AMHERST — Before embarking on four major municipal building projects, the Town Council is anticipating holding a series of forums to both inform the public about the potential costs and to get input from the community.
But at a recent council meeting, councilors debated the extent of their role in prioritizing the projects and how much direction they should take from residents for what could be well over $100 million in construction, including an elementary school to replace Wildwood and Fort River schools, a new Department of Public Works headquarters, a renovated and expanded Jones Library and a new fire station for South Amherst.
“I view this as our initial conversation,” said Town Council President Lynn Griesemer, who envisions a series of sessions throughout November.
“We need to view this as our opportunity to hear and decide how else we need to hear and what else we need to know,” Griesemer said.
As soon as December, the Town Council will learn whether it will have to provide a planning match for a school project, which would happen if the town is accepted into a state building program by the Massachusetts School Building Authority.
Town Manager Paul Bockelman unveiled “one town, one plan” earlier this year, which has both supporters and detractors on the council. Bockelman said the title is a positive spin on the need to address shortcomings in four town buildings and schools. “It doesn’t imply four new buildings,” Bockelman said.
At-Large Councilor Andy Steinberg said this single plan is important because the sequenced financial planning — including whether the council issues debt and asks the public for any Proposition 2½ debt-exclusion overrides — will be complex.
District 3 Councilor George Ryan said the council’s obligation is to listen, lead and inform. “If we see a plan that we think is the best way forward, we shouldn’t be running away from it — we shouldn’t be afraid to take a leadership role,” Ryan said.
But District 5 Councilor Darcy DuMont said she has problems with framing the four projects under the “one town, one plan.” “It sounds like we have decided that the Town Council has taken a position on this, which we have not,” DuMont said.
DuMont suggested the council question and vet proposals and not necessarily prioritize projects. “I definitely don’t feel comfortable with us trying to sell anything to the public,” DuMont said.
District 1 Councilor Cathy Schoen said she is also concerned that the town may not be able to get all four projects through a strategic plan at once, and that there is significant expense that is not captured in the “one town, one plan” phrase.
“Sending a slightly different message with the title is really important,” Schoen said.
At-Large Councilor Mandi Jo Hanneke said the planned outreach would help show whether there is an appetite in Amherst for the projects.
“My goal out of these listening sessions would be to figure out what the town’s willingness to accept in taxes and tradeoffs is,” Hanneke said.
District 3 Councilor Dorothy Pam said she would like to see several versions of a plan because residents may not be willing to tax themselves to support all four projects. “I’m very worried about doing the tax override — I’m not sure people are going to go for it,” Pam said.
District 1 Councilor Sarah Swartz said it can’t be a foregone conclusion that all projects will happen in a short time frame.
“I’m hearing a lot from constituents that are middle- to low-income who are feeling that Town Council is definitely going to find a way to do all of these projects and quickly, and if you can’t afford to keep up with taxes then you need to find a way to get out,” Swartz said. “I don’t think that’s a message we want to send.”
District 4 Councilor Evan Ross said the council has already come to a consensus to be advocates for the projects. “This council, at least a majority of this council, has shown an interest in pursuing the four projects,” Ross said.
Before the forums, Griesemer is looking at creating a steering committee that includes representatives from the council, the School Committee and trustees for the library, as well as bringing in a facilitator to lead the discussions.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
