Hot Button Topics Takes Meeting Into Overdrive

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At the July 31 meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen, the 7:45 pm appointment with CDM Smith, the engineering group the town has contracted with for decades to assist with the wastewater treatment system, began. By 9:00 pm it was just wrapping up. In between, the board of selectmen and the public heard from Bernadette Kolb, Senior Vice President of CDM Smith, and two disgruntled members of the community.

Kolb’s presentation was a comprehensive report on the current state of the public wastewater system and the next steps needing immediate implementation to help the town come into regulatory compliance.

After describing the manner in which wastewater flow currently is received to its discharge into Aucoot Cove, Kolb moved on to facility upgrades and recommendations.

Kolb said that upgrades to the facility would include disc filters, allowing each of the holding lagoons to operate independently from one another, and a bottom mounted aeration system in lagoon number one. She said that these upgrades would provide a reduction in the use of the unlined lagoons and that all work needed to be completed by December 1, 2019.

The technical details left few questions for the selectmen to ask. But the burning question at least for two residents remained unanswered – when will the town and its residents get more capacity.

Marion resident Sherman Briggs said, “We continue to hear no capacity.” He said that was a critical element that needed attention: the ability to bring more users on line would help defray the costs paid by all he said.

Kolb explained that the evening’s presentation was not focused on increased capacity – a conversation for another day.

Briggs countered, “CDM has never done us any favors.”

Also disappointed that other aspects of the ailing wastewater treatment facility was not being addressed on this evening was Assessor George T.J. Walker. He questioned issues surrounding a lawsuit related to groundwater discharge launched by the Buzzards Bay Coalition. Again he was told that those issues were not part of the presentation.

With a deadline of tomorrow for CDM Smith to submit a letter to various regulatory authorities addressing proposed improvements to the existing facility, the selectmen voted to authorize the firm’s recommendations on the lagoon optimization plan to those agencies for a 60 day review process.

The other hot item on the agenda was the ongoing legal action taking place against former members of the board of directors for the Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District (CMWRRDD).

Town Administrator Paul Dawson brought the selectmen up to date on the judicial proceedings saying, “The auditors are still looking for documents.” He said that while forensic auditors search for documentation, the board of directors was busy making some much needed changes.

“They are trying to right the ship,” Dawson said adding that although the board members were fairly new, there were several who had been in place for a number of years.

Dawson said that Judge Jeffrey Locke of the Superior Court had ruled to freeze personal assets of at least two defendants, Ray Pickles and his wife. “I am monitoring the case closely,” he said. “What we know is that a lot of audit materials are missing, such as contracts and meeting minutes; there’s a lot to be found, if it can be found.”

Selectman John Waterman said moving forward, “There needs to be checks and balances.” He said there should be more then one signatory on checks and that a least several members of the CMWRRDD needed to have strong financial backgrounds, “They need to be willing to challenge and ask questions.” He also questioned the ability of the auditors, wondering aloud if they were up to the challenge at hand. “There should be a deadline for submitting financial documents for an audit,” he said.

Dawson said modifications to the overall district agreement was probably needed and reminded the selectmen that the district was a separate “body politic,” but that the board of selectmen in the three towns picked their representatives for the board.

Selectman Norm Hills currently sits on the district board as does Marion resident Steve Cushing.

In other business, the selectmen approved a proposal submitted by Jon Howard and Matt Glynn for an aquaculture license. This approval now clears the way for the project to move through the state regulatory process before returning to the selectmen for final review and approval.

Also John Rockwell of the Open Space Committee asked that the selectmen provide written support to the Friends of the Mattapoisett Bike Path who are pursuing grant opportunities for plans to pave a portion of the Mattapoisett Industrial Park Drive, which will connect Marion to Mattapoisett and the larger bike path system. The selectmen agreed it was a worthy endeavor.

The next meeting of the Marion Board of Selectmen is scheduled for August 14 at 7:00 pm, location to be announced.

Marion Board of Selectmen

By Marilou Newell

 

In the ‘Nip’ of Time

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It’s been a challenging time for us. These past fewyears have found us sitting in medical office waiting rooms surrounded by others in our age group waiting for a verdict we can hopefully live with. We hold hands as we count down the moments. What else can we do?

