The Plympton Board of Selectmen met Monday, Jan. 27. Town Administrator Liz Dennehy said that as of right now Silver Lake Regional was projecting a 13.37 percent increase while the Dennett was projecting a 19.7 percent increase for level services budgets. “Obviously the numbers are not sustainable and not possible; there’s no way that we can support that type of an increase,” Dennehy said. She further said that Kingston and Halifax are not able to support those kinds of numbers either. Dennehy said that for Kingston and Halifax, they did offer tiers of cuts which she said immediately resulted in a loss of teaching positions, even in the first round of cuts.
“When it comes to the school funding, if you were to pursue an override let’s say… if that were the case, you’d want to start early and I don’t know what that would mean. We have the new Fire Station construction – there was talk about pursuing a debt exclusion for that. Also, on the school side of things, if two towns vote it, you don’t want to be the one that doesn’t and then you’re left having to come up with that financial obligation,” Dennehy said. Selectmen Chair John Traynor said that he believed that all three towns had to vote unanimously, but Dennehy said she didn’t believe that to be the case. She did agree to double check, however.
In happier news, the Selectmen awarded the Boston Post Cane to Inez Murphy. The award dates back to 1909 and was established by the Boston Post Newspaper. The award itself is an actual cane that is presented to the oldest resident of a New England town. In Plympton, the awardee must have lived in town for ten or more years and they will hold the honor for life.
Asked about her secret to longevity Murphy responded, “stick around young people.” Murphy was surrounded by a large amount of family during the meeting. Selectman Mark Russo commented that Murphy had 20 great-grandchildren.
Amy Belmore of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Plymouth addressed the Selectmen. Belmore said that they were founded in the 1990’s as part of Habitat International and noted that they serve Plymouth, Carver, Plympton, Kingston, Middleboro, and Lakeville. “We’re building and repairing homes at the affordable rate so we’re very specifically reaching an underserved population – folks that are making, or households that are making, up to 60 percent of the area median income,” Belmore said. She told the Selectmen that while they use unskilled labor, they are overseen by a licensed construction supervisor. Belmore told the Selectmen that they would love to work in Plympton.
Belmore said that there are asset limits when looking at the household income for qualification. “It’s important to know, we don’t gift these houses, some people don’t realize these houses are not being given to the homeowner. They are becoming mortgage holders at an affordable rate over typically a 30-year term. And so, we are looking for people who have solid employment history,” she explained.
Selectman Mark Russo told Belmore they were eager to find a plot of land in Plympton that would be ideal, but they hadn’t yet been able to identify one. “There are 17 affiliates in Massachusetts and we share information all the time,” Belmore said. “I look forward to the day we’re doing business with you,” Russo said. “I know we’ve run into not only the wetland issue, but natural heritage issues, rare and endangered species issues; we’ve looked at a number of pieces of land here in Plympton so we’ll keep looking,” Belmore said. Belmore did note that Habitat is able to accept donations of land as well saying that they are a 501c3.
The Selectmen approved the use of public roadways for the Best Buddies Challenge Bicycle Ride.
Russo led off the raves with one for the Massachusetts Municipal Association and its annual conference. He called it a wonderful resource and said that when he initially started as a Selectman, there was less information available than can be found now through such means.
Traynor said his rave was for the Habitat for Humanity. “If we can make that a priority to find something this year to go forward with; that would be great,” he said.
Public Comment period opened for MBTA Communities regs
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has opened a Public Comment Period for the MBTA Communities Act now through Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, at 11:59 p.m.
To access the public comment form online, go to https://www.mass.gov/forms/mbta-communities-regulations-public-comment-form
The Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) had filed emergency regulations with the Secretary of the Commonwealth to support ongoing implementation of the MBTA Communities Law.
The filing came six days after the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court issued an opinion affirming that the state’s MBTA Communities Law is constitutional. The decision affirmed that under the law each of the 177 communities included in the MBTA Communities Law must have at least one zoning district of reasonable size where multifamily housing is permitted as of right. It also affirmed the Attorney General’s right to enforce the law.
