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By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

More than 100 demonstrators turned out in Northampton on Tuesday to protest the planned opening of a Chase Bank branch in Northampton, with protesters taking aim at the bank’s dealings with fossil fuel companies and calling for people to boycott the...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The attorney general’s office recently found that the School Committee violated the state’s Open Meeting Law by failing to fulfill a request for meeting minutes dating back to January 2020.The finding stems from a complaint filed by...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Two of four finalists to be the next superintendent of Northampton Public Schools described how they approach school bullying, how they craft school budgets and how they ensure equity at schools in interviews before the School Committee...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

CHESTERFIELD — In a world of rapidly rising energy costs and quests for sustainable energy, one of the oldest forms of heating may provide an alternative, although its use is not without controversy.Proponents of modern wood heating systems, fueled by...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The city has found a leader for its fledgling new department that will soon provide alternative responses to some public safety calls.Kristen Rhodes has been named director of the Division of Community Care, which is part of the...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

HOLYOKE — Hundreds of thousands of people descended on Holyoke on a sunny but wind-chilled Sunday to either view or take part in the annual St. Patrick’s Parade, which began in 1952. The parade is one of the largest of its kind held in the...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The city’s new parking rules have officially taken effect, bringing a significant change to how paid parking works throughout much of its downtown.The City Council approved an ordinance in January that adjusts the time of the parking...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

AMHERST — Clare Higgins, the executive director of Community Action Pioneer Valley, was blunt when describing the current crisis in retaining and finding early education staff.“They can’t pay the rent or feed their families with gift cards and...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, and representatives of Sen. Ed Markey met with exiled Tibetan leaders in the Pioneer Valley in recent days, expressing support for self-determination for the region, which has been...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The Pioneer Valley and Franklin Regional transit authorities are on deck to receive a share of a proposed $6 million of additional transit authority spending in Gov. Maura Healey’s recently unveiled state budget proposal.The first...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

A fundraiser to benefit Ukrainian families impacted by the country’s ongoing war, which has recently marked one year since Russian forces invaded the country, is coming to Northampton.The event will take place on Monday at 6:45 p.m. at the Florence...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The Northampton Public Schools are looking to increase classroom sizes, move around staff and make cuts to special education in order to make up for a $1.2 million deficit in its proposed school budget for next fiscal year.The school’s...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — After more than 45 years in service, one of the vestiges of Northampton’s countercultural heyday is hanging up its wrenches.ARC Garage, which began in 1977 as a social experiment for a new kind of automotive repair garage, had its last...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The search committee to hire a new superintendent for Northampton Public Schools has narrowed its selection down to four candidates.The announcement was made at a special School Committee meeting held Monday to discuss the school’s...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The second of four iconic beech trees located in a special park at the former Northampton State Hospital has fallen, leading to a recent commemorative ceremony by residents who helped care for the tree.The trees are estimated to be...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — The License Commission is cracking down on one of the city’s most prominent businessmen for not using some of the all-alcohol liquor licenses he owns for entertainment venues downtown.Commissioners last month questioned Eric Suher about...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Solar development, pregnancy care and the return of Indigenous lands were some of the many topics discussed by legislators representing the Pioneer Valley as part of Congregation B’Nai Israel’s 11th annual Tikkun Olam event on...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Tony Ryan has been many things over the past 50 years — a special education teacher, a youth soccer coach, a beekeeper, a marathon runner and a teacher of transcendental meditation.Now Ryan can add one more thing to his resume: parade...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Rally Day, one of Smith College’s oldest traditions, returned in full force on Thursday, the first time since February 2020 that it had been held fully in person.The event is a celebration for the school’s graduating senior class, who...

By ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL

NORTHAMPTON — Ventilation systems, pickleball courts and manhole covers honoring the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are just some of the projects awarded grants by the city of Northampton, using $4 million the city received in American Rescue Act Plan...