Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Selectmen endorse the various warrants that will go before Lynnfield voters at Monday night's town meeting.
A newly reorganized board of selectmen engaged in a thorough discussion of the town warrant this week, endorsing all 18 of the articles that voters will consider Monday night. Newly-elected Phil Crawford will serve as select board chair for the next year, reflecting the one-year term he was elected to serve earlier this month. Dave Nelson will serve as vice chair, while Tom Terranova, newly elected to a full three-year term, will be the clerk this year. Nelson explained that the chair is usually the selectman whose term is ending the next year. Residents David Miller and Harry LeCours, themselves longtime Lynnfield public servants, engaged the selectmen in a thorough discussion of the warrants and various town budget procedures during the …
Friday, March 1, 2013
Lynnfield is getting ready to take a look at some of its old by-laws. Here's a look at some things that came up during a recent scan through them. Part 1 of 2 articles.
Earlier this winter, Town Administrator Bill Gustus reported to selectmen that a consultant will soon begin the process of looking through Lynnfield’s by-laws to look for things that need updating or other changes. Intrigued, this writer sat down recently at town hall with the by-laws book to see what kind of stuff is in it. Some parts of the town by-laws can indeed read like a journey through time - and yes, much of this stuff probably hasn't been enforced in decades. Let’s start part 1 of this project with the health-related stuff. One town by-law governs the use of those old “quarantine” signs on a house that in my day I’ve pretty much only seen in long-ago Sunday comic strips. One passing mention suggests that these next few by-laws …
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Blizzard earlier this month consumed what was left of the year's initial snow and ice budget.
Selectmen have approved a request by the Department of Public Works for $150,000 for snow and ice removal - hopefully enough to get through the rest of the winter. On Monday night, Town Administrator Bill Gustus reported that the Blizzard of 2013 had cost Lynnfield $140,000 from its DPW budget alone, while the fire department would have also incurred costs from overtime and other storm-related needs. Gustus also reported that the Massachusetts Emergency Management Association is seeking a federal disaster declaration for the storm, which would allow the town to recover a portion of those costs. Last year, there was so little snow that the DPW actually finished with a small surplus in the snow and ice budget, while two years ago the town …
Friday, February 22, 2013
Lynnfield CPA would run for three-year term against incumbent Selectman Bob MacKendrick.
Tom Terranova is planning to run for Lynnfield selectman this spring for the second time in as many years. The Lynnfield resident owns the tax and accounting firm Terranova & Associates in Danvers. In Lynnfield, he co-chairs the recreation commission and has been a youth football coach. For this year's race, Terranova plans to run for the seat currently held by Bob MacKendrick, who indicated earlier this year that he would seek re-election to one more term. In a phone conversation with Lynnfield Patch on Thursday, Terranova reported that as a candidate, he is particularly concerned about higher taxes for both residents and businesses in town. "I think we need to look at the increased costs we're passing on to taxpayers and look at what we …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Lynnfield's historic Danforth House will eventually need some serious assistance if it's to be restored. EIther way, the land on which it sits could be used for several town needs in the coming years.
Lynnfield selectmen have declined to support an effort to place the Danforth House on the National Register of Historic Places, pending a review by town counsel. Specifically, town officials want to be certain that the historic designation will not limit future uses for the land or changes to the structure. As noted in this previous article on Lynnfield Patch, town resident Shelly Lynch has been doing much of the work toward getting the 17th Century house on the national register. The house, located next to Reedy Meadow Golf Course, was home to one of Lynnfield's earliest settlers and also to a captain of the town's Minutemen at the start of the Revolutionary War. Another previous local history article on this website focused more on the …
On Monday, Council on Aging board member Jack Bitner told selectmen that the Lynnfield Senior Center is offering all it currently can and is open to ideas for the future.
Monday night at the selectmen's meeting, three town entities - the Council on Aging, the Library, and the Historical Commission all made their respective budget presentations for the coming year. Looking ahead to a more long term town issue, Jack Bitner of the Council on Aging took a couple of minutes to talk about the Lynnfield Senior Center is a victim of its own success as it struggles to keep up with demand for its services and programs from an expanding elderly population. In this video, Bitner notes that the Lynnfield COA does not have any specific solutions in mind at this point but is open to suggestions from town officials.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Selectman Al Merritt resigned effective Dec. 31 to focus on his fight against a serious medical diagnosis. He recently spoke with local media about his work as a public servant in Lynnfield.
Last month, Lynnfield Selectman Al Merritt announced that he would be leaving office December 31st, to continue his fight against cancer. Before stepping down, Merritt took some time to speak with local media about some of the accomplishments he is most proud of as he completes a decade of active public service in the town. Merritt has lived in Lynnfield since 1974 with his wife, Beverly. The two have been married 41 years and have five grown children and 11 grandchildren. They are also both active members of St. Maria Goretti Parish in Lynnfield. Merritt is a certified public accountant by trade and is also a former insurance company executive who played a key role in the Liberty Mutual IPO. In town, Merritt was first elected to the board…
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Vice chairman of the finance committee has lived in Lynnfield 25 years and is member of the fields study committee.
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Thursday, January 3
The following is a letter from Phil Crawford: Today I am announcing my candidacy for the Board of Selectmen. I intend to run for the seat vacated by Al Merritt in the April Election. I have lived in Lynnfield for 25 years with my wife Ellen and our four children. My involvement with the community ranges from coaching all of my children in various sports, to working in the community with the schools, churches and politics. I have been on the finance committee for the past five years where I currently serve as the Vice Chairman. I am a liaison to the Council on Aging, Library and Dept. of Public Works. In May of 2012, I was appointed by the Board of Selectmen as a member of the Fields Study Committee. I have a Bachelors of Business …
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Citing a difficult medical condition, Lynnfield selectman announced Monday night he will resign effective December 31.
Lynnfield Selectman Al Merritt announced Monday night that he will resign effective December 31 as he continues his battle with what he described as a difficult medical condition. "Attending to my medical care has become more challenging, and is consuming more of my time and energy," said Merritt, reading from a prepared statement. "Unfortunately, I"m often unable to participate fully in meetings, discussions and planning sessions involving town matters that require selectmen input." Merritt has served the town of Lynnfield in a variety of ways over the years. He was elected to the board of selectmen in 2008 and was re-elected in 2011 to a three-year term. He also served a couple of terms as a finance committee member in the 1980s and …
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Bar/restaurant associated with Legal Seafoods to be one of the high-profile tenants at the MarketStreet at Lynnfield project.
Lynnfield selectmen have approved an all-alcoholic beverage license for Legal C Bar, which will be one of the high-profile tenants at MarketStreet at Lynnfield around this time next year. Legal Seafoods and Legal C Bar owner Roger Berkowitz attended the meeting with the company's general counsel and its director of design and construction and answered some general questions about the forthcoming business before the license was approved. The first Legal C Bar was opened at Logan Airport, and there is also currently one down Route 128 at Legacy Place in Woburn. Still, Berkowitz noted that just because there are already a couple of Legal C Bars, the one in Lynnfield will not be a carbon copy of them. "Our idea is, we don't like the same exact…
Nameless Conservative
7:45 am on Saturday, March 2, 2013
A hundred years ago almost everyone had a horse to get around so please also take a look at ordinances involving them. Not only am I curious to learn what it was like, (beyond what I already know such as the problem of summertime urban stench and horse flies that a great uncle of mine told me about many years ago), we could see a rebound to horses if moronic climate zealots get their way to 'save… more ›