Try Try Again

Select Board looking dejected on last night of Special Town Meeting

The illustrious Select Board all but announced a Special Town Meeting would be called in the near future to have a second go round at the $67 million Mega School project that could not even muster a majority vote in Town Meeting when a supermajority of two-thirds is the minimum threshold for passage.

At last night's meeting they set aside Wednesday morning December 28 for an additional SB meeting to address the 200 signature petition should one be handed in by then.  Hmm ... anyone want to take bets?

And yes the Town Clerk's office confirmed a petition form to call a Special Town Meeting was recently taken out.

The Select Board can, however, with a simple majority vote,  call such a meeting.   But since all the important articles they unanimously recommended at the recent Town Meeting session -- including the Mega School -- were badly defeated, they should probably rely on someone else taking responsibility for the revote.

Although if they wish to be particularly heavy handed they could call the Special Town Meeting for March 29 a day after the Town Election and a day before the MSBA deadline for getting the two-thirds approval, that way school supporters could run one-issue candidates in the town election to stack the deck in favor of the Mega School.

A Protest A Day

TD Bank main sign is covered over

About the same number of folks showed up today at the somewhat downtown TD Bank on Triangle Street for a protest over the Dakota Access oil pipeline although I did not see a single Sioux tribesperson among them.

Yes the Army Corps recently nixed an easement needed over the property so the battle is somewhat won so I guess this was a victory celebration to some extent.  Unlike the Veterans 'Raise Our Flag' protest/celebration which was cancelled yesterday so as not to seem like gloating.

 Since B2 can't sneak up folks turned their signs to her

Another pro-Hampshire College protest yesterday in town center attracted about the same small number of folks as today (75) but they decided to block traffic in town center -- specifically a legally permitted convoy enroute to Hampshire College.

 Yesterday APD had to move along protesters blocking traffic

 With gentle persuasion from APD sheet is removed

Today's protest was much better behaved, but they did cover over TD Bank's main sign for almost an hour and also tied up four Amherst police officers for nearly a half-hour.

Who Ya Gonna Call?

B2 casts a tiny shadow (bottom center) compared to Lifeflight helicopter

One of the things I lose sleep over at night is concern about low staffing of our Public Safety departments.

For instance very early this morning I was still awake to hear a Northampton ambulance come to Amherst via mutual aid to deal with an overly intoxicated student at Amherst College.

And that's in spite of AFD having four extra on duty staff paid for by UMass.  Because we only have five ambulances and they were all tied up at the time.

But that is in a sense an off seting factor, knowing that when AFD needs assistance to carry out their vital duty fellow EMS professionals from Northampton, Belchertown, South Hadley, etc are there to respond.

And in the case of a major structure fire another half-dozen or more surrounding FDs.

Another gem in the toolbox for Emergency Medical Response is the Lifeflight medivac helicopter operated by UMass Medical Center.  Because like a drone a helicopter can drop in to a small clearing, and then unlike a drone pick up a severely injured patient and safely deliver them to a critical care center in record time.

Note to readers:  I had permission of First Responders at the scene and the pilot of the helicopter to put B2 briefly in the air for a quick photo. Photos below with regular camera and iPhone.

 Look, up in the sky!

Had no concerns about being directly underneath since they are such a pro operation

A little noisier than B2, but a welcome sound for the critically injured

Today they dropped in to Amherst College soccer fields as a training exercise with the College and AFD.  While we do not use them very often they can and do make a life and death difference, which to some extent helps me sleep better at night.

A Little Disruption Now And Then

Anti-Trump protesters block traffic in town center this busy Sunday morning

After about 5 minutes APD "moved them along"

One of the criticisms of the huge gathering of Vets and their supporters at last week's Hampshire College "Raise The Flag" protest was, well, they were scary.

That many people waving American flags is scary to some I guess.

