March 24, 2008

Outsider a good bet to land school job

ODDS ARE the next Lowell school superintendent, who may be selected tomorrow night, won't be either of the two local candidates.

Wendy Jack, director of curriculum and instruction at the high school, appears to have support from two School Committee members, Regina Faticanti and David Conway. The other local finalist, Paul Schlictman, district coordinator for research, testing and assessment, earned respect but isn't expected to challenge.

That leaves the other finalists, Chris Augusta Scott, superintendent in Norfolk, and Portia Selene Bonner, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction in Hamden, Conn.

Here's how the rest of the committee shapes up:

* Mayor Edward "Bud" Caulfield, initially viewed as a Jack supporter, is talking up Scott.

* Jim Leary said he's leaning toward an "outside" candidate.

* Jackie Doherty said she's leaning toward one candidate. She won't say who, but considering the raw politics between herself, Conway and Faticanti lately, it's pretty easy to conclude it's not toward Jack.

* Connie Martin has said very little. She is widely viewed as someone who would prefer an outsider.

* John Leahy isn't overly impressed with any of the candidates, and said he'll vote "present." He's thinking about starting a new search to find a replacement for Karla Brooks Baehr.

Leahy is openly talking about Jean Franco, deputy superintendent for curriculum and instruction, serving in the interim.

So if an outside candidate is chosen, it certainly won't be unanimously.

EVEN IF Bonner or Scott gets the necessary four votes, they might receive a better, or at least more united, offer on the same night.

It will be the Mill City vs. the Whaling City, because the New Bedford School Committees also picks a new superintendent on Monday with Scott and Bonner among three finalists.

According to the New Bedford Standard-Times, both candidates are working hard to ingratiate themselves to the citizens of New Bedford. Bonner hosted a "meet-and-greet" reception at the city's downtown library, while Scott ran in the New Bedford Half Marathon.

Scott may be difficult to reach when the decision is made. She is flying back from an Easter weekend visit to her native Nova Scotia, and expects to be at high altitude until about 7:30 p.m.

CITY MANAGER Bernie Lynch hired a new treasurer last week, but is taking it on the chin from former and current pols who pushed for a Lowell candidate.

David McGurl, town treasurer in Winchester, brings municipal accounting and treasury experience to the $82,000-per-year job.

McGurl got the job over Lowell resident John Linnehan, an accountant who has no municipal experience but plenty of political connections.

Linnehan's father, James Linnehan, is a lawyer and accountant who's close to many of the city's top elected Democrats. The Linnehans have operated a successful family business for decades.

Lynch landed in a no-win situation. If he hired Linnehan and treasury operations went south, he'd be criticized. If he hired outside, he'd still face the heat.

For the record, McGurl's hiring is Lynch's fourth in which he went outside Lowell to fill a management post.

CITY COUNCILOR Mike Lenzi has kept a low profile since his election. That changed last week when Lenzi filed his first motion, and it was a humdinger.

Lenzi wants the City Council to meet twice a month, as opposed to four times. The idea was referred to the Rules Subcommittee, and appears solidly on the track toward approval.

Councilors have talked about it privately over the years, but only one, Peter Richards, ever put it on the agenda for discussion. It was defeated.

Lenzi keeps busy, with his catering business and his position on the Greater Lowell Technical High School Committee. He said his motion is unrelated.

"This was not a selfish motion at all," Lenzi said. "I really believe it was quite the opposite. Seeing people scramble to prepare for Tuesday night meetings each and every week was concerning to me. I didn't even consult anyone before bringing the motion forward. If we want to run the city like a business, we have to treat it like a business. This was a motion based on enhancing the productivity of the people in City Hall."

Lynch also supports Lenzi's motion for similar reasons.

THE TYNGSBORO School Committee is none too happy with recent scrutiny and criticism of its superintendent search process. And members used props to show it.

Last Tuesday, Martina Witts and Diana Keohane displayed two 8-by-10 framed pictures of a hand giving the thumbs-up sign in front of where they were sitting.

The pictures were in response to a Sun editorial, which gave Witts and Keohane "thumbs down" for saying they would vote with the majority pick for school chief, instead of selecting either Darrell Lockwood or Christine Tyrie on their own. (Lockwood locked up the job.)

Witts and Keohane said the pictures were from a resident.

Chairman William Downing later lambasted The Sun for reporting on March 15 that the Middlesex District Attorney's office cited a screening committee for repeatedly violating the Open Meeting Law. The DA's office agreed with The Sun and ruled that the board did not post its meetings and did not hold any part of any meetings in public, both requirements of the law.

Downing was upset by the story, saying articles that accuse local boards of holding secret meetings discourage people from seeking office.

