Bee Heard

(Editor's note: Call The Bee at 632-0390 and record a one-minute comment on our Bee Heard line. It gives readers an opportunity to comment quickly and candidly on items of local or regional interest. Callers do not have to identify themselves and no callers' names will be used. In the interest of fairness and good taste, The Bee will not publish derogatory or insulting comments. All comments are by our readers and are subject to editing.

.It's unbelievable that the Town of Amherst is willing to even consider selling the Mennonite Church. This building was purchased almost two decades ago by the Town of Amherst to save it from falling into the hands of developers and becoming a retail store. I understand that public money (New York State grant money) helped fund the restoration of the building when Susan Grelick turned it into a record center. Yes, the disability museum is a good cause, but it really should not be sold to People Inc. It should stay in town hands and leased.

.I almost wonder if we should recount the votes for the highway superintendent. Sunday morning I went out around 6:30 a.m. when we had our first major snowfall. Maple and Forest were passable, but all the side roads were not passable. I'm very disappointed in the Amherst Highway Department.

.I have one word for this Maple Road project: ridiculous. The developer knows it, too; that's why they took out an ad in The Amherst Bee. Our town does not need any more shopping facilities; our town does not lack restaurants, bakeries, office parks or donut shops. We do, however, lack a commitment to responsible development. I hate to say it, but our Town of Amherst is quickly becoming an urban setting: traffic, noise, pollution, rodents, crime. It's all on the rise, and this project at the proposed site will only undermine the stability of our town. After all, if our town has a shortage of retail space, why are there vacant stores in countless plazas?

.I just read that Amherst High School is getting two stone tigers for out in front of the front doors. Last year, they got two wooden doors. It looks nice outside, but the inside is old and falling apart. Let's clean up the inside.

.To the parents who drop off their children at the back of Casey Middle School in the morning, if you show up early but won't let your child out of the car until the moment school opens, please be considerate and pull into a parking spot. Sitting in your car and blocking the lanes is not only rude but creates a hazard for all the other children who need to cross in front of all your cars.

.I want to thank Deborah Bucki for actually reading and being prepared with the material that was before the board for Monday night's meeting. She was the only board member who actually had information pertinent to the vote. Not one member on the board had any information on what was going on, other than their own opinions. I thank her, and I wish everyone else functioned the same way.

.Regarding leaf pickup in the Village of Williamsville, it seems every fall the DPW waits until the last minute to pick up the leaves. Then it snows and they plow and there are frozen leaves everywhere. Why can't they pick up the leaves in a more timely manner before the snow falls? It seems to be getting worse every year.

.After local and federal tax dollars were spent evaluating storm-damaged trees, and after residents were repeatedly told that the town (not residents) would decide on tree removal, we now have the highway department asking residents to call the department if they have a town tree that should be checked for removal. From a tour of my neighborhood, there are many trees that indifferent or uninformed residents have not called about. Is the highway department going to let these pitiful trees stand now, or take responsibility for removing them like they talked about for months after the October storm?

.Amherst Supervisor Satish Mohan has just been one disappointment after another. After two years in office, both years he had a budget put together and passed that no one understood the bottom line. That, combined with the assessment or the failure to do assessments and his recent ploy to advertise at the 11th hour for all the town attorney positions as well as certain other key positions, just leaves one to believe he is not prepared for this job, that he is not learning this job, that he doesn't feel he is accountable to the people and that he is not cut out to do a good job as supervisor.