Weekends were made for ...

 Phillips Street (or maybe a zombie movie) just after midnight

So as weekends in a "college town" go -- especially this being the last one of summer -- things went relatively smoothly.  Of course APD, UMPD and AFD were busy as could be, but not to the breaking point.

Cooperation between the town first responders has always been outstanding, but the integration between town police-and-fire and UMass police and Environmental Health & Safety has gotten much better over the past year or so. 

This weekend UMPD was very visible at Party House responses -- even a few miles from campus.

The magic hours seem to start just after midnight through about 2:00 AM as both Friday-into-Saturday and last night into-this-morning there were times when APD was backed up on noise complaints, some of them being held for upwards of a half-hour before units could respond.

AFD, even with a shift of thirteen on (4 extra paid for by UMass) each night there were times when all five ambulances were on the road -- with many of those calls ETOH (alcohol OD) students.

The roving herds of students were not as much in evidence Friday but w-a-y more so last night into this morning.  No signs of the "Walk This Way" crew either night trying to redirect traffic off Fearing Street, which was the usual Grand Central Station last night.

Although late Friday night there were times when Sunset Avenue, contiguous with Southwest towers, was almost impassible by car due to foot traffic.  Not so much because the students were in overwhelming numbers, but simply because the groups of a dozen or so decided to walk in the middle of the road.

Considering that is also the time drunk drivers are out it's only a matter of time before a bad interaction between car and pedestrian occurs.  Early this morning for example APD  bagged a drunk driver at the still busy with foot traffic Fearing/Allen Street location around 1:30 AM.

When calling for back up the officer on scene told dispatch the vehicle had "clipped the curb pretty good." 

About That Explosion ...

 UMPD closed off Cold Storage Drive during the incident keeping folks away from lot 12

So for those of you wondering what that loud explosion was Friday night around 10:00 PM emanating from near UMass Graduate Research Center and reverberating to surrounding towns, fear not:  nothing exotic like a terrorist attack or meth lab gone awry.

Although, it was lab related:  an old, possibly unstable, container with less than 16 ounces of tetrahydrofuran turned up during a lab clean out and the normally clear liquid had started forming crystals, which are potentially explosive.   Local authorities took no chances.

AFD Chief Tim Nelson, who is a district team leader for regional HazMat response, took command at the scene.  The container was escorted to an out-of-the-way location near parking lot 12 and then detonated by Mass State Police bomb squad experts.

All in all, a seamless team effort by AFD, UMPD, UMass Environmental Health & Safety and Mass State Police.

 AFD Central Station 4/12/13.  DPW truck (rear) was used to transport chemicals out of town center

Back on April 12 AFD had a similar experience, only the potentially dangerous materials were brought directly to them.  An Amherst resident cleaning out his dad's basement (dad was a former chemist) brought a cardboard box full of old unmarked chemicals to Central Station on a busy Friday afternoon.

The items were placed in the back of a very large DPW truck and quickly but gently escorted to the top of the Notch where they were destroyed in a controlled demolition. 

AFD has four members on the Western Mass Regional Hazardous Materials Team and they drill on a monthly basis.  Last night the training came in handy.  

Unintended Consequences?

Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs and Campus Life Enku Gelaye

As we head into the fair weather weekend, in anticipation of rowdy behavior, UMass disciplinarian Enku Galaye sent out a friendly email reminder to students to be on their, um, best behavior.

After all, off campus students are ambassadors for our flagship of higher education in the state.

Can't hurt for sure.  But there are always those who are not overly receptive ...

 Other informational emails

Ban The Blarney

 

McMurphy's downtown Amherst 3/10/12 10:45 AM

UPDATE (Sunday afternoon):   

Looks like the "Half Way to Blarney Blowout" promotion disappeared from the McMurphy's Facebook page over the past 24 hours. What's up with that? Something I said, hopefully.

