Town Hall sources who are knowledgeable in town history have given Sam
Obar 180 exclusive information. Apparently, many decades ago, a time
capsule was buried under the old Stone School. Today, the school no
longer exists, however, the land is supposed to become the new home of
the Walpole Public Library very soon.
I am asking for the public's help in trying to find out more information about this time capsule. It must be found before the new library is built.
Not very much information is known at this point, although my sources are doing their best to research it. More information will be brought to Sam Obar 180 when it is known. It is believed that the Historical Society and Historical Commission may work as well to try to find the capsule.
I am asking for the public's help in trying to find out more information about this time capsule. It must be found before the new library is built.
Not very much information is known at this point, although my sources are doing their best to research it. More information will be brought to Sam Obar 180 when it is known. It is believed that the Historical Society and Historical Commission may work as well to try to find the capsule.
On the list of 2008-2009 Goals and Objectives for the Board of Selectmen, the following is listed as a goal:
"Explore the possibility of establishing rail trail bike paths."
Indeed, Walpole has several areas of abandoned railroad beds, including some that cross Industrial Road, Plimpton Street, Common Street, and South Street.
Additionally, Walpole happens to own a lot of land that could potentially connect these areas.
A bike trail connecting these areas could be financed and maintained by allowing businesses to sponsor separate portions of the trail and having small billboards up along the trail. Grants may also be available.
Here is a map that I created of what one such bike path might look like in an ideal Walpole. This may or may not be doable. The blue indicates a trail going over land the town already owns, whereas the red-orange is land that may or may not be already owned by the town.
"Explore the possibility of establishing rail trail bike paths."
Indeed, Walpole has several areas of abandoned railroad beds, including some that cross Industrial Road, Plimpton Street, Common Street, and South Street.
Additionally, Walpole happens to own a lot of land that could potentially connect these areas.
A bike trail connecting these areas could be financed and maintained by allowing businesses to sponsor separate portions of the trail and having small billboards up along the trail. Grants may also be available.
Here is a map that I created of what one such bike path might look like in an ideal Walpole. This may or may not be doable. The blue indicates a trail going over land the town already owns, whereas the red-orange is land that may or may not be already owned by the town.
This week's Walpole Times featured an off-base and highly outrageous op-ed by Mr. Jeffrey Szymanski, the president of the Walpole Teachers Association, and a history and economics teacher at Walpole High School. Mr. Szymanski is also a Republican and lives in Providence. He openly criticized Walpole's business climate, declared that Walpole is waging an "assault" on education, and proposed a variety of new taxes and fees none of which he is willing to pay for himself.
To begin with, some intelligent individual over at the Times decided that the headline for his column should be "Working together is the only way." Alas, if one actually reads what Szymanski has written, they would see immediately that he does not propose working together. He proposes laying all the blame on the taxpayers for not doing enough to support the schools, and proposes increasing taxes and fees and not sharing any of the responsibility for enabling our schools to recruit and keep the best teachers.
He writes, "We'll need all town employees, the superintendent, School Committee, Board of Selectmen, town administrator, parents and all taxpayers to come together and creatively find a way to do their part." Notice how he fails to mention "unions" or "teachers" like himself. As someone who doesn't live remotely near Walpole, who represents a union made up substantially of people who also don't live even remotely near this town, he doesn't appear to actually have any desire to be part of the solution of lowering class sizes and increasing the quality of Walpole education. He prefers instead to stir up the flames, which he has done on more than one occasion.
Mr. Szymanski then has the gall and the chutzpah to propose, even as an anti-tax Republican, that the town "enact the hotel and meals add-on tax with all deliberate speed." He then openly criticizes the Walpole business climate by saying: "I know the "other side's" argument. It will make Walpole appear anti-business. Too late. That perception has been around for a decade or more."
Actually, Mr. Szymanski, this has perception has not been around for a decade or more and I take offense to that. As someone who has never lived in Walpole, let alone this state, how would you know? I agree that Walpole is anti-business, but at least I am a Walpole resident who has lived in this town all my life and have seen first hand how businesses can not survive here.
In 2004 and 2006, Szymanski himself ran for State Rep. in his hometown of Providence. Needless to say, he lost, but not without dragging Walpole in.
In 2006, he ran on an anti-tax platform against an entrenched Democrat. A website called DemocratsforSzymanski.com, set up in 2006, states: "Here's a question you might ask yourself: Isn't it time we tried to lure entrepreneurs to Rhode Island, since they are the engines of economic development? Maybe [Szymanski's opponent, Joanne Giannini] should spend a day in Jeff Szymanski's high school economics class!" Perhaps Mr. Szymanski should spend some time in his own economics class. He has just proposed higher taxes for businesses in the very town his high school economics class serves, and justifies it by asking, "Has anyone really ever chosen a restaurant based on what the sales tax on the bill would be?"
Further, the website states, "Jeff will advocate for senior citizens, working men & women, our children, our libraries, and taxpayers." I don't think so. Based on his op-ed in this week's Times, it would appear that he advocates for teachers and teachers only. Forget about taxpayers.
The website goes on even more: "Jeff thinks it is time to get rid of Rhode Island's position as a top ten highest tax state. High taxes hurt the poorest of our citizens, and Jeff understands this." No, apparently he doesn't, because he has just proposed a multitude of new taxes and fees in the Times this week. He further admitted that he "can't afford to live here," yet is still okay with proposing even higher taxes anyway.
What a hypocrite! No wonder he lost! He had better hope that if he ever runs for State Representative again, none of his opponents will dig up this nasty little column from the Times and use it against him.
