Sleepless in Cairo

Zzzzzzz
Carol Gray awake (sort of)

It was 2:10 AM her time but only 7:10 PM our time when (Mother) Mary Streeter fired up her Macbook Pro laptop in the Jones Library Trustees Room to synch with Carol Gray via Skype W-A-Y over there in Egypt.

So yeah, I suppose it's understandable Ms Gray was sound asleep in the seated position.

Ms Streeter took umbrage at my attempt to photograph Library Trustee Gray looking like a zombie and quickly covered the screen with a sheet of paper.

Gotta wonder how alert and worthwhile Ms. Gray will be in future Library meetings if the Attorney General decides it is okay for her to remotely participate via Skype.

And let's hope she doesn't snore.

Spectators who did not hide from the camera.

UPDATE: 9:45 PM Meeting must be over as somebody from Cairo, Egypt just arrived via a google search for Larry Kelly blog (sic)

9/11 epilogue. To be continued...

So my friend Tom Porter emailed me last night wondering if Cinda Jones ever forwarded me the photos she took (with a very nice camera) on the morning of 9/11 in Amherst Town Center. He was six minutes late feeding 'loose change' in the meter and our ultra efficient parking enforcement folks issued a $10 ticket at 9:24 AM.

Of course I could not help but be reminded that nine years earlier on that awful morning about that time Governor Swift had sent all non essential state employees home and my wife reported how eerie it was to drive back to Amherst that afternoon on the Mass Pike with the all the toll booths abandoned.

I wonder how many parking tickets were issued in downtown Amherst nine years earlier around that time with the bells, bells, bells of St Brigid's church clanging away to signal that something had gone terribly wrong on an otherwise gorgeous Tuesday morning.

And Mr. Porter did not want me to attempt to fix the ticket--not that I could. Although I have been told now by two Town Manager's that if I get a parking ticket while on an official ARA (Amherst Redevelopment Authority) business they could indeed "fix it." So I guess the mechanism does exist.

Mr. Porter simply wanted to print the photo to enclose with his check to town parking director Claire McGinnis to demonstrate he was doing something worthwhile that caused that (expensive) six minute overage.

Something worthwhile indeed.

9/11/10 in the People's Republic

ARA update: Remembering George N. Parks

So like all Amherst Redevelopment Authority meetings these past six months, tonight was nothing but 'Gateway Project.' And once again Deputy Chancellor Todd Diacon and Executive Director of the Office of External Relations Nancy Buffone showed up to demonstrate the continuing commitment of our major partner, Umass.

But if I were a cub Collegian reporter covering tonight's meeting, my lead fact would be that Umass will have a celebration ceremony to remember/honor/commemorate Marching Band Director George N. Parks on October 16--'Homecoming Day'-- at the Mullins Center, which has a seating capacity of 10,000... so that may be big enough.

Runner up fact: Deputy Chancellor Diacon confirming that the $182 million for student housing announced today in the Springfield Republican will have no impact one way or the other on the Gateway Project.

The 1500 bed dormitory will be in the center of campus (thus tax exempt) and God only knows how long that will take to get built since it will be a public undertaking as opposed to the Gateway Project which, like the Isenberg School of Management addition/renovation mostly funded by Jack Welch, will be farmed out to the private sector.

And finally, the ARA is now going to hold off on rushing a Request For Proposals for a consultant on the Gateway Project as we wish to carefully absorb more public advice--besides just the immediate neighbors who have given us continuous input.

The Springfield Republican reports

George N. Parks Facebook memorial page: 10,000 friends and still growing!

Turn about fair play?

UPDATE: Wednesday afternoon. So who needs the caterpillar-like mainstream media, as Mr. Wald reports on his blog that last night the Historical Commission he chairs heard tons of testimony--almost all of it against the plans of the People's Republic of Amherst to nuke the property--and continued the hearing until next week.

Jim Wald reports

#######################################
So it will be interesting tonight to see if the Amherst Historical Commission treats the town of Amherst the same combative way it has private entities lately by enforcing a one year demolition delay of a quaint old New England farmhouse and this old barn, the "Hawthorne Property" recently purchased by Amherst for $500,000 in free money--otherwise knows as Community Preservation Funds.

The Historical Commission recently forced the town's largest landowner, Amherst College, to delay for one year the demolition of an 80-year-old fence around one of its many properties. Chairman James Wald declared it a matter of principal: "We're making a statement that preservation is important."

Our appointed history aficionados also forced the Cowles family to delay the destruction of a 100 year old barn in North Amherst that CEO Cinda Jones laments is in danger of collapse.

Perhaps the Historical Commission should keep its eye on the prize, as Town Meeting is potentially going to vote the formation of a Historical District in and around the Dickinson Homestead that would automatically limit new development and renovations to existing structures.

But, if impacted neighbors and homeowners get the impression our Commissioners are a tad too militant then they will fight the creation of Amherst's first Local Historic District which, in itself, would be somewhat "historic" and requires a two-thirds vote of Town Meeting.

Unfortunately, in the People's Republic of Amherst, the NIMBYs usually win.

ARA road trip report

If Hanover, NH represents the after picture for smart successful mutually beneficial development, our recent trip to Mansfield, CT provided the perfect before picture.

After endless design discussions dating back to the 1970s groundbreaking is imminent on Storrs Center, a $250 million urban mixed use development that will create something we here in Amherst take for granted--an actual town center with a town green providing a laid back ambiance attractive to everyday folks whose numbers will no doubt increase with the addition of 700 market rate rental units.

Like the proposed 'Gateway Project' in Amherst, a partnership where the town benefits by increasing taxable commercial development, stimulating jobs and local commerce while the educational institution benefits by increasing quality housing to attract more students and professors.

The ambitious 'Storrs Center' is a joint development between Mansfield town officials, UConn--the dominant employer in the region--and the local business community who operate in the University's shadow.

The school and the town split equally the $250,000 annual budget of the Mansfield Downtown Partnership a sort of Chamber of Commerce created for just this project (with only two full time employees.)

Besides the Amherst Redevelopment Authority, new Amherst Town Manager John Musante and Amherst Chamber of Commerce executive director Tony Maroulis, Umass Deputy Chancellor Todd Diacon and Executive Director of the Office of External Relations Nancy Buffone also attended, demonstrating the commitment to the 'Gateway Project' from our flagship educational partner.

