"South Hadley is more like a perpetual low density suburb than rural in the sense of “no people”.
Yes- great characterization! I find it funny when I read on this subforum people saying that South Hadley is rural. When I think of rural, I think-miles and miles of fields/farms, then a university, then more fields. That is not South Hadley. Its a small suburban quiet town, and from MHC you can walk to a small shopping plaza, as mentioned, and there is even a nice restaurant or two in town (walkable from MHC).