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Come meet Mike Slawson

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Nancy Emerson
Express correspondent

With vision and pragmatism, Mike Slawson opens his role as Director of the Plympton Public Library.  “I’m really excited to be here,” he says. “I’m meeting a lot of new people and getting to know what kinds of books and programs they like.”

Slawson planned a craft day at the end of his first week and is developing a summer reading program for children and one for adults. In the fall, he plans to start a seed catalog and, perhaps, a Library of Things like the ones he oversaw as Director of the Kingston Public Library. He already has the perfect spaces for the seed catalog as the old wooden card catalog cabinets still sit in the basement.

“Libraries do a lot more than lend books,” says Slawson. He notes that digital options like eBooks combined with interlibrary loan programs like the SAILS Library Network expand the offerings of small libraries. “Budgeting for small libraries is always a challenge,” he says.

To supplement budgets and offer additional programming, Slawson hopes to develop a Friends of the Plympton Public Library with the hope that some younger people will join too. “Groups like this provide many ways to connect. Many skill sets will really benefit the library,” he says.

A small display of flower photographs hangs on the wall of the small room containing historic local records, and Slawson says he will soon seek other art works to exhibit there.

Personally, he finds the children’s area his favorite. “I read a children’s book every day,” he says. “They are good reminders of basic things in life…doing the right thing and being a good person.”

Slawson brings to Plympton a wide-ranging background as his first job was packing hazardous wastes for disposal at an environmental firm. He often researched what kinds of wastes could be sent together, but that gave him the confidence that, with a little research, he could figure things out. Subsequently, with a joint major in history and archaeology, he earned his B.A. and taught history and economics for several years.  When he saw an ad for a library technician in Kingston, he tried and loved it. Now, married to the Holmes’s own Children’s Librarian, Miss Holly, he’s working toward his Masters in Library Science at Simmons College.

Slawson looks forward to life in this small library where he will have more time to meet members of the community. “Plympton is the perfect fit for me,” he says.

Plympton BOS appointments

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The Plympton Board of Selectmen met virtually on June 7 with Christine Joy serving officially as Chair for the first time this year after being sworn in earlier in the week. The Selectmen began by voting on several appointments. First up was the appointment of Paul D’Angelo, Jr. to the Planning Board until the next town election in May of 2022. Like D’Angelo, Dave Batchelder was also unanimously appointed to the Board of Assessors until May of 2022. The Selectmen also appointed Nathaniel L. Stone as a full-time Police Officer through June 30, 2022. Russo also made the motion to appoint the town Treasurer/Collector Christine Kelly as Custodian of tax possession property to an open-ended term.

The Selectmen agreed to retain Joy’s position as the FY22 Advisory Board representative to Plymouth County.

The Selectmen then began their votes on the paid town employees that are appointed by the Board of Selectmen. All of the appointments were made through June 30, 2022.  Appointments included Brian Vasa as Conservation Agent, Kathy Cannizzo as the Administrative Assistant to the Building Department, Allison Merry as the Administrative Assistant to the Board of Assessors, Ken Thompson as the Zoning Enforcement Officer, Tom Millias as the Building Inspector, William Kelly Jr. as the Assistant Building Inspector, Scott Peterson as the Alternate Wiring Inspector, Scott Varley as the Wiring Inspector, Douglas Hawthorne Jr. as the Gas & Plumbing Inspector, Briggette Martins as the Administrative Assistant to the Board of Selectmen, Colleen Thompson as Director of Elder Services, James Mustacaros as a Senior Aide to the Council on Aging, and Tara Shaw as Assistant Treasurer/Collector.

Several of the appointments pertained to the Highway Department including Rob Firlotte as the Highway Superintendent, Benjamin Sarro as the Highway Working Foreman, Colleen Morin as the Highway Department Administrative Assistant and several other Highway Laborers. Steve Sarro was named as Custodian and Transfer Station attendant as well as several other Transfer Station workers. Leanne Cashman was named as the Administrative Assistant to the Police Department. Additionally, all Police Officers hired within the last year were also appointed. Madeline Pompei was named as the Clerk to the Library and Planning Board. The Selectmen took a single vote to unanimously appoint all positions as listed by Joy.

Selectman John Traynor requested to have a discussion on the general rule of the Board stating, “Whenever possible, and as a courtesy to the public, open session BOS meetings will be recorded and posted. The Minutes of the meeting shall remain the official record of the proceedings.” Traynor said that all general open meetings are recorded and posted by Area 58 on YouTube but said he would like to discuss what he referred to as working meetings. “I think we owe it to our citizens, to our residents, to post all meetings, open meetings… while it’s not legally required, the spirit of the law is that all meetings be open… openness, transparency… I think it also allows for citizens, especially the seniors or anybody that has disability, because it’s not easy for them to come into our meetings once we’re back in physical session… and then the other issue becomes who decides it’s a working meeting,” Traynor explained. He said that ultimately, he wants to post recordings of all open meetings. Joy said, “My only concern is we have done this so few times… we have had three so I don’t think its something that we abuse. Sometimes I think it is in the best interest of employees and the town to have working meetings, particularly if we have an individual who requires coaching or if there’s situations that come up where I certainly don’t want to embarrass people but it wouldn’t meet the threshold for executive session.” She did agree that maybe they did need to better define what is a working meeting. Russo said he was in agreement with Joy. Russo said he believes the stated definition of a working meeting is sufficient; it reads as, “a posted session open to the public called to informally discuss in-depth a topic or topics for possible future action.” “I’m not going to flog this horse, we have been through this before, but I think it’s wrong,” Traynor said. They agreed not to vote on it that night.

