A Change In Command

Peter Hechenbleikner at the 11/30 Select Board meeting

The Amherst Select Board just announced that Peter Hechenbleikner would be our Temporary Town Manager serving from February 1 through mid-summer.

Amherst Temp Town Mgr Chosen

Mark Rees, who garnered the unanimous approval of the Select Board after both were interviewed at a public meeting on November 30th, was hired away by Fairhaven as the their "Town administrator."

 Mark Rees aced his Amherst interview but took another job

Don't Feed The Bears

The bear brigade

Environmental, State, APD and of course our Animal Welfare Officer Carol Hepburn descended on Cherry Lane this morning for a 350+ pound black bear who had taken up residence under a back porch.

In addition to the comfortable crib the bear had made for himself Ms. Hepburn noted the large number of bird feeders still available in the neighborhood.  

Conditions were not good enough to safely use a tranquilizer dart so Yogi was simply chased off and is currently still at large. 

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TV News advice

Status Quo Before The Storm

Alisa Brewer (left center) Jim Wald (right) at Monday Select Board meeting

With incumbents Alisa Brewer and Jim Wald running for reelection to the highest elected position the town has to offer, one-fifth of a mayor, the 5 member Select Board will maintain its steady if not staid course.

No small feat after the tragic sudden death of Town Manager John Musante.

Because there are two Select Board seats open that means voters get to vote for two candidates.  And since Mr. Wald and SB Chair Brewer have worked side-by-side together over the past six years it's a pretty safe bet who they will each tell their friends to support with that second vote.

If Alisa has 1,500 voters who go to the polls specifically to support her and Mr. Wald also has 1,500 to specifically support him but each supporter casts their second vote properly then both candidates end up with 3,000 votes.

Makes it kind of hard for an independent lone wolf candidate to rack up a victory, even when second place counts as winning.

In fact, as often is the case with Select Board recently, there may not even be a contest other than the two guaranteed winners.  And normally that would translate to an all too typical pathetic local voter turnout, which every now and then barely manages to break 10%.

But not this time -- not by a long shot.  With the Charter change question on the ballot -- bringing with it the glorious opportunity to terminate tedious Town Meeting -- the voter turnout will easily surpass 30%.

The 9 member Charter Commission should be able to produce a new and improved blueprint for better local government (Anything But Town Meeting)  in time for the 2017 election.

And in the meantime, Alisa Brewer and Jim Wald will do a fine job keeping those Select Board seats warm.

DUI Dishonor Roll

In Eastern Hampshire District Court Monday both college aged youth -- one arrested by APD and the other by UMPD -- had their cases continued until next month so they could hire their own private attorney.

 Jackson Schroeder, age 21, stands before Judge Patricia Poehler

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Mr. Schroeder submitted to the Breathalyzer so he should probably save his money and take the standard state offer of a 24D disposition. 

Mr. Fidler probably has a better shot of beating the driving under the influence of drugs charge (but not all the others) simply because there are no standard Breathalyzer tests available for detecting drugs.

 Zachary Fidler, age 20, arraigned by Judge Patricia Pohler

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UMass: A Cable Scofflaw?

UMass is a city unto itself, but they still reside in Amherst

The Cable Advisory Committee voted unanimously on Monday to request Interim Town Manager Dave Ziomek issue UMass a public documents request to ascertain details of a cable contract with Charter Communications that could violate federal law because the Amherst Select Board, who has authority in these matters, never issued them a cable franchise.

   Request Cable Audit of Umass

The CAC is currently working diligently on the renewal of the current ten-year cable contract with Comcast which does require Select Board approval.  Currently Amherst has over 7,000 subscribers who contribute about $6 million total per year to Comcast.

As part of their franchise fee Comcast gives up 5% of their annual cable revenues to Amherst Media, around $300,000, as well as a once every ten year capital sum for new equipment, which amounted to $450,000 in the last contract. 

 Comcast quarterly income report

Since these contract matters are FCC related that kind of makes the Select Board agents of a federal authority. Thus the usual excuse UMass uses for ignoring town ordinances and/or bylaws may not hold up, since a federal entity trumps a state one.

UMass recently told the town to go fly a kite (or drone) regarding the 6% local hotel/motel tax applying to the Campus Center Hotel.

Currently they are holding $200,000 in escrow attempting to strong arm the town into signing a multi-year "Strategic Partnership" for Payment In Lieu Of Taxes to help fund all the services provided to on-campus students by Amherst Fire Department. 

Unintended Consequences

Three years ago: what was once unimaginable, is no longer so

At their 12/10 meeting last week the Amherst Board Of Health spent 45 minutes (out of a one hour scheduled agenda ) tip toeing through a mine field ... while blindfolded.

They were trying to decide if gun violence falls within their perview as a public health issue.  Like, say, tobacco.  Although unlike tobacco, guns can be used safely.  It's the 30,000+ annual deaths (mostly suicides) where guns were used not so safely, that concerns them.

And of course if you're a rational human being you cannot help but be affected by the tiny minority of major tragic events that seem to crop up more and more often these days.

Although it appears using those high profile incidents to promote gun control legislation has backfired, as any talk of added controls only stimulates gun sales in a country where guns now outnumber citizens.

The BOH decided to invite APD Chief Scott Livingstone to appear before them at an upcoming meeting to discuss guns, which are not a big problem in little Amherst. 

Other members will reach out to national organizations working to reduce gun violence in the land of the free and home of the brave.

During the initial discussion, Board Of Health members seemed unclear if they had any jurisdiction or role in dealing with gun violence.  But one outspoken member responded, "If not us, then who?"

Protecting History

The Evergreens on a bright October day

The Evergreens, immediate neighbor and family member of the Emily Dickinson Homestead Museum, will become a lot safer if the Community Preservation Act Committee recommends the $200,000 request for a new high pressure water mist fire suppression system. 

The actual cost of the system is over $400,000 but museum officials have a donor who will match the CPA grant should it be approved by Town Meeting in the spring. 

Both the Dickinson Homestead and the Evergreens are owned by Amherst College, the largest property owner in town.  The Dickinson houses attract thousands of visitors to our little college town from all over the world.