Grant Funding Keys FY24 Projects

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      The Mattapoisett Capital Planning Committee met on Monday night to continue their work in crafting an updated, 10-year plan, part of which now displays projects and any associated grants. Town Administrator Mike Lorenco shared details on a variety of grants the town has received or is pending approval.

      First on the list was a $260,000 Complete Streets Grant from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. The grant has been used to fund upgrades to bike-path intersections, electronic speed signs used for traffic calming and a planned sidewalk at the north end of Pearl Street.

A MassTrails grant in the amount of $120,000 from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation is being used to create a pre-engineering design of bike path Phase 2A. A state grant program for municipalities seeking assistance in upgrading fiber-optic conductivity was granted to Mattapoisett in the amount of $154,043. The Old Slough Road reopening plan applied for and received two grants totaling $614,902, one of those a Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant.

      The National Estuary Program (NEP) grant in the amount of $35,000 was secured to perform stormwater studies at outfalls located near Ship Street and Ned’s Point Road. The Long Wharf reconstruction project received two grants totaling $216,000 from the Seaport Economic Council, and the same agency has received an application from the town for $120,000 for the development of a Harbor Management Plan.

      The U.S. Economic Development Administration awarded Mattapoisett $735,000 for redevelopment of Industrial Drive. A Shared Streets Grant from MassDOT in the sum of $237,849 will be used to construct a sidewalk along a portion of Mattapoisett Neck Road. And last but not least, a Massachusetts Community Compact Grant of $60,000 is funding two studies performed by the UMass Boston Collins Center for the Transfer Station and school-consolidation analysis.

      In other business, the committee met with Harbormaster Jamie McIntosh to discuss the department’s FY24 capital needs. Listed in the plan is $45,000 to replace timber pilings, $30,000 for a Harbor Management Plan (the town’s share of a grant application to the Seaport Economic Council), $20,000 for floats and docks and $25,000 for dinghy docks. In discussing the Long Wharf project, Lorenco and McIntosh concurred that construction will not be imminent.

      The committee also met with Library Director Jennifer Jones. The library’s list includes $45,000 for new carpeting and $85,000 for historic slate-roof repair and restoration.

      The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Capital Planning Committee was not scheduled upon adjournment.

Mattapoisett Capital Planning Committee

By Marilou Newell           

Why Are We Here

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What is our purpose in life?

Maybe we are here to show God’s love to one another.

And to learn unconditional love.

Maybe we are here to love and nurture our families,

to care for and support them …

to teach them and to learn from them.

And to share their joys and sorrows.

Maybe we are here to learn to rise above

our pain and our illnesses …

to bravely face life with courage and fortitude.

Maybe we are here to learn to appreciate God’s wondrous creation

in all its glorious forms

for all living creatures.

Maybe we are here to be a friend to all …

to learn to forgive and ask forgiveness

to feel joy and laughter

and enjoy all that life has to offer.

            Editor’s Note: Hope Bradley Finley passed away on January 13 at age 95. The Mattapoisett resident was thrilled to have The Wanderer publish her poems and essays, something we will continue to do this winter.

By Hope Bradley Finley

Taber Library’s Tables of Content Fundraiser

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Come one, come all to the 4th annual Tables of Content dinner/book discussion fundraiser hosted by the Elizabeth Taber Library. On two nights, Sunday, May 7 and Friday, May 19, generous friends of the Library will host delicious dinners in their homes. Participants choose two books in order of preference from the Tables of Content list. You will be assigned to read one of the books. You will not know your dinner location until your host contacts you one week prior. Gather around the Table for an evening of delicious food, libations, laughter and conversations about the book you have read.

            Sunday May 7 Book List:

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

Travels with George: In Search of Washington and his Legacy by Nathaniel Philbrick

Metropolis by B. A. Shapiro

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

            Friday, May 19 Book List:

Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

Feather Thief by Kirk Wallace Johnson

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou

Horse by Geraldine Brooks

            Choose your book and sign up early to reserve your place at the Table. Tickets are $75 per person. Registration deadline is March 17. Registration forms are available at the Library or on the Library website www.elizabethtaberlibrary.org. Please mail or deliver your check and registration form to the Library. Any dietary restrictions should be indicated with your reply.

