Amherst Center: Choices for fiscal sustainability

Published on March 28, 2008

Our town election is on April Fools Day this year. Will the joke be on us? Seriously, this feels like a tipping point for our town.

For too long, the Select Board has been divided, distracted and ineffective as the town has headed for fiscal crisis. Will we keep sliding sideways into the abyss, with five captains rowing against each other, or will we vote for a new crew that can pull together and bring us out of harm's way?

Town Meeting has recently moved to support sensible economic development. Will the election solidify this direction or undermine it?

From Select Board to Town Meeting, here are our picks for a more fiscally sustainable Amherst.

Select Board: Stephanie O'Keeffe and Diana Stein

For the past two years, Stephanie O'Keeffe has been studying how our government works  and describing how it could work better  at www.inAmherst.com. She now knows more about our Select Board than almost anyone in town, and she is ready to put her knowledge to work for us. She has been a member of the Town Meeting Coordinating Committee, several human service agency boards, and the Council on Aging. Stephanie understands board membership. She does her homework and works hard. She is reasoned, collaborative, and sensible. She will be an excellent Select Board member. But don't just listen to us  hundreds of others have endorsed her as well, including 10 former Select Board members and 7 current or former Finance Committee members.

Our second vote goes to Diana Stein. Diana is a retired Mount Holyoke biology professor with lots of good will across town. Active in Town Meeting, the League of Women Voters, and the Board of Health, she respects data and the town staff who prepare it, cares deeply about kids and maintaining excellent schools, and will be a sensible, bridge-building Board member.

Irv Rhodes is a good man in a crowded field who would also be a good choice, but we only have two votes. Diana's breadth of support leads us to believe she is the better vote for change in this election.

School Committee: Catherine Sanderson

Catherine Sanderson knows the schools and the district well, having served as president of the Fort River parents' council and on district committees studying the math curriculum and the organization of the elementary schools. A professor at Amherst College, she has also helped organize parents concerned about academic challenge into an advocacy group, ACE, which has begun a productive dialogue with the schools about how to be a model of excellence for all children. With her boundless energy, dedication to detail, and love of short, focused meetings, she's too good to pass up.

(Note: Baer and Clare wrote this section; Andy, as School Committee chairman, is neutral on this race.)

Redevelopment Authority: Margaret Roberts and Aaron Hayden

When most people hear "Amherst Redevelopment Authority," their reaction is, 'Huh?' But the ARA is a key tool for future economic development  it can get state and federal grants and direct redevelopment of already developed spots, such as University Drive or the north end of downtown, spurring new revenues. We endorse Margaret (Peg) Roberts, a sensible longtime ARA member who has the experience and moderation to guide new projects appropriately, and Aaron Hayden, whose experience on the Planning Board, Master Plan committee, and the Hitchcock Center for the Environment's board give him the perfect background for Amherst-appropriate development work.

It's interesting that the other two candidates for this development agency have anti-development voting records. In fact, of 11 economic development/zoning votes in recent Town Meetings, Carol Gray voted against all of them! It's puzzling why such an anti-development candidate would run for this position.

Moderator: Harrison Gregg

In addition to running Town Meeting, the moderator also appoints the Finance Committee. Harrison Gregg does a good job with both.

Town Meeting: Endorsements at www.sustainableamherst.org

Town Meeting is important  it's where all the budget and zoning action is! But how do you decide who to vote for? How about looking at voting records? We've identified 28 fiscal sustainability votes in Town Meeting and have rated all 240 members' voting records. We then used these ratings to guide our endorsements. You can see the results and our Town Meeting endorsements in every precinct at www.sustainableamherst.org/candidates.

Amherst is at a tipping point. If we elect rational, sensible candidates that can work together then we have a chance to survive this fiscal crisis and plot a sustainable course. This Tuesday, vote for a fiscally sustainable Amherst!

Amherst Center is a monthly column which appears in The Amherst Bulletin that seeks to portray local issues from a centrist perspective. It is written by Town Meeting members Baer Tierkel and Clare Bertrand and School Committee member Andy Churchill. Amherst Center appears in The Amherst Bulletin on the last Friday of each month.