Thursday, January 24, 2013
This Town Meeting article generated heat at Tuesday's selectmen meeting; Town Meeting to convene this coming Monday.
An electronic billboard on West Street, adjacent to Interstate 93. This article on the warrant for Monday’s special Town Meeting generated significant heat at Tuesday’s selectmen’s meeting. About 20 people urged the selectmen to reject a proposed zoning change to allow an electronic billboard on land owned by the Mobil station. The “hosting” fee the town could receive – between $25,000 and $50,000 a year, according to the article background - is insignificant, speakers said, compared with the anticipated loss of home values in the area because of a billboard. Woburn Alderman Darlene Mercer-Bruen also asked the town to join Woburn which, she said, has stood “strong and tall” against the “ugly” sign boards. Some people emailed their support …
Friday, December 7, 2012
Traffic pattern to change at Barrows Elementary School; traffic at Planet Fitness to be reviewed 11 months after opening.
Three Reading businessmen complained to the selectmen Tuesday about a new local regulation. The three sell used cars. Town Meeting this past spring adopted a bylaw that allows the police department to require people in certain businesses, including second-hand dealers, to submit to Criminal Offender Record Information – CORI --check. But CORI checks are not required for holders of all classes of motor vehicle licenses, Kevin Brown from Brown’s told the selectmen. Requiring small business owners to submit to a CORI check – and a driving history record – is “unconscionable,” said Brown, who said he has been in business here for 32 years. “We are overburdened” by regulations, said Charlie Gray. If car sellers who hold Class 2 motor vehicle …
Friday, September 21, 2012
Screening Committee to be formed by the end of the year.
How does a town go about hiring a new town manager? Especially when the town’s first manager has worked in that capacity for 26 years? Does the town conduct a search itself? Hire a consultant? A mix of both? A member of the Edward J. Collins, Jr., Center for Public Management at UMass, Boston, Stephen McGoldrick, met with the Board of Selectmen Wednesday night to discuss how to conduct the search and hiring process. The center offers executive recruitment services, among others, “to improve the cost efficiency and effectiveness of government.” Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner will retire this coming June 1. The selectmen will also invite another firm to meet with them by Oct. 2, their next meeting specifically on the town manager search…
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
All four won their election bids, and West pulled off that rarest of feats in Reading—knocking off an incumbent.
The early results are in for Reading’s local election, and while it looks John Arena has been elected to the Board of Selectmen by a sizable margin, the races for Board of Assessors and the Reading Municipal Light Department were much, much closer. According to unofficial results taken directly from the polls, Arena defeated challenger Karen Gately Herrick by a margin of 2,266 votes to 1,477—a gap of 789 votes. Arena said he felt gratified by the margin of his victory, but thinks he could have done even better. “Frankly, I think I could have kicked it up,” said Arena following his victory speech at RCTV Studios. “If I hadn’t had the work pressures, I think I could have campaigned a little more vigorously ... The trouble with a small town …
Friday, March 2, 2012
Ron D'Addario has written a letter of endorsement for Karen Gately Herrick's Board of Selectmen bid.
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Friday, March 2, 2012
I will vote for Karen Herrick this Tuesday, and I ask you to do the same. I have sat near Karen at town meeting for a number of years. Although we have not always voted the same way on various issues, I was always impressed with Karen’s knowledge of the issues. In addition to her years on town meeting, Karen has served on the Reading Solid Waste Committee, the Reading Tax Classification Committee, and the Reading Historical Commission. These are not necessarily high profile committees; nevertheless, they need volunteer residents to accomplish the needed town work. Without a spot light, Karen volunteered to do just that. Furthermore, with a youngster in our middle school system, Karen has served on a number of committees at the Wood End …
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Here is a full recap of all questions and answers from Tuesday night's debate at RCTV.
