The Halifax Board of Selectmen met on Tuesday April 11, 2017. The meeting included a hearing about Heron Road potentially gaining its status as a public street.

Real estate professional Rick Springer from Century 21 Classic Gold in Carver, MA presented the case for the roads approval to the Board of Selectmen. Springer spoke with the Halifax Planning Board. He says, “The roadway and the drainage was built according to the plan, and the Planning Board has accepted it as built.”

With the Planning Board being satisfied with the completed project, Springer wants Selectmen to certify Heron Road as a public road. He told selectmen, “It was always intended to be a public town road when it was first proposed. It’s now complete and time for it to be a public road.”

Selectmen Chair Troy Garron says he has no major issues with the Herron Road project.  He did however express one concern.

Garron said, “The only issue I have right now is that the neighbors or residents of the neighborhood weren’t notified because you were out of town.” Springer said he has the abutters’ list and will be sending out certified mail notices before the next hearing on Tuesday, April 25, 2017.

One abutter who attended Tuesday night’s meeting voiced some personal concerns, stating the sidewalk in front of his home was not depressed to the same level as his driveway, making the transition coming out of his driveway to the road not smooth. He wants the project to take the time to lower the sidewalk first to improve the transition onto the road. The Planning Board voted 3-1 to approve the road and this resident would like the situation to be looked at again.

Garron told the resident there will be two more opportunities to present his case; there’s another hearing for Herron Road on Tuesday April 25. Garron said there will also be an opportunity to present the case at Town Meeting.

Beautification Committee Appointment highlights plans for memorial garden and Clean-Up Day.

Selectmen also met with the town’s Beautification Committee, who introduced Greg Cowan, their choice as a new committee member. Selectmen voted to approve his appointment.

Cowan has volunteered on several Beautification Committee projects in the past, including last year’s Town Clean-Up Day. He’s also volunteered with the local Boy Scout troop.

The vacancy on the committee is a term that expires in June, 2017. Selectmen Clerk Kim Roy says this is just procedural though and Cowan’s term will be renewed in June.

After confirming Greg Cowan as a new member, Cowan spoke to the Board about the Earth Day town clean-up event being sponsored by the Beautification Committee.

Cowan said that last year, the participation in the annual event was largely done by the Boy Scouts. He wants to not only expand this, but include education for the town about not littering. Cowan said he wants their clean-up efforts to be sustainable over a longer period of time.

The Earth Day Clean-Up Day will take place on Saturday April 22, 2017 from 10-11:45 a.m. This is a rain or shine event. Pizza will also be provided at the Halifax Town Hall at noon for all participants.

The Beautification Committee recommends anyone who participates wears long pants, long sleeves, and brings rubber gloves. Trash bags will be provided. Please remember to use safety precautions when picking up trash. If needles are found, the Beautification Committee said to call the Fire Department.

The Beautification Committee also presented plans for a garden to be built on the green of the Town Hall. The garden is a memorial for Margaret Fitzgerald and will be privately funded by family and friends.

Selectmen said the funds donated to the Town of Halifax will then be appropriated to the Beautification Committee. That’s the legal procedure for using privatlye donated funds for a public project.

Though still in the planning phase, the Beautification Committee is moving quickly on the project and close to deciding what types of flowers and trees will be in the garden. The plan is to have the garden ready for Memorial Day Weekend.

Other Town News

Cemetery Superintendent Robert Badore sent a letter of resignation to the Board of Selectmen. Selectmen Vice Chair Thomas Millias says that Bob served the town for 46 years.

Selectmen Clerk Kim Roy said she met with the Finance Committee, who were talking about putting the fire suppressant system for the Elementary School repairs under the levy in regards to tax.

Roy says that Town Administrator Charlie Seelig is more inclined to go above the levy. Seelig says this will not cost taxpayers any additional money.

Selectmen also spent time preparing for town meeting by addressing changes to the way Wage and Personnel Board goes about pay increases for town employees.

Board of Selectmen Vice Chair Thomas Millias said the town currently uses merit increases to go about annual reviews. Millias described the current system in place as “hurtfully subjective.”

The Board is considering eliminating merit increases alltogether and replacing them with increases to longevity stipends.

The next meeting of the Halifax Selectmen is scheduled for Tuesday April 25, 2017.  Open session will start at 7:30 p.m.

PLYMPTON – On Monday, March 20, 2017, The Plympton Public Safety Committee presented a plan for a new police station to the Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee. The project, estimated to cost about $3 million, will be voted on at the Annual Town Meeting in May. If approved, the town will put the project out to bid.