Town Administrator Liz Dennehy took the lead on the discussion of town-owned land that had been identified for potential affordable, age-qualified housing opportunities. She said that herself, Jon Wilhelmsen, John Traynor, and the Fire Chief went out and looked at five different town owned parcels with the mindset to identify at least one to present to Habitat for Humanity for age-qualified housing. “In looking at those five parcels, the one that rose to the top is the one located off of Brook St… it’s just a hair over two acres in size; I checked today with the Assessor’s Office and the Building Department and there are no foreseeable issues with building a house on that land,” Dennehy explained. “I think it’s a win-win,” Traynor said regarding the lot. Wilhelmsen said he was hopeful that they could work with Habitat, who usually builds two-level homes, to encourage a design that would be more elderly friendly. Wilhelmsen also called it a “beautiful lot.” “I think as far as design and construction we would want some sort of seat at the table,” Dennehy agreed. Joy said that preference would be given to locals and noted that the structure would need to fit into the character of the town. Russo clarified for those present at the meeting that what they would be voting on that night would only be the identification of the lot as a potential site for a Habitat for Humanity project.

Dennehy provided the Board with a Town Administrator update. Regarding in-person meetings versus the continuation of remote meetings, Dennehy said, “Everyone is still waiting to hear about the pending legislation; the Governor did file legislation that would, among many other things, it would extend the relaxation of the open meeting law provisions and would allow for full remote meetings through September 1 but we’re still waiting to find out if that gets approved or not.” Dennehy also said that she was still actively working on some Green Community projects and trying to secure final funding for a lot of different grants that will be closing out the end of the fiscal year this month. Dennehy also said that they were waiting on reimbursements for a number of CARES Act submissions made by the town.

Traynor told the other Selectmen that an eighth grade Silver Lake teacher had assigned a project to their students, part of which was to reach out to local officials for help. He explained that he agreed to participate and received 34 emails. Each student is assigned an issue such as single use plastic bags and they are tasked with asking a local official for help in drafting legislation. Traynor said he was willing to help but noted that there were eight different projects. He asked his fellow Selectmen if they could divide them into three groups with each Selectman taking several of the projects. “It sounds like a really worthy project but if we’re going to use our time and energy on a project like that… I just want to be a little cautious on that,” Russo said. Traynor suggested having the teacher join their next meeting via Zoom. Joy also recommended having Kathy LaNatra attend.

The Selectmen then moved on to rants and raves. Traynor said that his rave was for Briggette Martins, the Boy Scouts, and three people who helped him mulch the library. Joy said that hers was for the same.

“My question coming out of this is do we want to create a budget, a decorating budget for the library and for Memorial Day… kind of this spruce up for Memorial Day,” Joy asked. “I think it’s a great idea Christine; I think it’s needed,”

Traynor agreed. Russo said his rave was for the bit of a lull between meetings saying, “I appreciate the time to recharge a little and rest a little.”

SL girls softball walks off against Duxbury

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It came down to the last at-bats and they were three outs away from losing the game. However, the Silver Lake High softball team saw the challenge and they beat it.

The Lakers hosted the Duxbury High Dragons on Wednesday, May 26 and while they went into the bottom of the seventh inning down a run, they got two in the final half frame and came out with a 5-4 victory. The win put them at 7-2 on the season.

Nina O’Neil was among the heroes for the Lakers in the game. She had a walkoff single on a full count to knock in the game-winning run. It came on the third at-bat of the inning.

Lily Gustafson started the inning off by reaching base on an error by the shortstop. The next batter Delaney Callanan (2-for-4, 4 RBI) had an RBI double to center field, scoring Gustafson. Silver Lake then put in Autumn Fletcher as a pinch runner for Callanan. Fletcher reached third base on a wild pitch and then scored on O’Neil’s ground ball single to center field.

The Lakers used two pitchers in the game: starter Caroline Peterson and reliever Briann Ghilardi. Peterson went four innings and allowed two runs, neither of which were earned. She allowed five hits and four walks and struck out four batters.

Ghilardi pitched the last three innings in relief and allowed two runs, both of which were earned, on five hits and didn’t walk any batters. She had three strikeouts.

The Lakers had eight hits in the win. Other than Gufstafson, Callanan, and O’Neil, who had two hits apiece, Hannah Kelleher and Sam Waters also had hits for the Lakers.

The Lakers finished their regular season at 8-2 last week.

Keeping in touch with your ‘Soule’

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Michelle Smith
Express correspondent

2021 marks the 30th anniversary of the Soule Homestead Education Center located on Soule Street in Middleboro right over the Plympton line. During the pandemic, Soule Homestead has played a crucial role in the  community by providing alternative, safe, outdoor space to help combat the effects of pandemic isolation. The Soule Homestead provided solace to the community but the community gave back to Soule. Although there have been many restrictions, it has been a busy time at Soule Homestead.

Every spring, the farm has put on Sheep Day with activities for adults and children, delicious food, sheep shearing and sheep dog demonstrations. However, the pandemic forced the farm to become creative with their traditional fund raising.  Last year the community showed their generosity when they gave to a virtual Sheep Day fundraiser. Meg Connolly Riley (Miss Meg) Executive Director, raised $12,000 by challenging the community to give money for her to cut her hair during the event. All of the regular children’s camps were cancelled as well. Meg and Katie Roberts (Miss Katie), Education Director, came up with the idea of offering private farm tours for families. According to Meg, “We wanted to remain a presence in the community and offer any kind of programming that made sense.” She said that some of the families who took advantage of the tours said that this was the first time that their children had done any activity outside of the home since the pandemic began.  A summer concert series featuring local bands with limited capacity was also a success.  The popular Farm to Table fundraiser became a delivery or pick up event.

Many families who had not previously known of the farm have discovered Soule Homestead and have taken advantage of the outdoor space that offers trails, animals and natural beauty. The farm is open during the day and people are encouraged to spend time exploring, having a picnic or spending time with the animals. Meg said that they have observed an increase in people at the farm who are coming just to take a walk and get out of the house. “Being in home has reignited an interest in the outdoors and we are committed to fostering that need,” Meg said.

