WHITMAN – In the end, it was their equal commitment to working toward a school budget that best serves all Whitman students that made the decision so difficult.
“It;s awful,” School Committee Chair Beth Stafford said after nine of 13 applicants for the two vacant Whitman seats on the W-H School Committee that made the choice so hard. Heather Clough, Kevin Mayer and Charles Slavin III did not attend the meeting. “We have quite a difficult decision, I think. We had some great people.”
Those who did brought strong backgrounds in education, law, small business, real estate, special needs parenting and education and technical fields.
“This is difficult,” Stafford said of the applicants’ experience. “I had to sit in that chair before and it’s very difficult, what they had to do, but I think we learned so much more about them than you do in a regular election.”
The election metaphor was mentioned more than once.
“It’s like going into a ballot box,” said Select Board Chair Carl Kowalski.
“Pretend you’re going to a ballot box, who are you going to vote for,” Stafford said. “When you say a name, you have confidence in that person you are selecting.”
The five Whitman Select Board members and four Whitman members of the School Committee were then asked to put themselves in the shoes of a voter for the two ballots, as each gave the name of the applicant they supported. Ballots were cast until a candidate received a majority of five votes for each vacancy.
“We’re not going to ask questions,” Stafford said in response to a question from School Committee member Rosemary Connolly.
Kowalski placed all names in nomination toward the two rounds of votes.
The nine interviewing candidates: Stephanie Blackman, P. Christopher DiOrio, Nicholas Femia, Anna Hourihan, Chris Marks, Annemarie Odle, Ginger Sullivan, Ryan Tressel and Danielle Winn, each had 10 minutes, with Stafford timing them, to speak about how they would support the district’s towns and students.
“Thank you very much, guys,” Stafford joked, as the candidates filed back into the Select Board’s meeting room. “You have made it awful.” In May, of any of the candidates wish to go on, can try again by campaigning for the seats when they come up again in May.
The first ballot was to fill the seat vacated by the death of Fred Small in late July. At the end of the first ballot, Stephanie Blackman and Chris Marks were both short of the needed five-vote majority on Ballot 1, but Select Board members Justin Evans and Shawn Kain added their support for Blackman, along with School Committee members Dawn Byers, Steve Bois, Rosemary Connolly and Stafford,
“Stephanie, you won a seat,” Stafford announced.
Ballot 2 followed the same route, ultimately giving a seat to Marks in a second run at the seat vacated by David Forth’s resignation. DiOrio with two votes and Marks with three votes were the top vote-getters in the first round, with Marks ending up with Byers and Kain shifting their votes to Marks to put him over the top. DiOrio ended up with four votes.
“I hope everybody thinks about it, watches, comes to our meetings, we appreciate an audience when we have school committee meetings,” Stafford said to the candidates who came up short. “We appreciate input, we always like input. Stay with it and don;t get discouraged and try again.”
Hanson weighs budget options
HANSON – As the voters of Hanson get down to business for the Tuesday, Oct. 7 special Town Meeting, they will face differing opinions from town boards and committees on how to return hours to some town employees while balancing the budget.
One thing on which there is agreement, however, is free cash.
“It’s seemingly uncontroversial, which I’ve now just called the universe in on us,” Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said after a review of the on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
“You did, because you didn’t look [to your] left before you went there,” said Board member Joe Weeks, asking Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf for the total amount of free cash is being deferred to Town Meeting?.
He was trying to determine – if all the budget-balancing things in the warrant that are going to hold the town to salaries and benefits that the town voted against funding in May – how much will that put the town in a hole by funding them now?
“One of the things I’m very much against is balancing the budget using free cash,” Weeks said. “A lot of the things we’ve decided to defer as a Select Board to Town Meeting [were] things that are going to balance the budget using free cash, which is a huge difference from using free cash to fund capital items and things along those lines.”
He expressed a fear that “the budget is going to get away from us, especially given in May, where we were supposed to do budget-related things, it’s going to put us deeper and deeper into the hole without anybody realizing it.”
Kinsherf said he and Town Administrator Lisa Green sat down to do a pre-Town Meeting overview of what will be needed in FY 2026 to fund the budget without free cash, and the town will be about $2 million short.
