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	Station Project Gets Boost Boston Globe August 17, 2008 http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/08/17/station_project_gets_boost/ Governor Deval Patrick last week authorized a capital bond bill that includes $300,000 for the Avon fire and police station project, said Michael McCue, the town administrator. The town Building Committee is still researching how best to remedy the severe overcrowding at both stations and plans to put a proposal before voters at a Special Town Meeting this fall. The price tag for a combined safety building is roughly estimated at $20 million. "Thanks to Representative [William] Galvin and state Senator [Brian] Joyce, this means we're one step closer to our goal. I'm very pleased," said Avon Police Chief Warren Phillips. - Joan Wilder BRIDGEWATER VOTER DEADLINES - Tomorrow is the last day to register to vote at the Aug. 25 Special Town Meeting. The town clerk's office will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. that day. The last day to register to vote in the Sept. 16 state primary election is Aug. 27. The clerk's office will also be open on that day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Absentee ballots for the primary are available in the town clerk's office. Those who cannot vote at the polls for the primary, because they will be out of town, have a physical disability, or have religious observances, may draw absentee ballots. - Christine Legere CANTON REMEMBERING FATHER MAC - Selectmen recently held a moment of silence for the late Rev. Bernard McLaughlin, a Roman Catholic priest at St. Gerard Majella Church for more than a decade. "The people of Canton just loved him," said John J. Connolly, chairman of the Board of Selectmen. The priest, known as "Father Mac," was known for his personal interest in people and for being among the first priests to call for the resignation of Cardinal Bernard Law amid the sexual abuse scandal in the church. "He was a wonderful man, kindhearted, generous, and frank," Connolly said. Father Mac came to St. Gerard's in 1995 from an East Boston parish. He served until his retirement last year. He was 74 when he died and had suffered from Alzheimer's disease, Connolly said. - Elaine Cushman Carroll CARVER REPORTER DIES - Maggie Mills, a veteran newspaper reporter and longtime Carver resident, died last week at age 91. Mills covered Carver news for MPG Newspapers for more than 40 years, visiting Town Hall, schools, and scores of individual sources to gather local news in person. Earlier in her career, Mills, a Plymouth native, also covered Plymouth news for the Old Colony Memorial. A funeral service will be held on Aug. 23 at 11 a.m. at First Parish Church in Town Square, Plymouth. - Robert Knox Continued... DEDHAM AN INCONVENIENT POWER OUTAGE - A failure in communication caused a little overnight chaos in Dedham Square last week when NStar shut off power to fix some underground cables, but didn't offer advanced warning of the outage. That prompted a last-minute scramble by town officials Monday evening to alert as many businesses as possible that their lights and refrigerators were going off after midnight. The power company usually sends out notices at least 10 days in advance of interruptions in service and is looking into what happened. - Michele Morgan Bolton NEW VETS AGENT TO BE NAMED - Selectmen are expected to name the town's new veterans agent when they meet on Tuesday night. The candidate, who will be given a salary of $43,500, replaces Peter Spagone, the longtime veterans agent who resigned in April. The new agent was selected from a field of three who were recommended to the town by the state Veterans Affairs Office. The selectmen's meeting will open on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. - Christine Legere EASTON WARNING ON ALCOHOL STING - Places that sell alcohol in Easton are on notice: An underage shopper will be in to try to purchase alcoholic beverages next month, and an Easton police officer will be along for the ride. The alcohol compliance checks are announced twice a year, as required by the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission, said Police Chief Thomas F. Kominsky. "We use an undercover operative - usually a Stonehill student, 18 or 19 years of age - along with a police officer, and we bring them to every single alcohol establishment in the community," Kominsky said. And despite the published warnings, some establishments still sell to the minor and are reported to the Board of Selectmen. The selectmen hold a hearing and usually issue a warning for a first offense and a three-day license suspension for a second offense, Kominsky