He adds insult to injury by suggesting that the town "actually promote the extra 1 percent by encouraging Walpole citizens to patronize local eateries." Does Szymanski have the mistaken belief that Walpole residents do not already support local eateries? Forgive him - he does not live in Walpole, or even Massachusetts. He has not visited Finnegan's Wake or Westbury Farms on a weekend.
He says, "I feel the need to at least remind all that the governor's $750,000 prison mitigation cut in late 2008 has left a permanent hole in Walpole's town budget. It rankles me to see leaders in Walpole failing to acknowledge this at every possible opportunity and instead pointing fingers at teachers, custodians, secretaries, food service workers, and others, as if they caused the problem because they're paid too much." Actually, I have never seen anybody point any fingers at teachers, custodians, secretaries or anybody else. WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY. We understand the prison mitigation money has been cut, no thanks to you. We HAVE been acknowledging this at every opportunity. We symbolically cut off EMT services to the prison. Our resident state senator filed legislation to have the prison provide their own emergency services. We have been forceful and angry about the funding cuts. We have not been pointing fingers at you or your union. We have been respectfully asking you to make valuable investments in education by securing the jobs of some of our teachers by taking a furlough day. Teachers are not paid too much. No one has ever said that or implied that. However, we in Walpole recognize that the state has had to cut local aid and prison mitigation money because WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY.
Mr. Szymanski also has the gall to mock Walpole's starting teacher's salary and connects it to the lack of interest in teaching from this year's graduating seniors. "I hypothesize today's seniors, with the mountainous college debt many will wrack up, don't want to enter a profession that starts at $37,000. That's Walpole's starting pay this year," he writes. Mr. Szymanski, if you are unhappy with your salary, please find another town to find a job in. While it has long been known that Walpole pays its teachers less than other area towns, why don't you put your money where your mouth is and go to one of those towns that you seem to believe is a paradise. And take your tax proposals with you, please. I will repeat what I have said numerous times, WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY. I expect that other towns in the area would also be unable to pay teachers the starting salary you seem to have in your fantasy world.
Mr. Szymanski concludes his so-called "Commentary" with: "In sum, let's all roll up our sleeves and get to work to protect education from the current assault, lest our school system be irreparably harmed in 2010-11. Our kids deserve it. The schools took a big hit this year, and it's being felt with far fewer programs and much larger classes. The upcoming hit could be the knockout punch. I'm ready. The teachers I represent are ready. Who else is ready?" I certainly am NOT ready for his new taxes and fees.
I would hope that the Walpole Teachers Association would have the common sense to remove Mr. Szymanski from any leadership position within their union. He is destroying his own credibility, and in the process is destroying the credibility of his union. I support unions, and I support education. But I do not support higher taxes, and many other Walpole residents don't either. The Mr. Szymanski of 2006 would have understood this. Unfortunately, the Mr. Szymanski of today does not. What a shame.
To begin with, some intelligent individual over at the Times decided that the headline for his column should be "Working together is the only way." Alas, if one actually reads what Szymanski has written, they would see immediately that he does not propose working together. He proposes laying all the blame on the taxpayers for not doing enough to support the schools, and proposes increasing taxes and fees and not sharing any of the responsibility for enabling our schools to recruit and keep the best teachers.
He writes, "We'll need all town employees, the superintendent, School Committee, Board of Selectmen, town administrator, parents and all taxpayers to come together and creatively find a way to do their part." Notice how he fails to mention "unions" or "teachers" like himself. As someone who doesn't live remotely near Walpole, who represents a union made up substantially of people who also don't live even remotely near this town, he doesn't appear to actually have any desire to be part of the solution of lowering class sizes and increasing the quality of Walpole education. He prefers instead to stir up the flames, which he has done on more than one occasion.
Mr. Szymanski then has the gall and the chutzpah to propose, even as an anti-tax Republican, that the town "enact the hotel and meals add-on tax with all deliberate speed." He then openly criticizes the Walpole business climate by saying: "I know the "other side's" argument. It will make Walpole appear anti-business. Too late. That perception has been around for a decade or more."
Actually, Mr. Szymanski, this has perception has not been around for a decade or more and I take offense to that. As someone who has never lived in Walpole, let alone this state, how would you know? I agree that Walpole is anti-business, but at least I am a Walpole resident who has lived in this town all my life and have seen first hand how businesses can not survive here.
In 2004 and 2006, Szymanski himself ran for State Rep. in his hometown of Providence. Needless to say, he lost, but not without dragging Walpole in.
In 2006, he ran on an anti-tax platform against an entrenched Democrat. A website called DemocratsforSzymanski.com, set up in 2006, states: "Here's a question you might ask yourself: Isn't it time we tried to lure entrepreneurs to Rhode Island, since they are the engines of economic development? Maybe [Szymanski's opponent, Joanne Giannini] should spend a day in Jeff Szymanski's high school economics class!" Perhaps Mr. Szymanski should spend some time in his own economics class. He has just proposed higher taxes for businesses in the very town his high school economics class serves, and justifies it by asking, "Has anyone really ever chosen a restaurant based on what the sales tax on the bill would be?"
Further, the website states, "Jeff will advocate for senior citizens, working men & women, our children, our libraries, and taxpayers." I don't think so. Based on his op-ed in this week's Times, it would appear that he advocates for teachers and teachers only. Forget about taxpayers.
The website goes on even more: "Jeff thinks it is time to get rid of Rhode Island's position as a top ten highest tax state. High taxes hurt the poorest of our citizens, and Jeff understands this." No, apparently he doesn't, because he has just proposed a multitude of new taxes and fees in the Times this week. He further admitted that he "can't afford to live here," yet is still okay with proposing even higher taxes anyway.