The farm leases land to local farmers such as Plato’s Harvest of Middleboro who provide organic vegetables and Revival Farm of Plympton who  sell pasture-raised pork. Meg said that the pandemic has made people aware of the issues with food supplies and there has been an increased interest in knowing where their food is coming from.  Dave Purpura owner of Plato’s Harvest had a busy year. He also runs the Plymouth Farmer’s Market and they were able to get food out to those who needed it. Revival Farm has expanded their land lease at the farm due to increased demand. Soule Homestead rents out their kitchen to local businesses such as Emily Goonan of Goonan Charcuterie Co, Tom Wolfe who owns Wolfie Soups and Ellen Wilson of FreeRangers Farm in Plympton.

This year the Soule Homestead has continued to be creative with the programming offered.  According to Meg, “We have had to cancel events associated with Soule Homestead such as the Harvest Fair.” Large scale events with over 2,000 people like the Harvest Fair take months to plan. This year, instead, Soule Homestead will be offering a scaled down celebration with a two-day concert event in mid-September.  Music has always been an integral part of the offerings of Soule Homestead. Last summer concerts were offered and the first one had only 30 people including musicians and volunteers. The last concert of 2020 was capped at 80 people. This year the plan right now is to limit the concerts at 150 people including the band and volunteers.

On the last Saturday of every month there will be a pre-sold ticket concert series with bands, local beer and local food. On May 22, a sold-out concert with Hey Blondie! and opening act Jay Bird rocked the farm. Local beer was provided by Harper Lane Brewery in Middleboro and food by FreeRangers Farm in Plympton. On June 26th, the Sarah Blacker Band will be headlining with Meghan Lynch opening the show. The performance is curated by WATD’s John Shea who hosts the show Almost Famous. Tiny and Son’s Glass of Pembroke has sponsored the summer concert series. The concerts are also sponsored by grants from Berkley, Bridgewater, Carver, Freetown, Halifax, Kingston, Lakeville, Middleboro and Plympton cultural councils as well as local agencies which are supported by the Mass Cultural Council.  These grants support the artists and helps with other costs allowing Soule Homestead to offer safe activities for the community. The concerts are “meant to be a relaxing, enjoyable night with family and friends,” said Meg. The goal is to provide an outdoor space where people can enjoy the music, spread out and feel comfortable.

This summer, Soule Homestead has been able to offer their children’s camp. With kids under 12 not yet vaccinated, the programming is for the kids to spend as much time outside as possible and to foster connections to their peers. This spring Katie offered a Farm Buddies program where pre-school aged children spend a relaxing few hours making connections with nature and the farm animals. Katie, has been working to understand and implement all COVID regulations in partnership with the Middleboro Board of Health.

Bob Nunes, the town manager of Middleboro has made it a priority to keep outside spaces open in the town during the pandemic.  For instance, the Middleboro library has been using the Soule Homestead to host outdoor programming such as story book hikes and they will be holding outdoor story hours in June and July. Local Girl Scout  and Boy Scout troops have been taking advantage of the outdoor pavilion which was built a few years ago as an Eagle Scout project.   Although school field trips have been cancelled,  some smaller private schools have been visiting the farm such as the Waldorf School of Cape Cod.

The community came together this spring to help re-vamp the Children’s Greenhouse. A grant from the Middleboro Rotary Club in conjunction with volunteers from Habitat for Humanity gave the Children’s Greenhouse much needed updates. According to Meg, “we could not have got it done without them.” The space, which they hope to be up and running this fall, provides nature nurturing activities such as a garden and a “mud kitchen.”

Due to the commitment of the staff, volunteers and donations the Soule Homestead and Education Center continues to provide an open space and programming that is fun, relaxing and essential for us at this time.

Wilhelmsen elected Chair of Plympton School Committee

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The Plympton School Committee met remotely on Tuesday, June 1. Superintendent Jill Proulx called the meeting to order and initiated the reorganization of the Committee. Jason Fraser nominated Jon Wilhelmsen to once again serve as Chair. The vote was unanimous.

Wilhelmsen then took over control of the meeting. Committee member Dan Cadogan nominated Fraser to once again serve as Vice Chair and Amy Hempel seconded the motion. It was also voted unanimously. Fraser nominated Hempel to serve as Secretary, a position previously filled by Mike Antoine. As was the case with the other positions, the vote was unanimous.

Special Town Meeting Updates

Under new business, Wilhelmsen said the school had requested a number of transfers to deal with the driveways at the Dennett, a new mower for the fields, and other requests. Wilhelmsen said all passed during the Special Town Meeting.  Another request was to take $20,000 to divide among the employees at the Dennett Elementary as an additional $500 payment. It passed by only two votes during the Special Town Meeting but after that meeting had closed and regular Town Meeting had resumed, it was discovered the Finance Committee’s votes had not been counted. All Finance Committee members voted against the transfer as they felt such a transfer should be granted to other town departments and not limited to just the schools. While the vote was recorded as passed at the Special Town Meeting, Wilhelmsen said he felt that the school should not use the money and return it to the town as the vote would not have passed had it been done accurately. The Committee agreed.

Use of Dennett Fields and Grounds

Regarding correspondence, Hempel sent in a request on behalf of Plympton Athletic Youth Sports (PAYS) to hold a movie night on the Dennett fields following a soccer game on June 12. “It seems like a great event and a great way to sort of kick off the summer,” Wilhelmsen said.  The Committee agreed it was a good idea.

There were also discussions regarding the care of the Dennett grounds. Wilhelmsen said it had been several years since it was last discussed and he wanted to find out the pleasure of the current Committee. While the schools have authority over the grounds, they delegate care of them to the Highway Department and PAYS. Hempel said the budget is quite small with the bulk of it going to sprinklers leaving only $500 for additional maintenance. She explained, however, that PAYS is fine handling the additional expenses as long as they can hold movie nights and other fundraisers to compensate.