“At the end of this Town Meeting, if all the articles pass, I think we’re going to have [about] $2.3 to $2.4 million left,” he said. “So, it’s a policy decision.”
Kinsherf said that, ideally, we’d have an extra $2 million in revenue over so, and do an override or something and we be in a nice position having $2.4 million of untapped free cash we could use in capital or whatever. That’s a business that you could be in, but what happens when you have free cash available to you in May will allow you a little bit of one-stop Band-Aid … you see where we’re going with this.”
To keep the morale high would cost about $13,000, he said.
“It’s a decision on your part,” Kinsherf concluded.
Weeks said it wasn’t normal to fund articles one year only to cut them back the next.
“If we’re going to do it, I want to do it for the right reasons, not because people are asking us.”
Kinsherf said, if all the articles were funded, he could almost guarantee they would be cut in May.
“We haven’t said we’ve found extra money,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “We’re saying we took another look at the money we have and, given the fallout from Town Meeting, we’re saying that a judicious amount of money – $100,000 , which is not material in the grand scheme of what we’re looking at overall – could make a huge difference in the services that we’re able to give and in the morale of the staff that we have here.”
She said the voters would ultimately decide whether we’ve made the case or not.
Vice Chair Ann Rein said she was “a little surprised about the amount of free cash.”
She said she was thrilled with it.
“I don’t see, really, the problem with spending that small amount to restore services,” she said. “I think that services are something we have to think of as more important than capital projects,”
Both Weeks and FitzGerald-Kemmett agreed.
“That’s my point,” Weeks said.
High Street Park
In other business, the High Street Park Committee updated the board on that project.
Planner Anthony DeFrias said the committee has worked with him to finalize the plan. The Park Committee asked him to reach out to engineers and make recommendations on who to hire a peer review to assess the design to ensure it is meeting all state and federal regulations.
The board voted to empower the Committee to work with Green on finding an engineering firm to conduct the peer review.
It also has to go before the Planning Board, which has required the peer review.
“If we require that from residents, we should also require it for our own projects, DeFrias said.
He has also sought estimates from three companies – and the committee has earmarked money to pay for the peer reviewer.
The design, which DeFrias reviewed for the Select Board will go before the Planning Board for a public hearing, probably at the end of October, and includes basketball courts, a playground, a dog park, amphitheater for concerts or other performances, walking trails and open lawn area.
Plantings intended to mitigate the impact on abutters’ privacy, which had already been expressed, have been planned.
“Because of the cost, there’s going to be phases, so this could be a project that goes over a period of years,” DeFraias said.
The lowest bid for the peer review was for $3,950. A mid-range bid was $4,000 and the high bid was for more than $12,000.
“We’re going to go with the lowest person, Alan D. Majors, because they had a very good, detailed, estimate,” he said. The committee had also asked DeFrias to get an equipment estimate for the playground, which did not require a quote because he said they’re not even close to that, but estimates on the general cost to kit out a playground would be from $39,000 to $125,250.
“I think it’s a destination place, the way it’s getting laid out right now,” Weeks said, but I do think it was laid out strategically well in that it puts minimal issue with abutters, but again, I’m not an abutter, so I can’t speak for them.”
New zoning hearing set on WMS
WHITMAN – While a missed Zoning Appeals hearing on Monday, Sep. 23 was an irritant for the Feasibility Study and Whitman Middle School Building Committee on Tuesday, Sept. 24, a make-up meeting has been slated and there has been progress to report on the project.
Chair Beth Stafford asked why no one from Colliers, the owner project manager firm, or architect AO3 had shown up at a zoning meeting Monday, Sept. 23. Colliers’ Owner Project Manager Michael Carroll said he spoke to AI3 that day and did not think either frim was ever informed of that meeting.
Former Building Inspector Robert Curran, who sits on the Building Committee, said the issue was addressed in some of the paperwork given out to the committee, but, generally speaking, after the paperwork is put in, a zoning hearing takes place four to six weeks later.
“I asked the [Zoning Secretary] if they were notified and she said they were,” he said. “They would have been notified by mail The abutters were there. They opened the hearing and they took some testimony from the neighbors and they continued the meeting until Oct. 21.”
