The Valley Weekly's Guide to Labor Day Weekend
By Neal Quesnel ·
The Valley Weekly has released its first ever long weekend Guide. The Guide highlights everything I could find going on around the Valley, with daily events and their opening and closing hours. It's interactive, so Star events you would like to attend, save it, and upload it direct to your calendar to stay busy this Labor Day Weekend.
Polls are open today. South Hadley voters head to the polls today to vote on another Proposition 2½ override, this one for $3.5M, and Franklin County holds its state representative primary the same day, with Greenfield City Council President Lora Wondolowski facing Corinne Coryat for the vacant seat. Mortgage rates edged up, with the 30-year fixed at 6.66% and the 15-year at 5.98%, both above where they stood a year ago. Fed Chair Kevin Warsh used his first Jackson Hole speech to argue against forward guidance, and said inflation is running too high. The Healey-Driscoll Administration awarded nearly $700,000 for tree canopy expansion in gateway cities, Springfield among them. Enjoy the long Weekend.
This Weekend
§ 01- № 01
UMass Field Hockey vs Boston University
Fri Sep 4 · 4pm · Gladchuk Field Hockey Complex, AmherstUMass field hockey hosts Boston University at the Gladchuk Field Hockey Complex on the Amherst campus, 4pm Friday.
- № 02
Ray Mason at Luthier's Co-op
Fri Sep 4 · 7pm to 8pm · Luthier's Co-op, EasthamptonRay Mason plays a one-hour set at Luthier's Co-op in Easthampton, 7 to 8pm Friday.
- № 03
Old Mervs at The Drake
Fri Sep 4 · 8pm · The Drake, AmherstOld Mervs headline the Drake in Amherst with Morrissey Blvd. and Grand View Point opening. Indie surf rock, 8pm Friday at 44 N Pleasant Street.
- № 04
Moose and the Hi Tops at The Boathouse
Sat Sep 5 · 7pm · The Boathouse, South HadleyMoose and the Hi Tops play the Boathouse in South Hadley at 7pm Saturday.
- № 05
Deathless Forever and Terror Pigeon at the Library Annex
Sat Sep 5 · 7pm · Library Annex, EasthamptonDeathless Forever (formerly Space Camp) plays with Nashville's Terror Pigeon at the Emily Williston Library Annex, 52 Main Street in Easthampton. Experimental local act plus ecstatic dance pop, free, 7pm Saturday.
- № 06
UMass Women's Soccer vs UMass Lowell
Sun Sep 6 · 1pm · Rudd Field, AmherstUMass women's soccer hosts UMass Lowell at Rudd Field on the Amherst campus, 1pm Sunday.
- № 07
Sierra Ferrell: Heavy Petal Tour
Sun Sep 6 · 7pm (5pm doors) · Look Memorial Park, FlorenceSierra Ferrell brings the Heavy Petal Tour to Look Memorial Park in Florence. Doors 5pm, show 7pm Sunday at 300 N Main Street.
Kids Corner
§ 02- № 01
Playgroup at Magic Wings
Wed Sep 2 · 1pm · Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory, South DeerfieldAges · Ages 0 to 5Cost · FreeThe Montague Public Libraries take over the Pollinator Playroom at Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory for stories, songs, and free play with butterflies overhead. One of the few chances to get into the conservatory without paying admission.
- № 03
Library On the Go · The Little E
Fri Sep 4 · 10am · Pleasant View Senior Center, East LongmeadowAges · All agesCost · Cost not postedThe East Longmeadow library rolls its Library On the Go cart out to Pleasant View Senior Center's second annual Little E, an in-town alternative to sitting in West Springfield traffic. Baby goats, music, food, and a pie-eating contest with the children's librarian in the running.
- № 04
Word Play with The Center Dance Studio
Fri Sep 4 · 11am · Eric Carle Museum, AmherstAges · Ages 3 to 7Cost · Cost not postedWord Play at the Eric Carle Museum pairs picture books with creative movement led by The Center Dance Studio, one Friday a month. Bring kids who would rather act out a story than sit through one.
- № 05
Guided StoryWalk · The Julius Lester Trail
Sat Sep 5 · 10am · Mill River Park, AmherstAges · Ages 3 to 8Cost · FreeThe Guided StoryWalk on the Julius Lester Trail at Mill River Park follows a picture book page-by-page along the path, led by Jones Library staff. An hour of easy walking with reading stops.