The misuse of the fields, particularly regarding dog excrement, was also discussed. Wilhelmsen said that a previous suggestion was to keep bags nearby for dog waste. Wilhelmsen said, “the next step will be to say the fields are off limits.” He said he hated the idea of doing that as it would negatively impact all of those who do pick up after their dogs while enjoying use of the fields.  There are several signs already indicating proper use and procedure regarding picking up after dogs. Hempel said they were aware of who the offenders were.

Pandemic Related Changes

Wilhelmsen brought up the issue of whether or not there could be remote participation once the School Committee meetings are back in-person. He said other committees have tried to do so and found it to be “clunky.” He said their next meeting will be July 12 and then not again until September. He asked the other Committee members if they wished to do that meeting in-person or remotely again. Cadogan asked that the July meeting be held virtually. Wilhelmsen said that provided that the Governor allows for it, the Committee will plan to hold that meeting virtually. He also said that if a streamlined approach could be figured out, he would like to still offer virtual participation for future in-person School Committee meetings. Proulx suggested reaching out to Area 58 for assistance.

COVID-19 updates from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) were also discussed. Fraser called the Plympton Board of Health “a great partner” in helping to keep the schools updated on the changing guidance. For schools, the only change issued was that masks would no longer be required for outdoor activities. There has already been indication that schools will be expected to be open five days a week next year without social distancing in place. Fraser did note that masks at the elementary level are still possible. Summer school guidance does say they expect kids to do exactly what is being done currently for distancing and masking.

Playground and Solar Project Update

Director of Business Services Christine Healy said they have gone out to bid for the playground both for materials and installation. A pre-bid walkthrough of the site was held with several potential vendors. She said four bids came in with a variety of rates and references are now being sought. Healy said the next step will be awarding the bids. Cadogan asked what the timeframe was for completion of the playground and Healy said they were hoping for mid-August.

Wilhelmsen said the agreement on the solar project at the school was voted through at Town Meeting. He said the goal would be to have a structural inspection done by the end of June with construction beginning in July, and the project finished prior to the start of school.

Reports of Standing Committees and Administration

Union 31 held a meeting on May 27 at which point the evaluation of the Superintendent was approved. Wilhelmsen said they also looked to make sure the administrative staff was granted proper time off. Wilhelmsen said that there would be a week over the summer where the administrative office would be closed down in order to provide a much-needed break.

Cadogan provided an update on PAC saying there were six new enrollments. “PAC itself is doing well financially,” he told the Committee.

Fraser provided the update for the Policy Subcommittee. “Policy is a cumbersome thing; it typically takes three months for us to change policies,” he explained. He noted the difficulty in keeping up with the changing guidance coming in from the State. Of note, the face covering policy has been changed to indicate that the Superintendent and School Nurse have the authority to make changes based on new guidance from the State. Several other policies that had been changed to give the Superintendent the ability to make changes have now been reset to their original intent prior to the COVID emergency. Other policy amendments include ensuring student privacy when learning in a remote setting.

Hempel provided the CASA update saying the last staff luncheon will be held in a couple of weeks. She also said that they have secured a local cultural council grant for an enrichment program. Some openings on CASA will also be advertised. “They did an amazing job, especially with the baskets,” Wilhelmsen said referencing the livestream of the fundraising event.

Dennett Elementary Principal Peter Veneto also provided an update. “I couldn’t be prouder of the staff, the students, the families,” he said referencing making it to the end of the unusual year. He said the senior parade will be taking place allowing seniors to return to their elementary school for a final farewell. The sixth graders will be participating in step up day where they tour the middle school. He said kindergarten numbers are holding tight right around 40. “That’s not a small number,” Wilhelmsen noted.

Healy provided a financial update saying the FY21 budget continued to sustain the Dennett even with the unusual year that was had. She said despite a number of deficits they should be easily absorbed in other areas.

Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch said that there were Dennett staff members working toward diversity, equity, and inclusion and ways to incorporate those ideals into the curriculum and the community. Lynch also spoke about the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds. He referred to the ESSER funds, which are in part meant to offset the loss of learning time due to the pandemic, as a once in a lifetime opportunity. The funds are allocated but their uses must be approved.

Fraser suggested using some of the ESSER funds to better compensate staff members to run after school clubs for the coming year. He said it would be interesting to see if some staff members might offer AM as well as PM sessions for various clubs. Hempel said that pre-COVID they had run through some ideas regarding clubs including gardening, Lego, robotics etc. but said that payments for staff was always an issue. Cadogan asked if they were limited to teachers and staff or if they could hire someone outside the school system. Hempel said that the idea was a possibility. “We’re still kind of in the information gathering phase,” Veneto said about the venture. Healy said the ideal mechanism for staff payment would be to have a revolving fund established through Town Meeting. Wilhelmsen spoke about the importance of the clubs for the social and emotional well being of students especially given the stress of the pandemic over the past year plus.

Superintendent Proulx provided a district update. She said that districts will no longer be able to offer remote learning as a standard learning model in the fall. The meal flexibilities are available through June of 2022 regardless of the State’s state of emergency. Proulx also noted that youths aged 12 and up are now eligible to receive the Pfizer vaccine. She said a Summer Learning Academy will be offered to offset learning losses as a result of the pandemic. It will be held at the Kingston Intermediate School and will be intended for elementary aged students. Another program will be offered for select students at the middle school level.

Fraser addressed Proulx saying, “It was a pleasure taking part in the evaluation of the Superintendent and acknowledging your hard work this past year.” Proulx said she couldn’t take credit for the successes of the past year calling it a community effort.

No preference for prior service?

