50 Years Ago
- The head of the state’s TOPICS program said last night that the state has no intention of imposing the controversial traffic control program on downtown Northampton. The TOPICS (Traffic Operations Program to Increase Capacity and Safety) program — which includes a series of major changes on the city’s Main Street, among them elimination of angle parking, installation of new traffic signals and large traffic islands, and creation of some one-way streets — has become increasingly controversial in the last few weeks.
- Faced with the fifth defendant in two days to be arrested for drinking in Pulaski Park, Northampton District Court Judge Benjamin A. Apkin vowed to levy the maximum fine of $50 on defendants who are found guilty. “We aren’t going to let these punks take over the park,” Judge Apkin said.
25 Years Ago
- The building that houses the Department of Public Works’ fleet of orange vehicles near the recycling center on Locust Street is more than a century old and needs to be repaired or replaced, according to the department’s head. The hangar-like structure, formerly the city’s trolley barn, now shelters the department’s vehicles and also functions as the shop where mechanics work on trucks.
- A yearlong fund drive by some Smith College students will provide “treatment scholarships” for 10 low-income children at a local mental health agency. The Service Organizations of Smith, known as SOS, this summer concluded its fundraiser by awarding a $4,500 grant to the Children’s Clinic of Northampton to treat children who witness domestic violence.
10 Years Ago
- As vendors set up shop and entertainers new and old get ready to perform, the 199th Three County Fair is taking shape at and over the city’s fairgrounds. A new “flipping” act required a few hours of setup Wednesday afternoon, as members of the Dominguez family hung the lyra — long, draping cloth — upon which to perform their aerial mastery.
- A neighborhood leader and regular voice on a bevy of issues affecting Northampton is the only candidate in the race for the open Ward 3 City Council seat. Jim Nash was the only council hopeful to collect enough signatures and return them by the Aug. 25 deadline. Former Ward 3 councilor Ryan O’Donnell vacated the seat when he assumed his new role as councilor at-large on Aug. 11.