CRC To Interview Planning Board Candidates June 12

The Community Resources Committee (CRC) decided to hold interviews for the three open seats on the Planning Board at their May 25, 2023 meeting. The terms of Thom Long, Andrew MacDougall, and Johanna Neumann expire on June 30. All three have served one three-year term. Long and MacDougall have not submitted applications for reappointment for the upcoming term. The interviews will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, June 12. All applicants will be interviewed over Zoom and will respond to the same set of questions. .

Neumann has submitted a statement of interest for continuing on the board, as have Jesse Mager and Fred Hartwell. The full statements of interest of the candidates are posted on the CRC agenda for the June 12 meeting. 

In her statement, Neumann emphasizes her commitment to maintaining Amherst’s open space, concentrating growth in the downtown and village centers. She also highlights her advocacy for alternatives to fossil fuel and her opposition to a solar moratorium. She states, “For the past 20 years, I’ve worked as an organizer and advocate around environmental and public interest issues. I’m trained and experienced in facilitation of groups, strategic planning, coalition building, community outreach, communication, and more. I also bring some issue expertise in the fields of clean energy and sustainable communities. Over the course of my first term on the planning board,” her statement says, “I have deliberated on and voted for projects that increase housing near our downtown and UMass, including projects in neighborhoods often averse to change.”

Mager is a tenured professor of biology at UMass, and attended architecture school for two years. He has lived near the town center for 16 years and cites his commitment to preventing non-student “flight” from areas near downtown. Mager has not previously served on any town committees, but states, “While I am somewhat new to the intricacies of town operations and decision process, I fully believe there is a way to accomplish both preservation of family style neighborhoods and accommodation of UMass overflow which is the unavoidable reality for the foreseeable future. I have many ideas (probably some non-starters but maybe one or two good ones) I hope to explore. The planning board seems to be the right vehicle for me to get involved and help us grow.”

Hartwell is a 58-year resident of Amherst who served on the Planning Board from 1996 to 2002. He is a retired electrician who was formerly the town’s electrical inspector, and is a small landlord. His statement says, “I share the alarm of many regarding the potential destruction of neighborhood character that may accompany development controlled by large corporate interests.”

Because there is a Town Council meeting at 6:30 on June 12, the CRC will not deliberate after the interviews about which applicants to recommend to the council for appointment. Instead, deliberation will take place after the yet-to-be scheduled interviews for the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA). The ZBA has two full vacancies for three-year terms and four vacancies for one-year associate positions. As yet, only five people have expressed definite interest in joining the ZBA, and some have also applied to the Planning Board. Therefore, CRC Chair Mandi Jo Hanneke (at large) suggested that appointments for both boards be considered at the same time and the recommendations be sent to the council for the June 26 meeting. There is urgency to fill the two full positions on the ZBA by July 1, but it is possible that not all of the associate positions will  be filled at this time.
ZBA applications are due by June 6. Those with questions should contact CRC Vice-chair Pam Rooney (District 4) at rooneyp@amherstma.gov .