HANSON — Selectmen have requested a facilities assessment at Camp Kiwanee be boiled down to a spreadsheet matrix ranking the urgency of work remaining to be done at the facility.

The Recreation Commission presented its facilities assessment and audit to the Board of Selectmen Tuesday, Feb. 27. That report outlined work already done and a ranking of work remaining. Selectmen also voted to support a letter from the Recreation Commission to the Community Preservation Commission seeking funding to replace the dock at the Cranberry Cove beach.

“What I liked about the report itself in general was that you gave an indication of how long it would last and the timeframe in which it needed to be replaced or upgraded,” Selectmen Chairman James McGahan said of the projects reviewed.

Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett asked for an overview of how the assessment was conducted and what projects might need to be done immediately.

“We look for things that we consider need to be done right away,” said Lee Chizek of AEI, the independent contractor hired to conduct the assessment. “Then we look at what you would need to allocate for continuing to have [a] building function forever and ever.”

The quality of original materials factor into that consideration, he said. The projects are ranked one through five regarding urgency, with one a high priority, cost recommendations and a year suggesting when work should be done, McGahan said.

“What we found is that you have a number of buildings that have been reasonably well maintained,” Chizek said. “Some of the buildings … we thought you would really want to allocate money for routine maintenance. We didn’t find anything alarming.”

McGahan advocated for a more user-friendly, spreadsheet matrix organized by priority. FitzGerald-Kemmett said she would like such a matrix to be sorted by priority, price or length of life.

Selectmen Jim Hickey, meanwhile, argued that work should be completed at each building before a high-priority ranking moved attention to another building.

“I wouldn’t want to do the priority one items and … move on to work on something else,” he said. “Let’s [for example] finish the chalet first so we at least know something is done.”

“If you are fixing one thing, it can lead to another,” McGahan agreed. But he stressed some repairs would be separate and a spreadsheet could help identify the differeces.

“The point is, right now we can’t sort it by anything because it’s all these separate [priorities], which is helpful, but when you’re trying to look at it from a global, large-scale perspective you really need to have all that information in one place,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said.

Chizek said he could get back to the board on the spreadsheet idea, but had not done such a plan before.

“We want to share these findings with the townspeople,” said Recreation Commission Chairman Annemarie Bouzan of the assessment paid for with funds approved at the October Town Meeting. “The reason the Rec Commission wants to present tonight is two-fold, one is for the townspeople to have an in-depth look at the facility and [to] understand the ongoing problems, but also to understand that — while it’s the desire of the entire commission to bring recreation back to this wonderful facility, based on our mission statement for our policies and procedures … recreational programs are organized to encourage participation and enjoyment and should be held at a safe and well-equipped facility.”

The Commission’s hiring of Joshua Wolfe as its new director, and the town’s planned hiring of a facilities manager are part of the plan to see to it that the work is done so those recreational programs can be offered again. Wolfe will be meeting with Selectmen at their March 6 meeting.

Bouzan also presented a list of projects already completed over the last 12 months as well as a list of permits for work done between 2003-2016, prior to the current commission’s involvement with the camp.

“These items were either an urgent repair or due to damages, or repair work that was needed in order to provide a safe environment for our renters,” she said.

Chizek produced “a number of reports” centering on Needles Lodge as “the most critical of the properties because it’s used for a number of functions” including the main income-generator — weddings.

Other facilities reviewed included the Frontier Cabin, the north and south end cabins, the caretaker’s building, the so-called electric cabins, the two bath houses and the bridal cottage.

Some electrical work has been redone at the lodge with some remaining that is original to the building constructed in the 1930s, Chizek said, adding that work on a water connection to the building was not done to code.

“That doesn’t pose a danger, but it’s something that should be addressed if you’re going to be using the facility,” he said of the old wiring. “When you go through the report, you’ll see other things. It will tell you that you have to replace your fire alarm system.”

Selectman Don Howard, who also serves as a Water Commissioner said he was under the impression that the water connection was done correctly. Town Administrator Michael McCue said the Water Department did what it needed to do, but a plumber was required to complete internal work.

“I applaud your effort,” FitzGerald-Kemmett said of the assessment. “As we go forward and [you’re] asking for funding … we don’t need to second-guess what needs to be done. We’ve got a report that has been professionally put together.”

She advocated doing such an assessment for all town buildings.

Bouzan said CPC funding is being sought for replacing the docks, not on the report, and will be before the CPC March 6. FitzGerald-Kemmett, a former CPC chairman, said water-based recreation is one of the areas for which the CPC grants funding.

“I’m not going to step into the shoes of the CPC, but think it’s an excellent and very creative way to use the funds and something a lot of people in town could benefit from,” she said.

Bouzan said she has discussed fundraising with McCue as an additional funding source the CPC likes to see being considered.

WHITMAN — For the first time in more than 50 years, the Whitman Fire Department has officially added personnel to its ranks with the swearing-in ceremony of firefighter-paramedics Zachary Baldwin, Russell Lucas and Jerry Thompson.

They now wear badge numbers 18, 19 and 20 respectively.

The Board of Selectmen convened in the Town Hall Auditorium to start the Tuesday, Feb. 20 meeting with the swearing-in ceremony, accommodating a large gathering of the new firefighters’ proud families and new colleagues.

