Ruh Roh!

Jake:  Licensed and good to go

In addition to chasing moose and bears when they trespass on our little somewhat urban community, Animal Welfare (not to be confused with "control") Officer Carol Hepburn also tracks all the dogs in town.  All 1,400.

May 31 is the deadline for license renewal and this year is shaping up to be the the worst as about 700 dog owners have not taken the responsibility to do their civic duty and keep Fido legitimate.  The cost is only $5, but come June 1 the late fee escalates the total cost to $30.

Yes, that's a steep late fee.

Proof of rabies vaccination is the only requirement, which is of course a public safety concern.  And if your dog ever gets lost and is recovered the license can be traced back to home sweet home.

Carol even reports that she oftentimes delivers the wayward dog back to its home.

Moose On The Loose

Animal Welfare Officer Carol Hepburn, APD, Amherst College PD and Environmental Police played hide and seek most of the morning into the early afternoon chasing a young moose dangerously close to Amherst town center.

 APD blocking Hitchcock Street leading to Amherst College track

Police shut off traffic at a number of locations but had to move quickly as the moose did not want to cooperate with attempts at herding, so a marksman was called in.

Environmental cop with tranquilizer gun

The first two attempts to bring the beast down with a tranquilizer shot failed, but the third attempt was the charm. 

One moose down for the count

Paid a visit to Amherst College President Biddy Martin

Moose by Martin pic.twitter.com/3ytduVjlzk
— Biddy Martin (@Biddy_Martin) May 15, 2014

ARHS Open For Business

ARHS 8:00 a.m.

Only in Amherst would the routine start of a school morning be considered newsworthy. 

Amherst police were on scene in probably about the same number as TV media as a huge throng of students entered the building just before 10:00 a.m. and just after a brief cheer for the class of 2014.

 Students enter school 9:55 a.m. under Principal Jackson's (far right) watchful eye

Now if we can just get through the rest of the school day without an anonymous note or graffiti left in a bathroom or an old fashioned bomb threat, that would be good. 

Although not overly newsworthy. 

Another Day, Another Threat @ ARHS

Amherst Regional High School

Blaming The Victim

Talk about cyber bullying! Not to mention lousy writing

 

Camila Carpio, a shrill senior at Amherst Regional High School, started a petition on Change.org yesterday imploring Amherst School officials to ban Dylan Akalis from participating in the ARHS graduation ceremony next month at the Mullins Center.

Oddly enough, Principal Mark Jackson had informed Dylan and family on Friday that he was indeed banned from the June 6 graduation ceremony.

While Ms. Carpio was somewhat correct in saying he was the, "white, male, senior High School student who threatened to bring a gun to school" she is wrong about him "racially harassing black students."  More like the other way around.

She's also wrong about Dylan "not being allowed to return to Amherst High School."  School authorities issued a 12 day suspension after the January 27 "unforeseen circumstances" school closing:  Ten days for the Facebook threat and two days for using the "N-word" (the five letter version ending in A).

The parents decided to keep him out for the rest of the year because school authorities had done little to nothing to the three black students who threatened him -- one of whom laid hands on him.

Since this regrettable drama started over 3.5 months ago no media outlet (or blog) has mentioned Dylan's name.  Yet Camila Carpio does so in an Internet petition which has the potential to be viewed by millions.

With factual errors bordering on libel.

Amherst NAACP promotes the petition on their Facebook page

 Camila Carpio ranting at January 28 Regional School Committee meeting

Springfield Republican Reports

No Ceremony For You!

 

Amherst Regional High School in bloom

Perhaps the most memorable rite of Spring around our education oriented Happy Valley is graduation day -- especially High School graduation.

A special time with your friends to celebrate what seemed like endless years of dedication and focus, all together as one BIG happy family, perhaps, for the very last time.

But this coming June, as some 240+ ARHS seniors march down the isle of the Mullins Center in their caps and gowns to the tune of "Pomp & Circumstance," one young man will be absent.

In fact he's been absent since January 27 -- the day Amherst Regional High School failed to open due to an "unforeseen circumstance." 

