Halifax BOS Approve Multiple Uses for Town Green
The Halifax Board of Selectmen met on Tuesday, Jan. 24. It was the first meeting for new Town Administrator Cody Haddad.
Halifax Pride
President and Director of Halifax Pride, Lori Costa, appeared before the Board to discuss a Pride event she wished to hold on Saturday, June 17. She said that after first holding the event in 2021, they now feel prepared to hold a much larger one. “Our goal is to promote community, love, and understanding that we’re all neighbors and the Queer community… exist in all walks of life,” Costa said. Costa outlined some difficulties in organizing the first event with the town and said that they learned along the way to ask more questions and be more persistent in getting answers.
She said that a perceived issue with the live entertainment caused a small group of people on social media to spew hateful commentary online. She noted that Police Chief Joao Chaves attended the event in both 2021 and 2022, and had positive feedback for it.
Costa elaborated saying, “During our campaign period for our Special Town Election for the two vacant seats Mr. Nessralla and Mr. Bruno occupy now… at that time questions were asked that asked candidates about the entertainment at Halifax Pride… I was disappointed at some of the answers given by some candidates who had no knowledge of what actually occurred at our event. Instead, their opinions were formed based on assumptions or other events held at our town. This is the misinformation I hope to clarify tonight. In closing, I will say that I am a 21-year resident of Halifax. I have volunteered in many capacities in our community most of which have been to support children. Halifax has wonderful people but there are times, in my experience, when the climate has been difficult if you are different or are considered different.”
Alex Hagerty, who was a speaker at last year’s event, addressed the Halifax Selectmen saying he was happy to serve as Abington’s first openly gay Selectman. “I feel it is important for LGBTQ youth and adults, as part of their own acceptance of who they are to see and hear from people just like them – to be seen as equal people in society so they can be confident in themselves,” Hagerty said. “It was my understanding that there had been some concerns from residents in the town about the entertainment of the day, specifically the drag queens… Halifax Pride has always been advertised as a family friendly event… I can attest to the family friendly nature of the drag performances… the acts were tastefully done, outfits eloquently suited for all ages.”
Chief Chaves, who was on the call, chimed in calling the event “well done” in the past and said he doesn’t anticipate any safety concerns. The Selectmen voted to approve use of the Town Green noting that they still need to get the necessary permits and licenses.
Safety Concerns for COA
Selectmen Chair John Bruno said that Council on Aging (COA) Director Darlene Regan had expressed safety concerns in their building. According to Regan, there was an incident when an individual entered the building causing a disturbance and another time when the Police needed to come to the building. “The Police Chief has made some specific recommendations involving panic buttons, public access, and panic alarms,” Bruno said. “It seems to me that we should refer this to the Building Committee and have them work on having these issues addressed,” he continued. Regan, who was in attendance, said they have been provided with panic buttons that they can carry around in the event of an emergency.
Bruno said they had a resignation letter from Bob Ross, who previously stepped down from the Building Committee, and now needed to resign from the Zoning Bylaw Review Committee due to work commitments. Selectman Jonathan Selig asked that a thank you letter be sent to Ross.
RFP for Solar Field
The Selectmen had a meeting with Jerry Joy regarding an RFP for a Solar Field. Joy explained that they previously had an RFP for a landfill and then were granted approval to go ahead with it. “There’s two ways of doing it… Power Options Incorporated, they’re a non-profit and you can join their non-profit and they’ll come out, look at the site, hire the contractor – you have no say on it,” Joy explained. He continued, “To me, I’m a business man… as far as I’m concerned owning it is the best way… if the town owned it, you’re electrical bill would be paid one-hundred percent every month… but you would have to finance it so you’re looking at probably $3 million to build out there but that was two years ago.” He said the other option would be to go out to bid and noted that at the end of eight years, the town would own it. Haddad recommended creating an article for Town Meeting since any lease of town land over five years requires approval at Town Meeting. Joy said he would meet with Haddad to discuss next steps.
Liquor License Transfer
The Selectmen also held a hearing for the transfer of an alcohol beverage license from In Season Restaurant, Inc. d/b/a Lakeside Villa to Monponsett Events, LLC. Selig thanked the previous owner for their dedication to the town including their help with building the new playground. The Selectmen voted unanimously to approve the transfer of the license.
MBTA Action Plan
The new Town Administrator addressed the MBTA Action Plan that was on the agenda for the evening. “The State has enacted zoning requirements for communities that have MBTA, commuter rail, or rapid transit in that community so as a result, in order to be in compliance, the State has required that we submit an action plan,” Haddad said. He said that submitting the plan doesn’t commit the town to anything but noted that not submitting it could result in a significant loss of grant funding from the State. Haddad said that those grants include infrastructure and technical assistance grants.
The plan requires that the town have at least one zoning district of a certain size for multi-family housing. Haddad said that the town has only to zone for the construction and doesn’t actually have to build. Planning Board member Amy L. Troup advocated strongly against the plan saying that were the construction to take place it would cost the town more money in the long run. Haddad said that the creation of the plan would buy the town two years of compliance without needing to complete any construction though he noted that the town would have to show some form of effort toward looking into construction. There was considerable debate from those in attendance regarding whether to submit the plan or not. Bruno wished to move forward with submitting the plan, but Selig said that he saw both sides and wished to look into the issue further before the deadline at the end of the month. The Selectmen agreed to meet on Monday, Jan. 30 to make a decision on the matter.
Resident Concerns with MacDonald Industries
The Selectmen were supposed to have an appointment with Marilyn MacDonald of MacDonald Industries, but she was unable to attend. Haddad said he and Selig did a walk-through of the Plymouth Street property earlier that day. Selig said they were given a tour alongside representatives from the company and their legal counsel. “Everything appeared to be in compliance from everything I have read. I did bring up some issues that some of the residents had brought up as far as dust remediation – they say they have a dust remediation plan which is on par with the State. As far as water goes, they said they have their test wells around the facility that they are constantly checking… as far as the truck issues [trucks using Circuit St.]… I spoke with them about improving their signage in the front of the facility,” Selig said.
A few residents in attendance spoke out against the landfill expressing concern over contaminated soil and consequently contaminated water. One resident said that the town voted against the expansion of the landfill 30 years ago and Bruno acknowledged that he did remember that but asked residents to elaborate on their concerns. A resident explained, “the continued contamination, we already said no back then, now we’re adding to it. We’re talking about water, if these 40B’s start coming in our water system; we only have one aquifer we’re using right now. I talked to someone on the Conservation Commission, we basically have two aquifers, one West and one East side of Halifax; our two well locations now, we’re using one. I know there’s concern with Morse Brothers if something ever gets contaminated and we lose wells there – now we’ve got this dump that’s right on the hedge of the aquifer.” The same resident said he was concerned about the contaminated dust blowing around Halifax including the risk of heavy metals. Bruno said he would need to investigate the operation further. Selig was selected to serve as the point person on the residents’ concerns. “If the public would like to email me questions, I can get them to them and get answers,” Selig said.
Earth Day Fair
Amy L. Troup appeared before the Selectmen as part of the Beautification Committee regarding the clean-up days that are typically held on certain days throughout the year. Troup said they are hoping to have a clean-up week this year in mid-April as well as an educational fair on Saturday, April 22 on Earth Day. The Bottle Drive for Scouts would take place that day as well as other events. Troup said they were looking to have the 4th through 6th grade students in town compete in an essay contest related to Earth Day. A number of organizations would also hopefully be present. Troup said the hope would be to bring the community together while educating on ways to make the community greener. The Selectmen approved the use of the Town Green for the fair. “It’s nice to have a positive thing going,” Bruno said.