Town Clerk Dawn Varley administered the oath of service for each of the three before a family member pinned on their new badge — Baldwin’s by his mother Cindy, Lucas’ by his grandmother, Mary, and Thompson’s by his father Hanson Fire Chief Jerome Thompson Jr.

Whitman Fire Chief Timothy Grenno, who presided over the ceremony, later presented each firefighter with a congratulatory General Court Citation sponsored by state Rep. Geoffrey Diehl, R-Whitman.

“We celebrate not only three new members to the ranks of our great profession, but are making history in our great community, Whitman,” Grenno said. “Tonight, we mark history by increasing our shift strength to six members per shift through the generosity of our citizens — after hearing our plea, understanding the department’s staffing needs, and voting in favor of a safer community — firefighters who were approved by our taxpayers [through] last year’s Proposition 2 ½ override and graduated Mass. Fire Academy are here tonight to be sworn in.”

Grenno said the hiring process was meticulous. All three were hired off the state Civil Service List and passed background and criminal offender record information (CORI) checks before interviews before a committee of shift officers, local union representatives and Grenno — rising to the top of a field of about 12 candidates.

“Those top three are here tonight,” he said. “What you’ll see about these three candidates is [that] their work ethic and their commitment is second to none.”

Baldwin, a 2012 graduate of WHRHS is also an entrepreneur, founding his own business while still in high school — Lawns by Zach — that now employs about a half-dozen people.

“This is a guy who, in high school, decided that he was going to start his own business and his work ethic brought him down that road,” Grenno said of the Whitman native. “His success shows us his determination and his commitment to getting the job done.”

He joined Whitman Fire as an EMT and was in the process of completing his paramedic license, when he applied for the firefighter job. He has since become a licensed paramedic.

Lucas, a 2011graduate of WHRHS, grew up in Whitman before moving to Hanson, where he served as a call firefighter and worked as a paramedic for South Shore Hospital. He participated in the high school’s internship program at Whitman Fire/Rescue.

“Russ graduated high school knowing what path he would take,” Grenno said. “[He] was employed by South Shore Hospital as a patient transporter and that’s what got him involved in EMS.”

Lucas went from there to attend EMT school and becoming a basic EMT before moving to the hospital’s ambulance division and putting himself through paramedic school.

“Then he came to us,” Grenno said.

Thompson, a 2013 graduate of WHRHS and native of Hanson, took part in the high school’s internship program with Hanson Fire Department.

“That internship solidified his desire to work in the fire service,” said Grenno who graduated W-H in the same class as Hanson Chief Thompson. “Jerry became a member of the Hanson Fire Department as a call firefighter and put himself through EMT school while he was working for the school district in the maintenance division.”

After attaining EMT certification, he enrolled in the paramedic program, during which he was hired by Whitman Fire/Rescue and, like Lucas, completed the paramedic course during his probationary year.

“That just shows they wanted to get the job done,” Grenno said.

The new firefighters and their families and friends then went to Venus III in Hanson for a celebratory reception.

The W-H Regional School District rolled out its proposed fiscal 2019 budget at the Wednesday, Feb. 7 School Committee meeting — a foundation budget of $50,706,972 that is up 4.1 percent from fiscal 2018. The current fiscal 2018 budget is $48,688,029.

The projected deficit for that budget now sits at $2,674,821 with a projected revenue shortfall — without a local assessment increase — of $655,878 and increased expenses of $2,018,943. Last year, the deficit a rollout was $2.7 million.

Operating assessments will depend on the final operating budget approved by the School Committee by mid-March. Last year’s assessment increase was about 8.5 percent on average — higher for Whitman than Hanson based on enrollment. Hypothetically an 8.5 percent assessment increase this year, coupled with a $500,000 transfer from excess and deficiency, would still leave a $457,000 deficit. For each 1 percent of an assessment increase, it means $202,000 in revenue for schools.

The foundation budget proposal centers on a level service plan with the addition of “several top priorities that the leadership and administrative teams have deemed are critical to the success of WHRHSD students,” Superintendent of Schools Dr. Ruth Gilbert-Whitner wrote in her budget book introduction.

“The numbers tonight are just the beginning, but we feel it’s very important to express to you all what we see as the financial needs of the school system,” she said.

Those priorities include: the first of a multi-year one-to-one devices (Chromebooks) plan; two special education teachers for middle school science inclusion; a family liaison and instructional materials for the elementary science program.

“The issue of level services is rather unique this year and that is because we’re closing the Maquan School, which has really shifted funding a way from Maquan … to the other buildings and also to programs,” Gilbert-Whitner said. “It’s what I call a proposed budget.”

Some of the approximately $600,000 in cost savings to be realized this year as a result of closing Maquan are a principal’s salary as Dr. Eliabeth Wilcox serving as principal of both Maquan and Indian Head schools, consolidation of the Indian Head special ed programs and pro-rated building utilities, maintenance and insurance costs. School-by-school, budgets show scales of increase depending on where Maquan programs are moved.

A $40,000 request for Chromebooks, licenses and carts is part of a $155,000 seven-year initiative taking district schools through fiscal 2026.

Priorities not included, but still advocated are: full-day, no-cost kindergarten; consistent school opening times; supplementing the middle school foreign language program; instrumental music, professional development; and instructional materials to align with updated state standards.

