Strike two!

From: Larry Kelley
To: Gerykm ; hoodr ; westmorelandD ; mazurk ; BurgessS ; avbrewer
Sent: Wed, Nov 23, 2011 4:53 pm
Subject: Open Meeting Law complaint (using AG's form)

According to the somewhat newly revised Open Meeting Law I am supposed to file my complaint with the Regional School Committee and the Town Clerk over the incident last night where the Regional School Committee went into executive session without clearly stating the reason for doing so and without a proper second to the motion.

Please excuse the somewhat weird formatting as I downloaded the PDF complaint form from the AG website.

Larry Kelley

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OPEN MEETING LAW COMPLAINT FORM

Organization or Media Affiliation (if any): http://onlyintherepublicofamherst.blogspot.com/

Are you filing the complaint in your capacity as an individual, representative of an organization, or media? Media

(For statistical purposes only) Individual Organization Media x

Public Body that is the subject of this complaint: Amherst Regional School Committee

City/Town Amherst County Hampshire Regional/District State Mass

Name of Public Body (including city/ town, county or region, if applicable):Amherst Regional School Committee, 170 Chestnut Street, Amherst, Ma

Specific person(s), if any, you allege committed the violation: Rick Hood, Chair of the Regional Committee and Irv Rhodes Chair Amherst School Committee
Date of alleged violation:11/22/11

Description of alleged violation: Irv Rhodes made a motion to go into Executive Session "never to return" but with no explanation/reason for the action, and Mr Hood allowed it without having a proper second from another member.

Describe the alleged violation that this complaint is about. If you believe the alleged violation was intentional, please say so and include the reasons supporting your belief. No, not intentional--just careless.

What action do you want the public body to take in response to your complaint? Apologize, promise it will never happen again. After school detention.

Review, sign, and submit your complaint
Read this important notice and sign your complaint.
Under most circumstances your complaint will be considered a public record and be available to any member of the public upon request.
I understand that when I submit this complaint the Attorney General's Office cannot give me legal advice and cannot act as my personal lawyer.

I certify that the information contained on this form is true to the best of my knowledge.

Signed: Larry Kelley Date: 11/23/11

A fitting tribute indeed

W.D. Cowls Building Supply

My Facebook and corporeal buddy Cinda Jones emailed yesterday to inquire if anyone would take offense if she lowered the huge flag in front of the business her dad built with the blood of his bare hands, to a position of mourning.

"No, lower away," I instantly replied. Because there's a b-i-g difference between, say, Amherst College lowering their majestic flag on the hill for former employees who pass away and a dutiful daughter doing so over the sudden passing of a beloved father, friend, mentor and by all accounts icon in our town's rarest of breeds: entrepreneur.

If America was built on anything, it was family values. So when a family's respect for their father bends the unenforceable rules of flag protocol, safe bet the Founding Fathers would have no complaints.

Paul Jones obit

Bad news travels fast

From the archives: (Yeah, scary to think I now have archives) The first shot rang out at 12:30 PM, the first bulletin made national news at 12:31 PM, and by the time Walter Cronkite announced to a mesmerized nation an hour later that their leader was dead, 68% of Americans had heard about the shooting, not a single one via the Internet.

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The ornate condolence certificate, autographed by the President, arrived two months after the sudden death of my father—a combat veteran who helped overthrow the Japanese in the Philippines but never discussed it with any of his four inquisitive children.

That letter brought radiance into our home on an otherwise dreary late November day.

So, suddenly transformed into a proud 8-year-old, I pestered my mother for the honor of bringing the document to school the following day. My pragmatic Irish mother denied the request--worried I could lose or damage the precious parchment.

Friday began as unremarkable as a hundred before: Morning prayers chanted effortlessly, the Pledge of Allegiance parroted as we stood with our right hands over our hearts facing an American flag.

I was having trouble concentrating on the curriculum, typical for a Friday when the weekend beckoned. But this time all I could think about was a letter that had arrived just yesterday from a revered man who could have met my father less than a generation ago.

With only an hour of captivity remaining, a high-school boy suddenly entered from the right door bearing a message. Snatching the note from his hand the nun appeared almost angry at the interruption. I could, however, see her face suddenly turn white—matching the mask-like habit all ‘Sisters of St. Joseph’ wore.

She crumpled the memo with one hand while reaching back to grab her desk with the other, slumping as though absorbing a blow from a heavyweight boxer. With a trembling voice she said, “Please stand.” Although puzzled, we responded immediately.

“Now extend your arms sideway, shoulder high, and hold them there,” she said still struggling to gain control. So there we stood, 26 of us, rooted near our desks like cemetery crosses wondering, as our shoulders started to ache, what could possible cause such a break in routine?