Request from Mobile Home Park Association
The Selectmen also met with members of the Mobile Home Park Association regarding a grant for the removal of dangerous trees. The grant wouldn’t cost the town anything, but the Selectmen and the town would need to submit it on their behalf. It was said that in two storms, more than 70 homes were hit in the community where 600 residents live, largely elderly. Haddad warned the Selectmen that in the interest of being fair and equitable, they would have to take on projects for other communities or non-profits that came before them with a similar request. Haddad stressed that the town would be on the hook for overseeing the project and paying any money up front were the grant to be a reimbursable one. Selig said, “They are our biggest taxpayers. They don’t usually require a lot of our services… they plow their own roads; I think it would be a good faith gesture to try to help them out.” Bruno said that he would like to start by getting the thoughts of the Highway Surveyor. Haddad recommended that the Association put together a draft application for their review.
Ragnar Relay Race
Their final appointment of the evening was with Amber Sadlier regarding the Ragnar Relay Race which would run through Halifax on May 20. Sadlier said that in the past they haven’t needed a Police detail as the relay passes through Halifax in the middle of the night. She said that about 150 individual runners would likely pass through over the course of seven hours. The runners use Halifax Elementary School as a stopping point. “We’re looking for just a pass-through event permit,” Sadlier explained. The Selectmen voted to allow the race to pass through the town.

The Silver Lake Regional School Committee met in-person on Thursday, Jan. 12. Committee Chair Paula Hatch began the meeting with a moment of silence for twelfth grade student Aiden Ramsey, who passed away during the winter break. “Our hearts and our prayers go out to his family,” Hatch said. Committee member Summer Schmaling thanked the administrative team for the things that they did to support the students in the wake of the tragedy.
The Committee members welcomed new member Laurie Casna who replaced Emily Davis. The Committee reorganized and Jason Fraser nominated Chris Eklund to serve as the Vice Chair.
Preliminary Budget Presentation
Superintendent Jill Proulx put on a presentation for the Committee regarding the FY24 budget for Silver Lake. She said that input was received from the building principals as well as various directors including the Administrator of Special Needs and the Technology Director. The increase represents 3.78 percent or $1,068,915 over the previous year’s budget. Special education transportation was an increase of just over 14 percent. Proulx said that the budget includes 2.5 retirements. She said that any potential changes to shared costs were not yet included in the preliminary budget.
Silver Lake Regional High School Principal Michaela Gill addressed notable increases and decreases in her requests. She said that unlike in previous years, the freshman orientation would be its own line rather than being included in professional development. She said that the Guidance Department would also represent an increase to account for translation and interpretation needs. Transportation would be going up in part due to rising costs. Gill noticed a “giant jump” in athletics but said that it is due to the trainer being included there rather than elsewhere in the budget. She said that an updated kiln would need to be purchased for the Art Department and a modular computer for wellness classes. A new lifting cage as well as other equipment will need to be replaced as well. In addition to the retirements, she also noted that staffing-wise, the second allied health teacher will now need to be fully funded in the budget.
Requests at the Middle School included new copy machines as well new PE equipment. Principal Becky Couet said that they have a 0.5 adjustment counselor currently, but she would like to see the position fully-funded and is therefore asking for another 0.5. “Our students with social and emotional exceptionalities don’t have outbursts or need to be regulated half the time,” Couet said. She said that she is also asking for a special educator position. Finally, she said she would like to have an exploratory seventh grade program where students would be exposed to every elective before choosing to specialize in eighth grade.
Proulx said that the two items that are not in the budget are the two staffing requests. She said the first of which would come out of the revolving account while the second two items would represent $132,000.
Schmaling asked Couet if Silver Lake had the capacity to offer a foreign language to all eighth graders and was told they do not. Committee member Jason Fraser said that he was “trying to lend to the alarm bell” by pointing out that most other middle schools on the South Shore offer two full years of a language while Silver Lake cannot even offer one to all students.
Committee member Gordon Laws noted that residents could ask why student head count has been decreasing each year while the budget has continued to increase when the money is tied to that head count. He pointed out that it becomes a question for a financially strained town like Halifax, in particular. “I think getting some particulars around where we’ve been historically and what we’re looking to do would be useful. I don’t personally have a huge issue with the budget as presented but I just know that that is the sort of thing that comes back,” Laws said.
Fraser said that some of the long-term Committee members will likely remember the push for social and emotional supports even in the years prior to the pandemic due to things like the advent of social media. He noted that the increases to pay for those things falls on the shoulders of the Committee as well as the administration. He acknowledged Laws’ point that it can be difficult to explain those things to someone who is just comparing enrollment numbers to budgetary increases. “I’m just asking for more understanding and detail and it’s not to call anybody out or anything like that,” Laws said. He said he is looking to answer to questions that will be raised, particularly at Halifax’s Town Meeting.
“The sustainability of the Silver Lake budget has been brought up year after year after year… we do need to be very cognizant of our budget and what budget we present to the town every year; I agree we need to look… at how student population dovetails to the staffing, not necessarily to make a change, but as Gordon said, evaluate it and make sure it is reasonable.” She said that it is necessary to be able to defend the budget at the town meetings. Hatch asked the administrative team to come to the next meeting with some of the information requested regarding rising costs and diminishing student population. She also said that a 3.78 percent increase is too high. Laws said that he couldn’t justify that number in the era of inflation, again, particularly for a town like Halifax and requested seeing a number that was a full percent lower. Hatch recommended that the team show the Committee what would have to be given up to get to a number closer to 2.75. She further suggested that the cuts be presented as tiers as has been done in years prior.
The President of the Silver Lake Education Association Jon Lay spoke during the report of standing committees. He touched upon some of the things discussed during the budget presentation, jokingly calling himself a “Silver Lake historian” saying he was in the Middle School in 1992. He noted that foreign language was offered even back then. He also said that special education teachers were feeling the strain of too high caseloads. He also addressed the concerns about rising budgets and reduced enrollment saying that the student to staff ratio was at or just below the State average.
School Calendar Presentation
Proulx also presented the school calendar for next year to the Committee. The first day of school is scheduled for August 30 and the last day, without any snow days, is June 12. Eklund brought up the much-debated topic of including Good Friday on the calendar when other religious holidays are not listed as such. Hatch said that she looked at other local districts and did see that they do list Good Friday in the same way. Eklund suggested holding school on that day and there was some debate on the matter including a Committee member mentioning that most services on that day are held after school hours. The Committee did, however, vote to approve the calendar as presented which did include Good Friday as a day off.
Capital Plan Discussion
Fraser spoke to the Capital Plan calling it a preliminary draft and noting that it was at $1.5 million. “We’ve never had an intention as a Sub Committee to bring this to the table for a vote at that number,” he explained. He said that $800,000 or $900,000 was closer to the number that was voted on during past years. He opened it for discussion with the entire Committee.
Eklund addressed the Admin. building saying that they have had to make constant repairs to it in recent years. “We’ve looked into doing a new Admin. building in the past… we’ve done studies… it’s been unfunded,” he explained. Eklund explained that the cost of the repairs, and an eventual new building, is the responsibility of the three towns and Silver Lake Regional. He noted that Silver Lake has been paying for the repairs thus far.