Curran said he arranged for the meeting to be held in the Town Hall auditorium because he had figured it would be a “big show,” and there were probably 15 abutters there who have a lot of concerns, but since there was no one there representing the schools, they continued it to Oct. 21.
School Committee Chair Beth Stafford said that Superintendent of Schools Jeff Szymaniak never received a notice about the meeting, either.
“As Superintendent of Schools, he should have received a letter,” she said. “He did not. So, that will be addressed, too, because if letters went out, there wasn’t one for Jeff, either, and he needs to go.”
She said the only notification anyone saw was a legal notice classified ad placed in the Whitman-Hanson Express.
“But that’s not an invitation, and when we looked at who got copies of it, it didn’t say AI3, it didn’t say Whitman-Hanson Superintendent,” Stafford said. “It said Brockton, Abington and all these other places, so I think there was a little bit of a mix-up here.”
Carroll said he and AI3 did receive confirmation it was continued to Oct. 21 and they would absolutely have people there. The next Building Committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct, 22.
Curran said abutters are concerned about fencing – especially near Highland Avenue where kids use a path to WMS – and neighbors concerned about construction activity and its potential effect on the safety of kids who live in the area walking to the school.
“There needs to be somebody that’s really familiar with the project,” attending the ZBA hearing, he said. “Are you going to do a temporary road for construction?”
Carroll said that information could be incorporated into that planning, which had been temporarily sidetracked by contractor pre-qualification work.
“What we’re trying to do here is minimize the inconvenience during construction,” he said. “We can’t eliminate inconvenience completely, but we are trying to minimize that, and it there’s things we can do to help the abutters, we absolutely want to do that.”
During the contractor pre-qualification phase, Colliers Project Manager Shirley Ng said, the subcommittee has received 88 requests for interest in this and 12 DCs with the next phase being a review and assessment of statements of qualifications in October and narrow down the applicants.
Assistant Superintendent George Ferro asked if 12 was a healthy number and Carroll said he’s done two bids this year, and on one he received three bidders and on the other he got four.
“Just because 12 got prequalified doesn’t mean all 12 would bid it,” he said. “But 12 is a good number. Anything more than five or six is a very good showing.”
Ng said her numbers were as of Friday, Sept. 20. They had also received some on Sept.23.
“We’re also working on the early bid package,” she said. Right now, they are reviewing specifications of an electrical switchgear and generator.
“The prequalification of this job goes under MGL Ch 149 as a construction project,” Carroll said. “The switch gear and generator go out more as goods, as if you were buying paper or an easel which goes out under CH 30B.”
He said it requires making sure insurance is squared away as they will be bidding and awarding it before a general contractor comes on board, so they are making sire the specifications on the two bids coordinate and the general contractor/electrical contractor are taking delivery of the switch gear and generator unit on-site and taking it from there.
“We don’t have to worry about storage or anything like that,” he said.
Ng said they are hoping to have the contract completed by October along with postings for next month, at the Building Committees next meeting Carroll said they anticipate seeking a vote to allow them to request for bids.
“And then, in November, we’ll be coming back with bids and, hopefully, it’ll be under budget and we’ll be able to award that and keep moving forward,” he said.
W-H Director of Business and Finance Stephen Marshall said the district had submitted reimbursement request of just over $5.5 million in total to MSBA for invoices up through August and expect just over $3.5 million for reimbursement on that.
“There was a little bit of a delay – it was a large request, in terms of the amount of invoices and paperwork,” he said. “The MSBA had come back to us with some questions involving some back-up documentation. We have just received those today from AI3 and they’re being submitted to MSBA.”
He said the turnaround time after follow-up documentation is usually about two weeks.
“That will certainly help with the cash flow,” he said, adding that, moving forward those reimbursement requests will be submitted once a month.
Szymaniak asked Carroll to go over the for the Committee and everyone watching meetings at home, the shift in roles and “who’s doing what where?”
“In general, we’re two teams here,” Carroll said. “You have the Colliers team, which is the owner’s project manager – we’re providing general oversight and general support to your team.” He serves as project director and Ng as project manager. The assistant project manager helps with meeting minutes and a lot of “behind the scenes work” for Colliers.
Once construction gets under way the construction site representative – or clerk of the works as they are sometimes called – will also be added to the meetings.
