The Marion Board of Selectmen welcomed newly elected member Jonathan “Jody” Dickerson to the board at his inaugural meeting held on the evening of Tuesday, June 5. Dickerson defeated Ted North in the Town Election on May 25 for the available seat.

“I will have to accept that I finished second in a two-man race,” said North. “But you will serve the community well and you have my support.”

June 5 marked the first meeting held after the Annual Town Meeting. As a result, the board reorganized itself. Stephen Cushing replaced Jonathan Henry as Chairman of the Board, while Henry takes over the reigns as Vice Chairman.  Dickerson will serve as the Board’s Clerk.

In other news, the Selectmen approved a bid for a new lighting system outside of the Music Hall. The bid is currently set for $8,100, but does not include installation. With all financial factors included, the Selectmen worry the figure could grow as high as six-figures.

“$8,100 is a lot of money,” said Dickerson. “I will second the motion with great hesitation.

Despite the high figure, the Selectmen acknowledged the fact that the new lights are necessary.

“The lighting is just not adequate and the existing fixtures may or may not be repairable,” said Town Administrator Paul Dawson.

The Selectmen also voted to allow the Energy Management Committee to draft zoning solar bylaw plans for the potential solar farm that could be implemented at the Marion Landfill. The committee will work with the Planning Board in order to get bylaws in place in time for the Fall Town Meeting.

Lastly, the Board voted to approve the coordination of a Town Employee and Committee Member Appreciation Cookout. The event will be held in the summer. A date will soon be selected and invitations will be drafted and sent out.

“I really think we should continue this tradition,” Dickerson said. “These employees put plenty of hours in and I feel like a lot of it goes unrecognized. This Board should recognize it.”

The Marion Board of Selectmen will meet again on Tuesday, June 19 at 7:00 pm in the Marion Town House.

By Katy Fitzpatrick

The Industrial Tower & Wireless Company requested, by letter, that their public hearing with the Mattapoisett Planning Board be continued until the next meeting on June 18. No representatives from the company were present at the meeting on Monday night, June 4, but some abutters  of the proposed tower construction – which is near the Aucoot section of town – did attend.

Brad Hathaway, who lives in that area, spoke to the Planning Board about his reservations for the whole project.

“Years ago, there was a plan like this, and the residents of the Aucoot region of town did not support it. It was quite clear that folks in this town do not want cell towers in residential areas. The Planning Board went to Town Meeting and requested that land be set aside for cell towers, in non-residential areas,” Hathaway said. He also said that the Planning Board ended up rejecting the plan altogether.

Chairman Thomas Tucker said that he was not sure of the exact circumstances or specifics behind the previous Planning Board’s decision to reject the tower plan.

“We have two weeks and I will definitely research that town vote,” Tucker said.

Hathaway continued to press his case against the construction of the tower.

“We read the legal advertisement, and it says Marion Road. And Marion Road extends from Ship Street to the Marion town line..  I know how people felt a few years ago, and this new plan goes right into the Aucoot area of town,” he said.

Another abutter, Jack Hillier, wondered why the tower has to be placed 300 feet from his back yard.

“We have gone around and seen other places this company has put up towers. They’re all in industrial zones, not residential areas,” said Hillier.

In addition his issues with the location of the tower, Hillier, like many residents, and the Planning Board, was concerned that the balloon test which was conducted last month was an inadequate demonstration of the visual impact on the landscape, citing the trend for these towers to be outfitted with large antennas and satellite dishes.

The nature of the balloon test itself was also in question. Chairman Tucker indicated that the test was apparently held on a Friday, in the early afternoon, when many of the town residents were not around to observe the test, which was intended to provide the public with an idea of how tall the tower would be. The Planning Board and those residents in attendance agreed that the test was not administered fairly and did not provide the town of Mattapoisett proper opportunity to gauge the scope of the project.

Planning Board member John Mathieu made the motion to continue the hearing, so the company could explain itself, and so the town could be heard.

“The public really hasn’t had the opportunity to meet with these people or question them,” he said.

In other business, the Planning Board voted to recommend Mary Crain as an interim member of the group, taking the open spot for Robert McNamara.

The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Planning Board will be on June 18, at 7:00 pm at the Town Hall.

