■Laura Mendelson, a saleswoman in the Area Student Business Association, a company of the Junior Achievement program in the city, has presented Mayor Sean M. Dunphy with a desk plaque. The company’s product line includes plaques and door plate models. Junior Achievement is sponsored by the Greater Northampton Chamber of Commerce.
■State Rep. Edward A. McColgan, D-Northampton, testified in support of a bill he sponsored requiring the state to purchase recycled paper products. The McColgan bill would require all bond paper purchased by the commonwealth to contain at least 50 percent recycled de-inked fibers.
■Northampton’s Committee on Disabilities last week sent a letter to the city Department of Public Works saying that when the busy King and Main streets intersection is reconstructed, an audible walk signal should be installed so the visually impaired will be able to cross more safely. The committee is recommending bird songs as a walk indicator.
■The architects’ “first blush” sketch of a made-over Northampton High School shows a two-story 46,000-square-foot new building where parking areas are now. Its projected size is now five times the 9,600 square feet of additional space first estimated.
■Northampton’s landfill is likely to remain open into the early part of next year, exceeding the most recent projections by at least six months. Not only does the news give city officials more time to craft a post-closure plan for how it will handle trash once the dump closes, but it also likely delays any trash fee increases that may occur for homeowners once the city starts sending its waste to another landfill.
■The Anne T. Dunphy School project got some good news Wednesday when the state announced it is in line for $6,924,167 from the Massachusetts School Building Authority. “I am looking forward to seeing the new building in 2014,” said Hampshire Regional School Superintendent Craig Jurgensen. “It will be great for the kids and great for the town.”