Around Amherst: Hope Community Church celebrates pastor before send-off

South Hadley Town Hall to shutter on Fridays

SOUTH HADLEY — Town Hall will close to the public on Fridays indefinitely to compensate for front desk staff reductions and allow remaining department staff to catch up on work. A Sept. 30 announcement posted on the town website states the building will be closed to non-staff on Fridays starting Oct. 2. The two exceptions will be for midterm election early voting on Oct. 23 and Oct. 30, the post states. Town Hall had already closed on Fridays during the summer months. The post now makes these hours permanent throughout the year. Town Administrator Lisa Wong attributed the Friday closure to […]

Hadley planners assess how updated flood maps, potential zoning changes could shape future of development

HADLEY — Updated flood maps from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which place more areas of the town in the flood plain, could make some future developments more expensive and challenging, according to town planners. Planning Board Chairman James Maksimoski said the revised FEMA maps need to be considered as Hadley officials explore how to […]

AG report details decades of abuse at Fall River, Springfield, Worcester dioceses

Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell released a report detailing decades of sexual abuse involving more than 270 Catholic clerics and 944 children within the Fall River, Springfield and Worcester dioceses, while simultaneously calling for legislative reforms to aid survivors.

An evening of wonder: Look Park hosts outdoor pumpkin art trail in October

Look Park in Northampton will host ALLURA Pumpkin Art Spectacular, a family-friendly outdoor pumpkin art trail, over the course of 15 nights beginning next week. The trail features pumpkin art set up in 13 scenes with designs that include, among others, fantasy creatures like fairies and dragons as well as images based on movies like […]

Around and About with Richard McCarthy: Warts, wonderfulness and chuckles

When asked what kind of newspaper column I write, I sometimes respond, “It is often about the depth charges of being human that bubble to the surface of everyday life.” Other times, I just say “human interest.”  Recently, two of those bubbles presented themselves to me. I was in a grocery store and ran into […]