 Last week Hampshire College:  A sea of flags is scary to some

 Aerial photos show NO Confederate or Nazi flags in the crowd

But certainly none of them were accused of breaking any laws and neither APD or AFD had to respond to the scene.

This morning in Amherst town center a crowd of anti-Trump protesters used their God given, err, Founding Father given right to assemble and use their Free Speech on the Town Common which has seen protests like that for over 350 years.

Fair enough.

But then before the rally/demonstration dispersed they blocked traffic on South Pleasant street at a busy time of the morning inconveniencing those average citizens going about their business.

The specific target of their blockade I suppose was to stop a patriotic convoy that left Whately and toured through UMass and were enroute to Hampshire College.

The rally had been planned a few weeks ago and was to coincide with yet another "Raise The Flag" rally which was canceled at the last minute due to a gracious VFW leadership.

An admirable trait these downtown protesters seem to know nothing about.

Note to readers:  At no point was B2 directly over anyone's head except my own

A lone Vet with a flag greeted the caravan at main entrance to Hampshire College

A Sporting Gesture

The Rally heard round the world

The veterans who rallied around the flag at Hampshire College -- both figurative and literally -- have canceled tomorrow's Raise The Flag event, which was originally scheduled as another demonstration to pressure Hampshire College into doing the right thing, but then became sort of a victory celebration after they indeed DID THE RIGHT THING.

 Click to enlarge/read

Probably because they don't want folks to think they are gloating.

So no ticker tape parades through Times Square as we saw over 70 years ago on V-E and V-J Day, but still a major victory to be savored ... until the need arises once again. 

Freedom requires eternal vigilance.

B2 however is dissappointed

High Stakes Gamble

Amherst could apply to MSBA for Fort River Mega-School as soon as next month

The town already heard back from the Mass School Building Authority and as expected they rejected the idea of twin grades K-6 schools vs the just defeated concept of twin grades 2-6 schools as being a slight enough tweak to keep the current overall $67 million Mega School building plan in play.

   Amherst Mega School Dilemma by Larry Kelley on Scribd

For the past six months we've heard nothing but how extraordinarily bureaucratic the MSBA is, and that every i must be double dotted and every t double crossed.

Of course the only thing town/school officials really wanted is the extension from February 2 until March 31st to have another attempt at brow beating Amherst Town Meeting into giving it the two-thirds super majority it requires to pass.

 Town Meeting voted down Mega School 108-106

Considering it failed to even garner a simple majority last month, a Herculean task indeed no matter how much time the state gives them to lobby.

But that will not stop the Select Board from trying one last time to ram it through.

Considering how often they played the role of General Custer this past session with ALL of their unanimously supported major articles being shot down by Town Meeting, they better wear arrow proof shirts at that Special Town Meeting.

Half Full Or Half Empty?

Atkins Reservoir December 1st water level 6'7"  down from full

Atkins Reservoir 9/21 water level down 9'4"

Atkins Reservoir, after the 2.8" of recent rain, is now at 50% of its 200 million gallon capacity, or half full.

But for those of us still a little nervous about the drought and our town still relying only on wells for our vital water supply, it's half empty.

Either way it's not now in use as it was shut down on September 21st when water levels hit an almost historic low, down 9'4" with only 70 million gallons of water remaining.

Normally around this time the time we fire up Centennial Treatment Plant which processes water from our other two Pelham reservoirs, Hills and Hawley.

Click photos to enlarge/read

 Water usage in November averaged 2.9 Mgd, a tad below average

While the recent rain was a very good thing overall, it did stir up the water in all three reservoirs but DPW Chief Mooring reports the Pelham Reservoirs will be tapped "soon."

 Current drought map does not yet show impact of recent rains

Growth of drought since July

And as long as we get plenty of snow this winter the current drought could become just a bad memory.  Although a doubled-edged sword, since the DPW is also charged with keeping our roads free from snow and ice.

 Atkins sandbar 10/7

Atkins sandbar 12/1