Wellesley dump in the spotlight again

The Boston Globe uses the tight economy as a hook to write about those frugal, eco-conscious Wellesleyites who fill their BMWs and Volvos with bargains scored at the Recycling & Disposal Facility. 

Wellesley College hosts free women's play festival

Women playwrights' works will be performed for free at an event called the Our Voices Together Festival at Wellesley College's Ruth Nagel Jones Theatre May 17 at 7pm. For teens and up. Cheese/crackers at start, discussion afterward. 

Foodie blogger visits Wellesley Bakery and Susu

Cave Cibum is a blog that features write-ups of local eateries and lots of mouthwatering food pictures. The blogger describes herself in this bio:

I've always loved food (which you can tell just by looking at me), but apart from a couple of years spent in some very strange apartments during college, I've never had much of a chance to really cook. Watch me experiment (success optional) as I brave my new kitchen. All I need is a sign to hang above the stove - "Cave Cibum," beware the food!

She recently visited the Wellesley Bakery and Susu. She couldn't decide what to order at the homey Wellesley Bakery since everything looked so good, so she ordered up a bunch of cookies and such and ate them over the next few days. Rave review.

She also liked Susu, described as one of those "ladies who lunch" type places. She enjoyed the tart and scone she ordered, noting the prices would probably keep her for going back there for lunch, but that she can envision heading back for some baked goods.

Wellesley High building going down

Town officials voted unanimously last night to start from scratch in building a new high school rather than reworking the current facility. Permanent and School building committee members decided, based on a list of criteria, that constructing an entirely new building would be both less expensive for the town and less disruptive for neighbors and students. The outcome was not unexpected, though attendees of the meeting broke into applause when the decision was made public, according to the Townsman.

Next step: Getting state approval/funding for the plan.

Here's what the Wellesley School Building Committee has to say about the latest events and what's next. 

Meanwhile, the Wellesley High School Preservation Committee can't be happy. Its web site says it has a meeting scheduled for May 28. 

Wellesley High School Class of 2007 mourns another former classmate

Charles Michael Miller died suddenly at the age of 19 earlier this month. The WHS grad was living in Natick after a stint at a farm in Maine.  Miller's obituary here and sermon from Wellesley Hills Congregational Church.

Inaugurated, finally

Is it just us, or was Wellesley College president Kim Bottomly's inauguration last week the anti-climactic event of the year? We know Wellesley College has its unique style and traditions, but she was named the school's president a year ago... Guess they wanted to make sure she was really up to the job.

Hunnewell Fun Fair bumped to May 30

The fair, originally scheduled for this Friday from 3-6 has been postponed until May 30 3-6pm due to a rainy weather forecast. Takes place at Hunnewell Elementary School.

Previewing tonight's Wellesley High School building decision 

The Globe lays out where things stand, including efforts by Wellesley building committee officials to distance the Wellesley High project from Newton's notoriously expensive high school building project. 

Sticking up for the Wellesley Police

A basketball blog called HoopsHype features an interview with ex-Boston Celtics player Dee Brown, and naturally it brings up the infamous incident from 1990 when Wellesley police mistook Brown for a bank robber. Here's what Brown has to say about the incident now:

After all these years, what is you feeling towards the Wellesley police department for the way they treated you? Was it racial profiling?

I had no ill feelings towards Wellesley police then and still don’t. Things like that happen all the time to regular African- Americans and other minorities but doesn’t garner media attention if there’s no celebrity involved. Racial profiling is in our society, but I think that event was more of mistaken identity than racial profiling. Even after the event, I chose to stay in Wellesley and became good friends with the police department and community leaders.

WHAT WE'RE SELLING: Very Nice Boys' Clothing, 0-3 Years. Rain or Shine.

WHEN: Saturday May 17th, 8:30 AM-Till the Last Ralph Lauren Infant Onesie is Gone!

WHERE: 346 Linden Street, Wellesley, between Upwey and Windemere. Park on Street.

WHY: To Raise Money to Fight The Global Food Crisis  via  the Partners in Health organization

The "tony/toney" awards: Boston columnists take shots at Wellesley, wealthy neighboring towns

Boston Globe columnist Yvonne Abraham has this to say about expensive high school projects like those in Newton and Wellesley:

All of this would be an amusing instance of suburban excess if it didn't affect the rest of us, but it does.

Because Newton's ridiculously expensive high school will beget other ridiculously expensive high schools. Already, Wellesley is considering one that could cost $160 million, and while the state will be contributing only $47 million for Newton North, it could pay as much as $64 million toward Wellesley's new school.

And if tony towns are building these wondrous marvels, who is to say that kids in Chelsea and Holyoke don't deserve them as well? In poorer cities and towns, the state would be on the hook for 80 percent of a new school's cost.

And that state money? That's our money.

Separately, the Boston Herald's Scott Van Voorhis wrote a story Sunday headlined: Toney town’s mansion sales tank.

The story starts off:

These are tougher times in the real estate market, even for the super-wealthy.

The number of mansions sold in some of the state’s toniest towns - Weston, Wellesley and Brookline - has plunged more than 30 percent during the first four months of the year.

And sellers of luxury homes are having to bargain in order to cut a deal.

Friends of Morses Pond annual meeting

From the chair of FOMP: This year's annual meeting will be held in the Arnold room of the Wellesley main library from 7:30 to 9 pm on Thursday, May 15, 2008.  At the meeting we will elect new officers, then hear an in-depth update by Dr. Ken Wagner on the progress of the Comprehensive Plan.  Ken will also take questions during and after his talk on any subject related to Morses Pond.  Ken will also tell us how we can participate in preservation activities, including hand harvesting of invasive plants and installation of benthic barriers at homeowner shorelines.  Whether or not you have yet been active in the Morses Pond preservation effort, we welcome your participation now.  Please come and hear about our progress and plans.  You can also visit our web site for more information at Morsespond.org.

Where Wellesley Education Foundation grants go

To follow the money, check out the photos (by George Roberts) on the WEF website. Recent funding has gone toward a weather station at the high school (seen here) and toward a high school "botball" team.

Happy Mothers Day

Seems like a good day to remind those who might be interested about the existence of the Wellesley Mothers Forum, which is for moms with kids up to 8 years old. The group gathers for playgroup, lectures, social activities, more.