Sturbridge 7-27-07 (Page 1) - Stonebridge Press and Villager ...

BY RYAN GRANNAN-DOLL
STAFF WRITER
With many Central Massachusetts communities
strapped for cash and the winter season
approaching, some are closing their town hall
buildings — or are at least considering doing
so as a way to save money.
Brookfield has already decided to close its
town hall on Fridays, while Auburn took a different
approach — closing its building by 6
p.m. every day.
These decisions come even as oil prices
have rapidly declined recently; some communities
are still considering ways to save on
energy consumed by their town halls.
Closing Charlton Town Hall would have various
consequences, according to Charlton
Selectmen Chairman Rick Swensen. The town
considered closing the building Fridays during
its last budget cycle, but ultimately chose
not to out of concern for town hall workers.
“That would affect people’s paychecks,”
Swensen said. “It’s how they pay their bills.”
The town hall building is open from 7:30
a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, but most
offices open at 7:30 a.m. and close at 12 p.m.
Fridays.
Making up a town hall workers’ hours elsewhere
during the week would cut into any savings
from closing Fridays, Swensen said, and
prohibits them from conducting town hall
business. Nonetheless, he said, it remains an
option for the future.
Brookfield went further than Charlton —
the town hall there will be closed every Friday
until April 3 next year, according to Donna
Neylon, the selectmen’s administrative assistant.
Selectmen voted on the measure in
September, she said.
“That’s one less day of fuel or electricity. We
may have to face budget cuts,” she said. “It’s
just one attempt to save money.”
Thermostats are already being turned down
in town hall, she said.
No Brookfield public workers are losing pay,
she said, because they are making up the
hours throughout the workweek.
Residents seem to have no problem with the
action and selectmen will consider the issue
again next spring, Neylon said.
“So far, we haven’t had any complaints,” she
said.
Auburn is taking a similar, but somewhat
different approach — closing its town hall by 6
p.m. each day to save on energy costs as of
Tuesday, Oct. 14. As a result, selectmen in that
town are being forced to find a new spot to
hold their meetings.
Southbridge Town Manager Christopher
Clark was clear about his town’s possibility
for closing the town hall:
“I’m not contemplating doing that,” he said.
Doing so would save little in fuel costs, he
said, while sending a literal chill through the
veins of town hall workers who conduct their
business during off-peak hours. He is, however,
trying to renegotiate electric and natural
gas rates for the town hall.
“That’s where we really save a lot of
money,” he said.
The fuel oil contract is already signed for
the season, he said.
In Sturbridge, according to Town
Administrator James Malloy, it is impossible
to know how much money closing town hall
on Fridays would save. Selectmen there have
discussed the possibility but have not taken
any action, he said. Right now, the town hall is
open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. every weekday.
“We would be doing it … for the purpose of
Friday, October 31, 2008
A four-day work week for Town Halls?
FRIDAY CLOSINGS A REALITY FOR SOME, OPTION FOR OTHERS
trying to conserve energy. There is no way you
James J. Malloy
can judge what the savings is going to be,”
Malloy said. “You wouldn’t know until you
actually closed. It would be an option.”
Ryan Grannan-Doll can be reached by phone
at (508) 909-4050, or by e-mail at rgrand@stonebridgepress.com.
Teresa Franco contributed to this report. She
can be reached by phone (508) 909-4136, or by e-
mail at tfranco@stonebridgepress.com.
Program aims to help Bay State towns go ‘green’
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BY CHRISTOPHER TANGUAY
NEWS STAFF WRITER
STURBRIDGE — On Wednesdy, Nov. 7,
Sturbridge Town leaders will receive a lesson
in keeping the community green.
The Massachusetts Green Communities
Act of 2007 is legislation “designed to provide
incentives for cities and towns to invest in
energy conservation and efficiency and many
other opportunities,” according to Geoffrey
Beckwith, Director of the Massachusetts
Municipal Association (MMA).
Officials all over the commonwealth will be
convening at different locations on Nov. 7 to
discuss the different facets of the act that set
a goal of 80 percent efficiency for all heating
and power systems by the year 2020.
“This is a statewide workshop that the
MMA is putting on, working with the
Executive Office of Energy and
Environmental Affairs for the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts,” Beckwith
said. “The workshop is designed to educate
local officials on the latest information and
news regarding the Green Communities Act,
and to talk about opportunities for cities and
towns.”