Fraser told the Committee that at one point they were looking at an $8 million roof replacement plan but said they have managed to get the roofs back to a place where they are, again, under warranty. He said that the $200,000 in the Capital Plan has been the standard allocation to deal with water infiltration in the roofs over the last seven years. He said that one of the largest costs is $300,000 for two large HVAC units on the roofs of the buildings.
“One of the things we discussed in large conversations with the three towns… is potentially putting in a turf field and doing some sort of athletic complex here at Silver Lake when our debt falls off… in ’27… so we’re rapidly approaching when our debt is going to fall off these two buildings and our accounting to the towns,” Fraser said. He noted that the $200,000 in the Capital Plan for an updated track could be absorbed into that cost instead.
The Committee decided to remove the $250,000 placeholder for turf fields as well as a new scoreboard. Hatch said, “my mind always goes to safety.” She went on to say that the doors in the CTE wing posed a safety risk and therefore she was “hesitant” to remove them. Fraser explained that it was a safety concern from the perspective of access to entryways to the school as well. The HVAC units and the CTE doors total approximately $481,000.
The Committee discussed which smaller costs to keep in the Capital Plan as well as exploring other potential funding sources for some of the items such as articles at Town Meeting.
Substitute
Teacher Increase
Superintendent Jill Proulx asked the Committee to consider raising the substitute teacher rate to $107 per day up from $95. She said that the increase was necessary to be in-line with an increase in the minimum wage. The Committee voted unanimously to increase the rate.
Principals’ Reports
Gill began her update by turning things over to the Student Council Representative who told the Committee about Homecoming as well as School Spirit Week. Gill said that the Committee members had a handout that went out to parents of eighth graders as well as parents whose children homeschool or attend charter schools. She said it included save the dates for events such as the CTE Open House. There was some discussion amongst the Committee regarding receiving a similar handout in the mail from Rising Tide Charter School. Hatch said she would like to see some of the school’s achievements highlighted such as the strength of their music program.
Gill also told the Committee that she had three field trip requests for the Committee. The first was for a CTE program to attend a large, construction conference at the Aladdin Center in Providence. The second was for the Girls’ Varsity Basketball program to attend a Division 1 college game, also in Providence. The third request was for two student who qualified to attend a music festival in Rochester, NY. The Committee voted to approve all three.
Finally, Gill provided some program of study updates. She said there were two minor proposals this year with the first being an adjustment to the Sociology course. She said that it would be reduced from a full-year to a single semester course. She said that the reduction would make room for a new Criminal Justice course.
Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch provided a brief update. He said that a student survey which “checks in on students’ learning needs as well as the progress with the social and emotional learning curriculum” would be administered soon in Grades 6-12. Parents are provided with a link to the questions asked as well as the option to opt-out for their students.
Legislative Update
Fraser spoke as the Legislative Agent saying that Representative Kathy LaNatra has agreed to sponsor a bill to allow for a regional assessment stabilization fund. This would allow for towns to create a fund in a year where their assessment is low to be used when the assessment is high. He said that they are also exploring adjusting the Circuit Breaker assessments so that they receive more money back as a reimbursement. Fraser also said that they are pushing for an expansion of the Federal Perkins Act so that students can continue to access CTE programming as close as possible to their home district.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen met in-person on Tuesday, Jan. 10 for what would end up being a nearly 4-hour long marathon meeting filled with resident complaints. The option to participate remotely via Zoom was also provided.
Complaints Against Morse Brothers
Brendan Moquin of Morse Brothers appeared before the Selectmen to address the numerous letters and phone calls the town had received regarding an increase in truck traffic as well as sand and gravel issues. Selectmen Chair John Bruno acknowledged that there were some permitting issues the previous spring prior to the current iteration of the Board of Selectmen.
Moquin said, “We’re simply screening an existing face that we’re bringing material closer to ground; we’re not digging under water, in the water table, etc.; we’re simply screening the above face material into by-products which is sand and stone; the sand is then being used at our Middleboro property.” Selectman Jonathan Selig asked Moquin if he had an estimate of when he anticipated being completed with this portion of the project. Moquin said “ASAP” and that there would be no trucking traffic until the end of March or beginning of April.
Bruno said that the goal of the Selectmen that night was to understand the problems on both sides of the issue and that ultimately the Board would likely confer with land counsel. Bruno implored with the public, before speaking, that they “keep the temperature down a little bit.” Resident Steve Goodman, who also serves on the Conservation Commission, disputed some of what was said by Moquin. “The bog that they… built last time they asked for a permit… is already filled with water all the time – doesn’t really create great cranberries because it is wet all the time because they dug too deep, so they’ve already broken the water table there,” Goodman said. He continued, “They’re very close to doing it again and if that happens, it’s one of the largest aquifers in Massachusetts that you’re talking about damaging. It’s a sand mining operation. They’re creating a pit and those pits can collect bacteria and those pits can collect a lot of run-off that’s going to go directly into the water table that affects almost 200,000 people’s drinking water in Eastern Massachusetts – it’s not just a Halifax problem.” He said that secondary to this concern was the truck traffic. Goodman also noted that the town’s bylaws supersede those of the State.
Resident Jeremy Gillespie spoke saying, “From Mass DEP – these are things that cover that property. Zone 2, wellhead protection area, public water supply reservoir, surface water protection supply Zone A, B, and C., surface water supply watershed boundary covers all of that property. So, we have a lake that’s been deemed impaired, we have an EPA enforceable TMDL.”
Another resident spoke saying that roads with the level of truck traffic being seen are supposed to be 25 ft. wide but noted that residents’ measurements have shown them to be otherwise. She continued, “My main concern is my kids… I can’t have my kids out there riding their bike, hit a patch of sand… if God forbid, a truck were going by… there are a lot of kids in that neighborhood.” Highway Surveyor Steve Hayward said that the road width is 20 ft. Gordon Andrews, who previously served as a Selectmen for multiple years, spoke next saying, “I would hope the Board would review the earth removal bylaw and institute the fines and penalties for this project.”
“It’s obviously a tough situation and it’s hard to find somewhere where we can make everyone happy, but I think we owe it to ourselves as a town to work together to come to a solution that we can all be okay with – that you guys feel okay with living in the area, that our environment is protected, that our farmer can make a living,” Selig said. He said that they would be doing their due diligence as a Board and would be conferring with Town Counsel.
Complaints Filed Regarding Fines Issued
The Selectmen also dealt with complaints filed regarding fines issued at 145 Cranberry Drive. Owner of the property Joseph Kehoe said he owns his own excavating company. He said he has a small excavator and a small bobcat that he sometimes brings home. Kehoe said that in 2022 he was told that he needed to remove his equipment and that he was illegally running his business from his property. He disputed this saying that he owns a business and simply lives at that location. According to Kehoe, he has been ticketed $300 a day and continues to get fines despite not having any equipment in the yard. Kehoe also alleged that the Building Inspector has not even “stepped foot” into his yard but continues to fine him.
The Building Inspector James Perry said that he did do a site walk with some members of the ZBA. According to Perry, the property owner was given 30 days to remove the equipment and was even offered a place to park his equipment. Perry said that after the 30 days were over, he began issuing fines. Perry also disputed that he had not been out to the site recently. Kehoe pointed out that he had been fined every day, including Christmas, despite Perry admitting he had not been out to the property daily. Andrews asked, if since the issue was being taken up in court, it should be discussed in Executive Session, but Bruno said, “I don’t think that’s necessary.” Bruno said they would speak to legal counsel before making any decisions. Bruno also noted that he was unsure if the Selectmen even had any authority over the matter.
