CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2025 FUNDING
PLYMPTON – The Plympton Community Preservation Committee (CPC) is currently accepting applications for fiscal year 2025 funding. The deadline for completed applications is October 15.
Projects funded in prior years include a safe in the Town Clerk’s office to archive important historical records; installation of a chairlift and new insulation for the “Old Town House” building at 189 Main St.; a comprehensive drainage system to solve a chronic wet basement in the Plympton Library; funds to acquire and improve the 11 acre parcel on Main Street now known as Churchill Park which offers access to the abutting 87 acre parcel known as Cato’s Ridge thereby forming a large natural preserve with walking trails; improvements at Harry Jason Park to make it more accessible for family and recreational use; the installation of a chairlift in the Plympton Historical Society Building; renovation of the old Winnetuxet swimming hole into a recreational area; and facilitating the donation of O’Neil Marsh on Ring Road which offers additional access to Cato’s Ridge.
More recent projects include clapboard painting and window restoration and replacement at the “Old Town House”; repair and restoration of Town Green gazebo; creation of the 150 acre “Two Brooks Preserve” off Prospect Road; funding for improvements to the playground at the Dennett Elementary School; and the purchase and preservation of almost 300 acres known as Turkey Swamp.
The CPC takes very seriously its responsibility to administer Community Preservation Act funds and is thrilled to have the opportunity to serve and improve the town through acquisition and protection of open space, historical preservation, community housing and increased recreational opportunities. New projects selected by the CPC for further consideration will be voted on at the 2025 Annual Town Meeting.
Project guidelines and applications can be found on the Plympton town website at http://www.town.plympton.ma.us/community-preservation-committee. Click on “Documents” at the left-hand side of the web page to bring up the Plympton Community Preservation Plan which includes the application and criteria. The CPC Plan and application are also available at the Town House and at the Plympton Public Library. Questions can be addressed by contacting CPC Chair Mark Russo at [email protected].
EEE, West Nile Virus in Halifax, Plympton, and Kingston
The Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health reminds people in moderate to high risk areas, such as Whitman, Hanson, Halifax, Plympton, and Kingston, that the threat continues for both Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) and West Nile Virus (WNV). To date, two males, one in Hampden County, in the 40-49 year old age group and one in Middlesex County, in the 70-79 year old age group, have contracted WNV. One animal has been found with EEE..
These mosquito-borne illnesses continue to be a threat to health and residents should take precautions when outside from dusk to dawn, prime time for mosquito bites. The threat will continue until a hard frost, usually in October..
Ken Vinton celebrates 90th birthday
Tuesday, Aug. 6, Ken Vinton, president of TRIAD, was surprised with a room full of birthday well-wishers at the regularly scheduled August meeting.
Vinton noted, before realizing that the celebration was for him, that there were a record number of attendees on Tuesday, 34 in fact, there at the August meeting.Asked how long he plans to remain president of TRIAD, Vinton responded that he was having a lot of fun with the group and that it’s always easy to get speakers.’
State Rep. Kathy LaNatra presented Ken with a Citation from the Massachusetts House of Representatives praising his leadership and activities promoting senior citizens’ rights with Halifax TRIAD and congratulating him on the celebration of his 90th birthday. Plymouth County Sheriff Joe MacDonald presented Ken with a ball cap from the sheriff’s department.
A beautiful birthday cake was enjoyed by all.
Vinton introduced Fred Corrigan, this month’s speaker, an active 89-year-old Halifax citizen who spoke about growing up in the White Mountains in Randolph, NH, in a three-room house with his parents, his brother, and baby sister.
Years later, the little house was moved, as was the custom, to become a garage to another home. The owner would brag that she had the only garage with wallpaper on the walls, Corrigan told the group.
He showed a photo of the one-room schoolhouse in Randolph, NH, where he had the same teacher as his father. She taught there for 33 years, grades 1 through 8 in the one-room schoolhouse, where she had to keep an authoritarian rule on the group – the youngest in the front rows, and older kids in the back. There was a blackboard in the front, and another in the back, so she could teach separate lessons to separate age groups.
