“To be clear, the article will NOT impact the rights of any homeowner to use any power equipment on their own property at any time.  The goal is to limit the commercial use (meaning operated by commercial landscapers) of leaf blowers which have such significant health impacts both through noise and the harmful emissions and particulate matter they spew.  You may be aware that several hundred cities and towns throughout the U.S. have already banned gas powered leaf blowers for health reasons.  The whole state of Hawaii and nation of Israel have bans.  Locally, we can look to Newton, Cambridge, and Brookline.  Each of these communities has taken a different approach to limiting leaf blowers.  I think it is also significant that the State of Massachusetts has a law that limits noise, for health reasons, at considerably lower decibels than leaf blowers create.  Unfortunately for neighborhoods and for the operators of the blowers themselves,  landscaping equipment is exempted.  There exist many studies on the harmful impacts of noise, toxic emissions, allergens, and more from gas powered leaf blowers.”

Items on the town warrant will be addressed at Town Meeting, which starts March 26.

This isn’t the first time a Wellesley resident has stepped forward to do something about leaf blower use in town. Back in 2009, a bylaw went into affect to address when commercial outfits could employ noisy equipment in town.

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Among the articles, at a glance:

*To see if the town will establish a department to oversee maintenance of town-owned buildings and grounds

*To see what money the town will provide to make the new Rockland Street bridge safe and to improve the Wales Street bridge, to buy a new ladder truck for the fire department, to revamp the DPW recycled materials loading structure, to bolster the HVAC at Public Works & Park/Highway Building and to spruce up Bacon Street and the Hills Branch of the library.

A citizen’s petition seeks to curb use of gas-powered leaf blowers. A general article seeks to protect town board members and other officials from legal and other expenses up to $1M related to claims against them related to town work.

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The only contested town-wide races appear to be those for Board of Selectmen, School Committee and Natural Resources.  Wellesley realtor and one-time state rep Royall Switlzer and incumbent Terri Tsagaris will be among five candidates vying for two Board of Selectmen seats, while incumbents KC Kato and Illisa Povich will attempt to fend off two newcomers. Three candidates, including two incumbents, will duke it out for two seats on the Natural Resources Commission

The deadline to obtain the papers is Jan. 20 for town wide positions and February 3 for new town meeting candidates. The town clerk notes that the reports on the website include all people who have obtained papers or given notice of an intent to run for office. It is possible that one or more people on these lists may withdraw from the election prior to the deadlines to return papers.

Candidates for town-wide office have until Jan. 24 at 5 pm to return their signed papers.

Existing town meeting members have until Jan. 31 to give notice of intent to run. New candidates have until Feb. 4 to obtain papers and until Feb. 7 to return papers. Several precincts are in need of additional candidates to reach the minimum of 30 people to be elected..

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1. Nomination Papers

Offices for town election March 13, 2012 are: 2 Board of Selectmen, 1 Board of Assessors, 1 Board of Health, 2 Library Trustees, Moderator, 2 Natural Resources Commissioners, 1 Planning Board,1 Board of Public Works, 2 Recreation Commissioners, 2 School Committee, Town Clerk. Please call Town Clerk’s office for additional information (781-431-1019 ext 2250).

Nomination papers for Town Meeting Member are also available.  All 240 seats for town meeting will be elected this year. Most precincts need additional candidates as of this notice. Each precinct will elect 30 members. Town Meeting candidates must obtain 10 signatures of voters within the precinct to be placed on the ballot.

2. Annual Town Census

 All residential addresses should have received the 2012 Annual Town Census.  All residents are required to return the census document with any changes as soon as possible.

The bottom portion of the census mailing notifies voters of the new precinct assignments for 2012. Please detach and retain this portion for future reference.

 Return of the census preserves your active voter registration status.  Registered voters should note that the designation “U” in the voter column indicates you are a registered voter who is Unenrolled in any political party, commonly known as Independent.  The column headed “Mail to” indicates the head of household name (typically the oldest resident) as the person to whom census mail is addressed.  Residents can ignore the coding in this field.