Now of course, it's up to Amherst Town Meeting to provide a vital component of the deal by rezoning the land in question to allow the mixed use development that will revitalize the neighborhood and our downtown.

Main Street Mansfield now: NOT a scene Rockwell would have painted.

This WW2 era building owned by UConn will be demolished, the pavement torn up and the open space turned into a town center green.

The day the music died

George Parks demonstrating Power and Class.

UPDATE: Monday morning So unless you have been living in a cave somewhere you probably know the Umass Marching Band put on a hell of a performance in Michigan before the largest live crowd in their entire history. The football team also came close to pulling off a Cinderella win as well.

My ultra reliable source at the State House indicates the Chancellor can order the flags on campus to half staff on the day of George Parks memorial service as can the Town Manager or Select Board order the municipal flags to half staff on town property as well.

A fitting tribute to a most deserving individual.

###############################
Even though he was immersed in something macho martial arts guys might mistakenly think a tad wimpy, I remember the first time I met George Parks at my karate studio about 15 years ago when he signed up his two children and would often come watch me teach their lessons.

I could tell instantly he was a dedicated father. But when I soon thereafter witnessed him perform as Umass marching band leader, I was even more impressed with his physical ability to control and coordinate a massive wave of college kids with loud instruments like a perfectly trained border collie herding sheep.

A few years later I called him up, not knowing if he would even remember me, to ask a favor. Without hesitation he volunteered to perform with whatever band members he could muster.

Since the first band practice did not happen until mid-month, acquiring a decent ensemble on 9/11 was not easy. But he reported that morning to the Amherst town common--the first anniversary--with about a dozen kids, and they played like it was Carnegie Hall.

The last time I talked to George was almost exactly a year ago at the UMass groundbreaking ceremony for the George Parks Marching Band building. I asked him is he could muster a few kids on 9/11/11 for the tenth anniversary ceremony and he instantly responded, "Of course!"

But now he's gone. I'm sure tomorrow--because of the discipline he instilled--the Umass marching band that was his life will play their hearts out in the Michigan Big House.

And I'll bet, somewhere, George N. Parks will be smiling.




Yes, slightly unreporter like of me to yell, "Looking good Boss!" as he passed. He of course noticed me standing dead center in the middle of the road to get the shot and although he never broke his rigid disciplined march or even moved his head, just as he passed he gave me a wink.

The Springfield Republican, sadly, reports

-----Original Message-----
From: amherstac@aol.com
To: Sh.Events@state.ma.us
Sent: Sat, Sep 18, 2010 9:14 am
Subject: Flags to half staff request

Suzzette Waters
State House Events
Bureau of State Office Buildings

Hey Suzzette,

If ever a Massachusetts state employee deserved the flag to fly at half staff to mourn his stunningly sudden loss, it would be George N. Parks. And I know first hand what a believer he was in our country, its values and that he strove to instill that in countless thousands of students over the past thirty years--mainly by example.

He played for Presidents and football fans and kids at Christmas. He will always be remembered in our hearts

Could you mention this simple request to the Big Boss?

Thanks!

Larry K

http://onlyintherepublicofamherst.blogspot.com/

ARA road trip

6:55 AM

Off to Storrs, CT with the Amherst Redevelopment Authority and new town manager John Musante to check out how our neighboring community and UConn have done development catering to a mix of students and locals.

Safe bet none of those town officials heard Mr. Musante on ACTV declare Amherst the "best college town in America."

Terms of the deal

Since Mr. Musante spent about a third of his acceptance speech talking about his contract negotiation, let's hope he remembered not to take too unfair advantage of the circumstances to tap the treasury he will now oversee; and even though they retreated into secret session to discuss the terms of that new contract (and Mr. Shaffer's going away present) the Select Board will, under Public Documents Law, have to release all of the details.


-----Original Message-----
From: amherstac@aol.com
To: selectboard@amherstma.gov
Sent: Thu, Sep 16, 2010 3:28 pm
Subject: Public Documents Request

Amherst Select Board

Could I please get the minutes of the Executive Session held 9/13/10 to negotiate the retirement benefits of outgoing town manager Larry Shaffer and the new contract for appointed town manager John Musante and a copy of any contracts agreed to that night.

Thanks,

Larry Kelley

With a reference like that

Since it was a forgone conclusion assistant town manager John Musante would ascend to permanent town manager to replace the suddenly departing Larry Shaffer, I figured why bother weighing in with an opinion even though I was recruited at the last minute to donate my analysis for Localocracy

The Select Board public "discussion" contained this hidden gem: a former Select Board Czar who moved to another nearby town but wanted to maintain her Amherst elected position and lied in a letter/statement published in the Amherst Bulletin about the status of her Homestead Declaration (positive proof she was no longer fit to serve in Amherst) took the time to write a recommendation for Musante.

I'm not sure what is more frightening: Our new town manager being heartily endorsed by the likes of her, or that Princess Stephanie "considers it to be a very important letter."

Barbarians at the gate

So the ever community conscious Amherst Police Department is holding a citizen outreach event tonight at the Crocker Farm School from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM to educate South Amherst residents about staying safe in their castles.

A serial series of burglary break ins have occurred over the past six weeks in the neighborhood late at night while homeowners are asleep.

Growing up on Amherst's Crow Hill a generation ago, I can't even remember a time when we locked our doors. Of course that was also back when the milkman made deliveries to our front porch. Back before the University of Massachusetts built Southwest High Rise dorms and the phallic Du Bois Library to accommodate a surge of students more than doubling the population of a former farm town.

Note to Perp: if you break in my house under cover of darkness, getting within 50 yards of my sleeping family, I will do everything within my aging powers to rip your heart out and shove it down your throat.

APD award winning community outreach blog

9/11/10 in the People's Republic

Umass Daily Collegian reports

Following the pattern of all the previous anniversaries of this seismically horrific event, today was another carbon copy of the stunning weather we started to enjoy that awful morning.