In what figures to be the last major campaign event before the March 6 local election, Board of Selectmen candidates John Arena and Karen Gately Herrick squared off in a debate last night at RCTV Studios on Main Street. Meanwhile, just a few hundred yards up the road, the Selectmen, Town Manager and the Assistant Town Manager bid farewell to Camille Anthony, as she chaired her final Selectmen meeting after 18 years. Arena and Herrick are vying to fill the seat Anthony is leaving behind. The debate was moderated by Kevin Vendt and Dick Curtis, and each candidate was issued to “rebuttal cards” to be used to respond to a statement, or to lengthen the allotted time for answers. A coin flip was used to determine who would field the first …
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RCTV Studios
557 Main St, Reading, MA
/articles/full-recap-of-selectmen-debate-at-rctv
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Wednesday, February 29, 2012
The Selectmen amended the town's parks and recreation bylaws by including a policy on amplified sound.
Tuesday night's meeting saw the Selectmen approve a policy that deals with all manners of amplified sound in parks, playgrounds and recreation areas. After review with Town Counsel, the Selectmen updated Rule 3 of the Rules and Regulations Relating to Parks, Playgrounds and Recreation Areas to include script regarding amplified sound. The amended section of the bylaw that denies drinking, gambling and other illegal acts while in public parks, playgrounds and recreation areas now includes bans against “solicit[ing] the acquaintance of or annoy another person or utter any profane, threatening abusive or indecent language or loud outcry; or solicit any subscription or contribution […] or make an oration or harangue or any political or other …
Selectman Camille Anthony retired from the Reading Board of Selectmen Tuesday night after 18 years of dedicated service.
It was a bittersweet meeting Tuesday night for Board of Selectmen Chairperson, Camille Anthony. After 18 years of service on the board (along with 12 years on the Conservation Commission), Anthony is stepping down and won't seek re-election. “She exemplifies the goals of civic engagement and she has made the town a better place, thank you,” said Selectmen, Ben Tafoya. Following more heartfelt comments from her peers, Anthony was presented with an adopted tree on behalf of the Selectmen. The gift was awarded by Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner as part of the Spring 2012 “Taking Root for the Future” Arbor Day campaign to help maintain Reading's beauty and sustainability. “It was her willingness to come at the issues without a personal …
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Reading Patch hosted a live blog from Tuesday's debate.
Two candidates, one vacant seat on the Board of Selectmen. John Arena and Karen Gately Herrick will go toe-to-toe this evening in a candidate debate at RCTV Studios on Main Street. The debate represents the best chance for voters to hear what the candidates are all about before the March 6 election. The debate will air at 7 p.m. and will be hosted by Kevin Vendt and Dick Curtis, who have hosted RCTV’s election coverage for the past five years. Can't tune in live on TV? No sweat. Reading Patch has you covered. We will be blogging live from the debate, starting at 7 p.m., so no matter where you are, if you're near a computer, you can follow along with the discussion as the two candidates vie for the privilege of serving as one of Reading's …
Friday, February 24, 2012
A group of local citizens have put pen to paper in support of Karen Gately Herrick for Board of Selectmen.
To the Editor: We are writing to voice our support for Karen Gately Herrick for a seat on the Board of Selectmen. We believe that Karen has the right combination of experience, education, proven commitment to the community through volunteer service, work ethic, and open mind to guide her to serve productively and successfully as a Selectman. These qualities have served her well in her years of service with Reading town government, and will continue to serve her as Reading faces some difficult challenges ahead. Knowledge of the issues. Karen is the candidate who has served 10 years as a Town Meeting member, and is the only candidate who has long-term experience evaluating the finances of the town and voting on the town budget. Karen served …
M
1:23 pm on Friday, February 1, 2013
Miriam you make good points re: the 0.75% meal tax, but you forget the most important ones (1) it is not just imposed on residents, everyone who comes to Reading pays this meal tax, which helps us all out; and (2) just about all of our neighboring towns charge it, too - and given the choice of the same restaurant in our town or another (e.g., McDonalds, Bertucci's, one of the many … more ›