Taylor Fruzzetti
Express correspondent

HALIFAX — River Herring will be able to return to their native spawning grounds in the Monponsett Ponds this spring, but work will still need to be done in order to improve their journey in years to come.
River Herring or Alewives are an anadromous species – meaning they can exist in both fresh and salt waters, as they migrate up rivers from the sea to spawn. But for approximately 100 years, river herring were unable to access their spawning ground in the Monponsett Ponds due to waterways being blocked.
The river herrings’ journey back to Monponsett began in 2017 when the Carver Cotton Gin Mill Dam on the Sautucket River in East Bridgewater was removed due to the Office of Dam safety determining the dam a hazard according to Jeremy Gillespie a local Halifax conservation activist.
The Carver Cotton Gin Mill was erected in 1842 and blocked the natural passageways for herring to travel upstream. John Fabroski, president emeritus of the Plymouth County League of Sportsmen, fought for the dam’s removal for 17 years.
“Once that dam was removed on the Satucket River, that allowed the herring to get into Robbins Pond,” said Gillespie.
For Diadromous Fisheries Project Leader Brad Chase of the Division of Marine Fisheries, the next step was to create a fish passageway through the Stump Brook Reservoir Dam in East Bridgewater. Chase began talking with the bog owner who owns the dam to install a fish ladder in 2018.
After design and feasibility work, the Division of Marine Fisheries received a grant through the Taunton River Stewardship Council for engineering plans and permitting for the fish ladder, which was installed in the fall of 2023 according to Chase.
“It was one of those restoration targets that was thought to be too difficult way back when, but now it’s a reality,” said Chase. “Once that fishway was in, there was a chance to get the fish up to the Monponsett Ponds.”
According to NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a fish ladder, also known as a fishway, provides a detour route for migrating fish past a particular obstruction on the river. Designs vary … but the general principle is the same: the ladder contains a series of ascending pools that are reached by swimming against a stream of water. Fish leap through the cascade of rushing water, rest in a pool, and then repeat the process until they are out of the ladder.
According to Chase, some river herring will be able to make their way to Monponsett in late March of this year but work to improve culverts at Furnace Street and Elm Street will need to be done. Chase also plans to speak with the City of Brockton, which operates the fishway at Stump Brook Dam, to improve conditions.
“All of those little pieces I think are important,” said Chase. “I think we can make it work this spring but I think a better design is needed there,” said Chase referring to the Stump Brook Dam.
Although river herring are not technically endangered, the population has declined over the years due development threatening their habitats. Both Gillespie and Chase stressed the importance of river herring for the ecosystem and cultural significance.
“Some people call them potato chips- everything eats herring,” said Gillespie. “It will be a big boom for the whole ecosystem.”
“Traditionally, people used to use these fish for food and for bait and that practice has been banned since 2005,” said Chase. “Our agency is hoping to restore the population so people will have access to use these fish again. It’ll be very modest, but hopefully there’ll be a way where people can use this traditional practice and gather food.”
With the return of the river herring, the Town of Halifax is seeking volunteers to restore the Alewife Restoration Committee.

Halifax COA members brought Valentine’s Day wishes while delivering Meals on Wheels. Barbara Curtis, Outreach Services and Program Coordinator, with Madeline Flood, and Diane O’Brien, CoA van driver, were all part of making Valentine’s Day fun.

By late Monday night the ominous forecast of a powerful Nor’easter on Tuesday, became much less drastic as the storm’s track began to pull away, leaving much of the area with much less precipitation than originally forecast.
Plympton’s Fire Captain John Sjostedt reported a vehicle accident that shut down Prospect Road for about five hours while the utility pole, the only casualty in the accident, was replaced. The driver, the only occupant in the van, was not injured. The accident took place in the vicinity of 62 Prospect Road. Power was out in the area for a short time.
Coastal Kingston didn’t see much of any snow accumulation, and Deputy Fire Chief Adam Hatch said his department noted no appreciable affect, no flooding of note. “We dodged a bullet this time.”
Halifax Fire Dept. said they had no unusual situations due to the storm.

The Holmes Public Library had just the thing for a recent mid-winter warmup: hot chocolate, DIY crafts, and a puppy to warm your heart. Special guests were police officer Paul Campbell with Halifax’s own comfort dog Roxy, right. Above, Thomas Gallant gets down on the floor to visit with Roxie. . Below right:, Assistant Library Director Maria Bumpus welcomes Roxy.

