The date has been set so that people can plan for the solar project discussion.
AMHERST – The discussion on whether to allow the town to enter into a long term lease with BlueWave Capital Inc. for a solar project on a closed landfill is now set to begin at the Town Meeting session slated for May 16.
The idea for the scheduling allows people to plan for the discussion. The town needs meeting approval for any long-term lease. Officials need to be able to enter into that agreement before they can apply for permits for the project. Some neighbors are speaking out against the project because they say the landfill is not a safe site.
As of Saturday afternoon, 58 people favor the project while 11 oppose it, according to the Amherst Localocracy website asking whether residents support it. Amherst Localocracy was created as a place where people using their real names could engage in discussions about local issues, according to one of its founders, Conor White-Sullivan.
Town Meeting resumes for the third session Monday at 7:30 p.m. at Amherst Regional Middle School with more budget discussions – with the general government, library and school budgets slated to be taken up.
On Wednesday, the meeting at the second session was able to review and pass only three budgets. The meeting unanimously approved the $8.4 million public safety budget, which includes the police and fire department budgets, and the $1.9 public works budgets.
The meeting also approved the conservation and development budget of $885,862, a budget that includes conservation, planning and inspection services.