The Marion Conservation Commission gave itself extra time Wednesday night to meet with town counsel to discuss its obligations regarding bylaws and permits not under their direct jurisdiction. Town Counsel Barbara Huggins Carboni met with the commission on October 24 to flesh out the regulations guiding the commission’s decisions when contemplating applications lacking permits from […] Read more »
The Old Rochester Regional School Committee on October 24 got familiar with the state’s new accountability measures for the next generation MCAS, with Assistant Superintendent Dr. Elise Frangos explaining the Department of Education’s (DOE) shift in focus on accountability and progress versus performance scores. The DOE has added a number of new criterion-referenced components that, […] Read more »
When property values go up, the tax rate goes down. That’s how it works, said Rochester Principal Assessor Chuck Shea on October 26 during the annual classification hearing with the Rochester Board of Selectmen. Shea ran down the numbers as well as the Board of Assessors’ recommendation to continue with a single tax rate instead […] Read more »
The Marion Board of Selectmen held a special meeting on Thursday, October 25, to review a new Fuel Efficient Vehicle Policy and a new Energy Reduction Plan and sign them both just in time for the October 26 deadline to submit the Town’s application for status as a Green Community. “These last two documents are […] Read more »
On October 25, Bonne DeSousa and Robin Lepore of the Friends of the Mattapoisett Bike Path, along with Highway Surveyor Barry Denham, met with the Mattapoisett Finance Committee seeking support for a federal BUILD Transportation Program grant application. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced earlier in the year that $1.5 billion in discretionary funding […] Read more »
On the evening of October 30 the Mattapoisett Police were searching to the area of Acushnet Road and Crystal Springs Road in Mattapoisett for a suspect who was possibly armed. The State Police Air Wing, SWAT team, and a State Police helicopter joined the search as police tried to locate the person. Residents in the […] Read more »
The October 18 meeting of the Mattapoisett Zoning Board of Appeals took a bit longer to get through, despite a short agenda portending a short meeting with only one case to be heard. Coming before the ZBA on this night was well known local businessman Todd Rodrigues whose Yard Boss business has been situated on […] Read more »
The Marion School Committee is the latest to approve its district’s school’s two-year school improvement plan following a multi-district Strategic Plan implemented to address the areas: 21stCentury learning, global citizenship, and social-emotional learning. On October 17, Sippican School Principal Lyn Rivet introduced the school’s plan that echoes the other goals and focus areas included in […] Read more »
The next open field in Rochester slated for a solar farm is at 0 Old Middleboro Road, and developer Solar MA Project Management, LLC approached the Rochester Planning Board on October 23 to informally discuss the plan. Pedro Rodriguez, project manager for Seaboard Solar, and Austin Turner, engineer for Bohler Engineering, have been working on […] Read more »
Robert Field of Field Engineering represented his client, Chase Canopy, as they sought permission from the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission, Zoning Board of Appeals, and Planning Board to reconfigure their Fairhaven Road headquarters by building a new 8,000 square-foot building with other modifications to allow the business to consolidate its operation into one location. Time […] Read more »