Have tree will travel

Groff Park 10:00 AM (two more are comin)

Slow news day

So my Amherst “Institutional Memory” is like a point-and-shoot digital camera. There’s rock solid “optical zoom” and beyond that (pushing the envelope) enhanced, slightly blurry, “digital zoom”.

I realized this when I stretched my older Kodak camera to the limit to get a recognizable photo of former Select Board Czar Ann Awad (at the time an AMHERST town official) w-a-y off in her South Hadley garden, and it came out blurry.

Fortunately she has an oversized distinctive body, instantly recognizable (even from a good distance) and yeah; you don’t even want to see the few I did not publish.

My “institutional memory” (‘optical zoom’) dates back to 1982 the year I opened my small business in what was then called “The Dead Mall” in bucolic Hadley, the next town over.

Wal Mart moved in a dozen years or years ago after I relocated to my hometown ‘The People’s Republic of Amherst’ and these days that “dead mall” is about as lively as you can get.

But for pre-1982 events I rely on “old timers” I trust and—God forbid—the Gazette, and sister publication Amherst Bulletin. And of course the Amherst Record (a 200+ year old publication killed by the Amherst Bulletin)

Got an email this afternoon from a fellow Town Meeting member about a water outage at Puffton Village, the second one this year. But by the time I got there on my bike it was already repaired. The joys of dealing with the private sector.


My slightly foggy (“digital zoom”) memory reminds me that Puffton Village was constructed in the late 1960's early 1970’s in response to the dramatic growth of Umass/Amherst and received a pass from the Zoning Board of Appeals or Planning Board.

BUT, the Zoning Variance was only good for 25 or 30 years and the complex was originally envisioned as “temporary housing” and upon expiration the buildings would be terminated. So you can imagine the original infrastructure was not exactly constructed to the highest standards.

WELL of course once the vital housing owned by Steve Puffer, a famous long-time Town Meeting member, came into being and served a purpose (not to mention generated lots of money) …

Just a little respect

And let's remember Army Maj. Steven Hutchison as well



-----Original Message-----
From: amherstac@aol.com
To: marx@amherst.edu; sh.events@state.ma.us
Sent: Fri, 15 May 2009 3:09 pm
Subject: Your majestic American flag on Chapel Hill

Hey Tony,

So Wednesday was one of those state-wide local edicts issued by our Governor to fly the flag at half-staff, commemorating the ultimate sacrifice of Massachusetts resident Explosive Ordinance Disposalman John Trahan, age 22--and with that "job description" you can imagine how he died (at least it was quick .)

But today is Peace Officers' Day--and the President of the United States has ordered all flags to half-staff to commemorate those men and women in blue who have also given up their "last measure of devotion" to keep us safe.

Your flag on Chapel Hill is the most prominent in Amherst. Could you maybe please (since the College tends to bring it down to half-staff for employees) subscribe to the Mass state listserve for those rare occasions when the Governor orders it down, and also observe the Federal ones as well (also rare) for flag protocol? Memorial Day is coming up.

Top be perfectly honest, it's kind of embarrassing.

Larry Kelley


Previous Amherst College observances

And who pays???!!!

The cell tower in the background pays Amherst $1,697/month and actually serves a purpose.

Soooooo…. this portable office trailer has been sitting here at the town owned Ruxton Gravel Pit unused since around Thanksgiving. The town received $1,200 total from the contractor to rent the land but according to Mass Highway budget book the state pays the contractor $2,400/month rent on the trailer itself—and in all probability is still paying it now six months later.

And you wonder why the state has to defund the Quinn Bill (so police officers will have no incentive now to pursue higher education), or nix entirely social programs aimed at poor/at-risk kids or increase the state sales tax that will probably cost thousands of retail jobs from the lowest end paid workers.

But my favorite is the Meadow Street Bridge--the other North Amherst renovation completed two years ago, where state taxpayers paid a Umass Professor $15,000 to perform an “endangered species” study in the river (i.e. clams) that was accomplished on a Saturday morning and turned up only one clam (that he either relocated or had as an appetizer that night.)

Only in Massachusetts!


Mass Highway reports:

Project Description: AMHERST- BRIDGE REPLACEMENT, A-08-020,
EAST LEVERETT ROAD OVER MOUNTAIN BROOK
The existing bridge will be replaced with a single span prestressed concrete deck beam structure on new abutments. Location: Town of Amherst

Construction Begins: Autumn 2007
Resident Engineer: Scott Pellerin
Construction Contract Value: $667,940.50
Construction Bid Price: $629,940.50
Initial Construction Estimate: $548,644.00
MassHighway District: District 2
Current Status: Bridge under construction (as of 03/28/2008)
Additional Info: Bridge closed for the duration of the project. Traffic detoured to Leverett Rd., Amherst Rd., Depot Rd., Shutesbury Rd., to Cushman Rd. (as of 04/24/2008)


Hey, what do you want for $630-K?

Not bad for Amherst

They even lowered the UN Flag. Kind of ironic in that the UN was its useless self in Iraq.

Rest In Peace Explosive Ordnance Disposalman Petty Officer Second Class Tyler John Trahan--you did your job and only God knows how many civilians and fellow soldiers you saved.
###################################################

Al Anbar Province, Iraq-Explosive Ordnance Disposalman Petty Officer Second Class Tyler John Trahan age 22 years died Thursday April 30th just two days short of his 23rd birthday. He was killed while conducting combat operations in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Tyler was the son of Jean-Pierre and Maureen Anne (O’Malley) Trahan of East Freetown. Brother of Molly Jean Trahan of East Freetown, Tyler was also the grandson of Claudette Mae (Allain) O’Malley of New Bedford and the late John J. O’Malley Jr., Antoinette (Gaudette) Trahan and Roger Trahan. Tyler leaves many Uncles, Aunts and Cousins and Loving Friends.

He was born in New Bedford and lived on Long Pond in East Freetown all his life, until he started his military career. He graduated from Freetown Elementary, Freetown-Lakeville Middle School, Old Colony Regional Vocational High School in 2004 and also attended Massachusetts Maritime Academy. He entered the United States Navy in May 2006. Tyler was a member of the National Honor Society during his school years. He was the quarterback of the Old Colony ”Cougars” football team.

