Taxes

by: robert

Wed Jul 02, 2008 at 23:30:04 PM EDT

Increased (press coverage of) drug use

by: Brian

Wed Jul 02, 2008 at 10:14:45 AM EDT

In April there was the front page story in the Times about Nick and Tony Vacca, the brothers who were dealing drugs out of their bedroom window in their parents' East Dedham home.  They are due back in court the middle of this month.  Then we had a Dedhamite picked up in West Roxbury for dealing drugs.

Last week there was a bizarre story about a Manor man who tried to get a 14 year old to beat him up and then gave him drugs.  Yesterday we read of the the Parks and Rec employee who was busted with large amounts of steroids, coke and peyote in his house.  Today the Transcript is running a Patriot Ledger story about the arrest of a stupid, drunk criminal that led to the arrest of a major cocaine distributor here in Dedham.  

Just do it already

by: Brian

Tue Jul 01, 2008 at 10:12:34 AM EDT

Posted to the Town's website was a notice for a meeting of the School Building/ Rehabilitation Committee last night.  I've signed up for e-mail notifications so I know when the site is updated, and it worked flawlessly.  On Sunday I got an e-mail from the Town alerting me to all the meetings being held this week.  All of them posted to the website, that is.  The e-mail only mentioned the SBRC meeting; it didn't have anything to say about the FinCom meeting tonight since that still hasn't found its way online yet.

It did tell me about the SBRC meeting however, and I put it on my calendar.  Last night I was in another town working on a project when my laptop beeped with a 30 minute warning.  I double checked online to make sure I had the right day and time and then packed up my belongings.  I got to Town Hall just as the meeting was supposed to begin and went up to the Selectmen's chambers.  No one was there, so I walked back down to the lower conference room.  No one there either.

Perplexed, I went back up to the Town Clerk's office to make sure I had the right night.  Since I got the information off the Town's website I assumed it was wrong and wanted to check the original paper notice.  I had the correct time, place and date, but the meeting had been canceled.  Needless to say, I was not pleased.

Senior Center - Phase 2

by: tomaz

Mon Jun 30, 2008 at 17:30:54 PM EDT

"There are ... some people ... short sighted enough .. to not ...understand ... the needs of ... seniors...".

Senior Center vote fails

by: Brian

Sat Jun 28, 2008 at 21:18:43 PM EDT

The final tally shows a town wide vote of 55.1% against, and 44.9% for, a difference of 356 votes.  It lost each precinct save for Precinct One, and it won there by only 12 votes.  The biggest loss in terms of sheer votes came from Precinct Four, which had the second most voters today (narrowly falling behind Seven).  A total of 113 more people voted no than yes there.  As a percentage, Precinct Five was the toughest as a full 60% of Manorites said no.  The closest precinct was Two where 25 more people, a mere 5% of voters, said no.  

This is, I believe, the first time a debt exclusion has ever failed in Dedham, and I believe it had more to do with the economy than the proposal.  Timing is everything, and when gas is over $4 a gallon and we are facing a worsening recession I believe many people, seniors included, simply could not afford the tax increase.  

An override recently failed in Newton, and on that city's blog Sean wrote a post entitled "Putting our money where our vote was."  In it he says that he and his wife voted for the override, but since it failed he wrote:

How do you reply to the folks who say, "If you support the override, why don't you just send the city a check"?

My wife, Cindy, and I are saying, "Okay."

We're going to send a check for $450, a little more than we would have been obliged to pay had the override passed, to Bowen School. ...

We encourage other Yes supporters to do the same, whether to a school, the library, or other affected institution.

Even though I am a renter, first thing on Monday I will be writing a check for what my portion of the tax increase would be.  I encourage everyone else, particularly those who voted yes, to do the same if you can afford it.  Despite my criticism of the process that led up to today's vote, I truly believe that a senior center would be beneficial to our most fragile and needy residents.  I hope in a few years the proponents come back with a new plan and during better economic times.

Private fundraising, and spending, for the senior center

by: Brian

Fri Jun 27, 2008 at 07:45:00 AM EDT

That number represents how much the Committee to Support the Senior Center Ballot Question has spent as of last Friday.  They raised $5,300 in total, leaving just under $1,800 for the final 8 days of the low key campaign that will end tomorrow.  None of the names on the report are all that surprising and many are the usual suspects.  What was surprising were some of the amounts.

State law limits contributions to individuals running for office to $500.  For ballot questions, however, there is no limit.  If Bill Gates was so inclined he could spend his entire fortune trying to convince you to vote one way or the other.  Most of the contributions were in the $100 range, but former Chair of the Chairs Margo Pyle donated $1,000 to the effort.  Precinct One rival Shaw McDermott chipped in $500, as did Cecilia Butler and Ladd Thorne.  Mr. Thorne, you will remember, was cleverly able to make a persuasive speech in the form of a parliamentary inquiry at Town Meeting before Moderator Dan Driscoll shut him down.

New principal at the High School. New students at Avery?

by: Brian

Thu Jun 26, 2008 at 08:15:00 AM EDT

I never had many run ins with him while at DHS, but among students he was pretty universally disliked.  We never would have voted to invite him to be our commencement speaker.  The class of 2008 did ask their vice principal, one of them anyway, to speak at their graduation exercises.  I wasn't there to hear Jake Santamaria's speech, but it must have been quite an honor to be asked to speak at his youngest child's graduation.

I'm sure it was a greater honor to be named the new principal of Dedham High School at the School Committee Meeting last night.  Having grown up down the street from him I remember him as a teacher there.  (Having watched him grow up my grandfather still talks about what a great player he was on the little league team my grandfather coached.)  By the time I got to the high school he was the athletic director, and as an upperclassman he was made the second vice principal when the 8th grade moved across Mt. Vernon Street.  In every one of those roles he was well respected, and I think that was made abundantly clear by the invitation he received from the graduating senior class and the appointment he received from the superintendent.  

