Office of the Town Manager Phone: (413) 259-3002 [email protected]

To: Evan Ross, Chair Outreach, Communications and Appointments Committee

Fr: Paul Bockelman Town Manager

Dt: October 18, 2019

Re: Community Preservation Committee Appointments

I appreciate the opportunity to respond to your questions and thank you for taking the time to forward them to me in advance of your meeting. Below are my written responses to the questions posed by members of the Committee:

1. How large was the pool of applicants? a. I typically do not share the size of the pool of applicants. I can say that there were more applicants than positions available. 2. Who else applied and can we see their CAFs? a. It has not been my practice to share the names of applicants or CAFs. 3. What other information can you give us about Diana Stein? a. Diana is a Professor Emeritus at Mount Holyoke College. She believes that the work of the Community Preservation Committee is of great importance to the Town and is committed to the Committee’s mission to create more affordable housing, maintain historical structures, and expand recreational opportunities. She believes it takes time to learn the work of the Committee and is eager to continue her service to the Town on the Committee. She has found her work on the Committee to be very satisfying. 4. Why 3 recreation focused people? a. I believe all three at-large members bring an open mind and do not identify themselves – and I do not identify them – as recreation focused. 5. What does each person bring to the work before the body at this time, especially Diana Stein for whom the memo provides only elected titles? a. Each of the appointed volunteers brings a commitment to the overall mission of the Committee. Two members are reappointments and they bring an understanding of the work flow of the Committee and the experience of reviewing proposals, meeting applicants, developing a report, and writing and editing the

final report to the Town Meeting and Town Council. Ms. Stein, in particular, brings an historical knowledge of the Town, an open mind to proposals, and an acute eye to the editing of the final report 6. For Sam MacLeod, what is meant by “no vested interest to the work of the committee” and is that a common concern among applicants for CPAC? a. Although Mr. MacLeod is a board member of Amherst Youth Soccer, he has been explicit that he brings an open mind to all of the needs of the various groups who will be requesting Community Preservation Act funding. He does have a clear stake in the community as a lifetime Amherst native with two children attending Amherst schools. But he recognizes his role on the Committee is to contribute to the collective well-being of the community. The make-up of the Committee includes representatives from the Conservation Commission, Historical Commission, Leisure Services and Supplemental Education Commission, and Planning Board. Each of those members participate as members of their respective commissions and board. I seek at-large members that bring an openness to the needs of the Town as a whole.