State Representative Kathy LaNatra (D-Kingston) announces that the House of Representatives recently passed legislation to set a moratorium on most residential and commercial evictions and residential foreclosures during the COVID-19 State of Emergency, and for 30 days after it ends.

The legislation includes the following provisions.

• It establishes a moratorium on most residential and commercial evictions within the Commonwealth for the duration of the State of Emergency and 30 days after the State of Emergency ends.

• Landlords may not charge late fees or send reports to credit rating agencies if a tenant notifies the landlord within 30 days of a late payment that the non-payment of rent is due to a financial impact related to the COVID-19 emergency.

• Prohibits landlords from sending “notice to quit” letters for the duration of the State of Emergency and 30 days after the State of Emergency is terminated.

• Establishes a moratorium on foreclosure actions for the duration of the State of Emergency and 30 days after the State of Emergency ends.

• Allows for video conferencing during the State of Emergency for reverse mortgage loans. Current mandates require in-person consultations for these loans.

• Emergency evictions may proceed during the moratorium for actions that involve allegations of criminal activity or substantial lease violations that may detrimental to public health or public safety.

Representative LaNatra said, “This is important protection for both residents and businesses because it provides some protection during this crisis. These are difficult times for us all and we are working to enact legislation that protects our citizens and help us all through these challenging circumstances.”

The bill now goes to the Senate.

Representative LaNatra’s district includes all residents of Halifax, Kingston and Plympton, as well as residents of Precincts 1, 11 and 13 in Plymouth; Precinct 1 in Middleboro; and Precinct 1 in Duxbury.  To reach her, email [email protected] or her legislative aide,  Chris Jean, [email protected]. The phone number for the office is 617-722-2430. For updates and announcements, please visit Representative LaNatra’s Facebook page, https://bit.ly/2Ura8VR or her website, https://www.kathylanatra.com.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen met via Zoom on Tuesday, April 14. Town Administrator Charlie Seelig told the Board that he would like them to revisit the Halifax COVID leave that had been established for town employees following the Governor’s statewide stay-at-home advisory.

He said that it would be necessary to differentiate between time off due to vacation or sick leave (unrelated to COVID) from leaves of absence related to the pandemic. Seelig said that in the weeks since the order, the town has been able to establish the ability for most town employees to work from home. He said there are still a select few who cannot work from home but no longer have a job site. Seelig said he would work with departments to try to find remedies for those situations, including possibly finding other town work for those employees to do from home. The Board plans to review further at their April 28 meeting.

Seelig also addressed the need for certain town employees to be granted carry over for vacation hours.

He said that the police and fire departments have not seen an influx in calls related to COVID-19 and therefore it wouldn’t be necessary to grant the carry over across the board. Seelig said, however, that both he and the town health agent Cathy Drinan would like the ability to carry over vacation time for use at a later time as they are having to work more hours as a result of COVID-19.

The Board approved the request with Chair Troy Garron saying it would be best to take such requests on a case-by- case basis.

Joseph Peck attended the meeting remotely to fulfil an appointment with the Board to discuss the issuance of a post permit for earth removal done a few years back by his father, John Peck. The Board and Seelig had a copy of a report from an engineer that included comments and recommendations for how to move forward before issuing the permit. Seelig asked Peck what his intentions were with the remaining earth mounds. Peck said, “I have no intentions with it. They’re just piles of dirt right now… it is certainly not leaving the property which I guess is the main concern.” Selectman Gordon Andrews said that he felt that a topographical plan should be submitted per the recommendation of the engineer.

Selectman Tom Millias agreed saying that in a perfect world he would like to see the recommendations carried out as well.

Peck told the Board that his father was quite ill and would be unable to attend a court date should there be one. He requested that the Board allow him to pay for the permit and waive the other recommendations stating that he would rather see money go to the town right now for the permit than to a land surveyor.

He also stressed his continued cooperation in the future in abiding by all town bylaws. Referring to Peck’s father’s health and the overall situation Garron said, “My feeling right now is that we set out to make sure everyone follows the rules and the bylaws and the situation has changed radically.

The Board agreed to move forward allowing Peck to simply pay for the post permit with the caveat that if there were to be any future violations, the town would need to take further legal action.

The Board also met virtually with Robert Bergstrom to discuss the upcoming Mudfest. Bergstrom said that just under 1,000 people attended the event last year and said that he was coming before the Board with the understanding that the event could only move forward if the Governor lifted his ban on gatherings before the June 21 date of the event. The Board voted to approve the event contingent on a review of the Governor’s restrictions prior to the event date.

