Amherst’s visual and scenic quality is increasingly threatened by rapid and unplanned development, including subdivisions and strip commercial growth, which have altered the town’s natural landscape over the past decade. This transformation is largely driven by the expansion of the University of Massachusetts, alongside other nearby colleges, attracting a growing population seeking cultural and educational opportunities in a traditionally rural setting. Amherst’s population has doubled since 1960 and is projected to reach 25,000 by 1980, intensifying pressure on land and leading to widespread landscape alteration and deterioration of visual character. Early efforts to manage this growth, such as the 1969 master plan, were not adopted, prompting the establishment of a Select Committee on Goals and the hiring of a Town Planner in 1971. This committee initiated community engagement through a questionnaire aimed at guiding future development strategies to preserve Amherst’s scenic and cultural environment.