Story Of The Year 2015

John Musante

The sudden tragic death of Town Manager John Musante on an otherwise beautiful Sunday morning last September, just as summer turns to fall, is my local story of the year. How could it not be?

Like a large projectile fired into a calm expanse of water the detonation created ripples bordering on a rip tide that will be felt for many years to come.

Not that he was the perfect Town Manager. Heck, he wasn't even the first choice of the Select Board almost ten years ago when they chose, ugh, Larry Shaffer over him.

But the Select Board got it right the second the time around when he was chosen (2010) without an expensive time consuming search after Mr. Shaffer suddenly disappeared. And as I said at the time, immorality is something you never have to worry about with John Musante. Or bad financial decisions.

Although his diffidence in dealing with NIMBYs did cost us greatly in losing the Gateway Project, a collaboration with UMass that could have resulted in a potential $50+ million addition to the tax rolls in badly needed commercial/residential mixed use development.

And the original solar array project on the old landfill was also sabotaged by NIMBYs, although he turned that around just before his death.

While our current form of government is inefficient and outmoded, with John Musante at the helm the good ship Amherst always stayed on a slow steady course of financial solvency.

Still, the vital asset I will miss most about Mr. Musante was his keen sense of humor. 

Appointing A New Leader

Town Hall in a fog since untimely death of John Musante September 20th

Since Amherst citizens are nothing if not outspoken the Amherst Select Board -- who expects to appoint a new Town Manager this summer -- wishes to hear your input at three upcoming forums about criteria for hiring that new leader:

Bernie Lynch from Community Paradigm Associates, seen here at 12/21 Select Board meeting, will facilitate

My only suggested requirement is that he/she have a thick skin.  But I'm sure they will be forewarned about the blogosphere.

Déjà Vu Ethics Violation?

Amherst Select Board: town's highest ranking elected office

Interestingly the Select Board has been through this Conflict of Interest issue before, so you would think history would not repeat itself.

 Click to enlarge/read

Back in 2007 rookie Select Board members Alisa Brewer and Professor Rob Kusner voted to allow UMass free use of effluent water (in a close 3-2 vote) that normally would have cost them over $100,000 annually.  I instantly filed a complaint with the State Ethics Division.

 Note Ms. Brewer's body language

Interestingly they found no violation because the board members had (sort of) made a PUBLIC disclosure at the  9/17 meeting immediately before the discussion/vote.

And they had filed a disclosure form with the Town Clerk, although those forms were filed a week AFTER the 9/17/2007 Select Board meeting.

Note this disclosure filed 9/25 was for a 9/17 meeting

Whereas this time around Ms. Brewer still has the 2007 disclosure form on file, but she did NOT make a public announcement during the 12/21 meeting about her UMass affiliations.

Rob Kusner's disclosure filed 9/24 to cover a 9/17 meeting

A Conflict of Interest?

 Interim Town Manager Dave Ziomek, SB Chair Alisa Brewer

Attorney General Maura Healey
Division of Open Government
12/28/2015


I wish to file a formal complaint about the 12/21 Amherst Select Board meeting that was chaired by Alisa Brewer, who shows up in the UMass/Amherst People Finder as a UMass employee, as does her husband, Steven Brewer.

Ms. Brewer did not publicly announce her potential conflict of interest when the Select Board voted unanimously to allow Interim Town Manager Dave Ziomek to sign a 3.5 year, multi-million dollar "Strategic Partnership Agreement" with UMass, her employer, that is a sweet deal for the University, a sour deal for the town. 

I'm not suggesting she or her husband gained financially by this deal, but I do strongly believe the better way of handling it would have been for her to abstain on the matter and certainly not to act as chair for the very brief time period allowed for Select Board discussion. 

I believe our state law suggests public officials avoid even "the appearance of a conflict of interest."

I would ask the Select Board be ordered to do a "do over."

