The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 170

2 Globe South The Boston Globe THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2003 Community briefing it 1 1 1 ii i 1 1 1 1 i 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ii 1 1 1 1 1 1 ii i i iiiiii i Globe South Che Boston 5fobe U65 WASHINGTON STREET HANOVER, MA 02339 781-826-1002 men, in its role as the town's Board of Health, has approved a fee increase for inspections of public pools and spas, such as those at hotels and campgrounds, and semipublic pools and spas, such as those at housing complexes. The fee for such inspections was raised from $50 to $100. Inspections of any additional pool or spa at the same facility will be $50. The fee to review a plan for new construction of a pool or spa at public and semipublic facility will be $75. i p- 4 1 I 'LakevWs Rochester: Warehan Fisstown rreeiown i A Mar! 1 BRIDGEWATER VARIANCES REQUESTED The Zoning Board of Appeals has set a hearing on Nov.

20 to consider Arlington resident Linda Clifford's application for a variance allowing her to build a dwelling within 50 feet of vegetated wetlands on Lot 4A of Amherst Avenue. The hearing will be held at 7:30 pan. in the basement of the Academy Building. At 8 p.m., the board will consider a variance request from Evan Lampros to build an attached two-story garage with an apartment above at 61 Beech St The garage would come within 8 feet of the rear property line, while the zoning requires 30 feet BROCKTON SCHOOL AIDS IN TEACHER TRAINING Between 10 and 15 mid-career professionals looking to enter teaching will observe and help out at Brockton High School beginning in January. The school was recently chosen by the state Department of Education as a pilot site for its "Colleagues in Residence" teacher training program in collaboration with Stonehill College in Easton.

Participants in the program will help teachers make lesson plans and also take classes at Stonehill to learn teaching methods and curriculum, according to Brockton school officials. "The experience will give them the real flavor for teaching," said Kathleen Sirois, senior director of human resources. "We look at this as another pathway for Brockton to attract experienced professionals to the rewarding field of teaching." CARVER 5 MORE LOTS FOR SALE A.D. Makepeace Co. received permission from the town Planning Board last month to put five more house lots up for sale in Tof-tree Commons.

The 17-lot conservation development off Plymouth Street leaves most of a 13-acre site as open space. As the developer completes drainage and other site work, it can ask the Planning Board to release lots for sale, said board chairman Kevin Walsh. So far, 1 1 lots have been released. Makepeace has also filed plans for a conventional seven-lot subdivision off High Street. EAST BRIDGEWATER APPEALS BOARD OK'S VARIANCE The Zoning Board of Appeals at its Nov.

5 meeting approved a variance request from Jake Philbrick to raze an existing home at 54 Bixby Drive and build another one there. The board also approved a special permit request that evening from Robyn McKee, allowing her to remove 6,600 cubic yards of topsoil from her property at 666 Elm St. EASTON WARRANT POSTED ON INTERNET Town officials have posted the warrant for next Monday's Special Town Meeting on the town's website www.easton-.ma.us. Town Administrator Martha White, who has pledged to make the town's budget process "more open and inclusive" for residents, said she also has created an online finance plan to help voters balance the budget The 23 articles on the warrant include requests to use $25,000 from the town's Community Preservation Fund reserves for a housing project at the May Institute, approve a historic preservation restriction on the Olmsted Memorial Cairn (known as the Rockery), and change the merit pay plan for town employees. The meeting is scheduled for Monday at 7 p.m.

at Oliver Ames High School. NORTON TECHNOLOGY UPGRADE CONSIDERED While the technology used by the town's public safety, school, and library departments is "on par with 2003 standards," the computer and communications systems at Town Hall are "beyond antiquated," said Town Manager James Purcell. He is working on a technology upgrade plan he hopes to present to Town Meeting voters in the spring, along with a request for fund-ing. The 40 employees who work in various municipal departments at Town Hall will need to undergo training "so that we can see the productivity improvements that technology can bring," Purcell said. He said the upgrades, mcluding high-speed Internet access, a wide-area network, new computer equipment, and e-mail addresses for every user, should help improve both internal and external communication at Town Hall.

PLYMPTON NEW MEMBER ON OPEN SPACE PANEL Selectman Joseph Freitas was appointed to the Open Space Committee at the Nov. 3 selectmen's meeting, according to the board's chairwoman, Christine Joy. Freitas, the fifth member of the committee, will work to periodically prepare and update an Open Space and Recreation Plan for the town. The plan focuses on the town's open spaces, recreational opportunities, and natural resources, while also offering potential goals and strategies for preservation and development Joy said Freitas was also appointed to serve as the town's representative on the Plymouth County Advisory Board, which is in charge of the county's health care and retirement system. "He's serving both terms indefinitely," said Joy.