There was no electricity, no running water, and an outhouse in the back. Life was simple. High school was in Lancaster, NH with about 30 kids in the senior class, Corrigan told his audience.
Fred told about Saturday nights in Lancaster, where the entertainment was movies at the Rialto Cinema. “Drive from the three-room house in Randolph to Jefferson, then to Lancaster. It was shopping night, ‘because you don’t run that trip every day to pick up a loaf of bread,’” Corrigan said. “Shopping night was Saturday night; we stocked up for the week. While Mom and Dad went shopping, we three kids got to go to the theater to see whatever was playing. Fred’s brother was an usher at that theater. The cost to go to the Rialto theater was five cents. That theater is still operating today.”
Fred told some of the history of the area that was his home so long ago, and showed a photo of a sculpture of a wolf erected “to honor the brave men and women who redeemed Lancaster from the wilderness. This memorial is erected by their local sons and daughters upon the 150th anniversary of the founding of the town of Lancaster. July 6, 1913.”
“Lake Coos and the Presidential Range. Lancaster, founded in 1763, lies on the bed of glacial Lake Coos, formed as the glaciers receded 14,000 years ago.
“Today, the Connecticut, an American Heritage River, flows along the bottom of the ancient lake. You stand at a gateway to the Great North Woods Region.
“To the east, aligned from north to south, are Mounts Madison, Adams, Jefferson and Washington, the highest peaks of the White Mountains Presidential Range. Mt. Washington, at 6,288 feet, is the highest in the Northeast.
“The strongest winds ever recorded, 231 miles per hour, were measured on its summit on April 12, 1934.”
BOS mullls new affordable housing plan heard
The Plympton Board of Selectmen met on Monday, Aug. 5. Alyssa Papantonakis from the Old Colony Planning Council presented an update on the 2017 Housing Production Plan. Selectman John Traynor said that a similar presentation was given at the library and was met with “great enthusiasm.” Papantonakis described the Old Colony Planning Council or OCPC as “a regional planning agency created in 1967 to improve the physical, social, and economic conditions of the district.” She explained affordable housing and said that a household is considered “house burdened” if they spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing-related costs.
She said that households qualify for affordable housing if they are at or below 80 percent of the area’s median income. According to Papantonakis the median income for a family of four in Plympton is $97,800. “If under 10 percent of the housing stock is affordable, local zoning boards of appeals can approve affordable housing development proposals under flexible rules,” she explained. Plympton is currently around 4-5 percent. From 2000 to 2020, Plympton’s population grew 11 percent. She also said that 22.8 percent of owner-occupied homes and 45 percent of renter-occupied homes are house burdened. Papantonakis went over a “menu” of possible solutions.
Selectman Mark Russo asked if anything set Plympton apart from other towns in terms of their needs. He was told that Plympton’s topography and wetlands as well as its small size sets them apart. It was also said that compared to neighboring communities, Plympton has a high subsidized housing inventory (SHI) at around 5 percent. Russo also asked, “when we get our accessory dwelling unit program really built up, will an ADU [Accessory Dwelling Units] count toward the 10 percent of stock?” He was told that in the State’s most recent iteration of the Housing Bond Bill, ADUs are allowed to built as of right in single-family zoning districts.
Town Administrator Liz Dennehy asked, “Where would you say we’re at as far as the ADUs and the timeframe – like say we wanted to apply for a technical assistance grant to get your help with maybe looking at what we have in place for our ADU bylaw, maybe along with this housing bond bill if that language is in fact implemented, and seeing about a way that we could make better use of it, like actually get our residents to understand what they might be allowed to do with their property.” She continued, “There are people here in town that maybe aren’t even aware that we have some of these regulations in place to assist them if maybe they have a family member who needs to downsize and maybe they want to come live with them.” She was told that Mass Housing Partnership (MHP) might have something available to help with that. Papantonakis also mentioned the District and Local Technical Assistance (DLTA) which becomes available once a year. Dennehy noted that they have taken advantage of DLTA in recent years.