I wonder if perhaps the pernicious mastermind actually calculated how early-to-mid September generated consistently beautiful weather in the Eastern Standard Time zone so his rookie pilots would have a better chance of steering their captured weapons to target.

The ceremony at Central Fire Station was short and haunting. The flag at half staff, a lone bagpiper playing Amazing Grace and the lonely chime of a fire station bell signaling a "last alarm".

Town center was as busy this morning as I remember it nine years ago. Although this year we had a lot of company in town center with folks holding signs for DA candidate Dave Sullivan who was also present. Like many of his supporters he thanked me for being there simply to remember the greatest tragedy of our lifetime.

House representative candidate Daniel Sandell made an extended appearance as well, and the incumbent he is trying to unseat, Ellen Story came and stood with me for the last half hour or so. She had been at the Granby Public Safety Building grand opening and reported how well they marked the memory of 9/11.

Yes, the Umass Republic Club did appear and brought dozens and dozens of flags they planted around town center. And a special thanks to Cinda Jones and Tom Porter for standing to remember.

Patriotic cutie.


Patriotic Dog

Does President Obama remember 9/11?

UPDATE: 8:15 AM, 9/11/10

And today the bright sun and severe clear blue sky only reaffirm the memories of that morning. I honestly can't remember a 9/11 over the past 9 years where the weather was anything less.

I just checked my sitemeter and over the past hour had 14 visitors and 8 of them came doing a search under the term "flags fly at half staff on 9/11?" or something very similar. Kind of shows the President could have done a better job getting the word out a tad earlier


UPDATE: 6:25 PM 9/10/10 Finally, he remembered
Although you gotta wonder how many Federal, State, City or Town officials were still at their desks that late on a Friday afternoon.
##########################################
5:30 PM (original pissed off upload)

Yeah, yeah I know he's scheduled for a photo op or two tomorrow, but for Christ's sake where the Hell is the Presidential Proclamation to fly American flags at half-staff on 9/11?

And if memory serves, President Bush made it a permanent day for them to fly in that position of mourning, so I guess there's no need every year to reissue the edict--but he did it last year and this morning I received an email from my patriotic buddy at the State House reminding Massachusetts authorities to fly their American flags at half staff:

-----Original Message-----
From: Waters, Suzzette (BSB)
To: 'amherstac@aol.com'
Sent: Fri, Sep 10, 2010 11:33 am
Subject: Half Staff Notification for September 11, 2010

Pursuant to the Presidential Proclamation for September 11, 2010, Patriot Day, the American and Commonwealth Flags should be flown at half-staff at all state buildings from sunrise to sunset on Saturday, September 11, 2010. Once issued, the presidential proclamation should be available for viewing here.

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

Suzzette
Suzzette Waters
State House Event Coordinator
Bureau of State Office Buildings
##########################################

She helpfully included a hot link to the White House Presidential proclamations webpage, but when I clicked it, the most recent concerned "Labor Day." Since late this morning I noticed two updates: "Grandparents Day" and "Historically Black Colleges and Universities Week."

But here it is 5:30 PM and nothing concerning 9/11. Bad form Mr. President!

9/11 remembered

So now Amherst is really in trouble as they have pissed off the Umass (Young) Republican Club, who will march to downtown (or maybe catch a cab) on 9/11 to display 150 American flags to protest the decision of the People's Republic not to unfurl the 29 commemorative flags; the ones that do fly on Memorial Day and Veterans Day, where we remember those have sacrificed so greatly for our country--with far too many coming as a response to 9/11.

And am I only the only one in the area annoyed by those ubiquitous radio ads for Umass football saturating the airwaves these days with a hackneyed cliched format highlighting the military, combative aspects of football?

Forgivable at first, but now they are being used to hype ticket sales to tomorrow's home game against Holy Cross which just so happens to occur on 9/11.

Sent this to my counterpart at Umass--as in I'm a critic, he's a highly paid flack.


Original Message-----
From: amherstac@aol.com
To: edblag@admin.umass.edu
Sent: Fri, Sep 10, 2010 11:06 am
Subject: 9/11 and Umass football

Hey Ed,
So those football radio commercials are pretty annoying (and I'm pro military) but now it kind of merges/conflicts with 9/11.

And I would never suggest America should give up going about its business on that day, but it would be nice if perhaps somebody in charge of the game on Saturday had a moment of silence at half-time or maybe even just before kickoff as a sign of respect.

Larry K

9/11/10

How can you forget! How can any American possibly forget?

Those magnificent Twin Towers, standing at attention for a generation, suddenly, without warning--like bolts out of the blue--GONE. Victims of evil beyond civilized imagination. A new world order etched in the blood of thousands of innocent civilians.
###################################
Last year's post (some things never change):

It's been far too many beers, too many tears and not nearly enough years--as the pain is still palpable. But mostly on THAT anniversary, especially during THOSE morning hours when the September sun is usually bright against a clear blue sky and daily routine sets a seemingly safe steady course.

Where were you when you heard the news? And as bits and pieces of information first floated in, when did you figure it out? Did you worry about a friend or loved one now suddenly thrust in harms way? Did you wonder what landmark, loaded with innocent people, was next?

Nine years or ninety, we must never forget.

I will be standing silently in town center on the morning of 9/11 from 8:45 until 10:30 (also attending Amherst Fire Department ceremony in front of Central Station at 9:45 AM) clutching an American flag and my three-year-old daughter. Feel free to join me, if only for a moment or two.



Amherst Ground Zero commemorative flag

Not just an Irish thing

DA race gets desperate

So former Assistant District Attorney Mike Cahillane's campaign for District Attorney is pulling out all the stops as they just trumpeted an endorsement from Amherst School Committee Chair Irv Rhodes.

Bonus points, I suppose, because Irv is black. Especially since Cahillane's boss, Elizabeth Scheibel came into such criticism for pressing forward the Jason Vassell case which was recently pretty much dismissed--a case Mr. Cahillane had a big hand in prosecuting.

Gotta wonder about Cahillane's campaign spinmeister using the People's Republic of Amherst as representative of the hard working 'Happy Valley', all those normal towns and cities that encompass the Northwestern District like Hadley, Hatfield, Belchertown, Easthampton or South Hadley.