Original Post:

"You're name is mud" may still be a familiar expression as the negativity is obvious -- even if you don't know the sad story of Dr. Mudd and his cold hearted patient, John Wilkes Booth. 

The term "Blarney Blowout," unlike the innocent doctor just doing his job,  has also earned a mud like moniker.  A well deserved one.

This promotion encourages exuberant college aged youth to consume copious amounts of alcohol starting very early in the day, all in the name of profit.  What could go wrong?

In July an Amherst man was acquitted of rape using the "morning-after-regret" defense.  Of course the morning after was a follow up to a day of partying during the "Blarney Blowout" 2011 edition.

And we already know the pernicious public safety impact of the 2013 event, when thousands of youth packed the quad area of Townhouse Apartments requiring a bevy of police (town, state and UMass) dressed in riot gear to bring under control. 

UMass/Amherst recently became serious about the dangers of out-of-control partying.  Cancelling Fantazia at the Mullins Center due to concerns over the drug "Molly" certainly demonstrate that. 

The 5-member Amherst Select Board are also the town's "Liquor Commissioners" (and ironically enough, "Sewer Commissioners".)

If Umass can impose its will on the privately operated Mullins Center to cancel a potentially dangerous production, the Select Board should follow suit and come down on McMurphy's Uptown Tavern like a ton of kegs.

And that's no blarney.

Giving responsible drinkers a bad name

Party House Of The Weekend

Yeah, I'm running late as we're almost into another warm, sunny weekend ... where anything can happen in a college town.

Grantwood Drive is a cozy development of about three dozen single family homes  all built just over 40 years ago.  The vast majority are "owner occupied" and you never see them listed in my Party House of the Weekend series.  A few are not owner occupied.  Take #115 for instance.

115 Grantwood Drive, Amherst.  Owned by Onasta Properties aka Pipeline Properties

Amherst Police were called around 1:10 AM early Saturday morning and arrested Chris D Lewis, age 19, Luke Richardson, age 19 and Albert M Carter, age 20 for noise.
 

Meanwhile only a couple hundred yards away at about the same time (1:24 AM) Police were called to 985 E. Pleasant Street by a homeowner complaining about college aged youth urinating in her yard.

Police arrested Timothy M Vanlew, age 20, Stephen F Gardner, age 21, and Ryan J. Donnelly age 21 all three residents of 985 E. Pleasant Street, a single family home with not enough bathrooms apparently.

Since Cherewatti only paid $160,000 for the house that was valued at $255,000 in FY2012, maybe he can afford to add a bathroom.

 

985 E. Pleasant Street  Owned by Eagle Crest Mgt aka Jamie Cherewatti

(small) Fire South Amherst High School

 AFD on scene South Amherst High School

Amherst Fire Department responded to a "small fire in the office" at the alternative South Amherst High School late this morning.  The fire was both small and contained, although the school was evacuated for about an hour.

 A busload of students arrived shortly after the fire and were relocated to the park area 

Two officers were seen placing a young man in a cruiser and heading back to APD headquarters.  A detective and AFD's arson investigator were also called to the scene.  The investigation is being handled in house by APD and AFD, and the State Fire Marshal has not been called in.

 APD and AFD leaving the scene

Staff and students return to the building (no damage from fire)

W/ APD, the entire ARHS community - adults and students, alike - practiced lock down and shelter in place. Students  performed very well.
— Mark Jackson (@ARHSPrincipal) September 16, 2013

Schools are getting serious about these kinds of things

Devil In The Details

 Current tree with mirror (rt) is unstable.  New one will be near telephone pole

Flying the commemorative flags every 9/11 was not the only acrimonious issue on the Amherst Select Board's plate Monday night, as immediately before that embarrassing item they discussed the ongoing bitter battle over relocating a driveway at 666 South East Street, a public safety issue strongly endorsed by Assistant Fire Chief Don McKay.

