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Date: 2/21/2023
AMHERST – The Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) is currently working with the Amherst Planning Department and the Amherst Historical Commission to draft the 2023 Amherst Historic Preservation Plan.
To create the best plan possible, the PVPC has released a community survey that will ascertain what both Amherst residents and visitors value most regarding Amherst’s history and cultural heritage. The data from the survey will be used as feedback to be integrated into the plan.
This plan comes as an update to the town’s 2005 Preservation plan. PVPC Historic Preservation Planner Shannon Walsh, who is managing the project, has also worked on other projects throughout town, documenting areas such as the East Village and Bay Road along with various agricultural buildings. She explained that the project involves understanding and improving the conditions of Amherst’s historic resources, as well as preserving the histories of marginalized communities within Amherst.
“Project objectives include assessing the current conditions and documentation of existing historic resources (buildings, structures, objects, monuments, areas, landscapes, burial grounds and archaeological sites) and learning how the community feels about historic preservation in Amherst. Additional goals include identifying priorities for local preservation, highlighting the town’s “most threatened” historic resources, and developing recommendations to work towards identifying, documenting, preserving and promoting resources associated with marginalized cultural groups that have played a role in the history of Amherst,” Walsh said.
The project will last roughly one year and is currently wrapping up the second of four phases, according to Walsh. Several meetings with other community and municipal stakeholders will constitute the next steps of the project, such as a meeting with the Amherst Planning Board in March. The survey was be released digitally on Engage Amherst, the town’s online public engagement platform, and can be taken in Spanish or English. It will be accessible until the end of April 2023.
“The 18-question digital Amherst Historic Preservation Plan Community Survey revisits topics addressed in the 2005 Preservation Plan survey along with new, targeted questions relevant to the current community. There are a mix of multiple-choice questions and some that allow for individual responses, such as ‘What type of programming would you like to have available regarding Amherst’s history and culture?’” Walsh said.
The PVPC has been the designated planning body for the Pioneer Valley since 1962, “Pioneer Valley” in this case referring to an amalgamation of 43 cities and towns in Hampshire and Hampden Counties. According to Walsh, the PVPC is the primary agency responsible for increasing communication, cooperation, and coordination among all levels of government as well as the private business and civic sectors to benefit the Pioneer Valley region and improve its residents’ quality of life.
“The PVPC is excited to be working with the town of Amherst on this important project and hopes to see good participation in the community survey…Amherst is one of the few Western Massachusetts communities that has a preservation plan to help identify and plan for the protection of significant historic and cultural resources. Updating the 2005 plan, with community involvement, will provide the framework to ensure longevity of a broader variety of Amherst’s irreplaceable resources,” Walsh said.