Fire Truck Slides down Rankings Ladder

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            Casey Barros and Dick Giberti of the Capital Improvements Planning Committee presented Tuesday night to the Marion Select Board, working off of CIPC Chairman Paul Naiman’s letter on the committee’s FY24 project rankings and 10-year plan.

            As Giberti explained, the CIPC confines its interest to projects costing at least $10,000 with a useful life of at least five years. The committee, made up of Barros, Giberti, Naiman, Steve Nojeim, Dave Janik, Finance Committee Representative Bill Marvel and Select Board Representative Randy Parker, interviews all department heads making capital requests, exhaustively scrutinizing each department’s pitch with an end game to provide the Finance Committee and Select Board credible results borne of legwork, research and deliberation.

            Ability to fund projects plays a role in the CIPC’s rankings.

            This year, the CIPC divided its FY24 rankings into two categories: requests related to the Department of Public Works and those that are not DPW-related. The reason for the division, explained Barros, is funding scores will be higher across the board for DPW requests due to enterprise funding. If combined into one rankings list, “the others fall by the wayside,” he said.

            Interim Town Administrator Judy Mooney told the CIPC representatives that the town will see how much funding it can dedicate toward the projects. “All these sewer projects cannot be funded, I know that right off the bat,” said Mooney. “Based on your rankings, where does the money stop? That’s it.”

            Some enterprise funding must be used for sewer betterments so it cannot be used for capital projects.

            “This team does a super job,” said Parker.

            Thirty projects totaling $3,700,000 were submitted by town department heads and the ORR School District. Fourteen were submitted by the DPW for almost $1,300,000, 16 more totaling $2,600,000 were submitted by the Police, Facilities, Schools and the Council on Aging.

            Funding for all 30 capital projects would come from: General Fund $1,125,000, Sewer Enterprise Fund $740,000, Water Enterprise Fund $287,000, Mariner Enterprise Fund none and Debt $1,600,000.

            A notable slider down the rankings ladder is a Fire/EMS Ladder Truck listed at $1,600,000 (though Parker said that number is now down to $1,000,000.) In examining pros and cons of buying used versus new, Barros noted that all fire trucks built from 2012 to 2019 “are deficient” as in prone to rotting out due to a stainless-steel component.

            The Ladder Truck would require Marion taking on more debt that would affect the tax rate. The CIPC’s recommendation is that the Finance Committee and Select Board consider grant funding and used equipment.

            A large swell of supporters packed into the Police Station conference room for a public hearing that ended in enthusiastic applause when the Select Board voted to grant Cast, the new restaurant at 7 Cottage Street, an on-premise, all-alcohol beverages license.

            The owner, Bree Swierkowski, owns and operates Ella’s Italian Restaurant on the Cranberry Highway in Wareham. “I love the history of the building and everything it represents. We’ve done a lot of research and plan on honoring the history of that building,” she said.

            During public comment, Cottage Street abutters Martha Woodward and Ann Ziegler articulated concerns about noise and street parking.

            Swierkowski assured them that the bar will be inside only, and there will be no new seating beyond 8:00 pm in order to comply with the 9:30 pm expiration of the license. She also said a sign will greet patrons asking for them to be respectful to the neighborhood.

            Select Board member Norm Hills explained that no one can limit public street parking. “It’s free for whoever shows up,” he said.

            Ziegler asked the town to consider a faux speed bump, at which point Mooney and Parker noted in stereo that Marion is amidst a program to lower speed limits throughout town-controlled roadways.

            “We’re excited to have the owners of Ella’s come to Marion. They’re upstanding people. I think this is a win-win,” said resident Margie Baldwin. “I understand the abutters’ concerns, but we can’t legislate parking. I applaud the fact they’re coming to town.”

            Holmes Street resident Jack Gierhart commented on the positive side of bringing people into town. “This would add an incredible amount to the community,” he said.

            In a relatively brief public hearing, the board voted to approve installation of a new Verizon/Eversource utility pole and anchor at the side of 2 Teel Street.