Speaking as a 5th generation Amherst resident, I think not. And Mr. Rhodes will probably catch some grief for not clearly spelling out that he was speaking strictly for himself and not the Amherst School Committee, a charge SC member Catherine Sanderson is pelted with all the time for daring to have an open, transparent blog reporting school committee concerns.

Earlier today Dave Sullivan's campaign picked up yet another heavyweight endorsement from longtime judge (retired) Alvertus J. Morse.

#####################Cahillane campaign press release:
Amherst School Committee Chair Backs Cahillane for DA

“I am Irv Rhodes, chair of the Amherst School Committee and member of the Regional School Committee and I am writing to endorse and support Mike Cahillane for District Attorney.”


“Mike has extensive prosecutorial experience as can be witnessed by his
experience working as an Assistant District Attorney in the very office that
he seeks as a candidate for District Attorney. I am particularly impressed
as a former educator, with Mike's track record of fighting cybercrime by
going into schools to conduct workshops with kids as young as those in the
first and second grades. Additionally Mike has done a number of training
sessions with school administrators, guidance counselors and other staff on
how to identify and prevent bullying behavior and he wants to expand this
outreach, if elected, because he knows that it is important to prevent crime as well as prosecute those who break the law.”

Irv Rhodes

Labor Day in the People's Republic

10:00 AM

The vast majority of Americans slaughtered on the morning of 9/11, just a week after celebrating Labor Day, were toiling at their place of employment after settling in for just another routine Tuesday.

Of course, that is what the cowardly, malevolent mastermind counted on for maximum damage. And had the first plane impact been only an hour later and many floors lower the carnage would have been exponentially worse.

Amherst can fly the 29 commemorative American flags to celebrate the Labor movement in America (hardly a non-violent affair) but will remove them tomorrow, leaving barely a trace of the red-white-and-blue to inhabit the downtown this coming 9/11.

Ludlow knows how to honor, respect and remember 9/11

"The horrer...the horrer!"

Sorry madam Chair it really, really is about how "horrible 9/11 was." And that, precisely, is all it's about!

Will Amherst remember?

UPDATE: 7:15 PM. Okay, so I was wrong. Never bet on Amherst to do the right thing. Tonight the illustrious Select Board voted 3-2 against flying the American flags in the downtown this September 11. Mr Wald and Ms. Brewer voted in favor. O'Keeffe, Hayden and Stein voted no.

And in fact, they made the current once-every-three-year policy even more restrictive by voting to fly them only once every five years.

The Springfield Republican reports

The Amherst Bulletin 9/11/08
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10:30AM

So when the sound and the fury subsides the Amherst Select Board tonight will, inevitable, do the right thing and allow the 29 commemorative flags to fly in the downtown this year to remember our most tragic losses on 9/11.

I say this knowing Chair Stephanie O'keeffe is a politician first but a flag lover second and would never go on record voting against the American flag. Seasoned Select Board member Alisa Brewer is one-for-one voting to fly the flags annually, and obviously rookie member Jim Wald, a historian by trade, will support it since the only reason it's on the brief agenda tonght is because he requested it; otherwise, as Stehanie said on Monday"'the policy (not flying them this year) would stand."



The Springfield Republican reports (as usual, Comments are the best)

UMass, ARA, Town partnership leaps forward!

Today Chancellor Robert Holub signed a strategic agreement with the Town of Amherst and the Amherst Redevelopment Authority to greatly enhance the gateway to UMass, the state's flagship of higher education.

The agreement calls for a conveyance of property formerly knows as "frat row"-- a seedy collection of blighted buildings purchased by the University and demolished a few years ago. The Gateway Project will bring urban renewal to the neighborhood with a mixed used commercial development of higher end student housing and commercial business connecting the downtown with the University.

With the incoming Umass freshman class the largest in history this agreement will go a long way towards keeping Umass an attractive destination for students and faculty as well as boosting the downtown and Amherst's commercial tax base.


click link below to read agreement:

Agreement with Umass/ARA/Town

It only comes but once a year

12:30 PM Select Board to discuss/vote flags fate for 9/11

-----Original Message-----
From: Stephanie O'Keeffe
To: Larry Kelley
Sent: Tue, Aug 31, 2010 11:56 am
Subject: 9/11 flag policy to be addressed

Hi Larry --

You're in luck. We have to schedule another meeting this week to discuss plans for an Interim Town Manager. A Select Board member has requested that we also take up the 9/11 flag question, so we will.

The flag discussion will be our first item: 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, 9/2 in the Town Room. The agenda (soon to be posted, if it isn't already) notes five minutes for the discussion, but that is just because I need to start the Interim discussion immediately after it, and I have no untimed items to fill any blank space that might result if I were to schedule longer than is needed. The flag discussion will take as long as it needs to.

Take care.

Stephanie

-----Original Message-----
From: Stephanie O'Keeffe
To: Larry Kelley
Sent: Tue, Aug 31, 2010 1:09 pm
Subject: room change

... make that the First Floor Meeting Room, not the Town Room.

Sorry for the confusion.

Stephanie

#################################

9:30 PM. Hot copy (last night). Updated 2nd video posted at 10:00 PM

So I guess I will just let the videos of tonight's illustrious Amherst Select Board meeting speak for themselves.

Interesting that the Chair blows me off by saying the Open Meeting Law requires anything to come under discussion be posted 48 hours in advance on an official agenda thus they could not possibly now take a simple vote on this 9/11 flag issue, yet an hour later they go into a surprise "executive session" to talk about the Town Manager's retirement package.

These days they just throw "executive session" on every agenda and if you don't use it there is no violation. Tonight it does appear on the agenda but as an "untimed item".

After an hour in secret session they come back into public session to announce Mr. Shaffer is gone as of 9/30 with four months salary (about the same as School Superintendent Alberto Rodriguez absconded with when he suddenly flew the coop a few months back).

The joys of competition

Million dollar health club, Amherst $19.99/month for students
Million dollar health club, Hadley. Under $8.50 per month
$50 million UMass Recreation Center: $0.0 for students

The joys of dealing with the general public

So one of the interesting things about running a "business" that attracts a broad spectrum of the general public is that it attracts a broad spectrum of the general public.

