John Joseph Bobala

A Look Back, July 22

50 Years Ago 25 Years Ago 10 Years Ago

Youth baseball: Top seed Amherst advances in Koufax playoffs after blowout win over West County

The Amherst youth baseball team began its PVYBL Koufax division playoff slate with a bang, taking down West County, 18-5, at Amherst Middle School on Monday. The top-seeded Hurricanes strung together 11 hits in the five-inning affair. Oliver Howard concluded with three RBIs in a 3-for-4 performance while Cyrus Arwade, Nick Stinson and Gus Garrett […]

Easthampton City Council joins regional push to hold ICE agents accountable

EASTHAMPTON — The City Council is demanding accountability of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, passing a resolution calling for state and local law enforcement to investigate agents that have potentially broken state law, in the midst of a surge in ICE activity. A dozen residents backed the resolution passed last Wednesday in support of, “Holding Federal […]

A smoother road ahead: State officials launch new Unpaved Roads Program in Hatfield

HATFIELD — Washouts, mud and a surface that washboards, with parts so rough that drivers will choose to travel on the grass at the edge rather than on the dirt, often affect the gravel section of Straits Road. The main cause of these problems is evident to Highway Superintendent Duane Meehan, who points to a sub-base made up of silt and sand, materials that are not stable, and which cause even truck loads of gravel, used to maintain the road, to be swallowed up each year. Sometime in 2027, those long-standing issues will be fixed, as stone is added to the […]

Designers explore three sites for temporary DPW headquarters in Amherst

AMHERST — A designer is exploring three options for a temporary Department of Public Works headquarters: relocating to the Wildwood School site on Strong Street, moving to the Ruxton site on Pulpit Hill Road, or remaining at the current 586 South Pleasant St. building while a new $35 million facility is constructed there. But even […]