Complaint Filed Against Conservation Commission Member
Stacy Villiard of 63 Carver St. appeared before the Selectmen to discuss a three-page letter she sent them regarding issues with the Conservation Commission and her house renovation and barn construction. She said that the Conservation Commission and the Planning Board had no issues with either project initially. Villiard said that she spoke to the Building Inspector who said that a neighbor complained of water encroaching on his property. “I have a catch basin… what I was required to put in to keep all of the water on my property from my property on my property… it is 40 ft., 50 ft. even maybe from his property,” she explained. She said the flooding has been occurring for 12 years, but it wasn’t noticed before because she recently took down multiple trees that had previously blocked the flooding.
Villiard said that she received a cease-and-desist order and said that a Conservation Commission member (later named as Kimberly King Cavicchi) misrepresented herself to her workers. She also said that she believes the member in question has a vendetta against Alan Dias, who she said has nothing to do with the property beyond being hired by her to do some work. “How is she allowed to be on a Board? How is she allowed to come onto my property, demand things, lie about things, lie about who she is, misrepresent who she is, not show any ID and continue to be a Board member in this town?” Villiard asked.
Goodman appeared before the Board this time as a member of the Conservation Commission. Selig asked how it became an emergency that the property need to be inspected. Goodman did say that Dias was listed as the owner based on the property map. Cavicchi also appeared before the Selectmen disputing what was said by Villiard.
“I think it’s time for this Board [Selectmen] to sort of exercise its authority a little bit and try to get some education going; I would recommend to our Board that to address this issue that we have a series of meetings – appointments are coming up at the end of the year… the fiscal year… that between now and then that we set a schedule to meet with each individual Board and go over with that Board what their protocols are, what their trainings are… some of these things are very technical… not something for a rookie to be doing… I think right now we have a little bit of a gap in our knowledge, and we need to address that,” Bruno told everyone. Bruno said that it was important to note that Villiard is able to continue with her projects. Bruno said that once they have the new Town Administrator in place, they should be able to better coordinate these kinds of issues.
Concerns Over the Pine St. Intersection
The Selectmen tackled complaints coming in from residents regarding traffic concerns at the Pine St. intersection. Police Chief Joao Chaves called into the meeting. He said that they have signs and other indicators to drivers at the intersection but noted it is difficult to get drivers to adhere to them. He also said that he does have officers that intermittently monitor the intersection but said that it is impossible to do so at all times. Selig asked about adding a Dangerous Intersection sign there, but Hayward said that too many signs are known as “sign pollution” and can add to the confusion. Town Accountant Sandra Nolan said that one option might be to have Old Colony Planning Council do a traffic study on the intersection. Chaves said that some traffic studies have been done of the town but said that contacting them about a specific intersection might be a good idea.
Town Hall and Master Key Policy
Bruno said he spoke with the head of Buildings and Grounds regarding the master key policy. “I’m going to propose to the Board that whatever the policy used to be, that we change it; that master keys only be issued to the Building Department, and they will maintain those. If we need to get into some building, we can do it through them. Police and Fire already do through a lockbox,” Bruno explained. Selectman Naja Nessralla and Jonathan Selig agreed, and they voted to pass a motion to that effect. Bruno noted that they would be collecting the master keys to hand over to the Building Department.
Bruno also addressed the access to Town Hall saying that when the building needed to be accessed during off hours, IT Director Caesar Calouro would have to be reached via email or phone to lock the building. “We’re looking into two things – using the hex key once the building has been unlocked, whoever unlocks it can use the hex key to close down the crash bar and that way the building will be open for the duration of the meeting. Whoever that person is will just need to lock it again on the way out,” Bruno explained. Calouro told Bruno there may be an issue with handicap access that it is in the process of being worked out. Bruno also said that he is interested in re-working the space inside the Town Hall and moving some offices, etc. around. Both Nessralla and Selig said they were in favor of pursuing that. Selig said he would like to see the Departments and the new Town Administrator also involved in any discussions regarding changes to space usage at the Town Hall.

Meeting with Cable
Advisory Committee
and Area 58
The Selectmen met with John Shiavone, who is on the Cable Advisory Committee as well as the Board of Directors at Area 58, as well as Rich Goulart, the Director of Operations at Area 58. Shiavone told the Selectmen that Halifax has hired an attorney for the renewal license with Comcast. Goulart said that Area 58 becomes involved through the tri-town agreement and noted that they currently have an attorney reviewing the contract before it will be presented to all three town’s Boards of Selectmen. Regarding the contract with the town, Goulart said that they would be maintaining level funding. Goulart called it a “significant deal” noting, “Halifax has, per subscriber, a much higher rate of capital provided through Comcast than most other towns of this size.” He also noted that they would be adding an HD channel.
The Selectmen and Goulart also discussed the possibility of adding robotics into some of the larger meeting rooms. They discussed cost as well and Bruno said, “I would move that we ask Cody Haddad to get in touch with the Cable Committee and Area 58 to discuss these issues that we talked about tonight and maybe… if we could put it on the budget for this year’s Town Meeting.” Finally, Goulart told the Committee that there is one opening for a Halifax member on the Cable Advisory Committee.
Resignations,Retirements
Bruno read a retirement notification regarding Sgt. Patrick Sterling with the Police Department. He said that Sterling would like to be considered for a Special Police Officer position upon his retirement. His last day will be in February of 2024. Special Police Officer Edward Broderick resigned from his position. Bruno read a notice from the Police Chief that said, “He has served the town admirably and with distinction during his tenure… Ted has always been a man of many talents and I’m sure he will not stop putting his talents and skills into his next ventures.” Suzanne Emerson also resigned from the Agricultural Commission. Joanne Snow also resigned from her role as the Planning Board secretary. Holly Merry will be retiring from her position as Principal Assessor/Appraiser.
A Request to Do Away with Mail-In Voting
Town Clerk Sue Lawless appeared before the Board to let them know that if they are not going to have mail-in voting, they would need to hold a public hearing 45 days prior to the election. The opt-out would only apply to local elections, not those at the State or Federal level. Lawless said that her preference was to opt-out of the mail-in voting saying that most of the ballots that went out were not sent back in and that with the town’s limited resources it was difficult to field the mail-in ballots. The Selectmen voted to hold a public hearing to discuss doing away with the mail-in voting.
Use of Town Counsel
The Selectmen fielded a request for use of Town Counsel by the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA). Bruno made a motion to ask that Town Counsel meet in joint session with the ZBA and the Board of Selectmen related to the ZBA’s request to discuss protocols related to the upcoming 40B proposals. The Selectmen voted unanimously to hold that meeting.
Regarding various Committees and Commissions use of Town Counsel, Bruno recommended that the Town Administrator be the one to decide when Town Counsel could be used. Planning Board member Amy L. Troup spoke up saying that they were currently dealing with a lawsuit that they are already in touch with Town Counsel about. “I find it can be political,” Troup said regarding requiring permission to use Town Counsel. “Thank you, just to answer that point though, the legal budget is controlled by the Board of Selectmen… we’re ultimately responsible for it,” Bruno said. He called speaking to the Town Administrator first strictly “procedural.” Troup pushed back insisting that she felt that certain Boards and Committees should have access to Town Counsel without needing to first get permission from the Town Administrator or Selectmen.
