Lower Main Street Thursday afternoon. The flag can stay
Lower Main Street Saturday morning
Now if these kids knew anything about Amherst they would know golf is not all that high on the list, considering the municipal white elephant Cherry Hill Golf Course loses money hand over fist every season since Reagan was President (and Johnny Carson in his prime).
So yeah, I will be sure to send B2 on a mission tomorrow just after high noon to see their decision.
Building Inspector may want to investigate the "4 unrelated housemates" bylaw as well
These brats need to learn who owns the land they are on....it is the town, you can tell because the town is the decision maker and only the owner would have such rights. They are in Amherst so they only have the right to follow the endless and ever changing rules. That is what the republic is all about, not golf or freedom of expression.
ReplyDeleteSarcasm requires its own special font (especially when you're on the wrong side of the issue).
ReplyDeleteLarry, can't you think of worse things to be upset about?
ReplyDeleteI don't get it. What was so wrong here?
ReplyDeleteLarry...who cares....there are so many front burner issues? Did ms Kent really resign? Who will the SC appoint? Pot freedom on the ballot.Charter schools. Can I really get cookies at 2 am? Please give us a forum where we can talk about important stuff. Your numbers have to be down. Did ms Appy have her elitist party to save the underprivileged? Please Larry....I beg you!
ReplyDeleteActually my numbers are just fine.
ReplyDeleteThanks for asking.
This is asinine Larry, and it is why I think all the save-water emails will backfire.
ReplyDeleteThese kids aren't really bothering anyone -- the peeling paint is far more unsightly -- and while the town can force the kids to take down the sign, it can;t force them to save water.
The kids feel they are being treated unjustly -- maybe they are, maybe they aren't -- but they feel unjustly treated. And will push back -- much like you did wnen tou got banned from the TM listserve.
Larry, has APD had trouble with that address (this year)? AFD dealt with ODs there? You seen empty cups strewn across the lawn the next morning?
Aren't there bigger problems in town?
Larry, they are flying the US flag (which may be the problem), are they & this the biggest problem the town has?
Why can't the town start with a compromise? Or an explanation --- heaven forbid the Town have the respect to do that...
Instead, the town is taking the "sucks to be you" approach -- at the very time it needs cooperation with a water supply crisis. Those girls don't all live there, they're not the type that would, and they'll spread the "Fire Truck Amherst" not only among the residences where they do live, as well as their peers in general.
To them, putting up Golf banners is important, having enough water isn't as Daddy'll pay for a hotel room in Springfield if the pipes suck air. Hence, Larry, I ask what is it that you really want and what are you willing to pay for it?
Respect.
ReplyDeleteIt's priceless.
Respect is earned! Be honest our fine operation of our town is far from deserving respect. Leave the damn kids alone till they cause trouble, for Christ's sake!
ReplyDeleteRespect versus Fear.
ReplyDeleteRespect is priceless because it is earned, it can not be demanded.
Dr. Ed
Well in this particular case it will cost the kids $100 day in fines. Let's see how attached they are to the signs.
ReplyDeleteAlthough if they split that among all the residents of that humble abode probably not all that much per head.
I don't understand what the problem is. Why is the town making them take the signs down? I drive by that house twice a day. I don't find the signs offensive. This feels a bit big brotherish to me.
ReplyDeleteAnd it will cost them NOTHING to flush their toilets 1000 times a day -- which, heaven help me, I hope they do.
ReplyDeleteLarry, we lost the Vietnam War. Learn from history....
Grandiose much?
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteNo, Larry, RVN had a lot worse problems than plumbing.
But ignore history at your own peril.
I never ignore history, I make it.
ReplyDeleteLarry, ever read Machiavelli?
ReplyDeleteMay I suggest you read the part where he states the necessity of having the people "love" the Prince?
The signs will come down, but we have decided the faucets will go on and stay on:)#payback
ReplyDeleteI kinda liked Prince.
ReplyDeleteSucks that he died.
Don't do drugs kids.
This building has problems far beyond a banner or two...
ReplyDeleteWhy aren't landlords required to tend to their properties? Basic upkeep? What is the interior like?
The town should worry about the occupants health and safety- not a banner!
Still don't see the harm in the signs. What's the big deal?
Delete7:33
ReplyDeleteThe owner will be fined, not the tenants
I'm sure he will pass that along, probably with a few choice comments.
ReplyDeleteLarry - are you opposed to the new European style @ green belt " of preserved free space with Cherry Hill - or just an expensive " golf distraction " ?????