The challenges have changed over the years from earning a living, caring for children, running a home, making memories for grandchildren, and caring for aging parents. We’ve done all those things over nearly thirty years. We reminisce, reflecting on events and moments we hope never to forget, and laugh anew at something that tickled our fancy then and now. We’ve built a life and want more.

We know we are lucky to be dealing with only a few mechanical difficulties brought on by aging and overuse injuries. That type of qualifying classification of physical ailments helps us keep perspective, especially when one of us goes down for a count; and such relief when we rise again to take a few more gut punches displaying nothing by grit and resolve. As a team we are nearly unbeatable standing in each other’s corner.

We don’t project too far into the future any longer. Our goals are short-term. Our needs have become simpler on the one hand and much more important on the other. Our wants are in line with our current capabilities as our steel to survive and thrive remains focused and firmly entrenched in the “can do” mode of living. United we stand indeed.

I wonder, do couples become like a single living organism, two parts of a whole that must have the other in order to be fully alive? My independent soul has shunned the notion that I had to have this person in my life in order to be whole. But as the years have worn off the hard edges of my preconceived ideas of who I am, as I’ve become more willing and, frankly, more honest with myself, I’m coming to a new conclusion.

The whole marriage contract as developed over the ages seems to require the forsaking of the one for the embracing of the whole. The philosopher Joseph Campbell explained it that way. He said something like, a couple must leave behind the singularity of “the one” for the new structure, the partnership, and that the partnership becomes the one. I understood that frame of reference decades ago when I first heard it: now I understand it so much better as I live it everyday. We sacrifice the self to get something we need more – the one.

Recently I was chatting with a friend about husbands and we chuckled as we discussed how similar ours were to one another. She and her husband are a bit older then my husband and me, but the parallels are there. We laugh and then become serious. I say, “I wouldn’t be doing this well without him.” She pats my hand and says, “I know.”

People who need people are the luckiest people in the world …

When my father-in-law passed away, his second wife of just ten years was devastated. She had lost her first husband years earlier and was so happy to have Roland to live out these final years with companionship and love. They were two peas in a pod, everyone said. His sudden passing left her very much adrift. Only her faith sustained her, as her belief that she will see him again one day is the rock she stood upon.

I don’t have that kind of faith. I grasp the here and now, thankful for that much, not expecting more when the lights go out. I hold to the conviction that, if required, my independence would see me through. I hope that doesn’t get tested any time soon. I don’t want to find out I’ve built my house on sand.

As each day passes, as each step I take in my latest recovery reminds me that my dancing career may, in fact, be over, I hold tightly to each day, reminding myself it is my duty and privilege to bear whatever comes with as much grace as possible.

As I reach my hand out searching for something to hold onto, I find his reaching out to me. Our hands entwine, becoming one mighty unit holding each other up in a way we never dreamed would be necessary; but in that necessity, a stronger bond is found – the nip.

In The Ashley Book of Knotsthe author wrote: “To prevent slipping, a knot depends on friction, and to provide friction there must be pressure of some sort. This pressure and the place within the knot where it occurs is called the ‘nip’. The security of a knot seems to depend solely on its nip.”

In time a knot can meld, making it nearly impossible to untangle. The nip becomes a weld, I think, fused together through the friction of life’s many slings and arrows, as well as the easy laughter that comes when the humor isn’t lost. We have become and will remain each other’s nip in time.

This Mattapoisett Life

By Marilou Newell

 

Mattapoisett Historical Society Lecture Series

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The Mattapoisett Historical Society and the Mattapoisett Free Public Library present a lecture series by Seth Mendell. For more information call 508-758-2844.

August 14– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: “Poland; Finland; Dunkirk and the Fall of France” (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

August 21– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: “Operation Sea Lion and the Battle of Britain; Case Barbarossa and the Stalin Line; the United States and the Arsenal of Democracy” (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

August 28– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: “The North Atlantic; Pearl Harbor; Year of Agony and Operation Torch” (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

September 4– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: “Stalingrad and the Eastern front; “Operation Husky” and Italy; the Pacific Theater and the Third Reich” (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

September 11– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: ‘Operation “Overlord” and the Invasion of France; Generals Eisenhower and Patton; Collapse of the German Eastern Front and the “Battle of the Bulge”‘ (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

September 18– Seth Mendell’s World War II Campaigns Lecture Series: “FDR and the Yalta Conference; Demise of Hitler and German Surrender; MacArthur and the Philippines; the Island of Tinian and the Enola Gay” (7:00 p.m. at the Mattapoisett Free Public Library).

