April 1st

Hope everyone who celebrated Easter today had a nice one. Tomorrow is April 1st -The countdown to the elections is on. Woo hoo here we go. Jerry hold on to your hat. and just in case anyone needs a reminder of what Jerry S did to to this town here's a reminder.  

Bill S.623 188th (Current)

An Act relative to request an investigation by the attorney general into the following incidents in the town of Templeton

By Mr. Brewer, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 623) of Stephen M. Brewer and Denise Andrews (by vote of the town) for legislation to request an investigation by the attornery general into the following incidents in the town of Templeton. The Judiciary. [Local Approval Received.]

Sponsors:	Stephen M. Brewer
Status:	Referred to Joint Committee on the Judiciary

Notwithstanding any general or special law or rule or regulation to the contrary, the citizens of the Town of Templeton hereby request an investigation by the Attorney General into the following incidents:

An investigation into the activities of the Municipal Building Committee to include all transactions regarding the purchase of the 252 Baldwinville Road property and the USDA loan application process.

An investigation into the procedures and activities to allow the settlement and return of a gift of $369,681.40 to Casella Waste Systems on November 13, 2008.

An investigation into the activities of the Templeton Board of Selectmen and the Templeton Municipal Light Department to enact Chapter 93 Acts of 2000.

An investigation into the activities and actions of legal counsel, Kopelman & Paige, regarding case 02-2424C heard before Judge Cornetta of Worcester Superior Court as well as the settlement of the Templeton Waste Water Treatment plant lawsuit and the Writs of Attachment.

Thanks for reading Pauly

PS Always remember "Obstruction of Justice" and Transparency in Government" 

More information is here

This Week

Upcoming Agenda for the Monty Tech Financial Planning Subcommittee 4/1/13 Meeting Agenda for the Sewer Commissioners 4/1/13 Meeting Agenda for the Advisory Board 4/2/13 Meeting Agenda for the Cemetery and Parks 4/2/13 Meeting Agenda for the Personnel Board 4/2/13 Meeting Agenda for the Planning Board 4/2/13 Meeting Agenda for the Monty Tech School Committee 4/3/13 Meeting Agenda for the Cable Commission 4/4/13 Meeting Agenda for the Advisory Board 4/9/13 Meeting Agenda for the Historical Commission 4/23/13 Meeting

Public Hearing Notices Upcoming Agenda for the Planning Board 4/2/13 Public Hearing Agenda for the Tree Removal 4/3/13 Public Hearing Agenda for the Board of Health 4/4/13 Public Hearing Agenda for the Planning Board 4/9/13 Public Hearing

Fwd: Staples Meeting From Jeff B

• Fwd: Staples Meeting - for the blog‏

jeff (jpb01468@comcast.net)

3/29/13

To: cosentinosalvage@hotmail.com

From:	jpb01468@comcast.netThis sender is in your contact list.
Sent:	Fri 3/29/13 11:19 PM
To:	cosentinosalvage@hotmail.com

To the taxpayers;
Since all e-mail concerning public officials are considered public records with a few exceptions, I thought taxpayers would enjoy seeing how things work and sometimes not so much. What this email does show is that your town coordinator is and has been working for you and please take note of that $7,500.00 figure, just by putting a little time in and doing a little research. Guess that is what happens when one shows up for work at 7:00 AM when the office opens and one stays at least until closing time as in working a full day as you are paid to do.

From the State House via Afganistan

deadline approaches and still no clear message from Beacon Hill except that there may be tax increases and or fees (tax by a different name) looming down the road.

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Subject: FW: CONSTRUCTION SEASON POISED TO START WITHOUT ROAD FUNDING ACCORD

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From: State House News Service
Sent: Thursday, March 28, 2013 2:22:52 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
To: news@statehousenews.com
Subject: CONSTRUCTION SEASON POISED TO START WITHOUT ROAD FUNDING ACCORD

CONSTRUCTION SEASON POISED TO START WITHOUT ROAD FUNDING ACCORD

By Michael Norton
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MARCH 28, 2013……State law calls for cities and towns to be formally notified of state aid for local road and bridge repairs on April 1 of each year, a deadline intended to facilitate construction during the warmer months.

As promised

Here is the entire FY2013 Recap Sheet

Fact - Law - Transparency 

in Templeton

Pauly

NEXT WEEKS MEETINGS

Upcoming
Agenda for the Monty Tech Financial Planning Subcommittee 4/1/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Advisory Board 4/2/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Cemetery and Parks 4/2/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Personnel Board 4/2/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech School Committee 4/3/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Cable Commission 4/4/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Advisory Board 4/9/13 Meeting

Looks like the Advisory Board is going to be looking at the Departments Budget requests

Public Hearing Notices

Upcoming
Agenda for the Planning Board 4/2/13 Public Hearing
Agenda for the Tree Removal 4/3/13 Public Hearing
Agenda for the Board of Health 4/4/13 Public Hearing
Agenda for the Planning Board 4/9/13 Public Hearing

The Gardner new gets it wrong again

Again TGN gets it wrong the tax rate is 14.12

and the Tax rate went down because the Senior Center was paid last year.