ReplyDeleteThe latter.
ReplyDeleteDon't you have a right to put a sign up on private property, it is private property by all means?
ReplyDeleteI do not see the issue here.
It would also seem that something needs to be done. If the town can fine the property owner $100 a day for such a petty thing, surely the action item is to change that fine to something more in proportion to the violation to the community.
Surely hanging those sings for a month or two should not cost as much as a drunk driving.
Oh and some of these posts are spot on, the toilets in that house and any student house that thinks the town is over the top are just running...especially in the dorms where the charge cannot be passed on like a house. It is kinda like suicide bombers, you cannot win against people that are willing to go further than you. All you can do is play the denial card like Larry.
But this is a feel good story, Amherst is a town where this is one of the biggest deals going on in a week. Good to be in such a place. Imagine if we had money issues, housing issues, crime issues or in general issues that had effects on others. Flush away kids.
No actually the the biggest story of the week is the ongoing drought issue.
ReplyDeleteI try to mix up stories for comic relief. (Not just the subject matter but also the comments they generate)
Depends if you live in the neighborhood or not. And obviously you don't.
ReplyDeleteThere is a little something called the 1st Amendment which protects this type of speech. These people aren't advertising a business. It is protected speech.
ReplyDeleteNo, it is not.
ReplyDeleteLarry, the next thing they go after are American flags -- and it's being done.
ReplyDeleteBut this issue's going to the SJC -- at a minimum -- there's a Trump supporter dealing with similarly myopic fascists elsewhere in the Commonwealth.
And Larry, doesn't Amherst have a drone ban?
Nationally, people are shooting down drones with impunity -- courts are tossing the charges --- and you don't need a gun to bring down a drone. All you need to do is foul the props, I imagine monofiliment line would tend to do that.
3:34 is actually right, SCOTUS has said so, but is that the worst issue that property has?
Amherst has an "advisory" drone ban.
ReplyDeleteI do not take the advice of Amherst Town Meeting.
Amherst also has an "advisory" wasting water ban."
ReplyDeleteFlush, Flush, Flush -- I do not take the advice of the Amherst Selectboard.
Flush, flush, flush.
Actually the ban is "mandatory".
ReplyDeleteAnd on Monday night the Select Board will establish fines for violations which would include Flush, flush, flush.
Larry, any news on the runner that was hit by a car? I not commenting on this one I'm a big golf fan.
ReplyDeleteHe lived. That's the important thing.
ReplyDeleteWhen are they going to get after the homeowner at 6 Teaberry, who continues to water his lawn? He switched the automatic watering system from daytime watering to night time watering. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to notice his is the only green lawn around. All the neighbors have dead lawns. Why doesn't the town at least go out and tell the idiot to stop watering? The neighbors have told him to stop. The DPW trucks pass his house at least two times a day.
ReplyDeleteHey Kip- turn your faucet off!
ReplyDeleteCall the DPW 259-3050
ReplyDelete"The Town of Amherst is not currently fining those who violate the ban. However, there will be teams of individuals from the Department of Public Works (DPW) and Inspection Services who will either issue a verbal warning or leave a notice regarding the violation. The Select Board may vote to impose fines at some point in the near future if the drought moves from “watch” to “warning” status or if individuals do not adhere to the ban."
The Select Board will do exactly that on Monday night.
ReplyDeleteAnd these nitwits are already on the radar.
What if the sign said Bernie or Peace? Bet it would still be flying
ReplyDeleteOr Black Lives Matter. "White Lives Matter" would be burned down.
ReplyDeleteOr Amherst loves freedom...or property rights...it is ok to lie right?
ReplyDeleteEventually the town is going to get what is coming to it for being so petty and again biting the hands that feeds them over nothing.
ReplyDeleteI believe with some effort, the students could do a better job of making Amherst a worst place to live for yuppie families, just like the yuppie families try to make Amherst a worst place for students to go to college.
You cannot beat the students, that is like beating your boss by running him out of business. You can poke them until they react though. If people want to pay for all their own crap and do it without the students, you can simply step up to do it, no new laws or movements needed.
Additionally, the town cannot seem to get anything done right, simply read this blog, where does it get off playing the high horse on a innocent signage? This only makes the town look worse. Amherst has to start coming in on the right side of laws, budgets and rights - it is not sustainable to ALWAYS make things worse.
And you heard it folks. No sports signs or acts of expression from your property.