Committee member Fred Small expressed concern over how much could be safely transferred from excess and deficiency. Last year, $750,000 was taken from that account to lessen the budget shortfall, with $1.3 million returned from the previous fiscal year. Over the course of fiscal 2018, only $450,000 had been put back.

“The budgets are just tighter and tighter,” Gilbert-Whitner said. “We’ve become more dependent on it and with very tight budgeting we’re not putting back the same [amounts as in the past].”

Right now, there is $936,761 in excess and deficiency.

“If we look at $750,000 this year and we’ve got $936,000 in it, we’ve got to hope that nothing goes wrong or changes in the school district or throughout the year,” School Committee Chairman Bob Hayes said. “I would recommend we don’t hit that for anywhere near $750,000 this year.”

Chapter 70 state funds have leveled off since local target shares of total school budgets were begun in 2007. State calculations have the WHRSD receiving $4 million more in Chapter 70 funds than it should be, Gilbert-Whitner said.

First reaction

“Whitman Finance Committee is currently meeting with departments and reviewing their budgets … I appreciate the opportunity to have this information to bring back to them early,” said Richard Anderson, whose board will be meeting with school district representatives in the next couple of weeks. “We’re facing some pretty significant challenges in the town of Whitman, but it’s still early in the process.”

State Education figures put the average per-pupil expenditure at $15,545, while W-H’s per-pupil expenditure is $11,815. To meet the state average, Gilbert-Whitner said the W-H foundation budget would have to be $62,180,000.

Declining enrollment, one of the considerations that went into closing the Maquan School, is also a challenge for school budgets across the state as well as the nation.

“People might think right away, ‘Enrollment is down, why is this budget going up?’” said Whitman resident Dawn Byers. “For me, personally, I have two children at home, when they move on to college my enrollment at my home is going to be zero, but my homeowners insurance might go up, my personal health insurance might go up.”

State Rep. Josh Cutler, D-Duxbury, said state revenues are running $158 million above projected benchmarks for January and about $800 million higher for the year to-date, but cautioned that could be in part due to people pre-paying property taxes ahead of implementation of the new federal tax reform act.

Staff members from the offices of state Rep. Geoff Diehl, R-Whitman, and state Sen. Mike Brady, D-Brockton, joined Cutler at the meeting.

Cutler also said the consensus revenue forecast is up 3.5 percent in terms of revenue growth, which in turn should mean local aid would increase by the same percentage.

The minimum per-pupil increment, however has again started at a rate of $20 by the governor.

“That’s happened in the past,” Cutler said. “We’ve always been able to increase that number — last year to $30, two years ago to $50. I’m optimistic that we’ll see an increase in that. I don’t know how much it’s going to be yet.”

He said the Regional School Caucus has been more active and has been trying to increase spending for regional school transportation, among other needs.

“The idea is that we should be reimbursed at 100 percent,” Gilbert-Whitner said. “We are not.” She added that circuit-breaker funds that aid special education is supposed to be a 75-percent reimbursement, but is currently at 65 percent.

The W-H operating budget also depends on grants and other funding sources for $1.7 million of its revenue, according to Gilbert-Whitner.

“Over 88 positions in the WHRSD are paid for by grants,” she said. “These are extremely important. If these federal grants are cut or reduced, that’s a huge hit to the WHRSD and that needs to then be picked up by the operating budget.”

Charter school as well as homeless student transportation reimbursements are also paid to the district by the state at a rate of less than 100 percent.

“We have some real concerns with some of the revenue at the state level,” Gilbert-Whitner said.

HANSON — The rupture of a 12-inch water main caused the shutdown of several area businesses and traffic near 1120 Main Street at noon on Tuesday, while crews stopped the water flow.

A Hanson Highway Department worker came across the active break as he was driving down Main Street around 11:40 a.m. and relayed to the water department.

The street had buckled from the water flow underneath the roadway a failure of the roadbed three feet across, affecting both sides of the street.

“Residents may notice a brownish tinge to the water, which is normal for a water main break,” said Assistant Superintendent of the Water Department Jerry Davis.

There was no reported boil order in effect, he said.

Approximately 15 homes and four businesses, including Dunkin’ Donuts were affected by the water shut off. The road closures did not affect the commuter rail, which was still operating normally.

Workers were able to shut off the water by 12:07 p.m. They would be making the repairs as quickly as possible, but were expected to take several hours, Davis said.

Davis said the Whitman-Hanson School Department was notified by his office in case the bus route was affected later Tuesday.

Hanson police blocked traffic at Elm Street and Main Street and Elm Street to Phillips Street. Highway Surveyor Robert Brown, Dig Safe and Brockton Utilities were also on scene as repairs were being made.

WHITMAN — An Open Meeting concern has prompted Whitman Selectmen on Tuesday, Aug. 15 to continue a public hearing considering allegations about the alcoholic beverage license issued to O’Toole’s Pub.

The hearing will resume on Tuesday, Sept. 19 — to be the sole item on that agenda — as town officials inform two people involved in a fight at the 24 Raynor Ave. pub on Jan. 6, 2017 that discussions of the event could make them identifiable, even if their names are not mentioned.

A criminal investigation of the incident is still pending.

Pub owner Tom O’Toole has not yet had the opportunity to address the incident, but his lawyer David Flanagan said “we’re here, we’d like the hearing tonight.”

Flanagan had asked that witnesses not use names of those involved in the incident.

