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By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — As the town election nears on Tuesday, uncertainty is brewing among many residents over a town proposal to construct a new public safety complex.

By ALEXA LEWIS

EASTHAMPTON — Digital equity efforts are taking off in Easthampton, with new digital education opportunities in the works, technology lending opportunities and more.

By ALEXA LEWIS

EASTHAMPTON — Three Easthampton farms have been recognized by The Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation as recipients of this year’s Local Farmer Awards. Underline Farm, Mountain View Farm and Park Hill Orchard are among the 116 recipients of the community-funded grant initiative, which aims to support farm improvements across western Massachusetts.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — Town Meeting voters approved an $897,000 general override to cover unanticipated costs at Norris Elementary School on Tuesday night, a decision that will prevent the elimination of 10 full-time school positions if it passes at the Town Election on May 20.

As Southampton prepares to vote on a Proposition 2½ override for William E. Norris School, it’s critical to understand this isn’t a failure of budgeting— it’s exactly how the system is designed to work. Proposition 2½ was passed in 1980 to limit the growth of property taxes, but it wisely included a democratic safeguard: the local override. It allows residents to decide when additional investment is necessary to protect essential services. That’s not a loophole — it’s the process. The $897,069 override request is not about expanding programs. It’s about maintaining existing services in the face of rising, unavoidable costs: $311,706 in contractual salary obligations, $284,258 for special education mandates, $119,847 for shared administrative costs, $167,959 loss of federal REAP and Circuit Breaker funding. Without this override, Norris will lose the equivalent of 10 full-time positions, resulting in larger class sizes, reduced programming, and fewer supports for students.

Disgraced former U.S. Rep. George Santos’ 87-month sentence is well deserved, and there is scant disapproval from Democrats as well as Republicans. This is how a properly functioning House of Representatives and the courts respond to a lying, manipulative, thieving politician.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — At the annual Town Meeting on May 6, residents will weigh in on the town’s roughly $24 million fiscal 2026 budget – including whether to approve an $879,000 override to cover unexpected costs at Norris Elementary School. 

By ALEXA LEWIS

WESTFIELD — Jupiter Power has withdrawn its plans for a lithium battery energy storage system (BESS) in Westfield, over the Barnes Aquifer, after months of resistance from area residents.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — The town’s yearlong 250th anniversary celebration is going strong, with a lineup of community events available this spring.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — This weekend, the First Congregational Church of Southampton will celebrate Easter in a non-traditional way — by holding a standout for democracy.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — The town’s 2025 municipal election ballot is taking shape, with interested candidates putting their names forth both through nomination papers and the Annual Town Caucus.

It’s only a matter of time before President Donald Trump offers refugee status to any foreign national who is willing to pay an entrance fee to an unspecified American account and buys real estate from the Trump property inventory. Naturally, the price of the real estate will be determined by a bidding war that will immediately enhance its value.

By ALEXA LEWIS

EASTHAMPTON — The city is moving along in its search for a new police chief. Four candidates, both internal and external, have advanced into the next stage of assessment.

By JIM PALERMO

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — Over 100 Southampton voters elected to pass all but one article at a special Town Meeting held on Saturday morning.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — Nomination papers are now available in the Town Clerk’s office to those interested in serving in an elected position in town. The deadline for returning a nomination is March 31 by 5 p.m.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — The town will hold a special Town Meeting on Saturday, March 22, to discuss nine articles, including a $3.2 million debt exclusion for engineering and architectural services for the construction of a new public safety complex and appropriation of $15,000 to preserve the historic First Congregational Church.

By ALEXA LEWIS

SOUTHAMPTON — With its sights set on replacing its timeworn fire and police stations, the town acquired the sprawling property referred to as 0 College Highway to serve as the site of a new public safety complex.

By ALEXA LEWIS

Small, rural towns like many of those in the Pioneer Valley are often lauded for their sense of community. What makes that community feel so welcoming and vibrant is often a small group of hardworking volunteers — people who keep town governments running, plan local events, and make sure food pantries stay stocked with nutritious foods.

By ALEXA LEWIS

The story of David Heisler and Crystal Truehart Heisler is something straight out of Hollywood: A model and a photographer meet on the set of “The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency” reality TV show, fall in love and spend years building careers in the bustling cities of Los Angeles and Austin. Now, seeking a change of pace, the couple has returned to Truehart Heisler’s hometown of Southampton, and Heisler is looking to add a bold new edge to Easthampton’s arts scene with the opening of his new Eastworks studio space, theStudio x DavidHeisler.

To answer the question, where does the money for foreign assistance really go, think about these facts.