Bottomless pits: Potholes may plague area roads, but highway bosses say this year isn't as bad as prior years

Dark spots in the pavement where potholes are forming and homemade signs providing warnings about frost heaves have become part of the landscape of Shutesbury Road in Amherst this winter. The same story pervades other cities and towns in the Pioneer Valley. Yet despite the problems Garland and her neighbors have encountered, Amherst DPW Superintendent Guilford Mooring and other area road bosses say this winter could have been worse for potholes and taken more of a toll on roads.
--Agree? Disagree? Email us with your pothole locations or tales

Dr. Irving Heaps, beloved father, grandfather

West Caldwell, N.J. - Dr. Irving Heaps, 95, passed away on March 2, 2010, in the nursing care facility of the Crane's Mill Continuing Care Retirement Community - where he and his wife, the late Ruth (Rosin) Heaps, moved from their home of 45 years in Livingston, N.J., into an independent living apartment in 1998.

Sheri Jernigan, loved people and laughter

AMHERST - Sheri Lynne Jernigan, 46, died March 6, 2010, at home.

Thinking of linking: UMass partners with Amherst to create 'gateway'

AMHERST - University of Massachusetts officials will partner with the town on a redevelopment project that aims to provide more student housing and the possibility of creating a more pleasing entrance to its campus from downtown Amherst.

Area Police News

Suspect sought in break-ins, robbery

AMHERST - Police are seeking an arrest warrant for a former employee at a downtown pizza shop who is believed to be responsible for break-ins Tuesday and March 5 in which more than $1,800 was stolen.

Briefs

EDUCATION IN AFRICA: The Munson Library, at 1046 South East St., will host Leah Danoff, co-founder of the Integrity School, a preschool and kindergarten school in Ongwedive, Namibia, Africa Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. discussing goals for the school and how others can become a part of it. For more information about the school go to www.theintegrityschool.com.

Apples and kumquats: Comparing Northampton and Amherst schools is not so cut-and-dried

AMHERST - As this education-centered town prepares to vote on a tax override March 23, some are questioning why it spends more per pupil on public schools than other nearby communities. The Amherst elementary schools spent $15,846 per pupil and the regional (secondary) schools spent $16,909 per pupil in fiscal 2009, according to the state's Web site; meanwhile, the Northampton public schools spent $11,699 and the state average was $13,062. And there is much difference of opinion about the reliability and relevance of these numbers.
--A by-the-numbers comparison
--Report urges Amherst middle school improvement
--Candidates speak on Amherst schools