Sippican Woman’s Club

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The Sippican Woman’s Club invites members and guests to join our monthly meeting on Friday, February 9 at 12:30 pm. We will meet at our club house, 152 Front Street, Marion. Our program will be on Deer Ticks: One Bite Can Change Your Life, presented by Larry Dapsis, entomologist for Cape Cod Cooperative Extension, in addition to Blake Dinius, entomologist for Plymouth County Cooperative Extension.

Lyme disease is the most prevalent infectious disease in Massachusetts. The Town of Marion has the highest incidence rate of Lyme disease in Plymouth County followed by Rochester. The disease is now considered a public health crisis. In addition to Lyme, deer ticks can carry the pathogens which cause babesiosis, anaplasmosis, relapsing fever and powassan virus, all of which can be fatal and are on the increase.

Tick season is January to December. With above freezing temperatures and a break in snow cover, there will be deer tick activity.

This program will review the basic life cycle and ecology of deer ticks, the incidence rates and distribution of tick-borne illnesses, and the database under development on infection rates of ticks. A three-point protection plan will be presented: Protect Yourself, Protect Your Yard and Protect your Pet. Tick-borne diseases are preventable.

The Sippican Woman’s Club meets on the second Friday of the month (September through March) at 12:30 pm, with a finger foods served, followed by a business meeting at 1:00 pm and program at 1:30 pm. The meetings are held at The Sippican Woman’s Club, Handy’s Tavern, 152 Front Street, Marion. Parking is available at Island Wharf Road parking lot (across from the Music Hall). Guests may RSVP to: Info@SippicanWomansClub.org. For membership information, contact Jeanne Lake at 508-748-0619 or visit our website: www.sippicanwomansclub.org.

ORR Can Drive

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The Old Rochester Regional High School Transition Class is holding a can drive on February 5 between 7:30 am – 1:30 pm and 2:30 – 4:00 pm (Please note drop off times in order to avoid bus traffic).

Drop off your redeemable cans and bottles behind the school at the Junior High Media Center door. This is a perfect way to get rid of your empty cans and bottles from the Super Bowl. Thank you for your support.

If you can’t make the date, or if you have extra cans/bottles in the future, please contact Transition Teacher Becky Okolita at rebeccaokolita@oldrochester.org, and she will set up an alternative time for collection.

The can drive is hosted by Aidan Ridings and Ms. Okolita’s Transition Class.

From ‘Shut Case’ to Uncertainty

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Just three months ago, Marion Zoning Board of Appeals member Michelle Smith referred to 120 Front Street as a “shut case,” as board members on October unanimously agreed that Christian Loranger’s reconstruction of a two-family house should be considered a grandfathered two-family and exempt from a zoning bylaw, which prohibits multi-family homes. Now, on January 25, ZBA members started from scratch when forced to revisit the question after receiving a memorandum from town counsel telling them that a vote to approve a Special Permit for a two-family use was unlawful.

According to Attorney Barbara Huggins Carboni in her November 6, 2017 memorandum, the board could not grant a Special Permit for a two-family use without reviewing a specific proposal. Carboni wrote, “…[The] Board could not carry out its duties under the Bylaw … for issuance of a special permit without a specific proposal. The Board’s apparent vote to ‘approve’ a special permit was not valid for that purpose.”

On January 25, Loranger appealed Building Commissioner Scott Shippey’s denial for a building permit to reconstruct the two-family house, a denial based on two-family “use” and not based on the building plans, which Shippey stated did not increase any non-conformities of the structure. A Special Permit in that regard was not required.

After the board’s initial unanimous opinion that the house should be exempt from the zoning bylaw and considered a grandfathered two-family, Loranger discovered on January 25 that the board, which had previously agreed that there was no two-year “abandonment” of two-family use, had abandoned that opinion.

According to Chapter 230-6.1 of the bylaw, “A nonconforming use or structure which has been abandoned, or not used for a period of two years, shall lose its protected status and be subject to all the provisions of this Zoning Bylaw.”

Loranger went straight to Part A. of Chapter 230-6.1 that addresses applicability, arguing that because the house was built and was a proven two-family before the bylaw was adopted in 1954, then the bylaw does not apply to him, rendering the matters of “abandonment” and “non-use” moot.

And when he referred back to that October 26 meeting, the one when the board granted the house ‘grandfathership,’ he was stopped mid-sentence and told that anything discussed at that meeting no longer mattered, that this was a new hearing unrelated to the last one, and to “throw it out the window and start again,” as associate board member Tad Wollenhaupt put it.