What a hypocrite! No wonder he lost! He had better hope that if he ever runs for State Representative again, none of his opponents will dig up this nasty little column from the Times and use it against him.
He adds insult to injury by suggesting that the town "actually promote the extra 1 percent by encouraging Walpole citizens to patronize local eateries." Does Szymanski have the mistaken belief that Walpole residents do not already support local eateries? Forgive him - he does not live in Walpole, or even Massachusetts. He has not visited Finnegan's Wake or Westbury Farms on a weekend.
He says, "I feel the need to at least remind all that the governor's $750,000 prison mitigation cut in late 2008 has left a permanent hole in Walpole's town budget. It rankles me to see leaders in Walpole failing to acknowledge this at every possible opportunity and instead pointing fingers at teachers, custodians, secretaries, food service workers, and others, as if they caused the problem because they're paid too much." Actually, I have never seen anybody point any fingers at teachers, custodians, secretaries or anybody else. WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY. We understand the prison mitigation money has been cut, no thanks to you. We HAVE been acknowledging this at every opportunity. We symbolically cut off EMT services to the prison. Our resident state senator filed legislation to have the prison provide their own emergency services. We have been forceful and angry about the funding cuts. We have not been pointing fingers at you or your union. We have been respectfully asking you to make valuable investments in education by securing the jobs of some of our teachers by taking a furlough day. Teachers are not paid too much. No one has ever said that or implied that. However, we in Walpole recognize that the state has had to cut local aid and prison mitigation money because WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY.
Mr. Szymanski also has the gall to mock Walpole's starting teacher's salary and connects it to the lack of interest in teaching from this year's graduating seniors. "I hypothesize today's seniors, with the mountainous college debt many will wrack up, don't want to enter a profession that starts at $37,000. That's Walpole's starting pay this year," he writes. Mr. Szymanski, if you are unhappy with your salary, please find another town to find a job in. While it has long been known that Walpole pays its teachers less than other area towns, why don't you put your money where your mouth is and go to one of those towns that you seem to believe is a paradise. And take your tax proposals with you, please. I will repeat what I have said numerous times, WE ARE IN A RECESSION. THERE IS NO MONEY. I expect that other towns in the area would also be unable to pay teachers the starting salary you seem to have in your fantasy world.
Mr. Szymanski concludes his so-called "Commentary" with: "In sum, let's all roll up our sleeves and get to work to protect education from the current assault, lest our school system be irreparably harmed in 2010-11. Our kids deserve it. The schools took a big hit this year, and it's being felt with far fewer programs and much larger classes. The upcoming hit could be the knockout punch. I'm ready. The teachers I represent are ready. Who else is ready?" I certainly am NOT ready for his new taxes and fees.
I would hope that the Walpole Teachers Association would have the common sense to remove Mr. Szymanski from any leadership position within their union. He is destroying his own credibility, and in the process is destroying the credibility of his union. I support unions, and I support education. But I do not support higher taxes, and many other Walpole residents don't either. The Mr. Szymanski of 2006 would have understood this. Unfortunately, the Mr. Szymanski of today does not. What a shame.
Once the economy picks up, and local aid starts flowing in like a fountain (which hopefully will happen one day), here is what I would propose if I were in a leadership capacity in Walpole:
1. Stop renewing licenses of bad businesses
While The Walpole Times and the Board of Selectmen have been looking the other way, immediate neighbors and environmentalists have certainly not been on the issue of Allied Recycling and its repeated violations of orders from the Board of Selectmen. Allied has ignored complaints from neighbors about noise, they have sleazily bypassed deadlines and guidelines set by Selectmen for years now, and have become one of the most-visited sites of our town building inspector. Yet, for some remarkable reason, this business keeps getting its license renewed even as it is sued by an environmental group for violating the federal Clean Water Act. This business should be STOPPED and removed from town. We do not want businesses like this in Walpole. That is why we stopped CPV, sludge, and regional trash transfer facilities. Allied is no different. Thank you to Cliff Snuffer and Nancy Mackenzie for voting against an Allied license renewal this year.
2. Bring decision-making to the people
Even though the Selectmen proposed this in their set of goals for 2007-2008, they still have not held neighborhood Selectmen's meetings. Neighborhood meetings should be held in South Walpole and in East Walpole especially. The Town Administrator and the Board of Selectmen should hold a public budget forum at Walpole High School when budget season comes around, and not just leave it to citizens to attend Town Meeting to express their concerns, if any, about the annual budget. Whatever happened to putting videos of Selectmen's meetings online? School Committee meetings should be put online. FinCom meetings should similarly be filmed and put online. Spring and Fall Town Meetings should be put online. Voting records for selectmen (how they voted on every issue), as well as the results and roll call of all Town Meeting articles should be put online. See more ideas for online utilization further down this list. Newspaper columns in The Walpole Times should be written by the Town Administrator and other decision makers on a regular basis.
3. Bring innovative ideas to the schools
School Superintendent Lincoln Lynch does a superb job every year with the school budget. However, Walpole's aging senior citizen population is rapidly dying off, and it is essential that the vast collection of local history that many of these seniors hold be passed on to the next generation. Unfortunately, with the lack of any local history classes in our high school, this has not occurred. These elders should be brought in as guest speakers, and local history and civics classes should be taught at WHS. Teach current events in all social studies classes throughout elementary, middle, and high schools. Teach foreign language in elementary schools. Redo the Rebel mascot with a new image. Expand partnerships between the schools and the Walpole Public Library. The library is a 10-minute walk away from Walpole High. In-class field trips could go to the library. This is reasonable, considering class periods are 70 minutes long.
