Fore!

 Cherry Hill Golf Course behind the curtain

With no discussion except my own and not a single "no" vote other than mine, a noticeably smaller (from Monday nights grand start) Amherst Town Meeting approved the Cherry Hill Golf Course operation budget for its 27th year of municipal operation as a "business."

 

And I even wore a new shirt

The 66 acre 9 hole golf course was taken by eminent domain under an "emergency measure" making the drastic action referendum proof in the spring of 1987, with an original cost of $1.6 million.

159 North Amherst NIMBYs signed a petition to get it on the Town Meeting warrant to stop a 134 unit Planned Unit Residential Development proposed by Cambridge architect Robert Kreger. 

But then after an appraisal became public, Town Meeting had to reconvene and add another $600,000 to the original appropriation bringing the total cost of acquisition to $2.2 million ($4.4 million in today's dollars), to date the most costly land purchase in town history.

Not to mention the $1 million the golf course lost in operations as an Enterprise Fund, which are supposed to be self supporting like a private sector business.  Town Meeting gave up on that idea and dissolved the enterprise fund status in November of 2006, rolling the course back into the General Fund where it's far easier to hide overhead costs like employee benefits, insurance, capital heavy equipment purchases.
 
And golf is a heavy equipment Godzilla.  Next year for instance they will request $97,500 in capital, none of which will be considered part of their "operation budget".

But year after year Town Meeting bestows their undying support using taxpayer money.  Even Sensible Center types sometimes wonder ...

#####

Winston Churchill once famously said, "Those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it." In Amherst it could become, "When Town Meeting does not learn from history, taxpayers are doomed to regret it."

Article #43 calls for the town to "Purchase a Conservation Restriction" on 154 acres of woodland for $1.2 million in northeast Amherst that is already under a purchase-and-sale agreement for $6.5 million.  Once again to stop a large development of badly needed housing.

Stop The Retreat sign (cheaper by the dozen)

But the courts have long ago ruled that a municipality using the Godlike power of eminent domain must pay "highest and best use" price for the property.  Or in this case, $6.5 million!!!

More than the town has in combined total reserves between Free Cash ($4,326,501) and Stabilization ($1,821,401).

Since the town has "right of first refusal" on the property, North Amherst NIMBYs should simply put up or shut up:

Raise the $6.5 million required to match Landmark Properties' offer to W.D. Cowls, Inc ... and then, even I will support this Children's Crusade cause.

#####

From their Facebook page

"Must be halted immediately."  Getting a tad aggressive are we not?

A Dangerous View

 

 407 North Pleasant Street, owned by Gamma Inc Alpha Tau 

Early this morning (1:51 AM) a college aged male under the influence of alcohol, otherwise known as ETOH, tumbled off the roof of a house located on a hill at 407 North Pleasant Street.

His injuries, although not life threatening, were serious enough for AFD to transport all the way to Baystate Medical Center Trauma unit in Springfield rather than the Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton.  

If you can believe Reddit

 

Deja vu

A more tragic end 

 

Dueling iPhones:

On May 8, 2013, at 2:45 PM, James Edward Mulcahy <jimemul@earthlink.net> wrote:

Mr. Kelley,
Please send me your phone number.
Thank you, James E. Mulcahy, advisor to Alpha Tau Gamma

Sent from my iPhone

 

From: Larry Kelley
To: James Edward Mulcahy
Sent: Wed, May 8, 2013 3:46 pm
Subject: Re: phone number

If you're going to threaten me I would prefer you do it

in writing.

Sent from my iPhone

If You Build It ...

Political sign on public property

One of the other benefits of "The Retreat," a proposed student housing project in northeast Amherst, besides hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual property tax revenues is the short term shot in the arm for jobs, not that Amherst is now hurting with its usual low unemployment rate standing at 3.1%.

But the Hampshire/Franklin district average is 6%, only a little better than state average of 6.8%, and presumably a construction project like The Retreat will draw local labor from all across Western Massachusetts.

   Amherst Bid Solicitation for "The Retreat"

Trouble In Paradise?

