Friday, May 18, 2012
Bostik and the federal safety officials have settled on $600,000 in fines for the explosion that rocked the Middleton adhesives plant in 2011.
Federal safety officials announced Thursday they had reached a settlement with Bostik for $600,000 in fines for the explosion that rocked the Middleton adhesives plant in March 2011 and injured four workers. The Boston Road plant is located near the North Reading/Middleton line and right near the town lines with Lynnfield and Peabody. The Sunday evening explosion rocked nearby houses and was heard and felt across the North Shore. Bostik was originally fined last fall for $917,000 after a six-month investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration found numerous safety violations, but that fine has now been reduced. OSHA cited Bostik for violations of federal safety requirements and procedures employers must follow to "…
Burlington Town Meeting members voted 93 to 7 to approve the proposed Tax Incentive Finance deal that would open the way for Keurig to leave Reading.
The relocation of Keurig's headquarters from Reading to Burlington took a big step toward becoming a done deal at Burlington Town Meeting Wednesday night. Members voted 93 to 7 to approve the Tax Increment Financing agreement with the town that would save the company an estimated $3,256,352 over 15 years. As reported on Patch, Keurig is looking to find a larger facility for its headquarters. Currently Keurig has a base of operations in Reading and offices in other New England states. Keurig is looking to close the office locations, including the Reading office, and move to a new location. Keurig is considering occupying the Gutierrez-owned building at 63 South Ave., in Burlington, where iRobot used to be located. The company is looking to …
Sen. Bruce Tarr called court's decision “deeply concerning and undermines the effectiveness of a major law that protects our public safety.”
The state Supreme Judicial Court on Thursday removed a portion of a law that targeted drunk driving, known as Melanie’s Law. The court Thursday disallowed the portion of the law that allows the Registry of Motor Vehicles to increase sanctions against those who admit to driving drunk, but whose cases are later dismissed, reported the Boston Globe. The issue is that when lawmakers changed the state’s drunk driving law, they did not change what a “conviction” means. Supreme Judicial Court Justice Margot Botsford wrote in the unanimous decision that the law did not “explicity include cases that are ‘continued without a finding’ in its list of what can be considered drunk driving convictions,” reported the Globe. The court decision did not …
Thursday, May 17, 2012
In addition to the ‘Curb Appeal’ program; design charrette is May 23.
First, a Reading committee set aside $10,000 to improve the “curb appeal” of businesses downtown. Now the town has received a $10,000 grant to help businesses in the same area with their “retail visioning,” which includes presentation and marketing. That area comprises Reading Square, between Woburn and Washington Streets and Haven Street from Main to the train tracks, according to Reading Community Services Director and Town Planner Jean Delios. The grant came from the state Department of Housing and Community Development's Downtown Initiative Program within the past few weeks, Delios told Patch Monday. The town’s Economic Development Committee, which is spearheading both efforts, is “aggressive about going after money,” Delios said. The …
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Did you notice that the flags were at half staff?
Welcome to You Ask... Patch Answers where we answer readers questions. We recently received questions about why the flags were at half staff yesterday. Here's your answer. Flags were at half staff yesterday because Governor Deval Patrick ordered American and Commonwealth Flags lowered to half-staff from sunrise to sunset in honor of Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week. According to Patrick, the order applies to town and city halls, other state-owned or state-controlled buildings and all state military installations.
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Heidi Griffin's last day was May 4.
Community Planning Administrator Heidi Griffin resigned earlier this month. Her last day was May 4. Town Administrator Greg Balukonis said, "I am confirming Ms. Griffin submitted her voluntary resignation that was effective on May 4, 2012. She left for personal reasons." Griffin confirmed that she left for personal reasons, and said it was a hard decision to make. She enjoyed working for the planning commission, she said. They are "very fair and forward-thinking." “I miss them already,” she said of the commission. “That was the hardest part of leaving, saying goodbye to them and my assistant Debbie Savarese.” When Griffin first started as the community planning administrator, the department just looked at permitting, however, she chose to …
Monday, May 14, 2012
Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone's office provided the MedReturn Drug Collection Unit.
Almost everyone has them—old, unused prescription drugs in their bathroom medicine cabinet. What do you do with them? Starting next week, you can bring them to the police station. Middlesex County District Attorney Gerry Leone unveiled the MedReturn Drug Collection Unit program Friday morning. Through the program, which extends out to 29 county communities, residents will be able to dispose of prescription drugs in a free, safe and easy manner through large green collection boxes found at the police station. “Prescription drug abuse is the fastest growing problem in our communities,” said Leone Friday. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that 2.4 million Americans abused prescription drugs for the first time in 2011—one-third of …
Likelihood of using Ipswich water ‘zero,’ town manager says.
Should the town permanently abandon and cap the wells that used to draw water from the Ipswich River Basin before Reading joined the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) for its water and razed its water treatment plant? The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection is “interested in making permanent the inability of Reading to withdraw water from our former well fields in the future and, therefore, to maintain, at the very least, the current health of the river,” according to a memo from Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner to the Board of Selectmen. Beyond the wells, the town would have to permanently relinquish its right to draw water from the river basin. Two members of the state agency spoke with the selectmen last …
Friday, May 11, 2012
Conservation Commission says length reduced by 33 percent.
Ever had to get a local OK to do work near a wetland? The Conservation Commission is working to simplify and streamline the town’s wetland protection regulations. The selectmen had directed the commission to eliminate the local wetland bylaw and defer to the Commonwealth’s, Selectman James Bonazoli said Tuesday at the selectmen’s meeting. Reading doesn’t need its own bylaw, he said. “We think we have enough coverage from the state.” The selectmen asked the Conservation Commission to use the state regulations and then add back applicable local ones, Bonazoli said after Tuesday’s presentation by the chairman and vice chairman of the town’s Conservation Commission. But if you abrogate the local bylaw, decisions are made on an ad hoc basis, …
The Board of Selectmen reorganized Thursday night.
Sean Delaney is the new chairman of the North Reading Board of Seletmen after a reorganization Thursday night. Bob Mauceri, the former chairman, will be the new vice chairman and Joe Foti will be the new clerk. Mauceri made the motion for Delaney to be the new chairman. Having experience as the vice chairman, Delaney is ready for the position, he said. Delaney praised Mauceri and said the outgoing chairman has done a tremendous job. Mauceri has put a large amount of time and energy into the board, Delaney said. He went on to say that if he can do half as well as Mauceri, the board will be okay. "I have big shoes to fill," Delaney said of his new position. He will look to Mauceri to mentor him and is happy that Mauceri will be the vice …
pomeroy41144
12:06 pm on Friday, May 18, 2012
I'm glad to see that the Burlington BOS is doing something to lure business into their town. Has Reading done anything like that ? Not that I am aware of. Soon a few hundred employees will be buying their lunches in Burlington instead of Reading. Meal tax revenue out the window. Maybe the water and sewer rates can be increased more to make up the shortfall. Last business leaving Reading please … more ›