She regained the commanding voice of authority to announce, “President Kennedy has just been shot” Tears trickled down her cheeks as she concluded, “He needs our prayers.”

At St. Michael’s school in the year of our Lord 1963, President John F. Kennedy was fourth on the list of most beloved: just under the Holy Trinity and tied with Pope John. And in my home he was tied for second with St. Patrick just under my recently deceased father.

The big yellow bus rumbled back to Amherst with an interior as quiet as a crypt. The astonishing event blurred short-term memory like one too many drinks. I began to question whether the letter from the now martyred leader was actually real, or did I simply imagine it?

Bursting through the front door I quickly spied the prized possession lying on a cluttered kitchen table. With relief and reverence I held it aloft, taking in the brilliant gold calligraphy etched on a pure white background: “It is with deepest sympathy…”

A feeling the entire nation now shared.

Originally published 11/22/07

Can you hear me now?

Trustee Carol Gray peeks in to a Library Trustees meeting last summer from Egypt courtesy of skype on Mary Streeter's mac laptop.

Amherst Select Board Open Meeting Law specialist Alisa Brewer reported this evening--right before they retreated into Executive Session--that Attorney General Martha Coakley has decided in favor of "remote participation" for boards and committees in Massachusetts, meaning you no longer have to be physically present to deliberate or vote on matters before your committee (although you do not count towards a quorum).

Excuses--I mean, permitted reasons--that allow for such a thing include "personal illness, personal disability, emergency, military service, or geographic distance." Of course it's the last one that will be used most often--especially in a town like Amherst where so many people are affiliated with UMass where the workplace is in full session only 7 months out of the year.

The Select Board, acting as chief executive officers have to vote in favor of adopting the regulation overall, before any of the 50 some odd boards, committees, sub committees and task forces can put it to use. Since the SB also appoints a fair amount of the citizenry to all these volunteer positions they may find remote participation to be an effective tool for recruitment.

Besides, anything that gets people to participate in government is a good thing. Even better when government itself starts to embrace the 21st century.

Attorney General's press release on remote participation

Party house of the weekend

260 Grantwood Drive, Amherst (at least the couch blends in)

Located in what appears to be the student rental section of the neighborhood--and managed by, naturally, Eagle Crest Property Management--it's sad to think this single family home was once owned by nationally renowned UMass history professor Stephen B. Oats.

Just goes to show what can happen to a nice neighborhood when owner occupied single family homes are sold off to become rentals managed by Eagle Crest Property Management.

Accord to Amherst Police Department logs 1:00 AM early Sunday morning:

Approximately 30-40 cars observed on both sides of the roadway that blocked passage for emergency vehicles. Dozens of people crowded throughout the roadway while consuming alcoholic beverages. Loud music along with loud yelling observed coming from location. Residents contacted and advised of the issue with little assistance. The house was cleared of guests and all residents were placed under arrest for unlawful noise.

Deanna Helene Docoulos, 226 Rowley Bridge Rd, Topsfield, MA, age 21, Open Container

Four leaseholders arrested for unlawful noise:

Thomas Gilson Jr., 37 Davis St, Mansfield, MA, age 23
Julian Thomas Colarusso, 11 Stanley Circle, Quincy, MA, age 21
Shane Michael Viveiros, 33L Rolling Green Dr, Fall River, MA, age 22
James M Lizotte, 200 Fairbanks St, W. Boylston, MA, age 21



Property Ownership Card for 260 Grantwood Dr

Bullseye

Roundabout in front of Atkins Country Market

The Atkins Corner Roundabouts are coming into their own and should start seeing traffic by this time next year (although the occasional after dark confused driver has already tread on them).

And the new bypass connecting West Street over to West Bay Road has been in use, without any problems, for a while now.

By pass over to West Bay Road (shortcut to Applewood Retirement Community or Eric Carle Museum)

The scuttling of Form Based Zoning for this part of town will probably have no impact on Atkins as the nifty new infrastructure makes it all the more easy to deliver shoppers directly to their front door. But I'm sure they would loved to have had a clustered development or two spring up nearby where folks could actually live within walking distance.

Just another lucrative sunny Sunday at Atkins

My sniper perch

Occupy Amherst...briefly

Agile Gazette photographer Gordon Daniels keep pace with the protesters

About 60 mostly college aged folks descended on the downtown yesterday carrying signs and banners and chanting slogans and only briefly snarling traffic. Amherst Police Department monitored the situation closely but did not interact with the crowd. The marchers retreated from town center, down Rt 9 up Triangle Street and then North Pleasant back to UMass, with a cruiser following closely behind.

Hard to walk and keep the banner taut (must be from Hampshire College)

This was the first Occupy action in Amherst since the clash with Tea Party supporters a month ago, where they seemed a tad intimidated by direct counter confrontation.