Connects to state intitiative; Commends fire department’s pursuit of grants

At Tuesday’s Selectmen’s meeting in Halifax, Selectmen agreed to join the “Community Compact”, a state program initiated by Gov. Charlie Baker to provide grants to cities and towns to promote “best practices.”

The “Community Compact” is  “an opportunity for cities and towns to enter into partnerships with the state to accomplish mutually agreed upon goals,” according to information from the Office of the Governor.  These “best practices” can range from Capital Planning to IT Security, to anything that a city or town might suggest.  A town can apply for up to three areas in one application.

After a brief discussion, the Board decided to apply for the grants in the areas of Information Technology Security, Capital Planning, and Financial Reporting. Lt. Governor Karyn Polito, who chairs the committee disbursing the grants, stated in the same information, “by promoting best practices and incentivizing our cities and towns, I look forward to championing this effort to create better opportunities for our schools and communities.”

Also during the Tuesday meeting, Fire Chief, Jason Viveiros was commended for “aggressively pursuing grants.”  Chairman Kim Roy and the rest of the Board voted to send him a letter of commendation.

Chief Viveiros and his department secured another grant from F.E.M.A. in the amount of $714,210 towards the purchase of Halifax’s new aerial ladder fire truck. As taxpayers approved one lease payment of more than $160,000 toward the truck at the annual Town Meeting in the spring, these funds will be returned to the town.

Last Friday morning, the Lucas Automatic Compression machine, which automatically does the chest compression portion of C.P.R., was brought out again to assist with a rescue.

This is the second time in a week that one has been used, and the two the town owns were purchased through a F.E.M.A. grant, secured by Chief Viveiros.

Roy pointed out as well that she would also like to recognize the police officers who respond to emergency calls; they are often the first to arrive. “It really takes a village,” said Roy.

In other business, the board appointed Michael Zarrella to the Capital Planning Committee, discussed current and future improvements for the 5th Avenue beach on West Monponsett Pond, held a hearing on a dog bite that occurred in May, and received status updates on several ongoing matters.

The Board briefly interviewed Michael Zarrella, an 18-year Brockton firefighter and seven-year Halifax resident to the Capital Planning Committee. They unanimously appointed him to a term expiring in June 2018. “I want to give back to the town,” said Zarrella.  Selectman Thomas Millias stated that he was “thrilled to be getting so many qualified candidates to fill board openings.”

Residents on West Monponsett Pond living near 5th Avenue beach, between 4th and 5th Avenues, have recently significantly cleaned up the beach. While the selectmen were very pleased with this improvement, some residents are asking for more permanent fixtures, everything from benches to volleyball nets. Selectman Troy Garron was concerned about the ongoing maintenance costs of such items, although the Recreation Committee is looking into how to keep up the beach now that residents have put so much work into it.

The Board held a pro-forma dog-bite hearing. Although the incident happened at the end of May, and involved two dogs from the same family, according to the selectmen a hearing is held anytime there is an incident involving domestic animal bites.

On May 28, two dogs, one a 14-year-old schnauzer, got into a squabble at 11 Baker Street. The owner stepped in to break the fighting dogs up, which Animal Control Officer Noreen Callahan, also present, mentioned was a mistake, and the owner received a minor bite.

Although everything turned out well, selectmen, especially Selectman Garron, were concerned that it was only a one time incident and quizzed the three family members on exactly what happened until he was satisfied that there was no danger to the family or public.

In Other News:

• There are two openings on the Planning Board. If interested, contact Selectmen Assistant Pam McSherry at 781-294-1316.

• Solar panel powered lights in order to light up flagpoles in town are being studied by the Highway Department and Town Administrator Charlie Seelig.

• The City of Brockton continues to be unresponsive according to Town Administrator Seelig to invitations to discuss water quality issues in the Monponsett Ponds, which Brockton taps for drinking water and which the selectmen believe is affecting the water quality of both ponds. This is an ongoing issue.

• The Board declared an SUV from 1986, still used by the Fire Department, as surplus at the request of the Fire Chief and the sale process of the vehicle will begin.

• Selectmen went into executive session with Police Chief Edward Broderick for the purpose of discussing the “Security of the Town,” which according to Town Administrator Charlie Seelig had to do with staffing changes.

The Plympton Historical Commission met Monday night at the Town House for a demolition hearing on a house located at 6 Cross Street and a continuation of a hearing for a second demolition hearing for 3 Forest Street.

Present were Commission chair Jon Wilhelmsen, Jane Schulze, member, and Jill Palenstijn, member, who is also a licensed contractor, and Rick Burnet, Associate member, who is a licensed contractor and builder.

