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Wed Jul 01, 2009 at 08:58:08 AM EDT
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(If you are interested, you can see for yourself the size of the barrels at Town Hall. - promoted by Brian)
The Dedham Times reported last week that the Town is going to a new trash pickup system. Residents will receive a 96 gallon recycle barrel and a 64 gallon trash barrel this fall. Current trash containers will no longer be used - they will enter the trash stream.
I Googled trash barrels and found that a 96 gallon recycle barrel is 35" by 27" by 46" and the 64 gallon trash container is 23" by 29" by 41". That should preclude sending the old couch to the land fill.
I suspect that the cost savings to taxpayers will be swamped by the costs of removing trash that cannot be stuffed into that generous 64 gallon container. We may see piles of household items on the kerbside when someone moves out of Town. Condon and Paul Parks may be the final destination of broken chairs and desks. That should eliminate up-front savings to the Town. Of course, Craigslist may relieve some of the pressure.
Chances are that we we can take our large unwanted items to the transfer station. Sounds like fun. People with smart cars will have to tie that unwanted book case on the roof.
One solution might be for a "bulky trash" pickup once every month. Perhaps, a trash truck with a ground crew could pick up large items at designated times and remove of items previously collected by the current vendor. In time, we may find that the old system was more cost effective and convenient for residents.
Soon, all will be revealed ... or not.
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Mon Jun 29, 2009 at 20:34:01 PM EDT
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(Parks and Rec handles all the parks - places like Memorial and Condon - as well as the fields at the elementary schools. - promoted by Brian)
I am hoping that someone could tell me the exact responsibilities of the Parks Dept., specific to the Ball fields in town. I have noticed nice mowing at Rustcraft, but the infields remain untouched.
If taking care of this part of the field is NOT part of the Parks Departments job responsibilities, then I apologize. However, if it is not Parks....then who's is it??? Mother Nature has been rough on us for sure these past few weeks, and has caused a lot of water build up on the fields all over town. So again I ask...who is responsible for the maintenance of the infields? It appears to me, that the Parks Dept, or those responsible have left the water clearing up to harried coaches and parents who just want to see their kids play.
If anyone has information, I would greatly appreciate it.
I am looking only for answers..NOT attitude. 'Responsible' replies are appreciated.
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Sun Jun 28, 2009 at 21:09:05 PM EDT
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(I think it might be a Board of Health regulation. - promoted by Brian)
As I drive around town, I notice some yards that have pools have a fence. Whereas, others don't. We have a fence around our yard and I keep it up because of our pool.
I was just wondering if there is any type of bylaw that requires a fence to be up if you have a pool. Or is it something that most of us do out of our concern for safety.
Can anybody answer this bit of tidbit for me?
Thanks.
Gloria
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Sun Jun 28, 2009 at 17:13:37 PM EDT
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(Way to go, girls! - promoted by Brian)
The Dedham Girls U-14 team defeated Wilmington this morning (4-0) and followed that win with a victory over Whitman (2-0) to claim Dedham's second consecutive Division 2 State Title at the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions (MTOC).
Video highlights to follow in later edits to this diary, but for now here are a couple of photos:
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Mon Jun 22, 2009 at 21:17:19 PM EDT
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(I'm told that one of the Legacy Place engineers has a bet a certain lawyer in town that once the state recalibrates the traffic lights on Rt 1 that you will be able to drive from West Roxbury to Westwood without hitting a red light. I'll believe that when I see it, but in the mean time I'm crossing my fingers. - promoted by Brian)
I'm actually looking forward to Legacy Place opening up. But the traffic situation at the intersection of Rte 1 & Elm Street has me very, very nervous. Every time I've been there in the few days, the cars headed north on Rte 1 jam the intersection. This isn't just at rush hour, I saw it tonight at 7:30 p.m. I was trying to turn left to get to Rustcraft Road and had to wait an extra cycle because of cars blocking the way.
Adding a Whole Foods, several enormous restaurants and a 15 screen theater will bring hundreds of extra cars.
What can be done, short of permanently stationing a police detail? Maybe adjust the timing of the light cycles be fixed? I'm no civil engineer but even I can tell this isn't going to work the way it's set up now.