4. Improve the town website
Directly engage the existing web design students at Walpole High School to design a new town website. Introduce online permitting, like Walpole selectman Cliff Snuffer has suggested. Create blogs for selectmen, school committee, town administrator, and the economic development team. REVAMP ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBSITE!!! Put campaign finance information from local elections on town website in a browsable database. The website should have a searchable database of every municipal employee, their function, and their contact information if appropriate (excluding schools). The website should also have a list of all volunteer opportunities on behalf of the community (namely committees), and an easy online form and information about each opportunity. Full list of ideas are here.
5. Utilize neglected properties in town
Robbins Road - once the new police station is built, on the remainder of the massive town-owned acreage there, put in fields or maybe sell it. Put fields at Adams Farm. Encourage green neighborhoods and community gardens. Bring farmers markets to Walpole at Sunnyrock Farm, Adams Farm, or in downtown Walpole. Consider putting in bike trails throughout town linking conservation areas - obviously it is okay if they cross streets. Focus on Turner's Pond Area - make it a real destination with a park next to Turner Lodge. Put the senior center at the old library once the new library is completed - the nearby Thomas funeral home is apparently okay with the idea of allowing people to park in their lots - as long as there is no funeral. That will handle the parking problem, and prevent a perfectly good building from becoming vacant for years. Do not allow a strip mall to be built across from McDonald's, bordering conservation land, which is now reportedly being proposed by a local developer. According to 2009 Walpole Selectman Candidate Patrick Shield, the current list of vacant commercial sites around town hasn't been updated since 1997. What is up with this?
6. The Environment
No trash fees, ever! Thank you to Mr. Boynton and the Board of Selectmen for standing firm on this. Promote expanded use of recycling, ESPECIALLY at the schools. Hire a company that will pay the school district to take away their recycling - there are many such companies in the area - and reward teachers with pay raises - from these payments - for recycling in their own classrooms. Use composting at school kitchens. Use green technology on town buildings - solar panels on all school buildings. Allow town employees to use their own cars and get reimbursed for when they use it for town use.
7. Public Safety
It would be ideal to increase the Walpole Police force to over 40 officers, and to increase police presence in the schools and revive the DARE program. The East Walpole Fire Station should be reopened and staffed with a third ambulance. New police and fire stations should be built in town.
8. Other Miscellaneous Ideas
A community service day will be held every year throughout town for all citizens and with town employees participating. A Town Hall Picnic/block party on Stone and School Street can be held every summer, perhaps in conjunction with Walpole Day. The picnic will be open to the public, and town leaders will be in attendance along with the town administrator and other officials in a casual atmosphere. Have an internship program at Town Hall. Post a list of all tax delinquents on the website like Brockton does. Allow town employees to wear casual clothes every day - namely the Town Administrator - enough with the "government is out of touch" so you must wear a tie and look like a politician to be taken seriously in Walpole.
1. Stop renewing licenses of bad businesses
While The Walpole Times and the Board of Selectmen have been looking the other way, immediate neighbors and environmentalists have certainly not been on the issue of Allied Recycling and its repeated violations of orders from the Board of Selectmen. Allied has ignored complaints from neighbors about noise, they have sleazily bypassed deadlines and guidelines set by Selectmen for years now, and have become one of the most-visited sites of our town building inspector. Yet, for some remarkable reason, this business keeps getting its license renewed even as it is sued by an environmental group for violating the federal Clean Water Act. This business should be STOPPED and removed from town. We do not want businesses like this in Walpole. That is why we stopped CPV, sludge, and regional trash transfer facilities. Allied is no different. Thank you to Cliff Snuffer and Nancy Mackenzie for voting against an Allied license renewal this year.
2. Bring decision-making to the people
Even though the Selectmen proposed this in their set of goals for 2007-2008, they still have not held neighborhood Selectmen's meetings. Neighborhood meetings should be held in South Walpole and in East Walpole especially. The Town Administrator and the Board of Selectmen should hold a public budget forum at Walpole High School when budget season comes around, and not just leave it to citizens to attend Town Meeting to express their concerns, if any, about the annual budget. Whatever happened to putting videos of Selectmen's meetings online? School Committee meetings should be put online. FinCom meetings should similarly be filmed and put online. Spring and Fall Town Meetings should be put online. Voting records for selectmen (how they voted on every issue), as well as the results and roll call of all Town Meeting articles should be put online. See more ideas for online utilization further down this list. Newspaper columns in The Walpole Times should be written by the Town Administrator and other decision makers on a regular basis.
3. Bring innovative ideas to the schools
School Superintendent Lincoln Lynch does a superb job every year with the school budget. However, Walpole's aging senior citizen population is rapidly dying off, and it is essential that the vast collection of local history that many of these seniors hold be passed on to the next generation. Unfortunately, with the lack of any local history classes in our high school, this has not occurred. These elders should be brought in as guest speakers, and local history and civics classes should be taught at WHS. Teach current events in all social studies classes throughout elementary, middle, and high schools. Teach foreign language in elementary schools. Redo the Rebel mascot with a new image. Expand partnerships between the schools and the Walpole Public Library. The library is a 10-minute walk away from Walpole High. In-class field trips could go to the library. This is reasonable, considering class periods are 70 minutes long.