Downing, in fact, is now seeking a seat on the Board of Selectmen, having thrown his hat into the ring at the last moment. Evidently, the violations didn't stop him. Let take a guess: He's running on a platform promoting open government.

THEY WERE formed to give direction on an issue that divided residents and Chelmsford town officials. Now the Ambulance Study Committee is at odds with each other.

A majority of members have voted to recommend selectmen reject Town Manager Paul Cohen's proposal to replace private contractor Trinity Ambulance with ambulance service run by the Chelmsford Fire Department. But committee members Deirdre Connolly and James Sullivan are filing a minority report opposing that stance.

Committee Chairman John Thibault has been keeping the group's findings under wraps since the March 12 vote, and it's no surprise that the final decision caused tension.

The group was off to a rocky start in November, disagreeing about several issues including why it was formed in the first place.

In December, Trinity attorney John Gallant asked selectmen to remove committee member Sullivan, alleging that Sullivan was biased against Trinity.

Sullivan previously owned Care Ambulance of Lowell. In the early 1990s, Trinity owners John Chemaly and Gary Sepe, who both worked at Care, left the company to establish Trinity. When Chemaly and Sepe left, there were several legal disputes between the two men and Sullivan, Gallant said.

Selectmen Chairman Sam Chase said he did not know the history between the parties when casting his vote to appoint Sullivan. Selectmen, who unanimously appointed the nine committee members, refused to remove Sullivan.

Thibault and members John Stansfield, Daniel Burke, Steven Normandin, John Demers and Thomas Fleming were the six who rejected Cohen's plan.

According to the meeting minutes, Thibault has no objections to the Fire Department running an ambulance service, but believes strongly the proposed model as presented will not work.

"The strategy of a hybrid system will create an ongoing financial burden on the town," he said.

Sullivan wanted to wait and see what impact the override would have on the proposal before casting a vote. Connolly disagreed with how overtime, backfill, and other positions were charged into the committee's report. She said core revenues and expenses do show a return.

Committee member Shaun Dean did not vote or participate in the discussion.

Selectmen will begin considering the issue tomorrow night.

LOWELL CITY Councilor Alan Kazanjian last week again pressed his case for local, local, local.

This time the issue was the Hamilton Canal District project.

Kazanjian suggested creating a review committee comprised of local architects, builders and others familiar with the Lowell development scene to examine any proposals by Trinity Financial -- the Boston-based firm city officials have selected to carry out their ambitious plans for the project -- before the City Council votes.

He said he wasn't sure if he could support the signing of a formal agreement between Trinity and the city without review by such a body.

Kazanjian, a real-estate developer specifically mentioned Lowell-based architects Jack Sullivan and Jeff Cook.

Sullivan was Kazanjian's architect on his Mill View Estates project on Middlesex Street, at the Chelmsford-Lowell line, a townhouse subdivision, as well as the councilor's Kaitlin Estates subdivision off Clark Road in the city's Belvidere section.

Kazanjian's fellow councilors didn't jump at the idea, but none disagreed, either. Kazanjian has yet to file an actual motion.

Review committee members arguably could be prohibited from doing any of the early stage work in the canal district project, which city officials expect to represent up to a $500 million investment in the local economy in the next 10 to 20 years.

That would be quite a sacrifice.

KAZANJIAN SUBSEQUENTLY said he hasn't decided whether he would oppose a development agreement with Trinity without the review committee. He also said he has yet to speak to either Sullivan or Cook.

He said his idea was to create a body "just go over this plan with them and see if they can make it work. It's just an idea I'm throwing out there, and I'm sure a lot of these individuals would get involved," he said.

"Who knows," Kazanjian said, "maybe the plan is perfect, but we'll only be able to go over this plan for about an hour (at a council meeting). That's not enough time for us to decide whether it's good or not."

Trinity already has organized a painstaking public review process, which has involved three public meetings at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. Two more such meetings are scheduled in May and July.

Staff in the city Division of Planning and Development have been reviewing the plan throughout, and council subcommittees will get their crack at examining the complicated framework eventually.

Incidentally, Jonathan Lane, a principal with ICON architecture, was involved with creating the master plan for the Lowell National Historical Park in the 1970s, as were several other members of his firm.

NORMALLY JOINED at the hip, a crack developed this week between Lowell's delegation to the House of Representatives and Sen. Steven Panagiotakos' office.

The fearsome foursome rarely act on Beacon Hill without coordinating first, which made it all the more interesting when Panagiotakos offered a competing plan to secure new money for UMass Lowell's Emerging Technology and Innovation Center in the governor's $1 billion life-science bill.

