Sports Briefs: Smith Voc one step closer to $1 million field upgrade

Amherst condo resident taken to hospital after smoke inhalation in kitchen fire

AMHERST — An Autumn Lane resident who suffered smoke inhalation during a kitchen fire Thursday morning, initially treated at the scene by paramedics, was transported by ambulance to Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton as a precaution, according to the Amherst Fire Department. Six of the eight on-duty firefighters, along with police officers, responded to the […]

Easthampton approves 18-month moratorium on data centers

EASTHAMPTON — Easthampton is the latest Valley community to temporarily ban new data centers, as the facilities face growing scrutiny across the country and municipalities grapple with how to regulate them. The City Council on Wednesday night passed the moratorium, barring new data center construction for 18 months while the city develops permanent regulations. The […]

Paradise City Arts Festival returns to Northampton this weekend with 200 artists, live music

NORTHAMPTON — Thousands are expected to flock to the Three County Fairgrounds this weekend for the 31st year of the Paradise City Arts Festival — the city’s flagship arts and music event. The three-day festival, which opens at 10 a.m. Friday, will feature 200 artists from across the country and six bands on the center […]

The wheels of generosity: Northampton's Bikes For All lives up to its name

NORTHAMPTON — Middle-schooler Lucian Viruet trailed along behind a fit man with thinning, curly hair, who not long ago was playing bassoon in the Boston Symphony Orchestra, but this late afternoon was delivering a newly refurbished mountain bike. Lucian, 13, could not help himself. His wide mouth spread slowly into a grin as Rick Ranti, the bassoonist turned volunteer bike mechanic, neared a red Subaru wagon then hoisted the Huffy bicycle into the rear of the car. Lucian, who for months had been pedaling a model too small for him, now owned a bicycle that fit his frame. It cost him […]

Valley Bounty: Bringing back the chestnut

By reviving a historical crop, one farmer has a plan to feed the community while stewarding the land into the future. Jono Neiger is trained as an ecologist and conservation biologist, who approaches farming from an ecological perspective. For him, the relationships between the land, the abutting river, and the plant species create the farm, […]