“They were redacted from the exhibits,” he said. “I don’t know any of the names — I haven’t received one name on a police report.”

Selectmen Chairman Dr. Carl Kowalski asked if there was any way viewers of the cable broadcast of the meeting would be able to identify those involved from witness testimony.

“If it becomes clear to anyone watching this [meeting] video that he or she is being spoken about, whether names are mentioned or not, then that person had the right to have notice and to be here,” Kowalski said. “It’s not enough to not say the names.”

Town Attorney Matthew Tobin said the Open Meeting Law requires a board to provide notice. Any testimony those persons may give, if they opt to attend a hearing could be done in executive session, Kowalski said.

“That’s the issue, the right to be in executive session,” said Town Administrator Frank Lynam.

Tobin said that right could be waived, but it is the right of those people whose identity or reputation is at stake to make, not the board’s.

“The fact that a meeting is publicly posted does not eliminate a necessity to provide notice to someone who may be discussed.” he said.

Flanagan said he understands the privacy issue, but said he and his client had no standing on the issue.

“This is between you two,” he said of discussions between Kowalski and Tobin on how the involved parties would be notified.

Tobin had outlined the timeline of the investigation and hearing postponements made to ensure a more definite statement of the allegations against him was provided to O’Toole so he could prepare his defense.

Lynam explained the hearing had been postponed more than once “due to a number of issues.”

An individual involved in the fight was injured.

“The board is now hearing from the licensee as to what occurred and why the event should or should not have been found in violation of his all-alcohol license,” Lynam said.

Tobin said the original hearing notice letter was dated March 31 and the board voted on March 28 to notify O’Toole of the alleged violations of his liquor license.

“It has been rescheduled a number of times, most recently by a notice dated July 31,” Tobin said. “A supplemental notice was issued Mr. O’Toole at the request of his counsel … in response to a request for additional information.”

That request provided O’Toole and his attorney with a list of exhibits as well as copies of them, audiotapes and a copy of a videotape that was provided by the pub to Whitman Police. They have also been provided a list of potential witnesses to the incident prepared to testify at the hearing.

Flanagan had advised Tobin that he would stipulate to Whitman Fire-Rescue documents and that Fire Chief Timothy Grenno was not required to testify at the hearing. Selectmen excused Grenno from the hearing.

During an executive session at the Aug. 15 meeting, Selectmen viewed a video of the fight, asking police officials including Chief Scott Benton and Deputy Chief Timothy Hanlon and a detective into that session, presumably to answer questions.

“We have concerns that, displaying that video in open session would likely offend the privacy interests of those parties affected by that video,” Flanagan said in requesting it be viewed in executive session and the board agreed.

Kowalski’s concern about supporting witness testimony was raised when, back in open session, Flanagan asked that witnesses attending to offer testimony not mention the names of those in the fight.

Tobin agreed that Kowalski’s concern over adequate notification was valid and that the records produced to Flanagan had been redacted.

“That’s what was a red flag to me, because I’m not sure,” Kowalski said. “It is possible that people can figure it out if they know of the events.”

Tobin also said the persons involved in the fight, and subject to testimony even if unnamed, are entitled to receive advance notice of their right to attend such a meeting.

“I can’t anticipate what their response would be,” Tobin said, adding that the issue had not been directly encountered in the case to this point.

“I’m simply asking the witnesses not to use any names,” Flanagan said. He said it would protect those involved in the fight, the police department and the district attorney’s office.

O’Toole’s had been disciplined once within the last four years for license violations and has been advised of the town’s liquor license regulations, according to Tobin.

“Prior discipline within that four-year window is something that may be considered by this board, consistent with the rules and regs, consistent with the board’s authority … in determining what, if any, discipline is appropriate based upon the incident that occurred on Jan. 6.”

Flanagan provided Selectmen with an information packet, including the 2015 disciplinary decision in which he highlighted areas that will be part of his argument in the present matter.

WHITMAN — Staff and volunteers from Whitman-Hanson Community Access TV, as they say in show biz, took its act on the road — or at least across town — for the taping of some of its regular in-studio programs Friday, Aug. 4.

It’s the first such effort, other than football games and of a Hanson Town Meeting, for which the nonprofit organization has used its new transmission truck. Two programs, “Bring It On,” with Bob Hayes and “Andrea’s Fit Yoga” with Andrea Mariani were taped at Hobart’s Pond off Colebrook Boulevard before lighting curtailed the evening’s work. They plan to return this Friday to tape an episode of “Painting with Danielle” with host Danielle Tierney.

Similar programs are being planned for locales in Hanson, said Access Operations Coordinator Kevin Tocci.

“Kevin came to me with the idea and it was going to be one show,” said WHCA Executive Director Eric Dresser, who was Hayes’ guest for his show. “I said, ‘Boy, that’s a lot of work for a 30-minute show. Why don’t we try to tack a couple others on?’”

Dresser said it was too early to discuss details for the Hanson programs, which are still in the early planning stages, as they line up locations and obtain any required permission or permits from governing boards.

“We’d like to visit each of the two towns over the summer,” Dresser said.

Hayes said he was enthusiastic about taking his show on location as he and Dresser chatted while technicians worked to set up cameras, wiring and work out which microphones would best link cameras with the remote truck.

