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Selectmen take no action on Whitehall Recreation change Brian Morrison cites "...extensive liability issues" if town changes conservation restriction
by Robert Falcione February 14, 2007 — By a 4-1 vote last night, Hopkinton Land Surveyor Jim Troupes got the majority of the Board of Selectmen to agree to endorse the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Mr. Troupes talked about his time on Earth and said, "I've seen a lot of cloud formations, and the ones I see now are different." He likened the Earth's atmosphere as being the depth of a coat of varnish in comparison to the Earth’s size. Selectman Ron Clark, apparently prepared on the issue, objected that the Kyoto Protocol that the mayors were endorsing had the United States at reducing emissions to 7% below 1990 levels by 2012. "How many cars did the town have in 1991," he asked rhetorically. By Mr. Clark's estimate, the number of town-owned vehicles has more than tripled, making the target of 7% less than 17 years ago seem unreasonable. Mr. Clark claimed referred to a Wall Street Journal story that claimed that the cutting of forests in Indonesia to grow bio-diesel products is actually creating more pollution than if it weren’t done, because the cut timber is disposed of by burning. Selectmen Mike Shepard said he'd be proud if the Selectmen signed. Selectman Len Holden spoke in favor of endorsing the measure, a break from the practice of voting as a block with Mr. Clark on most issues for several years now. Mr. Holden is up for re-election this year, although he has yet to announce if he is running. Mr. Clark is also up for re-election, but he has said repeatedly that he is not running.
Vice-Chair Mary Pratt told Mr.
Troupes repeatedly how proud she was that he brought this issue
up. Hopkinton Athletic Association President Timothy Kilduff (Photo) announced the 15th Anniversary of the Kenyan Marathon runners' Adopt-a-Marathoner program, which is sponsored by John Hancock, during which the elite Kenyan BAA Marathon runners receive an exalted welcome at Elmwood School and exchange cultural ideas with the students. The Selectmen agreed that on this special occasion they would name that day John Hancock Day. Mr. Kilduff recommended that the CEO's of John Hancock and its parent company co-host a community breakfast in recognition of their contributions to Elmwood School and the BAA Marathon. The room turned to laughter when, upon seeing a photographer become animated and photographing Mr. Kilduff from all sides, Mr. Clark said, "I see you've brought your own photographer." The Selectmen discussed Town Meeting Articles, two of which were brought up by Selectman Ron Clark. The first was to have the Whitehall property that Town Meeting purchased last May be changed from passive recreation to active recreation. He recommended that the Board invite the parks and Recreation in to discuss the issue and that he would defer to that conversation, saying that he and that department had the same idea. However, former Conservation Chairman Brian Morrison (Top photo, center), who is the only substantial private property owner who abuts the land under discussion, and on two sides, was allowed to speak over an objection by Mr. Clark that the discussion was not going forward until the later date. “People have been waiting all night to speak," said Chair Muriel Kramer. "There was a lengthy litigation with the Planning Board and we withdrew," Mr. Morrison said. After Builder Ron Nation was given a green light for the construction of 9 homes on the property under discussion, he filed suit saying that the approval was a de facto denial, because he had applied for 11 homes. Mr. Morrison also appealed the Decision of the Planning Board but withdrew the suit upon completion of the purchase of the land by the town. Mr. Morrison was also on the Committee that negotiated to purchase the land bordering his. “I would advise the town there are some extensive liability issues.” “Who is ‘we’?” asked Mr. Clark. “That would be me as a private citizen,” said Mr. Morrison. |
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Hopkinton 64, Holliston 52
February 13, 2007 — Mark Sanborn reaches high for this rebound a the Athletic Center this evening as the hillers took on Holliston. |
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Anthony “Tony” Petracca, 72, of
Upton, died peacefully at home surrounded by family on Monday,
February 12, 2007 after a long and courageous battle with
Leukemia. Born in Milford, he was the son of the late Anthony
and Marie (DeLuzio) Petracca. He was the husband of Nancy
Petracca of Upton. |
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Conversation with World War II Veterans
HopNews took the camera to Jack McInerney's WW II dialogue at the Senior Center with Hopkinton Veteran's of that war. Above is a short conversation. If video does not display, it is still processing. |
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Happy Chinese New Year
February 13, 2007 — Colleen Ottomano hangs some Chinese firecrackers during HPTA Chinese Extracurricular Class in the Life Skills room today after regular classes. The Chinese New Year, the Year of the Pig, begins Sunday. |
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Senior Center Valentine's Day Dance POSTPONED until Wednesday, February 15, 2007
Due to expected storm |
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VACATION CLUB DURING VACATION WEEK
The MetroWest YMCA Hopkinton will be holding a Vacation Club for
children in grades 1-6 during the February School Vacation Week,
February 20-23. The program runs from 8:30am to 6:00pm with the
option of morning care starting at 7:00am.
