The cell tower in the background pays Amherst $1,697/month and actually serves a purpose.Soooooo…. this portable office trailer has been sitting here at the town owned Ruxton Gravel Pit unused since around Thanksgiving. The town received $1,200 total from the contractor to rent the land but according to Mass Highway budget book the state pays the contractor $2,400/month rent on the trailer itself—and in all probability is still paying it now six months later.
And you wonder why the state has to defund the Quinn Bill (so police officers will have no incentive now to pursue higher education), or nix entirely social programs aimed at poor/at-risk kids or increase the state sales tax that will probably cost thousands of retail jobs from the lowest end paid workers.
But my favorite is the Meadow Street Bridge--the other North Amherst renovation completed two years ago, where state taxpayers paid a Umass Professor $15,000 to perform an “endangered species” study in the river (i.e. clams) that was accomplished on a Saturday morning and turned up only one clam (that he either relocated or had as an appetizer that night.)
Only in Massachusetts!
Mass Highway reports:
Project Description: AMHERST- BRIDGE REPLACEMENT, A-08-020,
EAST LEVERETT ROAD OVER MOUNTAIN BROOK
The existing bridge will be replaced with a single span prestressed concrete deck beam structure on new abutments. Location: Town of Amherst
Construction Begins: Autumn 2007
Resident Engineer: Scott Pellerin
Construction Contract Value: $667,940.50
Construction Bid Price: $629,940.50
Initial Construction Estimate: $548,644.00
MassHighway District: District 2
Current Status: Bridge under construction (as of 03/28/2008)
Additional Info: Bridge closed for the duration of the project. Traffic detoured to Leverett Rd., Amherst Rd., Depot Rd., Shutesbury Rd., to Cushman Rd. (as of 04/24/2008)
Hey, what do you want for $630-K?
