Red Ink Runaround

 

Cherry Hill Clubhouse cost $4,365 liability insurance, not part of "operation budget"

Okay, I'm big enough to admit when I'm wrong.  Eight months ago I predicted Cherry Hill Golf Course, the town's most insatiable White Elephant, would squander $60,000 in FY14 (just ended June 30).

Instead the beleaguered beast lost $87,739 -- or well over the cost of a firefighter, police officer or teacher.  Also well over the $47,141 in tax monies it lost last year or $40,132 the year before that.

As usual the business overran their operation budget by $6,696 and missed their target revenue goal by $12,495, a 9.4% reduction from last year's total revenues.

But when you add in those other significant hidden costs -- employee benefits, capital/equipment, insurance -- that do not show up as part of the "operation budget" -- the red ink flows like the River Jordan.

Amherst Town Meeting took Cherry Hill back in 1987 by eminent domain using an "emergency measure" provision that made the action "Referendum proof."  A malevolent move that cost $2.2 million dollars ($4.4 million in today's dollars), the most expensive land acquisition in town history.

And of course it was inspired by North Amherst NIMBYs who wished to stop a modest 134 unit housing development in their backyard.  In fact the developer offered to deed the entire golf course to the town for $1 as all he wanted was the land overlooking it for housing.

In a July 7 memo to the illustrious Select Board, Cherry Hill cheerleader John Musante (who also happens to be the Town Manager) stated:  "This ongoing evaluation will likely include revisiting the cost-benefit of privatizing operations of the Cherry Hill Golf Course."

Even if we lease it out for $1 the town still greatly benefits because taxpayers would avoid subsidizing hefty annual losses, and the commercial business would go back on the tax rolls.  Last year Amherst College, our largest landowner, paid the town just over $15,000 in property taxes for their nine hole golf club.

And if we can't find anyone to take it off our hands to continue providing the luxurious game of golf, then other uses should be found.  Like solar for instance.  

Former cornfield, East Hadley Road, Hadley

Coming & Going

Mango Mango, 61 Main Street, Amherst

While food aficionados celebrated the opening of two new restaurants in the downtown -- El Rinconsito Cuscatleco (Salvadoran) and The Taste Thai Cuisine of Amherst -- those same foodies will probably miss Mango Mango located only a mango throw away.

The eclectic cozy lunch and dinner operation opened in the former location of Fresh Side five years ago and closed rather suddenly yesterday.  The lack of a liquor license probably didn't help. 

Restaurants have one of the highest failure rates of any business, with over half failing to celebrate their fifth birthday.

But chances are that location will be up and running again this fall ... as a restaurant.

A Rising Tide?

 

The Amherst Regional Public Schools must be feeling the heat over their high average per student cost ($18,026 vs state average of $13,636) as this morning they issued a  link to a blog post rationalizing their high cost of administration, which of course contributes to the high average per pupil cost.

Interesting that they blame the evil state and all those "reports to Department of Elementary and Secondary and Education" which of course "are not optional."  Okay fair enough, the state is fairly anal with statistics and reports.

But they are probably fair-and-balanced enough to require such things from ALL public schools in the state. 

So why then is ARPS 60% over state average with "administration" costs of $789 per pupil while state average from all the other schools dealing with DESE reports is only $471 per pupil?

Either ARPS has too many administrators, or the perfect number they have are paid too much. 

Saving Energy One Building At A Time

 AFD North Station, first occupied 1975

39-year-old AFD North Station will get some cosmetic energy tweaks over the next year and a half courtesy of a $165,539 state Green Community grant, two-thirds of which goes to the funky but aging fire station and the other one-third to Town Hall.

The apparatus room, which dominates the center of the building, will switch to a more efficient infrared heating system at a cost of $20,558, and added insulation for the walls at a cost of $64,973.  

The last item, a "Demand Control Ventilation " system, will be installed at a cost of $23,977.  The system automatically adjusts the heating/cooling and ventilation to fit the changing usage of the building during the day/night, although since North Station is staffed 24/7, probably not a great money saver.

Town Hall also received $56,031 for a DCV sysstem. Since Town Hall is pretty much a 9-5 work operation with limited evening hours for meetings, the system will probably pay bigger dividends than the one at the fire station.