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The Halifax Board of Selectmen held an emergency meeting on the morning of Thursday, May 27 to discuss possibly reconsidering decisions made during a Selectmen’s meeting two days prior regarding the processes for annual appointments.

The Selectmen voted on May 25 to eliminate preference for current office holders and to potentially interview all applicants for one or more offices including the current officeholders. Also being reconsidered was whether to advertise and recruit for all paid appointed positions with terms expiring on June 30, 2021. Those positions include the Police Chief, the Town Accountant, the Town Counsel, and the Building Inspector.

Selectmen Chair Gordon Andrews began the Thursday meeting asking the Board if they would like to rescind their vote from the previous meeting and inquiring as to how they wished to proceed with the appointments. Longtime Selectman Troy Garron said, “I for one vote that we rescind the vote that was taken.” Referencing those that were up for reappointment he said, “None of the people have shown that they have caused any problems enough that they should lose their job over the past year since I’ve been here. In as much as there’s not any complaints or written evidence that any of these individuals are not doing their jobs, I vote that we appoint them as listed.” There was no second, however, to Garron’s motion. Newest Selectman Ashley DiSesa instead made a motion to go through the list individually. DiSesa’s motion was seconded by Andrews. Town Administrator Charlie Seelig indicated to Andrews that there were a number of letters from the individuals up for reappointment indicating their interest in being reappointed.

Before going through the list, a resident in attendance voiced concern over holding a meeting of such significance during morning hours on a work and school day where likely many residents would be unable to attend. Andrews acknowledged the concern but said that it had to be done that way due to the contract with the Police Chief. Andrews explained that at the previous meeting they had tasked Seelig with advertising and posting the positions in question by the following day, making the need for the meeting imminent. The resident said, “This town has had a problem for a long time with the infighting; it’s worse than the government between the Democrats and Republicans. It needs to stop. We are a community, a town, we work together.” Referencing the small gathering of residents during the Thursday morning meeting, the resident said, “You’re making decisions for this town with 25 people out of 8,000; I object to that.”  Andrews responded, “The appointments are made by the Board of Selectmen. There doesn’t have to be any public input for this.”

Assistant Treasurer Linda Cole spoke next warning the Selectmen that from a human resources perspective, there would likely be considerable ramifications of not reappointing someone without just cause. She said the ramifications could be “very costly to the town and to the residents; without proper documentation to not reappoint somebody you risk lawsuits.” Andrews responded that he had talked to town counsel about the issue and that since the appointment ends on a specific date, there is no guarantee of reappointment after that. Amy L. Troup also took to the microphone asking how long it had been the process that the selectmen appoint people to positions in town. Garron responded, “At least 31 years.”

The Selectmen then proceeded to go through the list of reappointments one by one. Andrews recused himself from the discussion on the reappointment of the Building Commissioner/Inspector of Buildings. Garron asked current Building Inspector Robert Piccirilli why he felt he should be reappointed. Piccirilli responded, “I feel like I’ve always done my job to the best of my ability. If it’s the Board’s decision, I’d like to know where they feel I haven’t done my job.” He added, “I love this community. I live in this community. It’s a thankless job.” Piccirilli’s counsel spoke saying, “I would raise an objection to Selectwoman DiSesa’s involvement in this particular part of the proceeding; the reason I say that is she just won election to her position after waging a campaign that was full of personal allegations against Mr. Piccirilli, both personally as well as as Building Inspector.” He asked that she recuse herself from consideration of Piccirilli’s reappointment. Others, including Garron, also spoke in favor of Piccirilli’s competency. DiSesa said she wished to speak with town counsel prior to voting in order to determine if she needs to recuse herself from the vote on Piccirilli’s reappointment. The vote was moved to the June 1 meeting to allow time for her to do that.

Next, DiSesa made a motion to reappoint Police Chief Joao Chaves to a term expiring on June 30, 2024. Garron seconded the motion and the vote to reappoint was unanimous.

Garron made a motion to appoint the Building Inspector Assistant William Kelly to a term expiring on June 30, 2022 and the selectmen voted unanimously to reappoint. Next, they unanimously voted to reappoint David Moore as Sealer of Weights and Measures to a term expiring on June 30, 2022. Town Accountant Sandra Nolan was also unanimously reappointed to a term expiring on June 30, 2024.

Garron made a motion to appoint Town Counsel Larry Mayo to a term expiring on June 30, 2022 but there was no second and the Selectmen continued down the list. Wilford Corey was unanimously reappointed as Veteran’s Agent for a term expiring on June 30, 2022. Stephen Peterson was unanimously reappointed as Wiring Inspector and Dennis McManus as Wiring Inspector Assistant both to terms expiring on June 30, 2022.

The Board asked Seelig to advertise for the Town Counsel with interviews planned for June 24. Thirty minutes were allotted for interviews. The Board was clearly divided with Andrews and DiSesa in favor of interviewing for the position and Garron clearly against.

Before adjourning, Seelig also addressed the myriad of vacancies for unpaid volunteer positions in town. Seelig said there would be a submission deadline of June 9 for talent bank forms with interviews held on June 15.

FIELD OF FLAGS

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This beautiful field of flags was set up by veterans and members of the Halifax VFW Post 6258 to commemorate Memorial Day.  The 30 feet by 60 feet arrangement has just under 500 flags set two feet apart and will be on display until June 5.   The Town of Halifax will pay tribute to all fallen comrades at 9:30 a.m. with a “drive-by” observance at the various monuments on the Town Hall green and across the street.   

Photo by Deb Anderson

Board hears third COA applicant director

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The Halifax Board of Selectmen met early on Thursday, May 20, to address a number of issues including an interview with Jill Carr for Council on Aging (COA) Director. Newest Selectman Ashley DiSesa was joined by seasoned selectmen Gordon Andrews and Troy Garron.