As part of the opinion, the court wrote that the previous administration did not correctly advance the guidelines for the law’s implementation. The court directed EOHLC to publish the law’s guidelines in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act in order for the law to be enforceable. Emergency regulations are in effect immediately and for 90 days. EOHLC intends to adopt regulations permanently following a public comment period.
“These regulations will allow us to continue moving forward with implementation of the MBTA Communities Law, which will increase housing production and lower costs across the state,” said Governor Maura Healey. “These regulations allow communities more time to come into compliance with the law, and we are committed to working with them to advance zoning plans that fit their unique needs. We look forward to soon celebrating more communities joining the 116 that have already said yes to housing.”
“Firefighters, teachers and essential workers deserve to live in the communities they serve,” said Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “Cities and towns that have taken action recognize that the MBTA Communities Law creates housing opportunities for their residents, and we look forward to supporting communities who have yet to act and help them come into compliance.”
The emergency regulations do not substantively change the law’s zoning requirements and do not affect any determinations of compliance that have been already issued by EOHLC. The regulations do provide additional time for MBTA communities that failed to meet prior deadlines to come into compliance with the law.
“We want to make sure these communities have adequate time to develop their zoning, conduct public engagement activities and bring that zoning to their local legislative bodies,” said Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus. “Local involvement is critical in developing zoning districts that put multifamily housing where communities have determined are the best locations.”
Communities that did not meet prior deadlines must submit a new action plan to the state, outlining their plan to achieve compliance, by 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 13, 2025. These communities will have until July 14, 2025, to submit a district compliance application to the state.
Communities designated as adjacent small towns still have a Dec. 31, 2025, deadline to adopt zoning.
A total of 116 communities have already adopted multifamily zoning districts as a result of the law and more than 3,000 housing units are already in the pipeline to be built in adopted districts.
The MBTA Communities Law (Section 3A of the state Zoning Act) was passed near-unanimously in 2021 by a bipartisan Legislature with the intention of removing exclusionary zoning barriers to housing production. The law requires 177 communities to zone for multifamily housing. It does not require development.
Multifamily zoning district design is a locally controlled process. More information on community categories, deadlines, and zoning requirements can be found on the Mass.gov website under “What is an MBTA Community”?
Adventures with the Lindas; finding the tunnel…
By Linda Ibbitson Hurd
Special to the Express
When I was eight years old, a new family moved to Hanson at the very end of Elm Street where it turns onto Hudson Street. They were from Hingham and moved into a big two story post and beam colonial house that had been owned by a doctor at one time.
I boarded the school bus one morning and noticed a new girl sitting with two of my friends. They were smiling at me when I sat in the seat behind them and I wondered why, when one of them turned to me, pointing to the new girl, and said, “Linda, meet Linda”. I realized then why they were grinning. Linda and I exchanged grins and hellos. As time went on, we got to know each other and became not only fast friends but life long ones.
Linda was the youngest of six. Two sisters still lived at home, the other two and her brother were married with families. Her mother, Minnie, was a registered nurse. Her father was Lou Brouillard, one of the first professional fighters to win both the welterweight and middleweight World titles and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. The local boys tried to date or make friends with the sisters so they could meet their father. I felt honored to meet him myself; he was a quiet, modest man with a good sense of humor.
The first time I was invited to Linda’s, I was impressed. The circular driveway went from the red brick walk that led to the front door, to a two story barn on the far right with a field beyond. There was a kennel for boarding dogs between the house and the barn with a gate that led to the backyard. Their dogs of choice were golden retrievers; I met and loved theirs right away.Her name was Molly.
When Linda and her sister Judy had friends over for the first time, they held an initiation. They brought me upstairs, blindfolded me and directed me to crawl around in what felt like storage space in the eaves. I was told to keep moving and to not touch the blindfold. Suddenly I felt fur underneath me. I kept going until I felt what I thought was a head and I screamed and ripped off the blindfold. I was on a big black bear rug and beside it was a white one, also with a head. We were laughing as I looked around at a very nice room with knotty pine walls and a long cushioned window seat.
