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AMHERST Muncipal planners are advising the Town Council against a six-month pause on issuing permits for multi-unit residential buildings in and near downtown, worrying such a moratorium would harm the economy and be insufficient to revise rules for.
Report: Challenging economic times remain in Amherst due to COVID’s impact
A view of Main Street in downtown Amherst on Saturday afternoon, March 14, 2020. GAZETTE FILE PHOTO
By SCOTT MERZBACH
AMHERST Even if the University of Massachusetts can function normally in the fall following the significant disruptions caused by the pandemic, Amherst’s economy may not bounce back right away, according to a Pioneer Valley Planning Commission analyst.
“The bottom line is we should be prepared for a lot more pain in the pipeline,” Douglas Hall, a Pioneer Valley Planning Commission data manager told the Planning Board and Town Council at a joint meeting last week.
Amherst Planning Board delays action on Town Council subcommittee’s proposed zoning changes
Updated Dec 21, 2020;
AMHERST – The Planning Board appeared on verge of moving ahead with zoning amendments proposed by a Town Council subcommittee, but the board’s chairman, Jack Jemsek, announced no action would be taken after several residents objected to the amendments that includes a 40-R “smart growth” overlay district proposed for downtown.
Only one of the seven planning board members objected to the zoning proposals at Wednesday’s meeting, Janet McGowan.
The chairman said the idea presented by the council’s Community Resources Committee [CRC] would be reviewed again, during a meeting likely to be scheduled in January. The CRC is chaired by Council Vice President Mandi Jo Hanneke.