Residents who are not voters are also asked to return the census as this record serves as proof of residence for miscellaneous benefits in future years.

3. Dog Licensing

2012 Dog Licenses are now available from the Town Clerk’s Office.  All dogs over 6 months of age are required to be licensed and have a current rabies shot.  Renewal forms were mailed with the census. Residents can also renew licenses through Recreation Department activity registration system.  Register your dog as a family member and sign up for activity 244699-01.   For mail in registrations please enclosed a self addressed stamped envelope for return of your tag and license.  Dog owners are also welcome to obtain licenses in person at the Town Clerk’s office. The deadline for renewal licensing  is April 1, 2012. 

4. Absentee ballots

Voters may file written applications for absentee ballots for both the March 6 Presidential Primary and the March 13 Annual Town Election. Ballots for the primary election will be available in late January and for the local town election in mid February.  A single application can be file for all elections this year if the voter states that on the application. Applications should state the name and voting address of the voter and the address to send the ballot. If the voters is away for a definite period of time please state the dates of the absence from Wellesley.  According to current state law phone and email requests cannot be processed.

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*Old Wellesley Inn space on Washington Street. Not much new here with the space that’s been vacant across from Blue Ginger since 2006. Plans for The Durant, a luxury condo facility surrounded by stores and offices, have been in limbo due to bad economy. The town says “The State’s Permit Extension Act allows for the Wellesley Inn to retain all permits until 2013.”  Peter Bailey of Spaulding & Slye commercial real estate says : “Changes in the financing markets are slow to come but we remain excited and will commence as soon as the capital markets allow.”

*Wellesley Country Club maintenance/storage facilities. Placement of these facilities caused a huge dustup late in 2010/early 2011, but things have been relatively quiet since. Brookside Road neighbors, who fought location of WCC facilities on their now official scenic road, say this past spring the Wellesley Wetlands Protection Committee asked the club to provide a list of alternative sites they considered and explain why those wouldn’t pass muster/why building on the riverfront was the only alternative. The Friends of Brookside also provided a detailed list of alternative locations away from the Brookside Road/riverfront area per request of WPC. “The project is still opened and there’s been no word from the club as of yet, according to Friends of Brookside. As for the club, Paul DeYesso says WCC is still evaluating locations, but that it’s a complicated process involving architects, engineers, planners and contractors. He says the club has been evaluating alternatives and their impacts on buffer zones.  “There’s nothing definitive yet, but we hope the alternatives we come up with will be less objectionable and meet the criteria,” he says. “We absolutely need to build a new maintenance facility since the one we have is terribly undersized and functionally obsolete. It’s just a matter of where.”

*Wellesley Senior Center: The Wellesley Council on Aging, having seen Needham and Natick approve building of senior centers, is still hopeful that the town of Wellesley will support its effort for a senior center here. Gayle Thieme, director of senior services in Wellesley, says “the vision for a stand- alone senior center in Wellesley still exists and there is a lot of support out there!  Representatives from the Council on Aging and the Board of Selectmen have been meeting very regularly since the campus plan was scrapped [in the spring]. As you may recall, there were concerns about inadequate parking at the former  American Legion  site.  Because of that, the Council on Aging and Board of Selectmen representatives have spent time looking at some other possible locations for a senior center.  At the same time, we have been brainstorming about ways to allow for more parking at or near the legion site.  I think at this time the biggest message I would want to get out to residents is that they should feel good knowing that the Council on Aging and the Board of Selectmen are committed to this project and our hope is that we can make some real progress in the year ahead.” Terri Tsagaris from the Board of Selectmen adds: “After discussions with the Wellesley Community Center were concluded, a group of COA and BOS representatives was formed to determine next steps.  Given the concern over adequate parking at the American Legion site, the group undertook to look at several potential sites in Town.  Considerable time has been spent on this work and the group is hopeful that it will complete discussions regarding a potential alternative site by the end of this year or beginning of next year.  At the same time, the group is evaluating potential solutions for increased parking at the American Legion site.  Additionally, the COA is continuing to evaluate and expand its programs and services, and to gather information on the needs of seniors.”