Rate set, tax bills being sent in Templeton 2 quarters' payment being sought as a result of delay in calculation

Kerry O'Brien News Staff Writer TEMPLETON — Tax bills for January through June are being sent out this week, as the town’s rate has been set at $14.16 per $1,000 of assessed property value.

March 25, 2013 BOS Meeting…the movie

Templeton BOS meeting March 25, 2013…the movie

The agenda for this meeting was very short. There was fairly large, well-behaved audience. It was good to see most of the candidates for BOS at the meeting.

The two members of the Sewer Commission were present to discuss the rate study, which is not complete. Other discussion came up about the metering system and bar rack which are still on-going projects. Other discussion took place regarding some prior issues with the sewer department mentioned in the audit reports. A meeting will take place to address these issues to look for a resolution.

tax rate set

In the interest of open government here is the Tax Recap sheet that was just approved. This is from the DOR website. Tax bills are being sent, Tax Rate is 14.12 I will get the additional sheets that the DOR doesn't post from the Accountant so I can post them.

Transparency in Government!

Pauly

VOTE VOTE VOTE

Well, 3 selectmen have just shown the voters and taxpayers who they support, and it sure as hell ain't the voters. Patrick Mullins is going home but he showed his true colors last year during and after the recall vote with his exit from Winchendon. I like how he stated at candidates night that "the taxpayers need to step up" Well it would be nice if he would step up (at least once) and vote to do something for the taxpayers and give them the information they paid for. Chris Stewart is asking for your vote again and he basically just flipped you all off at the BOS meeting on March 25, 2013. Maybe he is conflicted by being a L&W commissioner, after all the light dept pays him a stipend, oops my bad, the ratepayers/taxpayers pick that tab up too. Virginia Wilder, (who wrote on a facebook page during last years recall process "that perhaps Mr. Bennett should make up his own mind")

What is good government?

On March 7, 2013, I posted a blog “Interesting Legal Situation”. Within this blog is a link to an e-mail exchange between Town Counsel, Chris Stewart and myself. The e-mail thread concerns having legal counsel review Citizen petitions. Chris wrote:

From: "stewy5@comcast.net" <stewy5@comcast.net>
Date: March 5, 2013 2:19:59 PM EST
To: Julie Farrell <jfarrell59@gmail.com>
Cc: PDeRensis@aol.com, towncoordinator@templeton1.org, pderensis@dwboston.com Subject: Re: 1156:6

My only concern is that if we spend money for legal to write a citizens petition motion, are we setting a precedent to do this? As Julie stated we have not done so in the past and I feel the citizens do not want us spending town finances this way. Therefore my opinion is we do not start this trend.

Chris

Sent from my Verizon Wireless 4G LTE DROID

My question is, “What is good government?” Why is there one set of rules as a member of the BOS and a very different set of rules for the Light and Water Commissioners?

Templeton BOS Meeting March 18, 2013…the movie

Part 1 March 18, 2013 BOS Meeting

Part 2 March 18, 2013 BOS Meeting

Part 3 March 18, 2013 BOS Meeting

The warrant articles for the ATM were discussed at this meeting so they could be referred to the Advisory Board by March 20^th.

The BOS voted to not pursue the regionalization agreement of Dispatch/Communication with Gardner.

Discussion occurred about the budget for FY 14 and the need to address inconsistencies in departmental budgets. A draft budget should be available this week. The BOS voted to send a letter to MRPC DLTA(local technical assistance) for help in redesigning the East Templeton intersection and for help in drafting a performance contract for east Templeton elementary school.

The warrant for the ATM may be reopened in the near future.

Julie Farrell

TGN Petition targets proposed treatment facility

3/25/2013 6:39:00 AM Petition targets proposed treatment facility Town residents continue to voice concerns over McLean Hospital's proposed project

Mark Haranas News Staff Writer TEMPLETON — Residents along Baldwinville Road are trying to halt a proposed treatment facility from coming to their neighborhood, filing a citizens petition that is likely to be voted on at the May Annual Town Meeting. “This is about the safety of the 30 to 50 kids that live and play near where this treatment facility is looking to move in,” said Dana Quinones, a resident of Sunrise Drive whose property abuts the proposed facility’s site at 676 Baldwinville Road. “There’s a school bus stop right on the corner, Baldwinville (Elementary) School is right down the street ... There’s a licensed day care on this street, and there’s going to be a treatment facility taking care of people with substance problems right in the middle of our neighborhood? It’s concerning everyone around here.”

an another

found a comment that I thought was worth reposting from a July 18th 2012 blog

isteachJuly 18, 2012 at 11:40 AM

Yes, it would appear that this dangerous costly "game of chess" that these nasty (not good) ole boys are playing runs very long & deep! I do not know the town manager of Winchendon but from what I have seen & heard from residents that live there he is no better that our previous "gang" leaders here. So, in my opinion, there must be something more that does not meet the eye for him to let the thieves off so easily. After looking at his HUGE salary & pension (in my opinion, another form, albeit it deemed legal, of theft from the taxpayers)& all the expensive projects & fees he has thrust on that town,

wanted to share this again

hey folks as I was organizing the older blogs (I now have 10 big binders of blogs) I came across this poem that was on the blog back in July. - hmm the thought of blueberries does it make you think of summer or how much J Skelton screwed this town.

