50 Years Ago
- The $2 bill shed its unlucky reputation here yesterday. Area banks were swamped with requests for the new bills imprinted with Thomas Jefferson’s picture and issued to coincide with his 233rd birthday. And area postal officials spent much of their time yesterday hand-stamping the bills with yesterday’s date for collectors.
- Northampton’s building inspector has ordered that New Stages 2, a new theater in an apartment building on South Street, must cease performances by May 1 because the theater does not meet fire and safety regulations. City Building Inspector Cecil Clark said today that New Stages 2 does not have enough fire exits and is not properly fire-proofed for a theater.
25 Years Ago
- Hopkins Academy band students placed first in last week’s 2001 Orlando Music Festival. They won a rating of excellent for their concert band performance, and the rhythm section received an “outstanding” award.
- The Northampton Planning Board and the Zoning Board of Appeals are poised to approve permits for redevelopment at the former Hill & Dale Mall, but nearly a dozen residents spoke against the creation of two large retail spaces on the King Street site at a public hearing Thursday night. They were especially vocal in opposition to the two names on the plans —Borders Bookstore and Staples.
10 Years Ago
- Mayor David Narkewicz sparred with business owners over his proposed water and sewer rates Wednesday night, defending the new structure against criticism that it unduly burdens commercial users, as well as pushing back against broader condemnation that his administration has let NorthamptonÕs downtown economy fall by the wayside.
- A sit-in demanding the University of Massachusetts divest from fossil fuels that swelled to some 250 participants by late Wednesday afternoon ended with the arrests of 19 students who did not leave the building by a 6 p.m. deadline. It was the second straight night of arrests at the Whitmore Administration Building after 15 protesters were arrested Tuesday.