■On Dec. 17, Northampton is going into the used truck business when it puts up for sale the “Old Buffalo,” a fire engine still used at major fires by the Northampton Fire Department. Manufactured in 1935, it was ordered by the city that year and delivered in the dead of winter, 1936, according to retired Fire Chief Charles E. Martin.
■The University of Massachusetts Student Senate last night passed a resolution condemning the practice of undercover state police operating on campus. The resolution complained that “in the opinion of the state, the UMass Amherst campus is a hotbed of degenerate activities, especially the sale and use of ‘harmful’ drugs.”
■With power out for a third day in some communities, a hot shower and a warm wood stove have become cherished luxuries to thousands. From Belchertown to Whately, residents left without power by the surprise weekend storm turned to friends, family and temporary shelters for a shower, a meal or companionship.
■The Conservation Commission last night set more than 90 conditions that the developer of property next to the Barrett Street Marsh must follow in building a road and six commercial lots. The commission made several alterations to its original draft as it ironed out the strictest and most detailed conditions for a project in the last 20 years.
■Planners gave a proposed Cumberland Farms and gas station in the heart of Florence a unanimous thumbs-down Thursday night, denying a special permit and site plan approval. The site was formerly home to a Mobil service station, which closed in March.
■A new proposal would delay the start of the secondary school day in Amherst by 75 minutes, from 7:45 to 9 a.m., in an attempt to make students more alert during their classes. Three public forums on this, and two other scenarios for later starting times, will be held in January and February.