Sh*t Storm Indeed

$67 million Mega School

Over the past 20 years only two Town Meeting actions have been challenged by referendum (and failed) where enough signatures have been collected within the short five day deadline to force it on the local election ballot.

That alone is a major hurdle, requiring 5% of the registered voters to sign a petition.  But the most challenging aspect of the crusade is the state requires "the people" to meet the same standard imposed on Representative Town Meeting, in this case two-thirds support.

"A question put to the voters at large under the provisions of this section shall be determined by a vote of the same proportion of voters voting thereon as would have been required by law had the question been finally determined at a representative town meeting."

The other provision which sounds easy is the local election must garner a minimum turnout of 18% or the referendum vote is invalid. Now that may sound pretty easy but in overly politically active Amherst our local elections have garnered a pathetic average of 15% turnout over the past ten years.

   Mega School Strike 3 by Larry Kelley on Scribd

Behind the scenes email exchanges, including elected officials 

The only local elections to attract over 18% turnout over the past generation involved Charter change (twice) -- aka replace Town Meeting/Select Board with Mayor/Council -- or pocketbook Override questions.

And none of those outcomes were decided by much more than a 55/45% margin.  And both of the referendum of Town Meeting attempts failed to pass after all the effort to get it on the ballot.

In fact this Mega School question already went to the voters on the November 8th ballot and only barely won a simply majority and even then by less than 1%.

It would be one thing if town officials were simply performing due diligence with no downside.  But that is far from the case, because in order to take this foolhardy desperate last stand we will lose one full year gaining Mass School Building Authority approval for a new and better plan.

The bigger the risk the bigger the reward I suppose.  Something I would expect from President Trump but not so much from our overly enlightened local government.

House on busy Rt 116

3rd Time The Charm?

The town can submit both schools for MSBA funding

Kevin Collins, probably the most hated man in Town Meeting for his overzealous style, wants to collect 200 voter signatures to call yet another Special Town Meeting for yet another attempt at garnering a two-thirds vote needed for the new $67 million Mega School bond authorization.

While there's still time for that desperate Hail Mary to occur before the April 1st deadline the MSBA gave town officials for getting the needed Town Meeting approval another, however, more important deadline would be missed:

In order to get back in the MSBA pipeline immediately for funding on a new improved school plan, acting Superintendent Mike Morris must withdraw the original failed Mega School project by Monday otherwise we lose an entire year.


Click to enlarge/read

If the acting Superintendent wastes an entire year on this impossible dream gamble, an irresponsible lack of judgement, he should be fired.

DUI Dishonor Roll

 

In 2015, 10,265 people died in drunk driving crashes

Once again Amherst had only one driver taken off the road over the weekend by APD for allegedly driving under the influence of alcohol.

Considering how completely overwhelmed AFD (and other area departments who came to assist) was with drunk runs from UMass to Cooley Dickinson Hospital late Saturday night I'm pleasantly surprised.

After all, there's a big difference between drinking too much in the privacy of your dorm room or at a party within walking distance and drinking too much and getting behind the wheel of a deadly weapon.

 Cassandra Lacoy stands before Judge Thomas Estes

Since Ms. Lacoy's Breathalyzer is not all that far over the limit and since she seemed pretty determined before Judge Estes that she will fight this charge she is probably a candidate for the class action suit in the Supreme Judicial Court questioning the accuracy of the BT.

 Click to enlarge/read

Well over 500 DUI cases have been "consolidated" and await the decision of our highest Court.  Of course if they find the Breathalyzer flawed and no longer usable by police departments for drunk driving enforcement, I'm giving up driving.

All In A Name

Amherst:  "A Welcoming Community"

Is Amherst a Sanctuary City?  Well, err, sort of, kinda, maybe ...  Depends who you ask.

If you ask Town Manager Paul Bockelman, as the Finance Committee did recently, he would say "No"; but, it's "complicated."

But if you ask Select Board Chair Alisa Brewer she would seem to indicate that we are but would avoid an outright yes or no answer.

   Is Amherst A Sanctuary City? by Larry Kelley on Scribd

Either way a Town Meeting petition is now circulating to officially designate Amherst a "Sanctuary City" or town or community or whatever the case may be.  Amherst also now shows up on internet articles as being a Sanctuary City,

Certainly the Town Meeting resolution passed in 2012 contains all the sentiments of a Sanctuary City but never actually strings together those two words.