After too long a discussion the Select Board, keepers of the public way, voted to allow Christopher Benfey and Mickey Rathbun to put up a mirror on the opposite side of their dangerous driveway to facilitate clear views of oncoming traffic up and over the hill.   But only after  "consultation" with the DPW.

Tech savvy member Aaron Hayden stated they should "be able to see all the way down to the South Amherst common" if the mirror is positioned correctly.

 Mickey Rathbun, Chris Benfey in the hot seat

The owners of 666 South East Street have decided not to move the driveway 60 feet to the north for economic reasons:   Tree Warden Alan Snow has not budged on the "replacement cost" for taking down seven trees, what amounts to a $6,000 fine.

This on top of an estimated $25,000 cost for a complicated driveway construction project.

At the Monday night SB meeting the DPW was disparaged as being "scornful" by Mr. Benfey and Mr. Snow was characterised as engaging in "unbelievable behavior."

Meanwhile yesterday the DPW removed a large old bush at the entryway to their driveway to "improve sight lines" for incoming traffic from busy Rt. 116. 

Tuesday: Bye bye big bush

Today

Select Board Rejects 9/11 Flag Question

 My view from the hot seat.  John Musante, Stephanie just-say-no O'Keeffe

UPDATE:  Tuesday 5:00 PM:

AP picks up the 9/11 flag flap story.  Again.

#####

The Amherst Select Board voted unanimously (5-0) tonight to reject a citizen voter petition reqesting they allow local voters to settle once and for all the nagging annual question of whether the commemorative American flags should fly in the downtown every 9/11 vs once every five years.

Yes, I said UNANIMOUSLY REJECTED.  Only in Amherst.

MassLive reports (as always, comments are the best)

9/11/14?

Amherst Town Center 9/11/11.  Commemorative flags will not fly again until 2016, unless

So I'm trying to anticipate the excuse the Amherst Select Board will conjure up this evening during the 7:15 PM flag discussion to reject placing on the local 3/25/14 election ballot the never ending question of flying the commemorative flags every 9/11, thus allowing the voters decide this issue once and for all.

Sure they will mention the shameful 2007 Amherst Town Meeting vote by a whopping 96-41 not to fly the flags annually.  And that advisory resolution had requested they fly at half staff, which completely negates the argument that the commemorative flags are  "too festive."

Kind of hard for the average person to misread the intentions of twenty nine 3' by 5' American flags at half staff.

And I'm sure one of them will argue that governance by referendum can be a dangerous thing.  Would slavery had ended 150 years ago if it were put up to a popular vote at the time?  Or would women have been given the right to vote in 1920 if it had been decided at the ballot box?

Of course the counter to that is we are Amherst, the only town (according to Tracy Kidder) with a "foreign policy." So sure, historically speaking the townspeople would have done the right thing.

As they will do on March 25 if the Select Board has the courage to allow this festering issue to come to a vote.

After all, they seem to love the tagline:  "Amherst, where only the h is silent."  Then why not let the people speak?

Standard Saturday? (In A College Town)

 

Bus stop N. Pleasant Street near Newman Center 11:00 PM last night

So for no apparent rhyme or reason last night was less rowdy than the previous two Saturdays  -- with a lot less foot traffic than usual -- although what passes for standard is still unacceptable:

The "liquor law violations" started a little later than usual as the first arrest seemed to occur at 11:00 PM, one hour later than the previous night.  Although the first call I heard for an AFD ambulance to cart a drunk female UMass student (ETOH) to the hospital came in at 10:45 PM.

APD also investigated a mysterious explosion on Rt 9 near the Hadley border called in by someone at Hawkins Meadow Apartment just after 11:00 PM.  I could also hear Hadley dispatch and patrol officers mention it as well.  Neither department found anything.

Over the next hour APD responded to loud parties at 18 Foxglove Lane, Sand Hill Road in North Amherst, South Whitney Street in East Amherst and they cleared a large crowd in front of 45 Phillips Street (contiguous with UMass) at the request of the tenants, who said the large crowd was not "invited."