Take Umass/Amherst for instance--the flagship of higher education in Massachusetts.

Although UMass charges more for out-of-state students and,amazingly, in this trying economic time they are actually targeting such students. Either way, when dealing with 20,000+ "costumers" there are bound to be a bevy of personal headaches.

And when you take your "business" seriously you try not to alienate a single soul (if I dare use that religious term).

As a "non traditional" student currently furthering my education I receive all the routine emails from UMass Central Command. Recently I recieved one from a Vice Chancellor describing how the first week of classes conflict with "Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year."

He goes on, however, to point out "University policy ensures that no student will be penalized as a result of a religious observance, but it requires advance notification to course instructors by each observant student."

By "observant" I think he meant those students who actually take their religion seriously and plan to observe the solemn occasion rather than just those students who are observant enough to check their email to discover a potential good excuse for sleeping in on those days.

Then a little later another email from the same Vice Chancellor expanding on his original dispatch:

"Since sending the message about Rosh Hashanah I’ve learned that the major Muslim religious holiday, Eid-al-Fitr, marking the end of Ramadan also occurs during our first week of classes. I apologize for my oversight and take this opportunity to make certain that all observant students of either recognized religion realize that special circumstances are in play during the first week of a semester, namely that an instructor encountering a student on the roster who is not present at the first two meetings of a class may drop the named student from the class."

And this of course segues me (in the longest delayed lead of my entire career) to the current fire-and-brimstone controversy over a mosque opening near Ground Zero. Freedom of religion is as bedrock an American principal as the First Amendment. And while I spend a tad more time concerned with the latter I can't help but equally respect the former.

Indeed, sometimes I find myself hesitating and then holding my nose while defending the rights of nitwits to spread their pernicious propaganda. But the alternative is far worse.

In the case of the mosque near Ground Zero, I don't even have to hold my nose. The cowardly zealots who attacked us on 9/11 represent Muslims in the same way Oklahoma City bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols represent Americans.

They don't!

Change indeed

So the Gazette today reports the Amherst Chamber of Commerce doling out their annual awards at an upcoming expensive dinner party and former Amherst Bulletin 'Amherst Center' columnists Baer Tierkel, Andy Churchill and Clare Bertrand are receiving the "change agent award."

Not bad considering they were cut from their rotation at the Amherst Bulletin for failing to disclose conflicts of interest during the election last spring. And about the only "change" they will be tenaciously gerrymandering this coming election is to defeat Catherine Sanderson for School Committee.

Sentinels at ease

Barnes airport Westfield 9:30 Am


Amherst Fire Department 1:30 PM

The controversy continues

Well, sort of. The print edition of the Amherst Bulletin hit the ground this morning and like the good old days where you read the breaking news in the major dailies and then waited till the end of the week for Time and Newsweek to provide more in depth coverage, the editorial/commentary section this week is chock full of analysis of the raging controversies in town.

Mainly the Jones Library running battle between the Evaluation Subcommittee and the more normal members of the full board of Trustees.

Interestingly columnist Jim Oldham, an anti-devevelopment compatriot of cutthroat Carol Gray, takes Trustee Chris Hoffmann to task for daring to blow the whistle on Ms Gray's covert war against longtime Library Director Bonnie Isman.

Charging that he "chose attacks in the press and on blogs over debates in the boardroom as the way to express his position." Hmm...of course Mr. Oldham's attack on Chris Hoffmann occurs in his monthly Bulletin column otherwise known as "the press."

And Mr. Oldham is a co-founder of the new regional school discussion blog--an infomercial for the Regional High School--along with Shutesbury School Committee Chair Michael DeChiara, who wanted the DA to shut down public officials who blog namely Catherine Sanderson.

The above the fold front page lead story concerns cutthroat Carol as well--as she is now, mercifully, safely ensconced in Egypt (well...safe for Amherst but maybe not Egypt) and wants to tenaciously hold on to her Jones Library Trustee position for the next year using video conferencing on the web via skype to attend meetings.

Which is fine of course for tuning in to keep in touch, but not so good for the back-and-forth required of public meetings.

The Bulletin must have felt a tad guilty for holding the presses last week so the Evaluation Subcommittee could pen their poor excuse for recent bad behavior, as the editorial basically says enough! They cite that the Eval committee has met an astounding 50 times over 115 hours since January.

Can't disagree with their conclusion: "It's time to bring the director's review process to a close." But now that Ms. Gray is gone, things will simmer down dramatically anyway--especially if somebody can hit the mute button when she visits via skype.

If you can't beat 'em

So Michael DeChiara, the Shutesbury school committee chair who complained to the DA about public officials who blog--a thinly veiled attempt to censor Catherine Sanderson's School Committee blog--is now involved as technical consultant with a new blog promoting the schools.

A thinly veiled attempt to counter Catherine Sanderson's well established, popular blog that has a bad habit of calling them as she sees them.

No doubt this new blog--along with the "Vote yes for Amherst" yahoo listserve--will be used to hammer Ms. Sanderson in the School Committee election this spring. Fortunately, Ms. Sanderson has a bigger hammer.

Treading in a sandpit

So I’m a tad surprised the Town Manager and our Leisure Services recreation empire have not issued one of those disingenuous press releases trumpeting how terrific the Cherry Hill Golf course—our municipally owned White Elephant--performed this past year (FY10 ended June 30)

And indeed, compared to all too many years this past one was a hole in one, with "expenses" of $217,220.94 and overall revenues of $250,381.04. Although the town manager and LSSE did project last year that Cherry Hill would intake $262,000; and none of that $12,000 difference comes out of their hides.

But still, before you conclude the business turned a profit of $33,000 those “expenses” do not include that pesky $25,000 in employee benefits or $7,000 for clubhouse and liability insurance paid out of separate, hidden, parts of the town budget.

And this year they did not have any capital items (like last year’s $22,000 lawnmower for instance), which of course begs the question: why no capital items?

A golf course is exceedingly hard on heavy equipment, and since a study done five years ago discovered two-thirds of Cherry Hill’s extensive collection of heavy machines were beyond their rated lifespan, kind of makes you wonder?

Deferred maintenance is an easy but shortsighted way to make a budget look good.

