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By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Exactly two months after closing the 43 Amity St. location to the public to make way for an expansion and renovation project, the Jones Library reopens at a temporary site at 101 University Drive on Monday.

By GARRETT COTE

Only one run was scored on Monday evening, but that’s because Northampton Post 28 ace James Lavallee and Monson Post 241’s Brayden Mega traded punches on the mound at Legion Field in Palmer.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Following a performance evaluation that gave her mostly proficient ratings in meeting various standards set by the state’s Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and her own goals, Amherst-Pelham Superintendent E. Xiomara Herman is receiving a revised contract that will boost her annual salary above $180,000.

AMHERST — A 19-year-old Amherst man who set off fireworks in front of the Central fire station early on Independence Day morning is being summoned to court on several charges, including illegal possession of fireworks and narcotics, police said.

The Daily Hampshire Gazette has published several editorials about battery energy storage systems (BESS). I would like to provide additional information on the June 23 guest column by Michael DeChiara [“Somerville gets it wrong on battery storage”]. There has been great progress in improving the safety of BESS installations. Newer Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) batteries are chemically stable, have low fire risk, contain less toxic materials, and last 2-3 times longer than traditional Lithium Ion batteries. Fires are rare, and if they occur, they are more easily suppressed with cooling agents or dry chemical sprays that fire departments use.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Vacant land on either side of Atkins Farms Country Market has long been eyed for its development potential to create a village center, where housing, along with shops and restaurants, would serve Applewood Apartments and Upper Orchard residents, as well as students, faculty and staff at Hampshire College.

By RUDY PERKINS

One of the least discussed reasons Donald Trump is pushing tariffs is that wide-ranging tariffs will act much like a regressive national sales tax, shifting more of the national tax burden onto low- and middle-income taxpayers, and away from the wealthy. Lower-income Americans, who spend more of their income on everyday goods, instead of, say, corporate stocks, will end up paying a disproportionate share of the tariffs.

We are all the good Samaritan.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Despite a concern from the teachers union’s executive board that school staff are continuing to be hired and retained without state licenses, Superintendent E. Xiomara Herman is confirming a commitment to being in compliance with state law and Department of Elementary and Secondary Education regulations when making appointments.

The Amherst 14U baseball team downed Hatfield, 7-1, at Amherst Middle School in a PVYBL Sandy Koufax game on Wednesday to improve to 5-1-1 on the season.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — Amherst is another step closer to ensuring that those residents whose ancestors were enslaved in the United States and who continue to be impacted by the harms caused by slavery and post-reconstruction discrimination will benefit from a stabilization fund for reparations.

By TSULTRIM DOLMA

I want to say happy 90th birthday to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, whose birthday is July 6. He has been my inspiration since I first went with my father on a religious pilgrimage to Lhasa, Tibet, at about age 7 in the early 1980s. It took us about three months to walk there from our village in the Khampa region of eastern Tibet. When we got inside the Jhokang Temple, I was truly amazed to see huge statues and also pictures on a wall of the Dalai Lama and other religious leaders.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A memorial concert at Wildwood Cemetery recently recognized what would have been the 95th birthday of Fred Tillis, a composer, poet and educator who led the Fine Arts Center at the University of Massachusetts for almost 20 years.

A 21-year-old Granby man and University of Massachusetts Amherst student who was interning for U.S. Rep. Ron Estes, R-Kan., died Tuesday from injuries in a triple shooting in Washington, D.C.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — With some members of the Town Council suggesting the need for younger voices who are more supportive of housing development initiatives that can encourage families to come to town, two residents who moved to Amherst with their own families in the past year will be joining the Planning Board.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A revised leadership structure for the Amherst-Pelham school district, known as an executive director model, is being put in place this week as part of an effort to streamline the central office administration.

AMHERST — South Amherst Common will again be the site of an Independence Day celebration starting around 9 a.m. Friday, with a children’s parade commencing at 10 a.m.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A federal investment of close to $4 million, to support a ground source heat pump at the town’s new elementary school under construction on South East Street, could be at risk from the Republican reconciliation bill being considered by Congress.

Does the Gazette not support checks and balances or the Constitution of these formerly United States? I strongly object to the editorial cartoon of June 25 where the Democrats are characterized as an old fuddy-duddy mule asking President Donald Trump if he had permission to slay the dragon of Iran’s nuclear effort. The bombing was unconstitutional. And in fact, the dragon is hardly slain: a more accurate image would be that of a childish Trump saying he solved the problem by hitting the hornet’s nest with a baseball bat, but there is a swarm of angry hornets ready to descend on him (us!). The Democratic Party is desperately trying to claw back our democracy and civility from this lawless, grifting, cruel administration.

By SCOTT MERZBACH

AMHERST — A push by the state Legislature to reduce single-use plastics across the state, cutting down on the use of straws, carryout bags and utensils and at the same time increasing recycling and composting, is winning support from fifth graders at Fort River School.