            The board voted to remove the interim tag and officially appoint long-time town employee Becky Tilden as the DPW director.

            The board publicly acknowledged Jon Witten’s letter of resignation as Marion’s lead legal counsel after 20 years representing the town. Witten will remain in the role of special counsel to bring closure to a couple of lingering matters and wrote that he will work with KP Law, Gorman and Mooney.

            Mooney indicated that KP Law’s Tim Zessin will take on the role of Marion’s lead counsel. Parker said that Amy Kwesell is also “very good.”

            Parker’s main concern is immediate accessibility, something he says the town had with Witten, even on weekends.

            Board of Assessors Chairman TJ Walker noted that the Town of Rochester is also losing its lead counsel (Blair Bailey) and that Marion should take a look at that town’s decision to go with a New Bedford-based firm. Marion is under contract with KP Law through June.

            In her Town Administrator’s Report, Mooney noted Geoff Gorman’s hire as new town administrator. Gorman will start March 1.

            In other business, the board voted to: approve the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission Annual Report for 2022; the appointment of Carl McDermott III as special officer, per request of Police Chief Richard Nighelli; approve Mooney as the certifying authority to file and authority to file final loan documents for the State Revolving Fund/Massachusetts Water Pollution Abatement Trust; approve Tabor Academy’s request for a Common Victualler License for the new Travis Roy Campus Center; accept Mallory Waterman’s resignation from the Historical District Study Committee and appoint Jill Pitman as her replacement; approve a $194.78 abatement at 9 Shellheap Road; deny an abatement request at 929 Point Road and approve a Water/Sewer commitment of $669.72 (final readings January 18.)

            The town’s Building Committee will meet Monday, February 13, at 4:00 pm to receive cost updates on the new DPW operations center construction from lead designer Will Saltonstall.

            The Stewards of Community Open Space will hold a public meeting on Thursday, February 16, at 7:00 pm at the Music Hall.

            The next meeting of the Marion Select Board is scheduled for Wednesday, February 22, at 6:00 pm.

Marion Select Board

By Mick Colageo

Nomination Papers Available in Marion

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            Norm Hills’ terms on both the Select Board and Planning Board will be up at Marion’s annual Town Election on Friday, May 12.

            On Monday, Marion announced that nomination papers are now available at Town Clerk Lissa Magauran’s office. Papers are due by Monday, March 20, for the signature-certification process.

            According to the press release, 30 rather than 20 signatures are required to get on the ballot for elected office, based on Massachusetts General Law Chapter 53, Section 6.

            The two seats occupied by Hills, the Planning Board chairman who is also the workhorse of the Bylaw Codification subcommittee, are among 12 open seats this year on seven different boards/committees in Marion.

            In addition to Hills, the terms of Planning Board members Chris Collings and Eileen Marum expire in May.

            Albin Johnson (Board of Health) and Peter Winters (Board of Assessors) will require election to seats they hold by appointment, but neither is a stranger to the process. Johnson is a founding member of the Board of Health, albeit retired until recently, and Winters is an experienced member of the town’s Finance Committee.

            Pat DeCosta’s term with the Assessors is also up this year.

            Nichole Nye-McGaffey is the lone Marion School Committee member whose term is up in 2023, and Margaret McSweeny’s term on the Old Rochester Regional School Committee will also expire this year.

            Three seats will be open on the town’s Open Space Acquisition Commission, as Amanda Chace and Mark Sylvia will require reelection to continue past May 12, and there is also a vacancy on MOSAC.

            For more information, call the town clerk at 508-748-3502 or email lmagauran@marionma.gov.

By Mick Colageo

Upcoming Events at the Elizabeth Taber Library

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The library is celebrating Black History Month. Visit all month long to find novels, histories, cookbooks, essays, graphic novels, picture books, crafts and more celebrating Black history and culture. In honor of Black History Month, the Excellent family is so excited to celebrate with the Elizabeth Taber Library on Friday, February 24 at 10:30 am for stories, songs and art celebrating Black history and stories.

