Plympton voters are one step closer to having a part in the Carver Halifax Access Television after the Town Meeting’s nearly unanimous vote of Article 24, creation of a cable television public access enterprise fund.

Since the dissolution of the Comcast Cable Studio in Halifax last year, Plympton’s public access television has been at the mercy of Halifax and Carver who have provided for Plympton’s coverage of meetings.  Now Plympton can begin the process toward participation with Carver and Halifax in the new public access studio in North Carver in the Cornerstone plaza.

Plympton resident Karen Foye, who works for the Comcast studio in Middleborough, spoke to the article, saying that while currently there are some Plympton selectmen’s meetings online, all of that would go dark if the process for collecting funds from Comcast cable and disbursing them to fund studio expenses was not voted.

Residents showed their support through their overwhelming vote.

The business of the town was completed in twenty five articles and the Annual Town Meeting adjourned at 10:15 p.m.

Discussion regarding retiring old debt for the Dennett School roof and the Town Barn took time as questions were answered about interest paid – on a loan – and interest earned – in a savings account.  In this case, the Finance Committee recommended that the old debt from the school roof be retired at a cost of $23,206 which must be paid this year.  An additional $75,822 would pay off the Town Barn note.  Those funds would come from the Capital Purpose Fund, which required a 2/3 vote.  Residents voted to retire the debt to put the town in a better financial position, looking ahead to when the town will construct two new public safety buildings which will house Police and Fire departments.  Voters gave their approval.

The wages and salaries were capped at a 2% increase across the board, excepting those which were negotiated by contract.

Voters agreed to $104,691.46 for the annual lease payments for the 2013 Fire Dept. Pumper Tanker, the 2008 Smeal Pumper and 2008 GMC EMS vehicle as part of the lease to own programs.  Fire Chief Warren Borsari explained that there are four years left on these annual payments.

In addition to salary budget line items and operating expenses, Plympton voters also

~ transferred from the Capital Purpose Fund $25,000 to fund the position of engineering project consultant to review plans, proposals, and bids for the creation of public safety facilities and the related infrastructure improvements.

~ rescinded the vote taken at last year’s Annual Town Meeting approving the creation a Silver Lake School District Stabilization Fund.

~ agreed to adopt a quarterly real estate tax payment program, instead of the biannual payments now in effect.  Treasurer/Collector Colleen Morin spoke to the article saying that it would save the town from borrowing to meet expenses especially during the summer months.

~ agreed to purchase and equip an asphalt recycler and hot box for the sum of $17,300.  Highway Superintendent Jim Mulcahy said the purchase would pay for itself as hot asphalt patches are less expensive and do a better job than cold patch.

~ voted to authorize Selectmen to enter into a Payment In Lieu Of Taxes (PILOT) agreement with Blue Wave Capital LLCD or their assign for a solar facility.

~ voted unanimously to set a $5,000 per year stipend for the position of Council on Aging director.

The meeting voted to adjourn at 10:15, until 8 a.m. Saturday, May 16, for the sole purpose of conducting the Annual Town Election at the Plympton Town House, 5 Palmer Rd.  Polls are open until 6 p.m.

The Halifax Board of Selectmen is accepting applications from Halifax residents to serve as the at-large member on the Town’s “Other Post Employment Benefit (OPEB) Trust”. The OPEB Trust is a fund with money set-aside for future payments for health insurance and other benefits for employees who have retired from Town service. The Trustees, working  with an investment advisor, monitor the Trust and make investment  decisions on behalf of the Trust. The at-large Trustee serves for a term of two years and is appointed by the Board of Selectmen. Anyone interested in serving as the at-large Trustee can download, complete and mail in or drop off a copy of the Town’s “Talent Bank” form on the Town’s web site: http://www.town.halifax.ma.us/Pages/Halifax
MA_Bcomm/Selectmen/talent.pdf or obtain the form from the Board of Selectmen’s Office, 499 Plymouth Street.