Seelig gave a quick update on the town budget saying that the Finance Committee plans to meet next week. He said they will review guidance from town accountant Sandy Nolan as well as a framework provided by himself.

Seelig also said that the Halifax town meeting is still scheduled for June 15 and the town elections are still scheduled for June 20. Seelig said that he hopes that the state government will give consideration to a mail-in vote as it gets closer to June.

Two articles in the proposed warrant for town meeting will be submitted to the Planning Board for their public hearing on May 7. Those include one related to floodplain mapping as well as an article allowing recreational marijuana in the commercial district with a special permit. The Selectmen also voted to submit a new draft of the proposed multifamily zoning bylaw to the Planning Board for the May 7 hearing.

In other news, the May 8 Ragnar Road Race scheduled to use Halifax Elementary School as one of it’s stops has been cancelled.

Seelig also said that the Board had received a request to proclaim May 3 through May 9 as Children’s Mental Health Week.

Both Garron and Seelig pointed out that the Board has never participated in making such proclamations. The Board requested that Seelig gather more information on the organization making the request before they make their decision likely at the next meeting.

The Board voted to approve a generic contract requested by Highway Surveyor Steve Hayward in the amount of $28,500.

The money would be spent surveying the conditions of the town’s roads and estimating the cost of improvements. Seelig also asked the Board to approve a $5,000 grant from the Massachusetts Association of Health Boards for the town to use toward COVID-19 related costs.

Seelig told the Board that the pandemic has given the town more of a reason to try handling more business electronically moving forward. Seelig said that they may want to consider articles at town meeting to appropriate money to have new systems put in place.

Garron, who referred to himself as “old school” said, “I like hard copies.”

Word has come that the transfer station in Plympton will close for two weeks beginning today, April 10.  The decision was “not made lightly” and  is the result of several factors, according to the edict, including patrons not following safety instructions, and trying to enter the closed office at the site, touching buttons on the equipment, and while trying to be helpful may actually be putting employees at risk.

The station is due to re-open Saturday, April 25, unless otherwise posted.

The Plympton Board of Selectmen held their Thursday, March 26 meeting remotely using a conference phone line that members of the public could also call into.

Chair of the Board of Health Arthur Morin and Town Administrator Elizabeth Dennehy were also on the line. Dennehy told the Board that she has been having conference calls several days a week with department heads and others to discuss Plympton’s contingency plan for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dennehy said that the town would be receiving some supplemental guidance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) that they would be passing along.

The Plympton Fire and Police departments are doing their best to minimize exposure. They have designated just one ambulance to be used should a dispatcher get a sense that the call could involve potential exposure to COVID-19.

First responders will be put up in hotels should they need to be quarantined, particularly if they have vulnerable family members at home. Additionally, the ambulances are being fogged and there are plans to also fog the police cruisers and library. The fire station is being utilized to house several much-needed programs such as meals on wheels and the free and reduced school lunch program.

As part of the contingency plan, the Board of Health suggested making sure that there is more than one person with access to each of the passwords needed for various town departments. A backup would be assigned for each password holder. “It just seems like with everything being so uncertain and the numbers that are projected to come out with positive cases, I don’t think its realistic to think that none of us will be impacted in some way,” Dennehy explained.

Despite many municipalities canceling and postponing their town elections and town meetings, Dennehy said she was not ready to go that route. “I still don’t think that we’re in a spot where we necessarily want to pursue that at this time. It might be optimistic but I’m hoping that maybe things will be somewhat back to normal by that point and that we’re able to go on as planned. Obviously, we’ll be ready if we’re mandated to change those dates and I think we’ll get a better handle on it as the weeks go forward,” Dennehy told the Board.

Dennehy said that she has continued to meet with the finance committee and town accountant Barbara Gomez to work on the budget. She also told the Board that warrant articles are still being sent in at this time.

Selectman John Traynor had a number of suggestions for making sure that members of the community were taken care of during this crisis. Traynor proposed a petty cash fund that could be utilized by the fire department to buy supplies, etc. for residents who find themselves in trouble. Dennehy as well as Selectmen Christine Joy and Mark Russo were all on board with Trainor saying he would be glad to donate to such a fund. Dennehy said she would speak to Gomez about getting such an account set up. Traynor also suggested making well-being calls to residents. The possibility of robocalls with pertinent information regarding what to do if feeling ill was also discussed.