Here it is

VW Spotting 1pm Echo Hill Farm

The blueberries are ripe, there was no time to waste.

VW hopped in her car, and sped to Echo Hill with haste.

There was Carol, and Jerry, and all of their treasures,

Selling junk to townspeople, their greatest pleasure!

With a Board meeting Monday, how should she vote? What should she say?

“You know the drill Virginia, we’ll write you a script, it’s easier that way.”

“Please have some berries, they’re fresh and they’re sweet.

They’ll make wonderful kool-aid, our Echo Hill treat!”

So she popped a few berries, and then she ate a few more.

They WERE quite good, even better than those at the country store.

And then Carol smiled, “you still have to pay Virginia, for I do not lend.

These berries are not free, not even for you, my dear friend.”

Meat raffle Friday, March 22

I made it a point to go to the meat raffle for Gilman Waite at the Legion, it's a shame that more people didn't show up. What happened? We won a lot of stuff, I had planned to spend $100 and we did. I guess Gilman Waite is another thing that will go by the wayside, if we don't keep a close watch on that place. Once the wrong people take charge of Gilman Waite it will be all over. Look what happened (and still is) to our town. Tom Miller, Joy Taintor, and Chris Stewart, and a lot of other people, who I'm sorry I don't know their names, were involved and did a good job for the raffle. Does anyone know how many people showed up? Not counting the workers-the general audience. In my opinion, they should have been twice as many ticket buyers, but that's the way it goes. Right?

week of 3/25 meetings

Upcoming
Agenda for the Board of Selectmen 3/25/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech Workforce Subcommittee 3/26/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Templeton Elementary School Building Committee 3/26/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Planning Board 3/26/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech Financial Planning Subcommittee 4/1/13 Meeting


Tree Removal Hearing, Baldwinville Road Reconstruction, 4/3/13
Click Here for Details


Agenda for the Planning Board 4/9/13 Public Hearing

Credibility

Who in their right mind would ignore all the talk on the blog and through the grapevine-if you know what I mean. Do these people think that they are God's gift to all lonely taxpayers? I noticed a couple new names and already it seems like they came from the same batch that we got rid of. By the time candidates night comes we will all know the real candidates. Word passes fast, and we have people on Pauly’s Templeton watch and citizens4 Templeton watching and taking notes. Candidates night is going to be one of the most interesting ones so far in Templeton. I hope Kamaloht keeps the lights low so we can't notice the "red" faces and the shaky hands when I questions are asked. And we are going to video and audio the whole deal. We will witness the mudslingers. Some of the most important questions will be asked and please listen to the answers. The (you know who) will give. I can imagine the look on the candidates faces when a particular question is asked, like Boob Columbus calling me, PHC Sr a liar at a public meeting. When everyone knew he was and still is a liar.

Shedding some light…on the cost of Citizen Petitions

Within a prior blog posting, one of the Anonymous posted a comment inquiring about the cost of the Special Town Meeting (STM) held on March 6, 2013. I responded to that post that the STM had been called for other, very important reasons (rescinding prior flawed votes at the request of DOR so the town can set the tax rate…little details) I believe I gave the impression that the Light and Water citizens petition didn’t cost the town anything. I was wrong!

Yes Paul Q- I, Julie Farrell, have made a mistake. There was a cost for the Light and Water Citizen petition, which recently came to light. So in the interest of open government, in the interest of transparency, here is a link to an invoice for legal expenses incurred by the TMLWP regarding the Citizen Petition. This legal invoice was obtained through a public record request. (It might be helpful, if you print out the invoice. It is quite lengthy).

The law firm of Ferriter Scobbo & Rodophele PC submitted an invoice (Invoice No. 21110 dated March 8, 2013) for an opinion – Town Board of Selectmen power re: Light Comm. A recap of the work performed:

Nicholas J. Scobbo, Jr.           6.00 hours @ 300.00 = 1,800

Amanda LaPorta                     4.65 hours @ 140.00=     651

Valerie A. Moore                      18.85 hours@270.00= 5,089.50

Sherry L. Vaughn                     8.35 hours @ 280.00= 2,338

37.85 hours for a cost of $9,878.50!

If you carefully review the invoice, you will notice a few entries on “Town Charter”. One simple phone call to the town clerk or the BOS office would have answered that stumper. Templeton doesn’t have a charter; Templeton uses Town Meeting Times to run town meetings. (If I had only known, I would have lent them my copy) A couple of interesting entries on page 5 toward the bottom –

“Begin drafting memorandum on governance of Templeton”

“Complete memorandum on governance of Templeton without a charter; incorporate legal research on rescinding special acts”

Leadership?