Anyone who needs more information about the position can contact the Selectmen’s Office at 781-294-1316.

Halifax Fire Chief Jason Vivieros

Jason Vivieros, Halifax’s Fire Chief, always knew that he wanted to be a Chief. At the TRIAD meeting on Tuesday the Chief told local law enforcement, public safety officials and the Council on Aging, about his journey to the top, and also detailed what’s new at the Halifax Fire Department. State Senator Tom Kennedy was also present to address the new law requiring headlights to be on during inclement weather and at dusk and dawn.

Beginning in 1991 Chief Vivieros became a Swansea volunteer firefighter. He enjoyed it greatly, but wanted to make firefighting his full-time career, and to accomplish that he realized we would need further education. The first step, back in the early 1990s, was to attend EMT school. This takes about a year.

After finishing EMT school, he chose to attend paramedic school, in 1996. This was a two-year process, and a relatively new concept.  It requires classroom training and 400-500 hours of practical training in a hospital ER, Intensive Care Unit, and Operating Room.

In 1998 the Chief became a paramedic in Fall River, but his goal was still to be a career firefighter. Finally, in 2001 he became a Sandwich firefighter-paramedic and spent the next few years moving up the ranks to become the EMS manager and finally a Lieutenant, learning valuable management and operations experience.

But he still didn’t have his own department to lead.

When he came across the open position in Halifax he stated that he was intimidated that Halifax had higher qualifications than most other departments in the state. After several rounds of assessment, interviews with selectmen, and other town officials, he was chosen to lead Halifax’s Fire Department and began last August.

Chief Vivieros spoke highly of the Halifax Fire department, which has only 8 full time firefighters, which he described as very young, very motivated and highly trained. Training for new firefighters today is intense, and all the full time staff in Halifax are paramedics. They cannot be hired, even as call firefighters, if they are not at least EMTs. All call and full-time firefighters receive on-going training and yearly state testing to maintain their EMT or Paramedic certifications.

Finally, Chief Vivieros spoke about a shift in firefighting in Halifax and in general towards prevention. He said that even though people joke about calling 911 for a cat stuck in a tree, that the department will still go out for that call, as it could prevent an accident whereby someone tries to climb a latter and falls– in fact, the department received a call for a cat stuck in a tree just last week.

Other examples of “Community Risk Reduction”, as this type of work is now being called, includes doing home assessments, using grant money to help provide smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors or even nightlights to seniors. They will even check that house numbering is visible and correct so that no time is wasted during an emergency searching for a house.

Another new concept he mentioned is Community Paramedicine, where Paramedics actually go out into the community as allied health professionals to treat patients. Paramedicine is in its infancy in the country, but Chief Vivieros is confident that this will spread rapidly.

One has to climb a tall ladder to become the Chief, and Chief Vivieros has made that long climb.

In Other News:

• State Senator Tom Kennedy was present to speak about the law he introduced and was recently passed requiring headlights to be on during inclement weather (including fog and snow when visibility is low), when windshield wipers are on, and at dusk and dawn. He stated that he never intended the law to include insurance surcharges, and has introduced an amendment to take out that section of the law.

• The Plymouth County Sherriff’s Department Farm will hold its spring celebration from 10-1 on Saturday, May 9th.  There will be a plant sale, t-shirts, a K-9 demonstration, and a petting zoo. The farm is located next to the Plymouth Ddistrict court, at 74 Obery Street in Plymouth.

• Safety programs for those at risk to wander or fall are available. Contact the Council on Aging at (781) 293-7313.

There is a pill-drop center at the Police Station to drop off unused medication.

All Hands on Deck! Towns Ready for upcoming ATMs and STMs

It was a final Town Meeting run-though Monday noon for Plympton Selectmen as they met with Town Coordinator Dale Pleau, Town Counsel Ilana M. Quirk, Town Clerk Tara Morrison, Town Moderator John Traynor, Jr., and several board representatives and department heads to rehearse the upcoming Annual Town Meeting on Wednesday, May 13, at 7 p.m. and Special Town Meeting within the Town Meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the Dennett Elementary School, located at 80 Crescent Street.