Morin commended Dennehy for her work during this crisis, saying, “Over the past fifty years, I’ve worked with a lot of professionals and I will tell you that this town is extremely lucky to have a professional like Liz Dennehy. She does just an amazing, amazing job.” Russo also jumped in, saying, “I think our emergency management team… are just doing amazing work… I absolutely feel comfortable that we are in good hands, the citizens are, and we all are. So, thank you.”

The Town of Halifax notified residents on March 25 that a second case of COVID-19 has been confirmed.  Due to privacy requirements, the name and address were not disclosed, although the close contacts of the positive case have been notified and are following CDC guidelines for self-quarantine.

Other contacts are still being investigated. With increased testing capabilities and community spread of COVID-19, having positive cases in Town was inevitable. This is a crucial time in infection control. Maintaining social distancing, limiting exposure to others, avoiding crowded places, and vigilant hand washing are vital steps in slowing the spread of this disease.

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) continues to work closely with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), other Federal agencies and our local Board of Health to share the most up to date information available. The DPH website is updated constantly with the latest guidance, including printable fact sheets in multiple languages at www.mass.gov/2019coronavirus.

The CDC website is https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html   The Town will continue to share information to ensure you are updated as broadly and quickly as possible.

North Easton Savings Bank announced that, due to the evolving situation related to the coronavirus outbreak, banking office lobbies will close until further notice.  Additionally, the bank has temporarily closed its two in-store locations at Roche Bros. in Easton and Shaw’s in North Attleborough.

Rich Spencer, Chief Executive Officer at North Easton Savings Bank, said that he hopes that lobby service will be restored soon, and reminds the public that, despite the temporary closings, Bank customers have several other ways to conduct banking with North Easton Savings Bank.

Individual locations will continue to offer drive-up and ATM services. In addition, the bank offers a variety of convenient services that include:

• Online and Mobile Banking – pay bills, transfer money between accounts, check balances and recent account activity, deposit a check, set up Alerts, and open a new account in our secure site. Login or enroll at www.NorthEastonSavingsBank.com.

• ATMs – Deposit cash or checks, withdraw, transfer funds between accounts, and check balances at the bank’s network of 23 ATM locations. Find maps and directions at www.NorthEastonSavingsBank.com./locations

• 24/7 Automated Telephone Banking Line – Get real-time balances, monitor recent account activity, transfer funds. To enroll, call the Contact Center. To access, call 888-226-5276.

•  Customer Contact Center – the bank’s service team can help with banking questions, or quickly put customers in touch with an expert if needed. Current hours are M-F 8-6; Sat 9-1. Reach the Center at 508-238-2007.

• Limited In-person Service by Appointment – For urgent matters requiring in-person assistance, individuals can call the bank’s Customer Contact Center to request an appointment. Appointments would be available based on the bank’s evaluation of conditions at the time of the request.

• Online Account Opening and Loan Application at www.NorthEastonSavingsBank.com

Spencer said, “We are sorry for any inconvenience this temporary closing of our lobbies will cause. We did not take the step lightly. But, given the current circumstances, it’s the right decision. The safety of our customers and employees must come first.

The North Easton Savings Bank employee team is working hard to help our customers smoothly navigate this temporary situation, and we are looking forward to the day we can restore our lobby services.”

He continued, “As a community bank, our goal is to meet the needs of our customers and communities and do so in a way that we believe best protects their health. Our top priority is to maintain a safe workplace for our employees, and a safe place of business for our customers.”

North Easton Savings Bank will maintain current information about its banking operations, and possible impacts to service delivery, on the Bank’s web page, and will communicate with its customers by email.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, an arm of the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV/index.html, provides situation updates, advice, and FAQs.

About North Easton Savings Bank

With eighteen local branches and over $1.1 billion in assets, North Easton Savings Bank is uniquely situated to provide personal and business banking and lending solutions to southeastern Massachusetts. Founded in 1864, the Bank has a proven track record of growing the community through fair banking practices, financial advising, and local philanthropy.

Looking forward, North Easton Savings Bank is well-positioned as the preferred area banking partner with a powerful combination of convenient features like mobile and online banking and the personal, hometown touch of a local bank. North Easton Savings Bank is fully insured by the FDIC and the DIF and is an Equal Housing Lender. For more information, please visit www.NorthEastonSavingsBank.com.

Plympton Town Clerk Patricia Detterman has announced that nomination papers are now available for the Spring Town Election on Saturday, May 16.

