AMHERST – A change in leadership for the Amherst-Pelham Regional School District is prompting critics of the project to co-locate two elementary schools at the Wildwood School site to ask the Select Board to delay the Nov. 8 Proposition 2½ debt-exclusion vote.
Marla Jamate, of Glendale Road, told the board this week that having an interim superintendent, following the departure of Maria Geryk, and the search process for a new superintendent, make this a less-than-optimal time to try to advance the $65 million project.
The Select Board in July voted to put the project on the presidential election ballot. Even if there is an affirmative vote at that time, Town Meeting later in November will have to approve, by a two-thirds vote, the borrowing for the costs associated with the school building.
Jamate is a member of Save Amherst’s Small Schools, which has raised concerns about the idea of having two, 375-student schools at the Strong Street location of Wildwood, and losing the traditional neighborhood schools of Wildwood, Fort River and Crocker Farm.
Select Board members offered no response to Jamate on the concept of delaying the vote or the project.
A second community group, known as Building Opportunity for Learning and Diversity, is endorsing the project that would create the two schools at Wildwood for grades 2 through 6. Under the current proposal, Fort River would close and all children in preschool through first grade would attend Crocker Farm School once both new schools are open.
Wildwood and Fort River schools are both more than 40 years old, feature an open-classroom style learning environment and need extension renovations.
The six candidates seeking to replace Ellen Story as state representative for the 3rd Hampshire District will participate in a forum on climate change policy at the Unitarian Meetinghouse, 121 North Pleasant St., Aug. 29 from 7 to 9 p.m.
Hosted by the Green Sanctuary Committee of the Unitarian Universalist Society of Amherst, the issues anticipated to be discussed include climate justice, expansion of renewable energy, a ban on new fossil fuel pipelines, carbon pricing, fossil fuel divestment and reduction of agricultural methane emissions.
The candidates for the position, which represents Amherst, Pelham and Precinct 1 in Granby, are Solomon Goldstein-Rose, Bonnie MacCracken, Eric Nakajima, Sarah la Cour, Lawrence O’Brien and Vira Douangmany Cage.
The primary election is set for Sept. 8.
Residents and those who work in town are invited to provide comments on the Amherst Recycling and Refuse Management Committee’s Solid Waste Master Plan, which includes the creation of a zero waste plan.
The master plan includes a range of strategies to promote the responsible management of resources. It seeks to set ambitious goals, rank steps and monitor progress in reducing the generation and disposal of waste in Amherst.
An online survey is at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/zerowasteamherst.
The plan itself can be viewed online at http://www.amherstma.gov/DocumentCenter/View/35741.
Comments can also be submitted by email to publicworks@amherstma.gov or brought to a meeting of the committee.
Community input will be accepted until Sept. 23, with a final version of the master plan scheduled to be unveiled to the Select Board by Oct. 23.
MONDAY: Cable Advisory Committee, 10 a.m., and Amherst Municipal Affordable Housing Trust, 7 p.m., both at First Floor Meeting Room, Town Hall.
TUESDAY: Disability Access Advisory Committee, 11:30 a.m., conference room, Stavros, 210 Old Farm Road.
WEDNESDAY: Conservation Commission, 7 p.m., Town Room, Town Hall; LSSE Commission, 7 p.m., LSSE conference room, middle school.
THURSDAY: Cable Advisory Committee, 10 a.m., and Public Art Commission, noon, both at First Floor Meeting Room, Town Hall; Zoning Board of Appeals, 6:30 p.m., Town Room, Town Hall.
