Here are YouTube videos covering the 10/26/11 Community Preservation Act forum sponsored by the Northampton Area League of Women Voters. The forum included a panel with defenses and critiques of the CPA followed by a session of candidates for the Community Preservation Committee answering questions (voters will choose among four candidates for two positions on the committee). These videos were recorded by Adam Cohen. See below for the forum agenda and an announcement of a debate on the CPA on November 3.
CPA Debate Announcement 2011-11-03
See also:
Gazette: “Northampton forum offers differing views on Community Preservation Act” (10/27/11)
At the forum at JFK Middle School, current and former members of the Community Preservation Committee, the board that recommends projects to the City Council for funding, cited a host of community initiatives they said would not have been possible without the local option. Among them are restoration of the Academy of Music, construction of affordable housing on King Street and preservation of the Bean and Allard farms…
On the other side, city resident Jesus Leyva said that because surrounding towns such as Springfield and Holyoke have not adopted Preservation Acts, the measure essentially allows Northampton to fund projects at the expense of other communities that pay into the state fund but don’t reap the benefits.
“The Massachusetts Community Preservation Act: Who Benefits, Who Pays?”