■Easthampton residents may be in for a surprise if they leave their cars parked too long in the town’s business district. Beginning today, a new policy of enforcement of the one-hour parking regulations will go into effect, at the request of a group of businessmen.
■What once was a tranquil country road leading form West Whately to Conway is now almost unrecognizable at the site of what will become Northampton’s new reservoir in West Whately. The mountainside has been stripped of timber and cleanup operations are in progress.
■As news of local meningitis cases hit the streets of Amherst yesterday, conversations and rumors spread like a virus of their own. The facts were that one Amherst College student had died from the disease and another was hospitalized in stable condition.
■About 100 people turned out yesterday for a rally at Smith College in support of Louise Vera, a 12-year college employee laid off from her job as of Friday. Students and community members gathered to criticize the college for laying off Vera, a locksmith, who has complained of on-the-job harassment.
■Northampton is considering adopting a special building code that increases energy-efficiency requirements for all new homes and many new commercial buildings. The “Stretch Code” would add a tighter layer of regulations on top of the state’s new building code rules that took effect in January.
■Hadley Superintendent of Schools Nicholas Young has given up the 5.5 percent salary increase that he negotiated with the School Committee last month. He will start negotiations with unionized school employees this month, and will take whatever percentage salary increase they agree to, he said.