But you don't own a home.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the other flag tney have displayed?
ReplyDeleteUMass, our #1 employer and provider of the trough many suck from.
ReplyDeleteI believe with some effort, the students could do a better job of making Amherst a worst place to live for yuppie families, just like the yuppie families try to make Amherst a worst place for students to go to college.
ReplyDelete0: It wouldn't take much effort, not with water being Amherst's Achilles Heel-- usage is down because of the altruism of youth, but p*ss them off enough, and they'll find a way to waste water, with impunity.
In the 1950's, both Routes 9 & 116 were to bypass Downtown Amherst, with Route 9 going through Mark's Meadow and a new bridge across the Connecticut River. Only the North Pleasant Street By-Pass was built, with Amherst remaining a traffic chokepoint. Well, there are a dozen different ways that a couple hundred students could exploit this with total impunity -- imagine something as simple as a couple hundred walking to Town Hall (using various crosswalks) on a Friday afternoon...
1: The Amherst Parasites aren't "yuppies" because the "Y" stood for "young" -- much like the "GIs" of the 1950's, the "Young, UPwardly-mobile Professionals" of the early 1980's -- the 1987 Stock Market Crash largely ended this era of excess.
What you have in Amherst are Downwardly-Mobile Trustfunders -- they've sold more expensive properties in Metro Boston/NYC (or on Cape Cod) to purchase in Amherst -- they are only big fish because Amherst is such an incredibly small pond.
You cannot beat the students, that is like beating your boss by running him out of business. You can poke them until they react though. If people want to pay for all their own crap and do it without the students, you can simply step up to do it, no new laws or movements needed.
Anyone remember what happened to Hostess? The union drove the company into bankruptcy, somebody else bought the name, and now Twinkies are made by them -- somewhere else.
Do not think for an instant that this couldn't happen to Higher Ed.
"Social justice is great, on the other hand we have the first amendment. The first amendment should win every time." Stop being hypocritical Larry. You are continuing this "debate" (for lack of a better word) to increase your numbers on the site. You have no argument; this may be in violation of a town regulation or bylaw, but as you said "the first amendment should win every time".
ReplyDeleteAlso, stop acting like students are the worst thing to happen to Amherst. If it were not for Umass Amherst and Amherst college, your taxes would be significantly higher than they already are. And the schools have been here a lot longer than you have.
Instead of writing a piece about the water ban for the 50th time, you should write a piece regarding the steps Umass Amherst has taken to change its stigma from "ZooMass Slamherst" to a well-respected univeristy.
Quote source: http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/01/amherst_blogger_larry_kelley_s.html
so.. what happened/what was the problem with the flags? I still don't see the issue, and you never posted what happened at high noon. Or was this a "oh-no-bad-student-large-group-party-house" post in disguise since those seem to not be a thing anymore. Please give us the follow up.
ReplyDeleteI'm failing to understand what the issue is with a couple of PGA banners are. That paint peeling house is an eye sore with or without those signs. Why can't the tenants keep them up? Are the violating an ordinance? No sarcasm font intended, just curious.
ReplyDeleteNo, I'm not a student. Simply a former long time resident (Echo Hill) who moved on and is very happy I don't have to deal with those deteriorating school situations (have a 7th and 9th grader). But I'll always have love for my hometown.
Yes they are in violation of zoning in a neighborhood district.
ReplyDeleteIf it were the center of town and the signs did not take up more than 10% of building square footage they would be allowed -- especially for a golf supply store.
Larry, what about the peeling (likely Lead) paint?
ReplyDelete0r is the inspector's sole purpose to harass the students? When I see the slumlords, and I mean the folks who can't rent Section 8 because their places are dumps, being held accountable, then I'll think differently.
Thanks (I was anon 7:34). If it's violating a written ordinance, I understand. But to anon 11:24 point I'd love to see the town address the nasty home. Sad to see those houses still falling apart. I atteneded many parties I those houses as a kid and they were in rough shape then (20 years ago). As a former landlord I knew I'd have to invest every year between student tenants (Logtown rd, edge Hill). A responsible and realistic landlord knows students are rough on the house. The deposit never covered the damage, but that's why the rent was higher than in Sunderland or Hadley.
ReplyDeleteGet the slumlord to fix it up! Anyone know who owns it?
"Anyone know who owns it?"
ReplyDeleteJust put the address in at the town property search site:
https://www.amherstma.gov/400/Amherst-Maps-Property-Info