By Jeffrey Epstein
The Selectmen heard opinions about the proposed dog park in a listening session Monday night, June 18. Some 60 people turned out for the session in Town Hall’s multipurpose room, most of whom delivered comments against the suggested dog park site.
By Jeffrey Epstein
The Selectmen, as expected, approved a new municipal tree policy for the town at their June 11 meeting and also considered a new water agreement with the Town of Lexington. The Selectmen, as expected, approved a new municipal tree policy for the town at their June 11 meeting and also considered a new water agreement with the Town of Lexington. The water agreement was not finalized, pending final review by both towns.
By Jeffrey Epstein
Sparked by an upsurge in public interest, Bedford and state officials are exploring how they might expand or improve a program that lets senior homeowners defer some of their property tax each year.
The state program — referred to in shorthand as Clause 41A after the relevant part of the statute — has been around for years, but some homeowners only discovered it recently through an article published in the Boston Globe. Bedford Town Hall has gotten inquiries about the program. State Representative Ken Gordon says he heard about it from the Bedford Council on Aging’s Rick Rosen, and now gets asked about it often in meetings with senior citizens. All this attention, in turn, led town Board of Assessors Clerk Ronald Cordes to dig into the program and report to the Selectmen on June 11. Rep. Gordon sat next to Cordes to help explain the program.
By Jeffrey Epstein
The Selectmen will hold a public forum on the subject of a dog park at 7:30 pm on Monday, June 18, in the multipurpose room of the Town Hal to hear public comments on issues relating to Bedford’s proposed dog park. They do not expect to vote or take any official action that evening.
By Meredith McCulloch
It was standing room only at the Selectmen’s Meeting Room on May 29 when the ad hoc Dog Park Task Force presented its recommendations to the Selectmen. Chair William Moonan made it clear from the onset that the board would not be hearing public comments that night, but that a hearing will be planned in the future after the Selectmen have had time to review the material and walk potential sites, etc.
By Julie McCay Turner
The Middlesex 3 Coalition came into existence 2012, with Bedford’s Town Manager Rick Reed serving as Executive Director until last year. After stepping aside, Reed served on the Coalition’s board and will remain active through the coming year.
In Billerica, on Tuesday morning Reed was honored with the Middlesex 3 Coalition’s 2018 Economic Development Impact Award for the public sector and was presented with a citation signed by each of the state representatives who serve Middlesex 3 cities and towns.
By Jeffrey Epstein
The Selectmen appointed the Town Manager Screening Committee on Monday, May 7, immediately following the second round of interviews for the five volunteer slots. The organizational meeting of the committee is scheduled for Thursday, May 10.
The Selectmen unanimously named chair William Moonan and Margot Fleischman as their representatives to the panel, and Betsy Anderson, Anne Bickford, James Mabry, Emily Prince, and Maureen Valente to the other five positions. Anderson, a former Selectman and Town Moderator, was interviewed in the first round, as was former School Committee member Bickford. Mabry is the president of Middlesex Community College, which has its original campus in Bedford. Valente has resided in Bedford for 25 years and served for 15 years as the town manager for Sudbury. Prince, a lawyer, is a newcomer to Bedford arriving in 2016. Her inclusion aligns with the stated goal of the Selectmen, particularly Caroline Fedele, that the panel include both recent and long-time residents of the town.
By Jeffrey Epstein
Bedford’s next Town Manager will need to be talented and flexible as well as knowledgeable, candidates for the Town Manager Screening Committee told the Selectmen on Monday, April 30.
The Selectmen interviewed five of the 12 candidates for the committee that will recommend a replacement for departing Town Manager Richard T. Reed. The remaining candidates are scheduled to be interviewed at the May 7 meeting.
By Meredith McCulloch
On Tuesday night, April 10, 2018, the process of finding a successor for Town Manager Richard Reed began. Reed is retiring from the position of Town Manager in August after 30 years of service. Representatives from the search firm Municipal Resources, Inc. Alan Gould, Robert Mercier, and Reginald (Buzz) Stapczynski met with the Selectmen to review the process. (Selectman William Moonan was not able to attend.)
By Jeffrey Epstein
The Selectmen are thinking about how to keep bicycle riders safe, and they heard a presentation on the subject from a traffic engineering firm at their April 9 meeting.
A separate bicycle lane, set off from both the pedestrian sidewalk and automobile lanes, is one option under consideration for the next round of highway work on The Great Road. The presentation, from engineering firm VHB Inc., was only informational and the Selectmen are not considering any formal action yet. VHB Inc. is proposing options for future work, particularly on the downtown stretch near the municipal complex.