Regarding the plan, the Selectmen were told that the plan would not be adopted until accepted by the Planning Board. “If you’re looking for technical assistance or other support for ADUs or any of this, having an adopted Housing Production Plan is additional points,” one of the representatives from OCPC said.
The Selectmen also reviewed the Code of Conduct for boards and committees and considered it for adoption. Dennehy explained, “the idea was to give boards and committees, in particular, but also department heads to give them some tools that they could use that if they were encountering a difficult situation, either with a member of the public or an employee, something of that nature; it would just be another tool in the toolkit to have something concrete to point to and utilize for documentation purposes.” Dennehy further said that she hoped it would be a reminder to people that “we are on the same team.” She told the Selectmen that she was looking for approval of the concept from them, noting that she planned to get feedback from boards, committees, and department heads before finalizing the document.
During her update, Dennehy said that Selectman Dana Smith donated a P.A. system for the Townhouse. Dennehy said that Area 58 would assist in getting it up and running. “Our people in the audience should hopefully be able to hear us and we should be able to hear them… so big thank you to Dana for setting us up with that system,” Dennehy said.
Dennehy told the Selectmen that Erik and Katrina Player resigned from the Recreation Commission leaving two open positions. The Selectmen also voted to appoint Deborah Batson to the Council on Aging Board effective August 5 through June 30, 2027.
The Selectmen ended their meeting with their raves. Traynor said that the Recreation Commission came to the library on Saturday. “It’s just amazing, the work they have been doing,” he said. He said that the Commission is hoping to get someone to fill the open positions that has experience with construction and project management. He said that they are working on a walking trail around Holt Field that will be accessible by a wide array of people. Selectman Mark Russo said his rave was for some progress by the OCPC on housing as well as the progress on the Code of Conduct. “And actually the one I’m really excited about is Town Counsel coming to the next meeting and updating us on some ongoing litigation,” Russo said. Dennehy said that her rave was for the community liaison for Eversource who pointed her in the direction of a grant opportunity that allows for Eversource to donate $2,000 toward National Night Out in partnership with the Firefighter’s Association.
Plympton’s Code of Conduct policy
Plympton’s Board of Selectmen met on Monday, Aug. 12, and voted unanimously to adopt a three-page, single-spaced “Code of Conduct” enumerating behavior and protocols for a varety of situations.
In introducing the policy outline, Town Administrator Liz Dennehy distributed the handbook with the following message:
The Board of Selectmen has unanimously approved the concept of establishing a Code of Conduct for Boards and Committees. We believe that this Code, which is comprised of language from the Massachusetts Municipal Association and other communities, will serve as a guide for maintaining civility in communications amongst Boards and Committees, Town staff and the general public and will ultimately further enhance our ability to provide efficient, effective and responsive public service as a Town government team. While we’re aware that in terms of implementation, elected Boards or Committees can certainly opt out, we’re hopeful that everyone will see this as a useful tool in terms of encouraging respectful communications and furthering Town initiatives in the provision of public service.”
The guide deals with acceptable conduct generally and in relation to the community, other elected and appointed officials, conduct in relation to town administration and town staff.
The Town Clerk shall provide a copy of this policy to all elected and appointed officials upon its issuance and upon the subsequent appointment or re-appointment of officials.
Each official shall sign a statement that they have read and understood the policy and that they will comply with all requirements set forth herein. In the event that any member declines to sign the statement form, that fact shall be noted by the Town Clerk on said form.
Should any official receive or become aware of a violation of this policy, they should report the violation to the Town Administrator and his/her department head.
Violation of its policy may constitute good cause for removal of appointed board/committee members.
Elected officials, while ultimately accountable to the voters of Plympton, may be subject to a request for their resignation, public censure or reprimand, or a recall petition, accordingly.