Dennett Elementary School was honored Wednesday morning to present a plaque identifying three Young Heroes who have put into action the lessons they learned from talks with Plympton Firefighters. Each year firefighters speak with students at the Dennett giving them age-appropriate lessons in what to do when the alarm goes off. Each of these three youngsters showed that they could keep cool when the situation heated up. They are Jackson Randall, Cayden Galambos, and Bradley Bonome, shown here with top firefighter in the state, Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine, Plympton’s Fire Chief Cheryl Duddy, and Capt. John Sjostedt. The plaque will hang in the Dennett corridor. Overseeing the presentation was Wilden, the Plympton Fire Department’s comfort dog owned by Chief Duddy.

Photos by Deb Anderson

These stalwart scouts from Troop 70837 braved the 16 degree cold Sunday to tempt passers by with the 2024 selection of Girl Scout Cookie flavors on sale in the Plympton Library parking lot. They are, from left, Julia Gold, Abigail Borsari, and Emma Gold. They sold lots of cookies for their troop and will be seen – hopefully on warmer days – selling cookies until the end of March. This year’s cookie selection include the ever-favorite Thin Mints®, Trefoils®, Adventurefuls®, Caramel Chocolate Chip®, Caramel deLites ®, Samoas®, Do-si-dos® peanut Butter Sandwich, Girl Scout S’mores®, Lemonades®, Lemon-Ups®, Peanut Butter Patties® Tagalongs®, Toast-Yay!®, and Toffee-tastic®. Girl Scout Cookie booths will be set up Saturday, Jan. 27, at Lowe’s in Kingston; Sunday, Jan.28, at Stop & Shop Kingston, and Walmart, Halifax. Go to the Girl Scout Cookie Finder online at https://www.girlscouts.org/en/cookies/how-to-buy-cookies/cookie-finder-results.html?#02367.

Yes, that was our own Linda Redding of Halifax on the Travel Trivia game on Live with Kelly and Mark! The performance, that was actually taped way back last fall in September, aired January 3. The show had been on winter break.
It was Linda’s mother, Kay Redding, who started the ball rolling by asking Linda to help fill out the form on the Kelly & Mark website to become a Trivia caller. “It was easy to complete, though you did have to upload a photo and give two statements: a truth and a lie,” Linda said. “I thought I would give it a try too.
After submitting the entries, Linda was “very surprised” on Sept. 5 to see that she had a phone call from the Walt Disney Company. She had completed and submitted the form a week or two before.
“My truth was that I met Conan O’Brien at Logan in 2017 when bringing my cousin Beverly to the airport for her trip home to LA,” Linda said. The lie was that she met Steve Carrell at the Marshfield Hills General Store. “Mark guessed correctly, and I didn’t win the prized ‘Live with Kelly and Mark’ T-shirt stating that ‘I Stumped Mark’.” The trivia question was “How old was Derek Hough when he started on Dancing with the Stars”.   I answered 23 and he was actually 22, missing out on a trip to Antigua.  I am going to receive a wine.com gift card and have a chance to win a trip to Punta Cana.    A member of the audience also received a wine.com gift card.   I had to pick a number between one and one hundred and something and I picked 104—the number I had as an audience member back in 2015.”