            The 2nd Annual Lizzy T Trivia Night Fundraiser is on Friday March 24 at 7 pm. Gather a team of 5-6 members and compete in a battle of wits to benefit the library. Topics include local history, sports, pop culture and more. Find registration forms at the library or on our website, $200 team entry fee.

            Tables of Content Fundraising event, May 7 & 19 at 6 pm. A fundraising event that pairs a delicious dinner in a Marion neighbor’s home with a lively book discussion. Find registration forms, including available titles at the library or on our website.  Tickets are $75 per person.

            Friends of the Library coffee hour, Thursday, March 2 at 9:30 am. Learn more about the brand new Friends of the Elizabeth Tabor Library at our recruitment coffee hour.  Serve the community of Marion by supporting the library.

            Join us for story times every Wednesday (baby lap sit) and Friday (all ages) from 10:30-11:30.

            For more information on the Elizabeth Taber Library, visit us at www.ElizabethTaberLibrary.org or call us at 508-748-1252.

DIY Programs at the Mattapoisett Library

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Learn new skills at two fun DIY programs at the Mattapoisett Library this month. First, on Saturday, February 18 at 10:30 am, crafting enthusiasts can learn the art of finger knitting with a tutorial using our database Creativebug. No prior knitting experience is necessary to join. One skein of yarn is all that is needed, and that will be provided to each person who registers. Register online at mattapoisettlibrary.org as space will be limited. This event is recommended for older teens and adults.

            The Mattapoisett Sustainability Partnership will host a workshop on Saturday, February 25 from 10:30 am to 12:30 pm to demonstrate how to grow sprouts at home and have samples of sprout varieties to taste test. Sprouts are an easy crop to grow with little effort needed. Registration is not necessary; drop by to make a sprout jar at any time during the two-hour span.

            Have questions? Email the library at mfpl@sailsinc.org or visit mattapoisettlibrary.org to see all of the library’s upcoming events.

Black Artists We Should Know

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            There could not have been a better way to celebrate Black History Month than when Jill Sanford, art history expert and lecturer, gave her presentation titled, “African American Artists We Should Know” on February 1 at the Mattapoisett Council on Aging.

            Sanford’s art history presentations are so thoroughly researched and so tenderly shared one feels as if you’ve spent some time visiting with the artists themselves. While elaborating on artistic styles and forms, biographies of the artists are verbally painted by Sanford.

            Thus, on this day, the audience strolled back in time through Sanford, joining seven black artists whose talents were oftentimes overshadowed by racism and discrimination but ultimately were hailed as extraordinary, even visionary artists.

            Scipio Moorhead artistic contributions come down to a singular engraving created in the 1700s. Everything else he may have produced is dust in the winds of time. It is an engraving of a black woman, Phyliss Wheatley, a poet who wrote about Moorhead upon seeing his works; it demonstrates that this artist was a master. And but for that meeting between two black artists, the history of black artistic accomplishment would be poorer still. Moorhead lived in Boston.

            Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828-1901) was an orphan who lived between Boston and Providence. He was primarily self-taught. His style tended towards traditional realistic depictions of woodlands, fields and expansive vistas, but he would also give his hand to softer, more impressionistic renderings.

            Bannister submitted his painting The Oaks to a contest in London and won a bronze medal. However, when the judges learned the artist was not white, the award was withdrawn. Other artists in the running were so incensed by this injustice, they banded together and withdrew their paintings from the contest. Bannister’s medal was returned. Bannister would go on to earn artistic recognition, would also teach painting and supported early civil rights activities with his wife.

            Henry Ossawa Tanner (1859-1937) was the son of a minister and a mother who had escaped slavery through the Underground Railroad. From a young age, he wanted to pursue the arts and was accepted in 1870 to the Philadelphia Academy where he was the only black student. His paintings were said to be infused with light, radiant light, many on religious themes. Through the efforts of Joseph Hartzell, a white patron, an exhibit of Tanner’s paintings was held in Cincinnati. It failed to excite the public. Hartzell was so sure of Tanner’s artistic capabilities that he purchased all the paintings. This generous act financed Tanner’s studies in Paris.