Before I left that first day, I met Linda’s grandfather, Joe. He was her mother’s dad and they were from England. He had a workshop on the top floor of the barn where he made beautiful things out of wrought iron. He had also helped her father in his boxing career. I remember him as a good-natured man who almost always had a smile on his face and in his eyes.
During the next few years Linda and I had many good times. One winter during February vacation, we had gone ice skating. Grampa Joe met us as we came in the back door to hang up our coats and skates, telling us he had hotdogs, beans and cocoa warming in the dutch oven in the living room fireplace and a fire going so we could warm ourselves. He sat in his chair entertaining us with stories about growing up in England while we sat on a warm braided rug on the floor beside him. Eventually he fell asleep. Linda’s parents weren’t home and neither were her sisters. She looked at me and gestured for me to follow her.
She led me into one of the front rooms that was a spare bedroom and quietly shut the door. She asked me if I remembered asking her what a post and beam house was and that one day she’d show me. I nodded yes. She opened the closet door, reached for the four-foot ladder inside, climbed up and pushed a board at the top of the closet away. I realized I was looking up at the inner structure of the house. “Be quieter than quiet”, she whispered, as up she went and I followed.
I found it hard to keep quiet as we climbed. I likened it to a huge jungle gym with it’s vertical timbers and horizontal hand-hewn beams. Linda was on one side of the structure, I on the other as we kept climbing and exploring, until we heard a voice. “You both come down here, slowly!” “Okay Gramp”, Linda shouted down.
He was waiting for us at the closet door. He didn’t raise his voice but was very stern when he looked at us, saying, “This won’t happen again and we’ll never speak of it, agreed?” In unison, we said yes. He looked weary as he said goodnight and that he’d see us in the morning.
The next morning when we came downstairs for breakfast, Linda’s parents and sisters were up and Grampa Joe had just finished eating. He smiled when he saw us and said, “Sometimes all a body needs is a little sleep.” When he got up to leave he gave us each a nod on the way out. Everything was back to normal.
When summer came that year, we explored the woods near Linda’s house looking for an Indian burial ground that our sixth grade history teacher told us was supposed to be in that area. One hot, humid day we were walking across the driveway and as we passed by the corner of the barn, I noticed rocks that looked like they had been part of a building. Linda said when the house and barn were built there had been a carriage house there. I noticed a door that was slightly opened and pointed it out. “Oh my gosh, the tunnel, I forgot all about the tunnel, follow me.” When she opened the door I realized it was the cellar underneath the barn. “This is usually locked”, she said, “No one is supposed to be in here, it’s dad and Gramp’s workshop.” When we went in, there were stationary drill presses, lathes and saws. We walked past them until we came to a dark opening. It was a tunnel.
We rushed to the house to look for a flashlight, to no avail, grabbed a book of matches, ran back to the tunnel and started walking. The dirt floor was solid and we were surprised there was no trash or clutter other than an occasional stick, some paper, a few mouse remains and no graffiti. We were determined to find the end to see where it came out. There were places we felt fear, even danger. We had no doubt this had been a tunnel to hide and help keep slaves and possibly others, safe. It got darker in the tunnel and we both lit matches. They went out. We lit two more. They went out again. We realized we were were running out of oxygen. We turned around and headed back, dying of thirst.
We knew we were getting closer to the entrance of the tunnel when it became easier to breathe. We heard someone yelling, “I can see them, they’re okay!” Linda’s sister Joan helped us the rest of the way out.
Linda’s mother gave us water, telling us to take small sips. When we were back in the house Linda’s mother looked at us, “I was just about ready to call the fire department when Joan saw you in the tunnel. What do you have to say for yourselves?”
Linda and I looked at one another. I could see her thinking.“I’m glad we did this, we could feel a little bit what it felt like for those people and I’m proud of our house and the owner during the Civil War who helped people.” Linda’s mother said with a smile, “you’re saved by depth of thought. Can you both guarantee me a stress-free rest of the summer? ”
Everyone laughed when we said yes.