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Sun Jun 21, 2009 at 14:27:12 PM EDT
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(I believe the library has summer hours, but I'm not sure if they have gone into effect yet. - promoted by Brian)
Just drove to main library.. hours on website are 1-5-- I almost always go on sundays -- (used to be sat but now it is closed then)
Got there to find it closed.. the hours on the little sign in the door now list it closed for sundays. This means the main branch is not open at all on weekends. If necessary for budget reasons I guess we have to accept it.. but I do not see why it can not be accurate on the website!! Also wish there was some sort of creative scheduling that would allow it open at least one weekend day.
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Sun Jun 21, 2009 at 11:19:19 AM EDT
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(Congratulations to all the girls. - promoted by Brian)
For the second consecutive year, the Dedham U14 girls soccer team has won the BAYS (Boston Area Youth Soccer) Division 2 championship and will represent BAYS at the Massachusetts Tournament of Champions (MTOC), held June 26-28 at Citizens Bank Progin Park in Lancaster. Last year's team went on to win the state Division 2 championship, and this year's team looks forward to defending that title.
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Sat Jun 20, 2009 at 12:39:49 PM EDT
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(I don't have a copy of the article in front of me, but I can assure you that Andy Lawlor has good answers for each of these questions - I know because I've asked them. For the record, though, the state has determined that the Avery's physical plant is among the absolute worst in the state, and thus is placed at the top of the list to be replaced. If we pass by this opportunity we could be placed at the bottom. There is money set aside now from the state, but anyone want to place bets at how fast that dries up for all the economic reasons Derry states? - promoted by Brian)
I read with consternation the article, "Committee to Propose New Avery School" in the May 29, 2009 issue of the Dedham Times and the first thought I had after reading this article was "Not Again".
Not the infamous scare tactics again. Mr. Lawlor demonstrates his expertise in verbalizing these tactics by stating "if the town waited until economy improved it was probable the cost of the building would increase", or "they (the contractors) would have other jobs lined up and might not offer as low a bid" or "cost for a special election in April would be $16,000... and by delaying (the special election) until spring the bid cost of the project would be considerably more that $16,000".
Mr. Lawlor's suggestion that the debt exclusion override take place in January, if the Town Meeting approved the article in November, is amusing. Of course, have the override vote in January, when it is the coldest with possible snow and ice so the voter turn out would be low and our seniors, who would be substantially affected by yet another override, would not be able to get out and vote
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Fri Jun 19, 2009 at 21:44:09 PM EDT
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(At their meeting on May 27, 2009 the School Committee was told that there was a problem with the leases and that they would have a copy to sign at the next meeting. I don't have in my notes what the problem was, but I seem to remember it being a hold up on the VNA's part. The Committee didn't vote on it at their meeting of June 10th. - promoted by Brian)
I have just heard that the VNA daycare in dedham called KIDS PLACE is closing.They have been there for over twenty five years and helped raise many of dedhams youth.The staff was imformed at a meeting last night and had no idea....they were floored.the parents were informed this am and now there are many parents in a scramble to find daycare for there children.i am not sure how but somewhere in the story comes the town of dedham wanting their building and raising there rent to an outrages amount to force them out......they are a non profit daycare and myself and anyone i have talked to agrees it is the best quality and lest expensive daycare around...does anyone have any more info because i would love to help but i dont know where to begin
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Thu Jun 18, 2009 at 20:40:59 PM EDT
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(Potholes last a lot longer than road construction. - promoted by Brian)
I live in the Manor and commute to Boston. Lately I have been getting irritated with my commute through East Dedham Square. It has been slowed due to what I thought was unnecessary road work. I have to admit, however, I am thoroughly pleased with the way the work has turned out. The road looks great and it was well worth my frustration.
Kudos to the DPW.
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Wed Jun 17, 2009 at 12:31:58 PM EDT
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Since the story about the Middle School tutors broke here on the blog I've been saying that the School Department is handling this whole situation awfully from a public relations perspective. It even has a parent of young children saying they are getting scared away from sending those kids to the Dedham schools when they are old enough. On this point I'd like to say that the whole system shouldn't be judged by this one incident. I've got high opinions of just about all the teachers, administrators, and programs that I know well enough to be able to speak of somewhat intelligently. I've found this experience to be the exception, not the rule.
I've also said that the Superintendent has been breaking every PR rule there is. I don't know who is giving her media advice, but it's terrible. I'd now like to retract that statement. There's one she seems to be following: If there is going to be bad news, get it out there at a time when no one is paying attention. You may remember that last year then-Chairman Tracy Driscoll called for a special meeting of the School Committee on a date when the rest of the town would be reorganizing for Town Meeting. This happened because she wanted an unprecedented second term as chair, and the vote wasn't going to be unanimous. Better for that embarrassment to happen with as few eyeballs on you as possible.