Dan Palotta, project manager from P-3 LLC, helped present the plans to the board. He said he believes the project can be financed using the capital stabilization fund, which means property taxes would not increase for this project.

Details of the proposed police station were also given by the chief designer from Donham and Sweeney LLC, Jeff Shaw. The police station will be a little over 6,000 square feet. It will be stick built and slab on grid, meaning there is no basement.

Shaw said the board also considered modular buildings, but the cost turned out to be much less for this stick built police station.

The plan also looks into the future as Donham and Sweeney created layouts of future possible station expansion, a new fire station, and parking reconfiguration.

The police station expansion and new fire station are not part of the plan going to bid, but they are projects the town is considering doing later. Keeping in mind the space and limitations of the town’s lot on Palmer Road, these future projects were things the committee as a whole wanted to consider as they build the new police station.

Back at the Public Safety Committee Meeting on January 4, 2017, committee member John Wilhelmson mentioned he wanted to look at how the police station would affect other events on the property. He said, “How do you plan for events at the library and ball fields? “ He and the rest of the board wanted to make sure the parking works for everything.

Dan Palotta, told the board the plan they have now will add 29 new parking spaces for the police station, which may help free up some of the other lots.

Finance Committee members asked about connecting the new parking lot to route 58 to help solve the traffic issue. Palotta said they will do this if the town can afford it. “We will have designs for a connecting parking lot at bid.” If not, it can be used as a plan for the future, he added.

Overall, selectmen expressed optimism for the plan. Selectmen Chairman Colleen Thompson also chaired the Public Safety Building Committee and told her board how the Committee worked extremely hard through dozens of meetings. Selectwoman Christine Joy also mentioned how far the committee has come since last year.

Information on the new police station will be available to the public shortly. There will be an open house presentation at the Police Station on April 8, 2017 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., followed by another open house on April 12, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Other items discussed at the selectmen’s meeting included annual budget discussions with the Finance Committee who spent some time explaining how different positions would be affected by the new budget.

In particular, the committee asked selectmen about some potential changes to the position of Town Clerk. The committee told selectmen that Town Clerk Tara Shaw is asking for another ten hours of work per week and an additional hour per week for her support staff. There was also discussion about rewriting her job responsibilities.

The Finance Committee wanted some insight into this. Selectmen Clerk John Traynor said, “The new Public Records Law (Chapter 121 of the Acts of 2016, “An Act to Improve Public Records”) is adding a tremendous amount of work for Tara.” Traynor added the town is also in the midst of working on a technology grant to give Tara software to make staying compliant with the new law easier.

Other budget discussion talked about a potential increase to the year’s reserve fund. More budget discussions will take place when the Finance Committee meets with the Board of Selectmen on April 10, 2017.

The Board of Selectmen also addressed some of the implications of recreational marijuana legalization and the impending retail markets planned for 2018. According to Thompson and the rest of the board, the town currently is leaning towards a one year moratorium which would keep out retail establishments for at least a year. This gives the town time to look at how the market becomes regulated at the state level.

The Board of Selectmen also voted unanimously to hear a complaint received in a letter of correspondence to the board. The complaint is about the gun range on Route 58.

PLYMPTON – The town breathed a collective sigh of relief when the follow-up “robocall” came to Plympton residents at 12:07 p.m. on Tuesday that the missing teens had been found and were safe.

At 11:05 p.m. Monday night, Plympton Police put out an automatic call to all Plympton residents:  “We are currently searching for a missing teenager, Sydney Adams, white female, approximately 5’4”, 120 lbs., brown hair, brown eyes, last seen wearing black pants and a white sweatshirt with “TEXAS” across the front.   She was last seen with a Donald Johnson, 14, from Kingston.  Any information on her whereabouts, please immediately contact the Plympton Police Department at 781-585-3339.”

Kim Adams, Sydney’s mother, also posted photos and messages requesting help on the Plympton Facebook page, bringing the community into the search.  The response was overwhelming.   “It takes a village…” was the recurring theme once the news was announced that the two were safe.

When the phone rings late at night, it isn’t usually good news, and the missing teenagers were on everyone’s mind.  The first thing said among friends and neighbors Tuesday morning was, “Have they found them yet?”

Adams posted her thanks to all who helped.

Plympton Police issued the following statement:,

“The Plympton Police Department is happy to announce that both Sydney Adams and Donald Johnson have been located.  Both are safe and have been transported to area hospitals, as a precaution, for evaluation.  We would like to thank the Massachusetts State Police, Kingston Police, Pembroke Police, the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department and SEMLEC Search & Rescue for their assistance in the matter.  We would like to thank the Plympton Fire Department with their assistance this morning.  We would finally like to thank the many members of the community that assisted in the search and the numerous telephone calls we received from concerned citizens with tips.”