People are talking about how bad the country is going, with Obama at the helm. Well, I can't do anything about the country going bad, but I am worried about the direction Templeton has gone in the past. Then look at who is running for selectmen. Most people are so busy trying to keep their heads above water, that they are not paying attention to the way their tax money is being spent. And a lot of them are swayed by the ones that have wrecked our town like for instance the special town meeting.

TGN

Looks like TGN got the scoop from the Bolg!  hee-hee-hee

Man charged with assaulting, robbing senior citizen in Templeton

Mark Haranas News Staff Writer GARDNER — Following a two-week investigation, a Winchendon man has been arrested after allegedly breaking into a home, assaulting an elderly man and taking his wallet, which contained two blank checks. James P. Lafreniere, 52, of 226 Front St. was arrested and charged with unarmed robbery of a person over 60 years of age while wearing a mask, assault and battery on a person over 60 years of age with injury, breaking and entering in the nighttime with the intent to commit a felony and misleading a police investigation.

GALA ART SHOW

The Gardner Area League of Artist is having their Spring Art Show this weekend March 22 thru the 24th
at the PACC.   click here for the flyer 

I heard a very talented someone from Baldwinville will have 3 oil pastels in the show.

Local Businesses

I went to Cote's Market tonight to buy my scratch tickets.Jodie and Tom Parker good people! It got me thinking - there's a lot of small businesses in town that need our support. These businesses pay taxes in town and most of these people also live in town so they pay double. They support our town and our schools soooo lets support them. here's a list - if I missed anyone please add it in as a comment. The next time you need a case of beer, scratch tickets, want to go out to eat, need your dog groomed, need flowers or whatever- pick someone from the list - pick someone from town.

Templeton Home invasion

Templeton Home invasion

Rudy Sundstrom  of Otter River Road  in Templeton,  across the street from Virginia Wilder, came to visit me Sunday, March 17. And told me about how a man came into his house last week beat him up and stole his wallet and left him bleeding on the floor. He managed to call the police and get some help. Where was the Gardner news? Why didn't the police notify the Gardner news? When it happened to one of the residents to tell people to keep the doors locked. Was this another big secret in Templeton? Why did I have to hear it from him in person? Pretty good huh! Who else in town heard about this home invasion? Who will be next? Rudy is 84 years old. Pretty scary.

Thanks for reading my blog Pauly

Last Nights Meeting

For those of you who missed last night's Selectmen's meeting, they reviewed a draft copy of the May Town meeting articles. 

Public Hearing Notices

Public Hearing Notices

Upcoming
Agenda for the Planning Board 3/19/13 Public Hearing

Mistakes were made…

Shedding some Light on prior mistakes

At the STM on March 6^th, Paul Q spoke about mistakes; that every department from BOS to TMLWP had made mistakes. Very true statement.

The wind turbine project was years in the making. It took many years for this project to reach completion. From the perspective of hindsight, the following list is some of the mistakes made:

No Town Meeting Vote  - This project was not brought before town meeting for a vote. A side agreement was reached with the school department to locate the wind turbine on school property. A town meeting vote was not necessary for the project to continue.

upcoming meetings

Upcoming Meetings

Agenda for the Conservation Commission 3/18/13 Meeting
Legal Notice for the Conservation Commission 3/18/13 Meeting
Legal Notice for the Board of Selectmen 3/18/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Templeton Elementary School Building Committee 3/19/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech Capital Improvements Subcommittee 3/21/13 Meeting

From TGN this weekend'

TEMPLETON — The upcoming town election ballot will feature a race for two seats on the Board of Selectmen, with several candidates looking to make a return to the board.

Selectman Patrick Mullins — who was elected in last year’s recall vote — will not seek re-election on April 30, while board Chairman Chris Stewart will be running for a new term.

Town Clerk Carol Harris has certified a total of six candidates vying for the two three-year terms on the board, including Gerald Skelton, Paul Cosentino, Doug Morrison, Paul Quattrociocchi, Kenneth Robinson and Mr. Stewart.

Do suggestions equal bullying?

Recently I forwarded an article from the statehouse news that I receive on a daily basis from Beacon Hill. Quite a few select boards are on the same "mailing" lists. The subject of the one I sent to the blog was concerning Gov Patrick making a "robocall" to teachers and the Massachusetts Teachers Association. He was asking for their support and help with getting his budget proposal passed concerning education and transportation. One of the things he referred to was the use of post cards with the MTA sending out cards to teachers who would fill them out and mail them to their respective state reps. So I suggested in that blog that perhaps teachers and the MTA / teachers union could flip that and use the same process to ask their state reps to fund all the state mandates placed on local schools and teachers so local funds could be used to buy things such as new text books.

Only the Truth!