Tyler enlisted in the U.S. Navy May 16, 2006 and graduated from boot camp at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, IL., in July 2006 He then attended the Center for Naval Engineering in Great Lakes before reporting to the Naval Dive and Salvage Training Center in Panama City, FL.

Tyler continued his training at the Naval Explosive Ordnance Disposal School at Eglin Air Force Base in FL. from November 2006 to October 2007.

In service to his country Tyler continued his training at his next duty station that was Explosive Ordnance Disposal Training and Evaluation Unit ONE in San Diego from November to December 2007, and then on to Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit TWELVE in Norfolk, VA. In December 2007. Tyler would then join on deployment with an East Coast based SEAL Team.

Tyler’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V”(Valor) Distinguishing Device, Purple Heart, Combat Action Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, and Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

EOD Petty Officer 2nd Class Trahan’s Funeral will be Wednesday May 13th. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Saint John Neumann Church East Freetown at 11 A.M. At the families request everyone is invited to meet at church. Visiting hours will be Tuesday May 12th from 3-8 P.M. at the Perry Funeral Home 111 Dartmouth St. New Bedford, MA. Following the Mass the funeral cortège will be traveling to Massachusetts National Cemetery at Otis Air Force Base in Bourne where EOD Petty Officer 2nd Class Tyler John Trahan will be buried with full Military Honors.

Please Omit Flowers a Donation may be made in his memory to: EOD2 Tyler John Trahan Memorial Fund Navy Federal Credit Union P.O. Box 3000 Merrifield, VA. 22119-3000 on the check please put for Acct # 3017793997

Let's try to get this right

Subject:Half-Staff Notification for May 13, 2009
Date: May 11, 2009 4:39:41 PM EDT
Good Afternoon Everyone,

Governor Patrick has requested both the Commonwealth and American Flags be lowered to half-staff on Wednesday, May 13, 2009 from sunrise to sunset in honor of Petty Officer Second Class Tyler John Trahan who was killed in action in Iraq

Pursuant to gubernatorial protocol which states,

"The U.S. flag shall be flown at half-staff at all state buildings from sunrise until sunset on the day of interment of any service member from Massachusetts who is killed in action in a war zone while on active duty,”

Please be advised that Governor Patrick has ordered that the United States flag be lowered to half-staff at all state buildings from sunrise until sunset on Wednesday, May 13, 2009, in honor of Explosive Ordnance Disposalman Petty Officer Second Class Tyler John Trahan of East Freetown, Massachusetts who was killed in action in Iraq on April 30, 2009.

If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact us.

Thank you,

Suzzette
State House Event Coordinator

Sometimes a Stand Up Guy

Left to right: Shaffer, SB Princess Stephanie O'Keeffe and rookie Aaron Hayden.

So on some things Town Manager Larry Shaffer is a Stand Up Guy.

Certainly not when it comes to basic American values like a good old fashioned Rockwellian July 4’th Parade, or allowing the Boy Scouts of America unfettered access to property they have used for sixty years to sell Christmas trees, or even flying American flags in town center to commemorate the victims of 9/11.

But he did stand in support of the $20,000 in Article 18 of Community Preservation Act money to improve the landscape of the West Cemetery (you know, the final resting place of the Dickinson family including of course Miss Emily.) The article passed fairly handily 108-51.

And I assume when the recorded Tally Vote (a step up from a standing vote) is released for full-funding of the Civil War Memorial Tablets (a much closer vote at 91 to 84) he will also have voted in favor.

Town Manager Barry Del Castilho (now South Hadley’s acting Town Manager) never once voted on the floor of Town Meeting in his twenty-year tenure. And the Moderator, Harrison Gregg can--but never has--voted. I even think State Senator Stan Rosenberg could show up and vote if he wanted, but never has.

If you construct a budget, as Town Managers are supposed to do, then why would you not support individual items within that budget?

Escape from Oz

Amherst Town Meeting (that also runs on hot air) is on hiatus until June 15. I will be in Korea (the good side). Double yea!

A captain without a ship

So the July 4'th Parade Committee was put on notice last year that no town vehicles would be allowed in the procession unless the private committee acquiesced and allowed war protesters in the line of march.

Of course almost simultaneously the Town Manager announced town government would run (take over) the July 4'th Parade in 2009 and the private committee would just have to pick another day. Then that pesky ACLU changed his mind about shutting down the private committee's July 4'th Parade (always held--you know--on JULY 4'th)

AND--that was well before both the long-time Police and Fire Chief's announced their retirements from the Public Safety organizations they helped build, and are proud to serve.

The July 4'th Parade Committee (tried to) bestow the honor of Parade Co-Grand Marshal's on AFD Chief Keith Hoyle and APD Chief Charles Scherpa. When Chief Hoyle asked the Town Manager if he could have a fire vehicle for escort he was told "No!"

As a result, he will not march.

Sooooo...we can use the Ladder Truck--the biggest most expensive piece of equipment in the AFD arsenal to escort Santa Claus to the Merry Maple (not to be confused with a Christmas Tree) festivities in December, but will not allow any vehicle to escort the outgoing Fire Chief in a Parade celebrating the birth of our great nation?

Only in Amherst!

Gross indeed!

So yeah, this is after all the People’s Republic of Amherst form of governance: give these Uber-Libs any opportunity, any microscopic opening to climb up on their soapbox and they will fire off that tired 'Holier than Thou' philosophy.

Hmmm…by all means, abolish jails and prisons (somebody please cue the soundtrack to “Born Free”) eject all the murderers, rapists, and muggers to roam free.

And while we’re at it, tell those overpaid, lazy-ass sheepherders to surrender their weapons and cage their border collies in case a hungry coyote or wolf should come calling.



Mr. Grosscup of course voted against flying the American flags in the downtown on 9/11 to commemorate the 3,000 Americans slaughtered that day.

Amherst's Uber-Lib "Hall of Shame"

Anything for you Vince

Amherst's own Napoleon.

So along with Cambridge, the People’s Republic of Amherst experimented (in a Nazi sort of way) with “Rent Control” back in the 1980’s. Naturally this being the United States of America where supply and demand rules, it did not work.