A complete copy of the Plympton Code of Conduct policy can be found at the office of the Plympton Town Clerk.
Hank and Bert deemed dangerous
Alan Ingram
Express correspondent
Kingston Selectmen voted July 30 to classify two Great Danes as “dangerous dogs” following three separate delivery driver biting incidents, imposing containment and liability insurance requirements on the owners.
The board voted 3-2 to deem the dogs, named Hank and Bert, as dangerous after hearing testimony about attacks that occurred on April 4, May 4 and July 14 at the home of Jenna Goldstein on Raboth Road.
Along with the “dangerous dog” classification, Goldstein must construct a secure enclosure with a roof for the dogs, obtain liability insurance of at least $100,000 per dog, and have the animals neutered.
Animal Control Officer Sonya Buckner recommended the dangerous designation, citing the repeated incidents.
“It’s three bites, whether they’re gentle giants or not,” Buckner said. “Who’s to say if she walks them off the property? I don’t know how they’re going to be. So our role as public safety officers is to make sure that nothing like this happens again and that we’re not here in another three, four months because something else has happened.”
Goldstein argued she had taken steps to prevent further incidents, including installing delivery instructions, a drop box, and signage warning of dogs on the property. She said the dogs have never had issues with visitors or family members.
“From the start here, I was already putting measures in to kind of protect the dogs, protect people from coming to the house,” Goldstein said. “I am taking this very seriously and I’m very sorry that this did happen”
Board member Kim Emberg expressed reservations about the dangerous classification, suggesting a nuisance designation instead.
“This isn’t like they’re running down the street attacking random people. They were acting as I would expect a dog in a safe, believed to be safe, place of their own, protecting their home,” Emberg said.
However, board member Tyler Bouchard argued the repeated incidents warranted the stricter designation.
“We’re not dealing with one, we’re not dealing with two, we’re dealing with three,” Bouchard said. “And respectfully, this could have been stopped at one. It’s our job now.”
The board set a Sept. 30 deadline for Goldstein to comply with the new requirements, with the option for an extension if needed.
Plympton flags in disrepair
Kristy Zamagni-Twomey
Express correspondent
The Plympton Board of Selectmen met on Monday, July 22. Rick Burnet appeared before the Board to discuss the flags on the Town Green. “The flags are in disrepair. I hear that you guys are basically in charge of the flags, so they need to be fixed… there’s five in disrepair between my house and here.” Selectman John Traynor agreed saying, “there’s one in front of the house that’s just torn to shreds… and another one is just hanging by a thread.” Town Administrator Liz Dennehy said, “they’re very expensive… we spent a small fortune on them.” Traynor said that he initially advocated for the flying of the flags and that he wanted to follow the example set by Kingston. He said that they may need to rethink the size of the flags, etc.
Briggette Martins, who spearheads the Memorial Day activities in town, said, “I think it would be great to have them up for Memorial Day… and we take them down after the Fourth. I did speak to the Veteran’s Agent, and she said that as long as… for Veteran’s Day our main flags are flying, that is what she’s concerned with.” The flags were being flown longer than typical in the last year which has led to additional wear and tear.
Regarding cost, Selectman Mark Russo proposed that it be funded by a Town Meeting article. “Let the townspeople decide,” he said. Dennehy proposed having Highway Superintendent Rob Firlotte take all the flags down. “I would just take all of them down and then we can look at everything – our inventory, what it would cost to replace, what it would cost to convert to a banner system and then we’ll have something in place for Veteran’s Day,” Dennehy said. Traynor said, “I would rather see them flying.” Russo agreed with Traynor. Instead of Dennehy’s proposal, they agreed to have Firlotte take down the damaged flags only while looking into cost for replacement and alternative systems as well as funding it through an article at Town Meeting.
Before leaving the meeting Burnet said, “It’s a respect. There’s texts that need to be followed and we don’t follow them even having them all repaired; they need to be lighted at night… there’s a lot to it. I’ll put up with not having that part, but having them flying correctly.”
