By SCOTT MERZBACH
Daily Hampshire Gazette
Staff Writer
AMHERST — Shortly after sunrise yesterday morning, with only convenience stores and coffee shops open, three men were sweeping leaves into a pile in front of the CVS Pharmacy on North Pleasant Street before clearing them by using a large vacuum-like device hooked to a pickup truck.
Removing leaves and other debris from downtown streets is part of the daily tasks performed by the Amherst Business Improvement District’s street-cleaning crew, which continued its work in making downtown Amherst a welcoming place for shoppers and diners.
Executive Director Sarah la Cour said it was business as usual for the Amherst BID yesterday, the day after a judge ruled that the BID in Northampton must disband immediately because the city did not comply with state law when the organization was created five years ago.
La Cour said officials in Amherst are sure that the ruling by Hampshire Superior Court Judge John A. Agostini will have no impact on the BID there.
“We were very clear on the process, and everyone here is confident about how the process was handled,” la Cour said.
Barry Roberts, president of the BID’s board of directors who helped lead the effort to establish the organization in October 2011, said he does not believe there were any issues with how signatures supporting its creation were collected and brought to the Select Board.
“We believe we followed the requirements of the law,” Roberts said.
Agostini faulted Northampton officials, including the City Council, for failing to perform “any meaningful verification” of the 305 signatures presented on a petition to create the organization. He ruled that since the petition was invalid, the BID “is and always has been null and void.”
In Amherst, the Select Board established the BID after receiving a petition. Organizers secured commitments from the owners of at least 50 percent of the assessed property value within the proposed district and had owners of 60 percent of the properties within the district sign on to meet conditions set by the state.
The 50-page document submitted to the Select Board included a letter from Town Clerk Sandra Burgess stating that the petition met the criteria set forth in state law, and a certificate from principal assessor David Burgess confirming that the signatories were appropriate.
La Cour said the Amherst BID is appreciated by property owners and commercial tenants and has received strong institutional support from Amherst College, the University of Massachusetts and town government.
While there were initially property owners who opted out, the Amherst BID has never suffered from the acrimony that divided the Northampton business community.
The Amherst BID has three major tasks: marketing, which includes events such as the Celebrate Amherst Block Party and the Amherst Poetry Festival; beautification, which includes flower pots, planters, holiday decorations and the cleaning crew; and advocacy related to public policy. The BID also operates a trolley.
At the Amherst BID’s offices on South Pleasant Street, both la Cour and marketing manager Hope Keenan are planning for the holiday season and finding ways to attract visitors and shoppers to downtown, including street decorations and lighting the Merry Maple and trees at both Kendrick Park and Sweetser Park.
Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Donald Courtemanche previously served as the executive director of the Springfield BID. Courtemanche said he “preaches the gospel” of downtown management, comparing it to the need for shopping malls to be collectively managed.
“I think the Amherst community sees the benefit of the Amherst BID currently, and the value for the downtown as it continues to develop,” Courtemanche said.
He points to the two major mixed-use development projects, Kendrick Place, which is rising at the corner of Triangle and East Pleasant streets, and the proposed 1 East Pleasant to replace the Amherst Carriage Shops, as well as recommendations from a consultant for the Town Gown Steering Committee proposing more development along North Pleasant Street between Kendrick Park and Massachusetts Avenue.
Select Board Chairman Aaron Hayden said there is a sense of common purpose among those downtown.
“It seems like it’s been working very well at achieving its goals of creating a more attractive downtown at a reasonable expense,” Hayden said.
“My impression is the Northampton folks never had that unanimity and sense of purpose,” Hayden added.
La Cour said she believes the ruling by Agostini is an unfortunate outcome for Northampton.
“It’s really a shame,” la Cour said. “I don’t think people understand what they are losing.”
Courtemanche said Northampton already has a downtown that is the envy of many communities in the Pioneer Valley and the BID strengthened that.
Courtemanche said he did not anticipate a judge ruling that all activities of the Northampton BID must cease. “I, for one, am shocked at the immediacy,” Courtemanche said.
The Northampton BID is the second one to fold in western Massachusetts this year, following the one in Westfield, which was dissolved by town officials.
That also caught many in the economic development community by surprise, Courtemanche said.
BIDs remain active and play an important role elsewhere in Massachusetts, including Springfield, Boston, Hyannis and Taunton, Courtemanche said. “The BID is the front door of the community,” he added.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at [email protected].