Yet it took us this long to put a bullet in the back of the head of the 'Housing Review Board.'

Notice how former Chair Harry Brooks (still drunk on the power he once possessed) delights in retelling the story of brow beating and intimidating a women he describes as a “friend of mine”. Yikes!

Mr. Brooks is currently one of seven members of the “Town Meeting Coordinating Committee” (they come up with new rules and regulations for the antiquated body); and he’s one of three members of the Amherst Registrar of Voters (the folks who sided with former Czar Ann Awad after she moved to South Hadley but wanted to remain an Amherst town official to bolster her retirement pension benefits) and his wife Paulette Brooks, also a town meeting member, is Executive Committee President of ACTV (the cable access TV folks who consume $250,000 annually to broadcast Amherst government functions).

Double yikes!

The hardest working man in (state) politics

State Senator Stan Rosenberg paid the Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School a visit this morning to talk about all things education. Stan is the hardest working politician in the state and if the entire legislature were made up of folks like him we would not be in such a dire condition today.

He had a perfect quote in the Gazette today where he was describing “revenue enhancement” measures for cities and towns and how they could—if implemented--bring in $400 million, which he described as “not a ton of money.”

And at first I thought how could you say that about $400 million? But with state revenues off by $3 BILLION, it’s not too hard to understand.

I first met Stan back in 1991 when I was elected to Amherst Town Meeting with 5 write in votes (mine, my wife and three others). Back then the (usually elderly) constables would bring the locked ballot boxes to Town Hall from all the hinterlands of Amherst and sometimes the last one would not arrive until 9:30 PM or so (polls closed at 8:00) and the results had to be tabulated.

So I’m alone in the Town Clerks office around 9:00 PM waiting for the results of Precinct 7. In walks State Representative Stan Rosenberg. I introduce myself and say “what are you doing here?”. “I’m a political junkie , he replied.

A while later the Springfield Republican reporter who covered Amherst , Mike Plaisance, showed up for the results. He asked me how I felt about winning an election to Amherst Town Meeting? “Now I know how President Reagan felt after Grenada”, I replied tongue in cheek.

After all, the island of Grenada was no match for our military and I had just been elected with 5 votes (mine, my wife’s and three others)

But I was always impressed when everybody else--including the voters--had no interest in a local election (no major contests were on the ballot) our State Representative did. And I’ve watched Stan‘s career closely ever since. And he continues to earn the moniker “hardest working politician in the state.”

Naturally this morning I followed him out to his car and mentioned that Amherst’s share of the 4% local hotel/motel tax was down $40,000 because of the Lord Jeff Inn closing. So even if we raise it to 6% (which would have generated $60,000 last year) it will not help. BUT if the Umass Campus Center Hotel would START paying the tax—even at 4%--it could raise $75,000 or so.

“We’re working on,” Stan replied. And that is a good thing.

Yes time, time, time is on my side, yes it is

So it’s safe to say nobody in the 250-year history of Amherst, has absorbed and wasted more time on the floor of Town Meeting than Vince O’Connor. But tonight was a new low, ironically enough, fairly brief.

When Article #13--Vince’s advisory article championing Governor Cadillac’s 19 cent per gallon gas tax increase--came up in normal rotation about an hour into Town Meeting, Mr. O’Connor did not have the exact wording of the motion because he has been “busy" and did not “have the time,” so he asked Town Meeting to postpone the article to come up after #20 next week.

Hmmm…So Mr. O’Connor’s time (and it's not like he has a dayjob) is more valuable than the 150 or so Town Meeting members in the room trying to get through the Warrant as quickly and efficiently as possible?

Gotta wonder if it had anything to do with PR. Next week is, after all, national bike week.

Home sweet home

Click to enlarge/read

Well I suppose if the town can buy an American flag for the Town Room (where the Select Board meets most of the time) they can spend a few bucks adding this folksy photo of the current Select Board to the main entry of Town Hall.

But did they have to use a permanent plaque to ID the current members, rather than one with slots so you could simply replace just the single name tags?

After all, Mr. Weiss is TOAST in the next election (if he has the ego to actually run.) So not only will they have to reshoot the fancy LARGE color photo but will also have to recommission another bronze plaque (at least the fancy oak frame will still work)

Guess who's coming to town?

Forget the economic meltdown, swine flu pandemonium, and boring Town Meetings--the fair starts Thursday! And nothing--except perhaps a Rockwellian July 4'th Parade--represents all that is good with small town America better than a Fair.

Take a hike

So with business failures becoming a pandemic, unemployment skyrocketing, and those who still work for a living looking at wage freezes and feeling good about it since at least they still have a job, Mr. Vince O’Connor the social activist who thinks he’s Robin Hood, wants Town Meeting to endorse Governor Cadillac’s 19 cents per gallon gas tax hike.

Thus making us #1 in the nation for gas taxes, a return to the good old "Taxachusetts" days.

If you are some poor schmuck who commutes a l-o-n-g way to your job (not within cycling distance or on a PVTA bus route) that hike alone could cost hundred$ per year, money that could otherwise go towards a health club membership, golf lessons or beer.

Maybe the Gov and Vince should institute a special tax on Swedish cars, wine-and-cheese, and avant-garde movie houses. Or liberal excess—in the People’s Republic that would generate a fortune.

Don't mess with God

So according to aging activist Vince O'Connor, somebody (a former Select Board member and long-time Town Meeting member--so my guess is Rob Kusner) will move to divide the CPA article (you already know about the Civil War tablets restoration reduction of $20,000 coming up) to cut the entire funding for the North Congregation Church Slate Roof repair.

You know, that quaint, gorgeous old building that dominates North Amherst center. And gee, the request is all of $7,000 (approved 7-0 by the Community Preservation Act Committee) And for that the town gets a legal permanent promise to maintain the historical preservation of the property.

That way no Frat House could buy it and erect neon Budweiser signs in the belfry. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me.

Glory, glory

Amherst's "Sacred Dead Tablets" in storage

So as Civil War battles go the losses at Fort Wagner (under 1700 total with 90% of them Union attackers) were relatively minor; like the damage done to the Empire of Japan’s capital city of Tokyo by Doolittle’s B-25 bombers only four months after Pearl Harbor.