290 Lincoln Avenue for sale ... again

You-Pang Tzeng, one of the more recent carpetbaggers come a calling to Amherst with full pockets of cash to invest in our highly sought after housing stock, has made some interesting business maneuvers in the past few months.

For the first time in his illustrious career he has put a property up for sale, specifically his controversial purchase of 290 Lincoln Avenue, where he quickly demolished a historic -- to some anyways -- barn in the backyard to create a separate building lot (which also scares the Hell out of the neighborhood).

Last June You-Pang Tzeng purchased 290 Lincoln Avenue for $429,000, well below its assessed value of $465,000.  The property is currently valued at  $408,400 but that does not include the building lot which was formerly the "historic barn."

That property is valued at $135,400 or a total value for the house and building lot of $543,800.

So if You-Pang Tzeng is simply trying to make money on flipping property, rather than renting it, he certainly will accomplish that goal when these two choice pieces sell.

Interestingly back in November Tzeng had planned to build an addition between two adjacent homes, 60/62 and 64/66 Railroad Street, but withdrew his Special Permit Zoning request shortly before the matter would be discussed by the Zoning Board of Appeals.

290 Lincoln Avenue is now for sale at $440,000 and probably will not last long at that price.   Of course the house itself is still a "single family," meaning one "family"-- as large as that may be -- or no more than 4 "unrelated" housemates, which usually means "students."

At that price and with a Special Permit required to expand to a two family, chances are better than average the property will not be snatched up by a slumlord looking to pack it with college aged youth.

The adjacent lot could be another story, but at that assessed value just for the lot it would be kind of a waste to build a cheap structure on it simply for student rental stock.

Either way, the neighborhood hopes and prays for an upper middle class family with two kids, a dog ... and no more than four cars.

Greatness Recalled

"The Greatest Generation:  A Visual Tribute" by artist Chris Demarest

A Military Portrait Art show kicks off its national tour here in Amherst, a town not always known as a bastion of old fashioned patriotism, in the sun splashed atrium of our own Jones Library, "the people's living room."

Hometown artist Chris Demarest, a cross between illustrator Norman Rockwell and writer Tracy Kidder,  has put brush to canvas on over 80 scenes of our WW2 generation going about their daily business of contributing to the war effort.  A hard won victory only made possible by teamwork, skill and unwavering dedication to the cause that defined a generation.

And with more than an equal share of the paintings highlighting the significant contributions to the war effort made by our secret weapon: women.

Some 350,000 women served in US Armed Forces during WW2

255th Starts Just Fine

Amherst Finance Committee

Like a proud army marching off to war across the comfortable confines of familiar territory, the opening night of Amherst's 255th Annual Town Meeting started off just grand.  The question is how well will the army look a month from now after endless combative discussions ... almost always coming down to money.

With a few articles put off to other nights, a few more placed on an automatic "yes" consent list and the benefit of non-controversial articles stacked at the begining of the 45 article warrant, Town Meeting managed to make it to article #16, THE BUDGET.  $68 million worth in total.

 Amherst Select Board making a hasty retreat

Tonight the Jones Library's tiny percentage of that overall budget came up for discussion.  Library Director Sharon Sharry closed her bubbly presentation with, "We're here because of you and for you." The $1,741,512 budget item passed unanimously.

  Jones Library Director Sharon Sharry

And since it was now 10:00 PM, Town Meeting would have to vote approval to continue discussion of THE BUDGET.  The "yes" votes were 4 or 5, the "no" votes 150 or more.  Town Meeting called it a night.

Excellence Once More

 Amherst Police Department, 111 Main Street

To no great surprise to anyone who has been paying attention over the past three years, the Amherst Police Department last week received the good news that their state accreditation has been renewed.

Back in 2001, not long before the terrorist attack underscored the ultimate sacrifice all of our first responders face on a daily basis, the Amherst Police Department first achieved accreditation -- only the second department in the state to do so.

Of course the downside to being such a highly-trained, well-regarded department is town officials figure they are sort of like the Texas Rangers "one riot, one ranger" routine, and as a result can continue to keep the department understaffed.