And this past March the DPW had to scurry out to the golf course (at the expense of many other more important things they do) and help spruce it up for an early spring opening.

When the Amherst Redevelopment Authority met with Hanover Town officials recently regarding development they did with Dartmouth College for our proposed Gateway Project with Umass, town manager Julia Griffin mentioned how refreshing it was to be away from her former gig in the capital city of Concord—mainly because of the tough politics and the constant drain on the city budget from two municipal white elephants: an airport and a golf course.

Sooooo, I guess it could be worse…


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Ass't Town Mgr John Musante: Hate that damn capital! (makes me twitch)

Troubles and transparency

So the venerable Daily Hampshire Gazette had an interesting way of demonstrating dire financial conditions--besides the anemic page count--on today's Front Page, with an article about Northampton's First Night finding another sugar daddy to replace the $5,000 cash donation nixed by a "major sponsor" after 25 years of support.

Of course they were smart enough to hold off until paragraph three before admitting that major sponsor was none other than the Daily Hampshire Gazette. Although they will continue to promote the New Year's Eve celebration event on their pages (like they did today) and publish a First Night supplement and the event's program, but a sizable chunk of cash is no more.

As a former longtime small business owner I appreciate how tough it is to accommodate all the hand outs requested by worthy agencies (I would get roughly three per week); and product is a lot easier to donate than cash.

To pitch their product to Valley businesses, a generation of Gazette ad reps chanted the mantra "advertising doesn't cost, it pays." Now the shoe is on the other foot, looking withered and worn.

Subcommittee continues to draw fire

Left to right: Whistleblower Chris Hoffmann, Library Director Bonnie Isman, Carol Gray (hanging her head in shame) Pat Holland (Chair) Sarah McKee

UPDATE: Saturday 1:00 PM

So the evaluation subcommittee met yet again this late morning/early afternoon and continued to justify their existence. This time they had some very tepid support from fellow lefties Frank and Ellie Gatti--but not much.

Pat Holland in response to fellow Trustee Chris Hoffmann said she would love to issue a separate, sanitized for public consumption report about the evaluation and goals for the paid, professional Library Director but at that point cutthroat Carol (Gray) immediately went into hyper twitch mode about that, so it's not a safe bet at this point.

Although Ms. Gray is jetting off to Egypt soon for an E-X-T-E-N-D-E-D period so all sorts of good things could return to the Jones Library operations. Happy days are here again.
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ORIGINAL POST: Friday 6:45 PM
Friday the 13th proved less than lucky for the Jones Library Evaluation subcommittee as the entire Public Comment period this afternoon before the full board was taken up by pointed criticism aimed in their direction, including a "vote of no confidence" by unionized workers at the library for the yet to be released evaluation report.

Statement from union employees of the Jones Library


Tina Swift reads union statement to the Jones Library Trustees

Moving forward with Umass partnership

Mixed use block (retail on ground, housing above) owned by Dartmouth College in Hanover NH town center

While most--if not all--of the immediate neighbors may view it as "Sherman's March to the Sea" the Amherst Redevelopment Authority met again last night to continue plowing forward with the Gateway Project, a spiffy economic joint undertaking connecting the north end of Amherst town center with the heart of our flagship's campus. Yeah, that would be UMass/Amherst.

Interestingly, outspoken critic and of course next door neighbor John Fox wondered if Umass was really "invested" in the project. Well... they are giving away property that cost them $2.5 million only four years ago. I would call that invested.

And it would certainly not be unreasonable of them to, you know, make a condition or two regarding terms for the exchange--as in more housing for students, who are coming. With or without the Gateway Project.

But with this project they can avoid living in slums that have sprouted like weeds in neighborhoods all around town over the past 40 years to prey on those incoming nubies.

And with this project the town has tremendous control over the look and feel of the entire development. For the first time in my aged memory Umass wants to partner with the town (via the Amherst Redevelopment Authority) on an equal basis. They are the proverbial 1000 pound gorilla and they could do whatever they damn well please with the former Frat Row.

Our recent road trip to Hanover NH, where Dartmouth College stepped up as an Angel Investor in the downtown proves it can work. And it only takes one white crow to disprove the theory all crows are black.

Before and after photos of how it worked in Hanover NH

ARA and Select Board member Aaron Hayden reports

Request for proposals on Gateway Project, about to go out to the private sector

Jones Library Eval Comm: Terminator unleashed

So this subcommittee simply refuses to die!

Although the venerable Amherst Bulletin did stop the presses to extend the deadline for the subcommittee's long-winded OpEd column response to Trustee Chris Hoffmann's initial SOS that sparked a spotlight on their nefarious activities attempting to fire/retire the current Library Director who is about the celebrate 30 years of service.

And just to demonstrate how dedicated these drones are to their pernicious program, the subcommittee has met 44 times between January 4 and July 16 for a grand total of 112 hours. This does not include July 29th, August 4, August 7 and this morning's August 11 meeting, or the next one they have scheduled for this coming Saturday morning.

The August 4 meeting was supposed to be their final one.

The Subcommittee's whinny letter/column to the Amherst Bulletin

Monster misstep in DA race

So I've gone out and collected signatures over the past 25 years with more petitions and campaign forms than I care to remember. And yes, on occasion somebody simply refused to sign, saying they did not support the idea--sometimes even saying they hated the idea.

My response was always something to the effect that by signing this preliminary form you are not voting to support it, only getting it (or me) on the ballot for the electorate to decide; and isn't that what grass roots democracy is all about?

And of course one of the sacred rights in America is the secrecy of your voting ballot. Although the state decided long ago that campaign petitions to get things on the ballot are public documents. So beware what you sign, because most folks will consider that a sign of support.

Michael A. Cahillane is doing major backpedaling at the moment--today's Daily Hampshire Gazette front page article and a live appearance on the Cantara show, my favorite WRNX radio program this morning, trying to explain why he signed the referendum petition to ban gay marriage back in 2005.

Ironically he worked as a prosecutor in the DA's office--a position he now seeks--and one of their responsibilities at the time was to enforce the Open Meeting and Public Documents Law. So you would think he would have known better, although his boss Betsy Scheibel was pretty well ensconced as DA--and most insiders would not have predicted her retirement only five years later.