But they both made history because of a far greater symbolic meaning. And as such should always be remembered.

The ill-fated attack on Fort Wagner led by the 54'th Massachusetts Volunteers dispelled the notion that black soldiers couldn’t (or wouldn’t) fight. And the daring air raid on Tokyo sent a message to Japan early on: you messed with wrong country.

Amherst Town Meeting will take up the issue of restoring the Civil War tablets and placing them back in Amherst Town Hall where they were proudly displayed back in the early 1900’s. Two members of the Community Preservation Committee issued a minority report suggesting the total cost to clean all six and display two tablets at $65,000 is $20,000 too high.

Hmmm…Amherst spent almost $300,000 to preserve the Kimball House in North Amherst (now dwarfed by the aircraft carrier sized house behind it) but we can’t spend one-quarter of that to restore and display these donated tablets to honor locals who served--especially those who gave their "last measure of devotion"?

West Springfield City Hall

The Kimball House in North Amherst

The only thing we have to fear...

Yes, my daughter attended her final swim lesson at Amherst College. Living in fear is no way to live. One of the great advantages of living in the greatest county on earth is that when we declare war on something, we win.

Sent: Fri, 1 May 2009 2:52 pm

Subject: Saturday Swim Lessons

Greetings from the Amherst Pool!

We will be having the final Saturday lessons as scheduled tomorrow. We are aware of the cases of swine flu on the Amherst campus but after speaking with administrators who have been in constant communication with medical personnel, we are comfortable conducting lessons as usual since none of our instructors have been affected. We are encouraging them to take all necessary precautions and to find a substitute instructor if they are not feeling well.

If you and your children are healthy we encourage you to come for the last day but if you have doubts about your health we ask that you please do not attend your lesson.

We hope to see you healthy tomorrow!

Thank you again for participating in our swim lesson program!

Sincerely,

Karin Brown
Assistant Men's and Women's Swimming Coach
Amherst College


Well I guess not everyone showed up:
Monday, May 4:

Thank you for your notification. As I'm sure with other parents, we decided
to keep our children home. We were not comfortable sending our kids after
reading all the precautions that are being taken to protect other AC
students from infection. The swimming classes have been great and it was
unfortunate that you could not have postpone the lesson for the following
Saturday.

We also were not comfortable with your statement, "We are encouraging
them to take all necessary precautions and to find a substitute
instructor if they are not feeling well."  It would have felt better if you
said something like, "Any staff who is not feeling well will not teach."
Parents need clear supportive statements.  Thank you.

I've got a secret

Click to enlarge/read

UPDATE: Friday afternoon
So the Gazette, finally, caught up with this fascinating behind-the-scenes soap opera on the hiring of the new Super. And they even allowed me attribution for breaking the story but describe me as a "town meeting member."

But today's Amherst Bulletin has a mention of my 'Trespass Order' getting lifted (on highly read page 3) where I'm described as a "town meeting member and local blogger." Out of those two, I of course prefer the latter.
###############################################################

UPDATE Thurdsay: 1:45 PM
So I had to change a stinky diaper and other daddy duties thus did not add any comments. I wanted to get this up fast (not that I was worried about the Gazette getting around to it) and I think the document and vote speaks volumes.

But you gotta wonder...on this most important symbolic issue (and politically savvy PR folks know well it is the little things that matter to voters)one-third of the Regional School Committee could not be bothered to show up and vote? Yikes! But hey that's what you get with unpaid volunteers.
##################################################################
ORIGINAL POST: 12:30 PM Picture only (15 minutes after receiving the document)

More hats than a haberdashery

Click to read the coalition

Vince O’Connor has created more front organizations than the Mafia. The Zoning groups Alisa refers to during her cross-examination were all created by Vince over a particular issue. All of his “coalitions” are one trick ponies designed to give the cause more gravitas. And since it only takes 10 signatures to get on the warrant he has a small but dedicated following of ‘The Usual Suspects’.

The ban is lifted

I had a very nice meeting this morning with Superintendent Geryk. The Trespass Notice is vacated. And I made the same deal with her that I made with BIG Al the former Super (who is still getting paid): That anytime I visit a school I will announce myself at the main office.

Of course BIG Al enacted the Trespass Notice anyway, even though I honored my end of the deal.

Wow...now I can attend Town Meeting. Kind of like the Governor giving a death row inmate a stay of execution but sentencing them to hard labor breaking rocks in the desert sun.

A stirring symbol

Click to enlarge/read

Adhering to that antiquated bricks-and-mortar media custom “never apologize, never explain” today’s Gazette editorial hits the perfect, hard-to-reach high note of the Star Spangled Banner.

Too bad they did not sound off last year.

Note to all you folks outside the Happy Valley: the Amherst Bulletin is the 30+-year-old (red headed lesbian bastard stepchild) sister publication of the venerable 220+-year-old Daily Hampshire Gazette.

Bully Editorial last year

A simple symbol

Borrowing from the Air Force "missing man formation" to honor the fallen, the Child Welfare League of America designed a hard-to-miss Children's Memorial Flag. The town put it up Friday in solidarity with National Child Abuse Prevention Month (April.)

Nice gesture. (Now if we could just lose the UN Flag)

Blogger reprieve with update (at least I asked)

UPDATE 10:00 PM:
From: Debbie Westmoreland
To: amherstac@aol.com
Cc: Maria Geryk

Sent: Mon, 27 Apr 2009 1:16 pm
Subject: Appointment w/Superintendent
Dear Mr. Kelley:

Thank you for contacting me to set up the meeting Superintendent Geryk
requested. She is available at 9:00 a.m. this Wednesday, April 29th, which I
understand is also a convenient time for you to meet. If your availability has
changed, please let me know. Otherwise, she will plan to meet with you here in
the Superintendent's Office on Wednesday.

Thank you,

Deb

amherstac@aol.com> 4/27/2009 1:38 PM

Hey Deb,

Works for me. May I record the meeting?

Larry


From: Debbie Westmoreland
To: amherstac@aol.com
Sent: Mon, 27 Apr 2009 4:05 pm
Subject: Re: Appointment w/Superintendent

Hi Mr. Kelley:

I'm glad the meeting time is still O.K. for you. I checked with Maria and she
does not want the meeting recorded.