“I think it’s great,” Hayes said. “I know that it’s innovative for WHCA, but it’s been done other years — We’ve done Whitman and we’ve done Hanson and it just shows you that Whitman-Hanson Community Access cable is really being proactive in going after town stuff. We’re showing off the assets of the towns of Whitman and Hanson.”

He also noted that the location choice for the Aug. 4 programs bring some focus back on an area of Whitman with a lot of community history.

“It’s a beautiful place,” Hayes said.

The location also made itself heard in the programs as the wind picked up and a flock of Canada geese honked loudly as they flew from the pond for the evening.

“The ducks must hear me talking as they’re honking in the background,” Hayes said as cameras began to roll for “Bring It On,” and he introduced his guest and location.

“We’re here to discuss with [Dresser] what Whitman Community Access does,” Hayes said toward the camera, noting Dresser was hired in January to succeed the late Steve Roy as the WHCA executive director. “I’d be remiss not to mention we are here in Whitman at Colebrook Boulevard, which used to be known back in the ’70s and ’80s, as a local parking spot, so to speak. … It’s a beautiful place for anybody to come and walk through.”

Dresser has been executive director since January, coming from Hingham where he also served in that capacity on the local community access station.

“I think video is as important now as it’s ever been— if not more,” Dresser said, replying to a question from Hayes about the future of community access television. “I went over my data plan this month on my cell phone because of videos that were autoplaying on Facebook, so if we can help create more professional versions of those videos, if we can get some well-thought-out video statements out there … that’s as important now as ever. I think places like WHCA have a big role in that, in informing and educating individuals in using that technology better and providing that for the folks that don’t carry that studio around in their pocket and want to do something better.”

Dresser also said WHCA is looking for people both to learn technical skills as volunteers and to bring new ideas for the company to pursue.   

Tocci added that Hayes is a valuable volunteer himself, hosting several programs and serving as moderator for some Hanson political forums for WHCA.

“He’s someone who talks about the need to volunteer — and practices what he preaches,” Tocci said. “I can’t tell you how many hours a year he puts in, and if there’s an issue he wants to get it out there to the public.”

Tocci said Hayes is one of 40 volunteers WHCA has cultivated and they are seeking more under Dresser.

Hayes and Dresser both said the remote taping was a success.

“It went great — no issues,” Hayes said.

Dresser indicated that some technical aspects such as wireless equipment can always be an issue when one is taping in a new location, but that he was pleased with the results.

“There’s such a big difference between a studio shoot where you can control the environment, you control the lighting, a lot of times you can control the sound — the geese,” Tocci said. “But the beauty of this is we’re out in the community.”

He noted that passersby were interested and excited about the taping.

Next up for taping on location were Mariani and her assistant Emily Pollock for “Andrea’s Fit Yoga.” An instructor for more than 12 years, Mariani said that, while she also teaches pilates, yoga is better suited for instruction via television as there is less risk for injury if the home viewer does a move improperly.

She starts each yoga lesson with a stretching session to warm up.

“We get into a gentle flow and then we end with a savasana (corpse pose for rest), a meditation towards the end,” Mariani said. “I like to keep the material new and fresh so that you don’t get bored.”

Keeping the audience engaged is key both in her own studio and over the air.

The 23rd annual Plymouth County Drug and Alcohol Resistance Education (DARE) Summer Program may be a tough one to top. During the week, campers and staff watched an apparently-successful attempt to set a Guinness World Record while learning leadership and good choices, playing and interacting with new friends.

“The police officers and school resource officers would not be here but for the leadership of the Plymouth County police chiefs, many of whom are here today,” said Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz.

This year, about 50 officers in 23 departments participated, a record number, Cruz noted.

Speaking of records, Mark Kenny of Plymouth has long entertained by walking on his hands, but this week he not only brought his talent to DARE Camp on Thursday, July 27 — water day. He achieved what appears to be a new world record.

Inverted sprinting or walking on your hands while pulling a car was the challenge he set out to attain. Now, in coming weeks, officials from the Guinness Book Of Worlds Records will review video and authenticity of his stunt.

With nearly 500 campers and staff present along with an onslaught of police officers and media he will have plenty of documentation.

Kenny’s family was present to witness their dad’s success. His wife Mary, sons Will, 11, and Johnny, 15 and daughter Katie, 13, were among the crowd cheering, “Move That Car!”

The momentum of the crowd helped him get rolling, said Kenny who pulled a Cooper, which weighs approximately 2,800 pounds attached by a tether around his waist five meters while he walked on his hands, pulling it.

“I want to thank Mark for letting you guys be part of this special event,” Cruz said during his remarks at the Friday, July 28 graduation ceremony.

He has been walking on his hands for 20 years, exercises everyday with resistance and pushing weighted sleds and plans to continue using his talents.

Another impressive personal achievement was saluted during Friday’s graduation ceremony, a Duxbury girl was honored for her honesty in turning in a $20 bill she found under the bleachers in the WHRHS gym on the first day of camp.

“We try to teach the kids to make life decisions, to be responsible, be respectful and to be honest,” said Hanson DARE and School Resource Officer William Frazier. Hanson is the event’s host community.

Frazier had told her the $20 was hers if no one claimed it at the end of the day. He never saw her again until he called for her to come claim it at the graduation ceremony.

“That says a lot about her, her family and her community,” Frazier said. “So, where are you? Come up and get your $20.”