            Sanford reflected that while Tanner was very patriotic. “He found that doing ordinary things in France felt comfortable.” Tanner’s paintings of people of color in everyday domestic settings was a first. People of color were rarely, if ever, the subject of artistic themes. One of the most famous of these is the Banjo Lesson. Tanner would soar to higher acclaim in the 1870s with his painting The Resurrection of Lazarus, which would receive an award at the Grand Salon, establishing him as an artist. And he would break social barriers, marrying Swedish-American opera singer Jessie Macauley. They remained in France.

            Horace Pippin (1888-1946) was a self-taught, wounded World War I veteran. He lost the use of his right arm during combat. To try and regain some use of his arm, he created collage-like paintings. His most productive years through the 1930s found him working in a folk-art style that was enjoying a renaissance. His was a linear style with a powerful sense of design and expressive use of color.

            Pippin’s work would be noticed by N.C. Wyeth, who along with Christian Brinton would arrange a solo exhibit at the West Chester Community Center in 1937, launching Pippin into national attention. Sanford said, “He brought a slice of black life into the white community.” And he did use his art to make declarative statements about discrimination in the country. His painting of the hanging of John Brown is one such example, along with another titled, Lincoln the Liberator.

            Female sculptor Augusta Savage (1892-1962) knew cruel times at the hands of her father as a child. She desired artistic expression so much so that she used the red clay of her Florida home to create small animals and other figures. But her father was having none of that. “He nearly beat the art out of me,” she is quoted as saying. Yet she persisted.

            Savage left home as a 15-year-old wife and soon thereafter, a mother. Savage went to school where she was encouraged by the principal to continue sculpting, later teaching and winning a local contest. Good fortune would come her way when she received a scholarship to Coopers Union. However, the all-white school did not accept her entry graciously. Still she persisted, eventually heading to France to study at the Fontainebleau. While there, she would meet E.B. Dubois, who commissioned her to do a bust of his head. Over time, she would return to the U.S. where she set up shop in Harlem at the height of its renaissance, teaching other black artists and earning broad respect for her artistic achievement.

            Savage’s works were never cast in bronze, a very costly process. Instead, it was plaster that she painted to resemble metal that would be her medium. Thus, when she was commissioned to create an entranceway statue to the Negro American Pavilion at the New York World’s Fair in 1939, it was done in plaster. Nothing remains today of the more than 10-foot-high sculpture titled Lift Every Voice and Sing, except for the small replicas sold in the shops at the fair. Photographs of the statue reveal it was a grand representation of the repressed African American’s ability to remain strong by holding each other up and having faith that a better day was coming.

            Aaron Douglas (1899-1979) was inspired by his parents to pursue the arts. When he read that blacks were incapable of creating art, he was infuriated. Douglas would go on to become a prominent artist-illustrator during the Harlem Renaissance and was dubbed the “Father of African-American art.” His images are of the jazz age and the people who populated Harlem at that time.

            Douglas’ stepping stones to success include earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in fine art from the University of Nebraska in 1922. He would teach art at Lincoln High School in Kansas City, Missouri. Douglas’ painting style was modern cubism with an international, avant-garde approach. Figures were two-dimensional but full of movement. Abstractions were used to enhance the emotional narrative of his paintings. His painting of Harriet Tubman bringing people out of slavery through the Underground Railroad is a prime example of the artistic heights Douglas achieved.

            And last but by no means least, Sanford gave us Jacob Lawrence (1917-2000), who became a prominent artist and student of Augusta Savage. He received a commission to paint 10 panels depicting the great migration of black people from the south – he would end up painting 60.

            The Smithsonian website states of Lawrence’s art, “… a social realist … (painted) the African American experience in several series devoted to Toussaint L’Overture, Frederick Douglas, Harriet Tubman, life in Harlem and the civil rights movement of the 1960s.” His crowning achievement could be the creation of the 60-panel series on the great black migration from the south in 1941 when he was just 20 years old. In 2017, they were valued at $6,000,000.