A Sad Good-bye…
Twelve years ago, a snarky ad taker at the Brockton Enterprise answered the phone to take my legal notice for the annual Plympton Community Preservation Committee meeting. She told me the cost was $300 per publication. I had to publish it twice, making it $600 for something that should have cost less than $100. I said, “That’s robbery!” She answered, “So what are you going to do about it?” I said “I’ll start my own newspaper.” She sneered, “Good luck to you!” I said, “Thank you very much!”, and within three weeks Volume 1, number 1 of the Plympton-Halifax Express came off the press. It’s been a wild ride ever since.
It’s time to bid farewell and spend more time with my grandchildren who have often graced the front page of this newspaper, pay more attention to gardening and dusting, baking bread and cookies. It’s time to rest…
Along the way there are soooo many people I want to thank for making this journey possible, pleasant, comical, and fun. First is my Whitman-Hanson Express editor in chief and in everything else, Tracy Seelye, who doesn’t mind if I steal from her unabashedly. She’s a much better writer than I, as I will be the first to admit. Okay, so will she. She has taught me so much and I couldn’t have done any of it without her.
Second is the woman who stopped by our table at a Holiday Fair at the Dennett Elementary School where we offerred an Express coffee mug with every new subscription. After looking us over, she came back and asked if we were hiring. I had no idea what I was going to do with her, and now I don’t know what I would do without her. Marla Webby has kept the office sane and in excellent working order ever since. She also has the dryest wit I’ve ever encountered.
To Steve Gilbert whose sports photos have claimed the back pages for the past several years, many thanks for your action shots and letting me know that I can’t cut off the feet in your photos! See, you can teach an old dog new tricks .Thank you for your patience..And thank you to Linda Redding and Sandi Neumeister. Your photos have added much flavor to this stew of local news..
Good friends who had recently retired asked me if they could be a part of this odyssey – Marilyn Browne, who volunteers as proofreader for the Whitman-Hanson Express and Fran Lindgren, our Calendar Girl, who chooses the funny little date remembrances as well as coralling all the events so readers can see at a glance what’s going on. It’s good to have friends like this – life takes on a rich texture when they are a part of it.
This week’s paper, Jan. 31, ends an era. There are other things, offerings on the horizon that might shape up to be a new beginning for this little paper, I hope so. But this is the last one for me. For all my loyal readers who write fan letters with their renewal notices, you are the best!
I know this decision has come about quickly and for those of you who want a refund on the remainder of your subscription, please email me, deb@whphexpress.com and I’ll send it out if there’s more than $5 left. For those of you who have just sent in your renewal order, we’ll send back your check. and thank you, thank you, thank you for a wonderful experience. Again, you’ve been the absolute BEST!.
~ Deb Anderson
Kingston Faces Override
The Kingston Board of Selectmen met on Tuesday, Jan. 21. Chair Eric Crone told the Selectmen that they would be taking a “deeper dive” into the FY26 budget during the meeting. Crone said, “The schools are looking at some massive increases and we don’t have final budgets from them.” He continued, “Without overrides, the schools are going to be making massive cuts to positions. It’s not just going to be supplies and technology and projects; it’s going to be teachers and paras, and other staff.” He went on to say that the regional school budget was approximately $2 million over, while the local schools are “$1.7 million over the 4 percent that we had originally advocated.” Selectman Kimberley Emberg noted that the Selectmen had “no line item autonomy” over the schools.
Crone said that they had discussed a town-wide increase of 4.12 percent which included “a little bit more” for the Police and Fire Departments and “a little bit less” for other departments. According to Crone, without an override, the Police budget will still potentially lose personnel. Crone said that if the town wanted level services it would require an override.
Kingston Fire Chief Mark Douglass addressed Selectmen He said that their amended requests came in just above 4 percent. Douglass noted that sick leave is where they ended up reducing the budget. “To give you a little history; FY23 we spent $216,000 approximate, FY24 $257,000 approximate, and FY25, to date, we’ve spent $157,000.” Douglass said that they have had numerous injuries in the past years including long-term ones. Douglass said that last year himself and Town Administrator Keith Hickey reduced the budgeted amount for off duty personnel responding to an emergency. He said that the hope was that the lower amount would be sufficient, but it wasn’t.