 Quote: “I wouldn’t want it in my back yard.” Was what we heard the Templeton Municipal Light and Water plant General Manager tell a resident that lives nearest to the 1.7 megawatt wind turbine in Templeton at a meeting Tuesday. As with others like this windmill, it has a gearbox problem and could cost more than it will ever produce over the life of the unit. Investigation done on other same models have concluded that possible housing issues not strong enough to handle the stress of the oversized props and output increases cause gearbox failures. Only models of lower output and smaller blade size are still problem free. The gamble with the wind energy is at best a poor one. Loans and cost to repair can easily eat away any efficiency that we thought to see. No Audit result and cost certification are nothing but a problem also. Hiding and cover-ups to keep secrets about it are no longer possible.

Thursdays Gardner news

3/14/2013 7:00:00 AM Petition was not to sell the light company To the Editor:

Dave Smart Templeton To the Editor: I would like to thank the voters of Templeton for their involvement in the recent Special Town Meeting. I would also like to thank the moderator, Dave Bergeron. As always, his no-nonsense approach is best for all.

3/11/13 BOS Meeting…the movie

Part 1 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Part 2 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Part 3 Templeton BOS Meeting March 11, 2013

Mr. Dembek-

The BOS meeting on March 11, 2013 was very busy. Discussion about the drainage issue at Mr. Dembek’s house generated much discussion. Years ago, drainage was put in place to try to address the situation (it did not). Then the water mains were replaced and the road repair stopped prior to Mr. Dembek’s house. The project was going to be completed but is another orphan project in Templeton due to lack of funding.

The water department paid for engineering plans to correct this drainage issue. The plans went out to bid and came back very high (projected $225,000 actual $335,000) This project was never initiated. Efforts will be made to locate the plans, which were drawn up by Tata & Howard. This is a project that may be eligible for a MassWorks grant. On a cautionary note, most of Templeton’s Chapter 90 money is committed to the next phase in Back Bay and any potential cost overruns for the reconstruction of Baldwinville Rd.

In order to request an override for money to address this drainage issue, we need the plans from Tata & Howard to see if these plans meet current regulations, then the plans would need to be bid out. It will not happen in time for the ATM in May.

We skipped over the Dispatch agenda item until the Chiefs could arrive.

I pass this on so town residents can think about the possibilities of this coming to Templeton and the steps that are available to the town to dal/decide on this. Also it shows why it may be a good idead to allow town counsel to check citizens petitions over for legality and wording as it prevents something from moving forward that could result in the townspeople voting on something at town meeting that is not legal which is a waste of time and money, both important commodities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA CONTACT:

March 13, 2013 Emalie Gainey

(617) 727-2543

AG ISSUES DECISIONS ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA BYLAWS

BOSTON –Towns are not permitted to enact a total ban on marijuana treatment centers, Attorney General Martha Coakley’s Office ruled today in a decision regarding a by-law passed by the Town of Wakefield. Towns, however, are able to adopt zoning by-laws to regulate such treatment centers and to enact temporary moratoriums on the development of the centers, according to the Attorney General’s Office.

Updated postings

Upcoming

Agenda for the Cemetery Commissioners 3/14/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Cable TV Commission 3/14/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Senior Center Oversight Committee 3/14/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Conservation Commission 3/18/13 Meeting
Legal Notice for the Conservation Commission 3/18/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech Capital Improvements Subcommittee 3/21/13 Meeting

Perhaps the teachers union should try this appraoch in reverse, robocalls to statehouse members asking for state dollars for the state mandates thrust onto local school systems, then the teachers union can send postcards to all its members who fill them out and mail them to their state representative asking for state funds to pay for state mandates that the statehouse forces us to follow as local towns and school districts do not have the budget to pay for these. After all, it would be for the kids.

Jeffrey Bennett

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From: "Katherine Cohen (SEN)"

Sent: Monday, March 4, 2013 5:24:52 PM
Subject: FW: PATRICK PITCHES TAX PLAN IN ROBOCALL FOR TEACHERS UNION

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From: State House News Service
Sent: Monday, March 04, 2013 5:23:55 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
To: news@statehousenews.com
Subject: PATRICK PITCHES TAX PLAN IN ROBOCALL FOR TEACHERS UNION

PATRICK PITCHES TAX PLAN IN ROBOCALL FOR TEACHERS UNION

By Matt Murphy
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MARCH 4, 2013…. Gov. Deval Patrick seems to be willing to pitch his tax reform proposal by any means necessary, even resorting to recorded phone messages that he admittedly hates.

Letter to the Editor Mar 13

3/13/2013 7:02:00 AM Don't underestimate lessons learned from extra curricular activities To the Editor: 3/13/2013 Kent Songer Phillipston To the Editor: I read in the newspaper that the Narragansett School Committee is going to seek an override to help maintain the current level of teachers and to preserve the sports and arts programs. Times are tough for most people these days, and this makes the prospect of cutting items instead of voting to raise our taxes even more attractive. What I ask is that every citizen carefully weigh what will be lost or gained by their valued vote. Every year it seems, sports and arts programs are the first items to be considered when cuts are mentioned. I will not say that these programs are more important than the 3 Rs, but I will say that they are vitally important to our children’s success and more importantly their happiness. If we do our jobs as parents, grandparents and concerned citizens adequately and our children get full-time jobs, have we accomplished what we desire for our children?