The Cross Street property, owned by Melinda Descanctis, is a Greek-revival cottage, a common mid 19th century structure for Plympton.  Similar structures exist or existed on Center Street and perhaps elsewhere in town, according to Wilhelmsen.

Ms. Descanctis told the Commission that she is not willing to consider renovating the structure and would replace it with a modular structure with 2 ½ baths, a three-car garage, and would be complete with septic system.  “Without being too aggressive … I’m definitely not going to rehab the house.  It’s not feasible,” she said.

“Is there a middle ground here?  If not, we’re all just wasting our time.“   

Dana Nilson, a contractor with Southeast Development Co, LLC, from Marion, said , “It all doesn’t have to go into a dumpster, much can be salvaged.  There are other ways to salvage this.”

Wilhelmsen said that he had to look at the by-law and see what it allows.  “We’re trying to work with folks and we want to do our job.”

Jane Schulze remembered how overwhelmed she felt when she first moved into her antique home. She asked Ms. Descanctis if she had wanted to restore the home when she first purchased it, to which Ms. Descanctis said she had thought it would be worth it.   

Jill Palenstijn commented, “As an historian, what concerns me is not just this one house, but many.”   “In 15 years it could be a totally different landscape as one after another old homes are replaced.”  She said she could also look at it from a practical point of view, but like others on the board, said she needed more time to consider the proposal.

The Commission adjourned the hearing on 6 Cross Street to Monday, August 3, at 7 p.m. to give members time to review the added information brought before them.

They then re-opened the hearing on the 3 Forest Street property, owned by Elsie Murgida.  Architect Bob Gosselin of K&G Development Corp in Kingston, brought new drawings for the Commission’s consideration.  The owner, at age 85, is unable to deal with the house as it stands and seeks relief by way of reconstructing the home.

The plan first brought to the commission was a very basic ranch with none of the character of the old house, which was likely built as a summer cottage near Silver Lake in the 1920s.  The new plan drawn mimics the original house’s architecture while meeting the needs of the homeowner. 

Jill Palenstijn commented, “I certainly appreciate the nod to the original.”

Associate member Rick Burnet had made a site inspection to 3 Forest St. determining that the original part of the house would be difficult and costly to salvage as it rests on a limited foundation.

This hearing was continued to Monday, Aug. 3, at 7:30 p.m.

Wilhelmsen gave the following insight into the by-law:

The Demolition Delay Bylaw for Historically or Architecturally Significant Buildings was enacted to help preserve and protect “significant buildings within the Town of Plympton…Such buildings reflect distinctive features of the architectural, cultural, economic, political or social history of the town…”

Additionally, “The intent of the bylaw is to provide an opportunity to develop preservation solutions for significant, preferably preserved properties threatened with demolition.

The bylaw is intended to encourage owners and townspeople to seek out persons who might be willing to purchase, preserve, rehabilitate or restore such buildings rather than demolish them, and to limit the detrimental effect of the demolition on the historical or architectural resources of the Town.

The bylaw also allows the Commission discretion on how to meet this goal as it states in Section 3.5 that the Commission shall “determine whether the building should be preferably preserved”.

The Commission takes its role very seriously and endeavors to take into consideration any and all information provided by the applicants.

That said, it must also be sure that it upholds the intent and purpose of the bylaw. The current applications before the Commission are more challenging than those that have previously come before the Commission given that the structural concerns are less certain.

The Commission must consider the intent and purpose of the bylaw along with the information presented by the applicants and that which it has independently gathered to arrive at a decision.

The hearing process is the primary avenue of relief that the homeowner has. The consideration of all information available and provided is a role that the members take very seriously.

Halifax Fire Chief Jason Viveiros got quite a present as he approaches his first anniversary of being named Fire Chief in Halifax on August 4 – he received notification Tuesday that the Town has been awarded a $ 714,210 grant from the FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program for a new ladder truck.

Halifax will pay a minimum matching sum of $35,710.50, or 5%.   

“I have a lot of people to thank for this,” Viveiros said.  “Everything we do here is a team effort.”  He went on to explain how much support he received from his Captains and Administrative Assistant Patricia Forsstrom who researched the grant and compiled the statistics.  Writing the grant took many, many hours of work, he said.  Selectmen, Town Administrator Charlie Seelig, and other town officials, all wrote letters of support.

“We applied for the grant Dec. 2, 2014 … we knew it was a long shot but never lost hope,” he said.   Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Rep. William Keating, and Sen. Edward Markey directly supported the grant application, he said.  “I can’t thank them enough.”