Douglass went over call volume saying that it increased significantly from FY23 to FY24. For FY24, call volume was 8.75 calls a day. For the start of FY25, the Department was averaging around 10 calls per day. He said that sometimes you can pinpoint which days/times have more calls and reduce staff at other times. However, for the Kingston Fire Department, it is fairly spread out. Douglass said that the easiest place to pull money from is the overtime and sick timeline items though he did note it reduces staffing. “How severe is the impact? I don’t have a crystal ball, so I can’t honestly tell you.”
Hickey said that the requested budget amount is $4,326,000. Emberg asked him if he could make $4.1 million work. Douglass addressed the Selectmen and Hickey saying, “I can make $0 work, but don’t expect a lot… we can make whatever you give us work, it’s how well we make it work. It’s what you’re willing to sacrifice or provide – either way.”
Kingston Police Chief Brian Holmes also addressed the Selectmen and Hickey. He went over current staffing levels saying that they have 26 sworn in Police Officers, eight dispatch, one full-time admin., as well as an Animal Control Officer, Animal Inspector, Harbor Master, and Shellfish Warden. He also went over Kingston’s population growth from 1998 to 2023 saying it has increased by nearly 35 percent. Regarding call volume, from 2023 to 2024, there was a 23 percent increase in total logged events. There was a 10 percent increase in calls for service from 2022-2023 and a 6 percent increase from 2023 to 2024. He also showed Police Department staffing per resident for comparable communities. Kingston was in line or below the level of most of these communities.
Holmes showed the impact that the proposed percentage increases would have on the Department. A four percent increase would mean laying off two full-time officers while a six percent increase would mean laying off one full time officer and one dispatcher. An 11 percent increase would allow for the Department to maintain level services at 17 patrol officers, one deputy chief, and eight dispatchers at an increased cost of $504,740. A 21 percent increase would equate to 20 patrol officers, one deputy chief, and nine dispatchers at an increased cost of $1,156,951. “The town is a very far cry from being in a position to establish minimum staffing levels for the Police Department,” Douglass said. Regarding capital requests, he said that they do, in fact, need to increase from three to four cruisers.
Emberg asked, “Is there a way to get closer to 6 percent without laying off staff?” Douglass said, “You have to look at the fact that we are operating on a skeleton crew and have been since the last time there was growth – I think, 1997.” Crone said he would like to see them get to the 11 percent without losing people which he said amounts to finding roughly $211,000 elsewhere in the budget.
Crone said that for him, finding the $211,000 was higher priority than trying to find the sick/overtime funds for the Fire Department. “And I’m not choosing Police over Fire,” he said. Douglass responded by saying, “This isn’t going to be a battle but when you choose to staff one fully and not staff one fully; you actually are.” Crone said, “I’m trying to avoid layoffs.” Asked about priorities Douglass said, “cops on the street are the priority; I could live with the half year deputy.”
There was some discussion about implementing “pay as you throw” or raising the cost of a decal sticker for the Transfer Station for residents under 65 years old as a means of finding money for the Police and Fire Department. Selectman Don Alcombright said, “You can fund this entire budget if you raised, between $10 and $20, per senior and veteran decal.” Hickey said that he tried not to impact those over 65 or veterans.
Crone said, “I think the biggest goal is if we can get Fire taken care of and Police taken care of in terms of level service, still getting the overtime, the sick time, not reducing any staff without an override and then for an override – at that point, Fire’s budget is set and it’s just Police, maybe schools.” Hickey said that while he was not trying to be a “Debbie downer,” the school department’s budget was going to be a major factor. Hickey told the Selectmen that while the school department can make asks, it is their job to make decisions regarding the bottom dollar. He said that he wouldn’t wait another 45-60 days to disseminate information to the public regarding why an override may be necessary.
The Selectmen also went over various questions they had in the town budget. Hickey was asked about the elimination of the Assistant Town Planner in this budget. He explained that in FY25 they reduced the position from full-time to part-time. Hickey said that the one impact to existing labor in the operating budget, excluding public safety, is the elimination of the Assistant Town Planner. He said there was a decline in the Building and Planning departments. “I feel as though I can’t justify even a full-time and a part-time… there are as many Planning Board meetings being canceled as being held,” Hickey explained.