By Eric Tripoli

A Rochester couple will have to start muzzling their dog after the Rochester Board of Selectmen held a public hearing to address an incident that happened in late March. Several Rochester residents showed up to Town Hall on the evening of Monday, June 4 to attend the hearing.

According to Jamie Martin and Liam DeLowery of Bowen Lane, their dog Moto, a Chihuahua, was attacked by the dog of Margaret and Ralph Gifford of Rounseville Road.

In a letter submitted by Martin and DeLowery to the Selectmen, Martin and DeLowery were awoken by a scream on the morning of March 24 when they went outside and found Moto in two pieces in their yard. Gifford said she dropped the leash when two other dogs approached her dog Daisy and they began fighting. Martin and DeLowery brought Moto to the vet in Marion, but had to put it down.

DeLowery and Martin requested that the Board of Selectmen mandate the Gifford’s put a muzzle on Daisy to prevent a repeat occurrence of this incident.

“If she drops the leash again, is it going to kill another dog?” asked Martin.  “She does not have control of the animal.”

Daisy, who is a mixed breed of what the Gifford’s believe to be a combination of Labrador Retriever and Poodle, is nine-years-old. Her owners claim that since they adopted her at age two, they have never had a problem with her attacking other dogs and they have always walked her on a leash.

However, several residents of Bowen Lane said they have heard Margaret Gifford warn that her dog does not handle animals and children well. DeLowery feels a muzzle would be the appropriate resolution to this problem.

“I’m not asking the dog to be euthanized, just for it to be muzzled,” said DeLowery.

After some brief discussion, the Selectmen voted unanimously to mandate the use of a muzzle. However, the Selectmen said the Gifford’s do have the right to appeal the decision.

“I hope that this is a way of resolving this,” said Selectman Chair Richard Nunes. “It’s a tough situation all around.”

In other news, Town Administrator Richard LaCamera said the town is currently exploring the possibility of bringing a solar farm and / or a wind farm to Rochester for alternative sources of energy. The two companies are based in Plymouth and Buzzards Bay, respectively.

LaCamera said while the contracts are still under negotiations, the town will receive up to 25 percent in discounts. The projects were approved at the Rochester Annual Town Meeting.

“It’s very favorable,” said LaCamera. “It could save up to $50,000 in electricity for the year. It’s a good thing.”

The Selectmen also appointed Bob Francis to the Planning Board and Christopher Faustino to the Park Commission.

The Rochester Board of Selectmen will meet again on Monday, June 18 at 7:00 pm in Town Hall.

By Katy Fitzpatrick

The cloudy weather seemed foreboding on Sunday afternoon, when the Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School Class of 2012 convened at Oliveira Field for its graduation ceremony, but by the event’s end the sun beamed on the 127 gold and maroon-clad newly-minted graduates who looked ready to take on anything.

On that Sunday, June 3, Old Colony graduates – from Acushnet, Carver, Freetown Lakeville, Mattapoisett, and Rochester – received their hard-earned diplomas with their families and friends looking on.

Deborah Herrmann, an English teacher who is retiring this year, offered words of encouragement and advice to the Class.

Repeating her mantra that “Some opportunities we make, some opportunities we take” – Hermann recalled stories of unlikely inspiration, such as that of the original creators of Scrabble, the Home Depot’s founders, and breakthrough success of J.K. Rowling – all who transformed themselves to greatness through sheer will.

To illustrate her point, she dangled a five-dollar bill from her hand and asked the class what they would do with that opportunity. Graduating senior Brett Southworth took no time to emerge from his seat to retrieve the money right from Herrmann’s hand.

“You must act. Brett Southworth is a man of action,” she said.

Valedictorian Brandon M. Charles reflected that the graduation was “not an ending, but a new beginning.” He urged the class to “make a name for ourselves” and look to idols and heroes for inspiration.

“Fellow graduates, get out there and embrace the world. Get out in the world so you can make the best world possible,” he said.

Charles also shared the lyrics of the Class of 2012’s official song: “Time of My Life” by David Cook. “‘Now I’m coming alive body and soul, feeling my world start to turn… This is the time to be more than a name or a face in the crowd. I know this is the time, this is the time of my life,'” he recited.

After all the diplomas were handed out and the caps spiraled to the sky – that song blasted from the speakers as the Class of 2012 embraced each other one last time as Old Colony students.

By Laura Fedak Pedulli