Thanks,

Deb

#############################################################
ORIGINAL POST: 10:00 AM
Damn, now I don't have a good excuse to miss Town Meeting next week--although in mid-June I'll be in Korea (the good half) so if they are still droning on...

So what is the interim Super going to do, make me write 100 times "I will not criticize the venerable Amherst School system", or as the Sisters of St. Joseph used to do--make me hold out my hand and WHAM with a wooden ruler???????

The original notice

And a good time was had...

UPDATE: 4:00 PM Traffic is gridlock as the light is back out again (damn electricians don't want to work on sunny saturday's)

Amherst Town Center 2:00 PM

Town center was still pretty much gridlock when I cycled by this afternoon. But it was worse around noon when the light at Rt. 9 was not working properly, simply flashing red. Luckily the drivers negotiating the gauntlet were not smoking pot.

And strangely enough last year I cycled up to the Extravaganja around the same time and noticed a lot more smoke hanging in the air vs. today, when theoretically it is decriminalized. Hmmm...

Maybe it is just not cool anymore.




(Click to enlarge). Last year, same time.

One is the best number.

So the League of Women Voters, a supposedly non-partisan entity, laid down their weapons without firing a shot, retreating from the idea of throwing a second competing July 4'th “protest parade”

Too bad, I was soooooo looking forward to some brash individual displaying a sign “League of Women Vultures sucks” or something colorful like that. And of course we had a number of folks who may have something to publicly proclaim about our Town Manager.

Funny, when they found out there’s no such thing as a free lunch and you have to pay for police and insurance, they surrendered. Thank God they were not at Valley Forge.

The Republic reports:

Ghost of Christmas future 2

Back 15 years ago Phillip Sweeney asked Amherst Town Meeting to zone this property Village Square to allow commercial development. They overwhelmingly turned him down. I of course voted in favor. One town official even told Town Meeting that someday this entire corridor (ultra-busy Rt. 9) would be zoned commercial but Mr. Sweeney is a tad ahead of the curve (naturally the NIMBY neighbors spoke against the rezoning.)

His speech was one of the most disjointed I have ever heard in Town Meeting and he looked, with his frizzy hair, a bit like a male version of recent sensation Susan Boyle (but without the speaking/singing talent)

When the lopsided vote was announced (and it required a two-thirds majority to pass) a long-time Town Meeting member sitting behind me said to the member next to him "That's because we don't like him." Hmmm....

He did manage to open the Maplewood Restaurant under a "farm stand" exemption (what is more natural than fresh brewed beer?) but with all the rules and regulations restraining his commercial activity the restaurant only lasted a few years.

And now it just sits there, abandoned. The first commercial enterprise you see when approaching Amherst from the east. A reminder of the motto: bury your business in Amherst.

Size does matter!

South Amherst 11:15 AM

All the news...

So today's front page's of the venerable Daily Collegian and by comparison reverent Gazette demonstrate these embarrassing issues have legs.

Of course the Gazette uses a pull quote from one of their unpaid, Hampshire College professor Columnist's who led the charge to increase costs to maintain the "lunch ladies" as school employees, but now laments the increase in spending for the new Super from Florida.

Hey maybe Rodriguez will pull a Governor Patrick with his $15-K housing/transportation allowance and buy a Cadillac (one that runs on vegetable grease of course)

And it seems the Gazette goes out of their way not to mention the firestorm reverberating within the blogesphere about this outlandish payraise issue.

But at least they are paying attention. So if those pissed off women do indeed burn their property tax bills in a hibachi outside the Superintendent's office window, the Gazette will give it Front Page play (and the AP will probably pick it up as well). BUT, you will see it first on the blogesphere.

And what can you say about nitwit Umass kids who dislike what a newspaper publishes so they ban the paper from future publication and steal the current copies?

The Student Government Association should consider their image. If they want the town of Amherst to take seriously their recent concern with the 4-person unrelated housing bylaw (and they damn well should) then stop doing stupid things like violating the freakin First Amendment!

Ghost of Christmas Future?

Last year Town Meeting turned down (117-63) Ken Bergstrom’s request to rezone his property out on the Sunderland line off Rt. 116, a major highway. He wanted to put in a mix of condo’s and retail under Village Square Zoning.

The property was formerly used by Environmental PC Poster Child Bioshelters, to grow fish and basil (they employed mentally retarded workers, used solar heating and recycled 99.7% of all its water and wastes). And they went belly up.

Now it sits like a set for a post apocalyptic movie (Note to Mel Gibson: If you ever do another Mad Max…). Fine greeting for all those entering Amherst from the north.

The 40,000 square foot pad underneath the rotting shelter is concrete so it’s not like you can farm it. But the Conservation Commission and Agricultural Commission wanted it to stay a fishfarm (although they were not going to invest the millions to get it back up and gurgling)

And our Old Majority Select board, with has-been Gerry Weiss in his brief but glorious reign as Chair voted 3-2 against the rezoning (newbie’s Stephanie and Alisa voted in favor.) Ann Awad told Town Meeting "This is an intense development project on a fragile piece of land that is very wet”

And she of course was the only Select Board member a few years earlier to vote in favor of the hostile rezoning of Meadow Street land (not to far down the road) to ‘Flood Prone Conservancy” that set off a marathon legal battle costing the town $150-K and the landowners over $500-K.

Former Bioshelters CEO John Reid told Town Meeting he was raising funds (estimated at $6 to $10 MILLION) to restart the business. So far, one year later, nothing. Had the zoning change gone thru the development would have been worth millions on the tax rolls, rather than the paltry $200,000 in current valuation.

Town Meeting 5/19/08.
Let's hope Mr Reid takes off his cap when meeting with Venture Capitalists.

Patriots Day

Old Colrain, Ma.

Wilmington, Vt.

Back to that damn raise 2

Gotta love this post on the antiquated Town Meeting listserve (privately owned by Mother Mary Streeter, also member of the Town Meeting Coordinating Committee--you know the folks who recently told the Town Manager to buzz off when he requested to participate in a public forum on Human Service Funding (maybe they figured he was a Zombie.)