I hope and expect to see some great things from him at the high school.  I think this is made all the more important since the high school is widely considered to be the weak link in the school system.  We need a strong leader there to turn the place around.

Informing my Senior Center vote

by: Dave25

Wed Jun 25, 2008 at 22:47:48 PM EDT

The "Pros" (senior center supporters) are definitely more organized, and appear to be making an overwhelmingly emotional appeal, while the "Cons" overwhelmingly cite costs and what seems to be mistrust of those costs, other more pressing priorities, or the process/timing in general.

The "Pros" emotional appeal could be summed up IMO around, pending numbers/need of the aging Baby Boomer generation and that, "the seniors deserve a Center (by and large) because of how much they've done for our community", etc.

Those questions are coming - I promise.  

A buzz-y weekend of olde tyme elections ahead

by: Brian

Wed Jun 25, 2008 at 08:28:39 AM EDT

Bee there...: It begins Friday night with a free Friday flick at the Community House.  The sponsors can't tell you the name, but the buzz around town seems to be that Bee Movie will be playing.  It was written and produced by Jerry Seinfeld and he lends his voice to the main character as well.  The family friendly animated movie is sponsored by the Community House, the Public Library and Donahue Real Estate.  

...at the Faire...:  This weekend also marks the first big event of the Mother Brook Community Group.  They are sponsoring an Olde Tyme Faire at Condon Park from noon to 3pm Saturday.  There will be lots of games and activities for the kids, as well as shows of animals by the MSPCA and hot rods from Tymes Past.  For more information, check out their new website.

...but most importantly...: Before you head down to frolic on the banks of Mother Brook, be sure you head to the ballot box first.  Polls will be open from 7am to 8pm so you can weigh in on whether or not we should borrow up to $8.6 million to build a senior center.  There has been a great discussion about the election going on in another diary, so if you haven't made up your mind yet there is your chance to read all the arguments.  If you are going away this weekend, you can vote over the counter at the Town Clerk's office between now and then.  They are open late tonight until 7pm.

Shame on Us

by: cavolg

Sun Jun 22, 2008 at 12:45:21 PM EDT

Here are my thoughts and feelings alone.

For the longest time, I was strongly against the senior center. To me the location is horrid and I can not afford to pay anymore in taxes. Gosh with the constant rise in everything but our paychecks, it becomes a matter of survival.

I am one of the lucky ones who have strong family ties and know that my family will be there for me in the years to come just like they have always been. So why should I pay more in taxes for something that I won't ever use?

After much thinking and soul searching this is what I have decided.

How we vote will impact many lives for many years to come. If we don't have a senior center now, will we ever?

The biggest reason why people want to vote against it seems to be money. No one wants to pay more in taxes. That is a very valid reason.

But think about this, how many of you go each day to Dunkin or Starbucks for your coffee or daily treat? Add that up each month. Comes to a nice sum doesn't it?

Or what about that vacation you are in the middle of planning? How many of you go away not just for a week or two but for the whole summer?Adds up to a nice chunk of money doesn't it? Guess money is no longer a problem.

I don't begrudge anyone any of these things. We all work hard and we all deserve a place to unwind. Whether it is the beach, the casino, or the hotel's pool. Just as we deserve a place to escape to so does the seniors.

Please vote yes for the senior center. Let us show the seniors how much we care for them. Otherwise, shame on us.

An Ongoing Problem

by: Ryan

Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 16:38:10 PM EDT

Dedham Farmer's Market

by: Eric

Thu Jun 19, 2008 at 10:13:49 AM EDT

Beginning July 9 from 1 p.m. until 6 p.m., several local farms and Big Sky Bread, a Newton bakery, will sell their goods at a farmers market that will run through October.

With the support of Dedham Square Circle, organizer Louise Reohr has lined up vendors, educational demonstrations, music, dancing and other activities to draw residents to what she hopes will be an annual market.

The local Farms and Bakery involved are:

• C.N. Smith Farm - East Bridgewater
  
• The Neighborhood Farm - Needham
  
• Freitas Farm - Middleborough
  
• Big Sky Breads - Newton

On opening day, July 9th there will be:

• Ribbon cutting with Dedham Town Selectmen and other special guests.
  
• Composting demonstration featuring live worms and compost bins for sale.
  
• Irish step dancing by the Hanson Keohane Irish Dance School of West Roxbury.

UPDATE: To remove one farm that will not be taking part

Senior Center Open Thread

by: Brian

Wed Jun 18, 2008 at 07:34:59 AM EDT

Have at it.

Tough day for police on Saturday. Are there tough days ahead for the Transcript?

by: Brian

Mon Jun 16, 2008 at 11:56:12 AM EDT

At this point the Police Department color guard was standing in front of the school.  All of a sudden one of the two motorcycles preceding them took off down the street and turned right onto Mt. Vernon Street.  A minute later the parade began again, but then stopped with the Police directly in front of us.  You could clearly see that something was weighing heavy on Chief Wier's mind, and he didn't hear my grandfather the first few times he called out to him.  Finally he came over to say hello, and I asked him about the motorcycle.

He told me that a man in East Dedham had barricaded himself in his house and our boys in blue were on the scene.  I figured that since they  pulled a motorcycle out of the parade to respond to the situation that there was more to the story, but it wasn't the time or place to ask any more questions.  Just how much more there was to the story was revealed to me as a rumor at the end of the parade, and confirmed in the papers yesterday.  The man in question charged police with a knife and he was shot and killed by an officer.

Dedham by the Numbers

by: Eric

Fri Jun 13, 2008 at 20:04:09 PM EDT