RAYNHAM INFORMATION SESSION PLANNED Voters who plan to attend this month's Special Town Meeting can educate themselves at a Nov. 18 informational session on the 49 articles on the meeting warrant Moderator William Tripp will lead a discussion of the Nov. 24 Special Town Meeting agenda, and other town officials will be on hand to answer questions. The warrant articles include a proposed zoning bylaw governing adult retirement community developments, a proposed $779,223 transfer of funds to reduce the tax rate, and requests to upgrade police and fire department equipment The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the Raynham Middle School.

ROCHESTER PLANS FOR SCHOOL ADVANCE An architect has been chosen for the proposed $6 million expansion of the Memorial Elementary School. Alderman and MacNeish of West Springfield will be paid approximately $600,000 for the plans, selectmen chairwoman Naida Parker said. Voters will be asked at the spring election to finance the project by overriding the Proposition 2Vi tax limit she said. The project would add six classrooms to the school. Parker said plans to repair the school's leaky roof are underway.

EDITORIAL Editors: Mark Pothier: 781-826-1050 Boston: 617-929-8672 mpothierglobe.com L. Kim Tan: 781-826-1071 Boston: 617-929-8685 tanglobe.com Reporters: JennAbelson: 781-826-1078 Matt Carroll: 781-826-1053 Sandy Coleman: 781-826-1056 Dave Doyle (Sports): 781-826-1077 Paul Harber (Sports): 781-340-1175 Joanna Massey: 781-826-1074 C. Kalimah Redd: 781-826-1076 Calendar Listings: Pamela Miele: 781-826-1055 FREETOWN TAX RELIEF AVAILABLE Residents who are having trouble paying their property taxes may be able to get some help from the Taxation Relief Committee, which has extended its deadline for applications to Nov. 19. The committee administers a fund created to help elderly and disabled residents with their tax burden.

Town Clerk Jacqueline Brown said the panel takes into consideration the applicant's income and need. The fund comes from donations residents make when paying their excise tax bills. For more information, call the clerk's office at 508-644-2203 or HALIFAX HEARING TO RESUME The Planning Board on Nov. 20 will pick up its public hearing on Stop Shop's request to change the plans for its new store on Route 106. When the hearing opened last month, Planning Board members expressed concern about possible traffic problems on the busy road.

Stop Shop was looking to move a traffic light and main entry from its approved location, at the west end of the store site, to the opposite end of the property. The change would put the light much closer to the traffic signals at Wal-Mart's entry and 106's intersection with Route 58. The hearing will start at 8:15 p.m. in the Planning Board's office at Town Hall. HANSON HIRING COMMITTEE TO MEET A search committee to replace the Hanson executive secretary is expected to have its first meeting on Nov.

20. The five-member committee is looking for a replacement for E. Winn Davis, who left last month for a position in Dukes County. The first planned meeting of the committee was postponed when several members could not attend, said Meredith E. Scozzari, the acting executive assistant.

LAKEVILLE PARKING AREA CLOSING An unpaved parking area at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority train station off Route 105 is being closed. MBTA spokesman Joseph Pesaturo told Lakeville officials the unpaved area, which holds up to 100 cars, is the closest parking to the train but presents a danger to commuters attempting to reach the paved parking area. MBTA officials said that they had been asked by Lakeville selectmen to look into the situation and that the authoritiy ruled the area should be chained off. MANSFIELD SIDEWALK POLICY CONSIDERED Residents who want sidewalks installed in their neighborhoods could soon take advantage of a new town policy giving them access to Town Meeting funds. Public Works director Lee Azinheira said the sidewalk policy, modeled after the town's small sewer program that allows residents to request town funding if two-thirds of abutters support the project, would cover about a third of the cost of any sidewalk work approved by Town Meeting.

But the other two-thirds would come from residents through a betterment levy, he said. "If Town Meeting doesnt fund it, they could still go forward with funding it 100 percent themselves and have the town build it," Azinheira said. The town plans to schedule a public hearing on the proposed sidewalk policy within the next month. MARION WATER TESTING TO CONTINUE Local officials will continue to test the town's water supply this month despite having cleaned the water purification system after E. coli bacteria was discovered in the water in October.