Emberg said one nominal way to help the budget would be for the Selectmen to forgo their $4,200 stipend. Hickey said there was a member of the Board of Assessors who said something similar.
Hickey said that he has included $30,000 in the budget for a Public Works Director. He noted that he thought the impact of the position would eventually offset the cost through engineering and other savings. Emberg asked if the departments that fall under public works would continue to have foremen and superintendents. Hickey said that the position would take the place of the Public Works Superintendent.
Emberg said that similarly to how they would like to eventually move to a system where the Transfer Station funds itself, she would also like to see Recreation eventually fund itself. “It’s user based so having more of the costs borne by the users, makes sense,” Emberg said. She did note that if not this year, then in the future.
Nomination papers ready in Plympton
Plympton Town Clerk Tara Shaw has announced that nomination papers for the town’s annual election of officers are available during regular town clerk hours, Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The last day to submit nomination papers to the Board of Registrars is Friday, March 28, 2025.
Positions for election include one Selectman for three years, one Board of Assessor member for three years, one Board of Health member for three years, one Constable for one year, two Finance Committee members for three years, two Library Trustees for three years, one Library Trustee for two years, one Moderator for three years, one Planning Board member for five years, one Plympton School Committee member for three years, and one Silver Lale Regional School Committee member for three years
Town election will be held Saturday, May 17. Residents may cast their ballots from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. at the Plympton Town House, 5 Palmer Rd., Route 58, Plympton.
If you are not registered to vote, the last day to register to vote for the Annual and Special Town Meetings is Friday, May 2, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The annual town meeting will be held at the Dennett Elementary School, 80 Crescent St., on Wednesday, May 11 at 7 p.m. The Special Town Meeting, within the Annual Town Meeting, will be Wednesday, May 14, at 8 p.m.
Adams Center will Host Three Homebuying Seminar Programs
The Kingston Public Library will put on three homebuying seminar sessions sponsored by a local mortgage lender, a real estate agent, and a lawyer during the first two weeks of February at the Adams Center.
They will include “How to obtain a mortgage” on Tuesday, Feb. 4, put on by Michael Fleming of Rockland Trust, “Looking for a new home and the new MLS agent compensation rules” presented by Caty Starr of Jack Conway Realty on Wednesday, February 5, and “Closing on a Real Estate Property” hosted by Christopher Knoth, of Moody & Knoth, P.C. on Tuesday, Feb.11. All three programs will be held at 6 p.m..
Whether someone is looking for a new home, trying to downsize, a first-time home buyer, considering an investment property, or anyone in between, the sessions are structured for any potential homebuyers to learn about the three key phases of the process.
Fleming is presently a Vice President and senior loan officer at Rockland Trust. Over the last eight years he has held mortgage loan officer positions at BayCoast Mortgage Company, St. Anne’s Credit Union, Bank of England, and Leader Bank. Previously, he owned New England Golf Management for 25 years, maintaining several golf courses and serving as a proprietor of a number of driving ranges.
Starr has been an agent at Jack Conway Realty for the last 10 years. During this time, she has worked with buyers and sellers in over 130 transactions. Previously, she has worked as a franchising specialist and contract administrator of Dunkin’ Brands, a real estate paralegal in the law offices of Daniel W. Murray in Sudbury and Wellesley, and as a property manager and marketing specialist for apartment communities in Norwood, Beverly, and Marlboro.
Knoth received his undergraduate degrees at Roger Williams University in Criminal Justice and Psychology, and his Juris Doctorate from Suffolk University Law School. He started his practice at Cilmi & Associates PLLC in New York, before joining Moody’s law firm in 2012 focusing on residential and commercial real estate transactions, estate planning, business law and land use/title matters. Knoth was made partner in 2019 and is a member of the Plymouth District Bar Association.
To register for this event, please visit – https://kingstonpubliclibrary.org. For more information, you can contact Steven Miller, Reference Librarian at (781) 585-0517 x6272 or at smiller@kingstonma.gov.