Selectman Chairman Colleen Thompson announced at Monday night’s selectmen’s meeting she will not seek re-election. Thompson has served one term on the board.  Thompson, in her 2014 campaign said, “I ran because I felt the current board needed a different point of view.”

As well as being Chairman of the Board of Selectmen, Thompson also chairs the Public Safety Building Committee, that is planning the building of a new police station for the town.

Another position unexpectedly became open Monday night. Town Clerk Tara Shaw came before the board early into the meeting with what she described as “time sensitive” news.

Marilyn Browne from the Finance Committee gave her letter of resignation, which means there will now be three positions on that committee on the ballot in May’s town election.

Shaw told selectmen, “This means there will now be two Finance Committee positions for three year terms and one for two years.” She also said the deadline to submit nomination papers is Tuesday, April 4, 2017.

Selectman Clerk John Traynor said, “The board regretfully accepts the resignation.” The Board as a whole all expressed how much Browne will be missed.

Joy Marble is new COA Director

Selectmen were able to fill an appointed position Monday night.  Joy Marble of Halifax was appointed as Chairman of the Council on Aging.

Marble brings a decade of experience to the position as she had chaired the Halifax Council on Aging for ten years. She also brings private sector experience as a former paralegal and human resources supervisor.

Marble graduated from Silver Lake Regional High and is an alumna of Bridgewater State University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree.

Public Safety Updates

During executive session, Fire Chief Warren Borsari met with selectmen and presented a budget to the finance committee.  More work was discussed to make sure emergency services do not drop to basic level life support.

Selectmen also confirmed that every office and meeting room in the Plympton Town Hall now has a panic button installed. Thompson said that the Police department will know exactly where an incident is based on which panic button is pushed. In addition to these installations, there are also plans for the old system to be moved to the library.

On Tuesday, Feb. 28, Principal Assessor Karen Trudeau met with Halifax Board of Selectmen to discuss a potential solar field PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) program at 69 Summit St. Town Administrator Charlie Seelig had briefly discussed the solar field at the selectmen’s meeting Feb. 14. Seelig brought new details to the Board’s attention this week.

Halifax would be working with SunConnect, a national solar company based in Naples, Florida. Nothing yet is finalized, but negotiations with SunConnect are taking shape, Seelig told the board.

Trudeau told selectmen, “The PILOT right now as it sits, is $24,699 per year for 20 years,”  that would cover taxes on both the land and the solar equipment itself.

Town Administrator Charlie Seelig said the selectmen intend to take the solar PILOT proposal to the Special Town Meeting March 11.  Selectmen Vice-chairman Thomas Millias suggested more information be provided beforehand, however, specifically, the exact number of solar panels that will be installed.

Trudeau didn’t know the number of panels, but said that five of the property’s 10 acres will be used for solar panels. Seelig said, “Just bring it (the number of panels) to Town Meeting; somebody else besides Tom might ask.”

If the PILOT is approved, this would be the second solar field in Halifax. The other is on Monponsett Street at the Halifax-Plympton town line on Route 58.

In other news, Seelig told the Board that Plympton selectmen have voted to contribute to the cost of an independent appraisal of the Silver Lake Regional School District land which five-acre parcel the town of Kingston wishes to purchase in order to put construct a new Kingston Public Safety Building.  Both towns, Plympton and Halifax, want an independent appraisal done to confirm or rebut the $250,000 price that the School District has set.  There will be a public hearing on the land sale on Thursday, March 9, at 7 p.m. in the Large Group Room at the Silver Lake Regional High School, 260 Pembroke St., Kingston.  All interested persons are urged to attend.

Tarawood Kennels

dog attack

Seelig told selectmen that another dog attack was recorded in Halifax, this time at Tarawood Kennels, 7 Plymouth St., resulting in injuries to a person. Seelig told the Board that the injuries are considered serious. Millias said he saw photographs and the attack looked serious. He suggested a dog hearing take place.  Selectmen voted unanimously to hold a dog hearing on Tuesday, March 14.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has issued an Administrative Consent Order and Notice of Noncompliance to the City of Brockton that would hold the City to enumerated standards regarding when and under what conditions diversionary flows from Monponsett Pond into Silver Lake can occur.