Carr, who was the third applicant interviewed thus far, told the selectmen that she has worked in human services for the last 25 years with much of that spent working with elders. “I worked 10 years at adult protective services in Braintree and we covered 11 surrounding towns.” She said she worked closely with the COA of many of those towns. “I’ve always had such a passion working with seniors and being an advocate and a voice for a lot of the seniors that might not have a voice,” she explained. She said that her philosophy has always been to empower seniors and to help them live as independently as possible. “I did recently get my masters in order to strengthen my skills regarding social services,” Carr told Selectmen. Additionally, she said she is very familiar with available resources in Massachusetts saying she has worked closely with the Executive Office of Elder Affairs.

Garron asked Carr what she would consider her top achievement in working with elderly and other people. Carr cited being a strong advocate and raising awareness as being amongst her proudest accomplishments. “Advocating for an elder’s right to self-determination,” she added. DiSesa asked if she had experience handling a budget. “When I was the Director, we were constantly needing to be handling numbers and maintain a quota… it was my job to track and make sure that numbers were where they are supposed to be,” Carr said. DiSesa also asked if she had experience writing grants. Carr said that while she had not written any, she has worked closely with many who have. Carr said she was also able to meet with Susan Lawless to discuss the Halifax COA. Asked what one word she would choose to describe herself, Carr simply said, “dedicated.”

Andrews explained to Carr that there was currently a plan being looked at to swap the COA building with the museum building in town. He said there would be more to present on that in September. Andrews asked Carr if she had any questions for them and she said she would be eager to hear more about what the goals are for the COA. Andrews noted that the building has been closed to the public since last March and said that opening back up and getting programs running was amongst the most urgent goals. He also noted that there were various spaces around town that could be utilized for the COA. “I think that understanding what spaces are available and how to adequately use them is something that we’d be looking for in a Director right now,” Andrews told Carr.

Following the interview with Carr, the Board tackled their own reorganization. Garron nominated Andrews to serve as chair and he was voted in unanimously. It was also decided that Garron would serve as vice-chair and DiSesa as clerk. Andrews then said he would like to discuss the format of the meetings saying he would like to have department heads come in once every 6-8 weeks to provide an update on their department, both good and bad. Andrews also proposed a spreadsheet for new articles that would show progress toward estimated dates of completion on the various projects. He also recommended having a visual presentation during town meeting that would allow residents to see the motion being voted upon as well as proposed spending, etc. Garron expressed some concern over the cost of such an endeavor. Andrews also said he would like to resume department head meetings again now that the pandemic is dwindling.

The Selectmen then turned their attention to the vacancies on the Halifax Elementary School Committee as well as the Finance Committee. Alison Vance had submitted her resignation from the School Committee and Fred McGovern from the Finance Committee. There was a question sent in email form from Town Moderator Dennis Carmen regarding whether the Board would consider the results from the recent town election in filling the vacancy. The hope was that the person with the next number of votes, or the runner-up, would be considered to fill the position. The email also read, “Additionally will the related experience of each candidate be considered when making this decision; also will any consideration be given to the diversity of the candidate given our society’s building of awareness of diversity, equity, and inclusion issues; I hope the answers to my questions will be yes, and if not, I would be interested in the thoughts of each of the members on the Select Board.”

Andrews reminded those assembled that a vote to fill a vacancy on the Halifax Elementary School Committee would require a vote from both the Board of Selectmen as well as the School Committee. “Basically, the selectmen have heard the voice of the population that the person came in second on the voting scale that should give really good consideration because at least you know they are interested in the position,” Garron said. Andrews said that anyone interested in the position should fill out a talent bank form and a joint meeting would be put together between the Selectmen and the School Committee to hold interviews and have a vote. The meeting is scheduled for June 8.

The Board also fielded a request for a VFW Memorial Day Ceremony. Town Administrator Charlie Seelig noted that the outdoor mask mandate would likely be lifted by then but said he would imagine the event would still include social distancing. The event would be 35-45 minutes long and would occur on the front lawn of the Town Hall. The Board approved the request unanimously. There was another request for an entertainment license for weekly car shows at Walmart. The Board approved the request contingent on the Certificate of Liability being presented to the Board of Health.

Joy named Plympton BOS chair

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The Monday, May 17 Plympton Board of Selectmen meeting began with a reorganization of the Board. Current Clerk John Traynor led the reorganization nominating himself to serve as Chair for the coming year. Upon not hearing a motion for a second, Traynor said, “So, knowing that this was coming, I at least would like to point out a few things. I’ve been involved in town government for 33 years, 12 on the Finance Committee, eight on the Library Trustee, eight as Moderator, and five years as Selectman. For the last five years we have rotated the Chair every year except one when Mr. Russo declined it. My community involvement, as I’m sure like yours, is I go back as far as being a Cub Scout Treasurer. I’m founder of the Library Genealogy Club and a longtime member of the Upland Club where I served as President, Vice President, Treasurer and Director at various times. So, I guess my question to Mr. Russo and Mrs. Joy is what exactly has prevented you from seconding my nomination?”

Referencing an email sent requesting her support of the motion, Selectman Christine Joy said that her concern was open meeting law. “I think you are incredibly qualified, and I have no doubt that you always have the best interest of the town at heart. Perception is so important, and I think that we always need to err on the side of caution.” Selectman Mark Russo said, “We each have strengths and some weaknesses; we each have different styles. I think, actually, to some extent, that has been the strength of the three of us together in four years; our styles have been kind of complimentary. We have our set projects, our pet projects and we’ve done very well over the past four years… really it’s just a matter of style… the best person to Chair would be Christine.” Traynor then made a motion that Joy be made Chair for the coming year. It was then voted through unanimously. Traynor was voted Vice-Chair and Russo was named Clerk.