Reps. Thomas Golden, Kevin Murphy and David Nangle secured an authorization to borrow an additional $10 million last month for the nanotechnology project.

Panagiotakos' office was not notified that the bond money would be inserted in the bill. He apparently was less than impressed, given the unlikely chance that Gov. Deval Patrick's administration would actually borrow more than the $35 million already committed.

Instead, on Thursday Panagiotakos put $5 million in cash in the Senate's version of the bill that will be guaranteed if UMass Lowell can raise $5 million privately.

The House delegation was not told about the senator's plan.

The bill now goes to conference committee, but for those wondering who's plan will win out, the safest bet is with Panagiotakos.

WHILE SOME Billerica pols were tossing a few back at the Irish American Club on St. Patrick's Day, about 100 residents were hanging out with the Planning Board (unfortunately sans spirits), in the hot and humid sauna that doubles as the Town Hall Auditorium, for yet another lengthy hearing on the proposed $20 million revitalization of the Billerica Mall.

The developer's attorney, Steve Lentine, began his presentation by thanking everyone, including the board for coming out on a "quasi-holiday."

"I know the holiday is particularly important to two members of the board," he said, jokingly referring to Chairman Paul Marasco and member Richard Tortola.

"Tonight we are all Irish, Steve," replied Marasco, who continued by pointing out that Lentine is also Italian.

But, Lentine explained, his wife is Irish.

Suggestion to the Planning Board: Next time serve shots of Jameson Irish whiskey. The night will go much more smoothly.

LEAVE IT to no-nonsense Billerica Planning Board member Ed McLaughlin to get a laugh at last week's never-ending meeting.

Planning Board member Bob Casey, who has not hidden his opposition to the proposal to bring Home Depot to the center of town, bemoaned that no one has studied the economic impact. He called out former Town Manager Rocco Longo and Chief Assessor (and current acting interim town manager) Rich Scanlon for not responding to the board's invitation to attend a meeting to provide that information.

Casey asked Town Planner Peter Kennedy to ask the "town administration" to respond, stating that "maybe they'll listen to you."

"We don't have one (administrator)," deadpanned McLaughlin. "He left with a $5,000 check."

McLaughlin was referring to the $5,000 kiss Longo was given by the town for 10 days of unused vacation. Under the terms of his signed employment contract, Longo's benefit should have been dead in the water because he only gave the selectmen 35 days' notice, not the required 90.

LITTLETON REPUBLICAN Paul Avella has scheduled his campaign kickoff event for next Saturday at the Nabnasset Country Club in Westford to officially launch his bid to unseat Westford state Rep. Geoffrey Hall, a Democrat.

Avella, vice chairman of the Littleton School Committee, is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who has been awarded a Bronze Star for his military service, according to a campaign statement. He currently works as an executive in Raytheon's satellite communications division.

BIG NEWS IS ON the horizon for Middlesex Community College. Word is the college will soon gain control of the Rialto Building on Central Street for a students' performing arts center.

The Rialto is owned by the Lowell National Historic Park Service. The local park service recently won federal approval to transfer the building to MCC. Lowell Park Service Superintendent Michael Creasey has been the driving force behind the plan with MCC President Carole Cowan.

The Rialto has sat dormant for several decades, although the federal government has pumped millions of dollars into restoring the facade and improving structural defects. But the Rialto has no practical government purpose, and needs major internal construction work. MCC will take over the job of raising money to turn it into a first-class arts center.

This week's Column was written by Sun Editor Jim Campanini and City Editor Christopher Scott, with contributions from Michael Lafleur at Lowell City Hall, Jennifer Myers in the Lowell School Department and Billerica, Chris Camire in Tyngsboro, Rita Savard in Chelmsford and Matt Murphy at the Statehouse.

Posted by Admin at 1:09 PM

March 11, 2008

Jack may have edge for top school job

THE LOWELL School Committee has four finalists in hand to succeed Superintendent of Schools Karla Brooks Baehr, who opted not to seek a contract extension after nearly eight years.

Right now, the finalist who appears to have the inside track is 56-year-old Wendy Jack, the director of curriculum and instruction at Lowell High School.

No one is talking publicly, but Jack could already have three of four votes she'd need. Her likely supporters are Mayor Edward "Bud" Caulfield and School Committee members Dave Conway (a former LHS housemaster and Jack's colleague last year) and Regina Faticanti.

But getting that fourth vote could prove difficult.

Jack might ultimately get hurt by fallout from the power struggle between Baehr and LHS Headmaster William Samaras.

Samaras won that fight -- keeping his job for an extra year despite Baehr's desire to force him out at the end of the current school year -- and likely influenced Baehr's decision to leave town. Hard feelings remain, however.