Several of these orders take place immediately:

• Brockton must not divert water from Monponsett Pond to Silver Lake when there is a cyanobacteria bloom in Monponsett Pond that exceeds the MDPH standard of 70,000 cells/ml.

• Brockton must continue manually opening the Monponsett to Silver Lake diversion structure/apparatus to provide lower water transfer rate (approximatly 12 to 14 million gallons per day, which is about half of the maximum diversion rate) with the intended goal of pulling less water from West Monponsett to East Monponsett during diversions.  This provision may be waived at the discretion of the DEP should unanticipated environmental conditions warrant

• Brockton will begin operating the Stump Brook Dam/Fish Ladder in a manner to ensure that at least 900,000 gallons per day (g/d) is leaving West Monponsett Pond and entering Stump Brook whenever Brockton is actively diverting from Monponsett Pond to Silver Lake in accordance with the requirements of Chapter 91 License 4987.  Brockton will also see that the Stump Brook Dam Fish Ladder remains open and passable for migrating fish during the herring migration seasons in Spring and Fall of every year.

• Brockton will make immediate efforts to contact area cranberry growers to coordinate Stump Brook Dam openings so that the Stump Brook Dam Fish Ladder and Sluiceway can be opened to coincide with releases of cranberry harvest and flood return flows to West Monponsett Pond/Stump Brook so that those return flows exit the Monponsett Pond system as quickly as possible as long as pond elevation supports the flow.

• Once Monponsett Pond reaches a level of 53 feet, six inches above zero elevation of 52.5 feet, or June 1, 2017, whichever is earlier, Brockton will begin operating the Stump Brook Dam fish ladder gate in a manner to ensure at least 900,000 g/d is leaving West Monponsett Pond and entering Stump Brook at all times, unless the pond elevation cannot support it, with the fish ladder gate placed at its lowest elevation, about 51.8 feet. This requirement will remain in force until it is further evaluated as part of the Resource Management Plan development and otherwise approved by Mass DEP.

Within 60 days:

• Brockton will complete installation of stop logs on top of the dam-like structures separating the Monponsett intake chambers from the diversion pipe intake.

Within 6 months:

•  Brockton shall submit for MassDEP review and approval a proposed Final Scope of Work (SOW) for preparation of the Resource Management Plan, based on scientific data and evaluation, that will include recommended metrics and procedures for Silver Lake Diversions and Stump Brook Dam Operations intended to improve Monponsett Pond’s water quality and ecosystem while maintaining Brockton’s drinking water supply system reliability.

• Before submitting the proposed SOW to DEP, Brockton will release a draft for public comment and conduct at least one public meeting to discuss the report and gather public input.   The Draft SOW will be posted in the Environmental Monitor and properly advertised with copies of the Draft available in each respective community library or designated repository.

Within 24 months:

• Brockton will submit to MassDEP a final Resource Management Plan and Implementation Schedule developed in accordance with the Resource Management Plan Scope of Work as approved by MassDEP.

Within 6 months of the DEP’s approval of the Final Resource Management Plan and Implementation Schedule:

• Brockton will commence implementation of the MassDEP approved Resource Management Plan and Implementation Schedule.

• Brockton is ordered to continue to operate so that the 12 month running average of water pumped into Brockton’s water distribution system must not exceed 11.3 million g/d or 110% of the MassDEP approved system safe yield.  Brockton must continue to submit monthly reports to MassDEP showing the 12 month running average of water from all sources.

• None of Brockton’s activities are to interfere with the recreational uses of the ponds for boating, bathing, or fishing.

Because MassDEP has listed Monponsett Pond as impaired, to comply with the requirements of the Federal Clean Water Act, the MassDEP will prepare a Total Maximum Daily Load report for East and West Monponsett Ponds that wil estimate the annual nutrient additions to the ponds, calculate the nutrient load-carrying capacity for each, and set goals for nutrient reductions according to the land uses and activities around East and West Monponsett.

For a complete copy of the Administrative Consent Order, go to our web site: PlymptonHalifaxExpress.com

The Plympton Public Safety Building Committee met Wednesday, Feb. 8, starting with Daniel Palotta from P-3 in Norwell discussing his and Police Chief Patrick Dillon’s visit to the Hampden Police Station, which was built about six months ago.

The Hampden station is roughly 7,000 square feet in size. Palotta said, “We asked if we could bring the chief to see a police station that was smaller than we had considered to be utopia for Plympton yet served a similar police population.” Palotta continued that Chief Dillon was impressed with the Hampden station.

According to the Finance Committee, Plympton cannot afford to go over $3 million for the cost of the police station. Palotta expressed that it would be better to go below this.