Architects AI3 design team leaders Troy and Julie have support staff from AI3 and its subconsultants to field questions about irrigation, landscaping, traffic and the like. The Zoning Board meeting would have been handled by Colliers’ civil engineer.
“There’s lots of people behind the scenes,” he said, but added the Building Committee will continue to see familiar faces at meetings
Deadline nears for Hanson Cultural Council fall grant applications
Between Sept. 1 and Oct.16, 2024, the Hanson Cultural Council will accept applications from organizations, schools and individuals for grants to fund cultural activities in Hanson. These grants can support a variety of arts, science, and humanities projects, including exhibits, festivals, field trips, short-term residencies or performances in schools, workshops and lectures.
This year’s allocation to Hanson from the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC) is $8,800.
Past events include
• several museum passes,
- Channel Homestead Experience
- Mamasteph at the Hanson Public Library.
- A virtual visit with author Sarah Weeks
- School Celebrates its amazing humans took place at the Hanson Middle School.
- Hip Hop Chair Dance for Seniors took place at the All American Assisted Living.
- Matt York sings “Willie Nelson” at the Hanson Library and many more.
The Hanson Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils in the state of Massachusetts.
Applications and more information about the program are available online at Hanson – Mass Cultural Council.
Making the case for override
HANSON – Potential overrides and the ramifications of reduced hours in town departments may soon be volleyed back into Town Meeting’s court for a decision.
Town Administrator Lisa Green reported to the Select Board on Tuesday, Sept. 17 that Capital Strategic Solutions’ proposal for helping town officials communicate the need for an override “came in at a high figure” so her office has looked at other companies – with equally disappointing results.
While they’ve received another proposal from one of those firms, there were concerns with them, too.
“One of the members didn’t even know what Prop 2 ½ was and another member was out in Colorado most of the time,” Green said. “The majority of their work is virtual.”
They would conduct meetings virtually, put together materials and present them to Hanson officials to farm out.
“A lot of proposals that weren’t really going to work for us,” she said.
“We did have a meeting with the [Umass, Boston] Collins Center and, unfortunately, they declined the project [and] did not put forth a proposal.”
Green also said there has been some new information available concerning free cash, which Town Accountant Eric Kinscherf was prepared to discuss it at the Sept. 24 meeting.
“We feel that we can actually do the work, instead of hiring a consultant to do the work for us,” she said.
Meanwhile. Board Chair Laura said she has heard “scuttlebutt” about the town seeking a $5 million override.
“I have no I idea where people got this from.” she said. “I know our consultants had hypothetically said that potentially, “if we really were getting aggressive we could ask for a $5 million override. No one on this board is entertained it as a dollar amount.”
She also stressed that no consultant was being asked to recommend a dollar amount, but were only being considered to help the town communicate the impact, where the town is financially and the potential impact in the event it didn’t pass.
Board member Ann Rein said everything is going up and people have to understand that the only way to avoid a tax increase without an override is drastic cuts.
“That’s not a threat,” she said. “The other side of the budget is the school budget. … We can’t fight that battle.”
Member Joe Weeks said that is one area where a consultant could help – managing and countering misinformation about the way the budget is being managed.
“The only type of consulting that I would feel comfortable with going into trying to figure out an override situation would be one that communicates the reality of how the budget is actually managed,” he said.
FitzGerald-Kemmett suggested reaching out to the Plymouth County Commissioners to see if they had any suggestions for helping the town communicate its budget issues to residents.
The board also reviewed special Town Meeting warrant articles, voting on which they would recommend, after all articles on the warrant had already been placed.
Much of the discussion centered on Article 20, centering on restoring the Conservation Agent to a full-time position.
Select Board member Joe Weeks said he viewed it and Article 21 as salary issues they couldn’t go back on.
“I’d rather defer,” he said.
Select Board member David George asked if Weeks didn’t think the hours should be restored.
“I think he should have his hours back,” Weeks replied. “We spent three years fighting to get salaries increased and hours increased just to cut them the minute we got them, and I do not want to put a person in the position in which we give them their hours back, just to cut them again. It’s not fair”
The rest of the board agreed it would not be fair.
