(11/10/07) The Select Board met Monday, November 5th in the music room at the Middle School, prior to Town Meeting.  Gerry Weiss, Anne Awad, Rob Kusner, Hwei-Ling Greeney and Alisa Brewer were present, as was Town Manager Larry Shaffer.

Announcements and Agenda Review

Mr. Kusner announced that the State Self-Help grant had been awarded for the proposed acquisition of property in the Cushman Brook wildlife corridor.  He said it was the first such grant awarded to Amherst in many years, and he expressed his appreciation for the work done by Conservation Director David Ziomek and the Conservation Commission. 

Public Comment

Ellie Manire-Gatti spoke about the high usage and low recycling rate of plastic water bottles, and brought water pitchers and glasses for the Select Board table so that a good example would be set for viewers.   

Special Town Meeting Warrant – 11/28/07

Mr. Weiss said that Article 1 would be the sole article on the warrant for a Special Town Meeting on November 28th.  He said that it is a compromise article combining elements of Articles 13 and 14 from the November 5th Fall Town Meeting warrant.  He said that November 28th is the first date available to schedule this.  He said the Select Board’s only role at this meeting was to agree to put this article on the warrant or not, but not to consider its language or whether or not they support it.  It was decided that they would sign the warrant at this meeting as well.

Ms. Brewer moved to sign the November 28th Special Town Meeting Warrant.  The vote to approve the signing was unanimous.

Approval of Special Liquor Licenses (6:37)

The Select Board voted unanimously to approve a special wine and malt license for a Hampshire College event and a special all-alcohol license for a UMass event.

Approval of Minutes

With some discussion, the Select Board voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the October 29th meeting as amended.

Committee Appointments

Ms. Awad recommended the appointment of Jeff Krauth to the Town Commercial Relations Committee.  The vote to approve his appointment was unanimous.

Ms. Awad recommended the reappointments of John Ingram to the Agriculture Commission and Mary Jane Laus to the Community Development Committee.  Both appointments were approved in a single unanimous vote.

Recommendation on Article 7 – CPAC Open Space (6:43)

Conservation Director David Ziomek said that this article was seeking the appropriation of Community Preservation Act Committee (CPAC) funds to be part of the purchasing package for a parcel on East Leverett Road in North Amherst consisting of about 28 acres.  He said that the total purchase price was $610,000, and that the Town had recently been notified of its successful application for a State Self-Help Grant for $427,000.  He said that $60,000 would come from private fundraising, including donations from The Kestrel Trust and neighbors of the property.  He said that the remaining $123,000 was being sought as CPAC funds.     He said that the property is in the Cushman Brook corridor, and that the Cushman Brook feeds Puffer’s Pond, and said the entire parcel is within a critical watershed area.  Additionally, he said it also supports the habitat of the endangered wood turtle, and that all these factors make it a priority for the Town.

Nicki Robb of the Conservation Commission described the parcel as an important piece in a larger jigsaw puzzle that will become a major wildlife corridor.  She said that once acquired, the area will allow passive recreation and education for the public, and said that so many entities are involved in trying to preserve the land that it is “almost a multi-town endeavor.”  She said the area will become a significant resource for the Town in the future.

Mr. Ziomek talked about the various ponds and brooks in the surrounding area and said that the best way to protect the water in Puffer’s Pond is to buy and preserve the land.  He said that there are efforts underway to buy as many of the abutting parcels as possible, through partnerships with the town of Leverett, with the Kestrel and Rattlesnake Gutter Trusts, and private individuals.  He said that the private fundraising for this parcel has a goal of $60,000, and that $40,000 had been raised so far.  He said that if more money than anticipated is raised, then extra funds would be returned to CPAC, and said that that has happened before.

Ms. Awad asked about intended development on one of the nearby parcels, and expressed concern for how the brook would be protected when that development would require a septic system.  She also expressed concern that a house is planned on a turtle nesting site and wondered if there was any consideration by the landowner to not build and instead donate or otherwise protect the land.

Mr. Ziomek said there is no evidence that turtles actually nest there, but said that the parcel is part of their estimated habitat, and that they use the area to move through the corridor.   He said that lot 1 of the of the subject parcels was purchased by someone who intends to protect it.  He said that the Town couldn’t afford to go pursue lots 1-6 because of their price and said that lots 7-13 were more affordable.  He described various aspects of the topography of the parcels and the surrounding land, and their proximity to the Cushman Brook.

Ms. Brewer moved to recommend motion A of Article 7 – the use of $123,000 in CPAC funds for this acquisition.  The vote was 4 in favor and 1 opposed with Ms. Awad voting to oppose, which she noted was a first for her on an open space vote.

The second motion dealt with the technical language and details of borrowing in anticipation of the grant, which while awarded, won’t be received until after the property is purchased.  It also needed to include the amount of the anticipated private donation amount to make the appropriation conform to public financing requirements, as explained by Mr. Shaffer. 

Mr. Weiss moved to recommend motion B, and the vote was 4 in favor and 1 opposed, with Ms. Awad voting to oppose.

Recommendation on Article 8 – CPAC – Town Hall Restoration

The first motion of the Town Hall restoration article pertains to using $100,000 of CPAC’s fund balance to fund repairs to the clock tower and south stairs.  Discussion of the Select Board’s recommendation of this motion centered around whether CPAC’s vote on it had combined the $100,000 or whether the estimates for the two projects had been broken out separately, and if they were separated, what that might mean for the spending if one were to cost more than the estimate and the other were to cost less.  CPAC Chair Peter Jessop, clerk Mary Streeter, and committee member Louis Greenbaum spoke to the spirit and intent and near certainty of the actual motion having been for the $100,000 to cover both projects, regardless of how it was divided.  Committee member Vince O’Connor had various objections both to that interpretation and to the substance of that motion, objecting particularly to spending any cash rather than just borrowing; and to having that amount be in addition to the $295,000 that will be borrowed, which he felt was too much to justify under historic preservation.  There was much consideration of whether Mr. Jessop would be comfortable making a motion that he wasn’t entirely certain met the letter of his committee’s vote in light of the fact that the committee was divided on the issue anyway, voting 5 to 3 to support it.  Ultimately, it was decided that the $100,000 motion would proceed as a single amount for the two projects. 

The vote to recommend motion A was 4 in favor and 1 abstention, with Mr. Kusner abstaining.

Motion B was to authorize borrowing and the issuing of bonds for the $295,000 for the exterior masonry work.  The vote to recommend motion B was unanimous.

Motion C was to amend the vote of Town Meeting last spring which had authorized borrowing the full estimated amount of the project.  That amount needed to be amended to reflect the changes made in this new article. The vote to recommend motion C was 4 in favor and 1 abstention, with Mr. Kusner abstaining.  He said his abstention was based on uncertainty about CPAC’s vote on the $100,000 in motion A. 

Select Board Meeting Schedule (7:25)

The Select Board talked about its upcoming meeting schedule.  Meetings are already set for all the dates of Town Meeting (November 7, 15, 19 and 28 and December 3 and 5.)  It was decided that they would add additional Select Board meeting dates now and cancel any that they don’t need later.  The new dates scheduled were:  November 26 and December 10 and 17.  The vote to approve these dates was unanimous.

The meeting adjourned at 7:28.  The next Select Board meeting would be held on Wednesday, November 7th at 6:30 p.m. in the Middle School music room, prior to Town Meeting.

-- Stephanie O’Keeffe