To get back to the current situation, I think it is pretty clear June is attempting to drag this out until after school is out. Consider the following. On June 4th I made another public records request regarding more information about the tutors. On June 8th I sent a second letter requesting information about Tim Ruggere at the Middle School. She replied to both on June 11th. However, only the letter about Tim got mailed on the 11th. The first letter, despite the lack of almost any information in it whatsoever, was postmarked on the 15th. That means it was mailed 11 days after I made the request, even though the law says they must respond within 10. It also means they sat on the letter on Thursday and Friday, waited the weekend, and then mailed it on Monday.
In my letter of the 4th I asked for clarifications on a number of things I found to be either confusing, vague, or just downright inaccurate. For example, she told me people were at one school when they were actually at another, she gave me numbers that did not add up to what she said they did, and she in some cases she just plain did not give me all the information I requested.
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Tue Jun 16, 2009 at 22:27:22 PM EDT
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(Let them know what you think. - promoted by Brian)
Clear Channel/MBTA billboard case is coming before The MassHighway's Outdoor Advertising Board this Thursday to lobby for billboards along Rte 128 - bordering Dedham/Westwood.
While these billboards will generate money for the state, according to The Boston Globe (March 24, 2009), approximately 60% of the revenue goes right to Clear Channel. And we get monster billboards to stare at - distracting, ugly, reducing property values of near-by homes, etc.
The meeting for the hearing was scheduled during the work day in the middle of the week, which may be challenging for folks to attend, but here is the information:
Thursday, June 18, 2009
11 AM
Conference Room 1 2nd floor of the Transportation Building,
10 Park Plaza
Boston MA.
If you can attend, it would be a great.
If you can't make the meeting, it would help to do TWO things:
1) Email (directions below)
2) Spread the word via your network
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Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 15:33:24 PM EDT
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(The Town isn't paying for this sidewalk. I believe it is Legacy Place who is picking up the tab, but it could also be one of the nearby apartment complexes. - promoted by Brian)
Rustcraft road, the new sidewalk to nowhere is being poured today and what a surprise to see it's concrete..not the dreaded asphalt. How do you justify the expense for a concrete stretch of side walk that will be used maybe 4 months out of the year and ends at the ball park, and yet on a busy stretch such as Sprague st, thats used everyday they get asphalt and no granite curbing.Is there a ' concrete lottery'?
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Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 13:55:45 PM EDT
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(Opening day will be here soon. - promoted by Brian)
I'm curious to know if there are any documents online that describe what the street layout will be after Legacy Place is done. I'm particularly interested in the pedestrian access between Legacy Place, CVS and Walgreens and I wonder if the terrible intersection of Elm/Washington/Highland will be improved in connection with this project and the interminable Washington Street bridge replacement.
I notice Elm is being widened to accommodate an additional lane from Route 1...and now there is construction at the 3 1/2-way light at Washington/Elm/Highland...I hope this project provides an opportunity to deal with many of the problems in these areas.
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Wed Jun 10, 2009 at 23:16:24 PM EDT
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Ask any of my old teachers and they will tell you that I rarely did my homework. Fortunately, that is a bad habit I rid myself of. Now if I am going to do something I will dive headlong into it until I know it backwards and forwards. Since the whole issue about the reassignment of teachers has appeared on the blog, I have researched School Committee policies and can now practically recite all 12 chapters of them.
That knowledge came in handy tonight when I spoke at the School Committee meeting. As I've reported here before, Superintendent Doe has refused to give me an interview even though a School Committee policy states that all media representatives are to be given equal access to information. When June will give two other newspapers interviews, one at least lasting the better part of an hour, but charges me over $300 for documents and refuses to speak to me, I hardly call that equal access.
On two occasions I've e-mailed the School Committee reminding them of this policy, but never got a response back from any of them. Tonight I reminded them of that again and asked when I could schedule an interview with June. I wasn't given an answer, and was told that I could not directly question the Superintendent at a meeting. So, I tried asking the School Committee themselves a question, but I had no luck there either. It didn't matter how many of their policies I read to them showing that they had to, they simply were not going to talk to me.
In fact, at that point Margaret Connolly tried to take over the meeting and move on to the next agenda item, completely ignoring the chairman sitting next to her. (I would tell you what she got in my face to say to me before the meeting, but it's not fit to print in a family blog.) I've requested to be placed on the next School Committee agenda.
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