Harrington: Electronic Voting Could Help TM Turnout

Selectmen form ad hoc committee.

Switching to electronic voting at town meeting "could help our attendance," Town Moderator Joe Harrington has told selectmen. Selectmen have established an ad hoc committee to study whether voting electronically at town meeting makes sense for Westborough, and to report back to the board. The committee will consist of five to seven members: Harrington, Selectman Denny Drewry, Town Clerk Nancy Yendriga, an advisory finance committee member, with one-to-three at-large members whom Harrington will recommend to selectmen. Last month, the board agreed to form a group to explore trying electronic voting at the October town meeting. This spring, Barrette, Drewry, Yendriga and Advisory Finance Committee Chairman Edward Behn attended Wayland’s town…

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Andy Koenigsberg

9:58 am on Monday, May 20, 2013

I wonder if it might be worthwhile to give the selectmen the final approval of routine and non-controversial town meeting issues such as expenditures for sewer, replacing vehicles and many other items that take up a great deal of time. Town meeting warrant items could be limited to the budget, changes to zoning, changes to the town charter, one-time votes, and major capital expenditures that …   more ›

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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Selectmen Get Final Pay As You Throw Report

The board will be asked to vote to accept the document on May 28.

By switching to a pay as you throw household trash and recycling collection program, Westborough "could probably save between $60,000 a year if it were a curbside pay as you throw program, up to maybe $400,000 a year if it was a drop off pay as you throw program," Town Manager Jim Malloy told selectmen Tuesday night. But, “the majority of the savings” would come from shifting the cost of household waste collection from the property tax base and onto taxpayers through a fee-based system, Malloy said. That shift is unnecessary "because we have excess levy capacity," he said. "It first came up because when I was first hired, we were right up against the levy limit," Malloy said. On top of that, there is "substantial community opposition" to …

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Drunk Driving Charge Costs Worcester Bishop Driver's License

McManus must pay fines and volunteer.

Bishop Robert J. McManus will not serve any jail time on charges of drunk driving after he admitted in court on Tuesday that he refused to submit to a chemical test, according to the Telegram and Gazette. McManus will lose his license for six months, pay roughly $900 in court fines, complete 10 hours of community service and attend alcohol education programs, according to the Telegram. These punishments correspond with admitting to refusing to submit to the test. The Narragansett Police Department will drop the drunk driving charge, according to the article. McManus had been charged following a hit-and-run accident earlier this month in Naragansett, R.I.

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Electronic Voting on Selectmen's Agenda Tonight

The discussion is scheduled for 6:50 p.m.

Westborough selectmen are scheduled tonight to continue discussing trying electronic voting at town meeting. Vice Chairman George Barrette and Selectman Denny Drewry will lead the discussion, which starts at 6:50 p.m., according to the Westborough website. Last month, the board agreed to form a group to explore trying electronic voting at the October town meeting. This spring, Barrette, Drewry, Town Clerk Nancy Yendriga and Advisory Finance Committee Chairman Edward Behn attended Wayland’s town meeting, which uses an electronic voting system.

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You Ask, Patch Answers

When is the Dog License Deadline?

The latest 'You Ask, Patch Answers' has the answer.

Editor's note: In our column "You Ask, Patch Answers," we help you to find answers to your questions. Email westborough@patch.com if you have a question that you would like us to investigate. Today, we answer this inquiry: When is Westborough's deadline for getting a dog license? The deadline is May 31, Westborough Town Clerk Nancy Yendriga said today in a press release. The cost is $10 for a neutered or spayed dog, and $15 for a dog that is not. Cash and checks are both acceptable, she said. "Dogs must be licensed by six months of age," Yendriga said. "Please bring proof of neutering or spaying if it is a new dog and a current rabies certificate. Late fees will start on June 3." The town clerk's office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday…

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State House News Service Weekly Roundup: A Hoop-De-Doo

Recap and analysis of the week in state government.

Massachusetts' problem is now Virginia's. After a macabre, around-the-clock stakeout of a Worcester funeral home this week by frenzied reporters and furious protestors, the remains of alleged Boston Marathon bomber Tamerlan Tsarnaev were secreted out of central Massachusetts and buried in a small Muslim cemetery in rural Virginia. No cemetery in Massachusetts, or public official for that matter, wanted Tsarnaev's body. And Gov. Deval Patrick just seemed relieved the tense standoff was over. "No. I have enough to do," Patrick said, when asked if he wished he had gotten involved to end the theatrics sooner. The April 15 attacks on the finish line of the Boston Marathon threw Beacon Hill policymakers off stride, quieting the raging debate …

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Vincent DiRico

7:20 am on Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Sure, pick and choose which articles you CHOOSE to link, go on. The fact is that the Bengahzi talking points were scrubbed of terrorist affiliations, ... Low/NO info people/trolls are happy :O   more ›

Assabet Inspection Cost to be Spread Among Member Communities

The $500,000 inspection costs will be distributed among seven communities.

The estimated $500,000 cost of inspections for a $62.4 million renovation to the Assabet Valley Regional Vocational High School will be born by the seven member communities. “The cost will just be assessed to the member communities," said Superintendent-Director Mary Jo Nawrocki of the Assabet Valley School District. Nawrocki declined to comment further on the matter, saying she had not heard anything officially from city of Marlborough officials. She said no cost had been given for the inspection of the project, which is being done in Marlborough. She did not specify the mechanism that would be used to have the member communities pay for the inspections nor whether it would increase the cost of the project. The Marlborough City Council …

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