The Selectmen then turned their attention to the next steps and timeline of the disposition of town owned land. Traynor asked that it be put on the agenda for the following meeting so that the Town Properties Committee could lend their thoughts. Colleen Morin and Christine Kelly from the Treasurer’s Office were on the line as was Atty. David Coppola. Coppola provided an explanation of how towns typically dispose of land that they have acquired through tax foreclosure. “Once you have these properties the town can use these properties for their own town purposes or if they don’t have a need for them, they can subsequently sell them and the most common way to do that and probably the simplest way to do that is through public auction.” Coppola explained that the Board of Selectmen would appoint someone to oversee the sale of the property with that person generally being the treasurer/collector though he noted it can really be any qualified individual. That custodian would then work with other town departments to determine which properties will be auctioned. The next step would be to actually hold the auction. Coppola said another option would be a request for sealed bids; the property would have to be declared surplus through a town meeting vote.

Joy asked Chair of the Town Properties Committee Jon Wilhelmsen when he thought the Committee would be able to survey the list of properties and make recommendations. Wilhelmsen said that they had looked at some lists saying, “from a general perspective, I think the Town Properties Committee is certainly in favor to sell properties that people have an ability to use but not such that they are able to take those and combine them to create buildable lots; we don’t think that is a wise use of the land and… better almost to leave the land as open.” Wilhelmsen said they would look at whatever list the Board of Selectmen would like them to at their next Town Properties meeting.

Next on the agenda was a discussion of Area 58’s live meeting coverage. Traynor said that one of the things that had been discussed was the possibility of streaming the Board of Selectmen meetings live while also capturing it with Zoom. He said the one attempt to do so, did not work out though Area 58 felt it was still possible with some tweaks. Traynor reached out to Silver Lake Regional Technology Director Steve Pellowe who said it would be a relatively easy process taking roughly two hours to complete if the right consultant was brought onboard.

Russo expressed some concern about using Area 58’s Zoom number as opposed to their own saying he was hesitant to give up that control. Traynor said that one of the benefits as he sees it, is that seniors who may not have the technology know-how to figure out Zoom, could turn on their televisions and live stream the meetings that way.

Following the discussion on Area 58, Joy turned to the Host Community Agreement (HCA) with Sweet Grass Farms on 77 Spring St. Town Administrator Liz Dennehy said that Russo and herself had been in contact with town counsel to see what an HCA draft would look like. Dennehy said they would need to determine if they are asking for the three percent impact fee right at the outset. She also said that they would need to determine how to handle the community benefit fund; some towns ask for it as one lump sum of say $50,000 while other towns take a more incremental approach receiving something like $10,000 a year. The third item that would need to be ironed out would be the charitable contributions. The project proponent would have the say over which local entities they would disperse the funds to. “Sweet Grass Enterprise has been really great to work with so far and they seem like a really nice earnest bunch,” Russo said. He said he saw the three percent surcharge to be reasonable. For the other funds, Russo said he would be in favor of a much more modest ask. Traynor said he was in favor of the higher amount for the community benefit fund.

After much discussion, Dennehy said that for this round of negotiations they would ask for the three percent impact fee. Joy proposed finding out what Sweet Grass had in mind for the other categories. Dennehy said that they could ask them if they would prefer the community benefit fund to be in the form of a one-time lump sum payment or whether that would be too much to ask of a small, start-up company. Wilhelmsen suggested taking the payments and putting it away to be used for something greater than just offsetting budget items. He likened it to the Dennett using school choice funds in part to pay for the new playground.

Dennehy provided an update on various topics including COVID 19. “Our Covid numbers are as low as we’ve seen them,” she told the Board. She said the town has reconnected with GATRA so being accepted as a member community is still on the horizon. She said that work on the Soule Homestead project is still underway as well. Dennehy also said that the Old Colony Planning Council (OCPC) did great work for the Highway Department regarding traffic counts for speed zones. They will be attending the June 7 Board of Selectmen meeting to discuss their findings.

As customary, the Board ended their meeting with their rants and raves for the last few weeks. Russo said, “I was incredibly impressed for a little tiny town in slightly challenging times how smooth the town meeting operation was; I want to rave about the town administrator, the town moderator, the school people, the town clerk, the AV people and Area 58. That was really cool; that was really well put together.” He also said he was impressed with how serious residents were who attended the meeting.

Traynor said he wanted to rave about Barry DeCristofano’s handling of town meeting saying he “runs it as good as anybody has ever run it.”

Joy said her first rave was for Brian Kling and his handling of an incident involving her own dog. Her second rave was for the various local Fire Departments’ handling of a house fire on her street the night before.

First in-person meeting for SL Region

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The Thursday, May 20 Silver Lake Regional School Committee meeting began with Chair Paula Hatch saying they were “giddy” because they were finally all in-person.

Silver Lake Regional High School Principal Michaela Gill was unable to attend due to family obligations. Silver Lake Regional Middle School Principal Jim Dupille read Gill’s notes to the Committee. Earlier this year, a subcommittee was established to formalize a dual enrollment policy. It would allow juniors and seniors in good academic standing to enroll part-time in college courses and earn college credits. The student and guardian would be responsible for paying for such courses. “I think it’s a great opportunity for our students to get a jump start on colleges; there’s an opportunity for them to not only earn credit in our high school but really reach out to the next level and really propel them forward in their career,” Dupille explained. Dupille said that Committee member Leslie-Ann McGee was instrumental in the development of the program.

One Committee member asked if the program would be open to the career and technical education students as well. Superintendent Jill Proulx said, “I think there’s an opportunity for a wide-range of types of courses that students could potentially take advantage of.”

Committee member Christopher Eklund expressed some concerns over the way the policy was presented calling it “very, very open.” McGee noted that there were many different models for dual enrollment. She also pointed out that for the last several years, many CTE students have already been involved in dual enrollment programs. McGee said that her own son was in a dual enrollment program at Quincy College taking precalculus as well as English Comp 101 online there. “By the end of December, he had his entire high school year of math and year of English completed,” she explained. She said that it has eased the transition into college. McGee pointed out that if a student takes an Advanced Placement (AP) course in high school but does not receive a score of a 4 or a 5 they will not receive college credit whereas a passing grade at a college while enrolled in a dual enrollment program would count toward college credit. She also stressed that it is financially more beneficial as well to enroll in such a program.

