Mill River Greenway Initiative

A community-based steward for the Mill River

JW Sinton

Vote on Northampton’s Community Preservation Act

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Northampton Residents to Vote Whether to Repeal the Community Preservation Act on November 1st.

There will be a single referendum question on Northampton’s election ballot this November 1st: The question is whether Northampton should repeal the Community Preservation Act (CPA).  A “no” vote will allow the CPA to continue, and a “yes” vote will repeal the CPA.
Proponents of  “Vote NO” to Save the CPA,” point to the program’s successes: It has
protected hundreds of acres of open space, preserved
some of important historical landmarks and has supported the
construction of new recreation fields and affordable housing. In addition, the CPA has brought millions of dollars to our city — the $3.8 million the city collected in CPA funds have been matched by over $17 million from other sources.

Opponents state that residents of the city already pay too many taxes.

For more information: http://www.northamptonma.gov/cpc/

For a map of all CPA projects: http://www.northamptonma.gov/cpc/googlemap/index.html

 

New Irene Photos

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Here are some great new photos, folks.  The three from professional photogapher, Janine Norton, show the mud line after the waters subsided, a great way to measure the height of the water.  One from MRG member Bill Williams shows the the dam at Paradise Pond, which usually measures about 20 feet from lip to splash pool, but looks  like a minor falls during Irene’s high point.  Bill’s other photo is the Corps of Engineers’ barrier on West Street at the 1940 diversion.  The barrier was constructed in the 1950s and hadn’t been used until Irene hit.

Mud Line 1 J.N.

Irene

Mud Line 2 J.N.

Mud Line 2 J.N.

Mud Line 3 J.N.

Mud Line 3 J.N.

Paradise Pond Dam B.W.

Paradise Pond dam B.W

West Street Barrier B.W.

West St. barrier B.W

Irene — Early Thoughts

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Well, folks, what a storm, what a peculiar storm.  In the history of Mill River floods that goes back 350 years, this was one of the few times that the Connecticut River tributaries had record high water, while the big river remained well below record levels.  This is chiefly due to the season of the year — it’s late summer, and there’s no snow pack to add to the big river, so, while the Connecticut is plenty high, it’s not the main source of our farmers’ woes.  It’s the Deerfield River, for example, that did most of the damage in the Pioneer Valley.

Furthermore, summer floods, caused by hurricanes, tend to be pretty flashy.  Look at the Mill River statistics in today’s Gazette: The Mill River peaked at a record high of 16.42 feet at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, eclipsing the old record of 15.6 feet.  The river had receded to 6.95 feet as of Tuesday afternoon.  All of you who got out on Sunday and then viewed the situation on Monday, caught the meaning of the term “flash flood,” and you’ve got a hint of the fear that the Mill River brought to the valley that dreadful morning of May 16th, 1874, when the dam on the Mill River’s East Branch failed and caused the flash flood that killed 139 people.

Irene visits the Pro-Brush dam in Florence, 3:00 p.m. 8/29

Irene Flooding

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We’re still digesting the enormity of this weekend’s flooding of the Mill river — and cleaning up our own yards — we’ll scratch some more thoughts together once things settle down a bit. Hoping Northampton fares ok when the Connecticut River crests tomorrow and thankful that no one’s been injured around here. Lots of water to deal with, lets make sure we’re helping out our neighbors along the river and otherwise who are dealing with serious damage.

In the meantime please share your pics and videos of the river during Irene with us in the comments section below.

Here’s a compilation of Burgy village flooding footage from Williamsburg resident Tom Adams of Reelife Productions

Goshen Conservation Commission Seeking new members

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The town of Goshen is desperately seeking some new members for the conservation commission. They are currently down to two members and can’t reach a quorum.

The commission is charged with protecting the town’s wetlands including the headwaters of the west branch of the Mill River. It’s a great opportunity for a passionate river advocate to step into a leadership role and help protect the town’s natural resources.

If you think you would be a good fit for the commission please consider getting involved. If you know of someone else who would be a good fit, please spread the word. More information about the committee can be found here.