Appointment with Veteran’s Service Officer and COA Director
The Veterans Service Officer for Halifax Steve Littlefield had an appointment with the Selectmen to discuss the termination of the Memorial Day Committee and the creation of a new Committee to assist with Veterans’ issues in the town. Littlefield said that the Memorial Day Committee currently consists of just himself. He also noted that he felt the scope of the Committee was too narrow. The Selectmen voted to reconstitute the Memorial Day Committee into the Veterans Service Committee.
The Selectmen also took up the issue of changing the Selectmen’s Assistant Position into the Assistant to the Town Administrator. Selig said that most of the surrounding towns handle the position this way. He noted that there was the potential that the position could change the paygrade. The other Selectmen agreed to investigate further the potential change.
Council on Aging (COA) Director Darlene Regan appeared before the Board to discuss the project to move the Council on Aging into the Halifax Museum and to move the museum into Pope’s Tavern. “I think the enthusiasm has come back for it,” Bruno said of the project. The Building and Facilities Needs Committee has been working with an architect on ways to reduce the cost of the renovation. Regan said that the problem lies in that 1.2 million dollars is what was supported at Town Meeting, but the actual numbers are close to 4 million. Acting Town Administrator Sandra Nolan said that she was told that it would be best to wait for construction and material costs to come down before proceeding with the project. It was agreed that the issue would be brought forth to the incoming Town Administrator Cody Haddad once he begins. Regan said that she even explored having HGTV do some form of renovation.

The Plympton Board of Selectmen met remotely on the evening of Jan. 9. Highway Superintendent Rob Firlotte was in attendance to provide an update on the Highway Department. He said that they had all the salt, sand, and equipment up and running for any inclement weather that may be forthcoming. “We are awaiting the first real snowstorm,” Firlotte said.
He also provided an update on the Pay as You Throw bag program saying that bags will be available by March 1 and enforcement will begin as of April 1. Traynor said that he would like to see large signs at the Transfer Station letting residents know the cost for items that go into the trash. Of residents, Firlotte said, “the more they can recycle, the better off they are.” Training sessions will be held in February where residents can see examples of real-life items that can and cannot be recycled.
One resident on the call asked what “yuck” was as laid out by the program and was told it was “pretty much food waste.” Firlotte explained that much of said food waste can be fed to animals or composted. Asked about coffee grinds specifically, Firlotte said they could be put outside. The resident pushed back a bit saying that most people wouldn’t be inclined to move their food waste outside in the winter. Selectmen Chair Christine Joy recommended a countertop composter which would allow food waste to be moved outside when convenient. She also offered that coffee grinds are good for hydrangeas. Joy acknowledged that she was not a particularly good recycler and said she was looking forward to learning more about what can be recycled during the training sessions. Firlotte said that he is always happy to answer any questions people have and that they should feel free to reach out to him at the Highway Department.
Firlotte said he met with Plympton Athletic Youth Sports (PAYS) to discuss the maintenance of various fields including those used for soccer and baseball. He said that a schedule was established to mow on Fridays. Firlotte told the Selectmen that the department is not equipped to do infield maintenance and that PAYS was planning to rely on volunteerism to get the job done. Selectman John Traynor asked what the department would need to be able to be able to maintain the infields. Firlotte said that he was currently pricing out a machine that would handle that, and a myriad of other tasks. He was estimating the cost to be around $60,000 and said that Chapter 90 funds may be able to be used. Traynor suggested the possibility of looking into grant funding that might also be available for such a use.
Firlotte said that one advantage of the machine is the many attachments that come with it. He told the Selectmen that they currently must borrow a sidewalk broom from Halifax noting it was “nice of them but still wear and tear on their machine.” The machine can be utilized year-round for snow removal, mowing, and other tasks. “We have the staffing to do this stuff around town so it would be nice to have the equipment to make it viable,” Firlotte said. Traynor said that the purchase of the machine should be brought into budget discussions.
The Selectmen voted to appoint Robert Orr as a full-time police officer per the recommendation of Police Chief Matthew Ahl. Orr was formerly employed as a full-time officer with the Rochester Police Department. Town Administrator Liz Dennehy noted that he came with excellent reviews saying he would be a great addition to the Plympton Police Department. “This is wonderful news,” Joy said.
Dennehy provided a Town Administrator’s update saying that she would soon be signing the contract for design services for the Old Townhouse roof project. The contract is with Habeeb & Associates and is in the amount of $45,000. Dennehy noted that the funding was already approved at the Special Town Meeting in November.
Dennehy also told the Selectmen that a request for use of the town’s roadways was made for the Best Buddies Bike Ride on June 3. The Police and Fire Chiefs were already aware of the date and the event. The Selectmen voted to allow it.
Dennehy also told the Selectmen that there was an update regarding the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds from the County. She explained, “we may have the opportunity to not be so limited in what we can apply for in terms of projects at the County level.”
In other updates, Dennehy said that she had received word from the Town Properties Committee that they should move forward with a piping system cleanout at the Townhouse and the Fire Station. She also said that they are in the process of closing out funding and projects under Green Communities. Included in those projects was new heating pumps at the library. Dennehy said that Library Director Mike Slawson has reported a cost savings since the installation.
Finally, Dennehy told the Selectmen that the Turkey Swamp purchase and sales agreement was not quite ready yet but said she anticipated having it by the next Selectmen’s meeting on January 23.
Selectman Mark Russo led off the raves for the past few weeks saying, “My rave is for the two swans and the great blue heron who seem to be wintering over at Two Brooks; it’s so beautiful there and it’s wonderful to be sharing this space with these two beautiful animals.” Joy said her rave was for Dennehy and the financial team who are working diligently to put budgets together.
When it came time for his turn, Traynor began, “I don’t know if it’s a rave.” He continued, “I’m happy after the holidays to be home and healthy with the family; it’s my time in life where we are losing friends and it’s kind of hard at times.” He referenced the recent passing of a few friends who he mentioned are younger than him. Joy said that her thoughts and prayers are with those who have recently lost family members.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen met at the Town Hall on Tuesday, Dec. 13. Selectmen Chair John Bruno said they received a letter from the Commonwealth saying that they were pleased to give an update on an economic development bill recently approved by the Legislature. The legislation would provide critical assistance for home heating, MBTA improvements, workforce development, and other economic needs. It also includes several local amendments from local legislators including Josh Cutler and Kathy LaNatra. Halifax is to receive $100,000 for upgrades and improvements to the Halifax Senior Center, $78,000 for Halifax public safety improvements, and $50,000 for Halifax recreation improvements. These funds are in addition to the regular State budget that includes $30,000 for the Holmes Public Library, $50,000 for the Halifax Council on Aging, and $125,000 for Monponsett Pond treatments.
The Selectmen dealt with an open meeting law complaint filed by a resident regarding the Nov. 22 meeting. Bruno said that the recommendation of the interim Town Administrator is to forward it to Town Counsel. The alleged violation has to do with details being left out of the meeting agenda.
Bruno said that they had a request from Veteran’s Agent Steve Littlefield to terminate the Memorial Day Committee and reinstitute it as the Halifax Veteran’s Services Council. “While the Memorial Day Committee has been great for Memorial Day itself, it leaves out many other opportunities for a group of citizens to help our veteran community throughout the year. I’ve had many people ask, “what can I do to help?” and I would like to put their desire to serve to good use,” Bruno read from a letter written by Littlefield. “It sounds like he really just wants to expand the responsibilities of the Committee and name it differently; I don’t think he’s trying to do away with the people who are serving on it,” Acting Town Administrator Sandy Nolan explained. Bruno said that they would address it at a later meeting.