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Throwing good money after bad Dear Editor:
HopNews reported that last month’s Quarterly Meeting revealed that EarthTech managed to misquote the cost of the Fruit Street sewer plant by $3.2M, and increased their estimate by 70 percent to $7.8M. EarthTech did the same thing in Hudson last year, where they sold the town one number which they then doubled when it came time for construction.
"We don't use that company anymore," said Paul Blazar, Hudson's Executive Assistant (8/15/06 MW Daily News). I hope our new Board of Selectmen will be equally savvy about who they choose to keep contracts with from here on out.
A certain selectman, though, does not appear to be the guardian of town finances that he so often claims. The selectman who has taken every opportunity to question funding for any project or activity he does not like, is apparently willing to push ahead with EarthTech and ask the town to pony up more cash to, again, clean up the disaster of a project he is running. You know, the one that took three tries and thousands of dollars just to get the Single Environmental Impact Report into a barely acceptable state for MEPA? FULL LETTER |
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"Hopkinton Village Center" takes another step
February 13, 2007 — Scott Richardson, principal of Gorman Richardson Architects, who is also Chairman of the Downtown Revitalization Committee, brought conceptual plans his company designed, and reported by HopNews last Wednesday, to the Planning Board last night for the Board's introduction to the proposed Main Street building.
Developer Ron Roux of Hallmark Homes gave the presentation for
the
"A restaurant would change that," said Mr. Richardson, alluding to the need for more spaces for food service. Click on thumbnail for overhead view. Mr. Roux said that the current owners of the land, Charles Marsland and Peter Thalman, who conduct their business, Power Line Modeling, at the two buildings facing Main Street, 25 and 35, will continue to do so. Mr. Roux was unsure of the final structure of the ownership of the land that encompasses the two front buildings and the proposed one. Mr. Roux said that there is no frontage requirement in the business district in Hopkinton, but that the state requires 20 feet; so the frontage will be gotten by taking frontage from the two existing buildings. "We will have retail storefronts on both sides. We believe the market is for small storefronts," Mr. Roux explained, and said there could be up to 14 storefronts. "It will be a combination of brick and stucco to introduce a lot of variety, like something that's been added to over time," he said.