State House news forward by Jeff B

Would funds be better spent by providing more food and variety for breakfast and the state do a public service mass advertising campaign. Local school districts need the funding to carry out these programs and mandates so they can use available local revenue for budget items like new school books.

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From: "Katherine Cohen (SEN)" .net
Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2013 6:51:08 PM
Subject: FW: STATE LOOKS TO BOOST PARTICIPATION IN SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAMS

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From: State House News Service
Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2013 6:27:48 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
To: news@statehousenews.com
Subject: STATE LOOKS TO BOOST PARTICIPATION IN SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAMS

STATE LOOKS TO BOOST PARTICIPATION IN SCHOOL BREAKFAST PROGRAMS

By Colleen Quinn
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, MARCH 5, 2013……More than half of the students who qualify for free or reduced lunch in Massachusetts public schools do not eat breakfast at school when it is available, and Massachusetts ranks 42nd in the nation for low-income student breakfast participation.

To get more students to eat breakfast at school, education and agriculture officials are offering grants and awards to districts with the hopes of increasing program participation by 35 percent over the next year.

Just a few postings

Just a couple of postings here to let people know what's happening.

The Selectmen's Office is looking for an administrative assistant the posting is here


Also the Templeton Food Pantry is having their 5th Annual Food Drive on Saturday, March 23rd click here for more info


and the Board of Health is having a Bulky Waste Day on April 30th click here for more details and the price list.

Gearbox FAILURE Investigation

 TMLWP meeting was very well attended on March 12^th. This blog will cover only the “Light” portion of the meeting.

Templeton Wind Turbine Cost Certification – We were informed, after months of delay, that the accountant from Braver FINALLY has the documents needed from MMWEC in order to produce a cost certification for the wind turbine. Discussion was had about the benefit of a presentation of the information at a later date.

The TMLWP website is operational. It needs to be linked to the Town website.

Reclosers – two reclosers have been purchased from Thomas & Betts to replace the defunct reclosers. They should arrive in 6-8 weeks. The only operational failure to the distribution system occurred Hurricane Sandy.

The Commissioners voted the $150,000 PILOT payment to the town to be paid in December. Thank you!

Todays Gardner news

3/12/2013 6:46:00 AM Templeton residents should support schools To the Editor: 3/12/2013

Matthew Syring Templeton To the Editor: As a taxpayer of Templeton, I am writing to pledge my support and commend Superintendent Ruth Miller for her proposed budget for the upcoming FY2014 school year. Despite facing drastic cuts in state aid, a reduction in other revenue streams, and an increase in the overall costs of running a school district, Dr. Miller has proposed a budget that is fiscally responsible and sensible for these ever challenging fiscal times. After attending the recent budget meeting on Feb 28, and listening to the proposed budget, it is evident that the school department has made countless numbers of cuts, and has been chiseled down to the bone. With a failed override last year, and a lack of available resources, the school department has been forced to recommend a budget seeking some assistance from the townsfolk. Local bloggers are quick to paint school supporters as “out of touch” and greedy. The reality is that we have made draconian cuts — as we all have over the past five years — and it is time that we as a community step up to the plate. With our classroom sizes busting at the seams, students using science texts pre 1970, and teachers earning salaries amongst the lowest in the commonwealth, I would not classify it as greed. I would call it embarrassing. With all of these facts presented, I truly understand that we are all doing more with less. Despite this, I would argue that we need to jumpstart our local economy and turn this thing around. Let's vote “yes” to this proposed override, and say yes to our children's education and future. Matthew Syring Templeton

Senate Bill on the Templeton investigation

Well people we now have a senate bill number 623 

asking for an investigation 

In our town of Templeton.

Maybe this is why some people are getting nasty, they're getting worried.....

Accountability

The Special Town Meeting (STM) held on March 6, 2013 was called in order for the Town to correct improper votes at the prior ATM last May and STM in November. These important votes had to occur before the tax rate could be set.

The legislative body of the town (Town Meeting) has a lot of power. The votes taken at town meetings are directives given to the executive branch of local government (BOS). It is imperative that the BOS carry out those directives as voted by the townspeople.

The vote on Article 6 was soundly and loudly defeated. The message town meeting sent was very clear.  Templeton shall have two separate governments; Town government and Light and Water. Town government i.e : The Board of Selectmen shall be accountable to the voters. Light and Water is accountable to ???

State house news

Perhaps this is the type of goings on at the statehouse that we need to watch....possible more help from the state (your state taxes) for water infrastructure update and repair.