The Selectmen met with representatives from J&J Motorsports. Owner Jake Sullivan was unable to attend due to being in the Police Academy, so his father Jay Sullivan was there in his stead. Nicholas Murphy also attended the meeting saying he was running the day-to-day operations while Sullivan is in the Academy. Bruno read a letter from the residents of Indian Path Rd. in which they said they attended the initial licensing hearing for J&J Motorsports which is located at 413 Plymouth St. “The license was granted for a maximum of 12 vehicles for sale outside at a time; there are always considerably more than 12 vehicles on the premises making it, one, difficult to see at times when merging onto busy 106 and, two, is constantly unsightly and unkept,” the letter read. It continued, “They seemed like nice kids at the time, and we wanted to support the business and town of Halifax; we would have spoken up in the meeting had we known this would be the case.” Murphy told the Selectmen that they currently only have 12 vehicles on the property. He explained that they just obtained a second lot where they were able to move the excess vehicles. Bruno asked Murphy and the elder Sullivan if they were able to rearrange the vehicles for a better sight line for residents.
Police Chief Joao Chaves met with the Selectmen about several issues including the assignment of the School Resource Officer. Chaves said that Officer Michelle McIntyre would be doing a dual role of the School Resource Officer and a Court Prosecutor. He further said that Officer Michael Schlieff injured his ankle during an arrest following a mental health call. The Selectmen approved the one-day injured on duty request for Schlieff.
The Selectmen also dealt with issues pertaining to both Pasture Lane and Sherwood Drive. Bruno explained, “At least on Pasture Lane it’s a development that doesn’t have the roads finished, usually that means there is only a base coat. The drainage isn’t correctly done… And all that kind of stuff and the people that live there and bought houses there are expecting the developer to fix that and they’re mad about that.” He said that the Planning Board used to just put a hold on one lot as a means of security to make sure that the developer did that. That specific lot has been sold to a developer. “I don’t think it really has anything to do with us,” Bruno said of the Selectmen’s purview over the matter. The issue on Sherwood Drive pertained to a drainage issue that Bruno described as the developer’s inability to follow-through. Bruno said that the best course of action might be to arrange a meeting with the Planning Board and “just hash this out.” He recommended getting advice from a land use lawyer. “The quicker I feel like we can get these two issues solved, the better,” Selectman Jonathan Selig said adding that snow was imminent.
The Selectmen met with Edward Gannon of Precision Wildlife regarding a proposal for ACO services. Chief Chaves said that the animal control officer (ACO) left back in August and that the response for new applications was “very minimal.” Chaves said that when the former ACO left she mentioned that East Bridgewater was looking into having a company take over the responsibilities. They did end up with that option and Chaves said that after speaking with East Bridgewater he was told that it was going well. Chaves said that after receiving the bid for Halifax, however, it was higher than what was given for East Bridgewater despite Halifax being a smaller community. “Mr. Gannon’s company provides vehicles, liability insurance – they just require any of our equipment that we still have available,” Chaves explained. “What’s great about his company is they also do bats and my guys are allergic to bats,” Chaves joked. Gannon spoke to the Board saying he has been providing services to East Bridgewater since March and noted that he comes from a wildlife background. Regarding the higher bid, Gannon said that East Bridgewater’s numbers would be getting higher soon as well. The Selectmen voted to have Town Counsel review the agreement with Precision Wildlife to provide ACO services.
Bruno told the Selectmen that he had a letter from the Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce. Bruno read, “I’m writing in hopes you can assist me with a letter of support, the Chamber in partnership with the Cape Cod Chamber is applying for a regional economic development organization grant as we have done each year for the last several years. Together, we will be working on a myriad of development initiatives and funding as needed to help us accomplish goals.” The letter continued, “Our regional economic development coordinators have requested that we obtain letters from the municipalities in which we serve.” The Selectmen agreed to table it until they could get a bit more information on the matter.
The Selectmen met with the Chair of the Finance Committee, Thomas Connolly. They set a date for the annual wage and personnel public hearing that needs to occur before the end of January. They voted to schedule the hearing for Jan. 25 at 7 p.m. The incoming Town Administrator will be on the job in time for the hearing. The Selectmen also unanimously approved the contract to make Cody Haddad the new Town Administrator.

The Silver Lake Regional School Committee met in-person on Thursday, Dec. 8. Committee Chair Paula Hatch led things off by opening the well-attended meeting for public participation. The first resident who asked to speak said she was currently from Plympton but formerly from Kingston and now has two students at the High School. She said that a little over a year after her son’s autism diagnosis, he entered the preschool in Kingston. “I was terrified that he wouldn’t get what he needed… every single year for 12 years now leading up to his next IEP meeting… I worry about getting him what he needs to be successful during the school day. This is where the paraprofessionals come in… they make it possible for students needing extra support to be successful – this is everything, everything to a parent,” she told the Committee. She said that while paraprofessionals aren’t the ones who write the IEPs, they are the ones that execute them. Regarding the shortage of paraprofessionals she said, “when a person cannot earn a living wage at their job, then they are forced to leave that job… we have to be better than this, we will lose good people.” She told the Committee that the paraprofessionals at Silver Lake are paid less money than her 17-year-old can earn at many retail jobs. The full house gave her rousing applause following the completion of her remarks.
“I don’t want anyone to think that this Committee has not tried to come up with a fair proposal for the paras. We’ve worked over a year trying to come up with a fair proposal and thought that we had found one,” Hatch said before noting that it failed during ratification. “We do, do research to see where the salaries currently fall,” she continued.
The next resident that spoke said she was a Laker herself and currently has three children in the school district, two of which she said have significant special needs. She said that she fought to bring her daughter back to the Middle School after an out-of-district placement. Her daughter was brought back to Silver Lake during the height of the 2020 pandemic she noted. “It was the paraprofessionals that offered so much extra support particularly during those Wednesday half days; teachers went above and beyond the contract,” she explained. She continued, “Then at the end of that year in June of 2021, the very last moments of that school year that we survived was a fundamental change to the way that our school system is structured and that is that they eliminated the CP2 leveling… so when I fought to bring her back to Silver Lake that was the model that I had in mind because I see how wonderful it works. She struggled so much last year.” She said that her daughter ended up out-of- district again but noted that she once again fought to bring her back to Silver Lake. “It is because of these para support professionals that my child is making progress, significant gains. I couldn’t be more pleased. And I find it absolutely insulting that there is this discussion that we are not giving them a living wage and I also find it insulting to insinuate that the people in here do not understand how budgets work,” she told the Committee. Before closing she said, “I want to reiterate the point that if we do not find the pennies to give these paras what they need then there will be more students who need out-of- district placements… moreover we are losing to charter schools.”
President of the Silver Lake Education Association Jon Lay spoke next calling some of Hatch’s statements misleading. “We brought an analysis to the School Committee that showed conclusively that Silver Lake is underpaying our paraprofessionals compared to the local districts.” Lay said that if Hatch had information that contradicted that, he said he would like to see it. He further said he hoped it included health insurance as he said it was a very big part of it. “Even if we may be the average, and we don’t think that we are, it doesn’t change the fact that paras can go to other districts today and get paid more on day one,” he told the Committee. Hatch spoke up and said, “there’s one thing I don’t do, I don’t lie.” She continued, “we make decisions based on data and research.” Later in the meeting, Lay did clarify that he did not believe that the School Committee or any of its members were lying.