The Director of Elder Affairs Colleen Thompson appeared before the Board to provide a departmental update. She began by saying that they are well within their budget and noted that they have been offering luncheons every other month and other activities. The Friends of the COA also help with putting on programming. Upcoming activities include a cookout at the Upland Club on August 21. She said that attendance at yoga has grown enough that they have added a second class. A monthly newsletter is also distributed.
Regarding the food pantry, Thompson said it serves about 30 people across 18 households. Thompson said, “we don’t restrict the use of the pantry; I suspect there are some people that don’t have a financial need that use it, but if somebody tells me they want some food, it’s not that big of a deal.” Thompson said, “I do want to mention that the church is very supportive of the COA.” She said that they don’t charge for use of the building.
The nurse that has been working with the COA is leaving and a new one is in the process of being hired. “The biggest thing is getting our new driver in place… I’m really hoping we can find someone that is already certified,” Thompson said. She said that it is over 40 hours-worth of time to get trained. She said that the driver would be in addition to the Greater Attleboro and Taunton Regional Transit Authority (GATRA).
Selectman Mark Russo said, “I think you guys, along with the Historical Society, are ripe, sooner or later, for a major donation. I think dropping that hint every once and a while and planting that seed – sooner or later someone is going to recognize their frailty and their age and have some wherewithal and what better way to support the town that they’ve enjoyed their whole lives?”
Police Chief Matthew Ahl also appeared before the Board to provide some updates. He said that the elementary School successfully started a garden club. Ahl said, “My school resource officer team has executed plantings out there and got the students involved which has been great.” He told them that the same school resource officer team participated in D.A.R.E. camp at Whitman-Hanson. Ahl also told the Selectmen that they have been working on many grants and recently appropriated “a few hundred thousand dollars” toward different things as well as acquiring an ATV.
Ahl said that as part of SEMLEC, he runs a multi-agency/unit for civil disturbance. “It’s unfortunate that we’re here in this climate based on what’s going on politically and around the world, what we’ve found is that in this immediate Southeastern MA area is that there is a need to create a unit around rioting and protesting,” he explained. Ahl is running and fielding the unit. Ahl also said that on August 16 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. they will be holding National Night Out which will include many town departments, touch-a-truck, etc. Ahl said that Library Director Mike Slawson has been incredibly helpful bringing in fun activities like face painting, etc.
Dennehy told the Selectmen that they need to name a new nominee to the Old Colony Planning Council. “But before we do so, I was wondering if the Board would entertain authorizing Selectman Russo and myself to pursue other planning agencies?” Dennehy asked. She said that they were specifically interested in Southeastern Regional Planning and Economic Development District (SRPEDD). The Selectmen agreed to pursue looking into SRPEDD.
Dennehy also read a letter from Cathy Ferguson, in the capacity of a resident, regarding some of her concerns. She first said that the decision to ban alcohol on town property should not be revisited. She also expressed concern about using the Old Townhouse as a venue open to the public citing concerns about it sitting on a cesspool septic system.
Regarding the Old Townhouse, Traynor said, “it’s owned by the people and I think we need to have as much going on there as possible.” He said that they would need to do some more homework regarding the septic situation.
For raves, Traynor said that while it wasn’t directly tied to Plympton, the waterfront concerts sponsored by Plymouth are wonderful.
Quigley signs with Cincinnati Reds
Nate Rollins
Express correspondent
He’s headed pro.
Halifax native Stephen Quigley has signed with the Cincinnati Reds organization.
The Silver Lake alum graduated from Wheaton College in 2022.
Quigley made the transition from shortstop to the mound for Wheaton during his junior year and was named to the D3baseball.com All-Region Second Team as a utility player following the season.
In 2021, Quigley was named the Region 1 Pitcher of the Year by both the American Baseball Coaches Association and D3baseball.com in addition to previously earning Pitcher of the Year honors from the New England Women’s & Men’s Athletic Conference. He capped his breakout season by being selected a Third Team All-American by the ABCA and earning a Fourth Team All-America designation by D3baseball.com. Quigley struck out a league-high 73 batters, while posting a 2.22 earned run average for the Lyons.