Frazier thanked Hanson Police Chief Michael Miksch for letting him be part of the DARE program as well as Whitman Chief Scott Benton and his town’s DARE officer Kevin Harrington and WHRSD officials for their efforts in support of the event. Hanson Fire Chief Jerome Thompson Jr. was also lauded for his department’s help in making the camp’s popular water day possible.

More than 20 police departments, the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department and the Massasoit Community College Police Department participated in the camp this year.

“These officers come to camp every day and give your child 110 percent,” Frazier told parents attending the graduation ceremony. “This camp does not exist without the extraordinary participation and dedication of each of these officers.”

Leadership service awards were presented to three campers in the name of police officers who have passed after careers dedicated to their communities — Robert Quigley and Helen Gray of Marshfield Police and Gerald Mont of Whitman Police. Camper Ava Dant was also honored for her work during the year to raise funds to make it possible for kids who might not be able to afford it to attend camp.

Cruz gave special thanks to the work of police and sheriff department officials whose work to control drug trafficking, especially of opiates, putting the money seized from drug dealers back to work in the DARE program to fight future drug problems through programs like the annual camp. He also thanked the nearly 20 businesses who donated food for lunches and snacks provided to campers during the week. The event concluded with the introduction of the 24 DARE camper teams, of which the top three winners of the team cheer competition had the opportunity to demonstrate their rhymes.

Members of Whitman-Hanson WILL, an anti-opiod abuse community group, met at the WHRHS library on Wednesday, July 19 to review past programs, a 2016 youth survey and current opioid overdose data.

The group will hold another meeting at the school’s library at 1:45 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 21 before planning a community-wide session at the Hanson Public Library on a date to be determined in October.

“We want to include the community in some of our discussions, because we have been primarily focused at the school and with law enforcement throughout Whitman and Hanson,” said Amanda Sandoval of the Brockton Area Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative. “We really want to have the voice of the community  involved.”

Attending the July 19 meeting were police chiefs Scott Benton of Whitman and Michale Miksch of Hanson; police officers Daniel Connolly of Whitman, and Elisha Sullivan of Hanson and Hanson DARE School Resource Officer William Frazier; W-H Principal Jeffrey Szymaniak, Adjustment Counselor Erin Monroe and Athletic Director Bob Rodgers as well as Ed Jacobs, the director of grants and sponsored projects from the Plymouth County DA’s office; Sandoval and Anna Dowd of the Brockton Area Opioid Abuse Prevention Collaborative — as well as a few community members. Member Maureen Leonard of WHRHS was unable to attend, so Symaniak provided an overview of past programs through the school.

Szymaniak echoed Sandoval’s message that the group wants to branch out into the community  in its efforts to being the message of making good choices regarding drugs and alcohol that are already being addressed at the school level.

“We really hit the ground running in 2014 and I think we’ve managed to do a lot in a small amount of time,” he said. “This is an important group.”

Past programs have included the drug-free community survey Rodgers reviewed, the PhotoVoice program depicting students’ artistic representations of their substance abuse concerns, guest speakers for students and the community as well as the Hidden in Plain site mock-up of a teen bedroom and how drugs can be hidden from parents.

Szymaniak noted how he has had to attend the funerals of too many former students, including three recently in Scituate, where he used to teach.

Sandoval suggested the meetings could alternate between school and community-based meetings such as the one they are planning for the Hanson Library in October.

One parent at the meeting asked for a parents’ program on cell phone applications teens use to communicate about things they want to hide from parents.

“Rather than meeting parents when they’re in this desperation phase where they don’t know where to go, they don’t know where to turn, I think it’s important to be proactive,” she said.

Benton and Miksch reported that overdoses are statistically holding steady — from nine fatalities among 49 overdoses in Whitman in 2015 to three fatalities among 41 overdoses in 2016 and — so far this year — three fatalities among 19 overdoses.

“Before you are going to see a significant drop from 49 to, say, 25 or 30 it’s going to be three to five years,” Benton said. “This has been going on for several years. … Those are sobering numbers when you consider we’re a 14,000-15,000 community.”

Death certificates are not always clear as to whether opioid overdoses are a main cause of death, he noted.

“When you can go in and say of these 38 cases, all of them were overdoses, not some are pending, you can go to the governor and keep saying, ‘We need money,’” Benton said.

Sandoval said all 27 police departments in Plymouth County are on board, sharing their data for realtime reporting of overdoses. It has revealed that almost half of all overdoses are not happening in the towns where victims reside, a statistic that is helping get them the help they need via programs such as Project Outreach.

Miksch noted that the high mark for deaths for Hanson residents was 20 in 2015 — and it shocked him because only half those fatalities occurred in Hanson.

Both he and Benton also said overdose deaths ranged in age from teens to adults in their 60s.

Combined with East Bridgewater HOPE, offering informational meetings in Plymouth and East Bridgewater as well as Project Outreach’s goal to have an officer, counselor or both visit the home of overdoses within 24 hours with information on rehab services.

“There’s no judgment,” Miksch said of the program.

Jacobs said the national statistic for overdose deaths is 16 per 100,000. There were 41 among Plymouth County’s approximately 500,000 residents in 2013 and 80 in 2014.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid frequently originating in China and Mexico, is the game-changer police said because it is more powerful and takes more Narcan to counteract. Drug-sniffing dogs can’t smell fentanyl and it presents a danger to police as it can be absorbed through the skin.