Baby it’s COLD outside!!
Temperatures throughout the region have been frigid this week, far below average, testing the limits of our home heating systems. Meteorologists have said that this is the coldest period of winter. Temperatures are expected to rise this weekend and a return to normal will be welcome.
Martin Luther King Day, a day off from school, brought these siblings out into the cold to build a snow fort and play in the white stuff. The cold half moon is just rising over the fields and trees to urge the sun to set.
Holmes Library hosts Ted Reinstein at author talk
Monday, January 6, the Holmes Public Library was host to author Ted Reinstein who spoke of his book, A New England Notebook, as well as other titles he has written over the years.
Ted Reinstein is best known in New England as a journalist and reporter for “Chronicle,” Boston’s celebrated—and America’s longest-running, locally-produced—TV newsmagazine. While he appears occasionally in the studio at the anchor desk or delivering an opinion commentary, it’s out in the field where viewers are most familiar seeing Ted. From every corner of New England, he’s found the offbeat, the unique, the moving, and the just plain memorable, all while telling the enduringly colorful stories of the region’s people and places.
Ted has also been a regular contributor for WCVB’s political roundtable show, “On The Record,” and has been a member of the station’s editorial board since 2010. In 2002, he was part of a “Chronicle” team which received a national DuPont-Columbia Broadcast Journalism Award for coverage of Boston’s controversial Big Dig, and how such massive public works projects compare around the world. In 2018, he received an Emmy Award for his story on the “Good Night Lights” phenomenon in Providence, Rhode Island.
Elsewhere on television, Ted hosted the premiere season of the Discovery Channel’s Popular Mechanics show and brought viewers up-close to some of America’s most iconic landmarks for the HGTV network’s special, “Lighthouses.” For the Travel Channel’s photo-adventure series, FreezeFrame, he explored Hawaii’s volcanoes, the caves of Puerto Rico, and the South Pacific islands of Tahiti.
His first book, A New England Notebook: One Reporter, Six States, Uncommon Stories (Globe Pequot Press/2013) was selected by National Geographic Traveler as a “Best Pick.” He is also the author of Wicked Pissed: New England’s Most Famous Feuds (GPP/2015), and co-author, with his wife, Anne-Marie Dorning, of New England’s General Stores: Exploring an American Classic (GPP/2017). Ted’s most recent book is Before Brooklyn: The Unsung Heroes Who Helped Break Baseball’s Color Barrier (Lyons Press/2021).
Ted received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Brandeis University. He has two daughters, and lives just west of Boston.
Halifax BOS hear landfill fix proposals fixes
The Halifax Board of Selectmen met on Tuesday, Jan. 7. The Selectmen had an appointment with Mike Martin and Health Agent Bob Valery to discuss Hemlock landfill repair options. Martin, who has been working on monitoring the landfill since 2008, is a Project Environmental Scientist and Senior Program Manager with TRC Companies, Inc. He said that in 2021 he began noticing additional erosion which has continued to worsen since then.
As far as what has been done in 2024 with the landfill, Martin said that in February there was drone imaging completed and in March they developed landfill repair and expanded solar concept. In June of 2024 the wetland delineation was completed and in July they completed a site walk with MassDEP. Finally, in September they met with the Town Administrator and Board of Health in Halifax regarding next steps.
Martin also walked through a brief history of the landfill saying that from the 1930’s to 1971 it operated as a burn dump. From 1971 to 1977 it operated as a municipal solid waste landfill. He said that doing repair work every few years will, in the long run, cost as much or more than doing one major repair to deal with the problems in their entirety. He said that this kind of “patchwork” is not addressing the overall erosion problem.
Martin presented the first repair option with an associated cost of approximately $40k. This would include removing sediment from the drainage swale and culvert, removing a portion of the swale that has collapsed, and regrading erosion areas. Martin noted that this option does not address the underlying issues that are causing the erosion. He said that the erosion is occurring somewhere in the range of 4-10 years.