Larry Kelley

At the 9/25 Select Board Cable Ascertainment Hearing Ms. Brewer did publicly announce she was married to Steven Brewer before he testified in his role as Amherst Media Board President

What's Yours Is Mine

Modular classrooms back in March

Yesterday

UMass, acting as The Grinch, gave Amherst an early Christmas load of coal by destroying the town owned $215,000 portable classrooms installed behind the School of Education, aka the former "Mark's Meadow Elementary School."

Interestingly the town is still paying off the ten year $215K loan on the classrooms, which were never actually used as classrooms.  Clueless Town Meeting almost unanimously authorized the expenditure in 2007, but Mark's Meadow closed down in 2010.

According to Superintendent Maria Geryk the downsizing saved $850,000 in the town's elementary budget, but was bitterly opposed by parents and some town officials with children attending Mark's Meadow.

School Committee member Catherine Sanderson became a combination Wicked Witch of the West & Joan of Arc (aka burned at the stake) for her leadership role in shuttering Mark's Meadow.

But these days even Superintendent Geryk uses it as an example of why the town should consider mothballing the Middle School building and relocating/consolidating students into the High School.

On Monday night the Select Board, with no input allowed, approved the Interim Town Manager signing a "Strategic Partnership Agreement" with UMass that for the first time in history pays something towards the 56 children from tax exempt UMass housing attending our public schools, at an estimated cost of $1,267,000.

Of course that something is a lousy $120,000 or less than ten cents on the dollar.

Early School Budget Prognostication

Sean Mangano and Superintendent Maria Geryk at Four Towns Meeting earlier this month

In addition to the hour or so discussing the Wildwood School project -- and unanimously authorizing a hurried $2,500 survey of all staff and educators in the elementary school system about which expensive school renewal they favor -- the Amherst School Committee also heard a brief report from Business Director Sean Mangano about the state of FY17 budget (which starts July 1st).

Interestingly the elementary budget is in almost the exact same boat as the four town Regional system (and neither of them are taking on water):  At the Four Towns Meeting earlier this month he pegged the Regional level services budget at a $460,000 deficit and he told the Amherst School Committee the elementary budget is currently $480,000 in the hole.

 Click to enlarge/read

According to Mr. Mangano:

"As I mentioned last night, the three drivers of the budget increase are three more classrooms than anticipated, steps/colas for all staff, and an increase in the net charter assessment. Each town department was allocated a 2.5% increase which equates to $546,746 for the elementary school.

Since the Town pays charter costs on behalf of the schools, it deducts the increase in charter tuition from our increase. The net charter increase in FY16 is projected to be $282,651 which leaves an allowable increase of $264,095 for the schools.

There are some other adjustments for school choice but the end result is the schools get a 1% increase in their operating budget. Interestingly enough, the large increase in the net charter assessment is driven mostly by declining reimbursements. DESE projects an increase of charter 5 students which is $89,640 of the increase. The other $193,011 is due to insufficient state aid to fund the reimbursements. DESE projects Amherst will get 24% of the total reimbursement. 

And lastly, the projected reduction has improved and now stands at $480,000. "

 Those damn Charters!

DUI Dishonor Roll

Amherst police arrested and charged three drivers with drunk driving over the weekend -- all of them women.  In Eastern Hampshire District Court on Monday all three lawyered up and had their cases continued until next month.

All three also took the legally admissible Breathalyzer test back at APD headquarters, so their chances of outright winning a trial are pretty close to zero

Interestingly Meaghan Shea initially seemed like she wanted to settle her case immediately, telling Judge Payne, "I know I'm guilty."  But he had her talk to the prosecutor and she then opted to have a public defender assigned to her.

Meaghan Shea, age 29, arraigned before Judge Payne

 Click to enlarge/read.  Note BAC is 3x legal limit!

Heather Pew, age 21, stands before Judge Payne

Carrie Holmes, age 22 (and father) stand before Judge Payne