"We are going to articulate the storefronts quite a bit, said Mr. Richardson, in answer to Board member Sandy Altamura's question about the relief on the facade. "On the roof will be a green area. In Boston if you look up, there are more trees on the roof than on the streets," Mr. Roux said. Mrs. Altamura also asked about an inner corridor for store access, but Mr. Roux and Mr. Richardson said that would not be part of the plan. "We didn't want to create a mall environment," said Mr. Roux, who said he envisioned a small boutique, women's clothes, men's clothes, a spa, and a fitness center as likely clients. "We are trying to do offsetting requirements," said Mr. Roux, explaining that a fine restaurant's clientele would use the space at a different time. "I don't think we can offset zoning," said Mrs. Altamura, alluding to the need for a certain number of parking spaces that would be necessary in total, regardless of the time of day. "What we have done is in zoning," said Mr. Roux, who is a member of the Zoning Advisory Committee (ZAC). "We want to make sure we meet the zoning." Board members suggested that Mr. Roux use the property he owns on Grove Street as an exit, but he said it faced Colella's exit and would not be feasible. Board member Claire Wright expressed reservations about the building being seen from the Historic District, and also lobbied for neighbors whose residential backyard borders the land. "Claire, it's zoned business," said Planning Board Vice-Chair, RJ Dourney, also a member of ZAC, countering the suggestion. "I know, but if there is green benefiting no one, perhaps it could be swapped," she said, pointing to a green area on the plan that could provide a shield for the residence. Chairman Mark Abate ended the presentation by saying, "Downtown Revitalization is all about the chicken and the egg. You got the chicken. "Congratulations." Article revised and corrected 2/13/07 10:08 am |
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First Congregational Church of Hopkinton to Donate Over 5,000 Pounds of Goods to Local Charities
"We're hoping to bring in far more than 5,000 pounds,” comments Dr. Michael Laurence, Senior Pastor of FCCH. “We're motivated by the story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with nothing more than two fish and five loaves of bread. Imagine what God can do through 600 people!" Each week, FCCH will support a different ministry. The specific needs of each organization will be posted on FCCH’s web site (www.fcch.org) and listed in the church bulletin, one week in advance. Donations from the community would be well received and will be accepted on Sundays only, from February 18 to March 25, between the hours of 8:30am and 12:30pm. |
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WANTED: Cancer Survivors This Is For You!
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Today, February 12, 2007
7:46 pm A walk in reported that it appeared that a vehicle was trying to get on the ice from the boat ramp on Wood Street...
9:06 pm A caller from A Street requested an officer after hearing a strange noise in her house. Officer Gregg DeBoer and Matthew...
4:04 pm A caller from Lumber Street reported that she just witnessed a domestic assault and battery. The male suspect fled the scene in a Jeep... |
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CUT-A-THON
February 12, 2007 — Tina Nobilini prepares for her next customer at the Lovely Lady Salon at 22 Main street today, while Nancy Macmillan preps a customer behind her. The two women are hosting a Cut-A-Thon for the Massachusetts Breast Cancer Coalition and the Silent Spring Institute, and donating all poroceeds. |
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Friends
February 12, 2007 — These Hopkinton High School friends paused for a pose at the High School foyer during the Valentine's Day Dance that netted between $4,000 - 5,000 for the Best Buddies program. |
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Recycle with the Lions
The Lions Club will be collecting recyclable bottles and cans at Colella’s Supermarket on Main Street between 9 am and 2 pm. The Lions will also be collecting outdated/unused cell phones for the Hopkinton Senior Center during their recycling hours. All proceeds are used to help others. |
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It's the Law!
*
Who can be Guilty of Perjury? by Demian David Tebaldi, Esq. Email your questions to: dtebaldi@tebaldiesq.com February 12, 2007
Dear ITL: A man goes to court and testifies with the intent to mislead, but the jury disregarded the man’s testimony and did not take it into account for the jury verdict. Is the man guilty of perjury? ~ E.T.
At first glance, it would appear that simply lying under oath, or, as you put it, “testifying with the intent to mislead” the finder of fact on a material issue, is sufficient to establish guilt on the part of the defendant. Until 2006, this was in fact the case, and a defendant could be jailed or fined (or both) for speaking falsely, even if he or she, under cross examination, recants the false statement or admits to having lied under oath. Editor's Note: Mr. Tebaldi is answering questions from real people. To be one of them, Email your questions to: dtebaldi@tebaldiesq.com |
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Brain Bee
Hope Hellberg (not pictured), Julie Sung and Allison Philbrook represented Hopkinton High School at the Central Mass Regional Brain Bee the weekend of February 4th at UMass Medical School. The Brain Bee consists of an hour long written exam followed by a live Q & A competition that tests the neuroscience knowledge of high school students. Allison was one of the top ten finalists and Julie won second place. |
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Warm Glow
February 11, 2007 — The setting sun cast a warm glow on this seagull, one of a large colony, over the Hopkinton Reservoir today. |
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New Exercise Class for Seniors in Milford
Now already in session, new Ageless Mobility classes are conducted Tuesday mornings from 10:30 to 11:30 at the Body Shop Gym, located at 47 Sumner Street in Milford, MA.