Between midnight and 1:00 AM police responded to three more loud parties: two of them at apartment complexes and one large home based party at 15 Taylor Street which garnered the young female hostess a $300 noise ticket.

During that same one hour period AFD would respond to three separate intoxicated student incidents (ETOH) all of them requiring transport to Cooley Dickinson Hospital.

At 1:10 AM on South Pleasant Street, a stone's throw from town center, APD performed a Field Sobriety Test on a college aged driver (who was hopping on one foot and listing badly when I passed by) and based on the results placed him "under" for DUI.  AT 1:35 AM police responded to a fight in town center called in by an AFD vehicle returning to quarters.

Meanwhile in neighboring Hadley, at 1:40 AM,  police responded to reports of a young college aged female staggering down the middle of a main road.  At 1:45 AM UMass PD called in AFD to transport a young ETOH female who was vomiting.

Five minutes later, at 1:50 AM, AFD responded to Amherst Police Department headquarters at 111 Main Street to evaluate a young female who had been in a fight (and apparently did not fare all that well).

At 1:55 AM, Amherst College police requested two ambulances for two young female students, one ETOH and the other "having trouble breathing."  Both were located in the same men's bathroom.

And with that I called it a night, or I should say morning. APD and AFD did not.  

 

Lawn ornament vandalized last night at a house near UMass

Frisky Friday

 Resident of 31 Shumway Street arrested for "disorderly conduct"

As usual, the first shots fired in the skirmish on rowdyism last night started in earnest around 10:00 PM, with Amherst Police and UMPD making individual arrests among streaming crowds of college aged youths in and around the UMass periphery for alcohol related infractions.

A scenario that would play out nearly a dozen times over a four hour period.

 

Walk This Way crowd (with dog) midnight Labor Day Weekend  Fearing St

I did not see the "Walk This Way" crew out among the throng of students undulating up and down the Fearing Street neighborhood.  Not that they seem to do much good when they are at their stations.  Kind of like trying to redirect a tsunami using a child's toy plastic beach shovel.

Things kicked into high gear just after 1:00 AM with almost simultaneous noise complaints at 31 Shumway Street, 115 Grantwood Drive, and an apartment at the 24 North East Street complex, resulting in three arrests for noise/nuisance house violations, and one arrest for "disorderly conduct."

At 1:45 AM police were called to the North Pleasant/Kellogg Ave intersection in the downtown for an alcohol fueled disturbance, otherwise known as a fight.

Only minutes later a woman called from East Pleasant Street near Pine Street in North Amherst complaining about college aged youths urinating in her backyard.

According to Dispatch, "She was very upset."  Indeed.    

Let's Take A Vote

Shanksville Pennsylvania 10:04 AM 9/11/01

 As Flight 93 streaked toward Washington D.C. that fateful morning, passengers huddled in the back of the plane realized they had become unwilling conscripts in a suicide mission. So they decided to do something about it. 

But before they made their desperate, valiant attempt to retake the plane, they did something as American as apple pie: they took a vote.

Men and women from all walks of life decided -- in the most democratic manner possible -- to go to war defending their country.

Although they fell short of the objective that awful morning, their supreme sacrifice saved scores of fellow Americans and represented the first tactical victory in "the war on terror."

So I suppose it's fitting that the Amherst Select Board agenda for Monday night's meeting was finalized on Wednesday afternoon, the 12th anniversary of the most heinous attack on American soil in our entire history.

The Select Board will act on a voter petition I handed in two weeks ago with more than the requisite number of signatures, requesting they place the "only in Amherst" controversy of flying commemorative flags on 9/11 before the voters this March 25.

(Last year's annual town election had a 7% turnout.)

Whether you think the commemorative flags should fly annually on 9/11 -- as they do on Memorial Day -- or agree that once every five years is sufficient, surely we can all agree there's no harm in confirming that with "The People."