As for Loranger’s interpretation of the bylaw, Town Counsel Carboni rebutted, saying, “I don’t think that is a clear statement of the law. There is no such thing as a … permanent grandfathering from the application of bylaws.”

What Part A of the bylaw means, said Carboni, “The use is protected, but that use can lose its protection.… There’s no such thing as a permanent exemption from application of the bylaw.”

“I don’t agree at all with town counsel’s assessment,” said Loranger. The first thing it says under Section 6.1, he said, was that no provision of the bylaw would apply to a structure or use built before the adoption of the bylaw.

“No provision of this Zoning Bylaw shall apply to structures or uses lawfully in existence or lawfully begun, or to a building or special permit issued before the first publication of notice of the public hearing…. Such prior, lawfully existing nonconforming uses and structures may continue, provided that no modification of the use or structure is accomplished, unless authorized hereunder.”

“This is the first sentence … ‘No provision stands,’” said Loranger. “It is very black and white; it is in the town’s bylaw.” He called town counsel’s interpretation of the bylaw “ridiculous,” but then later apologized for it.

But that part of the bylaw is only one of its parts, argued Carboni. There are seven other subsections to Section 6.1, which is where the language makes it clear, she said.

Shippey asserted that Loranger’s house, which he purchased in 2013, has been “abandoned” as it applies in the bylaw for over four years. Providing some history, Shippey said the house suffered a fire in 2010, and the previous owner was issued a building permit for repairs that were never completed. No one occupied the damaged house from 2011 until Loranger purchased it in 2013 – “So there’s two years right there,” Shippey said. “And now we’re in 2017…”

“It was grandfathered,” said Loranger. “I’m not arguing that it’s been less than two years … but it is grandfathered.”

Loranger’s argument wore thin on the board, although ZBA member Kate Mahoney said she could understand where Loranger was coming from.

Anyway, said Shippey reiterating his position, “That use in my opinion has been abandoned for two years.”

“If you don’t use it, you could lose it,” Shippey said.

So the fundamental question that night was not whether the bylaw applied to the project, but was the house’s two-family use abandoned for at least two years.

“I don’t see it as abandoned,” said Smith, noting that the prior owner was in the process of rebuilding the two-family after the fire and adding that Loranger then purchased the house with the intent of keeping it a two-family and took steps over time to work towards rebuilding the two-family.

Loranger said once he acquired the property in 2013, he was unable to move forward with rebuilding plans, starting with the Conservation Commission that Loranger said told him, “I was not to touch a blade of grass or a stick on that property.”

The property lies within a 100-foot wetlands buffer zone.

To make sense of Loranger’s progress and steps taken during the time since he acquired the property – steps that could possibly demonstrate that the use, per se, was not abandoned but only stalled – Wollenhaupt suggested Loranger return with a comprehensive timeline for the board to consider.

Loranger acquiesced, but he expressed his frustration.

“I bought the two family, [I’ve] been paying taxes on a two-family, I intend to use it as a two-family,” said Loranger. “People are arguing really hard against letting me use a two-family…”

He isn’t trying to open up a supermarket, Loranger said. “I don’t really see what the harm is in keeping it a two-family … why is everybody trying to tear it back to a single family?”

Chairman Marc LeBlanc said it would be one thing if Loranger bought the property and then sat on it doing nothing for several years. “Then our issue of abandonment would be much clearer,” LeBlanc stated. “But if we see you’ve been diligently trying … then we would have something physical to look at.”

ZBA member Bob Alves asked, if someone continued to pay taxes on a two-family residence, does that demonstrate abandonment?

“Just because you pay taxes on a piece of property doesn’t mean continued use,” said Carboni. “But that’s one piece of evidence [the board] could consider … This is the right conversation to have.”

LeBlanc opened it up to the audience at that point, which he commented was sparser than prior meetings.

Sandria Parsons of 24 South Street said, “I’m eager to see this accomplished so that my neighbor Mr. Loranger can build the house that he wants to build for his family and include a space for his in-laws to live … because I know it’s going to be beautiful.”

Parsons commented on “how long it takes a town to issue permits to do something which, seems to me, to be perfectly reasonable.”

Pretty much what she said, said Jonathan Chase of 102 Front Street. “I have no doubt it’ll be a tasteful structure.”

As LeBlanc discussed with town counsel options for the board to gather and consider more information to make its decision at the next meeting, Loranger said, “I’m just running out of time getting my family into a house. It just keeps going on and on and on and on; it just never ends.”