Of course this major misstep would never have seen the light of print/bandwidth over the past 12 hours if two citizens did not take the time to write a 'Letter to the Editor' of the venerable Gazette.

The main mistake Mr. Cahillane made was to ignore their legitimate concerns--probably hoping the issue would never get out of the closet--rather then addressing it head on many months back, when apparently one of the letter writers first brought it to his attention.

A template of possibilities

clockwise: Peg Roberts, Larry Shaffer, Aaron Hayden, John Coull, Jonathan Tucker

The Amherst Redevelopment Authority along with Town Manager Larry Shaffer and head planner Jonathan Tucker took a roadtrip on Friday as a fact finding mission for the proposed Gateway Project in partnership with Umass to develop the former "frat row" into a mixed use commercial development with high-end student housing, thus seamlessly connecting our downtown with the main campus.

Like Amherst MA, Hanover NH is dominated by one major higher educational institution: Dartmouth College. Although compared to Umass, their total student population of only 6,000 seems dowright intimate.

Interestingly Wikipedia describes Hanover as a "rural town." I found their downtown to be larger and more vibrant than Amherst town center. and I also noted a distinct lack of vacant storefronts and a lot of construction underway.

Hanover Town Hall cloaked under cover of ivy

But their Town Room was spacious and well cooled. Town Manager Julia Griffin far left.

Perhaps because of the involvement by Dartmouth College, who owns a large stockpile of commercial property and housing for students and staff--all of it on the taxrolls.

Yes, downtown Hanover even has a hardware store, situated in a building owned by the college (actually the entire block) where the rents are below market rate because they understand that a lively downtown requires a good mix of offerings.

Mixed use block (retail on ground, housing above) owned by Dartmouth College in town center
And they even have a hardware store!

And all of the soon to be proposed Gateway Project would be on the taxrolls.

The ARA meets this coming Wednesday night and we will discuss in open session what we learned on our one-day summer vacation.

The sad saga continues and continues...

So I could not cover the "final meeting" last night of the Library Director Evaluation Committee's supposed final meeting, but fortunately Jones Library Trustee Chris Hoffmann (who is not on the subcommittee--and they hate it when he shows up) is a glutton for punishment and attended, even writing an overview that he sent out to a private listserve of 24 concerned citizens. One of them forwarded to me and he gave me permission to publish.

I think before this Jones Library Trustees snafu has ended somebody should award trustee Chris Hoffmann a Silver Star for going above and beyond the call of duty. Or maybe a Purple Heart. Considering his field dispatch I'm kind of glad I could not make the Evaluation Subcommittee meeting last night at 7:30, supposedly their final one. But, apparently not.
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Jones Library Trustee Chris Hoffmann reports:

Thank you Pat, Sarah, and most especially Carol, for wasting three hours of my life. We got out at 10:35pm.

I never knew a meeting could be excruciatingly boring in content while simultaneously being infuriating in tone.

They spent three hours crafting a letter to the editor/column for the Gazette. Some of my notes:

"Should this be a comma or a semicolon?" "Capital M or lowercase m?"
Pat: can't we each draft our own letters in the comfort of our homes and meet later to merge them?" Carol: "C'mon just give me 10 minutes. I can do it."
Pat: "I don't know if that's important. Hey, Chris is here. Perhaps he could tell us what he thinks the most important parts of his memo were." Me: "No, I think I'll leave that for you folks to figure out."
blah blah blah
"Wordcount?!
I think they are just trying to bore us to death
Pat: "Carol, couldn't you just write the draft yourself? Here in the Police Station if your house is a mess. Then let the rest of us go home?" Carol: "But then we may not make the deadline for the Bulletin"
"Wordcount?!"
Sarah: "Carol, only lawyers would use the word 'jurisdiction'"
Carol: "A certain other trustee has disagreed with our report". Me: "Carol, I don't mind if you use my name". Carol: "No, we're taking the high road."
Carol: "I really think we should say something about X", Sarah: "Let's see... wordcount is 649. NO!! That's it! No more!!!"

Basic summation -- I have never seen three people who so completely miss the point. They thought my report was entirely about a formal process, and their column is almost entirely about how they followed a process to the letter of the law: how they interviewed people, what they said to them before the interview, what an executive session is, with an extended quotation from the lawyer's letter proving they needed to go into executive session, and so on. Even if the Bulletin prints it, I can't imagine anyone actually reading past the first paragraph!

Pat jumped ship around 8:30pm. Carol begged her to stay, and told her she could just go home, get her hearing aids, and come right back. "That's NOT the problem, Carol!", Pat snapped back.

One thing I found grimly amusing. Since they are the only Evaluation Committee in Bonnie's tenure to insist on creating a confidential document as their evaluation, they are now forced to tie themselves in knots to find ways to talk about out in a public way! As ye sow, so shall ye reap, or similar aphorism comes to mind. Pat had a mini-meltdown while trying to convince Carol there must be a legal way to tell people what the Director's goals are, at least. God bless her, Tina even suggested they create a separate generic summary of the goals as a public document, but Carol would have none of it.

Believe or not, they are going to meet at 8am on Wednesday so Pat can read it and then all of them will formally approve it. They said they're going to contact the Bulletin right away and ask for space for a column if the paper will wait until Wednesday morning to see it!

For what it's worth, it's all on video. As is the public comment section of our Trustee meeting. The part covering Carol's remote participation didn't come out. Once I figure out how to get the video off the camera, I may post bits to YouTube.


Tiredly,
Chris

Attention: Jones Library Trustees

Click the link to the petition presented at Public Comment period 8/3 Jones Library Trustees meeting.

A petition to make nice

Amherst Inquisition nears the end

Carol Gray center (hiding behind monitor) Pat Holland (Chair) to her right, Sarah McKee to her left.

UPDATE: 5:00 PM. So the original post went up just before high noon. The meeting went from 9:00 until 10:03 AM. Somebody sent me a PDF of the full Jones Library Trustees minutes from 3/19/10 and since I'm having so much fun with Google Docs I floated them for your perusal. Down at the bottom of the original post.
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The Jones Library Evaluation Subcommittee met this morning and spent the entire hour drafting a letter to the Springfield Republican demanding corrections on an article published last week covering their previous meeting.