Ageless Mobility is an easy-to-learn, follow-along, low-impact, instantly-effective movement program involving a scientific blend of dynamic mobility combined with simple flowing yoga. Ageless Mobility gives you pain-free quality of life, and the ability to move gracefully, effortlessly and play without the dreaded "day after pain." Ageless Mobility is a program from the Circular Strength Training® System, a scientific “3 winged” system of “prehab now so you don’t have to rehab later.”
This program is designed in a genetically-programmed sequence of lubricating each joint, one after another, until the entire body becomes fully flushed with nutrition. Once each joint is well oiled and ready to move, then soft, flowing yoga movements, easily learned, release the body of chains of tension. This specific process helps prevent daily aches and pains while helping abate the onset of shoulder bursitis, elbow tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, neck and lower back disc herniation, hip, knee and ankle strain. The simple breathing exercises manage stress at a biochemical level while increasing core strength and helping gastrointestinal health. FULL DETAILS |
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PawSox the cat brought tears home Editor,
I just wanted to let you know that at 7:30pm last night, our missing 2 yr old male cat, PawSox, was outside our back door crying his head off to be let in the house! The lights were out but there he was! We let him in, and he was not cold or wet; a little dirty and has lost about 5 pounds it looks like. I guess he was not eaten by coyotes after all! He either was trapped in someone's garage for a week while they were gone, or thanks to you, someone had taken him and realized that he belonged to someone and released him. Either way, he knew the way home and we are grateful to have him home again! My 2 nieces were in tears to have their pet home as they thought they would never see him again. FULL LETTER |
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February 11, 2008 — Kevin Young, Kelly Rodeck and Ayssa DiPietro were having a great time at last night's dance. |
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High School
February 10, 2006 — Freshman through Senior, the entire High School showed up for a charity to benefit Best Buddies International, a group that supports bringing Special Ed students and regular ed students together for events such as apple picking, Bruins games and Celtics games. Buddies with Special Needs are matched with peer Buddies for those events. Tonight's proceeds — between $4,000 - $5,000 — according to President of the Best Buddies Club, Jenny Chang, will benefit the Best Buddies International, which will organize a bicycle race ending in Hyannis Port with a party at the Kennedy compound. The cost to race is $1,700. Above, left, Megan Prall, President of the Leo Club and Jenny Chang, President of Best Buddies. |
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Hopkinton 5, Dover-Sherborn 3
February 10, 2007 — Ben Lewis was on the other side of the camera tonight, above, as he knocks away another shot on goal, one of 37 made by the opposing team as Hopkinton skated to a 5-3 win. |
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Dearly Beloved...
February 10, 2007 — ESL Theater brought their act to the Nipmuc Rod and Gun Club tonight after a scheduling conflict with the Woodville Rod and Gun, their usual venue. Nonetheless, their Hopkinton fans filled the house for fun filled skits, like the irreverent one above with Paul Champlin as the Bishop, making good use of a plant hanger, with members of the choir to his left. |
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At theYMCA
February 10, 2007 — Ryan Kaufman, 13 months, and his Mom have a little playful fun during the Open House at the MetroWest YMCA in Hopkinton this morning. |
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Hiller girls trounce Norton 60-16 by Peter Marso The Hiller Girls trounced the Lancers of Norton Friday night in a game that was just a TVL mismatch as the final was 60-16. Norton has had their troubles over the years but the Bliss ladies just could do no wrong as they played the whole bench during the fiasco. The Hillers are gearing up for this years state tourney as they will once again be well represented as they are a team made up of veterans and should play very well the rest of the year. The Hillers have a big game coming up with Bellingham and this should determine the runner-up spot in the league race. Everybody contributed and everybody played which gives great experience to the program. |
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February 10, 2007 — Paul Allison takes a run around the Athletic Center during this morning's track meet at the High School. |
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One, two, three, four...