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From: "Katherine Cohen (SEN)"
Sent: Tuesday, March 5, 2013 4:55:45 PM
Subject: FW: LAWMAKERS LAY OUT IDEAS FOR ANTICIPATED WATER POLICY DEBATE

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From: State House News Service
Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2013 4:54:24 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
To: news@statehousenews.com
Subject: LAWMAKERS LAY OUT IDEAS FOR ANTICIPATED WATER POLICY DEBATE

LAWMAKERS LAY OUT IDEAS FOR ANTICIPATED WATER POLICY DEBATE

By Andy Metzger
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

STATE HOUSE, MARCH 5, 2013…..That burbling you don’t hear is the dry streambed.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Upcoming Meeting
Agenda for the Board of Selectmen 3/11/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Planning Board 3/12/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Light Commissioners 3/12/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Water Commissioners 3/12/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Common Improvement Committee 3/13/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Templeton Housing Authority 3/13/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Cemetery Commissioners 3/14/13 Meeting
Agenda for the Monty Tech Capital Improvements Subcommittee 3/21/13 Meeting

Hope you all remembered to turn your clocks back!

from Dave S

Time is tough now in Templeton, people being foreclosed on and to no fault of their own falling behind every day. Templeton is no different.  The biggest reason we are here tonight is Money! Money has a grip on us all one way or another.

    The negative attitude and arrogance of the commission at light and water is a problem for us all. They didn’t try to hide it; they were quick to lay the blame on the People we elected to fix the problems the town now has. I commend the selectmen and advisory board for the efforts and gains we now see.  We can’t thank them enough, but much more still needs to be done. As we start to debate this petition please keep an open mind and look at the big picture.

Turbine Information

Please attend the TMLWP Meeting on Tuesday March 12, 2013

March 12, 2013 Light Agenda

March 12 2013 Water Agenda

Portsmouth RI Gearbox Failure Investigation:

INTRODUCTION

The town of Portsmouth, Rhode Island (Portsmouth) commissioned a new AAER 1500-77-65 1.5 Megawatt wind turbine on March 24, 2009. On May 18, 2012, significant amounts of metal were found in the gearbox oil filter housing and significant internal damage was observed with a borescope. The filter element was replaced on May 25, and the turbine was returned to service. The turbine was removed from service on June 18, 2012 after significant additional metal was discovered in the filter housing.

(Insert Town of Templeton for Portsmouth RI.)

History of Templeton Light & Water Plant

History of Templeton Light & Water Plant at Templetonlight.com/History.html

Came across this while looking at Templeton light website and perhaps some useful information for taxpayers.
A 2010 entry has Lumus Construction awarded the bid to assemble, test and commission the wind turbine for a cost of $424,712.00 dollars.
The wind turbine was purchased from AAER in Canada. So if this information is available on this site, why is there not an available copy of all the costs for the wind turbine available to all who seek such information.
Also on this site is that in 2010 customer bill printing, sorting and mailing are now done outside the office by Mark Altman & Associates. This measure greatly reduced both departments cost per bill to process. My question is the definition of "greatly reduced costs" is this just a $1 dollar reduction or savings or could the entire $4.00 per customer service charge be done away with. Templeton Light is a not for profit entity! Perhaps a phone call or e-mail from Advisory Board or the selectmen can find what the total cost to do billing is and compare to the Templeton receipts of the $4.00 monthly per customer service charge. The wind turbine numbers mean there are some records available on the cost of the turbine and if that means there are incomplete financial records for a public entity, well that is just plain bad. (General manager sees a wind storm brewing and heads for parts unknown, wait he only went a few towns over) Hope this information is of interest to some taxpayers.

Jeffrey Bennett

David vs. Goliath

The STM is over and the status quo prevails. The townspeople in attendance are more than satisfied with no answers and no transparency from TMLWP. Guess it’s ok to spend millions of dollars on a project like the wind turbine with no accountability. Just hide those costs in another place where no one will find them. Will that turbine ever work again?

Wind turbine? What wind turbine? The one that doesn’t work? So what is the useful lifespan of a wind turbine that doesn’t work? Is that an oxymoron? How do you calculate the payback period if it’s broken? Is this what is meant by “avoided costs”? Can the cost of the turbine be “avoided” if it doesn’t work? When I pass a wind turbine that is spinning, it looks strange to me.

Audit Cost Comparisons

With two snow days in a row, I’ve been able to dig through some of my old e-mails. I found this information about the cost of audits in small communities to be very interesting.

Once again, the Town of Templeton leads the way in audit costs. We expend $27,000/year for our audits, which have been performed by Melanson & Heath for many years. Melanson & Heath also performs audits for other communities: Hardwick ($15,500) and Hadley ($17,500).

The lowest cost for an audit was $6,000 (Leverett) performed by Scanlon & Associates. The highest cost was $27,000 (Templeton). The second highest cost was $19,000 (Halifax) performed by MLBCPA.

Question –

What are the factors that contribute to our high audit costs?

I am not advocating to end the practice of having our books audited. I am advocating investigating why our audit costs are so high and if there is a way to lower these costs.

My opinions…supported by FACTS ! ! !

Julie Farrell

Update on Senior Center

It has been some time since I posted an update on the Senior Center project. Not a lot of work is being done over the winter but some things are getting done. The new sprinkler system is 97% complete. Once the water is brought into the building it can finished. The interior carpentry work has begun. We are getting the designs for the kitchen and main entry finalized. Once the kitchen design is finished we can put the plumbing work out to bid. TL&W has the transformer but it is not yet installed.