This review allowed town boards to become familiar with all the warrant articles and to have town counsel available to answer any questions still to be resolved.

In addition to the wages for town employees and contractual obligations for fire, police, and school employees, road maintenance and repair, some of the items which Plympton voters will be asked include:

The consideration of several new by-laws regarding solar energy installations.  These by-laws are the work of the Solar By-Law Review Committee and the Planning Board.

Creating a cable television public access enterprise fund, to accept fees paid to the Town by cable television licensees or any other funds received by the town for any cable-related services and to authorize Selectmen to enter into a grant agreement for the expenditure of those funds.

Plympton voters will also vote to:

• See if four parcels of town-owned land on Maple Street should be sold and the proceeds put into the Capital Stabilization Account.

• Rescind their vote at the 2013 Town Meeting approving the Silver Lake Regional School Committee to establish a Silver Lake Stabilization Fund.

• Employ an Engineering Project Consultant to review plans, proposals and final bids for construction of public safety facilities.

• Consider the quarterly payment of real estate taxes, rather than the semi-annual tax payments now in use.

There are 25 Annual Town Meeting articles to be considered on Wednesday, May 13, at the Dennett Elementary School, at 7 p.m.

On Tuesday evening, a similar meeting was held in Halifax, where Selectmen met with Town Administrator Charlie Seelig, Town Counsel Lawrence Mayo, Town Clerk Barbara Gaynor, Town Moderator John Bruno, and Town Accountant Sandra Nolan.

Halifax will hold its Town Meeting and Special Town Meeting within Town Meeting on Monday, May 11, beginning at 7 p.m. in the Multi-Purpose Room of the Halifax Elementary School, located at 464 Plymouth Street.

There are several items to consider in addition  to the wages for town employees and contractual obligations for fire, police, school employees, and road maintenance and repair.

Halifax voters will also be asked to approve:

• The sum of $142,000 to fund a public access studio and programming for FY16 and to establish a separate line item for this purpose.

• Water tower repair, repaint, and renovation .  Color swatches anyone?

• A $335 licensing fee for playing copyrighted music on town property, either live or recorded, and to establish an annual line item for such.

• Two new marked police patrol vehicles for $80,000.

• Two new computers and a scanner for the library, and a staff laptop computer for the Children’s Librarian.

• Computer equipment for the Elementary School.

• An emergency telephone for the Town Hall elevator.

• A new recycling truck and associated recepticles.

In non-money items, Halifax will also be asked to:

• Adopt a Right to Farm by-law to support agriculture as an integral part of the character of the Town of Halifax.

• Form an Agricultural Commission to support farming and help resolve farming disputes.

• Amend the Code of the Town of Halifax, Floodplain District.

• Prohibit the use of e-cigarettes and like devices in town buildings and property wherever the use of tobacco products is prohibited.

Warrants for both Halifax and Plympton are available online or at clerks’ offices.  They were also mailed to each voter.

On Friday, May 1st the HES PTO sponsored a fun night for the 5th graders and their families.  See photos of the event on our Facebook Page.

There’s still time to get something for Mom!

Check out these local merchants. Sponsored by Carleybelles.

This map shows the “Hop for HOPS” 5K race route, which starts and ends on South Street.

Now is the time to register for the 2nd annual “Hop for HOPS” 5K Run/Walk!

 About 300 runners and walkers raced the course last year… and this year looks to be even better! They’re currently at the early registration phase… which means it will only cost $25 for entry fee. But after May 17th the cost jumps to $30… and there’s no guarantee late entrants will get the cool new “Hop for HOPS” tech shirts runners are getting this year. Take a second… use the link below… and get yourself all squared away:

http://friendsofhops.weebly.com/hop-for-hops-5k.html

And don’t forget to stay for more family fun all afternoon:  face painting, and bouncy houses.