While I understand the concerns some folks have about our financial difficulties and thus the reaction to the salary offered to our new Superintendent, people should understand that others hear your complaint from a different perspective. From Crocker Farm, the reaction of some Latino parents that I have talked to is a deep suspicion that the salary backlash is actually a racist response. Because in their mind the "white guy" who was earning $198k at his present Sup job seemed to be the favored candidate for many and they assume he would been
offered/paid whatever he wanted. Yet the Latino candidate is undeserving of a
competitive salary? In the minds of some, this is an unfair response.
They feel the new Superintendent was deemed worthy to be hired and put in chargeof our school district and was offered a competitive salary. Many in the Latino
community are thrilled to see him take charge (he is Cuban-American)
Just so you know that there is another reaction out there...
-- Cheers, Clare Bertrand

Quite frankly I favored "the white guy" but would not have paid him $158-K plus $15-K housing/transportation for two years. Hell at this point I would take the other Rodriguez (a woman no less) for $135-K (and $10 bucks taxi fare to relocate from NoHO)

Spring

I want one of those!

Boulders Apartment South Amherst 11:30 AM, illegally parked

Of course with the People's Republic of Amherst sudden crackdown on four unrelated housemates and the general crackdown on illegals since 9/11, I wonder how many people actually answer the door when this federal official comes a knocking?

Back to that damn raise

From: Debbie Westmoreland
To: amherstac
Cc: Andy Churchill ; Michael Hussin ; Kathy Mazur
Sent: Thu, 16 Apr 2009 3:14 pm
Subject: Re: Public Documents Request

Dear Mr. Kelley:

Kathy Mazur forwarded your request to me because I am the keeper of public records for the three School Committee. As of now, the School Committee has not
voted to authorize release of the executive session minutes you are requesting
so they are still confidential and I am not authorized to release them as a
public record.

Sincerely,

Debbie

Date: April 16, 2009 4:52:49 PM EDT
To: WestmorelandD@ARPS.ORG

Hey Debbie,

Thanks! ( I should have known you were the 'go to' person on this).

I will formerly request the SC take it up at the very next meeting April 28'th; and if they do not vote to release the minutes I will unleash the wrath of God, Yahweh or Allah upon them.

Larry


On Apr 16, 2009, at 9:56:49 PM, "Michael Hussin" wrote:
Subject: re: minutes of executive session
To: amherstac@aol.com

Dear Mr. Kelley,
I received your letter and am just now getting a chance to respond. I am also aware that you have received an email from Debbie Westmoreland, the administrative assistant to the superintendent, with information regarding the release of executive session minutes. I wanted to elaborate further on the necessary procedures for making public the minutes of executive sessions.. Essentially the board must meet in executive session to review and vote to approve the minutes of any of those sessions. After that vote we can then vote to release to the public the minutes of any or all meetings that we have reviewed and approved. That can probably be done at the same meeting. Minutes of any executive session can be released, according to state law, when it is deemed by the board that no harm to the district or to personnel would come from the release of those minutes. As spring break is upon us, we will not be gathering any sooner then the next regional school committee meeting scheduled for April 28. If we need an executive session it is typically scheduled the same evening immediately following our regional meeting. I will be checking with the superintendent to see if that is the best time to schedule this session and if there are any other legal issues involved. At this point I do not foresee any problems with making the information you requested public, but again I will be checking to be sure we are following appropriate procedures.
Thank you,
Michael Hussin

From: amherstac
Subject: re: minutes of executive session
Date: April 16, 2009 10:12:09 PM EDT
To: "Michael Hussin"

Thanks. I look forward to the results of this request. Transparency is a good thing.

Larry

What goes around...

So Mr. Oldham, a Hampshire College professor (naturally) led the charge last year criticizing the School Committee for “outsourcing” food service to save ten$ of thousand$ and garnered all sorts of ink and bandwidth defending the “lunch ladies” who were getting outsourced.

Last night at the Town Meeting Coordinating Committee informational forum on Social Service Funding--the one Town Manager Larry Shaffer was banned from--he advocates, in a bumbling sort of way, for town tax money to continue funding these enterprises (making Amherst the only community in the state to do so).

At the May 30, 2006 Town Meeting where I had a multi-media presentation on DVD disc prepared (with background music no less) timed at just under 4 minutes (I had five since I was "amending the motion") to be projected on the large screen in front of Town Meeting, Mr. Oldham did a “point of order” as I was walking to the podium and demanded the Moderator (not exactly a BIG fan of mine) censor/ ban the presentation because I use clips of town officials (speaking at public meetings) without their permission.

Violating my First Amendment rights all in order to protect the taxpayer subsidized game of golf. Hmmm…

The moderator dismissed him, but about one minute into the presentation, when Czar Awad complained about my choice of The Eagles “Lying eyes” as background for her previous Town Meeting misstatement (lie), he shut down the presentation.

Interestingly, Ms. Awad went on to publish a letter in the Amherst Bulletin two years later categorically declaring that she had changed her “homestead declaration” back from an expensive South Hadley home to an Amherst Condo when in fact had not. She is currently living in South Hadley and unlike the bar Cheers, nobody seems to remember her name.

Today Mr. Oldham has a column (unpaid of course—and sometimes indeed you get what you pay for) in the Bully where at least he does state the new School Superintendent should not get more than the previous Super, but he concludes with a bleeding heart reference to the lunch ladies: “whatever the state of the budget, the treatment and conditions of the workers remains our concerns.”

Well gee there Professor, what about the thousands of small businesses (you know, the ones who pay taxes to fund all your favorite social programs) that perished over the past year, or the millions of workers laid off?

This is an economic 9/11—a new normal. Get used to it! (And yes folks, he voted two years ago not to allow the commemorative flags to fly on 9/11 as did most members of the TMCC).

$158-K plus $15-K housing/transportation. Yikes!

Date: April 15, 2009 9:18:06 PM EDT
To: hussinm@arps.org, churchilla@arps.org, mazurk@arps.org
Re: Public Documents/Open Meeting Law request

Now that the need for secrecy is over and the negotiated salary of incoming Superintendent Rodriguez has been publicly announced, could I please get under Public Document Law the minutes of the Executive Session of the Regional School Committee and the actual vote of the individual committee members when this package was approved?

