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By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Scaled-back increases in the assessments for the Amherst Regional Schools are expected to be considered by residents when Shutesbury and Leverett hold their annual Town Meetings on Saturday.But the compromise 6% increases over the current...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

Editor’s note: The third of three finalists for the job of superintendent was interviewed Thursday. A decision could be made as soon as Monday. AMHERST — Collaboration, empathy and communication are being emphasized as traits Ericilda Xiomara Herman,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — On a Friday morning filled with music, ceremony and speeches by state leaders to inaugurate Javier Reyes as the 31st leader of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and the first Hispanic chancellor of the flagship campus, protesters...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Sixth graders from Amherst’s three elementary schools will relocate to a stand-alone 6th Grade Academy housed at the Amherst Regional Middle School in fall 2026, at the same time as the new 575-student, K-5 elementary school opens at the...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — The Amherst Regional School Committee agreed on Wednesday to a new budget proposal for the Amherst-Pelham Regional Schools next year that is nearly $500,000 less than a spending plan approved in March. The new budget means smaller 6%...

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

AMHERST — Interim Superintendent Douglas Slaughter has opted against hiring a permanent middle school principal despite a search that yielded three finalists, a decision one of those finalists says is retaliation against her because she recently filed...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HATFIELD — Town officials are recommending the use of free cash to cover a significant and unanticipated increase associated with the cost of tuition and transportation for Hatfield students attending Smith Vocational and Agricultural School in...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

Editor’s note: The second of three finalists for the job of superintendent was interviewed Tuesday. The final candidate will be interviewed Thursday. AMHERST — Experience in teaching, administration and establishing collaborative relationships,...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HADLEY — A deep energy retrofit planned for Hopkins Academy, using ground-source heat pumps, would cut more than three-quarters of the building’s greenhouse gas emissions and would significantly reduce estimated expenses associated with the health and...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Temporary Police Chief Gabriel Ting, who has led the department since last May and been a member of the force for almost 27 years, will become Amherst’s permanent chief, pending approval by the Town Council.Ting’s appointment to serve a...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

SHUTESBURY — Bylaws to regulate large-scale battery storage, limit outdoor light pollution, reduce greenhouse gas emissions in new housing construction and control door-to-door solicitors will be considered by residents at annual Town Meeting...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

LEVERETT — Money for continued restoration of the North Leverett Sawmill, a citizen petition calling for a permanent cease-fire in Gaza, and a $7.56 million budget for fiscal year 2025, which adds a fourth police officer to the Police Department, are...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Javier Reyes, whose leadership of University of Massachusetts flagship campus began July 1, will be formally inaugurated as the university’s 31st chancellor on Friday morning.The inauguration ceremony, being held at the Mullins Center and...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A Quincy-based temporary shelter that includes transitional housing, along with a resource center for people to find jobs, medical care and permanent homes, is being eyed as a model for how Amherst might redevelop the former VFW site at 457...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

CHICOPEE — A South Hadley man is dead following a shooting during an attempted robbery of a smoke shop and convenience store in Chicopee Thursday night, according to the Hampden district attorney’s office.Robert Papalardo, 53, died after being taken...

By SCOTT MERZBACH

HOLYOKE — A $400,000 restoration of two 23-foot-tall murals at the Broadway-style Victory Theatre, created by Italian immigrant Vincent Maragliotti in 1942, is complete, another step in the process toward reopening the 1920 building that has been...

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 SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A section of Eastman Lane, from the traffic signal at East Pleasant Street to just east of the entrance to Sylvan Lot 44, is closed after a leaking drainage culvert caused a sinkhole in the road Wednesday.Jersey barriers are set up and...

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

EASTHAMPTON —  A Springfield nonprofit developer planning to construct One Industrial Lofts, a 96-unit affordable housing development at the former Hampton textile mill at 11-15 Ferry St., is receiving a $400,000 loan from a public-private community...