“And it’s irresponsible,” Weeks added. “So, I think we should defer to Town Meeting and let the taxpayers decide where the money goes again because I do not want to put people and their families in a position to constantly have to bounce back and forth with benefits and employment.”
“People have to live,” George agreed. “People have to eat. People have payments that they have to make.”
FitzGerald-Kemmett agreed with deferring, arguing that the Conservation Department has to get up and make their case for a full-time agent.
“Conservation has to get up and make their case about why they need their guy, and the Board of Health has to get up and make their case about why they need their guy,” she said. “Honestly, I didn’t hear either of those groups getting up at [the May] Town Meeting and making a case.”
“[Restoring hours] is one of the things you even hear about the Transfer Station, and that’s falling in our laps and it’s not even our decision,” Weeks said. “We didn’t make those decisions.”
Groups seeking space in old DPW building
WHITMAN – The town has received two requests for the use of the DPW administration building once the new DPW building is completed, according to Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter during the Select Board’s Tuesday, Sept. 17 meeting.
“The Select Board will consider various requests as the [DPW building] project nears completion,” Carter said. “But we still have quite a way to go before the DPW building is finished and the actual admin building is vacated. These are just two and I’m sure you’ll consider everything that comes before the board.”
One of the two requests received, came from the Whitman Food Pantry, which is dealing with an increased need for its services, and the other advocating for a Whitman museum, to honor John and Natalie Campbell and Marie Lailer, came from Ken Lailer.
“We are delighted to see a new building being built and that a DPW office will be part of the new structure,” wrote Food Pantry President Richard Clark, asking to be considered of a future occupant of the existing DPW building. “Currently, St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry is housed at the corner of Whitman Avenue and Blake Street. We occupy the middle bay of the building owned and used by Milligan’s Safe Co. We could not have asked for a nicer, more cooperative owner, but we have also realized … that we should be looking at a space that meets the needs of increased food requests from our neighbors in Whitman.”
He said the pantry staff would like to think it’s services would not always be needed.
“But the reality is that food insecurity is high in our town,” Clark said. “We would like to be considered for building occupancy once a new DPW structure is completed.”
He said the food pantry staff is aware they would have to evaluate the building to see if it meets the pantry’s needs going forward and that their needs meet the occupancy requirements established by the town.
“We see the site of the existing DPW office [as] an important addition to assist us in advancing our mission, and providing food for the needy,” Clark concluded.
Lailer, meanwhile, advocated for the museum as a way to honor the Campbells and his late wife Marie, all of whom were searching for a site for the museum they envisioned.
“[The Campbells and] Marie were active in the history of this town – one in the Historical Commission and the other with the Historical Society – before their demise,” Lailer wrote. “If a location were found, then the general public would be able to view the town history and the many artifacts currently in storage.”
He said the Historical Commission also needs a larger space. It is now located in an office in the Town Hall.
“I am deferring to the Select Board for their insight into the various projects within the town,” he said. “If a building or spaces become available and are appropriate for town use, then I ask that you take action to acquire such a facility.”
Board Vice Chair Dan Salvucci, who also serves on the Building Committee, said that when incorporating the administrative offices in the new building and vacating the old administration building were first discussed told the Committee it “would be perfect for a historical museum.”
“I didn’t think about the food pantry because they already have a building,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s too small …”
“I believe it is,” Carter said.
“But they have a building and my opinion is the Historical Commission doesn’t have one,” Salvucci said. “Everything is just boxed in the Armory and I think we’re doing the town an injustice not to show what this town is made of.”
“Both good ideas,” Carter said.
Salvucci also indicated the DPW might want to retain the administration building for records storage.
“Forget it,” he said. “That can be taken care of.”
Select Board member Justin Evans said there is plenty of space for records storage in the old police station area in Town Hall.
“It would be nice to hear [from the DPW] about what their opinions are,” Select Board member Shawn Kain said.
New Hanson firefighters are sworn in
HANSON – The Select Board welcomed two new firefighters to the Hanson Fire Department on Tuesday, Sept. 17 with the appointment of Colby Silva, whose children Emma and Gabe did the honors of pinning on their mom’s new badge.
Silva’s husband Justin, who is an Abington firefighter, and her parents Lisa and Paul Eldridge also attended.