The supply was treated and by the next day was deemed safe for drinking, but officials will continue to test regularly throughout this month, they said. Officials said tests occasionally find bacteria during this time of year, after summer residents leave and water in the town's holding tanks stagnates from lack of constant use. MATTAPOISETT LEGAL SERVICES GO OUT TO BID The town is going out to bid for new legal counsel. The current law firm handling the town's legal business Perry, Hicks, Crotty and Deshaies LLP in New Bedford did not submit a bid for the job after town officials advertised the position, but said it would help during the transition. The firm had held the legal counsel duties for Mattapoisett for 15 years.

Town Administrator Michael Botelho said officials had no problem with the firm's performance, but wanted to see whether the town could get a better deal by going out to bid. The town's annual budget for legal services is $50,000, he said. MIDDLEBOROUGH INSPECTION FEES TO RISE The Board of Select ADVERTISING Divisional Sales Manager: Wayne Baker: 781-826-1088 Local Advertising: 781-826-1000 HOME DELIVERY 1-888-MYGLOBE Share your views on local people, issues, and events. E-mail globesouthglobe.com Or write to: Letters to the Editor, Boston Globe South Bureau, 1165 Washington Hanover, MA 02339. Please sign letters, and include an address and phone number.

They may be condensed for space. Stories from all three editions of Globe South are available online at www.Boston.comQiobeweekliessouth imitiiiiiiiiii 1 1 ii mini in inn in nun WHITMAN DEC. 6 IS WINTERFEST This year's Whitman Win-terfest is set for Dec. 6. The events, which start with a holiday bazaar run by the Whitman Mothers Club, include tree-decorating and pie-eating contests, ice sculptures, trolley and hay rides, performances, a Santa parade, and the selection of the Little Miss and Little Mister Winterfest.

All events are free except for the evening-ending Winterfest party at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 697 that begins at 8 p.m. The Winterfest Committee will start giving clues next month for treasure-hunt participants who want to search for a plastic medallion hidden in town and win $500. WAREHAM DISCUSSING WIND TURBINE PROJECT Sue Nicker-son from the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound will be guest speaker at the Wareham Democratic Town Committee meeting on Nov. 18, and will speak on the proposed Cape Wind Farm for Nantucket Sound, which the alliance opposes. Nickerson is the alliance's environmental coordinator.

The meeting, to be held at 7 p.m. at the town's multiservice center on Route 6, is open to the public. For more information, call John Donahue at 508-295-1544. 31 IV Will Compiled and written by Sandy Coleman, Globe staff, and Globe correspondents. i I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMIIIMIMIMIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIMIIIIIIIIIHIIIIIIII To our readers littl tt'lig iwiiifrmitrfr- rtrniii mTi r'rf mimii WEST BRIDGEWATER HISTORIC FACTS UNCOVERED Moving old records from a damp and moldy vault has been an ongoing project for Town Clerk Nancy Morrison since the addition to Town Hall was completed in the spring.

A new, humidity-controlled vault was installed, and Morrison has been going through files from an older vault that had a leak. Morrison said she has moved most of the birth, death, and marriage records, and has discovered some historic treasures. One was a book from the Civil War era that lists soldiers from West Bridgewater. Morrison said she is hoping to donate the book to the Old Bridgewater Historical GLOBE STAFF PHOTOTOM HERDE SOMEONE IS WATCHING A group of schoolchildren gathered next to the statue of Massasoit on a hill overlooking Plymouth Rock during a recent outing. Three zoned editions of Globe South are published on Thursdays and Sundays, each focused on a particular geographic area.

The communities covered by each edition are listed at the upper left-hand corner of the section's front page. If you do not receive the correct edition, please contact us at 781-826-1002, or globesouthglobe.com. Over 1 Acre of Showroom Wicker Indoor Outdoor Yankee Candles Came Tables Snas Bars jx ky N.E.s' Largest Showroom of Dept. 56 Villages and Accessories. Snow Village Dickens Village North Pol? N.L Village Christmas in the City Over 50 tables Layaways Available on display Beach Brunswick ta if 0 Solid African Teak Olhausen Presidential mm a i roc shop SiMatt iir.iiii nfcuwMf Store hours: Mon Tues 10-6 Wed-Frlday 10-8 Sat Sun 12 5 781-826-0077 Hanover.

MA 357 Columbia Road Route S3, next to Building 19 2 S3.