*Liquor licenses. The town is in the process of filing legislation with the state to reduce the seat requirement for liquor licenses in town to 50. If the legislature acts swiftly, the issue could be put to a town vote this spring. (More: Who says Wellesley is a dry town?) This is one of several efforts underway in town to revitalize the business community.

*Fuller Brook Park restoration. The project is entering phase 3, which involves planning, construction documents, permitting and a bid process. The town just approved funding for this at a special town meeting. This phase should take a couple of years and completion of the entire project could still be 5 years away. The project addresses a deteriorating and hodgepodge path (map of park here), the stream quality and invasive vegetation.

Wellesley High School: Construction on the new school has buzzed along ahead of schedule and under budget, and plans are to open the building to students in February following winter break. More froma the High School Building Committee. Sneak peeks at the new school have started to emerge.

Businesses: Look for First Republic Bank, which has had temporary signage up since spring, to open its doors on Washington Street at the old Blockbuster video spot this coming Spring. Gustare Oils & Vinegars hopes to open by year end in Wellesley Square next to Alta Strada.  Waterstone at Wellesley, the senior living facility at the old Grossman’s space, is slated to open this spring, though sales director Joan Barthe says she’ll know in February whether an earlier opening might happen. Ted Tye of National Development says the project’s construction has been aided by good weather and the focus is now on the interior of the building. Leasing is ahead of schedule, he says.  The CVS and Newton-Wellesley ambulatory surgical center have bother started interior fit-up work at 25 Washington St., with opening projected for spring as well, according to Tye.

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There is rising concern among those in favor of an impending override vote that the negativity surrounding the school discussion will hurt efforts to get an override approved.

In the event you, like we, missed last night’s meeting, it can be seen on Wellesley Media local access cable over the next few days (Meeting minutes should show up as well on the Wellesley Public Schools website, though it is currently a couple of months behind)

The next meeting is slated for Dec. 20.

RELATED: 2012 Town Election info

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In the latest newsletter from Committee 21, the nonprofit advocacy group for Wellesley Public Schools states: “While difficulties concerning the Wellesley Public Schools have been reported recently in the news, it is important to recognize that School Committee is taking corrective action and working to rebuild the trust within the Wellesley community.” Committee 21 goes on to suggest that increased use of fees to fund school sports and other activities put a burden on the school’s business office that it was unable to withstand, requiring some of the recent changes, including appointment of an interim business manager in light of Ruth Quinn Berdell recently taking paid administrative leave.

As we reported over the weekend, parents less tolerant of the School Committee and administration’s recent track record have launched a separate campaign, including a Facebook page, to help bring about change.

As for Committee 21, in addition to addressing controversy over the school business office, it also weighed in on the recent thefts at Wellesley Middle School and concerns about hiring people with criminal records. “Safety and alleged theft allegations regarding the middle school custodian highlight the current legal limitations of using CORI checks when conducting employment references. While federal legislation is being reviewed, it is currently illegal to base hiring decisions on background information outside of data provided by a CORI search. In the meantime, School Committee is working with the Police Department and legal counsel to revise policies.”

Committee 21 also started laying groundwork to support an override next year to ensure “level services” continue to be offered through the Wellesley Public School system. The group is encouraging residents to become more informed by attending public sessions about the school and town budgets over the next couple of months.

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Speaking of pesty school business office issues… Questions were raised, though not really answered, at Tuesday night’s School Committee meeting regarding the mysterious voluntary paid leave of the longtime business office manager. More from Wellesley Patch on that. Meanwhile, an interim business manager has been appointed, according to Boston.com.

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16-term lawmaker Barney Frank is announcing Monday that he will not seek re-election in 2012. The 71-year-old Democrat has served Wellesley in Congress as a representative from Massachusetts’ Fourth District.

MORE: Barney Frank website

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Some residents have been calling for Berdell to step down in the wake of Superintendent Bella Wong’s resignation announcement.

Some are upset that Berdell, whose office was at the center of the $100K+ school lunch collections debacle, proved more efficient about collecting a big chunk of change via  a grandfathered vacation pay policy.

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