From left to right, Mr. Meehan, Mr. Gunduz, Mr. Kearney, and on drums Hopkinton HS grad Bryan Vanderpool (Performers ID'd by Discussion page reader - thanks!). These are the new lovable mop-tops of rock and roll, who performed at the Middle School Faculty Talent Show last night. Scroll down for video. |
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ESL Youth Talent Showcase
February 9, 2007 — ESL Theater Workshop kicked off their Youth Showcase series this evening with Sinai Tabak, a 15 year-old from Milford. Enjoy talent? Give it a listen. VIDEO WILL BE AVAILABLE Shortly. |
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Hopkinton Middle School Faculty Talent Show
February 9, 2007 — Check out the new Fab Four by watching the video of one of the songs shot at the Hopkinton Middle School this evening. |
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Scholarship Fund 53 years-old Dear Hopkinton Residents:
For the 53rd year, the Hopkinton Scholarship Fund will be awarding scholarships to graduating high school seniors in Hopkinton. The Scholarship Committee and Hopkinton Women’s Club are working together to prepare and review the scholarship application forms. The scholarships are available to all Hopkinton graduating seniors who have completed and submitted their applications for review. READ FULL LETTER |
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VACATION CLUB DURING VACATION WEEK
The MetroWest YMCA Hopkinton will be holding a Vacation Club for
children in grades 1-6 during the February School Vacation Week,
February 20-23. The program runs from 8:30am to 6:00pm with the
option of morning care starting at 7:00am.
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February 9, 2007 — LifeFlight helicopter landed at Cornell's Field (Left)and brought the male driver of this vehicle, a South Mill Street resident, to UMass at 11:55 pm after he was extricated from the vehicle that had wires on it from the pole that was snapped into three pieces from the impact (above). Public Safety officials had to wait for NStar to arrive to shut off the power to much of the Hayden Rowe Street area where the crash occurred before extricating the driver. The man was said to be in stable condition. |
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According to the poll results, there were not many people op |
Click here to make HopNews your default
homepage! <---works with Internet Explorer.
February
12, 2007 – First Congregational
Church of Hopkinton (FCCH) is embarking on a six-week project to
collect and distribute over 5,000 pounds of goods and materials
to food pantries and other ministries in Hopkinton and the
Metrowest area. Each Sunday, from February 18 to March 25,
volunteers will weigh, box and deliver the donations to the
respective organizations within 36 hours. 
The
American Cancer Society's Relay For Life is being
held in Hopkinton on May 18th, 2007 at 6:00 P.M. at
the Hopkinton High School Track. We are seeking
Survivors and their Caregivers to join in on the
first lap of the Relay. Survivors will be honored
and we will also recognize the significant role that
loved ones, friends, and health care professionals
play in the lives of cancer survivors. We
acknowledge that they too feel the effects of the
cancer experience in many similar ways and may also
think of themselves as survivors. Then come inside
for the Survivor & Caregiver Reception. Celebrate
the fact that cancer survivors in our own community
are living life to the fullest! Please contact
Connie Masucci by email at
Wanted:
Recyclable bottles and cans. Date: February 24th.
Dear
E.T.: The short
answer is “No.” The long answer is “Yes,” with a “but…” Let us
have a look at the Massachusetts General Law that deals with
perjury. It is found in Chapter 268, Section 1, and is titled,
appropriately enough, Perjury. “Whoever, being
lawfully required to depose the truth in a judicial proceeding …
willfully swears or affirms falsely in a matter material to the
issue or point in question … shall be guilty of perjury.”
Charity Dance at 
POLL RESULTS