Option 2 includes rebuilding the entire side slope at a much higher cost. The benefit would be that it would be a long-term solution. “How is it we can charge the construction company to bring soil in for a government project?” Chair John Bruno asked. Martin explained, “MassDep back in 2013 and 2015, they issued some soil policies… they have a lot of excess construction soil out there that contractors have to get rid of… so when they go to get rid of it, they pay a fee so they have these facilities that take that clean soil and charge a nominal fee depending on the level of contamination.” He said that all of the construction costs would be covered by the soil. Town Administrator Cody Haddad said that based on MA General Law they may have to appropriate the funds before being reimbursed.
Selectman Jonathan Selig asked what type of soil would be being brought in and was told it was typical of what you would naturally find in a residential environment. “We’re not looking at any type of contaminated soil or anything like that?” Selig asked and was assured that was not the case. Martin was also asked about the pesticide used to kill invasive species and was told that it would be injected directly into the ground rather than being sprayed.
Bruno asked if they even had enough money to fund option one and Haddad said they would need to make a capital request and bring it to town meeting. Bruno said that they would need to do some research regarding the project as well as financing for either option. Bruno said he would also like to take a tour of the area to better understand.
The Selectmen also met with John Guiod regarding an appointment to the Conservation Commission. Guiod was a firefighter for 23 years and currently works part-time as a paramedic. Asked about what sparked his interest in the Commission, he said, “It starts with living on the lake and, of course, having 250 acres of water in my backyard, it raises some interest in that.” He also said that he is at Burrage several times a week. Guiod also said that he recently joined the Monponsett Watershed Association. “I would encourage independent thinking which I think is important for any Board or Committee or Commission; some voices are louder than others and I would just encourage you to stay the path and keep your own voice,” Selectman Thomas Pratt said. Pratt also asked if Guiod had any close personal relationships with existing members of the Commission and was told he did not.
The Selectmen and Haddad also discussed Haddad’s performance review as they approached the anniversary of his hiring. While Haddad received high marks across the board, the area where there was room for greatest improvement was transparency. Haddad said he attempted to provide outreach to the community through things like Cody’s Corner online. Pratt said that his marks were more geared toward what he sees as a lack of trust between the public and the Selectmen and Town Administrator in general. “I don’t think it’s reflective of effort and I don’t put him [Haddad] alone on it either; I put us on it as well. And I don’t think it’s a transparency thing, I think it’s a disconnect,” Pratt said.
Later in the meeting when discussing the procurement of energy resources Haddad said, “we are not part of an aggregation, so a lot of communities team up with other communities and then they go out as a conglomerate and buy electricity for the residents at kind of a bulk rate and Halifax was not part of that… I worked with Colonial Power and we locked in a rate… I’m happy to share that this past quarter we saved the community, as a whole, $71,000 and over the past five quarters we’ve saved Halifax residents just over $500,000.” Bruno referred back to the transparency issue saying, “I would like to see this kind of information better broadcast… maybe the social media thing needs to have a little bit about this.” Haddad said that he was working to condense and consolidate the social media piece.
The Selectmen also took up an amended Host Community Agreement with Elevated Roots. The State has mandated that the three percent impact fee be removed though Haddad noted that they still get the three percent local tax. The Selectmen voted to approve the updated agreement.
They also took up an employment contract with Kathy Evans for a Public Health Nurse. Haddad said that it was through the Public Health Excellence Grant. “It’s six communities that are part of this; we get a substantial amount of money from the State that fully funds it and basically it allows for each of the six communities to provide public health services above and beyond the bare minimum,” Haddad said.
Evans would serve as a nurse for all six communities at no cost to those municipalities. Selig asked if her being a member of the Conservation Commission would be a conflict of interest. Haddad said she would need to submit a form to be hired as a special municipal employee which would be approved by the Selectmen. Pratt asked about what her hiring process was like and Haddad said that several applicants were brought before Valery and the rest of the hiring committee. Pratt asked how many applicants there were and Haddad said he didn’t have that information. They said that they would vote to approve the contract at a subsequent meeting.
The Selectmen did approve a number of other contracts including one with Paul S. Kapinos & Associates, Inc. as well as the Lakeville Animal Shelter.
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