said. - Steve Hatch FOXBOROUGH CABLE STATION IN SEARCH OF A HOME - Foxborough Cable Access Inc. has received a $25,000 grant from Massachusetts Jaycees Charitable Trust to help the station with its relocating costs, said Michael Webber, executive director of the station. Comcast Corp. last year asked the local cable station to vacate its offices by the end of its current contract with the town in November, which may require the station to find and fund a new home without the help of a cable company for the first time in its 25-year history. The terms of the town's contracts with its various cable companies have always provided it with a physical plant -- until now. Still, Webber is hopeful that Comcast may come up with real estate or financial support for a new space as the company negotiates a new contract with the town now. Federal law dictates that cable companies give about 5 percent of their gross revenue in a town to its station annually, which roughly covers operating costs. One plan, conceived by station and school officials, would have a new studio built adjacent to the high school gymnasium at a cost of approximately $1 million. "One way or the other, FCA will find a home and we'll thrive," said Webber. - Joan Wilder Continued... FREETOWN BACK ON THE FORCE - One of two police patrolmen laid off recently will be rehired after the Police Department received a waiver and had a federal grant reinstated. Lisa Pacheco, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen, said the reinstatement of Officer Chad Carvalho is "some good news for a change" for the town. Pacheco said the police were set to lose the federal schools policing grant because the number of patrol officers had dropped to below the minimum of 17 due to recent budget cuts. However, Police Chief Carlton E. Abbott Jr. filed for a waiver and found out last week that the money, which is enough to hire a full-time officer, will be granted, Pacheco said. She said the town also recently received a $3,900 insurance credit from the Massachusetts Interlocal Insurance Association for implementing loss prevention measurers. Pacheco said that although the two pieces of good financial news won't cure the town's fiscal woes, "any little bit helps." - Elaine Cushman Carroll HOUSING PANEL NEEDS MEMBERS - Selectmen are looking for three more members to serve on the newly established Affordable Housing Partnership Committee. According to Charles Seelig, the executive administrator, the panel will identify appropriate sites in town for affordable-housing projects, discuss the kinds of projects the town would want, and try to attract developers to work with. Applicants for the committee should forward letters of interest to Charles Seelig, Halifax Town Hall, 499 Plymouth St., Halifax 02338. - Christine Legere HANSON QUICK COURSE IN PHOTOGRAPHY - Local residents have a chance to sharpen their picture-taking skills. The Public Library and the Multi-Purpose Senior Center are accepting registrations for a one-day digital photography course they are jointly offering at the library on Oct. 18. The class, taught by veteran photographer Tom McGinty, is intended for people who own digital cameras but have no real experience in digital photography. It will cover the basics of using the camera and how to take good photographs. To register, call the library at 781-293-2151 or the center at 781-293-2683. The center, meanwhile, is holding its annual summer luau at its 132 Maquan St. building Thursday at 11 a.m. The event will feature a catered luncheon and entertainment by the Swinging Singing Seniors, a group composed of Hanson seniors. Call the center to register. - John Laidler MARION HEALTH BOARD MEMBER RESIGNS - Selectmen have received a letter of resignation from Elizabeth S. Dunn, who is stepping down from her Board of Health position due to her impending retirement from the Wareham school system. Selectmen are seeking a replacement for Dunn, and ask that anyone interested in the position send a letter to the Board of Health, c/o Marion Town House, 2 Spring St., Marion 02738. - Paul E. Kandarian MATTAPOISETT EEL POND FUNDS SURVIVE - State Representative William Straus said the House of Representatives has restored $30,000 in the state budget for the restoration of Eel Pond in Mattapoisett. The town is working to develop a plan to improve tidal flushing into the pond, which is a nitrogen-sensitive body of water, officials said, to improve water quality and shellfish habitat. The House action was taken as part of a series of overrides taken up by the State Legislature in the final day of sessions, Straus said. - Paul E. Kandarian Continued... MIDDLEBOROUGH BOOTS ARE BACK FOR MDA - Local