As the board was set to continue the hearing until the next meeting, ZBA member Betsy Dunn could not commit to being at a February 8 meeting without checking her calendar first, and Wollenhaupt said he would be absent on February 8.

Loranger would require a minimum 4-1 vote to be granted the Special Permit, so five voting members must be present.

The next meeting of the Marion Zoning Board of Appeals is scheduled for February 22 at 7:30 pm at the Marion Town House.

Marion Zoning Board of Appeals

By Jean Perry

 

Process This!

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We walked into the enormous health care collective, you know, those medical campuses where patients are herded through a maze of reception desks before landing in an exam room to wait. We had arrived to begin the “process.”

Now just for the record, my husband and I have become accustomed, as I’m sure you have, to the impersonal dispensing of modern-day medical care. Long gone are the days when you could knock on the neighborhood doctor’s kitchen door and see him eating his lunch as you peer through the screen door asking if you could come in with your small medical problem du jour. Today, we wend our way through the “process” before sitting vis-à-vis with someone who might actually be able to help us.

Alas, I miss the old days.

But there we were, an aging couple, feeling small, anonymous, and needing help. A health scare had sent us seeking attention, but first we had to go through the “process.”

Calling the doctor’s office is the first step in the process.

With my fingers sweating, I listen to, “Press 2 to make an appointment, press 3 to hear the message in another language, press 4 to hear the menu again.” I’ve learned how to bypass this step.

Here’s the trick: do nothing. Press nothing, and usually after about five minutes of listening to that lilting voice telling you where to go, you’ll hear something like, “…Or stay on the line for the next customer service representative.” Yippee, hope springs eternal. I may yet to speak to a real person sometime today.

Mission accomplished. Appointment made for the following day with the physician’s assistant working in my husband’s primary care physician’s office.

The following day after finding a parking spot three football fields away from the building we needed to get to, we got in line at the main reception desk.

“Date of birth?” the receptionist asks without looking up from her computer screen. “Name?”

Still no eye contact.

“Who are you seeing today?” Her voice has a slightly nasal monotone similar to the voice on the automated telephone system. She is still focused on her first love, the computer screen, while asking, “Did you go online to pre-register?”

She’s not looking at us as we look at each other in bewilderment, disgust, and horror. Did we miss a critical step in the “process?”

She hands my husband a tablet, you know, a computer tablet, and tells him that the “new process” requires that he register himself into the system using the tablet.

“You sit over there,” she gestures to a row of chairs where other people, people our age, are tapping on tablets and looking confused. I overhear a couple as they huddle over their tablet. The lady says to the man, “No, no you don’t keep hitting the buttons!”

My husband takes the tablet, muttering under his breath words I won’t repeat, as we find two empty chairs. We look at the tablet. It demands that we populate 1,000 fields of information – everything from name and birthdate, race, creed, and a question asking us to rate the experience of using the tablet.

Really?

I say to my husband, “Another bit of technology displacing humanity.”

After we finally see the PA, it’s determined that testing is necessary. She then informs us that a doctor can’t see my husband for eight weeks. “They’re booking into late January,” we are told by another staffer who also seems unable to look up from her computer screen into the faces of living, breathing, terrified humans.

As we walk the five kilometers back to our car, I say to my husband, “Well, we got some exercise anyway.”

He is not amused.

The truth is that, as much as we appreciate all that modern medicine can do towards granting us the most pain-free and disease-banished old age as possible, we don’t like the “process” at all. We don’t like the complicated telephone systems that require you carve out half a day’s schedule just to navigate its levels and layers. We don’t like not recognizing the receptionist or anyone in the doctor’s office because, heaven forbid, people working for ‘Big Medicine’ should be allowed to work full-time, earn retirement packages, and get to know their patients.

Medicine is, after all, now big business where labor efficiencies are measured, including the amount of time the doctor actually examines a patient and how many patients are booked in a day. It makes one feel like just a data byte in an algorithm stored in a virtual cloud in the space-time continuum. It sort of confirms the spiritual belief that we are “dust in the wind,” or even worse, part of an economic engine fueled by our medical needs.

This Mattapoisett Life

By Marilou Newell

Suspicious Man

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To the Editor:

To the VERY concerned neighbor on Mattapoisett Neck Road on Sunday, January 14, who called in to the police a “suspicious ‘man in camo’ waving his arms at cars and stepping into traffic.” That was me, a 53-year-old woman, walking my usual walk, a walk I’ve been doing on a regular basis for the past six years, without ever being stopped and questioned by, not just one, but two police cruisers with their lights flashing. What was so alarming to you, my coat, which I’ll admit, gets its fair share of attention (both positive and negative), but is hardly threatening – I think of it as “camo light” as it’s made by a company best known for its preppy, colorful rain boots. The fact that my arms were moving? I was dancing to the music playing in my headphones, perhaps more enthusiastically than I realized, but surely not worthy of a call to the police. As for stepping out in front of cars, thanks for your concern, but I learned years ago not to play in traffic. I was, simply, out enjoying the beauty that surrounds us in Mattapoisett and thinking, as I often do, how lucky I am to be able to live here.