Thank You,

Larry Kelley

TM Committee to Town Mangler: Butt out!

So the Town Meeting Coordinating Committee (elected by Town Meeting) told Town Manager Larry Shaffer to take a hike when he offered to speak as a panelist for their "educational forum"on how to fund Human Services at ACTV last night.

Obviously these even more left-of-center (hard to believe it's possible) Committee members dislike the Town Manager's stand on the Human Services Budget (remove it from tax support) so rather than debate or question his stance eyeball to eyeball, they take the easy way out and ban him. Only in Amherst.

Town Mangler to bosses: Butt out!

So Princess Stephanie arranges for a fresh faced Umass student government rep to appear at the Select Board meeting and complain during Public Comment period about the sudden crackdown on unrelated housemates greater than four in any Amherst abode.


The Republican Reports

Running out of Resources

The first and only time I attempted a “Move to Reconsider” on the floor of Town Meeting—where you ask the esteemed body to reconsider a previously decided article because of “new information”—occurred back in 1998.

Town Meeting had passed the Social Service charitable donation budget of around $100,000 with little discussion. The year before I had tried to cut a piece of it for “The Amherst Youth Center” that was getting the lions share ($19,000) and only had one or two kids participating, so the $39,000 salaried Director had it pretty cozy. Naturally I was practically booed from the podium.

But the Youth Center closed down in the following year (the town finally figured it out and pulled the money) so I simply abstained on the vote this time around, meaning I was in a position to attempt a reconsideration (you have to have voted in the majority or abstained on the original article.)

The Men’s Resource Center was getting a hefty amount ($10,000) and the day after Town Meeting approval, I learned they had a month earlier purchased a downtown building for a handsome six-figure sum and as a non-profit would be removing it (or most of it since I think they did rent a portion) from the tax rolls.

My pitch to Town Meeting was that we should deduct from the $10,000 donation the amount that would no longer be coming into the town treasury because of their tax-exempt status. Again I was met with blank clueless stares.

Now with the economic meltdown the town is, finally, talking about cutting the charitable contributions it makes annually to social service agencies. Amherst is of course the only community in the state that makes such contributions with tax dollars, and when you are a community with over 50% of the land owned by tax-exempts, that is not a sustainable combination.

Besides charitable giving should be an individual thing.

Taking the hint, the Men’s Resource Center announced their executive director would be joining the millions of Americans getting laid off and they will be selling that downtown building. Let’s hope to a private enterprise that will renovate it, employ folks and pay property taxes.

Only in Lawrence

So I was just doing research on using a key card system to reduce overhead at the health club, while expanding hours of operation, and I landed on the Eagle Tribune carrying an AP story “24-hour fitness clubs popular, but controversial.”

I couldn’t help but notice another local article about the Lawrence School Superintendent being overturned by the School Committee for his ban on the kids performance of ‘The Vagina Monologues’ later this month.

Amherst of course opted out this year. Too busy I suppose, or those damn budget cuts, or the kid that lead the charge graduated (and like canceling ‘West Side Story’ there’s always one kid who leads the charge) and nobody else picked up the ball.

Or maybe because a few months ago the elderly, married Co-Superintendents were a tad old fashioned (after 40 years in the business) and probably would not have allowed it.

Superintendent Laboy should have cancelled the performance not for the word Vagina but for that other word used so repeatedly (rhythms with bunt); or the little vignette that glorifies sex between an adult and underage 16-year-old child (13-years-old in the original publication of the Play but Ensler because of controversy upgraded her to 16 in later editions) after the child is given vodka.

Makes me wonder if four school committee members who rallied to the play’s defense have actually even read it. And if the KKK wanted to rally in Lawrence on school property and were going to donate $10,000 to a local battered women’s shelter, would the School Committee allow that?

Back in 2004 when Amherst was the only high school in the nation to allow the play the diffident Regional School Committee was asked repeatedly to overrule golden boy Jere Hochman’s decision to allow it: they did nothing, claiming it was not their job to micro-manage the schools.

The Eagle-Tribune reports

The "art" of education

On Apr 9, 2009, at 10:23:18 AM, amherstac wrote:
Memo To: Amherst School Committee
Re: Vacate Trespass Order
4/9/09

Town Meeting starts next month and as a Town Meeting member since 1991 with a 99.5% attendance record and another year left on my elected three-year-term by the voters of Precinct 5, I will NOT allow an ill-advised, hastily enacted ‘Trespass Order’ from an employee no longer with the Schools (but still getting paid thru June 1’st) to keep me from my duly elected duties.

I have been advised that if you do not lift the legally enforceable 1/9/09 order hand delivered by a Sheriff (an East Longmeadow man was recently arrested for violating a “Trespass Order” while watching his child play sports on school grounds on a Sunday) I should seek an injunction against the town of Amherst for holding Town Meeting at the Amherst Regional Middle School, thus denying me my right to attend as an elected official.

Larry Kelley
Amherst Town Meeting Precinct 5
Amherst Redevelopment Authority
Fifth Generation resident
Cc: Amherst School Committee, Maria Geryk Interim Superintendent of Schools,Stan Gawle Amherst Citizens for Responsible Change, Attorney Mike Serduck, Attorney Bill Newman, Mary Carey Daily Hampshire Gazette, Diane Lederman Springfield Republican
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One of the many good things about a Charter School is that they are immune from oversight of the local volunteer School Committee (almost always elected with a tiny voter turnout) and highly paid Superindendent (just wait to details of the new guy are revealed).

The Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School started in Amherst and moved to Hadley after one year. And of course if Amherst had their way it would never have gotten a Charter in the first place (Golden boy Jere Hochman got his butt kicked on that one).

Fortunately the Amherst School System’s “Trespass Notice” does not bind me at PVCIC, so I can roam the building and take pictures till the cows come home (with Principal Kathy Wang’s permission of course as long as there are no children in the shots and even then it’s fine with parents permission and since my daughter attends…and yes, they have freakin hot water in the lavatories)

Another difference is the respect for all things Americans (this from a CHINESE charter school)


A tragic comedy in two parts:

Part one

Part two

The Springfield Republican recently reported

Trailer for sale or rent, rooms to let...