- № 06
Unicorn Club
Sat Sep 5 · 10:30am · South Hadley Public LibraryAges · Ages 4 to 10Cost · FreeUnicorn Club at the South Hadley Public Library packs unicorn-themed stories, crafts, games, and a scavenger hunt into one Saturday morning in the storytime room.
Real Estate Pulse
§ 03This Week’s Rates
Freddie Mac PMMS · August 27, 2026
| Instrument | This Wk | Last Wk | Yr Ago |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-yr fixed | 6.66% | 6.65% | 6.56% |
| 15-yr fixed | 5.98% | 5.95% | 5.69% |
| 10-yr Treasury | 4.67% | 4.70% | 4.23% |
Both fixed rates edged up, the 30-year by a basis point and the 15-year by three, while the 10-year Treasury eased 3bp to 4.67%. That widened the spread rather than narrowing it. The 30-year sits 10bp above where it was a year ago and the 15-year 29bp above, so buyers waiting for a 2025-style break are still waiting, and the 68bp gap between the 30 and the 15 is where the action is if you're weighing a refinance into a shorter term.
“In normal times, the role of forward guidance should be limited and circumscribed. Otherwise it risks creating ambiguity in the name of clarity.”
Warsh used his first Jackson Hole as Chair to signal he is pulling back the pre-committed language markets have leaned on since 2008. He also said inflation is running too high, with PCE at 3.7%, and that prices rather than the labor market are where he wants the Fed's attention. For a Valley buyer, that points away from the rate cuts a lot of people are still waiting on.
Around Town
§ 04- · Town
South Hadley voters go to the polls today on a $3.5 million Proposition 2½ tax override, the third attempt this year after $9 million and $11 million versions were both struck down earlier.
- · Opening
Chicopee Public Schools opened its new $2.36 million administrative headquarters on Friday, taking over a former Westfield Bank building on Exchange Street in downtown Chicopee.
- · Notice
Wilbraham Fire Department has a new custom fire engine in the bay, a $1 million purchase covered entirely by federal funding.
- · Town
Orange Selectboard voted to fill the funding gap on the Wheeler Memorial Library roof project, clearing the way for the work to proceed.
- · Hiring
Deerfield has hired a new town planner, filling one of the more visible open seats on the municipal side of town hall.
- · Quirk
Forest Park Heights picked up new street sign toppers this week, installed by the Springfield DPW throughout the historic neighborhood and unveiled with local and state officials on hand.
- · Opening
Wistariahurst Museum opens Pictorally Speaking on August 31, photographer Charles Abel's exhibit of modern Holyoke shot through a 125-year-old lens, hung alongside cameras from the museum's archive at 238 Cabot Street.
- · Town
Franklin County holds a primary today for the vacant state representative seat, with Greenfield City Council President Lora Wondolowski and Corinne Coryat, a former aide to Rep. Natalie Blais, on the ballot.
Local Wins
§ 05The Healey-Driscoll Administration awarded close to $700,000 last week to expand and maintain tree canopy in Massachusetts gateway cities, Springfield among them. Gateway cities are the state's mid-size post-industrial hubs, and their neighborhoods are consistently the hottest in summer, the barest in shade, and the last in line when the tree crews come through. Money for planting and, just as important, for keeping young trees alive past their first three summers is the piece that usually goes missing.
Valley Fact
Northampton, Massachusetts
Shays' Rebellion started here, on a Tuesday.
On August 29, 1786, farmers came in from the surrounding towns with drums beating and fifes playing and stood in front of the Hampshire County courthouse. The Court of Common Pleas was scheduled to sit that morning with debt cases waiting. The judges walked up and found ranks of men in Continental Army uniforms holding rifles and bayonets. The court did not sit. Not one foreclosure went through.
They had reason. Hampshire County prosecuted 2,977 debt cases in two years, a 262% jump over the years before the war, and sent 73 people to jail over small sums. Men who fought the war were losing farms to the courts of the country they fought for.
It ended at the Springfield Armory that January, and the men in Philadelphia wrote a stronger Constitution with all of it in mind. The 1884 courthouse stands on the same ground. There is a marker at Pleasant and Main.
That’s the week. Say Hi to a stranger. Talk on Tuesday.
– Neal