Editor’s note: As part of the Greenfield Recorder’s end-of-the-year features, we are publishing in three parts our choices for the top dozen news stories of 2024. They are listed in no particular order.

Dam removals planned or completed in region

In November, Greenfield Mayor Ginny Desorgher signed a memorandum of understanding with the Connecticut River Conservancy outlining plans to remove the historic Wiley-Russell Dam, which was built in 1936.

The proposal has put city officials at odds, as the Historical Commission maintains the dam is too historically significant given its ties to the Industrial Revolution. The Conservation Commission, on the other hand, has been supportive of the removal, stating the change would be beneficial to the fish that call the Green River home, as well as reduce flooding risks.

Additionally, Greenfield is looking at installing a fish ladder at the Electric Light and Power Dam, located upstream of the Wiley-Russell Dam, and City Council approved $197,000 in emergency repairs after a 10-foot-by-6-foot void was located by engineers.

In Shutesbury, one historic dam was removed. In August, the Dudleyville Pond Dam was breached and removed after being deemed an emergency safety hazard by the state Office of Dam Safety.

The dam was the center of many fond memories for property owner Lois Brown and her brother David Brown, who believed the dam was not in danger of failing and flooding nearby roads, as was stated by the Office of Dam Safety. David Brown said it was the red tape and ecological and engineering surveys, which were required by the office and would have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, that prevented him from continuing his own repairs on the dam.

While the dam was removed, the plan was for all of its parts to remain on the property, with much of the rocks that were used to build it being repurposed to create the new bank for a stream.

— Madison Schofield

Police find missing NH woman’s body in Warwick

The remains of a woman from Keene, New Hampshire, were found in Warwick in October. Keene Police identified the woman as 31-year-old Justina Steffy, who went missing roughly three weeks prior.

A portion of Hastings Heights Road in Warwick was closed from approximately 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 22, until noon the next day as law enforcement officers from both Massachusetts and New Hampshire searched for her. Hastings Heights Road residents reported seeing ambulances and both state and local law enforcement vehicles. A resident who lives at the base of the road said she saw two state vehicles, one marked “medical examiner,” driving up the road while she was on a walk on Wednesday, Oct. 23.

Michael Garrity, a spokesperson for the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office, said on Dec. 18 that no further details can be released regarding Steffy’s death at this time.

Steffy’s death, however, was not the only story involving the discovery of human remains to come out of Warwick this year. The Northwestern District Attorney’s Office announced in May that the body that had been found just off Route 78 in Warwick in 1989 had been identified using DNA evidence as belonging to Constance (Holminski) Bassignani. She was 65 years old at the time of her murder.

— Anthony Cammalleri

Push for housing solutions sweeps across the county

Housing development was at the forefront of municipalities’ planning strategies this year and became an even greater focus after Gov. Maura Healey signed the Affordable Homes Act into law in August, authorizing $5.16 billion in spending over the next five years to meet the state’s high demand for housing and to lower the cost of housing. The law takes effect on Feb. 2.

In Greenfield, the portion of that law that is set to make accessory dwelling units (ADUs) legal by right sparked controversy when residents Al Norman, Mitchell Speight and Joan Marie Jackson filed a citizen’s petition calling for open space restrictions and a ban on using ADUs for short-term rentals such as Airbnb or Vrbo.

Additionally, At-Large City Councilor John Garrett proposed a package of five housing ordinances that aim to increase dense housing production in Greenfield. On Nov. 20, City Council voted in favor of one of the five ordinances, thus legalizing the construction of first-floor residential units in mixed-use complexes, and on Dec. 18, City Council approved the by-right construction of multi-family housing with fewer than 24 units. However, two days later, At-Large Councilor Wahab Minhas filed a motion to reconsider the vote, citing a desire to see a clearer presentation of the amendments. The motion to reconsider the amendments will come before the council on Jan. 15.

The project to redevelop the former Wilson’s Department Store in Greenfield also continued moving forward with the receipt of more than $6.3 million as part of an infusion of state grants to foster housing and economic development. The money is in addition to the more than $12.37 million in state and federal tax credits and subsidies Community Builders LLC already received for the conversion of Wilson’s upper three floors into 61 apartments.

In Erving, Rural Development Inc., a nonprofit created by the Franklin County Regional Housing & Redevelopment Authority, is handling a $15.6 million housing proposal that involves building 26 units, including age-restricted senior housing for those 62 and up, while also providing multi-generational workforce housing in two other buildings. The project will likely be finished by 2028.

— Anthony Cammalleri

Iconic Bridge of Flowers closed for repairs

The iconic Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls has been closed since June for repairs that are on track to be finished by next summer.

Tighe & Bond began work in June after a 2020 study recommended stabilizing the north spandrel wall, which was damaged by Hurricane Irene in 2011; upgrading fencing and drainage; and improving other rebar support throughout the bridge. The Shelburne Falls Fire District, which owns the bridge, received a $3.2 million Community One Stop for Growth grant through the Executive Office of Economic Development to fund the project.

The Bridge of Flowers is a popular tourist attraction for Shelburne Falls, drawing at least 33,000 visitors per year that sign its guest books. However, the Bridge of Flowers Committee estimates only about 30% of all visitors sign the guest book, and that the actual number of visitors may be closer to 100,000.

The construction project has remained on schedule, and the goal is to reopen the bridge in 2025. The Bridge of Flowers Committee and head gardener Carol DeLorenzo are excitedly planning out a new look for the bridge, and figuring out which flowers they would like to plant. However, visitors will need to be patient, as perennial gardens can take three to five years to become fully established.

Updates are posted to the Bridge of Flowers’ website at bridgeofflowersmass.org/about-us/bridge-repairs.

— Erin-Leigh Hoffman