Pirie Purchase to Go Before Town Meeting Voters

In a split vote, the Hamilton Board of Selectmen have decided to have voters at a Special Town Meeting decide whether the town should purchase the so-called Pirie property on Bay Road.

Voters will head to a Special Town Meeting in Hamilton next month to decide whether the town government should buy an 85-acre horse farm. The meeting will happen on June 11 after a 3-2 vote by the Hamilton Board of Selectmen on Thursday evening. The purchase for the so-called Pirie property, or Aquila Farm, will go before Special Town Meeting voters. Chairman Marc Johnson and Selectmen Scott Maddern and Jennifer Scuteri voted to put the purchase before voters and Selectmen Jeff Hubbard and David Neill voted against it. Some of the possible uses for the property including selling a portion of it to a developer, which would build a cottage-style housing development, plus use a portion of it for an athletic field and keep much of it as open …

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Rick Sprenkle

5:54 pm on Friday, May 24, 2013

For - lower tax rate due to significantly increased tax revenues (~300K/yr), several athletic fields (fix Lax field shortage?), affordable housing (esp. teachers who want to walk to work), senior housing and open space set aside (back portion near Miles River), additional space for cemetery. Against - financial risk (interest on 3.9M note between time of purchase and resale), minor traffic …   more ›

Hamilton Could Use Housing for Young Couples, Seniors

Hamilton's latest update to the town's housing production plan says that the town should focus on creating housing for young couples without children and senior citizens.

Housing construction in Hamilton should focus on homes for young couples without children and senior citizens, according to the town's latest housing production plan. The plan, which has received an OK from the Planning Board and - on Monday - from the Board of Selectmen, is required by state law. If a young couple, who at some point plan to have children, move to Hamilton six years before their children enter the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District and move out six years after their youngest child graduates, the town will "break even" on the taxes paid and the cost to educate two children. That's what Fred Mills told the Board of Selectmen on Monday night before the plan was given the board's OK. Mills is a member of the town's …

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Murray to Resign June 2; Patrick Calls Him 'Outstanding Partner'

Outgoing lieutenant governor said recent controversies had nothing to do with decision to resign.

Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Tim Murray said none of the controversies that have dogged him during his tenure on Beacon Hill contributed to his decision to announce his resignation. In a press conference at the State House Wednesday, Murray said his final day on the job will be June 2. The next day he will take over as president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce where his salary will reportedly be around $200,000. In January, Murray said he had no intention of running for governor when Gov. Deval Patrick's term expires in January 2015. "This has been a very difficult but empowering decision," Murray said. "It has been an honor to serve as lieutenant governor." Patrick called Murray an "outstanding partner" during his time in …

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Cecil Moore

9:04 pm on Friday, May 24, 2013

Who me, I would like to correct your misinterpretation of US involvement in Viet Nam. I find offense in your writing "US may have sent aid...but hardly the same as actual combat". You do know that by March 1965, 487 US military personnel were killed in Viet Nam. I think you tarnish their memory with your trivial dismissal of their lives. Wikipedia: American military advisors arrived in what was …   more ›

Playground Work About to Begin

The new playground at Patton Park is about to be installed.

The backhoe is there. Some of the equipment has been delivered. And the day has just about arrived. Work is about to get underway to install the new playground at Patton Park. "We should see movement as soon as tomorrow," Town Manager Michael Lombardo told the Board of Selectmen on Monday night. An effort to raise the money for the project has been underway for about two years, with everything from a kids fun run to a buy-a-brick campaign. During the winter, the Friends of Patton Park group reached its $150,000 fundraising goal. Initially, a March groundbreaking had been planned. But this week Lombardo said work will occur during the next few weeks. He encouraged parents to make sure children stay away from the construction area, the …

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Wenham Residents Push for Permanent Town Administrator with Online Petition

An online petition on change.org has been organized in Wenham to push now for a search to begin for a permanent town administrator.

Tierney Pushes for 'Smart Guns'

U.S. Rep. John Tierney has submitted a bill for "smart guns," something he says are no longer limited to movies.

State House News Service Weekly Roundup: Three's Company

Recap and analysis of the week in state government.

Like pieces of a puzzle that don't quite fit together yet, the Big Three may have been separated at birth, but with each incremental step their destinies seem to grow more intertwined. No, we're not talking about those Big Three - Gov. Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray and Speaker Robert DeLeo - though they play major character roles in this thickening plot.  Instead, three bills have come to define the early months of the 2013 legislative agenda and resolutions on tax hikes, local road funding and the annual state budget continue to be elusive and dependent on one another. Patrick spent the early part of his week welcoming British Prime Minister David Cameron to Boston for a few quick meetings and a visit to the Copley …

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Property Purchase Opinions to be Aired Thursday Night

A public hearing on Thursday night will be a chance for the public to speak about a plan to purchase at the Pirie property on Bay Road in Hamilton.

Should the town of Hamilton buy the 85-acre Pirie property on Bay Road? Town leaders will hear opinions from the public on Thursday night during a public hearing at Winthrop Elementary School. It starts at 7 p.m. The Board of Selectmen has not taken a vote on whether it supports the town's purchase or not. A special Town Meeting is scheduled for June 11 where two-third of voters would need to approve of the purchase. The Board of Selectmen - as well as other boards and committee - have been considering the town's first right of refusal of the property, which is also known as Aquila Farm. The farm's owner has a purchase and sales agreement to sell the property for $3.9 million and the developer that hopes to buy it plans to subdivide it …

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