The British Invasion – Music from Across the Pond

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The Marion Concert Band continues its summer concert series with a program of music from the British Isles on Friday, August 3. The program features several classic British Brass Band pieces as well as music of the Yardbirds, the Kinks, Petula Clark, Gerry and the Pacemakers and the Beatles. There may even be an appearance by members of the Cape Cod British Car Club, LTD (CCBCC). The program is as follows:

Colonel Bogey – K. J. Alford

First Suite in Eb for Military Band – G. Holst

English Suite – C. Grundman (movts. 3&4)

Prelude, Siciliano & Rondo – M. Arnold

Sarabande (from Solitaire) – M. Arnold

Pop and Rock Legends: The Beatles – M. Sweeney

Irish Tune from County Derry – P. Grainger

Shepherd’s Hey – P. Grainger

The British Are Coming – arr. J. Bocook

British Invasion: Hits of the 60’s – arr. J. Vinson

Knightsbridge March – E. Coates

The Cape Cod British Car Club, LTD (CCBCC) is a Massachusetts not-for-profit corporation whose membership annually exceeds 250. While members come from all over the world, most members are residents of southern New England. CCBCC members enjoy driving and displaying their English automobiles. Throughout the year the CCBCC participates in events and raises funds for scholarship purposes. Annually the club provides scholarships to automotive and auto body students at the Upper Cape Regional Technical School, the South Plymouth High School and the Cape Cod Regional Technical School. The club also provides funds towards a specific scholarship program available to Falmouth High School students.

The concert, under the direction of Tobias Monte, will begin at 7:00 pm, weather permitting, at the Robert Broomhead Bandstand, Island Wharf off Front Street in Marion. All concerts are free and open to the public. “Like” us on Facebook at “Marion Town Band” for up-to-date announcements and rain cancellation notices.

Mattapoisett Town Clerk Attends Clerks’ Institute

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Mattapoisett Clerk, Victoria JC Asiaf, recently completed her first year of studies at the New England Municipal Clerks’ Institute at Plymouth (NH) State University. This first year is for clerks who have not previously attended an Institute. It offers an introductory course in public administration with interactive classes on communication skills, decision-making, management theory, inter-government relations & procedures and media & written communications. Clerks in Year I experience practical lessons in general and theoretical courses.

Man Found Dead in Marion Cemetery

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On July 31, 2018 at approximately 6:00 p.m., the Marion Police Department received a cellular call from a resident reporting a body in Evergreen Cemetery.  The reporting party had been riding their bicycle in the cemetery when they happened on a deceased male.  The deceased was on the ground on the east side of the cemetery.   Marion Police and EMS were dispatched to the scene.

Upon arrival, police and EMS units discovered the deceased male and the victim’s dog near the victim.  Personnel on the scene located the victim’s cell phone and were able to contact family members.  The male, whose identity is not being released at this time, had reportedly left his residence at approximately 5:00 p.m. to walk the dog.  At this time it appears the 63 year old male may have experienced a medical emergency.

The incident is being investigated by the Marion Police Department, Massachusetts State Police Detective Division and the Office of the Medical Examiner.

Sippican Historical Society

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In 1998, the Sippican Historical Society commissioned an architectural survey of Marion’s historic homes and buildings. The survey was funded one-half by the Sippican Historical Society and one-half by the Massachusetts Historical Commission. Due to the limits of funding, not all of the historic buildings were surveyed, but over 100 were catalogued and photographed. The results of the survey are in digital form on the Massachusetts Historical Commission’s website and in four binders in the Sippican Historical Society’s office (and at the Marion Town Clerk’s office).

Marion (Old Rochester) is one of the oldest towns in the United States, and the Sippican Historical Society maintains an extensive collection of documentation on its historic buildings. The Sippican Historical Society will preview one building a week so that the residents of Marion can understand more about its unique historical architecture.