Taylor Fruzzetti
Express correspondent
Thorndike Development will begin the construction of a 55 and up condominium complex including a new Council on Aging facility and four pickle ball courts this summer according to Thorndike Development Asset Manager Michael Devin.
The project, planned to house 102 condominiums, will be located at 265 and 266 Monponsett Street. The Council on Aging facility will be located at 265 Monponsett street.
Devin said that the project is expected to cost 3.8 million overall, with the town utilizing $1.7 million in funds that have been set aside for the construction of a new Council on Aging since Town Meeting on May, 9 2022.
According to Town Administrator Cody Haddad, $1.2 million of these funds have been allocated to use towards the Council on Aging project with roughly $460,000 set aside to cover the cost of the design and project management. Haddad explained that a portion of the $1.7 million was used to cover design costs for a previous plan that included reconstructing the Halifax Historical Museum to house the Council on Aging.
Thorndike Development will contribute up to $2.6 million in mitigation payments for the buildings according to Devin. Construction for the senior center is estimated to be completed in spring 2026 with the condominiums estimated to be completed in 2027.
According to Haddad, the initial proposal by the developer was to build over 200 affordable housing units.
“With over 200 units, we were concerned with additional costs to the town [such as] public safety and schools,” said Haddad.
Haddad said that eventually Thorndike Development proposed the 55 and up housing and came to an agreement with the town to include a Council on Aging facility on the site.
The Dec. 14 Special Town Meeting approved of a 55 and up condominium zoning overlay that will allow for the project to commence according to Haddad.
Some residents were concerned that the condominiums could add stress on Halifax Police and Fire during the Dec. 14 Special Town Meeting.
However, according to Thorndike Development, the town can expect an average of 23 calls for emergency personnel per year from the 55 and up community due to its size.
Haddad said that the project is estimated to bring in approximately $600,000 in tax revenue and added that this revenue can be used to hire additional staffing for the fire department.
The next step in the project is to complete a site plan review with the planning board, said Haddad.
According to Halifax Council on Aging Director Darlene Regan, the current Council on Aging facility located at 506 Plymouth Street does not currently meet the community’s needs.
“The house we are in now was built in the 1800s and it has never changed,” said Regan.
“I’m looking forward to it because now we can actually have our activities right in one place, whereas now we are scattered,” she said. “We outgrew our building and that’s a good thing.”
Regan said that in addition to the current building not being ADA compliant, the building has experienced issues with the aging infrastructure such as leaky chimneys.
“Going forward, having the doors open to all, all people that we can serve, is going to be a really key factor for our senior center,” she said.
Regan said that she is looking forward to broadening the COA’s horizons with the new facility which in addition to pickle ball courts for town wide use will include space for programming such as yoga and medical screenings.
Bridgewater State University will also be working with the Halifax Council on Aging to provide adult education courses to the new space according to Regan. “We’re thinking about that new generation that’s out there…they want to get out and they want to do something fun.”

The Kingston Business Association (KBA), a non-profit organization which supports Kingston and Kingston businesses, dedicated the lighting of this year’s Christmas tree in front of Solstice Restaurant in honor of Mat Hamilton.
The ceremony is one of the traditions associated with the town’s Luminary Celebration.
The 2023 honoree in the “Distinguished Community Volunteer” category is Mat Hamilton, a longtime resident who served his community through work on various town boards and organizations.  He was part of the Capital Planning Committee, the Community Preservation Committee, and served on the Finance Committee from 2004 to 2012. Mat has been married for 34 years to Fran (Shea) Hamilton. Both graduated from Norwich University in 1985. He is the loving father of triplets – Gavin, Lauren, and Emma. Mat and Fran became great friends with Paul Gallagher and his wife Sandy who also are parents of triplets.
Mat has spent many years in the contact lenses industry, volunteering in support of Kingston youth sports and is a board member of the local Hilltop Club.
Earlier this year, Mat was diagnosed with ALS. While he could not be present physically at the ceremony, his wife Fran and members of the family were there on his behalf. State Representative Kathy LaNatra presented a proclamation of congratulations from the Massachusetts legislature on Mat’s many accomplishments on behalf of the Town of Kingston.
The event also included a visit from Santa Claus, who provided some gifts to the crowd which included an after-event celebration at nearby Forty Second Brewing Co.
“Our community is enriched by all that Mat has done and the KBA is honored to dedicate the tree this year in his memory,” said Donna Smith-Bocash, president of the Kingston Business Association.
The Kingston Business Association Annual Tree Lighting began seven years ago; the tree was originally donated by the Mathias family as a memorial to their son Jeff who was the KBA’s first honoree. Every year the tree is rededicated to a significant Kingstonian, Other honorees since that first celebration have included Joseph Rebello, Paul Tura, Dick Arieta, George Boerger, Phil Burham, and John Iannucci.
The Kingston Business Association is a non-profit organization founded in 2015, with a purpose of helping support Kingston and Kingston businesses, as well as state and local legislation and governmental policies which promote new and existing businesses in Kingston.
The KBA also partners closely with the Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce and is the core of its Kingston Advisory Committee.. For additional information, please contact [email protected].