4. Improve the town website
Directly engage the existing web design students at Walpole High School to design a new town website. Introduce online permitting, like Walpole selectman Cliff Snuffer has suggested. Create blogs for selectmen, school committee, town administrator, and the economic development team. REVAMP ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WEBSITE!!! Put campaign finance information from local elections on town website in a browsable database. The website should have a searchable database of every municipal employee, their function, and their contact information if appropriate (excluding schools). The website should also have a list of all volunteer opportunities on behalf of the community (namely committees), and an easy online form and information about each opportunity. Full list of ideas are here.
5. Utilize neglected properties in town
Robbins Road - once the new police station is built, on the remainder of the massive town-owned acreage there, put in fields or maybe sell it. Put fields at Adams Farm. Encourage green neighborhoods and community gardens. Bring farmers markets to Walpole at Sunnyrock Farm, Adams Farm, or in downtown Walpole. Consider putting in bike trails throughout town linking conservation areas - obviously it is okay if they cross streets. Focus on Turner's Pond Area - make it a real destination with a park next to Turner Lodge. Put the senior center at the old library once the new library is completed - the nearby Thomas funeral home is apparently okay with the idea of allowing people to park in their lots - as long as there is no funeral. That will handle the parking problem, and prevent a perfectly good building from becoming vacant for years. Do not allow a strip mall to be built across from McDonald's, bordering conservation land, which is now reportedly being proposed by a local developer. According to 2009 Walpole Selectman Candidate Patrick Shield, the current list of vacant commercial sites around town hasn't been updated since 1997. What is up with this?
6. The Environment
No trash fees, ever! Thank you to Mr. Boynton and the Board of Selectmen for standing firm on this. Promote expanded use of recycling, ESPECIALLY at the schools. Hire a company that will pay the school district to take away their recycling - there are many such companies in the area - and reward teachers with pay raises - from these payments - for recycling in their own classrooms. Use composting at school kitchens. Use green technology on town buildings - solar panels on all school buildings. Allow town employees to use their own cars and get reimbursed for when they use it for town use.
7. Public Safety
It would be ideal to increase the Walpole Police force to over 40 officers, and to increase police presence in the schools and revive the DARE program. The East Walpole Fire Station should be reopened and staffed with a third ambulance. New police and fire stations should be built in town.
8. Other Miscellaneous Ideas
A community service day will be held every year throughout town for all citizens and with town employees participating. A Town Hall Picnic/block party on Stone and School Street can be held every summer, perhaps in conjunction with Walpole Day. The picnic will be open to the public, and town leaders will be in attendance along with the town administrator and other officials in a casual atmosphere. Have an internship program at Town Hall. Post a list of all tax delinquents on the website like Brockton does. Allow town employees to wear casual clothes every day - namely the Town Administrator - enough with the "government is out of touch" so you must wear a tie and look like a politician to be taken seriously in Walpole.
Walpole Selectman Cliff Snuffer came on to The Sam Obar Show on Jan. 23 to do an interview with me. We predominantly discussed the police station proposal he is pushing for, but we also discussed issues like zoning and Allied Recycling. The interview reinforced my belief that Mr. Snuffer really is a selectman for the people who looks out for the best interests of the community and its residents. After the interview, Mr. Snuffer showed me a list of what his priorities are as selectman and what he promised he would do when he ran. He keeps the list with him, and uses it to remind himself he really is the people's selectman. This is reflected in the way that he voted on zoning and on Allied Recycling. While the rest of the Board was looking the other way on Allied, he and Nancy Mackenzie were the only ones who voted not to renew their business license this year.
While I learned a lot during the interview, and found Snuffer to be extremely insightful, I have not yet decided whether I will support the new police station.
The interview is available here.
Here are some quotes from Mr. Snuffer about the police station:
Regarding saving money by not hiring a designer and using existing plans from other police stations: "I see no reason in the world why on a 55-acre site of which we will be taking some 3-5 acres of utilization we could not as on a plain piece of white 8.5 by 11 piece of paper do a simple drop-in design."
Regarding the concerns neighbors have about the proposed station and the impact on Johnson Middle School: "I think it's very important that it's known that from the very beginning, we have indicated that this process would involve as the first group of citizens, the Robbins Road residents."
One particular quote continues to disturb me: "Right now, the plan is for a solid 50-year life expectancy." I did not bother asking: Then does this mean in another 50 years Walpole will be facing yet another frantic search for a new police station and a new override? I would hope not.
Other highlights of the Snuffer interview:
"It is my opinion that Chris Timson, the chairman of the board of selectmen, is on to something when he talks about affordable housing, perhaps of the senior variety [in the old library building]".
"From what I understand, the senior center into that type of a building (the old library), while it is a good thought, as are other spaces, doesn't seem to fit whatever their seemed criteria is."
"I actually agree a little with you (Sam) [on the town website]. I believe there are a half dozen areas [on the website] that could be spruced up. [...] But I think it could use some improvement. I think we could do a lot of online licensing."
"I believe that my opinion should have prevailed [on not renewing the license for Allied Recycling]"
"You could probably sell seats to the fireworks for $100 apiece on the roof [of the new library]"
"People don't realize that the parking that you see behind the buildings on Main Street we don't own that - the town does not own that."
"What have we had a result of our zoning? Power plants, we've had recycling areas, we've had regional trash transfer facilities, we've had sludge. I mean I can give you the litany of why Walpole is a cursed community relative to that. Let's make it a better one by having a little more common sense as we approach the fall town meeting which is where the zoning will come back."
While I learned a lot during the interview, and found Snuffer to be extremely insightful, I have not yet decided whether I will support the new police station.
The interview is available here.
