What’s In This Issue?

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ANALYTICS  .(note: The Indy was on vacation for the month of July). Numbers in parentheses indicate change from the previous week.

Number of Unique Page Views:
Last 30 days: 30,096 (+651)
Last Week: 6343 (-3047)
Number of Unique Sessions
Last 30 Days: 15,435(+294)
Last Week: 3264 (-1657)

LOOK HERE FOR OUR YEAR-END 2021 SUMMARY STATS

TOP FIVE MOST-READ ARTICLES LAST WEEK
1. Amherst Block Party Is Back On September 15
2. Finance Committee Confronts Library Project Budget Overruns. Libraries Lobby State To Cover Cost Escalation by Jeff Lee
3. Affordable Duplex Development Planned For North Amherst by Maura Keene
4. Letter: UMass Must Address Its Contribution To Amherst’s Housing Struggles by Ira Bryck
5. Letter: It Is Unwise To Grant Jones Trustees Blank Check To Complete Renovation by Craig Meadows

WHAT’S IN THIS ISSUE?
CAMPUS
The Sheep Are Coming!: Public Invited To UMass For Demonstration And Reimagining of Land Management

CLIMATE / ENVIRONMENT / NATURE
The Sheep Are Coming!: Public Invited To UMass For Demonstration And Reimagining of Land Management
Fourth Annual Fort River Clean-Up Scheduled For September 24
Opinion: Where The Money Is. Solving A Global Problem by Russ Vernon-Jones

EVENTS
Information Session and Public Forum On Amherst’s Master Plan Slated For Monday, September 19
The Sheep Are Coming!: Public Invited To UMass For Demonstration And Reimagining of Land Management
Harvest Festival At Simple Gifts Farm Set For Saturday, September 17
Fourth Annual Fort River Clean-Up Scheduled For September 24
What’s Happening In Amherst? by Art Keene

FEATURES
The Jones Library, The Old Whipple House Window And Our Central Fire Station by Hetty Statup
A Better World Is Possible: Greyston Bakery Tackles Generational Poverty, One Blondie At A Time by Kate Cox
Photo Of The Week: Town Block Party Gallery compiled by Art Keene
Town Manager Report For September 12, 2022

FOOD
Harvest Festival At Simple Gifts Farm Set For Saturday, September 17

HOUSING
Affordable Housing Forum Previews Projects For East Street School And Belchertown Road by Maura Keene

HISTORY / HISTORIC PRESERVATION
The Jones Library, The Old Whipple House Window And Our Central Fire Station by Hetty Statup

LIBRARY
Town Prepares To Press Forward On Foundering Library Project by Jeff Lee
State Library Board Delays Release Of Funds For Jones Expansion Project Due to “Financial Capacity” Uncertainty by Maria Kopicki
Town Manager Responds To Questions On Fate Of Jones Library Expansion Project by Kitty Axelson-Berry
Council Discusses Options For Moving Forward With Jones Expansion Project by Maura Keene
Letter: A Response To Sarah Marshall – Wishful Thinking Cannot Overcome The Facts Of Jones Library Cost Escalations by Ken Rosenthal
Opinion: Is Moving Forward With The Jones Project Fiscally Responsible? by Elissa Rubinstein
Letter: Soaring Cost Estimates For Jones Expansion Are Incomplete by Sarah McKee
Letter:  Jones Expansion Project Is No Longer Affordable.  It’s Time To Explore Alternatives by Denise Barberet
Opinion: Amherst’s White Elephant by Jim Turner

OPINION
Letter: Soaring Cost Estimates For Jones Expansion Are Incomplete by Sarah McKee
Letter:  Jones Expansion Project Is No Longer Affordable.  It’s Time To Explore Alternatives by Denise Barberet
Letter: A Response To Sarah Marshall – Wishful Thinking Cannot Overcome The Facts Of Jones Library Cost Escalations by Ken Rosenthal
Opinion: Amherst’s White Elephant by Jim Turner
Opinion: Is Moving Forward With The Jones Project Fiscally Responsible? by Elissa Rubinstein
Opinion: Where The Money Is. Solving A Global Problem by Russ Vernon-Jones

PUBLIC HEALTH
COVID-19 Weekly Update For The Week Of September 14, 2022. by Art and Maura Keene
COVID-19 Bivalent Booster Vaccine Offered In Amherst

SOCIAL JUSTICE
African Heritage Reparations Assembly Seeks Participants For Community Engagement Survey by Maura Keene
Town Manager Nominates Twenty For Appointment To Town Committees and Commissions by Art Keene
A Better World Is Possible: Greyston Bakery Tackles Generational Poverty, One Blondie At A Time by Kate Cox

TOWN GOVERNMENT
Town Prepares To Press Forward On Foundering Library Project by Jeff Lee
State Library Board Delays Release Of Funds For Jones Expansion Project Due to “Financial Capacity” Uncertainty by Maria Kopicki
Town Manager Responds To Questions On Fate Of Jones Library Expansion Project by Kitty Axelson-Berry
Council Discusses Options For Moving Forward With Jones Expansion Project by Maura Keene
Real Estate Transfer Fee Proposed To Support Town Budget by Maura Keene
African Heritage Reparations Assembly Seeks Participants For Community Engagement Survey by Maura Keene
Town Manager Nominates Twenty For Appointment To Town Committees and Commissions by Art Keene
Affordable Housing Forum Previews Projects For East Street School And Belchertown Road by Maura Keene
Information Session and Public Forum On Amherst’s Master Plan Slated For Monday, September 19
Town Manager Report For September 12, 2022