The Act outlines a plan to have all energy
consumption in Massachusetts reduced by 10
percent by the year 2017, through a series of
smaller, more attainable goals, annually set by
the Secretary of Energy and Environmental
Affairs.
Other goals identified in the act include a
reduction of all greenhouse gas emissions by
20 percent from 1990 levels by 2020.
Also by 2020, the Green Communities Act
aims to have all fossil fuel consumption in
buildings slashed by 10 percent from 2007 levels,
and to have no less than 20 percent of the
entire electricity demand in the commonwealth
generated through clean, renewable
resources.
The act also presents grant opportunities
for municipalities through the Massachusetts
Renewable Energy Trust Fund and the
Alternative Compliance Fund for assistance
in realizing their energy goals.
The November workshop is the MMA’s first
step in educating local leaders on the provisions
of the act, and sharing ideas on how the
aforementioned goals can be met on the local
level.
“This is just one in what we anticipate to be
many steps in the coming months and year
ahead for the MMA to work with local officials
to pursue opportunities in the interest of
communities and their local tax payers for
energy savings during a very difficult time,”
Beckwith said.
“The program is currently going through a
regulation and drafting stage at the agency
level so we will have agency officials there to
share directly with local officials the latest
information they have in terms of the form
that their programs will take,” he added.
Already looking to maintain the momentum
that they hopefully build up through the
November workshop, Beckwith said the MMA
plans to follow up with additional workshop
sessions in the near future.
“In addition to [the workshop] the MMA
will provide a number of breakout sessions
talking about the opportunities for energy
efficiency,” he said.
“We’ll be talking about some programs we
are putting in place in cities and towns to
maximize energy efficiency and reduce energy
usage and explore removals and other
offerings or opportunities for cities and
towns.”
Pursuit of the Green Communities Act falls
right in line with several other environmentally
friendly projects Sturbridge is currently
engaged in, such drafting of the town’s first
Open Space Residential Design bylaw, which
would provide incentives to developers who
integrate tracts of open, natural space into
domestic development plans.
News staff writer Christopher Tanguay may
be reached at (508) 909-4132, or by e-mail at
ctanguay@stonebridgepress.com
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• STURBRIDGE VILLAGER 3
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Confirmed fact errors will be corrected at
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PUBLIC MEETINGS
Regional
TUESDAY, NOV. 4
The Tantasqua Regional School District
Personnel Subcommittee will meet at 7 p.m.
in the Superintenden’t Conferene Room at
the Junior High School.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 5
The Technical Subcommittee of the
Tantasqua Regional School District will meet
at 7 p.m. in the Superintendent's conference
Room.
Holland
SUNDAY, NOV. 2
The Library Trustees will meet at 9 a.m. in
the Public Library.
TUESDAY, NOV. 4
Election Day. Polls Open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
(CHECK)
The Planning Board will meet at 7 p.m. in
Town Hall.
The Zoning Board of Appeals will meet at 7:30
p.m. in Town Hall.
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 5
The Council on Aging will meet at 10:15 a.m.
in the Senior Center.
The Board of Selectmen will meet at 7 p.m. in
Town Hall.
FRIDAY, NOV. 7
28 Riedell Rd, Off Rte 16, Douglas MA 01516
508-476-7664
Mon-Fri 10am - 6pm (open Labor Day)
Sat & Sun 12 - 4pm
The Private Roads Committee will meet at 7
p.m. in Town Hall.
Sturbridge
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 5
The Sturbridge Council on Aging will meet at
10 a.m. in the Senior Center.
The Planning Board will meet at 6:30 p.m. in
Town Hall.
THURSDAY, NOV. 6
The Finance Committee will meet at 7 p.m. in
the Senior Center to discuss issues related to
the FY09 and FY10 budget prior to meeting
with the Selectmen.
Wales
MONDAY, NOV. 10The Planning Board will
meet at 7 p.m. in Town Hall.
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HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT
BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION?
ARE YOU FACING
MORTGAGE FORCLOSURE? CAR REPOSSESSION?
BURDENSOME CREDIT CARD OR MEDICAL BILLS?
Even though the bankruptcy laws have changed in the past several years,
relief is still available in these difficult times for people caught in debt.
For a free, private consultation, contact:
James J. Kaeding, Attorney at Law
12 Crane Street, Southbridge, MA 01550
(508) 764-3303
Email: jkaeding@southbridgelaw.net
MEMBER:
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY ATTORNEYS
Under federal law, we are a “debt relief agency” helping people who seek bankruptcy protection.