While the building units were apart and stored over two winters a portion of one unit got wet and some mold developed. Once the units were put back together on the foundation a mold remediation specialist was hired to evaluate and remove the mold. He did an extremely thorough and meticulous job in determining the extent of the mold damage and removing it.

 After this work was completed in October, we started the other interior work.

During the mold removal it was brought to our attention that one of the windows was leaking and had been for some time. The carpenter looked at the window and determined that it was incorrectly installed by the previous owner. After the winter this window will be removed, any damage caused by the leak will be removed and replaced, and the window properly reinstalled.

If anyone is interested in seeing the building I would be happy to it to you on a Saturday or Sunday, please feel free to email me at dem270@comcast.net.

Doug Morrison

Chairman – Senior Center Oversight Committee

Interesting Legal Situation

This is the e-mail thread exchange while the motions for the STM meeting were under review by our town counsel, attorney Paul DeRensis. I am very impressed with our town counsel; he really cares about good town governance. His expertise has prevented the town from exacerbating more than few problems. Last night’s STM meeting was Attorney DeRensis’ 1,156^th town meeting.

Templeton government is a work in progress. Our new town counsel is part of a team helping Templeton to recover from years of mismanagement. Our new management team includes: Fred Aponte, accountant; Dan Keeney, treasurer; Jeff Ritter, coordinator. Working together with established department heads, the town is making progress to address the fiscal mess left behind. Hopefully, last night’s STM will clean up the remainders of that mess and the town can set the tax rate.

With new people in management come new ideas. One of those ideas:

“On Mar 5, 2013, at 8:44 AM, PDeRensis@aol.com wrote: Jeff:

Yes its "legal". In a democracy, the citizens of the town have a right to decide issues.

As you can see from this e-mail, it appears that by his own admission, General Manager John Driscoll has involved himself in town politics when his real job is managing Templeton Light & Water. Under MGL chapter 164, section 56 "the manager shall at anytime when required, make a statement of his doings, business, receipts, disbursements, balances and indebtedness of the town in his department." that is a partial entry of the above referenced MGL. The advisory Board according to state law and Templeton by-law is suppose to have access to all things financial of any entity in town. Selectmen Virginia Wilder certainly should be aware of this as she served on advisory for a number of years alongside Dan Keeney. It is strange how Ms. Wilder would characterize a citizens petition "absurd" considering these two emails and the fact that so many citizens have spoken of the lack of information coming from or being provided from the light & water commissioners. Perhaps too much time spent on Baldwinville Road and not enough time spent in the selectman's office. Taxpayers need to have access to all financial information from ALL Templeton departments in order to make informed decisions at town meeting but how can they do this if some of their elected officials fail to provide this information. Hopefully that petition got every ones attention and we will all get on the page of being open and honest with the taxpayers, they do pay the bills!

Jeffrey Bennett

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From: "J Driscoll" <jdriscoll@templetonlight.com>
To: "MA Advisory Board Templeton" <templetonadvisoryboard@gmail.com>
Cc: "Town Coordinator" <towncoordinator@templeton1.org>, "Chris Stewart" , "j farrell" farrell
@hotmail.com>, gwvwtemple@aol.com, "patrick mullins 2012" <patrick.mullins.2012@gmail.com>, jpb01468@comcast.net, "Kate Myers" <kmyers@templeton1.org>, snowfighter4@verizon.net, "Joel Thompson" <royalcadet@comcast.net>, "Mary Lang" <mlang@net1plus.com>, "Darren Elwell" <darren.charles.elwell@gmail.com>, "Joseph Boyd"
Sent: Monday, March 4, 2013 6:35:58 AM
Subject: RE: Templeton Water budget for FY14

Will,

I apologize for not meeting the anticipated deadline. If you have been reading the newspaper at all, I think you can appreciate that I have had to focus my efforts in other areas as of late. There are a lot of things moving at light speed and I am attempting to get caught up.

You'll notice by the PDF form that the Water Plant's anticipated (not yet voted on) water budget for FY14 is already broken down into several different categories; it would be helpful to me if you could tell me which particular budget items that you would like me to expand on. Unlike in past years, I cannot locate a Microsfot Excel Template file which all of this information would fit into nicely. If someone has that available, please forward it to me.

And this is not as simple as just e-mailing you an attachment. It is important that I get the bottom-line budget figure of $1.407M to agree on the PDF Document and then on the Excel one, beacuse that is what my proposed dollar amount for the FY14 water budget is. All of the data (for whatever reason) has been historically organized differently on the Water Commission copy than on the Town copy whcih goes to Town Meeting. Maybe that is something that should change. To the best of my knowledge, this is the first time that Templeton Water has been asked directly by Advisory for a budget breakdown that is more detailed than the one that I am to present at my own Water Commission.

What is the date of the next Advisory meeting?

John