He then went on to play two seasons at the University of Connecticut where he continued to flourish.
He earned First-Team All-Big East accolades in his debut season with the Huskies. His calling card was the strikeout, duplicating his effort with Wheaton by striking out a team-high 74 batters for UConn in 76 innings, which also topped the staff in 2023.
Quigley fanned a career-high 87 batters to lead all BIG EAST hurlers, en route to being named to the ABCA All-Northeast First Team.
The 24-year-old finished his collegiate career with an 18-10 win-loss record between Wheaton and UConn to go with 253 strikeouts, while issuing just 72 walks in 266 innings pitched. He recorded a 3.62 ERA, while making 52 appearances, including 44 starting assignments.
Kingston BOS green-lights ambitious road safety plan
Alan Ingram
Express correspondent
Kingston selectmen have approved a comprehensive road improvement plan aimed at enhancing safety and connectivity throughout the town.
The plan, presented by Environmental Partners at the July 30th Board of Selectmen meeting, prioritizes projects on both town and state-owned roads. It includes upgrades to Main Street, intersection redesigns, and new pedestrian facilities.
Jim Fitzgerald, Principal at Environmental Partners, explained the project’s goals: “We want to put the town in a good position to solicit those other alternative funding sources to supplement the Chapter 90 [state funding].”
The top-rated project for town-owned roads is along Main Street, focusing on improving pedestrian safety. The plan proposes installing improved crosswalks at regular intervals, ensuring ADA accessibility, and potentially adding rectangular rapid flashing beacons at key intersections.
Other high-priority projects include redesigning the intersection of Pembroke Street at Lake Street and Station Street near the high school, and adding a shared-use path on Lake Street.
For state-owned roads, the plan prioritizes improvements to the intersection of Main Street, Summer Street, and Linden Street. This location saw 44 crashes over a five-year period, including eight with injuries and one fatality.
Margot Schoenfelder, Senior Project Manager at Environmental Partners, emphasized the importance of the prioritization methodology: “We find creating a set of criteria that is made public and having it be quantitative is really important for justifying how the town’s prioritizing projects.”
Paul Basler, Kingston’s Streets, Trees, and Parks Superintendent, stressed the need for road maintenance funding. “We need money in this town to maintain the current roads we have,” Basler said. “We got $415,000 from Chapter 90 this year. That Chapter 90 money is earmarked for Ring Road, Prospect Street, and Thomas Street. Those three jobs alone are worth almost $2 million.”
Town Planner Valerie Massard noted that the next steps involve seeking funding opportunities. “We’re not gonna be able to predict where we’re gonna start. We’re gonna go with opportunity meets money,” she said.
The Selectmen unanimously accepted the state and local road improvement priorities report. The full report is available on the town’s website.
Halifax woman honored at Fenway
On Friday, July 12, the Boston Red Sox and Red Sox Foundation commemorated the foundation’s 22-year commitment as a co-presenting sponsor of the Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) with PMC Night at Fenway Park.
The organization has raised $28 million toward its $75 million goal for this year, officially surpassing $1 billion in lifetime fundraising for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Dana-Farber) since 1980. During the ceremony, 40 members of the PMC Living Proof community, PMC riders and volunteers who are currently undergoing or have undergone treatment for cancer, rode around the warning track while being cheered on by Red Sox Nation, followed by the official unveiling of the PMC logo on the iconic Green Monster. Halifax local and cancer survivor, Jainey Holland, was among those honored on Friday night.
On August 3 and August 4, more than 6,500 riders will come together with a goal of raising a record $75 million to support lifesaving cancer research and treatment. The PMC donates 100 percent of every rider-raised dollar to Dana-Farber as its largest single contributor, accounting for 62 percent of its Jimmy Fund’s annual revenue. The PMC is co-presented by the Red Sox Foundation and M&T Bank.
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