Residents Push to Have Hamilton Town Attorney Replaced

A letter signed by 20 Hamilton residents was brought to the Board of Selectmen on Monday night, asking that Town Counsel not be reappointed and that legal services be put out to bid.

A group of Hamilton residents asked the Board of Selectmen on Monday night to not reappoint the town’s attorney, Donna Brewer. North Street resident Jay Burnham read a two-page letter to the board – signed by a total of 20 residents – “and supported by many others,” Burnham said. “As a result of her actions, Attorney Brewer has forfeited the trust, respect and confidence of the community and appropriately, she should be terminated as Town Counsel,” the letter stated. A complete copy of the letter is attached to this story as a PDF. Burnham said that the so-called Urbelis report, prepared nearly three years ago to determine Brewer’s role in police department problems at the time – but publicly released last month – “determined that Ms. …

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Jay Burnham

8:18 am on Friday, July 6, 2012

Nancy...perhaps because Wallace's behavior was sanctioned by Ms. Brewer, acting as Town Counsel. The Hayes and Pomeroy Reports seem to support this conclusion.   more ›

Citizen Group Revives Publication of Its Own Newspaper

The citizen group Enough is Enough has returned after a year off to publish its own newspaper.

After a year hiatus, the Hamilton-Wenham Free Press returned to mailboxes in the two towns last week. The 12-page newspaper is a production of the citizen group Enough is Enough. This was the third year the group published its own newspaper, with articles coming from its membership. Articles range in topic from addressing local government and Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District issues to a recipe. “We skipped last year,” said Bob Gray, a member of Enough is Enough’s steering committee and one of the newspaper’s four editors. The paper was first published in 2009 and again in 2010. It was started when Enough is Enough member Ed Howard, who owns an antique store in Essex, said something similar had been done in Essex. Gray said the …

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Jim Smith

12:17 pm on Sunday, May 6, 2012

Einstein once said that “the definition of insanity was to do the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” That is exactly what America has been doing for a century now. Unfortunately that is the only answer the liberals and President Obama have. President Obama’s 2012 campaign slogan is “forward!” Yes Mr. President, let’s keep moving “forward” with the same insane policies …   more ›

Letter to the Editor: What The Internet Can And Cannot Do for Home Buyers

The Internet can give you data and information but a professional can help you interpret it.

To the Editor: It is often said that “the only thing new in the world is the history that you don't know". This saying kept going through my brain when a home valuation website named Zillow was launched to a lot of buzz a couple of years ago. The press, as usual, carted out the same tired (and wrong) prediction that it has made for 15 years: that home valuation sites like these will put Realtors out of business or at least greatly reduce our fees. Actually, over the last 15 years, the opposite has transpired: it doesn’t matter whether you are talking about law, medicine, accounting, mortgage or real estate; the more that the public uses the Internet to gather information, the more they turn to professionals before they make major decisions…

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10 Real Estate Predictions for the Upcoming Year

Local real estate agent Jay Burnham offers 10 predictions for the local real estate market in 2012.

Fellow residents of Hamilton and Wenham - it's time again for my annual ten real estate predictions for the upcoming year. A simple answer to any questions about the real estate market in 2012 is: If you want to know what the housing market will be like next year, ask the government. At this point, low mortgage interest rates only exist thanks to its efforts and job recovery is essential to real estate recovery. But if you were to ask me, I predict: 1. Foreclosures and short sales will play a key role in U.S. housing.  The U.S real estate market is poised to be hit by another surge of bank repossessions. 2. Buyer confidence levels will remain low due to election-year mud-slinging. 3. Expect a fight over the home mortgage interest deduction…

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Tom Rogers

3:15 pm on Friday, January 6, 2012

It's not my website Jay, I just manage it. I feel no guilt providing a link to http://findyournote.com because I believe in what they are doing. The situation with mortgages is going to come to a boiling point, and people need to protect themselves. I urge people to spread the word to friends that might have: refinanced; are having problems covering their mortgage payments; those that are in …   more ›

Meet Your Neighbor

Meet Hamilton's Segway Man

Have you seen Jay cruising around town on his Segway?

Name: Jay Burnham Street: North Street, Hamilton Family: Wife, Linda Morey; Two Welsh Terriers, Ozzie and Harriet. Occupation: Real Estate Broker Hobbies/interests: Traveling, hiking, canoeing, fly-fishing, letter-boxing and cooking. What are you passionate about? Helping people achieve the American Dream of home ownership. Also, fiscal responsibility in our town. Best book: "Three Cups of Tea" Best movie: "Cool Hand Luke," of course. Dream vacation: A year in Provence. How long have you lived in Hamilton-Wenham? Since 1995. Why did you chose Hamilton-Wenham? Open space, a strong sense of community and walking distance to a great coffee shop. What is your favorite place in Hamilton Wenham? My neighborhood, because of my neighbors. What is …

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