See you Saturday June 6th! “Hop for HOPS”… Rebuilding the Magic… One sweaty step at a time.

Hazel the cow. Photo by Stephanie Spyropoulos.

Jonathan Seelig, chairman of the Friends of HOPS (Halifax Open Play Space) committee, was happy to announce that the recent “Plops for HOPS,” held Saturday, April 11, was a huge success, getting the project more than $9,000 closer to its goal.

The Plops event, generously sponsored by The Rockland Trust’s Halifax branch, was a lot of fun for all.  Pony rides, a petting zoo, face painting and jumpys were just some of the events on hand. DJ Keith was there playing the tunes… Bellas 2 was there selling delicious food.

Congratulations to the big plop winners:

First Prize: Joe MacDonald of Abington; Second Prize: 4-year-old Dylan O’Brien of Halifax; and Third Prize: Lynne Jamoulis of Brockton.

Thank you all so much to everyone who helped make the “Plop for HOPS” such a huge success.

It really was a great day. Hazel the cow came through…

Mother Nature finally cooperated … and we raised some serious money for the Halifax Open Play Space. We are still tallying things up but it appears the Friends of HOPS took in a little over $9,000!

Cow Plop indeed!

A HUGE thank you to Rockland Trust for sponsoring the event. Also to Walmart, Stop & Shop, Monponsett Trading Company, John the Barber’s, Cinderella Nails, A Fork in the Road and Lou Lou’s Cafe for all donating gift certificates, Bella’s for the pizza donation, Terri Carman, the Farming Association, and Hanson Grain for lending us their animals for the day. Fun Faces with a Twist for the face painting. Mr. Nessralla for helping us land a cow, The Well Church for providing the bouncy houses, Keith from “Just Dance Productions” for playing the tunes.  And a special thanks to Celebrity Judges Selectmen Kim Roy, Troy Garron and Youth and Rec Director Dick Steele.

The list goes on and on…

And please, please, please remember our local businesses the next time you need something. They ALL have been so supportive of HOPS and the children of this town. It would be great to return the favor.

The Friends of HOPS had a blast and hope you did too.

See you all on June 6th for the second annual “Hop for HOPS 5K”!

~ Jonathan Seelig

See more photos of the event on The Plympton-Halifax Express Face book Page:  https://www.facebook.com/plymptonhalifaxexpress/posts/1614507518764064

Rick Hamelin at the wheel.

Master potter Rick Hamelin presents Spouting Off! Teapots from Around the World, a pottery demonstration, at the Holmes Public Library, 470 Plymouth St., Route 106, Halifax, on Saturday, May 9, at 11 a.m.

Watch as these teapots take shape and hear the history of their form and function: the English “Brown Betty”, an Asian teapot made from one piece of clay, a Lebanese two-walled tea pot, and a unique, mythological-form tea pot.

Hamelin has been potting since 1976 and is committed to learning about the historical Redware potters after learning of the Colonial and Early American industries in his native Central Massachusetts.

Pied Potter Hamelin can be taken linguistically apart and understood as a “Colorful Potter from a Small Town”. 

Pied means multicolored, potter is his trade, and Hamelin translates as “one from a small town.”

Hamelin makes redware pottery that is hand-thrown on the wheel and after a drying period, his wares are bisques.  Following bisquing, they are covered with a lead-free glaze of his own formation, then fired again.  An antiquing finish is applied to the unglazed surfaces as a final step.

The running cat paw prints on the reverse of all the Kulina Folk Art and Pied Potter Hamelin plates and platters began by one of his cats leaping onto the slab of clay.  He had found an old brick with a dog’s paw print on it and thought it to be a unique way to make an association between our work.

Hamelin has taught and worked in museums and currently lectures and demonstrates pottery throughout New England.

This presentation by the Pied Potter, Rick Hamelin, is supported by a grant from the Halifax Cultural Council, a local agency funded by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

The pottery demonstration will be followed by a light tea to close out our week-long Books in Bloom event and to recognize our library volunteers!