Selectboard Update
Summer is over and your Town Government is busy! The Highway Department has been making great progress in repairing all the damage from the September 11 downpours. At this point, all the roads are open again. DPW Superintendent Ben Metcalf and his team received assistance from many sources. Holden not only provided people and equipment, they also helped arrange for mutual aid from Worcester County Highway. Many thanks to Holden Town Manager Peter Lukes, Holden DPW Superintendent John Woodsmall, Worcester County Highway Director John Woodsmall, and Worcester DPW Director/Commissioner Jay Fink. We also received assistance from Micky Splaine of MassDOT Bridge who was on scene evaluating roads and bridges and keeping District 3 in the loop. MassDOT brought in needed signage for detours and road closures. MEMA, several local towns, and local contractors Sean Conway and Brian Cheney of BBC Excavating aided in the repair efforts. Facilities Manager Phil Connors helped out the short-staffed Highway Department. We would also like to thank the Crowley family for their assistance with repairs to Mile Hill. Town Administrator Sherry Patch and Ben Metcalf recently submitted Initial Damage Assessment Reports to MEMA as a first step in receiving reimbursement for many of the expenses that are eligible because Governor Healey declared Worcester County a disaster area.
Some of you may have already met the two newest members of our Police Department. Officer Nicholas Nuttall joined us from Assumption College and graduated from the full-time Police academy in June and is working as a part-time officer. Officer Cruiser from Belhaven Labradors is our new Comfort Dog and is working closely with Officer Holly Doyle. Part-time officer Fawn Russell will be graduating from the Full-time Police Academy in Boylston on September 29th and will become part of our full-time officer force. With these changes, the Police force now comprises Chief Paul Patriarca, Sergeants Rick Thebeau and Mike Traficante, full-time Officers Travis Russell, Holly Doyle, Matt Seymour and Fawn Russell, part-time officers Joeph Cecchi, Paul Quinn, Kevin White, Rob Sargood, Bill McGuiness, and Nicholas Nuttal, Administrator Diane Lemon, and Comfort Officer Cruiser. The Department is actively recruiting an additional full-time officer and one or more part-time officers.
There have been staff changes in other parts of our Government:
Linda Hetu recently joined us as the Building Department Administrative Assistant and as the Assistant Town Clerk. She and Town Clerk Alissa Horsung have been in training for the upcoming elections in October and November.
Tax Collector and Treasurer Jim Dunbar has announced that he will be retiring in December. Melissa Hawthorne, who recently became a certified Massachusetts Municipal Treasurer and will graduate from the Isenberg School of Management at UMASS-Amherst in the spring with a BBA in Finance, will take Jim’s place. Melissa has been serving as the Assistant. Treasurer Collector since 2019. Kolette Carleton, who has been doing our accounts payable as well as providing administrative support to the DPW Department, Planning Board and Conservation Commission will be moving over to become the Assistant Tax Collector and Treasurer. Sherry Patch is actively recruiting for someone to replace Kolette, an Assistant to the Town Administrator, and a Town Accountant.
The Council on Aging recently hired a new Administrative and Program Assistant. Kelly Avani has extensive experience working with seniors after her time with Aging Services of N. Central MA and will be a great asset to the Town.
The Selectboard recently accepted the resignation of Jaime Greenland from the position of Parks and Recreation Director. The Board will be focusing on recruiting for the Parks and Recreation Commission and working with them to determine the future of the Department. Jamie has already applied for a position on the Commission and is ideally suited to help guide the Department.
The Highway Department is struggling to maintain its workforce. It is a very competitive environment currently and employees move frequently between departments. Sherry Patch and the Board will be working with Ben Metcalf on what, if anything, can be done to help with retention.
The Selectboard members have been focusing on their particular areas. Our newest member, Phil Gott, has been working closely with the Police and Fire/EMS departments. One item they have been discussing is metrics that we should be monitoring for the departments. Bob Cumming has been gearing up for his role as lead on the budget and took over as the lead in the Police Union negotiations from Richy Bisk. He has also been working on a couple of policies that the Board is considering adopting, one of which covers flags and government speech. Karen Cruise has been focusing on PFAS and the new Public Safety Building. The Board will be discussing a couple of difficult but important policies over the coming weeks. The first is how we communicate with residents and, in particular, whether or not we should have more of a presence on social media. Another is when and how we use GotoMeeting’s record feature. Which meetings and other sessions do we record? Who decides? How long are the recordings retained? Are they publicly posted or available by request only? As a reminder, the minutes of all public meetings are posted and are the official record of any meeting.
A quick perusal of recent Town-News postings is a good way to see some of the other areas in which the Board has been working:
Formation of EcoTourism Steering Committee to develop an ecotourism economic development strategy that respects, protects, and leverages the economic opportunities offered by Princeton’s natural rural character
Formation of Solar Farm Committee to continue the work of the Solar Farm Working Group in to advancing the goal of the Selectboard relative to successfully leasing the former Town landfill to a solar developer for the development and operation of a solar energy generation facility
Worcester Road Improvement Project Phase 1 which uses almost $500,000 in grant funds to add sidewalks and drainage improvements between PO Place and PMLD. These improvements are expected to stimulate more business in that area of town.