Other residents wanted to speak but Hatch said she was limiting the public participation portion to just 15 minutes as she stated at the outset. After objections from those in attendance, Hatch agreed to give two more people a chance to make comments asking them to be “concise.” Someone asked about the negotiations process and the SLEA’s hard position. Lay said that the Committee is looking to resort to fact finding where an impartial third party would be brought in to make a recommendation for resolution. Of their original request, Lay said, “we had been asking for four percent… at one point in the process we had been asking for vacation days – five paid vacation days because right now they don’t get any.” “The initial offer totaled a half a million dollars,” Hatch added.
Plympton resident, Janeen Orcutt, spoke last. She said she taught in Halifax for 31 years before retiring. “I know as a teacher the importance of a para in my classroom for an inclusion classroom for every student there … and I think that when you say that the pay isn’t there, that it is comparable … two of my best paras left the system and went to another system where they’re getting paid for vacation, they’re getting paid for sick time and they got a raise in their pay… you’re going to lose good people,” she said. She concluded saying, “I never speak at meetings. This is so out of my wheelhouse, but I’m so hurt by the School Committee from a system that my kids went to, a system that my kids work in, to see we don’t take care of our paras. It’s shameful.” She also noted that many of the paras hold bachelor’s degrees or higher. She was also met with rousing applause.
Silver Lake Regional Principal Michaela Gill was unable to attend the meeting so Middle School Principal Becky Couet provided the Principal’s Report. She said that over half of the students were on honor roll during the first term. She also said that the Middle School production of Aladdin was that weekend and described it as “amazing.”
Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch also provided an update saying, “On Nov. 8, staff met by department to have collaborative time to design curriculum units… there are four professional development days over the course of the school year.” Superintendent Jill Proulx began her update by saying that there was a change to Massachusetts State law that added more steps that must be taken prior to suspension of students. She said that the administration team participated in a legal training pertaining to the change. Proulx said that the exemptions from the change include assault, possession of weapons, or the distribution of controlled substances. Committee member Jason Fraser noted that the change was an attempt to “try and stem the school to prison pipeline… a lot of the zero tolerance policies that were enacted in the 1990’s were suspending kids for non-violent infractions, non-drug related infractions. The more often a child becomes suspended from school, the higher likelihood that they are going to become court-involved and a larger portion of them incarcerated at some point in their lives.”

Proulx was asked about the influx of students coming into the district following the placement of migrant families in Kingston hotels in late October. She said the High School has two new students and the Middle School has three new students. Proulx said they were contacted by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education who said they may become eligible for a grant for up to $1,000 per student. “Sadly, it shouldn’t be a grant, the money should just follow where the students were brought into… there shouldn’t be any application process, there shouldn’t be any heavy lifting or light lifting on our shoulders,” Hatch said.
A report was given for each of the standing committees. Fraser provided the update for Administrative Review saying he would be reaching out to Proulx to start informal discussions for the Superintendent’s Review. Lukasz Kowalski gave the update for CTE saying that they have 22 students enrolled in a program where they work outside. He also said that the carpentry students built bookcases for the children’s room at the Plympton Library, trail kiosks for Kingston’s Conservation Department, picnic tables and a storage building for the Kingston Recreation Department, sandwich boards for the Kingston Garden Club, and storage boxes and picnic tables for the Pembroke Library. Kowalski also asked for the support of the Committee in opening a new CTE program in the school for IT. The Committee voted unanimously to support the motion. Proulx clarified that the soonest the new program could be rolled out would be FY 2025.
Fraser provided the Legislative Agent’s Report. “So, we had the gubernatorial election this year which means that the first version of the State budget could be delayed until early February. It will be House One this year as we are also entering into a new two-year legislative cycle so all bills that weren’t passed during the last legislative cycle have been referred to Committee… so currently there’s a blank slate. A slew of bills will be filed on January 3 when the next legislature is sworn in and takes their seats… so I’m currently guiding our State Representatives and Senators as to what bills they should be re-filing or supporting if they come back onto the table that would support our mission here at Silver Lake,” Fraser told the Committee. He also said that they had unanimous support from the Massachusetts Association of School Committees (MASC) for their Regional School Assessment Stabilization Fund which would be under Chapter 40 and controlled by the town. “It would give a vehicle for municipalities in years where their assessment is lower than normal to put some of those dollars away for years where they might be hit with a higher assessment,” Fraser explained.
Fraser also provided the update for SAFER. “We had a successful tri-town meeting… we went over the Capital Plan for next year… our Capital Plan for FY24 is at $1.5 million and typically our Capital Plan, over the past 8 years or so, has hovered somewhere between $500,000 and $800,000.” He said that HVAC units for the High School as well as roof improvements account for over a half million dollars. Fraser also said that there was also $250,000 included to conduct survey work for turf fields or an athletic complex.

The Plympton Board of Selectmen met virtually on Monday, Dec.5. Chair of the Bylaw Review Committee Alan Wheelock appeared before the Board to review what the Committee has been working on as of late. He told the Selectmen that the town bylaws are now fully digitized. He said that they are accessible and “very searchable.” “I think it was a major step forward,” Wheelock said. “Kudos for the codification; it really changes the whole dynamic where any citizen can get their hands on any piece of information rather than hearsay… maybe we need to do a little bit better job of reminding our citizens that the information is there on the website,” Selectman Mark Russo said.
Wheelock next addressed what he said has been the major ongoing project of the Committee. He said that the Committee has been reviewing the groundwater overlay water protection district for the town. “We do have one,” Wheelock said. He elaborated saying, “I’ve never heard about it, and I’ve lived here for almost 50 years… it makes me wonder who has been watching it.”
Wheelock said that in reviewing the water protection district, the Committee spoke to three comparable towns who are all also fully dependent on well water. Those towns were Northfield, Rehoboth, and Rochester. Regarding Plympton, Wheelock said, “We have 1,000 households and every single one of those households is totally dependent on wells.” Of any necessary updates, Wheelock said, “We will take the rest of the winter to develop a recommendation for spring town meeting.” He said that the recommendation would most likely be to retain the existing bylaw with the three zones. Wheelock added, “we’re going to try and strengthen it and modernize it.”
Regarding the importance of the bylaw, Wheelock said that it provides more detail into potential ground pollution that can occur. He said that if an entity were to embark on a project that could potentially pollute the aquifer, they would need to appear before the Planning Board who would enforce the bylaw. He noted that in the past, there was a pollution of the aquifer that happened due to waste from the Middleborough dump. “We believe this is an important service to the town and we’re going to do our absolute best to make sure we bring a high-quality product to town meeting,” Wheelock said in closing.
Selectman John Traynor said he believes cranberry growers and certain businesses in town should have a say in the bylaw. “I want to make sure their voices are heard,” he told Wheelock. Wheelock assured him that they are taking the whole winter to work on it in order to make sure that they confer with all the necessary parties.
Town Administrator Liz Dennehy provided a brief update. She said that Plympton has received the $25,800 in grant funding from Community Compact. She also said that the budget process is underway.