A complete list of offices is available on the town’s web site or at the office of the Town Clerk during regular business hours.

Voters across Massachusetts headed to the polls on Super Tuesday to vote in the presidential primary.

Voters in Halifax, selected Joe Biden as their preferred Democratic  presidential nominee with him receiving 519 votes or 39 percent of the vote.  Bernie Sanders finished second with 363 votes or 27% of the vote. Elizabeth Warren received 190 votes, 14.3 percent, and Michael Bloomberg received 171 votes  or 12.8%. Bloomberg has since left the race.

Nearly 43 percent of voters in Plympton also selected Biden who received 249 votes. Sanders received 149 votes and 25.7 percent of the Plympton vote while Warren received 73 votes (12.6 percent) and Bloomberg received 64 votes (11 percent).

In Kingston, Biden also received the lion’s share of votes with 1032, or 39.1% of the democratic votes cast.  Bernie Sanders took 704 votes, or 26.7%, and Elizabeth Warren tied Micheal Bloomberg with each receiving 350 votes, or 13.27%.

Plymouth County voted very similarly overall to the Silver Lake towns of Halifax, Plympton, and Kingston. Tulsi Gabbard, who as of press time was still in the race, received very little support from Massachusetts. Biden walked away from Super Tuesday with 34 of Massachusetts’ delegates while Sanders picked up 26, and Warren 17.

Republican voters faced a choice between President Donald Trump or former Massachusetts Governor Bill Weld.

Trump easily won the Massachusetts Republican primary with nearly 87 percent of the vote while Weld picked up 10 percent of the vote. For reference, both Halifax (53 percent of the vote) and Plympton (50 percent of the vote) went for Donald Trump in the 2016 general election, despite Clinton winning the state by a significant margin.

Three candidates were on the ballot in both Halifax and Plympton for Republican State Committee Man in the Second Plymouth and Bristol District. They were Incumbent and Halifax Selectman Gordon C. Andrews, former state representative and Whitman resident Geoff Diehl, and Lawrence Novak of Brockton. Diehl won decisively in  both towns with 420 in Halifax to Andrews 292, and Novak 28.  In Plympton,  Diehl won with 187 votes to Andrews 67 and Novak 11.   

Two candidates were also on the ballot for Republican State Committee Woman: Whitman resident KathyJo Boss and Brockton resident Jeanie Falcone.  Kathy Jo Boss won Halifax with 397 votes to Falcone’s 300.  In Plympton, Boss  won 146 votes to Falcone’s 108. The races for Democratic State Committee Woman and Man were uncontested with both Michael D. Brady and Peggy Curtis both up for reelection.

In Kingston, voters chose James R. McMahon, III for Republican State Committee man with 562 votes over Jesse G. Brown, 483 votes, and Sean Patrick Rausch with 36 votes. Jennifer A Cunningham won 593 votes for Republican State Committee woman over Linda M Zuern with 405 votes.  The Democratic State Committee Man in Kingston was Brian R. Dunn who ran unopposed. Democratic State Committee Woman Amy B. Kullar was also unopposed.

Results of the State Committee races were still being tabulated as of press time.

Kristy Zamagni-Twomey
Express correspondent

HALIFAX – Representatives from Area 58 and the Cable Advisory Board met with the Halifax Board of Selectmen Tuesday night to discuss concerns several months before the end of their current contract.

Selectman Tom Millias said that he feels there is a lack of transparency on Comcast’s end, specifically regarding the types of fees on bills. Millias said that the Area 58 fees are included under “franchise fees” and stressed that most subscribers are probably unaware that they are paying for those services. Cable access is available to everyone including non-subscribers who are not paying for it. “It took me a while to figure out that I was paying for it and I scrutinize my bills,” Millias said. Millias also said that he was concerned that there was no option to opt out of paying for the service. The representatives from Area 58 said that they had no control over the way in which Comcast bills for their services. They offered to do a PSA on their channel to make viewers aware.

There were several appointments scheduled during the Tuesday’s Selectmen meeting. The first was with Judith Rakutis and Martha Smith. Both women were appointed to the Council on Aging Board of Directors. The selectmen thanked them for volunteering.