UPDATE: Thursday, 7:45 AM
So apparently Mary Carey got her hands dirty and went to the Town Clerks office and perused the ancient books of all things political and discovered the unconstitutional Bylaw banning more than four unrelated house buddies was passed W-A-Y back in 1966. (I'm so glad the Bully uses updated stories on occasion) Now I just wish they would go cyber sooner.
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UPDATE: Wednesday, 5:00 PM

So I’m looking at my Sitemeter and I’m W-A-Y behind last week’s April Fool’s upload (all three of them). Hmmm…

Okay, if it’s satire you want (although God knows how often my little karate student Max Karson got into trouble for trying to use it) here goes:

Amherst Occupancy Bylaw controls those damn Republicans:

The People’s Republic of Amherst initiated a crackdown using an ignored, ancient, exceedingly unconstitutional Town Meeting ordinance and-- like the flying of the UN flag in front of Town Hall— (so old that even Vince O’Connor can’t remember when it was passed), limiting Republicans per household to just 1 in 15, since that is percentage of Republican registered voter s in town.

And if you allow more than that in a household with Liberal Democrats the police will be called called upon too often to referee fights.

Thus the 7% of registered Amherst Republicans will have to form their own shantytown “reservation” or face eviction from house and home. Indeed Dorothy, “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home:”

Unless you (try to) live in the People’s Republic of Amherst.
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UPDATE: Wednesday, April 8 10:00 AM

So I couldn't help but notice the Collegian front page story yesterday following up on the Gazette front page article. In the active Comments section one of the young ladies responds to a curmudgeon from Boston who thinks all students are spoiled brats (OUCH!):

Charlotte, I'm truly sorry that your personal experience with college students has been so terrible. However, as one of the girls that live in 265 East Pleasant, I take extreme offense to being referred to as an "ill-bred brat." I understand that you want to vent your feelings about the college kids in your area, but it really has nothing to do with our situation in Amherst. We have had absolutely no noise complaints from either the neighbors or police force. The issue is not about our being spoiled or inconsiderate, it is about the number of cars in our driveway and the fact that we had one more person in our home than is permissible by the town of Amherst. And just because you asked, yes I am the type of student who "eagerly signs up" for charity events-- last year I spent time building a Habitat for Humanity house in a South African township and in past years I have worked with Relay for Life, an especially important cause for me as my younger brother is currently battling cancer. So as much as I appreciate the interest, please take your negative comments elsewhere.

Collegian Article
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ORIGINAL POST: Tuesday morning

So once again academic, overly enlightened Amherst hits the AP wire with a negative story.

You would think if the town (that makes a fool of itself nationally all too often) wanted to suddenly crack down on those evil students using the unconstitutional four unrelated persons bylaw which has been on the books forever and like Rent Control was only briefly enforced, they would have chosen better subjects to make an example of.

Like five macho dudes living in a ramshackle hut with empty beer cans littering the lawn and numerous noise complaints (another bylaw that is enforced almost every weekend) documented in the police records.

But NOOOOOOOO, they have to pick a group of industrious, responsible--women four of them graduating seniors and one a grad student--renting a large house from a Umass professor on sabbatical and throw one out a month before the semester ends.

Amherst has too many young people for too few housing units and now the town is going to further reduce supply (by limiting the number per house) while the demand will stay high.

Sounds like landlords can now increase rents even further.

A few months ago the Select Board voiced their concern to the Town Manager about high legal bills (averaging $160,000 for the past few years) yet now we're enforcing this bylaw in a heavy handed manner when our previous town attorney suggested it would not stand up to a legal challenge. Umass students can get free use of an attorney through Legal Services.

The town needs to hire a PR/marketing expert (Umass has five or six in their Spin Room) to give advice to department heads or the political leadership to head off these bonehead ideas. Until then here's this free advice:

All you need do is ask yourself, as PT Barnum almost always did, “how is this going to play in the heartland”? And right now the People’s Republic of Amherst, once again, looks redder than the People’s Republic of China.

Not in South Hadley

UPDATE: 8:45 PM Results are in and no BIG surprise:
Mayor/Council loses in a landslide Yes 1815, No 2938 and Fire District merger by a fair amount 2250Voting Yes and 2522 "No" for a merger.
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ORIGINAL POST: Noon
So based on lawn signs alone I would project that once again the attempt to professionalize South Hadley government from part-time volunteers--Town Meeting and Select Board—to a more modern, accountable Mayor/Council will go down to defeat in today’s vote.

As too will the question of merging two Fire Districts (each with its own expensive bureaucratic overhead)

Change is indeed hard.

While I think merging Fire Districts in South Hadley, like closing Amherst’s Marks Meadow Elementary School create significant cost savings (and would support both if I had duel citizenship), I would not support the merging of a Police Chief and Fire Chief in the form of a Public Safety Director, which apparently--now that both our Chief's have announced their retirements--Amherst is considering.

First of all, police and fire have vastly different cultures (even though both involve public service, sometimes at great personal cost). And since these jobs involve routine activities that could lead to death, the rank-and-file need to have great faith in their leadership.

Police who perceive a Public Safety director as being more Fire Department oriented are not going to have great faith and trust in such a person thereby diminishing moral; and if firefighters perceive the person as too Police orientated then it will be the same.

And chances are the town would hire an Assistant Public Safety Director anyway to oversee one or the other disciplines, so you may as well have two separate Chiefs each having come up in the culture.

When Barry Del Castilho first came to Amherst in the early 1980’s from North Carolina one of the very first things he tried to do as town manager was to merge Police and Fire under one leader as well as having the front line troops perform both functions.

He was almost laughed out of town; and he never again brought up the subject over his twenty+ years of dictatorship.
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Interestingly current South Hadley Town Manager Barry Del Castilho told a Longmeadow Charter Commission back in 2003 that he preferred a Mayor/Council/City Manager form of government. And of course I biked by Ms. Awad's house and she has one of those ubiquitous yellow "Vote No" to the mayor lawn signs on her front yard (gotta wonder if she is still registered to vote in Amherst).