcement comes after the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Earl Miller, Amherst’s director of the unarmed police alternative Community Responders for Equity, Safety and Service department, is on paid administrative leave until the completion of an independent investigation, according to town...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

Before Anita Sarro’s mother died in 2012, the setting and staff at the Hospice of the Fisher Home in North Amherst center brought comfort and compassion for the final three weeks her mother lived, and to her family during that time.“I saw how the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A permanent retractable ramp at a downtown performance venue is an acceptable means of getting the public and others onto the stage when necessary, according to a recent decision by a state agency.The Architectural Access Board, at its July...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A greenspace and parking area in front of Town Hall will likely be fenced off by mid- to late September as long-awaited work on the North Common project gets underway.Town officials recently gave the go-ahead for Caracas Construction of...

By Scott Merzbach

AMHERST — Playwright Annie Baker’s feature film directorial debut, featuring location shoots in Amherst, Hadley and Leverett in summer 2022, will be shown at the 61st annual New York City Film Festival this fall.The festival, running from Sept. 29 to...

By THOMAS JOHNSTON

SOUTH DEERFIELD — The Frontier Regional athletic department will have a new leader this fall. Dave Sanschagrin — who previously served as the athletic director at Southwick High School — was hired to replace Carl Cyr as the Redhawks’ athletic...

By JAMES PENTLAND

NORTHAMPTON — As farmers continue to recover from July’s floods with the aid of community support, two government-sponsored funds are gearing up to issue their first checks.With donations pushing the Massachusetts Farm Resiliency Fund beyond $2...

Staff Report

BELCHERTOWN — A 19-year-old man was killed Sunday night after being ejected from the vehicle he was driving while being pursued by a Massachusetts State Police trooper, according to a State Police news release.Driver Miles Murray of Henniker, New...

By RUSS VERNON-JONES

The climate news has been especially brutal recently — both locally and globally. While it’s important to face how bad things are, I think it is wise to also put our attention on good climate news wherever we can find it. Here are some of the local...

The recent guest column “Wrongly blocking solar in Shutesbury,” [Gazette, July 22] by Dan Winslow, president of the New England Legal Foundation “a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that advocates for free enterprise, property rights, rule of law,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst’s Human Rights Commission is praising the state of human rights in town, including the Town Council’s adoption of a resolution affirming a commitment to “end structural racism and achieve racial equity for Black residents” and...

Garden report: The leaves on the lilac bush have black spots. It is very sad looking. The blight was caused by the excessive rain. From what I have read, the bush should be OK next year. I hope so. The lilacs have such a wonderful aroma and I would...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst is making progress toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions from municipal operations, according to a preliminary report presented to the town’s Energy and Climate Action Committee.Caitlin Hart, a graduate student at Tufts University...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Regulating large-scale solar projects proposed for land that is actively being farmed or is significantly wooded remains a sticking point for an Amherst committee attempting to write a solar bylaw to be adopted by the Town Council.“It’s...

Garden report: The radishes I planted last week have all popped up. I made two batches of refrigerator pickles. I used my cucumbers, my dill and onion. I add salt, the only item that is not grown in my garden. Both batches were shared with friends. I...

By CHRIS LARABEE

DEERFIELD — The solar array proposed for the town’s former landfill can move forward following the Planning Board’s approval of its site plan on Aug. 7.With the green light given, Deerfield Renewables LLC, alongside Nexamp, can proceed with a...

After reading Dan Winslow’s guest column [“Wrongly blocking solar in Shutesbury,” Gazette, July 21], I felt compelled to write a response. The writer tried to convince us that we need to sacrifice our forests to create solar energy. He conveniently...

By M.J. SCHWARTZ

Superintendent Michael Morris has returned from medical leave and is gearing up to begin the 2023-2024 school year without acknowledging his role in the middle school debacle, which the public was just beginning to learn about right before his leave...