Amber Sadlier, the Race Director for the Ragnar Road Relay met with the Board to request permission for the race to run through the town and use the elementary school as a minor exchange point. The Ragnar Road Relay is a series of 200-mile relay races run in 20 different geographic locations. The Massachusetts’ race traditionally begins in Hull and finished in Provincetown but had to be re-routed in recent years for safety reasons. The race will now end at Smuggler’s Beach in Yarmouth with a stop in Halifax. The race is run on Friday, May 8 and Saturday, May 9. It is anticipated that runners would begin to trickle in around 4 p.m. with peak time being 6 p.m. on Friday. Sadlier said that it wouldn’t be necessary for roads to be closed down. Due to concerns regarding heavy traffic in the area at that time in the afternoon, Halifax Police Chief Joao Chaves said he would have a police detail present. The selectmen unanimously supported Sadlier’s request. Sadlier told the Board that the race raised $400,000 for various fundraising campaigns in 2018.

Eagle Scout candidate Ryan McCarthy sought the Board’s approval for his project to create tables near the soon to be built gazebo at the HOPS Playground. McCarthy, who is a part of Boy Scout Troop 39, said that one of the tables would be handicap accessible. Asked how he would be funding the project, McCarthy said that he has several sponsors lined up as well as a GoFundMe page. Selectmen Chair Troy Garron said, “Once again, the Boy Scouts are improving upon the quality of life in Halifax.”

The final appointment of the night was with Department of Fish and Game (DFG) Land Agent Joan Pierce and Plymouth County Administrator Frank Basler. In July, Pierce met with the Board to discuss Fisheries and Wildlife buying an area of Peterson’s Swamp from Halifax. According to Pierce, the Department would maintain the land rather than develop it. Included in the plan is a small parking area to make the land more accessible.

Currently, Plymouth County and Halifax each own 50 percent of the land being referred to as Parcel A and Parcel B. Halifax needs to purchase their share of the land from Plymouth County for $75,000 before selling it to Fisheries and Wildlife for an agreed upon $150,000.

In previous meetings with Pierce, both Garron and Millias have expressed frustration with getting the short end of the stick in their previous deals with Fisheries and Wildlife. To make this deal more appealing to the selectmen and the town, Fisheries and Wildlife will also be transferring a sliver of land behind Aldana Road to Halifax. This land carries value to the town as ownership of it will be necessary to eventually pave the road.

Seelig said that they had Article 97 legislation drafted for the transaction. Seelig said that the Board could vote to request Representative Kathleen LaNatra and Senator Michael Brady to file it. Pierce said that the draft was approved by the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM), the Executive Office of Administration and Finance (A & F), and Fisheries and Wildlife and would now just need the approval of the town in order to be filed.

Selectman Gordon Andrews asked, “What guarantee do we have that we get the sliver?” Pierce reminded him that Fisheries and Wildlife wants Parcel B and without the transfer of the sliver, that can’t happen.  Once the Article 97 legislation goes through there is a swap for no further consideration.

Millias, who called the town’s track record with Fisheries and Wildlife “poor to lousy” said, “My issue all along has been that I have absolutely no confidence in Fisheries and Wildlife and the Commonwealth. Absolutely none and this is not just recently, this has been over twenty years.” Pierce assured him, “We are committed to this. I’m on record, I’m in the minutes, and that’s all I can tell you.”

Andrews made a motion to approve the purchase of Lot A and B from the county for $75,000 as voted by the town at special town meeting. Millias seconded the motion and the selectmen voted it through. Andrews said that he was fine with purchasing the lot but was hesitant to sign the option to sell it to the state without having the legislation filed. The Board voted to have Seelig request that it be filed.

Aside from the night’s appointments, the selectmen and Town Administrator Charlie Seelig took up a few other matters including officially signing the Host Community Agreement with Bud’s Goods and Provisions for the development of an outdoor marijuana growing facility in Halifax. Both Brian Kling and Scott Materna were named to the Building and Facility Needs Committee that also includes most department heads in the town. The committee will hold its first meeting on March 11 at 2 p.m.

The Greater Attleboro Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA) is scheduled to meet with the Board of Selectmen on March 10 about possibly having Halifax become a member. Plympton recently voted to join GATRA.

The reusable bag bylaw, designed to reduce the use and distribution of single use plastic shopping bags, will take effect on March 1, 2020. This bylaw was voted at the Annual Town Meeting in May, 2019 and has been approved by the Attorney General. It applies to all businesses operating in the town of Halifax.

No plastic bags will be permissible for distribution at checkouts (points of sale). There is no thickness, or percentage of plastic content acceptable. The Beautification Committee, on clean up days and at other events, has distributed free reusable bags while supplies lasted.

Start gathering your reusable bags now!

For more information about the bylaw, or with questions, please contact the Halifax Beautification Committee at [email protected].