“Colby came to us via Halifax Fire,” said Fire Chief Robert O’Brien Jr. “Her father in-law is a retired Plympton fire chief, so firefighting runs in their blood.”
Colby Silva, herself, had been an ER nurse, but was bored being an ER nurse, so she became a cardiac cath lab nurse, which also bored her, O’Brien said. She eventually became a paramedic.
“She like the excitement of it,” he said. “Colby’s actually very successful, she came to me because I’m trying to do [mesh] operations. I said I need a grant writer and Colby said ‘I want to come and be your grant writer, and I want to write a grant for cancer screening for the fire service.’”
She applied for a $50,000 nationwide competitive grant and the department was rewarded a grant to fund cancer screening within the department.
After receiving a warm round of applause for that success, O’Brien invited her to come forward to be sworn in by Town Clerk Elizabeth Sloan. Silva, who is quite tall, then knelt on one knee so her children could pin on her new badge.
“I would like to thank Colby, who assisted me after our May Town Meeting,” said Town Administrator Lisa Green. “I was very ill and she sat in the back of the ambulance with me and really made me feel very comfortable in an uncomfortable situation. So, thank you from the bottom of my heart, and welcome to Hanson.”
O’Brien also introduced new firefighter Dan McKale to the board for his swearing-in.
Born in East Bridgewater, McKale now lives in Marshfield and was accompanied by his grandmother, Diane, and his parents Ray and Michelle. His mother and younger sister Emily pinned on his new badge.
“Dan was a brand-new paramedic when he came to work with us,” O’Brien said, noting he had worked with Brewster Ambulance before. “It’s ironic, because I think Dan sees as much action in Hanson as he does in Brockton, believe it or not. He’s amazed at what he’s seen. He’s an excellent firefighter and an excellent addition to his shift.”
O’Brien said McKale’s shift backs up what they learn on calls with constant training.
“We just want to thank all of you guys,” said Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett. “We say it [but] we may not say it enough. We appreciate everything you do. We’re so proud to have you work for the town of Hanson – every single one of you.”
Hanson Cultural Council taking 2024 applications
Between Sept. 1 and Oct. 16, 2024, the Hanson Cultural Council will accept applications from organizations, schools and individuals for grants to fund cultural activities in Hanson. These grants can support a variety of arts, science, and humanities projects, including exhibits, festivals, field trips, short-term residencies or performances in schools, workshops and lectures.
This year’s allocation to Hanson from the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC) is $8,800. Past events include: several museum passes; the Channel Homestead Experience; Mamasteph at the Hanson Public Library; a virtual visit with author Sarah Week; School Celebrates its amazing humans took place at the Hanson Middle School; Hip Hop Chair Dance for Seniors took place at the All American Assisted Living and Matt York sings “Willie Nelson” at the Hanson Library and many more.
The Hanson Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils in the state of Massachusetts. Applications and more information about the program are available online at massculturalcouncil.org/local-council/hanson.
All roads leading to changes
WHITMAN – Sometimes the road to change is difficult, other times it turns out to be easier than you expected – and then there are the times that can overwhelm you at the change you were able to make. The Whitman Select Board witnessed examples of all three during their Tuesday, Sept. 17 meeting as they approved a change in the downtown business scene, expressed frustration at the budgeting process for one regional school district and surprise at how easily another district made the process of amending its regional agreement.
After two brief public hearings, the Board unanimously approved transfers of the Common Victualler All Alcohol Liquor License for McGuiggan’s Pub and the Patio at McGuiggan’s as well as the businesses’ Amusement/Live Entertainment Licenses from McGuiggan’s LLC to Lone Wolf Partners Inc. and Indian River Associates Inc., an emotional Richard Rosen addresses the board.
“This has been a very emotional time … this is terrible,” Rosen began as his voice broke and he paused to gain control of his emotions. “I’m really bad at wakes,” he joked.
“It’s been a very emotional time for my family,” he started again. “Fifteen years ago, we opened the pub. I don’t think there was anybody that gave us [the odds of lasting] 15 minutes and we’ve been through an awful lot, including a pandemic – which, I’m very proud of the fact that we kept 13 people on payroll the whole time – and then, when I opened The Patio, people really thought I lost my mind.”