This installment features 300 Converse Road. The dwelling at 300 Converse Road is a Queen Anne house noteworthy for its well-preserved encircling verandah. Built in 1894 for the carpenter H.V. Blankinship, this house, with its ornate gingerbread porch, illustrates Blankinship’s carpentry skills.

Tabor Gateways Program

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The Tabor Gateways Program is underway at Tabor Academy through August 17. Tabor has welcomed 35 students from China and other countries for two three-week sessions of Tabor Gateways. The students, entering 8th to 11th grade, arrived on July 15. The program, in its third year, is a unique language immersion program for Chinese and English language learners who wish to learn each other’s languages. All of the students this year are from China or have a Chinese background and live in English speaking countries such as Canada and Australia.

Students are offered four academic seminars in history, Model UN, marine science, and chemistry and cooking taught in English during the day where they can interact and share ideas. During the afternoon, they enjoy swimming at the waterfront and playing field games and team sports such as basketball, badminton, and baseball. Squash is also popular. In the evenings, the students go back to class for one hour of language instruction to learn communication skills in English or Chinese. The Chinese speakers record interviews with native English speakers to improve their skills, while the native English-speaking students are instructed in Chinese by Tabor faculty and have time to practice their skill with their Chinese classmates.

Five days of each session are devoted to excursions around our local area to enjoy shopping, tourism, and to support the academic program they are engaged in. They will enjoy a whale watch in Plymouth, take the Cliff Walk in Newport, and visit top U.S. universities in our area: MIT, Brown, and Harvard, all highly regarded in China.

The teaching staff includes four Tabor faculty for the seminar classes, three Tabor faculty as program leaders, and four Tabor alumni as teaching assistants and residential leaders. The goal is to promote cross cultural friendships and exchanges in a shared learning and living environment, with a focus on honing academic skills and achievement.

Board Approves House on ‘Unaccepted’ Way

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In a relatively quick wrap-up to Nicholas Araujo’s request for a Variance to build a single-family home on Old Schoolhouse Road, the Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals voted on July 26 to allow the construction, but with a couple conditions.

As discussed during the ZBA’s July 12 meeting, Araujo will not be allowed to further subdivide the 15-acre lot into additional lots or add any additional houses.

The matter had been discussed over the span of three ZBA meetings as the board was careful not to set Araujo up for any future negative consequences as a result of building the house on the somewhat dubiously-classified road – Old Schoolhouse Road – deemed a road not accepted by the Town.

Araujo’s engineer, Rick Charon, had to prove to the board that Old Schoolhouse Road is in fact a legitimate road, which he did when he provided several past cases where the Planning Board made mention to Old Schoolhouse Road as “an ancient way” and also allowed other residents to build on the road. Charon also had to demonstrate that Araujo could legally access his property via an easement.

The only thing stopping the board from approving the Variance back on July 12 was board members’ desire to see a certified plan displaying the frontage of the lot and a quick review by town counsel.

Old Schoolhouse Road neighbors weren’t supportive of Araujo’s plan, which they believe would exacerbate an already rough unpaved road surface, but that was outside the scope of the ZBA.

The next meeting of the Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals is scheduled for August 9 at 7:00 pm at the Rochester Town Hall.

Rochester Zoning Board of Appeals

By Jean Perry

 

Franklin Ernest Robbins “Red”

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Franklin Ernest Robbins “Red”, 66 of New Bedford passed away Sunday, July 29, 2018 at St. Luke’s Hospital. Born in New Bedford, he was the son of the late Franklin E. Robbins, Sr. and Marjorie (Leddy) Robbins.

He graduated from Old Rochester Regional High School and worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant at Lakeville Hospital until his retirement. He loved sports especially the Red Sox and Patriots.

Survivors include his sister Barbara Medeiros and her husband Thomas of Rochester, a nephew Thomas Medeiros, Jr of Rochester, a niece Barbara Lee Medeiros of Wareham, two great nieces and a great nephew.

Private funeral services are in the care of the Rock Funeral Home, 1285 Ashley Blvd., New Bedford. For tributes: www.rock-funeralhome.com