Per tradition, the Selectmen ended the meeting with their raves for the last few weeks. Traynor said he had several raves noting, “there just seems to be a lot going on now that it’s holiday season.” The Plympton Police and Fire Departments prepared and served Thanksgiving meals for senior citizens at the Upland Club in November. He noted that State Senator Susan Moran attended the event. Traynor said he attended the Thanksgiving Feast at Dennett Elementary School with fellow Selectman Mark Russo. Regarding the event, Traynor said, “It’s fabulous – best event of the year… great to see the kids.” He also gave a rave for a local Daisy Troop who performed some Christmas caroling recently.
Russo said he had a couple of raves related to special town meeting. “Really impressed with the turnout… on a really stormy night,” he said. “The second portion of that is the unanimous vote to authorize the Turkey Swamp… it really speaks to the fundamental value all of us in this town really share for open space,” Russo said. Joy piggy-backed on Russo’s rave for the acquisition of Turkey Swamp, calling it a “labor of love” for all the groups that worked so hard to make it come to fruition. Joy provided a second rave for the Selectmen Assistant Bri Martins for all the work she puts into making sure all of the various licenses are ready for approval by the Selectmen.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen met on Tuesday, Nov. 22.
The Board also met with members of the Finance Committee for the appointment of two vacancies on the Committee. Both open terms expire in 2025. Frank Johnston told Selectmen that he was recently retired and had been attending meetings of various towns and committees to figure out what would be a good fit for him. He said that he spent 44 years managing a large environmental firm which familiarized him with bidding, contracts, operating budgets, labor, etc.
Jim Walters went before the Board next and told them that he and his wife moved from New Jersey two years ago. He said that he wanted to help after what happened with the resignations of the two Selectmen. He said that he checked a lot of boxes on the Talent Bank Form. Walters said he is the Director of Programs for State and Local Government for a cloud computing company and has extensive experience writing grants. The Selectmen voted to appoint both Johnston and Walters to the vacancies on the Finance Committee.
Chair John Bruno said they had received correspondence from the treasurer of the Halifax Mobile Home Estates. Bruno summarized the letter saying that for many years, the Mobile Home Estates had been fully occupied at 430 homes, however, that as of December of 2021 one of the homes was demolished in a house fire. They asked for the necessary changes to be made to the fees paid to the town.
Bruno requested of the other Selectmen that on one of the off Tuesdays per month, they establish Selectmen’s office hours where residents can come and discuss any concerns that they may have. The first Tuesday of every month was decided upon from the hours of 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and the third Tuesday of the month from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.. The first hour will be on Dec.6.
The Selectmen dealt with several recycling abatement requests including one for a home where a resident had passed away and the son didn’t realize he had to request an abatement. In the aforementioned case, the Selectmen voted in favor of abatement.
The Selectmen had an appointment with Steve Littlefield, who is the acting Veteran’s Agent. “He is now looking to fill the vacancy on a permanent basis; he has done a wonderful job on the Veteran’s ceremony,” Acting Town Administrator and Town Treasurer Sandy Nolan said. Littlefield was previously the Assistant Veteran’s Agent. Littlefield noted that he will soon be stepping down from active military service. The Selectmen voted unanimously to appoint him through June 30, 2023.
The Selectmen also met with Susan Hill, the Vice Chair of the Halifax Fireworks Committee. “We have decided to forgo our craft fair in December because of a lack of vendors,” Hill said. Hill said that they had been approached by someone requesting to be a multi-year sponsor of the fireworks display. She said they are considering doing a craft fair in the spring.
Council on Aging Director Darlene Regan met with the Selectmen as well regarding a few issues. Nolan said that Regan was hoping to hire a van driver at Step 4 rather than Step 1 due to the qualifications of the particular driver. Regan explained that they had lost drivers in the past due to the salary range. Regan said that the driver in question is GATRA qualified. The Board voted to hire the driver at Grade 2, Step 4.
Regan also requested that the receptionist title be changed to administrative assistant calling the former title “antiquated.” She also said that administrative assistant better suited the tasks being fulfilled by the role. Selig said if it was just a name change, then he saw no harm in it. His concern was if there was a grade change associated with the title change. The Selectmen passed a motion to change the job title name from receptionist to administrative associate. Regan also said that the Outreach Coordinator position is not truly defined as clearly as it should be, based on the community’s needs. She told the Selectmen that she rewrote the job description as Human Resource Service and Case Worker. Bruno asked if they could hire for a position that doesn’t exist yet in the bylaw. Nolan said she would need to propose the position to the Wage and Personnel at the public hearing in January and then it would need to be voted upon at town meeting. Bruno asked if he could take it under advisement so that he could gather more information before deciding.
The Selectmen also had an appointment with Municipal Environmental Law Attorney Richard Hucksam regarding a proposed condominium complex of 200 units on 25 acres. Hucksam, who is representing the town, said that Mass Housing wants the town to submit comments on the project. “At this point, in my view, the very best thing we can do is get from the various town boards and officials all the comments that we can about the project,” Hucksam said. Bruno asked if those contained abutter comments and was told that this was really for town officials to submit. Hucksam said that they would have a problem not going through the 40B process. Chapter 40B Housing is a Massachusetts program that enables developers to overrule local zoning bylaws in order to increase the number of affordable homes in certain municipalities. “Does our ZBA not have as much bargaining power because it is a 40B?” Selig asked. “In one sense it has less bargaining power because if you’re just dealing with zoning bylaw, it has criteria that have to be satisfied and that’s it unless there’s a variance granted and the variance standard is very strict under Mass law,” Hucksam said. He continued saying that 40B pits the local concerns against the need for affordable housing. “They’re going to be balanced against each other and that’s where the more the town can establish that there are real issues… during the hearing process the better position its in to have some kind of control over what the project ends up being,” he explained.
There was a conversation on the Building Inspector certification. “I’ll say that we have received several letters relating to this issue, I’m not going to read them all because some of them go on for four pages, but they will be part of our public record,” Bruno said. Bruno summarized the issue saying that they don’t have complete certification for the Building Inspector. “We’ve had a couple of concerned residents reach out wanting to point out to the Board that our Building Inspector had not received all of his… certifications yet. I spoke to Mr. Perry, our Building Inspector and he told me that it is in the works,” Selig said. He further said that they have on record an extension request from the Building Inspector. He said that the State would rule on the extension of time request. Bruno asked James Perry how close he was to being certified and was told that he needs to complete a fire test. Perry confirmed that taking that test would be enough to certify him as a local Building Inspector. He would need three more sets of tests to become Building Commissioner. Perry said they do have a Commissioner out of Bridgewater who signs certificates of occupancy alongside Perry. Perry said, “just for the record, my predecessor also received an extension of time.”
Bruno said that they received an email of a donation of land at 0 Hill St. to the town. “Maybe we can find a use for it someday,” Bruno said. The Board said they were in favor of adopting the small land parcel pending it passing at town meeting.
Selig provided an update on the Holidays in Halifax planning saying that traditionally it is the second Saturday in December. The plan is to have the event from roughly 4 pm to 8 pm on December 10. He said that there would be an ice sculpture, hayrides, Silver Lake carolers, and food trucks. There will also be balloon animals, jumpy houses, and Santa.
The Selectmen also dealt with a complaint of an open meeting law violation at one of the Selectmen meetings that were run when just Selig was at the helm on October 25. The complaint stated that he accepted meeting minutes from the October 11 meeting without a quorum. Town Counsel recommended that the two new Selectmen watch the recording of the meeting and then approve the meeting minutes.