Here are some quotes from Mr. Snuffer about the police station:
Regarding saving money by not hiring a designer and using existing plans from other police stations: "I see no reason in the world why on a 55-acre site of which we will be taking some 3-5 acres of utilization we could not as on a plain piece of white 8.5 by 11 piece of paper do a simple drop-in design."
Regarding the concerns neighbors have about the proposed station and the impact on Johnson Middle School: "I think it's very important that it's known that from the very beginning, we have indicated that this process would involve as the first group of citizens, the Robbins Road residents."
One particular quote continues to disturb me: "Right now, the plan is for a solid 50-year life expectancy." I did not bother asking: Then does this mean in another 50 years Walpole will be facing yet another frantic search for a new police station and a new override? I would hope not.
Other highlights of the Snuffer interview:
"It is my opinion that Chris Timson, the chairman of the board of selectmen, is on to something when he talks about affordable housing, perhaps of the senior variety [in the old library building]".
"From what I understand, the senior center into that type of a building (the old library), while it is a good thought, as are other spaces, doesn't seem to fit whatever their seemed criteria is."
"I actually agree a little with you (Sam) [on the town website]. I believe there are a half dozen areas [on the website] that could be spruced up. [...] But I think it could use some improvement. I think we could do a lot of online licensing."
"I believe that my opinion should have prevailed [on not renewing the license for Allied Recycling]"
"You could probably sell seats to the fireworks for $100 apiece on the roof [of the new library]"
"People don't realize that the parking that you see behind the buildings on Main Street we don't own that - the town does not own that."
"What have we had a result of our zoning? Power plants, we've had recycling areas, we've had regional trash transfer facilities, we've had sludge. I mean I can give you the litany of why Walpole is a cursed community relative to that. Let's make it a better one by having a little more common sense as we approach the fall town meeting which is where the zoning will come back."
The following was an unsigned letter sent to me, WalpoleNews.com, and The Walpole Times, about an article that appeared in the Times regarding Martin Grealish raping his young daughter. Because it was unsigned, the Times declined to publish it.
To the Editor,
To the Editor,
Tonight I had very little to do (other than tending to my four
small children) and had been thinking about one of my dearest
friends. I asked my husband to watch the kids and drove around the
block to my friend's house, where she and I cried in her driveway for
half an hour and never felt cold once. She did not have to elaborate
on the horrible things that had been going on in her life--I had the
good fortune, along with a cast of thousands, to read all about it in
the Walpole Times. Perhaps if this article had been about her as a
victim, we would have talked about having faith and overcoming
adversity. Keep your head held high, I would tell her, you have done
nothing wrong.
But this article was about her 7 year old daughter, who was sound
asleep inside the house--I can only pray she felt peaceful and safe.
We stole glances up at her darkened window as we talked, keeping our
voices low on the off-chance she woke up, found us outside, and
overheard a single sentence of our conversation. She doesn't know, and
I pray that she will never know, that the terrible circumstances of her
life were laid out in front of her whole community today. She is an
unnamed victim, referred to only as the "7 year old daughter" of Martin
Grealish. Or, as her mother told me, simply, "She's my baby."
Oh, you have to protect the victim. I get it. But Martin Grealish
only has one 7 year old daughter, so that description really narrowed
it down for me. One can just hope that it manages to escape everyone
else. Are children's records not sealed? Is there any decency in
this world towards a child--and that child's family--who has endured a
nightmare that most of us cannot even begin to fathom? This mother and
her children have lived in quiet agony for months, and thanks to your
comprehensive (and--oops! maybe illegal) news coverage, now they
get to suffer in public, too. Because watching your children lose
their childhood, along with the loss your family's sense of peace and
security, is just not enough torture in life, now you must lose your
privacy as well....on page 4, to be specific.
After my friend and I had visited a bit, I went to a few stores
that sell the Walpole Times and was more than a little surprised to see
that they had not been pulled off the shelves. Although I see where
they could not be pulled out of mailboxes after distribution, did there
really still need to be 50 copies of the Walpole Times for sale at Stop
& Shop? Couldn't someone have had the common decency to pull them
for their clear violation of the privacy rights of a 7 year old? You
cannot access the article on-line (even if it is accessible as a link,
it goes to a non-working page), but you can stroll in to the Mobil
station and buy 14 newspapers and read about Martin Grealish
raping his 7 year old daughter. Even if I didn't know and love this
family, I would be disgusted by your lack of ethics. There will be
people who can clear up and take care of the legality in this case, but
who will take care of the lack of morality that causes a town
newspaper to elaborate on devastating crimes committed against a 7 year
old by a person who shares her last name? What ever made you think that
was OK?
This child is a member of our community. She deserves to go to
school and play with her neighbors and friends without being the "7
year old daughter" of Martin Grealish.
Although her father's arrest is public record, your paper could have
stopped at the police log, which was brief and factual and made no
mention of the victim or the specifics of the crime, which you were
able to access through court records. You chose sensationalism, pure
and simple, at the cost of a family who has endured tremendous pain
already. I have 84 papers in my dining room, and tomorrow I will go
get more. I will buy them until you stop distributing them or pull
them from shelves, which is what you should have done today. I will
call the managers of the stores that carry your paper and ask them not
to stock any replacements of this week's edition. I hope to buy every
last one. And after that, I will never purchase, advertise in, or
even glance at your newspaper again.
I visited the new Dick and Jane's General Store today and it was well worth the trip. The fudge is excellent, and the atmosphere is welcoming and fun. I had no idea that there were so many different colors of M&Ms or Jelly Beans, but Dick and Jane's certainly has every one.