He also spoke of the impact the two businesses have had on Whitman center.
“We’ve never had any issues or problems,” he said. “I think we’ve been a huge asset to the community. I think that we transformed Whitman center.”
“Yes,” agreed Vice Chair Dan Salvucci.
“On any given night, I can go into the pub and know 85 percent of the people there, and any night, I can go into The Patio and I don’t know 85 percent of the people,” he said. “The proof would be, if you all wanted to get in your car on Monday night around 7 p.m., and take a ride through the center, you’ll see what the town of Whitman center looked like 24/7—365 days a year forever – until 15 years ago.”
He admitted it might sound crazy, but it excites him when he drives through the center and finds it full of cars.
“It’s become a destination spot,” he said. “People are literally coming from all over the place to come here. … I have full faith and confidence in the new buyers. I know they are going to keep us proud and we’re going out with our head high.”
Rosen thanked the Select Board, the Police and Fire departments and “all the town officials who have been wonderful to us for the last 15 years.”
After Rosen spoke, the board gave him a warm round of applause.
“I agree with you,” Salvucci said. “Before you opened the pub, that end of town, there was no cars. Now, that end of town you can’t find a parking space.”
“We’ve never had an issue with parking,” Rosen said.
Rosen said the new buyers and owners – Johnny Perette, Dawn Castagnetti. Nancy Ruta, Joe Perette – and their attorney Richard Hickey were present, but opted not to speak.
The board also approved retention of the Sunday sales hours, beginning at 10 a.m. for the Patio’s new owners.
“Brunch is coming back, I assume,” said Select Board member Justin Evans
Lone Wolf Partners will operate the McGuiggan’s Pub property at 546 Washington St., as the Alibi Tavern and Indian River Associates will run Patio at McGuiggan’s, (552 Washington St.) as Patio at Martini’s.
The Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission will have several weeks to act on the license transfers once the application and supporting paperwork is submitted which Rosen said he hoped to do Wednesday, Sept. 18. The new ownership does not take effect until the license has been transferred.
“Thank you for what you did,” Salvucci said.
“Thank you for everything you’ve done for Whitman,” said Select Board member Laura Howe.
SST amendment
South Shore Tech Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey, on the heels of another presentation on education budgeting, closed out the meeting with a presentation on the proposed amendment to the district’s Regional Agreement pertaining to the distribution of debt among member towns.
The amendment is slated to go before all nine of the member communities’ individual town meetings, beginning with Hanson on Monday, Oct. 7. When six towns affirm the amendment, it is passed, according to the SST Regional Agreement. It is then passed on to the Commissioner of Education to sign off on it.
“I think the idea was a good one said,” Hickey said. “It’s a pay-as-you-go model that’s fair based on sifts in enrollment that might happen over a 30-year period.”
Whitman’s enrollment, based on the number of seniors who graduated, and the number of freshmen coming in, is about 17 students fewer, a drop in enrollment that will eventually factor in to a four-year average and then factor into a four-year average.
“Technically, ultimately, to the Commissioner of Education has that final say,” Hickey said.
Currently, budgets include a three-year look back regarding enrollment figures, according to Hickey. The amendment would change that to a four-year review of member towns and the rules through which Marshfield is joining the district.
Until Marshfield develops an enrollment history, they will be asked to adjust their debt-share annually.
“I know from feedback in this room, back in December 2023, it was suggested that our current Regional Agreement language says the debt share that we have is currently fixed – when it’s authorized, do your calculation based on student enrollment and it’s fixed on the life of the borrowing,” Hickey said. “This amendment will change it to what we’re calling a four-year rolling average.”
The new wording was not only the SST regional planning subcommittee and School Committee, but was vetted by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
“That took awhile, but it’s good to say that the language we came up with was “within bounds” – there was nothing wrong with the language so those boxes have certainly appropriately been checked.”
W-H budget process
On a somewhat bumpier road, Select Board member Shawn Kain discussed a letter he recently wrote to the W-H School Committee in response to correspondence he’s had with Committee Chair Beth Stafford.
That letter advocated beginning the process of updating the school assessment formula, while acknowledging it is a difficult discussion for a number of reasons, including the “unique and somewhat complex” nuances of the budget with a lot of town officials involved.
