Hampshire College Students Express Concern for Preserving Cultural Center
The Lebrón-Wiggins-Pran Cultural Center at Hampshire College. Photo: hampshire.edu
Report on the Meeting of the Historical Commission, July 21, 2026
This meeting was held over Zoom and was recorded.
Present: George Baitinger, Joel Greenbaum, Camila Hwang-Carlos and Kalyani Subramanyam. Absent: Kenzie Landsittel. (Two vacancies.)
Staff: Walker Powell (planner)
Allyse Brockington and Mia Sanghvi, two Hampshire College students, asked whether the Historical Commission could help them in their efforts to preserve the Lebrón-Wiggins-Pran Cultural Center at the college. The center provides a range of programs and resources to support and promote the success of students of color and international students at Hampshire. It also provides programs and resources to the larger campus community for engagement on issues related to race, culture and underrepresentation, with the underlying goal of effecting social change.
Brockington and Sanghvi said the building contains multiple murals and that it “would be devastating” if they were destroyed or painted over. The building also contains documents of significance to BIPOC former students at the college.
Commissioner George Baitinger pointed out that the commission has no jurisdiction over art inside buildings, and that the building itself was younger than the 75 years required to be considered historically significant.
Walker Powell said the building may have cultural significance but doubted it would qualify for a demolition delay. She suggested Sanghvi and Brockington approach the Amherst Cultural Council.
Commissioner Camila Hwang-Carlos recommended they seek support from Ancestral Bridges, which has the museum credentials to apply for grants. Regarding preservation of the archives, she suggested the group approach the special collections departments at UMass and the Jones Library.
Owner Urged to Repair, Not Demolish, Porches on Phillips Street
After the building inspector noted deteriorating front porches at the three-unit rental house at 33 Phillips St., owner Celia Huang sought permission from the Historical Commission to demolish the second-floor porch and rebuild the first-floor porch as an uncovered deck. The door leading to the second-floor porch would be replaced by a window.
According to research by the commission, the building was a residential structure constructed around 1900. It has historically been used for residential purposes and continues to function as a multi-family rental property. The structure represents typical early 20th-century vernacular residential development in Amherst, characterized by wood-frame construction, clapboard siding and a gable/hip roof form. The property reflects the pattern of modest multi-family housing that developed to accommodate local population growth. There are no known associations with significant historical events or people. The building has undergone various alterations in the 1970s and 1980s and later but retains its overall residential use and form. Based on available information, the property does not appear to be listed on, or formally evaluated for, the National Register of Historic Places. Planner Walker Powell said she believed the porches were original to the building.
After a site visit to the house, Commissioner Joel Greenbaum said he felt the porches were sound, but that it was not possible to fully evaluate them until the floorboards and ceilings were removed to expose the underlying supports. He and the rest of the commissioners agreed that if the porches were sound, they should be repaired rather than demolished. All commissioners preferred repairing the supports, if necessary, to demolition. Greenbaum also said he believed repair would be less costly than demolition.
The owner agreed she would rather keep the porches, so the public hearing was continued to the Aug. 18 meeting. If further inspection reveals the porches are salvageable, no demolition permit will be necessary.
House on Dickinson Street to Be Moved, but Associated Garage Can Be Demolished
The owner of the building at 24 Dickinson St. originally applied for permission to demolish the house and garage to construct a new mixed-use building, but Greenbaum offered to move the house to a site on North Whitney Street, so a demolition permit was needed only for the associated garage.
Attorney Tom Reidy of Bacon, Wilson, LLC said the garage was in very poor condition, with rotting beams. Some portions were added later and are not contemporary with the house. Reidy maintained that relocating the garage was not feasible.
Historical research revealed that the house, known as the Charles M. Osgood House, was constructed around 1870. It is currently used as business offices but appears to have formerly been a single-family home.
A site visit confirmed the poor condition of the barn, and no commissioner recommended preserving it. Hwang-Carlos said she did not think its demolition would destroy any historic significance. Baitinger said saving the house was a win, both preserving a historic structure and reducing landfill waste.
Because Greenbaum had to recuse himself from the discussion due to his involvement in moving the house, the Historical Commission did not have a quorum to vote on the barn demolition. However, the commission agreed via constructive approval — when an application, plan or request is automatically deemed approved because the reviewing authority failed to make a decision within a strictly prescribed time limit — not to issue a demolition delay.
Election of Officers Postponed to August Meeting
Because this was the first meeting for Camila Hwang-Carlos and Kalyani Subramanyam, and Kenzie Landsittel was absent, the commission elected to postpone choosing a new chair until the August meeting. There are still two vacancies on the commission.