Unfortunately, like most new businesses, Dick and Jane's leaves room for improvement in some areas. In particular, few items had price tags on them, and it was difficult to know how much any type of candy would cost you. Young kids who visit the store may find themselves purchasing $30 worth of candy without even knowing it. In a candy store, where the phrase "you touch it - you buy it" is so true, this is an unfortunate situation. One fairly small piece of fudge cost me nearly $10.00, without any sign or any staff member ever letting me know how much it cost.
Dick and Jane's is a great store in general, and I look forward to supporting them in the future. If you go, make sure to ask about their variety of different fudges, and ask for a free sample.
Update 2/6/10: Today I went to Dick and Jane's, and the prices still are not on the products. Additionally, one particular staff member was fairly rude and unwelcoming. This was a dramatic difference from the first time I visited less than a month ago.
Unfortunately, like most new businesses, Dick and Jane's leaves room for improvement in some areas. In particular, few items had price tags on them, and it was difficult to know how much any type of candy would cost you. Young kids who visit the store may find themselves purchasing $30 worth of candy without even knowing it. In a candy store, where the phrase "you touch it - you buy it" is so true, this is an unfortunate situation. One fairly small piece of fudge cost me nearly $10.00, without any sign or any staff member ever letting me know how much it cost.
Dick and Jane's is a great store in general, and I look forward to supporting them in the future. If you go, make sure to ask about their variety of different fudges, and ask for a free sample.
Update 2/6/10: Today I went to Dick and Jane's, and the prices still are not on the products. Additionally, one particular staff member was fairly rude and unwelcoming. This was a dramatic difference from the first time I visited less than a month ago.
The town website now has a downloadable comprehensive list, with pictures, of every town vehicle. It is here.
Walpole Selectman Cliff Snuffer will be joining me live in-studio on The Sam Obar Show January 23 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
Former and possible future Selectman candidate Patrick Shield will be on The Sam Obar Show live in-studio March 6 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
On another note, for those interested, Attleboro Democratic State Representative Bill Bowles will be live in-studio on The Sam Obar Show this coming Saturday, January 9 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
Additionally, in February or March, I am planning to have US Congressman Barney Frank on the show for the third time. Date TBA.
Walpole Selectman Cliff Snuffer will be joining me live in-studio on The Sam Obar Show January 23 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
Former and possible future Selectman candidate Patrick Shield will be on The Sam Obar Show live in-studio March 6 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
On another note, for those interested, Attleboro Democratic State Representative Bill Bowles will be live in-studio on The Sam Obar Show this coming Saturday, January 9 at 4:00 PM. Listen live here and call in at 508-384-TALK or email obar@wdisam.com.
Additionally, in February or March, I am planning to have US Congressman Barney Frank on the show for the third time. Date TBA.
As the decade draws to a close, we can look back at the way that the internet has changed the way we all live and work. We have seen news organizations struggle over the past ten years as a result of increasing dependence on the internet and a more technology-focused world. Powerful newspapers like The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Boston Globe, as we all know, have had to face questions about whether news content they put online should be available to the general public or should be paid for.
At a time when print newspaper circulation is only going to decline from here, it is essential, regardless of whether the content will be available for a fee or not, that every newspaper maintain a quality website that people will want to visit and will find informative and interesting. Unfortunately, The Walpole Times has failed in this area. The Times website, which is a "WickedLocal.com website", is increasingly becoming irrelevant to Walpole and the Walpole community. It does not provide local news, and rarely provides the content that is actually published in each week's edition of the Times.
I understand the choices that newspapers must make as to whether they want to make all of their content available on a free website. Newspapers must incur some sort of revenue, and papers like The Walpole Times, which do fine financially yet still don't have a lot of money in the bank, must balance basically giving content away for free with keeping people from canceling their paid subscriptions to the Times and turning to the free internet for local news. It appears that the Times has decided to completely ignore local news for their website, and instead focus on statewide issues.
Here is a sampling of some of the articles I observed on the homepage of the Times this week. None of these articles pertain to Walpole, and therefore none of these should have been posted on the Walpole Times website. Yet they were all posted prominently on the homepage, and in fact some were listed under "Most Popular Stories".
Treasury's Abandoned Property Division nets $76M in revenue
Coakley camp tweaks Brown on taxes
MARSHFIELD STATEHOUSE ROUNDUP: Financial crisis, Kennedy top state stories for 2009
Massachusetts has weathered fiscal storm better than most, but more pain ahead
May I Ask? Seasonal Affective Disorder
Stimulus cash a building block for state
2009: State Government Year In Review
State still could lose a Congressional seat
Feds award nearly $57 million for homeless grants in Massachusetts
I do not want to read about how the State Treasurer's office has brought in $76 million in revenue for the state. I do not need to know the Marshfield State House Roundup or that Martha Coakley has once again leveled an attack against the Scott Brown campaign for the US Senate. If I wanted to read any of this, I would go to one of the more well-known and more connected news websites like Boston.com or BostonHerald.com. The Times website should stick to local politics and local issues.
At the minimum, the Times website should provide snippets of information about local events and issues leading up to the paper's publication. Each Wednesday, for example, the Times website could feature small excerpts from each article that will be published in the actual paper the next day. That way, people would be enticed to purchase the Times or to look forward to getting it in the mail. It would be a win-win for everybody, because the Times would make money, and local residents would have a website about local issues they could trust from a newspaper they trust.
If The Walpole Times fails to provide local content on its website, then it will find itself competing with the likes of WalpoleNews.com and Sam Obar 180. Even former Times columnist Mike Iwanowicz has moved from the Times editorial page to an online blog, where he posts blurbs and thoughts. WalpoleNews is also supposed to be heading towards adding advertising in the future, which would actually make WalpoleNews a financially-sound local news website that would have a viable opportunity to compete directly with the Times website for coverage of local news.
