This photo, taken on June 4, shows the view looking north from Massachusetts Route 2 on the Greenfield/Gill town line. The river is tested by the state of New Hampshire and other agencies and is now safe for swimming. (For many years it was too polluted.) Please click on the photo to enlarge it. photo by Eesha Williams

A major goal of Greenfield Mayor Christine Forgey has been to build a Wal-Mart or a similar “big box” store on an area of open land that’s too far from downtown to easily reach on foot. On April 21, in a primary election, Forgey was voted out of office. In June, voters will choose from two candidates for mayor.

“I was glad the mayor was voted out,” said John Ward, co-owner of the Solar Store www.GreenfieldSolarStore.com on Fiske Avenue in downtown Greenfield. “Open space doesn’t have to be paved just because it’s open space.”

Food co-ops keep consumers’ money in the local community, unlike chain supermarkets like Stop and Shop or Price Chopper. The Greenfield food co-op opened in 1980; the Brattleboro one, also in business for decades, is the size of a small supermarket.

Greenfield activists fight to save their downtown, and wetlands along the French King Highway, from the effects of sprawl.

In Greenfield, a group of citizens is fighting plans by a Connecticut developer to build a massive store and parking lot on a piece of land that's home to several wetlands.