firefighters will conduct this year's Fill the Boot Campaign, to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, on Aug. 29 and 30. Firefighters will be posted at local supermarkets those days, from 8 p.m. to 6 p.m., as well as at the town center's "four corners" area, looking for donations from passers-by. Volunteers will also be at Battis Field during the Aug. 30 New England Blues Festival, and donation canisters will be set out in local businesses. Money collected those days will be used toward research, the purchase of equipment needed by victims of the disease, and summer camp for children with muscular dystrophy. - Christine Legere A WALK IN THE WOODS - The Conservation Commission and Open Space Committee have planned Great Woods Walk from 9 a.m. until noon at the Leo Yelle Conservation Area on Sept. 20. The walk will be led by George Yelle, of the Norton Historical Society, who will discuss the historical and cultural aspects of the Great Woods. Participants should bring snacks, water, hats, bug spray, and sun block. - Christine Legere NORWOOD YMCA PROJECT RUNS AGROUND - A three-year effort to bring a YMCA facility to town-owned land on University Avenue has ended with selectmen opting to explore other uses for the land. Construction on the $17 million project, which would have included an indoor swimming pool and ice skating rink, should have already started, following authorization from a 2005 Town Meeting. But YMCA officials recently informed the town they have been unable to raise the local funds needed to get going. - Michele Morgan Bolton RAYNHAM LIQUOR VIOLATION HEARINGS SET - The state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission has scheduled hearings next month in its Boston office for four Raynham businesses that allegedly sold liquor to a minor during a recent routine ABCC compliance check. Gilly's Pub, Greyhound Package Store, Peddler's Loft, and Louie's Seafood sold liquor to a 17-year-old working with ABCC investigators, without asking for proof of age, officials said. The hearings on the state liquor law violations will be held on Sept. 23. - Christine Legere ROCHESTER REPAIRS CLOSE ROAD - Walnut Plain Road, from High Street to Burgess Avenue, is closed for repairs. The town Highway Department is building a culvert and replacing a head wall in the area, said Jeffrey Eldridge, the highway surveyer, and the work should be completed by the end of September. Traffic is detoured from High Street to Ryder Road going north and from Burgess Avenue to Alley Road going south. - Paul E. Kandarian SHARON AN UNUSUAL ART FORM - The late Frank "Ken" Cross had a long career as a technical illustrator at several engineering firms, including MIT's Draper Lab. After retiring, he took up scratchboard drawing with dentist tools instead of a typical artist's stylus. His work in retrospective is on display at the Lakeside Gallery through Sept. 4. In conjunction with the exhibit, his wife, Vera, a watercolor artist who still lives in Sharon, will lead a hands-on workshop on scratchboard drawing on Aug. 27, at 12:45 p.m. at the Sharon Adult Center. Interested participants should register ahead of time at 781-784-8000. The gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Some bus service may be available. - Franci Richardson Ellement Continued... STOUGHTON ON SECOND THOUGHT - During last June's graduation exercises at Stoughton High School, senior Adam Bauman listened to the speeches of the class valedictorian and salutatorian. The problem was Bauman should have been giving one of those speeches. Stoughton school officials recently discovered they made a computing error and that Bauman should have been a salutatorian of his class of 274 students. "It was an honest mistake," said Dan Bauman, Adam's father. "School officials have to let students know where they stand pretty far in advance so they can prepare speeches for graduation. And in most cases, I guess, class rankings never change. But I guess it was so close with Adam and [classmate] Julianne Leaver that his final grades from advanced-placement classes did move him into second." Leaver was named salutatorian and addressed the audience along with valedictorian Phil Connors. School officials have since corrected the problem and now officially list Bauman and Leaver as co-salutatorians. Dan Bauman said his son, who captained the school's wrestling and tennis teams and is headed to the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, isn't bothered by the error. "Adam's not that way," he said. "It doesn't matter if he finished first, second, or 10th. He just enjoyed his years at Stoughton." - Robert Carroll
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