Trolley Station on North Pleasant Street, built 1911 destroyed 5/29/12So I can't help but wonder if this inappropriate demolition of a historic structure is a reenactment of the murder of Thomas Becket by King Henry's stooges, who thought his highness had officially ordered it.
On Tuesday a construction crew trashed the historic little gem that state officials in Boston wanted to preserve for a while longer but local UMass officials made perfectly clear they wished it gone, gone, gone.
Gone without a trace
Interestingly, the dirty deed happens soon after thousands of students--potential witnesses-- leave campus and hidden from view by a new fence. The first time UMass tried to demolish it back in 1994, a faculty member blew the whistle--thus giving the structure a long reprieve.
Coincidentally enough this unauthorized destruction occurs only weeks after Amherst Town Meeting showed strong support for maintaining the integrity of historical structures by overwhelmingly passing the Dickinson Historical District zoning bylaw.
Yes, our local Historical Commission had requested this particular building be preserved but they have no authority over UMass, thus they could not issue a one year demolition delay. And even if they did issue that official restraining order, this despicable deed was supposedly done independent of owner (UMass) oversight.
Said historic preservation pit bull Joseph Larson, "Contractors can sense this indifference and are more likely to misbehave." Indeed.