And since this particular item was not on the agenda, a rather clear violation of the new-and-improved Open Meeting Law, which requires any issue to be discussed should appear on the agenda 48 hours before the meeting.

Attorney Carol Gray was concerned about reporter Diane Lederman quoting Select Board member Alisa Brewer calling the meeting "bizarre" for going into executive session to discuss the "process" of skewering longtime Library Director Bonnie Isman.

Ms. Gray was particularly upset the reporter did not mention that they went into executive session under the written advice of town council, although later in the meeting seemed to indicate that they could have done that business in open session thus making it public.

And Ms. Gray essentially called fellow Trustee Chris Hoffmann a liar for telling the reporter that in a conversation at their 4/23 meeting Ms. Gray stated she had researched the library director's time of service and amount of retirement benefits accrued and hoped the Director would indeed retire rather than "take on" the subcommittee.

Mr Hoffmann was in the room but since there was no "public comment" on the agenda was ruled out of order a few times by Ms. Gray and Chair Pat Holland. In their letter, the subcommittee calls the quote "very mean spirited" and denies it was ever made.

Classic case of he-said she-said.

Their "Final Report" will be presented to the entire Jones Library Board of Trustees at the August 10th meeting under the cloak of an executive session. Tonight the full board meets and apparently a petition from former Trustee Nancy Gregg will be presented during public comment period. Safe bet it defends longtime Library Director Bonnie Isman.

Also tonight they will discuss the Open Meeting Law and consider whether Ms. Gray can participate in meetings via Skype (instant video conferencing) as she is headed to Egypt soon for an extended period.

A few years back the state ruled that committee members cannot participate in meetings via speakerphone, so the current rule still in effect does not allow "remote participation".

But since the Attorney General is now in charge of Open Meeting Law, it will be interesting to see how she rules on this--although that may take six months or more.

I'm sure at this point, the Jones Library can get along just fine without Ms. Gray.


The subcommittee dissecting media reports of their last meeting. Library Trustee Chris Hoffmann seated center audience

The Springfield Republican Reported

Minutes from the 3/19/10 Trustees board which speak volumes!

What could have been...

The Charter revision attempt to streamline and professionalize Amherst town government by switching to a modern Mayor/Council replacing the antiquated volunteer form of dogooders-- Select Board, Town Meeting, and highly paid Town Manager--form we currently endure had another benefit that would come in handy about now:

A common sense recall provision that would already be underway in the Library Trustees travesty now unfolding.


SECTION 8-11: RECALL OF ELECTED OFFICE HOLDERS
(a) Application - Any holder of an elected office in the town, with more than six months remaining in the term of office for which the officer was elected, may be recalled therefrom by the voters of the town in the manner provided in this section. No recall petition shall be filed against an officer within six months after taking office.

(b) Recall Petition - A recall petition may be initiated by the filing of an affidavit containing the name of the officer sought to be recalled and a statement of the grounds for recall, provided that the affidavit is signed by at least two hundred fifty voters for any officer elected at large and signed by at least fifty voters from the district represented for a district councilor.

The town clerk shall thereupon deliver to said voters making the affidavit, copies of petition blanks demanding such recall, copies of which printed forms the town clerk shall keep available. Such blanks shall be issued by the town clerk, with signature and official seal attached thereto. They shall be dated, shall be addressed to the town council and shall contain the names of all the persons to whom they are issued, the number of blanks so issued, the name of the person whose recall is sought, the office from which removal is sought and the grounds of recall as stated in the affidavit. A copy of the petition shall be entered in a record book to be kept in the office of the town clerk. Said recall petition shall be returned and filed with the town clerk within five days after the filing of the affidavit, and shall have been signed by at least five per cent of the active voters of the town for any officer elected at large and signed by at least five per cent of the active voters of the district for a district councilor.

The town clerk shall forthwith submit the petition to the registrars of voters, and the registrars shall, within five working days, certify thereon the number of signatures which are names of voters.

(c) Recall Election - If the petition shall be found and certified by the town clerk to be sufficient, the town clerk shall submit the same with such certificate to the town council within five working days, and the town council shall forthwith give written notice of the receipt of the certificate to the officer sought to be recalled and shall, if the officer does not resign within five days thereafter, order an election to be held on a date fixed by them not less than forty-five and not more than sixty days after the date of the town clerk's certificate that a sufficient petition has been filed; provided, however, that if any other town election is to occur within sixty days after the date of the certificate the town council shall postpone the holding of the recall election to the date of such other election.

The Mayor Council Charter (that failed by 14 votes--less than 1%) in 2003

Trustees Carol Gray and Pat Holland both made 'Hall of Shame' for voting against American flags

Library Trustee issues SOS

The great thing about the Web is you can generate a dispatch of distress, turn it into a PDF and instantly email it to those gatekeepers of all things news and get the scary story out to thousands, almost overnight.

Jones Library Trustee Chris Hoffmann is just such an example: Click on his report below.

Chris Hoffmann reports

Library under fire

No, it's not a First Amendment book banning incident or federal request for a patrons reading habits, this time it is an outright coup d'état, orchestrated by cutthroat Carol--Gray that is--and her band of merry women, otherwise known as the "Evaluation Committee" a subcommittee of the Jones Library Trustees, elected officials who "govern" the library which is separate from the day-to-day management.

Of course this subcommittee will not even allow fellow elected members of the Jones Trustees at their little secret pow wow where they are fine tuning their attack on Jones Library long-time director Bonnie Isman, mainly because she stands in the way of their grab for power.

Kind of like Brutus meeting with his boys in a Roman Senate chamber to secretly sharpen their daggers while awaiting Caesar's arrival.

In fact, the power mad subcommittee seems to think they can invoke a contract clause to fire the director without even bringing it up before the full board of Trustees.

You would think Ms. Gray, a former Public Defender, would have a tad more sympathy for someone she is now putting on the hotseat and prosecuting as though Ms. Isman was a dangerous felon.

It's going to be a lot harder to find capable professional staff in the People's Republic if this travesty is allowed to occur, because management personnel like to manage and not be continually second guessed by volunteer do-gooders who always seem to think they can do a better job.