Liz Garvey, Mattapoisett

 

The views expressed in the “Letters to the Editor” column are not necessarily those of The Wanderer, its staff or advertisers. The Wanderer will gladly accept any and all correspondence relating to timely and pertinent issues in the great Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester area, provided they include the author’s name, address and phone number for verification. We cannot publish anonymous, unsigned or unconfirmed submissions. The Wanderer reserves the right to edit, condense and otherwise alter submissions for purposes of clarity and/or spacing considerations. The Wanderer may choose to not run letters that thank businesses, and The Wanderer has the right to edit letters to omit business names. The Wanderer also reserves the right to deny publication of any submitted correspondence.

Take Your Child to the Library Day

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Joseph H. Plumb Memorial Library’s annual “Take Your Child to the Library Day” will take place on Saturday, February 3 from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm at the library located at 17 Constitution Way, Rochester.

Take Your Child to the Library Day is an international initiative that encourages families everywhere to take their children to their local library to learn about the importance of the library in the life of a child and to promote library services and programs for families.

Schedule of events:

10:30 – 11:15 am: Mr. Vinny’s Shadow Puppet Show. Join Mr. Vinny of the Toe Jam Puppet Band for magical storytelling using shadows. This is a very interactive, silly and surprising family-friendly show.

11:30 am – 1:30 pm: Library Scavenger Hunt “The Missing Book Mystery.” Follow clues to find the lost books.

12:30 – 1:00 pm: Meet Amos the Greyhound and get your “I Love Reading to Amos” bookmark. Read with Amos five times and receive a free book.

Also taking place throughout the day: Meet “The Book Whisperer.” She will tell you what you will read next. The Junior Friends will present “Library Show-and-Tell.” Meet members of the Board of Trustees and the Friends. See the library telescope, snow shoes, and ukulele. Earn tickets for prize drawings. The programs are sponsored by the Friends of Plumb Library.

For more information, call the library at 508-763-8600 or email info@plumblibrary.com.

Mattapoisett Police Officers to Carry NARCAN

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NARCAN (naloxone) will now be issued to all Mattapoisett Police Officers. Although the Mattapoisett Police Department has carried NARCAN on its ambulances for decades, the increase in opioid overdoses in Mattapoisett has increased drastically over the past few years prompting this proactive step of outfitting each Officer with NARCAN.

The opioid epidemic continues to increase and stretch across the United States and is not isolated to the larger communities and cities. In 2017, the Mattapoisett Police Department responded to approximately 20 opiate drug overdoses both non-fatal and fatal requiring the administration of NARCAN. As of January 23, 2018, the Mattapoisett Police Department has responded to four opioid overdoses already this year, all requiring the administration of NARCAN. The rise in overdoses is believed to be associated with the increase exposure and presence of fentanyl.

Fentanyl is a synthetic (manmade) opioid that is very similar to morphine. However, it is reported that fentanyl is 50-100 times more potent than heroin and morphine. Due to the increase of fentanyl use by drug dealers, it is difficult to immediately determine if the substance is heroin, fentanyl, or a mix of the two or other opioids. This unknown factor is a major contributor to the increase in opioid overdoses.

Similar to other drugs, fentanyl can be absorbed through the skin or inhaled if it becomes airborne, and due to its high potency it can be lethal in very small doses. As a result, police departments have seen an increase in overdoses including overdoses of police officers and first responders due to accidental exposures of fentanyl.

NARCAN is highly successful in reversing opioid overdoses and the police officers of the Mattapoisett Police Department will now be able to provide quicker treatment prior to the arrival of the ambulance increasing the chance of survival.

The Mattapoisett Police Department is part of the Plymouth County Outreach Program, which is a collaboration of Public Safety Agencies and Healthcare Providers. This program was created to help battle the ever-increasing opioid epidemic. Following an opioid overdose, a police follow-up visit is conducted within 12-24 hours offering guidance and possible treatment options. The program is not limited to individuals addicted to opiates, but it is also for anyone impacted by addiction.

