Westport
in Brief!
EverythingWestport.com
Friday, September 16, 2011
Quick
Article Index . . .
Westport
voters to town - just say no.
Massachusetts’ SouthCoast Expanding as a Leading Life Sciences Region in
the State.
Westport's
fork in the road is back!
|
Westport voters to town - just say no. EverythingWestport.com Tuesday, September 13, 2011 Two
debt exclusion articles failed by stunning margins with a better than
expected turnout for a special election. In a
resounding statement for fiscal restraint, Westport voters turned back by a
margin of 3 to 1 two ballot questions totaling $1.4 million dollars in
override spending for school parking lot repaving and the purchase of
much-needed highway equipment. 2126
registered voters out of 11,601 turned out to vote (18.33%), and results for all
five precincts mirrored the outcome of total votes cast (see chart
below). Question
1 authorizing up to $900,000 for highway vehicles and equipment was defeated
1556 to 564 (64%) and question 2 granting up to $500,000 in lot repaving and
lighting equipment for Westport High School went down 1653 to 468 (72%). Voters
appeared to have no appetite for more spending, a message echoed in a recent
Westport Taxpayers Association letter that was mailed to all Westport
households. A
swirl of controversy surrounded the highway department article and probably
clouded the question, and voters flatly rejected repaving a parking lot when
even the school department balked at the question because of the much larger
PCB problem at the Middle School. The
national outlook on our faltering economy was a troubling backdrop for voters
as they went to the polls Tuesday. At
more than $3 a vote this was "an expensive election," Town Clerk
Marlene Samson said. Click
here to review the two ballot questions. PDF After two false starts, Westport voters finally had their say
today on two debt exclusion questions totaling $1.4 million. The
special election originally postponed from August 9th was further postponed until August 23rd, then finally set for
September 13th. Already
carrying close to $11 million (including the new fire station) in debt
exclusion, taxpayers decided the value of a new high school parking lot and
new highway department vehicles and equipment was just not there when faced
with the probability of an additional $2.18 million or more in debt exclusion
lurking this fall to pay for the Middle School PCB remediation efforts. Currently
that effort is being funded from the school's budget, money they can hardly
afford to spend in these tight times. The
school committee had put forth an additional two articles totaling $1.1
million to address the PCB problem, but Chairwoman Michelle Duarte passed
over both articles in the August 9th special town meeting when advised by
town counsel and the Town Moderator that the amount
could not be substantively changed when Duarte wanted to increase the dollar
total to $2 million. Town
voters recently approved a $2.5 million "green" school window/roof
improvement project, and during implementation school officials learned of
the PCB problem. The
expected override question this fall could be more, making it the second
largest school override in Westport's history. Second largest override in town's history. Two
decades ago town voters approved a $3+ million override for school funding,
making the "green" vote the second largest school override in
Westport's history. The expected
debt exclusion article on cleaning up the mess at the Middle school has the
potential to eclipse both previous records for school department spending, at
a time when taxpayers can hardly afford new taxes. It's funny what a difference a few months
makes! Just
last March Westport voters decide overwhelmingly to pass the multi-million
dollar "green" override. In a
historically low turnout, only 619 town voters, just 5.3 percent of the
town's electorate, said yes and passed the proposition 2 1/2 override for up
to $2.5 million in "green" school repairs. In a
town not known for its proclivity for tax increases, the bond authorization
was passed with barely a whimper from the electorate, as only a total of 953
ballots were cast, approving the ballot question with a mere 8.1 percent of
the Westport's 11,712 registered voters. 65%
of the vote approved that "green" override. If
voters slaughtered the two ballot questions today, what will happen to the
necessary override to pay for the cleanup of the Middle School PCBs. "What
will happen to that override?" said an alarmed Registrar Liz Collins.