After all, isn't that one of the most cherished rights our flag represents?  

"We the People," cordially request ...

Who'll Stop The Rain

 

The center of the storm N. Pleasant Street 7:00 PM

The threatening skies unleashed a targeted downpour so sudden it made the crowd shriek, then sent them scurrying for cover: exhibitors tents, awnings of storefront businesses or below what's left of the urban tree cover in the downtown.

Block Party central to norther end of closed off roadway

Up until that time (6:55 PM) the crowd was starting to grow, as everyone seemed to enjoy walking amiably down the very center of what is normally a busy roadway through the heart of downtown Amherst.

 Block Party northern end near Kendrick Park

Still, the crowd seemed a little smaller than last year's gathering.  Perhaps the National Weather Bureau "Severe Thunderstorm Watch" earlier in the day covering the entire four hours of the party (6-10 PM) had something to do with it.

Although last year the maiden event had to contend with a mosquito borne illness alert over Eastern Equine Encephalitis where town officials -- including the Board of Health -- issued stern  warnings against outdoor activities between dusk and dawn.

Lady on stilts enthralls the kids ... well, except for the superhero on left

By 9:00 PM with the rains coming and going the crowds had thinned

Food concession stands not doing a very brisk business

So maybe it's a classic sophomore slump, or maybe people fear thunderstorms more than mosquitoes.

Either way, the concept of bringing together a broad spectrum of citizens young and old into a safe, secure brightly lit downtown for a night of food, fun and entertainment is a sound one.

Besides, third time is the charm.

 

AFD Engine 1 and Ambulance 1 were stationed at DPW one mile from Central  Station  to avoid congestion in town center

Slip Slidin' Away

Amherst Public Schools were closed today due to "slippery floors"

So for those of you hoping Amherst makes international news with a second straight day of school closings due to "slippery floors" I hate to disappoint you, but it looks as though there will be school tomorrow.  Yeah!

A reliable source tells me the floors dried out nicely overnight and although today's weather is not ideal, only a real monsoon with a sudden spike in temperature would change things.  

I'm sure almost all parents will be happy to hear this.  Sorry kids.

The reason why air conditioning did not negate this problem is because the older school buildings are not all that well equipped.  Crocker Farm has the best system because it was the one most recently renovated ($5.6 million project in 2002).  

But all the others leave lots to be desired.  According to my source:

The High School only has AC on the second and third floor via window units.  During the 1997 renovation ($22 million) they did not install central AC in the addition.  The original 1955 portion and 1965 addition have no AC.  So less than 50% of the building has air conditioning.

Wildwood and Fort River have limited AC throughout the entire building.  The systems were put in 1970 and 1972, are antiquated, and operate moderately.    Middle School has a 1969 AC system throughout the building and operates moderately.

The problem was not that the floor wax "melted". The school buildings were constructed on concrete slab foundations which remains cool at ground level. When warm moist air makes contact, the result is condensation. 

And, you know, the nearer your destination the more you're slip slidin away.

DUI Dishonor Role

So once again last weekend in spite of a more than a dozen arrests for alcohol related offenses -- all of them UMass student related -- only one Driving Under the Influence arrest.

And you can tell William J. Sullivan, age 22, also a UMass students, is a rookie since he allowed the Portable Breath Test, which he flunked.

9/11/13

Amherst Central Station 10:10 AM

APD

 

Chief Nelson presents fire fighter Tom Messer with the service star flag that flew at Central Station when he, along with his brother Bill (also Amherst fire fighter), were serving in Afghanistan with Mass Air National Guard.  At the time, AFD also had firefighter  Reid Frailey serving with them in Afghanistan but he has since moved on to Cambridge FD.  Both Frailey and Bill Messer were also given encased service stars.  The cases were designed and built by AFD Captain Bill Dunn

Service star flag flying with three stars May, 2012