Sandoval said there have been three overdoses at Brockton Hospital where fentanyl had been added to marijuana the victims were smoking.

HANOVER — Faced with the need for expansion to accommodate new educational standards and increasing enrollment — and having been passed over twice in recent years for MSBA funding — South Shore Regional Vocational Educational Technical High School is preparing to make the argument to go ahead with the work on its own.

“We want to serve the communities and the taxpayers who are sending their students here, certainly, but the status quo isn’t good enough anymore,” said Superintendent-Director Dr. Thomas J. Hickey. “Knowing what we want and asking once is important.”

That means preparing information to present to member communities illustrating the need for expansion, as well as how it can be done, with or without borrowing funds, to accomplish all the goals.

On Thursday, July 13 members of the SSVT Regional School Committee’s Capital Projects Subcommittee met to discuss that work, with the issue slated to go before the full committee on Wednesday, July 19.

“The Capital Projects Subcommittee is a logical place to start in terms of determining what steps we might take,” Hickey said. “A well-documented plan is expected to address that across the board.”

The aim is development of a master facilities plan encompassing the relative health of the building, such as Tri-County Vocational in Wakefield produced last year. Hickey supplied copies to the subcommittee for reference.

“We all know the motivation for the discussion — increased enrollment, increased demand — the building is not getting any younger,” Hickey said. “We know we need more space, what’s inside the space we have needs to be modernized, and there’s no guarantee that we’re going to get any support from the [Mass. School Building Authority] MSBA.”

The state funding agency has limited funds and an increasing number of applicants, some with more acute need. SSVT’s stabilization fund allows the school to plan and present an adequate argument to the member towns.

Possible out-buildings in which to place shops to free up space for other purposed in the main building are an option. Such self-contained buildings that are affordable within a budget year, are about 6,000 square feet are the type of project that the school can fund on its own in a single budget year. That size is considered helpful, but is not likely to be a lot in “the world of vocational shop space,” Hickey said.

The school, surrounded by wetlands does not have a lot of buildable space available and it uses a septic system because sewerage is not available.

Larger projects, perhaps a larger one that can be funded through borrowing or through a “deeper part of the stabilization fund, something that we could not have our kids in their shops do” are also possible.

“There’s not a whole lot that our kids can’t do,” said committee member Robert Mahoney of Rockland. He noted that the panel is not looking for the funding for a $100,000 feasibility study or a $6 million building. “We’re coming [to towns] for X-amount of dollars to buy eight out-buildings that’s going to be very minimal to bring us up to where we need to be.”   

Septic capacity should also be included in any feasibility study in case an expansion project triggers the need for adding a wastewater treatment facility for the school, Hickey advised. Septic capacity hinges on the demand and number of fixtures in the building.

When the new wing was completed in 1993 there were 460 students at SSVT with 650 expected as of the 2017-18 school year.

Hickey said that, while enrollment in sending towns is trending down, SSVT’s enrollment for those towns is holding steady — with out-of-disctrict enrollments increasing.

“We’ve got to stop what we’re doing,” Cohasset member Kenneth Thayer said “We’ve got to expand the building, get the building up to snuff. Students should be able to come in and go to school here. We want to add to it.”

He forecast that the new horticulture/landscaping and plumbing programs will be very popular, necessitating new space. He advocated that, if five out-buildings can be constructed, it may be cheaper to do now than “down the road.”

Hickey said, given present space constraints, the horticulture program may have to limit its first class to about 12 students. Building toward 50 by the time those freshmen graduate.

“Other then metal fabrication-welding, every shop has a footprint that is smaller than the Department of Education’s recommended square footage,” he said. Metal fabrication used to share space with industrial technology, which was discontinued 15 years ago.

The autobody shop is also being required to expand with another, enclosed, bay for welding aluminum. Certification for the program will hinge on that.

“It’s not a crisis right now, but NATEF [National Automotive Technician’s Education Foundation] has told us that, when we come back in 2020 or 2021, we won’t be able to certify the program if the existing footprint does not contain a segregated area for aluminum work,” Hickey said. “It’s that the industry is doing more aluminum work, and if you do regular collision repair work, and aluminum work, it could contaminate equipment.”

There was some good news on the feasibility study front, however.

Hickey said the school has an advantage in that it has local people who know construction and know the building well. Engineering firms would spend time obtaining that information.

“If you ask me what programs are most limiting with their space, I’m going to tell you it’s the ones that are over-subscribed and it is not safe to have the ratios,” he said. “We’re going to talk about the heavy-equipment programs.”

Mahoney wants to see out-buildings used to accommodate present students, rather than using them to attract more at this point.  Weight, ceiling height requirements and MSBA time limitations following previous roof projects limit options for adding another floor to the school.

“The good news is we have the capacity to look into this,” Hickey said.

HANSON — Police Chief Michael Miksch is preparing to offer an assessment center for sergeants in his department as part of the search for a new lieutenant — a position that has been vacant for about a year and a half.

“I would like to fill that position again,” Miksch said. “It’s needed. The way I would like to fill it is through an assessment center.”

The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday, July 11 voted to approve Town Administrator Michael McCue’s recommendation to contract with Integrity Testing to administer the assessment center. Selectmen also approved the qualifications Miksch had drawn up for consideration for promotion to lieutenant.

McCue made the recommendation based on their program and as the low-bidder for the testing.