            The panels show us masses of people on the move carrying all their possessions, carrying their babies, carrying their own, tired, travel-weary souls towards the promise of work, food, shelter and freedom. There are the troubling scenes depicting crowds on railroad platforms, crowded trains, tenant farmers receiving harsh treatment and lynching. Yet, in spite of the threats, the loaded trains kept coming.

            Lawrence’s style has been called expressive cubism, chunky, puzzled together blocks of color creating images of lives lived during great transitional, social timeframes in a country still grappling with its history of oppression and eternal human quest for inclusion laced with hope.

            Sanford encouraged her audience to research these artists and other black artists whose talent is a gift to the world at large.

Mattapoisett Council on Aging – Art for Your Mind

By Marilou Newell

Winter Work Won’t Disturb Turtles

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The Rochester Conservation Commission began its February 7 meeting by approving a Standard Order of Conditions for the plan at 119 Dexter Lane to thin out the undergrowth and overgrowth in the non-wetlands area of the parcel.

Conservation Agent Merilee Kelly reported to the board that Natural Heritage has asked property owner Jon Roth to get the work done during the winter to avoid disturbing turtle habitat there.

Roth said some clearing has already been done, and he wants the Conservation Commission’s endorsement to complete the work by March 31 because of Natural Heritage’s order. Commission Chairman Christopher Gerrior said a Standard Order of Conditions will work for this project, and the board unanimously approved a motion to grant it.

Next, builder Ryan Correia was granted certificates of compliance for two projects. At 1008 Walnut Plain Road, a single-family home has been reconstructed on an existing foundation, and an existing, failed septic system has been decommissioned. At 114 Mendell Road, a single-family home has been constructed, along with associated road grading within 100 feet of a bordering vegetated wetland.

At the Walnut Plain Road site, Kelly said she spotted a big puddle in the center driveway. Correia said the site’s septic system is not located there but in the side yard. Gerrior said he has not seen the original Order of Conditions but was comfortable enough to entertain a motion for approval of the certificates.

The commission then approved a Certificate of Compliance for 113 Hartley Road and its construction of a road and associated grading within 100 feet of a buffer zone. It is the site of the Gilmore Cranberry Company.

Next, a proposal to upgrade an existing pump house within the 100-foot wetland setback at 90 Stevens Road received a Negative Determination of Applicability, meaning the commission has decided the plan will not impact wetlands. Dan Flores of SFC Engineering explained the plan is to demolish the pump house that is below ground and replace it with a 10-foot-tall, “garden shed” above-ground pump house on the same foundation.

Gerrior asked the board to decide whether it should grant the project a Positive Determination, meaning the panel will have to follow the construction process, or the Negative Determination that judges there would be no wetlands effects. Board members unanimously agreed to the Negative vote.

The next topic was whether the commission should advise the Select Board to purchase 115.12 acres of land off High Street that is being taken out of Chapter 61A agricultural protection. The board agreed not to recommend the acquisition because 10,000 square feet of the parcel will soon be leased as the site of a wireless telecommunications tower.

The commission ended its meeting with a message. Board member William Clapp noted he has seen a lot of roadside trash in Rochester, and he was recently told by the Women’s Club that its annual Earth Day trash pick-up day attracts no more than 40 volunteers each year. “And that is not enough manpower for the job,” Clapp said. “I want to see more participation. Create incentives for participation.”

Gerrior said more people should come out. He told The Wanderer that the commission will now start that crusade of urging more volunteers to join the cleanup next time.

The next meeting of the Rochester Conservation Commission will be held on Tuesday, February 21, at 7:00 pm in the Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School Library.

Rochester Conservation Commission

By Michael J. DeCicco

Mattapoisett Annual Town Election Information

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Nomination papers are available for Mattapoisett’s Annual Town Election, which will be held on Tuesday, May 16. The offices that are up this year include Town Clerk, Select Board, Assessor, Mattapoisett School Committee, Old Rochester Regional School Committee, Moderator, Board of Water/Sewer Commissioners, Library Trustees, Board of Health, Community Preservation Committee, Planning Board and Housing Authority. Those considering a run for office have until March 24 to obtain nomination papers. Please check the town website or call the Town Clerk’s Office at 508-758-4100 X 2 for any questions regarding the upcoming election.