“Halifax townspeople knew we needed a fire truck, and they supported us.  They voted the first of five lease payments of more than $160,000 each for the next five years.  Now those funds can be repurposed for other needs,” he said.

Another Save!

Viveiros added that last Friday, the department credited another “save” with the new Lucas Automatic Chest Compression machine each ambulance is now equipped with, thanks to another $24,000 grant from the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program.

“You can go for a year an not have a save, but to have two in a week?  That’s incredible.”

Halifax selectmen met Tuesday, July 14, and considered more than 20 agenda items.

The Commonwealth is offering grants for cities and towns to improve “best practices” in a number of areas including cyber-security and capital planning.  Halifax may apply for grants in up to three areas.  The board will consider if they want to take action at their next meeting July 28.

$200,000 extra

Shortly before he passed away, State Senator Thomas Kennedy secured approximately $200,000 additional funds in the state budget for mosquito control in Plymouth and Bristol counties. Though the Governor hasn’t signed the budget yet, Selectmen expressed excitement if the extra assistance goes through.

The Board approved and heard about several licenses.

Class 1 license for Morgan

Joseph Salters, representing Morgan Power Equipment, at 888 Plymouth Street, applied for a Class I sales license, required by the state to sell small utility trucks.   These trucks look like a cross between a recreational vehicle and a golf cart, and are used primarily in industrial settings. They are also used by municipalities and police, for example, for patrolling beaches or parks. The request was approved unanimously.

Beer and Wine at Cumberland Farms?

Cumberland Farms sent a letter of intent to Town Administrator Charlie Seelig making Selectmen aware they will apply for a beer/wine liquor license for their Halifax location.  Only two of the five currently available beer/wine licenses in Halifax are being used, and the Board decided to take no action now as the earliest the convenience store chain could apply is January. Selectman Troy Garron expressed his displeasure of the idea of allowing gas stations to sell alcohol. “I don’t like mixing alcohol and driving,” stated the retired police officer.

Appointments and reappointments

Kenneth Vinton, after taking some time to think it over, decided he would like to be reappointed to the Municipal and School Building Committee. He was reappointed unanimously.

Likewise, all election workers were unanimously reappointed.

Selectman Thomas Millias was appointed “special building inspector” for the period of time from July 18 through July 26 to cover for newly hired Building Inspector Robert Piccirilli. He is the former Halifax Building Inspector, before being elected to his Selectman position, and is Plympton’s current Building Inspector.

Recycling revenue might fall

Town Administrator Charlie Seeling reported that nationally, prices for selling recycling to recycling centers are dropping. Part of the reason, he said, is that “more and more people are throwing trash into the very large recycling containers,” so more waste is rejected at the centers. He stated that he wanted to keep Selectmen up to date on why they may see recycling revenue falling.

The Wage and Personnel Committee has requested all updated job descriptions from the Selectmen. Fire Chief Jason Viveiros’ yearly evaluation was filed, as well.

Dog bite

A dog-bite incident in May has prompted the Selectmen to tentatively schedule a hearing for July 28 at 8 p.m. Even though it was an in-family incident, according to Seelig a hearing is “always held when something like this happens.”

Selectman Millias asked the board to consider the future of leaving the door to Town Hall unlocked on Fridays. Since this practice began, it has created much discussion among Town Hall employees and departments, as some are worried about how they are going to budget staying open.

Citizens have been complaining about vans parked on the lawn in front of the Council on Aging during the day.  Selectmen appeared to understand that while it might be aesthetically displeasing, it was a practical interim solution to the parking problem.  Town Administrator Charlie Seelig will look more into the situation.

Three road cuts, road work by utility companies, were approved unanimously.

Missed deadline

Finally, a frustrated Halifax parent that missed the deadline for a tuition application to send her child to South Shore Vocational Technical High School came before the Selectmen to ask for any assistance the Board could give.

Selectmen Chairperson Kim Roy stated that unfortunately, the board has no jurisdiction over a situation such as this as it is between the school Superintendent and the state. All expressed their empathy, but were firm that it would be inappropriate for them to step in.

Though the student had gained a spot, he was not admitted because the Silver Lake School District would not pay his tuition due to this error. According to the parent, she offered to personally pay the tuition, but she was shocked to hear she couldn’t “because it wasn’t a private school.”

You may have seen a few changes to your local gas station/convenience stores. Maybe even one in Halifax.

All Hess retail operations were sold to Speedway, LLC., which has been going around the region– and nation– changing over stores to their corporate branding one by one literally overnight.

Speedway is the country’s, “second-largest company-owned and-operated convenience store chain with approximately 2,740 stores.”