"It will decimate the school department's budget." Westport Precinct Results Precinct
C, the Macomber School, had the largest percentage
turnout with 20.22, Precinct A, the Legion Hall, the least with 16.66%. Precinct A, the Legion Hall, was most against the two
articles, and Precinct C, Macomber School, the
least. Results of special
town election Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Massachusetts’
SouthCoast Expanding as a Leading Life Sciences Region in the
State. EverythingWestport.com Friday, September 16, 2011 Westport's State Senator, Michael Rodrigues,
chaired the organizational committee for this event. Growing
Life Sciences Infrastructure and Key Biotech, Medical Device and Biomanufacturing Companies to be Highlighted in Event
with Governor Patrick and Federal and State Legislators
Life
science executives, area business leaders, site selectors and economic
development officials will convene as part of an event taking place on
Monday, September 19, organized by a collaboration among the SouthCoast’s offices of economic development, the SouthCoast Development Partnership, Senator Michael Rodrigues, MassEcon,
Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, Massachusetts Life Sciences Center,
Massachusetts Office of Trade and Investment and NAI Hunneman
to highlight the unique economic, partnership, and workforce development
assets of the region. The
event will focus on the region’s low business and housing costs, its skilled
workforce, close collaboration with local academic institutions such as UMass
Dartmouth, affordable real estate, tax incentives, and overall quality of
life that the SouthCoast can offer to attract new
life science companies to the greater Fall River and New Bedford region, as
well as highlight the successes, growth and innovation the area and its
businesses have achieved to date. Speakers include:
Governor Deval Patrick
State Senator Michael J. Rodrigues
Robert L. Caret, president of UMass
Jean F. MacCormack, Ph.D., chancellor of UMass
Dartmouth
Joseph A. Cherry, Ph.D., corporate officer and VP of worldwide operations,
C.R. Bard, Inc. and former VP at Johnson & Johnson
Mark Trusheim, founder and president of Co-Bio
Consulting, LLC and former interim president at Massachusetts Biotechnology
Council “The SouthCoast has so much to offer companies looking to
expand. With development of the UMass bioproccesing
facility in the Life Science and Technology Park at Fall River, we are
well-positioned for economic growth and eager to put a spotlight on the
heightened potential of the area for life science companies,” said Senator
Rodrigues, who chaired the organizational committee for this event. “This
event will allow us to connect with companies who could benefit from the rich
educational and workforce development assets of the region, and also
demonstrate the tremendous promise in the fields of biotech and medical
devices to create jobs," Rodrigues said. Life
sciences and medical technology companies interested in learning more about
the SouthCoast and considering the corridor for
their own business and operations can arrange a customized tour of the area
to visit sites and facilities, meet with local business leaders and
executives, gain insight into the role and benefits of the university system,
learn more about incentive programs for businesses, and experience some of
the quality of life benefits the area offers. Quick
Facts: Life Sciences on the SouthCoast
There are currently 25 life sciences and medical technology companies on the SouthCoast employing nearly 3,500 workers.
A strong network of resources for life sciences companies on the SouthCoast includes state-of-the-art business parks; an
incubator network that assists start-up and smaller businesses with research,
technology and development; and higher education institutions that graduate a
pool of more than 15,000 skilled workers annually.
The new SouthCoast Life Science & Technology
Park at Fall River is an expandable 300-acre pad-ready development site which
will also be home to UMass Dartmouth’s Biotech Pilot Manufacturing Facility,
planned to open in Q2 of 2013. Event
Details SouthCoast Life Science Reception Monday,
September 19, 2011, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. UMass Club - 225 Franklin
Street 33rd Floor Boston, MA http://tinyurl.com/SouthCoastLS Westport's fork in the road is back! EverythingWestport.com September
17, 2011
Like
so many other things in life, the wooden fork has a story. Sending
directions to visiting friends and relatives, Tom and Kate Schmitt of
Westport often included the phrase: “when you come to the fork in the road,”
as a part of instructions about which way to turn when one comes to the
intersection of Old Harbor and River Roads. Occasionally Tom and Kate would
wonder aloud about that term’s literal interpretation, and from time to time
imagined how drivers might react if, upon reaching the intersection, they
were to encounter a large fork. >>
Click
here to read more about the "fork's" origins. The
10 foot high wooden sculpture, the creative idea of Tom and Kate Schmitt, is
once again ensconced, now more permanently so, at the intersection of River
and Old Harbor Roads in Westport. "The
fork was heisted a second time by some pranksters last July," Tom
Schmitt (pictured left) said. "Whoever took it later jammed the fork into
a crevice on Elephant Rock. We took a boat out and retrieved it." Schmidt
brought the slightly battered sculpture back home where he patched up and refinished
the damaged areas. "Good
as new," he said. During
a ceremony this past Saturday morning attended by friends and neighbors, the Schmitts re-installed the giant utensil, hopefully for
the last time, in a pit filled with concrete that should challenge even the
most determined of thieves from removing it.
EverythingWestport.com Sunday, September 18, 2011 photos/EverythingWestport.com
They were known for their golden clam fritters and
chowder, said one Tiverton resident, "and it was a significant beginning-of-summer
event when they opened for the season. Cars and people would be lined up and
down the street." The longtime eatery and renowned clam shack hosted the ninth
annual Singing Out Against Hunger concert series over the weekend, and had
the best Friday night ever in the history of the event. Last year, a misguided Tiverton Town Council imposed restrictions
prohibiting use of amplification and forcing performances to end earlier than
the requested time. This year, with the support of a new town council, the
event proceeded as in previous years, people having fun, feeling at home, and
actually hearing the musicians play.
Entertainment was shared between Evelyn’s and Coastal
Roasters just down the street. Above: Tree-oh played in the early evening to a capacity
crowd at Evelyn's. www.evelynsdrivein.com http://www.coastalroasters.com
Above: The golden sunshine
of an early evening sunset reflecting off Nanaquaket Pond was the
perfect backdrop to an evening of laid back entertainment and enjoying the
best of what Evelyn's has to offer. © 2011 Community Events of Westport. All rights
reserved. EverythingWestport.com |