One final note: The reason that the Times website may not provide local content this particular week may be because Times staff are on vacation. I am aware that Times reporter Keith Ferguson takes pride in updating the site regularly, but questions about what sorts of articles are being posted still need to be asked.
At a time when print newspaper circulation is only going to decline from here, it is essential, regardless of whether the content will be available for a fee or not, that every newspaper maintain a quality website that people will want to visit and will find informative and interesting. Unfortunately, The Walpole Times has failed in this area. The Times website, which is a "WickedLocal.com website", is increasingly becoming irrelevant to Walpole and the Walpole community. It does not provide local news, and rarely provides the content that is actually published in each week's edition of the Times.
I understand the choices that newspapers must make as to whether they want to make all of their content available on a free website. Newspapers must incur some sort of revenue, and papers like The Walpole Times, which do fine financially yet still don't have a lot of money in the bank, must balance basically giving content away for free with keeping people from canceling their paid subscriptions to the Times and turning to the free internet for local news. It appears that the Times has decided to completely ignore local news for their website, and instead focus on statewide issues.
Here is a sampling of some of the articles I observed on the homepage of the Times this week. None of these articles pertain to Walpole, and therefore none of these should have been posted on the Walpole Times website. Yet they were all posted prominently on the homepage, and in fact some were listed under "Most Popular Stories".
Treasury's Abandoned Property Division nets $76M in revenue
Coakley camp tweaks Brown on taxes
MARSHFIELD STATEHOUSE ROUNDUP: Financial crisis, Kennedy top state stories for 2009
Massachusetts has weathered fiscal storm better than most, but more pain ahead
May I Ask? Seasonal Affective Disorder
Stimulus cash a building block for state
2009: State Government Year In Review
State still could lose a Congressional seat
Feds award nearly $57 million for homeless grants in Massachusetts
I do not want to read about how the State Treasurer's office has brought in $76 million in revenue for the state. I do not need to know the Marshfield State House Roundup or that Martha Coakley has once again leveled an attack against the Scott Brown campaign for the US Senate. If I wanted to read any of this, I would go to one of the more well-known and more connected news websites like Boston.com or BostonHerald.com. The Times website should stick to local politics and local issues.
At the minimum, the Times website should provide snippets of information about local events and issues leading up to the paper's publication. Each Wednesday, for example, the Times website could feature small excerpts from each article that will be published in the actual paper the next day. That way, people would be enticed to purchase the Times or to look forward to getting it in the mail. It would be a win-win for everybody, because the Times would make money, and local residents would have a website about local issues they could trust from a newspaper they trust.
If The Walpole Times fails to provide local content on its website, then it will find itself competing with the likes of WalpoleNews.com and Sam Obar 180. Even former Times columnist Mike Iwanowicz has moved from the Times editorial page to an online blog, where he posts blurbs and thoughts. WalpoleNews is also supposed to be heading towards adding advertising in the future, which would actually make WalpoleNews a financially-sound local news website that would have a viable opportunity to compete directly with the Times website for coverage of local news.
One final note: The reason that the Times website may not provide local content this particular week may be because Times staff are on vacation. I am aware that Times reporter Keith Ferguson takes pride in updating the site regularly, but questions about what sorts of articles are being posted still need to be asked.
Sam Obar 180 is exactly one year old today. I would like to thank everybody who has supported the blog and read all of my rants, problems, endorsements, opinions, suggestions, and more over the past year. It has been great to hear from you in your emails and comments. I have had the pleasure of having such prominent local figures as Walpole Town Administrator Michael Boynton and Walpole Times reporter Keith Ferguson read my postings, and it has meant a lot to me that so many people in Walpole take me seriously at such a young age. It is actually somewhat of a compliment that people like Mr. Boynton don't like some of the things I write, because at least it means he's paying attention and understanding what those under 18 have to say, and not laughing it off like it is insignificant. So thank you, Mr. Boynton, and others, for your support, compliments, and criticisms. It has been much appreciated. I hope all you Sam Obar 180 readers will continue to let me know where you differ in opinion, where I make mistakes, and where you agree with me on issues. I like reading your emails.
A special thanks should go to a former editor of The Walpole Times and current editor of WalpoleNews.com, Tom Glynn. Probably most of you found my blog from that site, and I owe him a lot of gratitude for linking to my blog from WalpoleNews.
We have tackled some interesting issues during the past year here on Sam Obar 180, including library budget cuts, a controversial new library, a new police station proposal, an athletic director's dramatic fall, the Rebel mascot, the town website, the town election, downtown businesses, and more. No one can predict what will happen in 2010, or what sort of issues we will be discussing here on Sam Obar 180 and townwide. But I look forward to having your continued support and readership in the new year and the new decade.
Thanks, and Happy New Year!
-Sam Obar
A special thanks should go to a former editor of The Walpole Times and current editor of WalpoleNews.com, Tom Glynn. Probably most of you found my blog from that site, and I owe him a lot of gratitude for linking to my blog from WalpoleNews.
We have tackled some interesting issues during the past year here on Sam Obar 180, including library budget cuts, a controversial new library, a new police station proposal, an athletic director's dramatic fall, the Rebel mascot, the town website, the town election, downtown businesses, and more. No one can predict what will happen in 2010, or what sort of issues we will be discussing here on Sam Obar 180 and townwide. But I look forward to having your continued support and readership in the new year and the new decade.
Thanks, and Happy New Year!
-Sam Obar