Amherst Town Hall,  first occupied 1890

The Joint Capital Planning Committee has been putting off for the past four years recommending the $12 million for a new South Fire Station.  And staffing levels at Central and North Station now routinely require Dispatch to issue tones for off duty personnel or the hourly Call Force (Engine 4) to report in for "station coverage."

UMass recently reiterated their pledge of $80,000 to staff two extra ambulances over the weekends while schools are in session, but there are still times when all five ambulances are swamped, and mutual aid is required.
 

How Many & What Kind of Weapons?

 

Amherst Regional High School

Obviously taxpayers who fund the very expensive overhead costs ($18,026 per pupil vs state average $13,636)  of our Amherst Regional PUBLIC School District have a right to know about weapons confiscated in the High School.
  
Parents with kids in the system, even more so. 

APD en route Amherst Regional High School to pick up and dispose of "previously confiscated weapons over the years."  Yikes.
— Larry Kelley (@amherstac) July 16, 2014

Why Do They Call It OPEN Meeting?

 Regional School Committee meeting 7/14

Temporary Chair of the Amherst Regional School Committee Lawrence O'Brien is still sputtering over the successful coup d'état orchestrated by Vice Chair Trevor Baptiste.

Five duly elected members of the committee -- a quorum -- attended a meeting that was properly posted in three of the four towns and was briefly posted properly in Amherst but cancelled when the ruling establishment felt threatened.

Did the meeting violate the Open Meeting Law?  Technically, yes.

But not because of secrecy -- which is generally what the OML targets.  Since well over 50 members of the general public showed up, along with three TV news stations and reporters from two newspapers, I would deem that a pretty OPEN meeting.

The renegade meeting was called to countermand a memo criticising Amilcar Shabazz issued by three school committee chairs with absolutely no deliberation of the three public bodies they chair.  Now that sounds to me like a violation of the Open Meeting Law.

And the irony doesn't stop there.  They were critical of Dr. Shabazz for releasing information (not entirely correct) about a violent racial school incident where three black youths ganged up on a white youth doing real physical damage in the process.

As usual the super secretive PUBLIC schools handled it "internally," not breathing a word to anyone, including the Amherst Police Department or the local District Attorney, who certainly had grounds for a "hate crime" indictment.

At the 6/24 Regional School Committee meeting where O'Brien was elected temporary Chair the committee later went into Executive Session for "litigation" discussion even though the written published agenda stated it was for  "Collective Bargaining."

A clear violation of OPM.  And these days the Attorney General wants more detail published when going into Executive Session.  If for  "Collective Bargaining" then with what unions?  Or if it's "litigation"  is it a negligence suit filed over an injury or a MCAD complaint? 

This coming August the Regional School Committee will head to an undisclosed location for a weekend "retreat".  That strikes me as a violation of Open Meeting Law.

In 2010 FIVE school committee chairs (with no deliberations of their respective committees) issued an official memo to the District Attorney asking for an investigation of Amherst School Committee member Catherine Sanderson, hoping the DA would muzzle her.

The DA ignored their whiny request.

The more voices brought into the public process the better.  That's the very heart and soul of Open Meeting.

Barn Blast

Ye old (125+ years) barn, 134 Montague Road, North Amherst

Another "historic" barn owned by W.D. Cowls, the largest private landowner in Mass, is destined for the dustbin due to age, disrepair and the arrival of Atkins Farms Country Market in a refurbished building only 35 feet away.

The Amherst Historical Commission could enact a one-year demolition delay but that's the extent of their power.

Three years ago the Commission did restrain Cowls from demolishing their trolley barn on Cowls Road,  but six weeks after the expiration of the one-year delay the barn came tumbling down after an attempt to shore it up using a backhoe. 

Rotting floorboards

The shortlist of reusing the (non rotting) barn boards include:  Donation to Emily Dickinson Homestead for a project to recreate a historically accurate barn that was once on site; donation to the Porter Phelps Huntington House in Hadley for a similar historic project; or simply reuse the materials in the upcoming development of "The Mill" all along Cowls Road. 

 

The Mill as envisioned by Kuhn Riddle Architects