The other 'Gateway' project advances

Kendrick Park: A giant green amoeba in the heart of Amherst

The Amherst Select Board on Monday heard the first public presentation on design specifications for Kendrick Park from Peggy Roberts chair of the Design Committee and their consultants, the Cecil Group (who also applied to the Amherst Redevelopment Authority for the Gateway Project proposal but lost out to ACP Associates) concerning this crown jewel of downtown property that abuts the Gateway district leading to UMass.

Amherst is about to develop its very own Central Park.

Serendipity

My first purchase after monetizing this blog will be a radio scanner (or maybe an iphone if somebody makes an app like that) but until then gut intuition and luck work pretty well.

On Monday I decided to up pick my 4-year-old at preschool a little early, so I'm driving though town center at 11:30 AM and instantly spot two marked cruisers near the bank, but the unmarked car behind one of them tipped me instantly. Why would the chief (who usually walks uptown to get his coffee at The Black Sheep) drive his car to Bank of America, less than 1,000 yards from the police station? Obviously he was in a hurry.

So I double park, snap a couple pictures grab my daughter, speed home, compose a short twitter-like lead and post the breaking news story first (with photos).

Yesterday I go to the APD blog at 12:44 PM and spot the breaking news, stop-the-presses information they had just that minute uploaded about capturing the second perp in the Great Town Center Bank Caper.

So I again compose a twitter-like lead, create a hot link to their timely post and update my post at 12:45 PM, then quickly send a link to my friends at the Gazette, Republican, and Ch 22 TV. Then wait...and watch. As Commander Spock would say, "fascinating."

Ch 22 was first to post online the hot story around 1:05 PM, the Springfield Republican second at 1:20 PM and the Gazette third about five minutes later. But not one of them credited the Amherst Police blog as the source of information.

I also sent the link to my friend Mary Serreze who owns the hyperlocal news site Northampton Media and she instantly published the link under the headline "Amherst Police Department Blog: 2nd Arrest Made in Bank Robbery

Journalists should always "consider the source" when gathering information; but it should not matter in the least the means by which that information is disseminated. And for the understaffed police department it's a lot easier to publish a press release on their blog rather than individually field phone calls, emails, and in-person requests for interviews from multiple media outlets.

The Internet is the most powerful journalistic tool to come along since the invention of the printing press. Embrace it!

Morning in Amherst

11:15 AM: Bement School pays a visit to Miss Emily

11:30 AM: Miss Emily reads poetry to Mr. Frost

11: 45 AM: DPW workers remove ugly green wooden cover and fire up fountain at Sweetser Park

UPDATE: 12:45 PM Obviously Amherst Police did not take the morning off as they have just announced a second arrest in the bank heist in town center yesterday. On their blog no less--I love it!

Newfangled Barn Raising

Actually it's a modern, steel, indoor riding arena. Thus my daughter Kira and a gaggle of local kids can maintain horse riding lessons year round.

Note foreground: now you know why they call themselves "Muddy Brook".

Solar farm moves forward

Despite vocal opposition from immediate neighbors, the Select Board tonight voted unanimously to recommend article #24 to Amherst Town Meeting, a motion that will allow the Town Manager (who is appointed by the Select Board) to enter into a long-term contract with BlueWave Capital for low cost electricity generated by a sea of solar panels placed on the old landfill.

ARTICLE 24. Authorize term of lease for Old Landfill (Planning Board)
To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Town Manager to lease all or any portion of the Old Landfill across Belchertown Road from the existing Transfer Station from time to time by one or more leases for such term of years up to 30 years and for such consideration as the Town Manager shall determine, for the purpose of installing and operating thereon a solar array for electric power generation and distribution, and to authorize the Town Manager to grant such easements in, on, under and across over said land for utility and access purposes, as reasonably necessary to install and operate such a solar array, and further to authorize the Town Manager to enter into a power purchase agreement with any lessee of such property to purchase all or a portion of the electricity production of the solar array and to enter into an agreement with the local utility to participate in the Net Metering program pursuant to the Acts of 2008, c. 169, §78, the so-called Green Communities Act, as may be amended.

Bank heist Town Center!

Bank of America hit late this morning. APD and Chief Livingstone on the scene. Robber last seen heading south towards Granby.

UPDATE: 1:45 PM They got him! Perp in custody. As I said in Comments: It would not take long.

Activism gone too far

Dave Keenan doing his thing

All was relatively quiet in the People's Republic this week as all the Bad Boy partiers must have gone home to the Boston area to attend Easter sunrise services; either that or they are resting up for the Hobart Hoedown 2011.

Thus no winner for the "Party House of the Weekend" or at least nothing that rises to the level of a (dubious) award winning event. Only two total $300 noise tickets issued to college aged individuals, one at 260 Grantwood Drive and one at 76 Taylor Street.

But the big story of the week is my friend and fellow townie Dave Keenan, who has been in the news of late for opposing the solar farm out at the old landfill (not to mention costing the town a six-figure sum in revenues for disposing of contaminated soil that could have help regrade the landfill's surface), getting arrested on Friday (early evening) for allegedly "breaking and entering in the nighttime for felony, destruction of property over $250, malicious assault with dangerous weapon on a person over age 60." Yikes!

Say it isn't so Dave...

1720 South East Street: Scene of the alleged crime