Cell-tower dispute puts Pittsfield at center of debate

When the city Board of Health in Pittsfield issued an emergency order this spring directing Verizon to shut down a local cell-phone tower, it set up a legal test case of potentially national significance. The board documented 20 cases of people who developed health problems after the cell tower began operation in 2020, and it concluded that the tower’s radio-frequency emissions had rendered nearby homes uninhabitable. Although the board later rescinded its order, the action quickly caught the attention of public-interest advocates around the nation. read more

Fresh pasta, made to order

One-woman operation rewards Saratoga appetites.
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In Vermont, a season of political change

U.S. Senate seats rarely open up in Vermont, but when they do, the state’s lone U.S. representative usually is well positioned to step up. U.S. Rep. Peter Welch hopes to follow that tradition as this year as he campaigns to succeed retiring Sen. Patrick Leahy. Welch’s Senate bid has set off a spirited campaign for his House seat, and a wave of other retirements among the state’s elected officials is making for an unusually busy campaign season in advance of the state’s Aug. 9 primary election. read more

Artist’s residency yields portraits of a community

Conrad Egyir celebrates a community in his new summer exhibit, “Travelogue,” at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, with a sense of triumph and joy. Egyir has journeyed and won recognition widely as an artist based in Detroit and born in Ghana. The new show has grown out of his yearlong residency at MCLA.?

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