“If the formula is not balanced properly, then the School District and the town departments could be underfunded which could result in decreased staffing or services, so the discussion needs to be done carefully and respectfully,” he read from his last letter to Stafford. “It’s a difficult discussion, but it needs to happen.”
Kain noted the lingering tension and disagreement in the community over the school assessment formula.
“If we don’t work together to work this out, our community will suffer,” he wrote.
Kain said his objective was to introduce the topic to both select boards as well as the School Committee and then to develop a working group to focus on the details.
He also asked to be placed on a School Committee agenda – originally in August – to discuss the issue, but was asked to wait until September.
“Most recently, however, I was informed by the School Committee Chair, Beth Stafford, that she would not allow me to address this issue with the committee,” he said, noting that he was confused and taken aback by her response and, in his letter to Stafford apologized if his intent was misunderstood and asking her to reconsider the decision about letting him speak and said he is still interested in forming a working group.
“I would really like to keep the invitation standing for the School Committee,” he said. “They are welcome to come and have a voice and play a role in this.”
He also sought the board’s approval to communicate with Hanson Select Board Chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett about pursuing the working group idea.
“If we can be more transparent about how we come up with what we can afford and explain it clearly, then we’re not keeping anything from anybody,” Kain said, “Our objective is to be transparent.”
Whitman sets School panel interviews
WHITMAN – Filling the two Whitman vacancies on the School Committee has become a bit more complicated, as the Select Board’s office has received about 13 resumes for the positions for which those selected would have to stand for election later.
In a brief meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 10, Chair Dr. Carl Kowalski said the four remaining Whitman School Committee members and the five Select Board members have already received the resumes and letters of interest from the applicants.
“It’s going to be an important night,” he said.
Those selected would serve the final eight months the positions vacated by the death of Fred Small in July and the August resignation of David Forth, who plans to continue his education.
“What we are planning to do, is interview them on [at 6 p.m.] Oct. 1,” Kowalski said. “[Town Administrator Mary Beth Carter will be sending them out a letter tomorrow [Wednesday, Sept.11], telling them about the process,” he said. “We’ll have a televised meeting here, and each of the 12 or 13 candidates – and we’ll be giving each of them 10 minutes. Ten minutes to tell us why we should vote for them for School Committee membership.”
Kowalski said he referred to “12 or 13” because there was a question over whether one candidate had fulfilled the requirements of applying.
The applicants will be asked during the interviews what they will bring to the schools and to the students.
“They’ll be clocked,” said Kowalski, who is himself a former School Committee m. “We won’ be asking questions of the people. Once the 10 minutes are over, we’re going to vote.”
Select Board member Justin Evans estimated that the interviews would still take about two hours, but Kowalski had already taken that into account. Applicants won’t be asked questions about their resumes, because both committees already have them to review for almost a month.
“What we really want to hear from them is what they’re going to do for the schools, why we should vote for them, what they are going to do for the students at the schools. What’s in their minds.” he said. “I have always felt that one of the weakest parts of the search process is the interviews. What’s really important is paper, is resumes, because that tells us what we need to know about the person.”
Some people have trouble with interviews, Kowalski explained, while others are great at interviews, but their resumes don’t hold up to scrutiny.
Opioid vgil
In other business, Kowalski said he and his wife attended the annual Opioid Vigil, held at Massasoit Community College last week, to remember those who lost their livesto opioid overdoses.
“In 2013, the first night, they put up 22 photos on a screen for the people to see,” he said “The other night, 10 years later, they put up photos on a screen and there were over 450.”
He said he was happy to see Fire Chief Timothy Clancy and Police Lt. Daniel Connolly there.
“They’re there all the time because they do work with the school through W-H WILL,” he said. “I’d encourage any of you to attend. It happens every year right before Labor Day. … It’s a night that’s not easy to be at, but I think it’s a night that’s important to be at.”
Kowalski remembered an observation Clancy once made about the photos displayed: “It’s like looking at a high school yearbook, and the chief said something that’s going to stick with me a long time: ‘Addiction doesn’t care whether you live in a box by the railroad station or whether you live in a mansion on Nantucket.’ And that’s what you see in those photos.”
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