Any family or individual experiencing or associated with opioid addiction is encouraged to obtain their own supply of NARCAN, which could be lifesaving to a family member or friend.

Bernadette “Bunny” (McQuade) Costa

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Bernadette “Bunny” (McQuade) Costa, 92, of Mattapoisett died January 12, 2018 at the Sacred Heart Home in New Bedford after a period of declining health. She was the wife of the late Edward L. Alves and the late Joseph Costa.

She was born in New Bedford, the daughter of the late Bernard L. and Florence (McCloskey) McQuade.

She resided in Mattapoisett most of her adult life. Prior to retiring she was a custodial worker at the Old Rochester Regional Junior High School. She was a communicant of St. Anthony’s Church in Mattapoisett.

She is survived by her daughter Catherine Clark and her husband Daniel of Milford, NH; her four sons Edward Alves and his wife Lynette of Mattapoisett; Joseph Alves and his wife Judy of Martinsville, VA; John Alves and his wife Diane of Dartmouth; Paul Alves and his wife Janet of Chocowinity, NC.

She is also survived by 14 grandchildren, 16 great grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.

She leaves her brother Bernard McQuade of Wareham and is predeceased by her sister Mary (McQuade) Evans.

There will be a memorial service in her honor at a future date.

The family would like to thank the entire staff at Sacred Heart Home for the loving care they gave to Bernadette during her time there.

Genevra M. “Jenny” Roderick

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Genevra M. “Jenny” Roderick, 52, of New Bedford, died January 26, 2018 in St. Luke’s Hospital. She was the daughter of the late Alfred and Priscilla (Santos) Roderick.

She was born in Wareham and lived in Marion and New Bedford. She graduated from Old Rochester Regional High School.

Ms. Roderick worked as a Massage Therapist at Gentle Touch Spa in Westport.

She enjoyed playing the guitar and karate but mostly spending time with her family. She was a member of Foursquare Family Gospel Church in Onset.

Survivors include 2 sons, Donald A. Roderick and his wife, LeeAnn of New Bedford and Andrew Roderick of New Bedford; her brothers and sisters, Alfred Roderick, Jr. of CA, Ronald Roderick of Marion, Matthew Roderick of CT, Joseph Roderick of Marion, Rita Roderick of New Bedford, Ellen Joseph of Woburn, Anna Norman of NC, Priscilla Roderick of CT, Jane Roderick of Marion and John Roderick of Roslindale; several nephews and nieces. She was the sister of the late Samuel and Ricardo Roderick.

Visiting hours are from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018 in the Chapman, Cole & Gleason Funeral Home, 2599 Cranberry Hwy., Wareham, followed by a service at 3:00 pm.

David S. Smarowski

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David S. Smarowski, 75, of Rochester passed away Monday, January 29, 2018 in his home with his family at his side. He was the husband of Lorraine (Ferro) Moniz.

Born in Schenectady, NY a son of the late Madeline (Goyette) Durante and the late Stanley Smarowski he lived most of his life in Wareham.

David graduated from Wareham High School. He later served in the United States Marines. After returning from the Marine Corp, he became a Wareham Police Officer and also served as a Wareham Sewer Commissioner. He was employed by Polaroid in New Bedford for 37 years until it closed in 2007. After his retirement, he worked part time as a sexton for the Mattapoisett Congregational Church.

He was a member of the Fall River DAV, the Sippican Rod & Gun Club, and the New Bedford Rod & Gun Club. David loved going to the shooting range.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by his daughters, Marrianne Rosario and her husband Richard of Weymouth, Regina Matthews of Wareham, Jana Hennessey and her husband Mark of Wareham and Melissa Smarowski of Wareham; a son, David C. Smarowski of Warehem; a sister, Shirley Smarowski of Wareham; a step daughter, Deborah Morrison and her husband James of Acushnet; a step son, Richard Moniz and his companion Lynn Cousens of Dartmouth; grandchildren, Nicole, Benjamin, and Julianne Matthews, Grace and Christopher Rosario, and Madeline and Abegail Hennessey; step grandchildren, Richard Adam Faria-Moniz, Jamie L. Moniz, and Luke J. and Ava R. Morrison; and former stepchildren, Matthew Hartley, John Mark Hartley, Shawn-Ann Schafler, and Dana-Lyn Hartley.

His funeral will be Saturday, February 3, 2018 11:30 am from the Rock Funeral Home, 1285 Ashley Blvd., New Bedford followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 12:30 pm in St. Rose of Lima Church, 282 Vaughn Hill Rd., Rochester. Burial will be private. Visitation will be Friday 4-8 pm.