 Click to enlarge/read

So if President Trump's executive order to cut off federal funding to Sanctuary cities and towns really gets enforced how much will it cost Amherst?

Town Manager Bockelman told the Finance Committee we currently get about $200,000 from Department of Justice Grants to APD for sexual violence and alcohol education programs.

 Town Manager Paul Bockelman (left) at 1/26 Finance Committee meeting

But APD has a pretty astute grant writer and they have received a number of federal grants over the past few years. 

And Amherst also gets upwards of $850,000 in Community Development  Block Grants, which is federal money distributed by the state.

So I would not go poking the bear so to speak with an in your face Town Meeting warrant article directed at President Trump.  This being Amherst we are already probably on his radar, if only for the recent embarrassing flag incident at Hampshire College.  

Anti Trump pro Muslim Rally Amherst Town Common 1/19

Fork In The Road

Vote was 123 yes, 92 no, 9 abstain (224 present)

Yogi Berra had the right idea although he could have been a tad more specific about which path to choose.  Perhaps he was suggesting how important experience and instinct are when making decisions, like that famous Supreme Court justice line about knowing porn when he sees it.

For Amherst Town Meeting last night the same path was chosen for a second time even though sternly forewarned it's a dangerous road.

In spite of unanimous approval of the Select Board, School Committee, Finance Committee (with one abstention) and a slew of vocal supporters the $67.2 million Mega School project failed to garner the two thirds votes necessary to pass a bond issue.

 Supporters rally at entry to Middle School last night

Perhaps the most devastating testimony came from member Russ Vernon Jones a retired long time Principal of Fort River School, which these days some folks try to portray as health hazard:

"The education plan (2-6) does not match what works best.  Grade configuration is BIG mistake.  Neighborhood schools build community.  This will dismantle K-6 for many years to come.  Of course teachers want a new school!  But previously they opposed it when other opportunities were available." 

And Maria Kopicki was her usual professorially articulate self, presenting persuasive statistics showing the wait for state funds on a new plan is not necessarily a generation away.

But the sooner Mega School supporters accept defeat and withdraw this project from the MSBA pipeline the sooner we can get started on a new and improved project that will attract widespread support.

A much needed step to make Amherst great again.

 Focus may shift from Wildwood (bottom) to Fort River School (top)

(And with the new 100 year flood plain maps, which FEMA may approve in the next two years, showing dramatic reduction in the overlay around Fort River that school site could get more buildable, although it would require Town Meeting removing it from Flood Prone Conservancy overlay.)  

Click to enlarge/read

On A Wing & A Prayer

 Rolling Green fatal fire (photo by Stephanie Jernigan

If a terrorist bomb detonates in downtown Amherst during peak traffic period you would expect AFD to require nine or more mutual aid ambulance runs from surrounding professional departments over a four hour period.

In fact these days all professional departments practice for those unthinkable Mass Causality Incidents.

But when a routine late Saturday night into early Sunday morning this early in the semester requires nine mutual aid ambulances (mostly for intoxicated college age youth at UMass) something is dramatically wrong.

And the thought that keeps Chief Nelson awake at night is what happens if a major structure fire occurs in the middle of that EMS mayhem, such as we saw a few years ago at Rolling Green that left one UMass student dead?

   AFD Swamped by Larry Kelley on Scribd

Holyoke has come under fire for having one engine on brown out that could have been helpful in that fatal fire on New Year's Day.

But the staffing shortage at AFD is almost like an everyday brownout since Engines or ambulances can't drive themselves.

Yes the UMass funded "impact shift" with four extra firefighters was not on duty because officials felt it too early in the semester to be necessary.

 But even with two extra potential ambulances Mutual Aid would still have been required during that troubling four hour period.

You have to wonder how Northampton is going to feel when they send all their available ambulances to Amherst and one of their own citizens suddenly needs medical assistance?

Replacing Maria

Maria Geryk at 3/31 Finance Committee meeting with Mike Morris, Sean Mangano

The search to replace former school Superintendent Maria Geryk is off to an inauspicious start.  The survey of qualities folks wish to see in her replacement has not gotten very wide circulation.  And as surveys go that's not a great thing.

 Click to enlarge/read

One of the big criticisms of our public schools which we will hear again on the floor of Town Meeting tonight is a lack of transparency and outreach.

The hiring of a "Media & Climate Communications Specialists" (which is not funded in the upcoming fiscal year) did nothing to change that.  Obviously.