Eklund asked if the courses that are being selected to take at a college are typically those that are not offered at Silver Lake. McGee said that it gives students the opportunity to go beyond the curriculum offered at Silver Lake. Eklund said his concern was students going off campus to take courses that they could take at Silver Lake. He said he was all for students going off campus to take courses not otherwise offered to them. “I’m fully in agreement, I just want more structure to it,” he explained.

Committee member Gordon Andrews said, “So the idea is this is the first step an open policy and then you guys can work on an implementation plan to try to bring in colleges?” “That is my understanding,” McGee said. Except for Eklund, all other Committee members voted in favor of the new dual enrollment policy.

Dupille reported that according to Gill, the high school’s full, in-person return to school has been very successful. Gill requested permission from the School Committee to accept donations from the Kingston Fire Department for a physio-controlled life pack, 15 defibrillators; the total value of such donations is $20,250. A 2001 Oldsmobile was also donated by a resident to be used by the automotive department. High School graduation will take place on June 4 at 6 pm. The annual senior parade will take place on June 3 and students will have an opportunity to visit their former schools. The annual senior awards will be a virtual presentation on June 1.

Dupille then turned to his own update. Dupille said that later that week they would be holding their practice MCAS testing with actual testing on May 25, May 27, and wrapping up in early June. Spirit Week was held at the Middle School from May 10 through May 14. Dupille said clubs are now meeting after school once again including the school paper the Laker Ledger as well as the drama club. He said they were also looking at bringing back a modified field day sometime in June based on the new safety guidelines that are being released.

Proulx told the Committee that on May 17 the Department of Education issued a new set of Covid 19 frequently asked questions with updated information. Effective May 18 students no longer had to wear masks outside even if distancing could not be maintained. Adults still need to wear masks outside if distancing cannot be maintained. Masks will be required for all while indoors. Gathering limits for outdoor events will be lifted as of May 29. Governor Baker had announced that the state of emergency would be lifted on June 15. Proulx said she reached out to the head of the subcommittee on policy to amend the Covid policies appropriately. Proulx said that as of right now they are not anticipating a change to the policy that requires students and adults to wear masks while inside the school prior to the end of the school year. Proulx pointed out that sometimes the broader public implications do not always apply to schools as they must account for not only the Governor’s mandates but the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s (DESE) determinations as well.

Director of Business Services Christine Healy provided an update on the financials saying that while there were a number of deficits there were also a number of surpluses that would likely weigh each other out. Healy said she was surprised to see that the only utilities deficit was for gas at the high school. She found this surprising given the number of air purifiers and other items running due to the pandemic. Healy noted that the schools were still waiting for reimbursements for CARES Act funding from the towns.

Assistant Superintendent Ryan Lynch began his update by saying that principals, coordinators, and department heads are beginning work on summer curriculum. He said that teachers and coordinators are also working on a new K-5 ELA program. Regarding professional development, Lynch said they have their diversity, equity and inclusion working group continuing their work that was started over the winter. “The goal of this working group is to eventually design diversity, equity, and inclusion professional development for our schools,” he explained.

Superintendent Proulx also presented. “Despite the FAQ’s that came out earlier this week and the Governor’s announcement about the COVID related restrictions ending on May 29, one thing that is going to remain in place is that all of the federal U.S. Department of Agricultural school meal flexibilities that were announced on April 20 are still going to remain in place through June 30, 2022,” Proulx said. She also mentioned that youths over 12 years of age are now eligible to be vaccinated. Proulx also spoke about the grant opportunities that are available for summer programming to support the needs of the students that may have arisen over the last year or two. One such program is the Accelerated Learning Academy. The program is intended to help those students entering Grades 3-6 most affected by COVID 19. There will also be a Silver Lake Middle School Enhancement program for students entering Grades 7 and 8. There will be another program to ensure students with disabilities will not fall behind.

Silver Lake Education Association President John Lay spoke briefly. Lay said he wanted to acknowledge on behalf of the SLEA the tremendous amount of work that went into getting kids and teachers back in school full-time in a very short amount of time. He also said that he really appreciated the school encouraging kids aged 12 and up to get vaccinated. Committee member Summer Schmaling took issue, however, with the idea that the schools would be encouraging students to get vaccinated. “Something he said really struck me; encouraging students to get vaccinated, that is not our role as a school to be doing that. I have an issue with that; I’m trying to speak without coming across emotionally…. I think it’s out of line for our teachers and our staff to be having that conversation with minors,” she explained. Proulx clarified that the school nurse is putting together an informational packet to be distributed directly to parents.

Hatch pointed out to the other members that Halifax did not support the regional budget at their town meeting though Plympton did. Andrews clarified that if two towns vote no to the regional budget, the School Committee must reconvene to present another budget and the towns would have 30 days to hold another town meeting. Kingston did, in fact, vote through the Silver Lake Regional budget during their town meeting on Saturday, May 22.

As it was Andrews’ last Regional School Committee meeting, Hatch said, “We have to bid farewell… I just feel the need to say, you have been a tremendous asset to this Committee; your Finance Committee background coupled with your ability to just think outside the box has been overwhelmingly beneficial to this Committee… I’m going to miss your wisdom and I’m going to miss your humor both and I can’t thank you enough for having been on this Committee.” Additionally, School Committee secretary Lisa Turcotte is retiring. Hatch said, “Lisa you have been such a wealth of knowledge as well; you’re sort of like the historical gatekeeper of so many pieces of knowledge of this district… you’ve been absolutely wonderful to work with.”