Dylan Akalis, age 18, a white Holyoke resident who "choiced in" to ARHS was on the receiving end of racial bullying by three black students because he dared to use the "N-word" (5 letter version ending in A) as a term of endearment with a friend who is black.

After repeated fruitless attempts by Dylan and his father (a school employee) to get the schools to protect him, Dylan desperately took matters into his own hands by naively posting a vague "threat" on a Facebook confessions site.

School Superintendent Maria Geryk quickly spotted the anonymous post, but by 3:00 a.m. Monday morning (January 27th) town  Information Technology Director Kris Pakunas had identified Dylan as the poster.

Amherst and Holyoke police interviewed the Akalis family that morning but the High School was closed anyway as a "precaution," while state bomb squad officers searched the building.  No bombs were discovered and Amherst police concluded that Dylan had never actually brought a handgun to school.  Ever.

The three black youth who bullied Dylan went unpunished while Dylan was banned for 12 school days, and his parents then decided to keep him out for the rest of his senior year.  Fortunately he already had enough credits to graduate.

Even the Schools internal investigation corroborated Dylan's story, concluding:  "There were separate behaviors during the series of events that are consistent with the definition of both bullying and racial harassment."

On Friday, May 9,  in a meeting with ARHS Principal Mark Jackson, Dylan's parents were shocked to learn he would not be allowed to march in the ARHS Mullins Center graduation ceremony -- even though Dylan has earned his diploma.

Principal Jackson seemed more concerned about public relations than safety, claiming that allowing Dylan to march with classmates could be disruptive.  However, no media have published Dylan's identify, so you have to wonder how a backlash could occur when the audience would not even recognize him?

Yes, the three black students and their parents know Dylan, but since they are all Juniors why would they attend the graduation ceremony this year?

If Dylan was a teacher of color being racially harassed, the Schools would have provided him a bodyguard.  But since he's just a white inner-city kid who will be attending Holyoke Community College rather than Harvard or Yale, he's on his own.

Makes you wonder how many other kids Amherst Public Schools write off because of the color of their skin?  Or should I say, lack of color. 

Town Meeting: The Horror ... The Horror!

Amherst Planning Board in the hot seat

If you ever wondered why the Charter change movement came ever so close to replacing Town Meeting with a more efficient City Council ten years ago, last night's session provided a grim reminder.

After an hour-and-a-half discussion that ranged from BIG government has no right to intrude on artists and piano teachers, to slumlords are ruining our neighborhoods, Town Meeting failed to muster the two-thirds vote required (90 yes, 76 no) to pass a simple Home Based Businesses zoning ordinance. 

The measure would simply have brought Amherst into the 21st century by categorizing and approving home based businesses and giving the Building Commissioner the authority to grant waivers to keep things simple.

 Building Commissioner Rob Morra, leading the Charge of the Light Brigade

And unlike the new Rental Registration and Permit system the Building Commissioner also oversees, there would be no registration fee for a low-impact businesses like teaching piano, guitar or knitting.

Head Planner Jonathan Tucker pointed out his mother used to teach piano at her home in South Amherst.  And there is a difference between having one or two students per day more as a hobby than seeing a half-dozen or more students daily as a full-time profession.

The Planning Board was one-for-two however as Town Meeting, after an hour of discussion,  did approve rezoning land owned by Hampshire College around Atkins Farm Country Market to "Village Center" thus allowing mixed use (commercial and residential) development to take place.

Property above and along side Atkins Farm Market rezoned to Village Center:  ("If you build it ...")

Unlike our other two institutes of higher education, Hampshire College pays NO Payment In Lieu Of Taxes.  UMass pays $325,000 and Amherst College pays $90,000 annually (although they insist on calling it a "gift")  for the protection of Amherst Fire Department.  And Hampshire College requires about the same number of responses as Amherst College.

Thus allowing them to develop these parcels with a mix of business and residential will at least add to the tax rolls and maybe help alleviate an exceedingly tight rental market. 

Currently the tax base in Amherst is exceedingly lop sided with residential making up 90% and commercial only 10% of the revenue generating tax base.