Amherst registrars won’t review signatures on library petition
Petitioners are trying to bring about a town referendum on the Jones Library renovation project. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
Published: 5/10/2021 8:22:38 PM
AMHERST An effort to declare null and void the recent certification of signatures on a voter veto effort to put the $36.3 million Jones Library project to a town referendum has been rejected by the Board of Registrars.
Board member Dee Shabazz asked that the board give itself the authority to evaluate the validity of signatures by using voter registration cards at a meeting Thursday. But the board deadlocked on the issue, with Shabazz joined by Jaime Wagner voting yes and colleagues Jacqueline Gardner and Town Clerk Susan Audette voting no.
Submitting.
Carol Gray
Residents say it would also mean losing an open space which has become all the more valuable to the community during the past 12 months of lockdowns and the Covid-19 pandemic.
A Facebook group has now been formed in an attempt to save the green space from being built on.
The council says residents’ views are being taken into account but still believes the site, which has previously had housing on it, is a viable option to help meet an increasing need for affordable and supported housing.
Carol Gray, one of the group’s founders, said: “The land they want to build on is beautiful, I bought my house here because of the outlook.
Amherst to forge ahead on Jones Library project in wake of court decision
An artist’s conception shows a renovated and expanded Jones Library as seen from next to the Amherst History Museum. COURTESY FINEGOLD ALEXANDER ARCHITECTS
Published: 5/2/2021 8:08:20 PM
AMHERST A building committee will soon be formed to oversee the process of expanding and renovating the Jones Library into a fully accessible community center following a court decision halting an effort by petitioners seeking a townwide referendum on the project.
With a Hampshire Superior Court judge on Friday denying a preliminary injunction sought by residents attempting to bring the $36.3 million project to a townwide vote, library and town officials say they can begin work on enhancing the Amity Street building, built in 1928 and most recently expanded in the early 1990s.
Amherst forging ahead on Jones Library project in wake of court decision
An artist’s conception shows a renovated and expanded Jones Library as seen from next to the Amherst History Museum. COURTESY FINEGOLD ALEXANDER ARCHITECTS
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST A building committee will soon be formed to oversee the process of expanding and renovating the Jones Library into a fully accessible community center following a court decision halting an effort by petitioners seeking a townwide referendum on the project.
With a Hampshire Superior Court judge on Friday denying a preliminary injunction sought by residents attempting to bring the $36.3 million project to a townwide vote, library and town officials say they can begin work on enhancing the Amity Street building, built in 1928 and most recently expanded in the early 1990s.
20th Class of Humanities Institute Fellows Pursue Wide Range of Scholarship
This year’s class of fellows includes two visiting residential fellows, four dissertation scholars, and nine UConn faculty fellows
The 20th cohort of UConn Humanities Institute fellows includes scholars probing a wide range of subjects and topics. (Sean Flynn/UConn Photo) Copy Link
The 2021-22 class of University of Connecticut Humanities Institute (UCHI) Fellows will pursue projects from the Renaissance to the present that cover a wide range of topics from racism in the academy to environmental justice.
This year’s class of Fellows is the twentieth cohort and includes two visiting residential fellows, four dissertation scholars, and nine UConn faculty fellows, including the Henry Luce Foundation Future of Truth Fellow and the Mellon UCHI Faculty of Color Working Group Fellow.