According to a Marathon Petroleum press release, parent company of Speedway, LLC,. of Ohio, the deal was completed last year, in May 2014, for 2.82 billion dollars. Now, the full change in our region is finishing as the cosmetic changes are completed.

“This transformative acquisition provides Speedway a significant growth platform by expanding our retail presence to 23 states throughout the East Coast and Southeast,” said MPC President and Chief Executive Officer Gary R. Heminger.

But there are some changes that have occurred that you may or may not see locally.

Tedeschi’s was sold to 7-Eleven, Inc. this past May according to Tedeschi Corporation headquarters based in Rockland.  According to a 7-Eleven press release, approximately 182 convenience stores were acquired in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.

“Tedeschi is a respected brand and this acquisition fits in perfectly with 7‑Eleven’s growth strategy,” according to Stan Reynolds, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of 7‑Eleven, Inc.

Mr. Reynolds went on to explain, “These high-volume, high-performing locations complement our existing real estate portfolio in the Boston, Massachusetts and New Hampshire area.”

7‑Eleven expects to extend job offers to most Tedeschi Food Shops employees who are affected by this acquisition.

At this time it is not apparent whether Tedeschi convenience stores will retain their branding or switch over to the branding of the international, Dallas, Texas based giant with its 50,000 plus locations internationally.

Keep your eyes peeled for more transformations.

Plympton Fire Chief Warren Borsari met with Selectmen Monday night to present his new program to improve staffing at the fire station and on calls.

The meeting room was filled with citizens and many uniformed firefighters.

While Plympton will still operate as a completely call – or voluntary – fire department during the nighttime, Borsari explained that he is making more staff full-time to cover daytime shifts to increase “operational efficiency.”

Selectmen invited Borsari before them as this change has caused significant discussion around town and within the fire department, according to Selectmen Chairman Russo. While the forum was at times heated, it was largely civil. See related story for complete coverage of the forum.

Chairman of the Plympton Historical Commission Jon Wilhelmsen told Selectman that two demolition permit requests had come from owners of homes listed on Plympton’s historical homes inventory. He said that his Commission rarely dealt with such requests and has been working diligently with the homeowners to come to mutually agreeable solutions. He said he will report back to the Board. The structures are located at 3 Forest Street and 6 Cross Street.

The Board also discussed the ongoing work on their main projects for the upcoming year.

Selectman Colleen Thompson reported that she had only two people interested in volunteering for her Public Safety Building Committee and that one could only meet in the evening. The Police Chief and Fire Chief would necessarily sit in on the committee as well, and as they work during the day, scheduling has already become an issue.

Board of Health Chairman Art Morin volunteered, and Thompson realized she had the beginnings of a committee. An audience member suggested a 5 p.m. meeting time to accommodate the volunteer who could only meet in the evening.

In terms of siting the public safety building, there was some discussion when Town Coordinator Dale Pleau described parts of what had been discussed at past meetings with other town officials regarding various plans, including redesigning the current Town House campus and siting a police station there. Pleau defended the Town House campus as only hypothetical, but a logical plan.

Pleau questioned possible funding sources and whether to bring a warrant to the Annual Town Meeting next May or to call an earlier Special Town Meeting, perhaps in the fall.  Susan Ossoff, speaking as a private citizen as she is Chairman of Finance Committee, commented that any plan should go to the Annual Town Meeting for full discussion by townspeople and noted that funding mechanisms can be tricky should it go to a Special Town Meeting.  Ossoff was also concerned that even though an official committee has not been appointed, plans sound final without public input. Pleau and Thompson responded that this is the reason they are forming a committee.

Selectperson Christine Joy, who will be heading a committee to review and implement suggestions from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue report on Plympton’s finances and the manner in which it handles its money from this past Spring, said that she had only one volunteer for her committee. Joy had laid out a more than twenty point plan, and said, “We’ll divide and conquer and get moving on it…First meeting’s tomorrow at six.”

Russo told his board that he had not much yet to report on his area of focus, improving internal and external communication from and within Town House and reducing government vacancies.

Pleau told Selectmen he wants to implement a monthly department head meeting, as well as a financial team meeting. The Board is enthusiastic and will assign one selectman to attend these meetings on a rotating basis, thus avoiding an Open Meeting Law violation.

Finally, Russo reported that Plympton’s ascension to Area 58 Community Access Media is still in process, though at the final stages of the legal process. He didn’t specify any exact date for when the town will join the tri-town studio.

• The Board of Selectmen will meet at Town House in Plympton next July 27th at 6:00 p.m.

• There is an opening on the Zoning Board of Appeals. Contact Tara Morrison, Town Clerk, at (781) 585-3220 if you are interested in serving.

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