Hamden paid $3 million for their police station, but Hamden had a 911 dispatch center on site. Since Plympton regionalizes their emergency dispatch to the Regional Old Colony Communication Center in Duxbury, this won’t be necessary and should cut costs. Palotta says it may cut cost in space, but will certainly cut costs in terms of IT.

Palotta had a designer draw up something similar to the Hampden Police Station for the committee to look over. He said that with all this in mind, coming in on budget is possible, but they’ll have to build the station on flat land and there will probably have to be less parking.

As far as flat spots go, it was determined by P-3 that the most practical and cost efficient spot would be between the baseball field and the back of the town hall. The committee admitted this spot was never considered ideal, especially from a traffic perspective.

Board of Health Chairman Art Morin says, “In talking with the highway surveyor, I see a problem with the way we have it now and people coming in and out of the town hall and the police department coming around if they have an emergency.” The proposed location seems as though it would make the problem worse.

However, creating new entrance ways would add to the cost of the police station. Palotta says he can’t promise the budget with that. He further added that Hamden’s site was on flat land with a wide entrance.

Chief Dillon said that the parking lot has been a hazard in all of his 15 years with the Plympton Police Department. “We have lights and sirens to warn people. Do I like it? No. Can we live with it? Yes, We need a new building.”

Palotta told the committee that this was significant progress getting the cost down to the $3 million. He says, “Dighton’s police station costs $4.5 million and is not much bigger than this.”

One thing to note is that Hampden’s police station did not include any sprinkler systems. The committee was under the impression that this was mandated because the cells are considered residential. At the Nov. 30, 2016 meeting, the committee tried discussing ways to cut cost on the sprinkler system by potentially using one tank for both the police and fire station.

Hampden however does not keep anyone arrested overnight. This was a way to get around the sprinkler requirement because the station was not deemed residential. According to P-3, the building inspector would also have to agree with this assessment.

The issues will continue to be discussed at the next meeting on Wednesday Feb. 22.

The Plympton Public Safety Building Committee met on Wednesday, January 25, 2017. Daniel Pallota from P-3 in Norwell, met with the committee to discuss a new blueprint for the police station.

The plan presented was for a 6,475 square foot building with a 1,825 sq. ft.  basement. However, the committee seems to be dropping the idea for a basement entirely. To put it in perspective, the current police station is about 2,000 square feet.

As far as material goes, Palotta and the committee talked about how the station might be suited for panelized construction. According to Palotta, the panels are made in New Bedford with workers making $11 per hour. This would save the town money if they were to do this as opposed to a stick-built building that would require a carpenter.

Palotta also indicated that this is a pretty typical way to go about construction in other parts of the country. He says, “Down South (anywhere below New Jersey), virtually all town houses are panelized.

Board member Nancy Butler asked Palotta if the panels are still customizable. Daniel Pallotta said that they are customizable.

This however did not rule out stick built as the specifications and uniqueness of a police station may still make stick built, the more practical option. One thing that did seem to be agreed upon the initial $2 million estimate was never a realistic number.

Palotta reiterated that and though cost is still an issue, Palotta says he thinks he can get the cost of the police station much closer to their original estimate. This was one of the reasons the basement is becoming less likely.

Daniel Palotta also mentioned that the town of Dighton had to go back to town meeting to get an additional $2 million in funds. Cost don’t look like they’ll increase by that large an amount.

Selectwoman, Chair and Public Safety Building Committee Chair Colleen Thompson voiced pleasure with the progress the committee made at the Board of Selectmen’s meeting on January 30, 2017. She says, “I believe we’re moving along well.”

Selectwoman Thompson also said that Police Chief Patrick Dillon went out to visit the police station in Hampden, Massachusetts. At the last meeting on Jan. 4, Chief Dillon said, “Hampden, MA dropped three different mod plans and came in budget with a non-mod.

Colleen Thompson mentioned this and said that Hamden paid $3 million for their non-modular building. The Hampden Police station is 7,000 square feet.

The Public Safety Building Committee is working to get the estimated figure for Plympton’s police station. Nancy Butler says, “We need to have the figures by the end of March.”

Daniel Palotta also wanted to meet with Selectmen Clerk John Traynor to run through some of the numbers.

Another issue the committee is still addressing is exact location. Nancy Butler says, “If we’re moving the police station closer to the town hall, what’s happening with parking?” The parking lot already has some issues with car accidents especially with the baseball field in the spring.

The next meeting for the Public Building Safety Committee will take place on Wednesday, February 8, 2017.