Selectman Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett asked if McCue and/or Miksch had “kicked the tires” on Integrity.

“They have quite a lengthy resume,” McCue said. “We’ve done that sort of search.” Miksch said he had no objections to that firm.

Miksch himself was hired through the town’s work with BadgeQuest on an assessment center. Evaluators would be captain level or above, and likely would include chiefs or deputy chiefs.

Miksch said he was partial to BadgeQuest, which was the assessment center he went through, but had no objection to Integrity Testing as he had placed it close behind BadgeQuest in his ranking of the five bidding assessment companies. Hanson Police Department also used a BadgeQuest assessment center for its last sergeant’s exam, promoting three off that list.

“It’s not your typical, multiple-choice Civil Service exam, although Civil Service does recognize assessment centers now,” Miksch said. “Being non-Civil Service, we can determine how we want to do promotions.”

The process combines a written portion, often as a report, following a practical exercise. No dates have been set for the assessment center yet.

“I like the assessment centers because they test the individual’s abilities, knowledge and skills,” Miksch said. “You either know something or you don’t. There’s no guessing if it’s A, B, C or D — you have to put out and produce.”

While all five Hanson Police Department sergeants will be welcome to take the assessment, only two meet the criteria required for advancement to lieutenant right now. For the others, it is a chance to go on the list at their three-year mark and to enable them to move on if they wish to take another opportunity.

To qualify for consideration for the lieutenant’s position, applicants must have three years of employment as a full-time Hanson Police sergeant. Tie scores will be broken by seniority and the score list will be active for two years and points will be given for advanced degrees, seniority and veteran’s status. A one-year probationary period is also included.

“Who would know more about the position you wanted to fill than you?” Selectman Jim Hickey said. “I think it’s a formality that we’re doing this.”

Credit where due

Miksch also took the opportunity Tuesday night to credit the officers and detectives who worked two recent theft cases, as well as those who are working to control the opioid overdose problem in town.

Hanson officers working the case of an armed robbery attempt at the Dunkin’ Donuts on Liberty Street June 14 were Sgt. Eugene Andrews and officers Marc Vigneau, Dan Godwin, Jared Meegan and Brent Peterson.

“This was the third time we’ve had a robbery or an armed robbery in the area,” Miksch said noting past incidents at Mutual Federal and Rockland Trust banks. “These [officers] have it down to a science. They go in, do a very good job of working together — knowing who has what cameras — they know the town, they know the businesses and the people, and they wrap up some of these things fairly quickly.”

Meegan was singled out for his observations of the would-be robbery suspect’s behavior and description earlier in the evening at Shaw’s supermarket, which proved invaluable to making an arrest, Miksch said. Meegan was a member of the Wellfleet Police Department before coming to Hanson three years ago.

“The officers did an outstanding job,” Miksch said. “The most notable one would be officer Meegan. … On his normal patrol earlier in the evening, he saw a vehicle with a male and a female in it that just didn’t sit right with him.”

Meegan then remained at the Shaw’s lot and ran the vehicle’s license plate, which came back to some Quincy residents. Other officers investigating the Dunkin Donuts incident — gathering surveillance camera footage from area businesses — noticing that one suspect was wearing the same pair of distinctive shorts Meegan had described as worn by the male at the Shaw’s incident.

“That was a big key for this,” Miksch said. “For us, a lot of things — one might say — is dumb luck, but I think sometimes you make your luck. In this case, they did.”

Detective Paul O’Brien worked to secure arrest warrants, two of which were from Norfolk County for Quincy evidence, which also helped Quincy Police clear three armed robberies, Miksch said. Abington is now looking at two others.

While the officers were in Quincy on June 16, Officer Elisha Sullivan and Sgt. Michael Bearce took a call for the breaking and entering of a vehicle at Shaw’s.

“They got some great information from a witness,” Miksch said. “The dispatcher David Munn did some great work putting a broadcast out very quickly. The Whitman Police stopped them at the CVS on Bedford Street.”

The Hanson victim’s property, as well as property from a number of other thefts, was recovered. Sgt. Peter Calogero also became involved in the case, working to obtain search warrants based on forensic evidence from cell phones and is working to return property.

“There was some great stuff in a two-day period that these guys did,” Miksch said.

Opioid battle

In addition to carrying Narcan to deal with opioid overdoses, Hanson officers have also been working within the limitations of legal restrictions imposed on narcotic evidence at overdose calls to arrest drug dealers.

Miksch said funding from Plymouth County DA Timothy Cruz’s office and the Sheriff’s Department have established a database to track incidents of overdoses as well as providing information to officers to “work our way up the supply chain” and make arrests of dealers.

Hanson officers are also working with groups such as East Bridewater HOPE and the Outreach Program in Carver and surrounding communities — which have since merged their efforts. The goal is to have an officer and a counselor show up at an overdose victim’s home within 24 hours to provide treatment information and a bed at a rehab facility.

Over the past 10 years, an average of two people a year reporting Hanson as their last address, died from opioid overdoses, based on statistics from Whitman-Hanson WILL. Since then, the number of reversals — people that have been saved — have increased thanks to the counseling programs.

“We’ve been doing a lot,” Miksch said. “You don’t see it … but detective O’Brien and officer Sullivan are my two outreach people right now. Every city and town in Plymouth County is involved in adding information to this database.”