Jack is considered to be Samaras' candidate for the superintendent's job, which might force Baehr's supporters on the School Committee, Jackie Doherty and John Leahy, to look elsewhere. Both Doherty and Leahy have had little battles with Samaras, who might end up seeking yet another extension to stay on at the high school if Jack becomes his boss.

Jack will need support from committee members Jim Leary and/or Connie Martin.

Right now, neither is a sure bet to be in her corner.
All the interviews will be conducted this week. The dates and times will be determined by the School Committee tomorrow night.

IF JACK is the top candidate, Portia Selene Bonner, 41, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction in Hamden, Conn., and Chris Augusta Scott, 42, superintendent of schools in Norfolk, occupy the next tier.

Bonner did reasonably well in her interview before the Superintendent Screening Committee last week. However, she lives the farthest away, at a time when there appears to be strong preference for local candidates.

Scott had a strong interview, but her district is puny compared to the Mill City.

Though 55-year-old Paul Schlichtman, the Lowell School Department's coordinator for research testing and assessment, is a local candidate, he also has no significant district supervisory experience. That would seem to make him the least likely to get the job right now.

TWENTY-ONE people applied for the job, and word on the street is that the screening committee had no trouble narrowing the list to eight semifinalists. (The Column has learned that several applications were just plain laughable.)

Then three candidates dropped out, shrinking the pool of semifinalists to five.

Now there could be even more shrinkage, and there's nothing the School Committee can do about it.

On Tuesday, Scott will interview with the New Bedford School Committee, where she also is a finalist for the superintendent's job. Bonner follows on Wednesday.

Unlike the advertisement for the Lowell job that carried no salary range, the New Bedford job was advertised at about $155,000, about what Baehr made.

Scott and Bonner could take the New Bedford job -- if it's offered -- before they're even interviewed in Lowell.

Schlichtman is also pursuing the superintendent's job in the Berlin-Boylston Regional School District.

Jack is the only candidate who's not interviewing for a job elsewhere.

JUST HOW thin was the applicant pool? Think about it: Not one finalist has been a superintendent in a district even one-quarter the size of Lowell.

At least one School Committee member is floating the idea of asking Baehr to stay on one more year as an interim superintendent, to allow the district to conduct another search. The Column has learned Baehr would not accept that job even if it was offered.

Meanwhile, Baehr, with 17 years of experience running school districts in Lowell, Wellesley and Lexington, is essentially a shoo-in for any open superintendent's job in which she's interested.

Baehr, however, said last week she has yet to decide what she will do next.

If for some reason the School Committee can't agree on a candidate, there's always Elaine Espindle in Dracut.

IF THE finalists' interviews are scheduled sooner than Thursday, School Committee member Jim Leary will not be in the house -- but for a good reason.

He and his wife Kyra flew to Guatemala Thursday morning and will be returning to Lowell on Wednesday with an addition to their family -- 9-month-old Lorenzo.

Immigration officials will officially make young Lorenzo an American citizen at the airport in Charlotte, N.C. His arrival marks the end of wading through red tape and jumping through hoops for the Learys.

Leary promises he will be back on the job Thursday night, prepared to interview the finalists. After a week in Central America, he may be asking questions in Spanish.

CITY COUNCILOR Alan Kazanjian's motion last week prompted councilors to name the new Middlesex Street Garage after former councilor and Mayor Edward J. Early Jr.

Other than being a regular at the Kazanjian-owned SAC Club, Early has been out of the public limelight for years. He didn't even attend the City Council inauguration in January, to which former mayors are invited.

Heck, Councilor Armand Mercier, another SAC club regular, had to convince the shy Early to have his mayoral portrait hung at City Hall in 2005, decades after his mayoral term in the late 1960s.

Kazanjian's motion was unanimously approved. No councilor could vote against it, even if they disagreed, without looking like a jerk.

WHEN STATE Rep. Dave Nangle heard City Manager Bernie Lynch was proposing to appoint former Mayor Eileen Donoghue to the Arena Commission, one Nangle buddy said he was "in a panic."

Apparently, the friend said, Nangle feared that the seat would provide a bully pulpit for Donoghue if she chooses to run against him in a Democratic primary. Another Nangle pal said the rep wasn't in a panic, but "apoplectic."

Neither is true, said Nangle.

"I really don't care," he said. "I'm gearing up for re-election, whether I have an opponent or not." If re-elected, it would be his sixth term.

Donoghue said she's undecided about running against Nangle. She has to decide by April 29, when nomination papers are due.

Some folks, like Nangle, are wondering whether Lynch even posted the position, and whether he received any interest from anyone else. The Column is wondering, too. Lynch couldn't be reached for comment Friday.

THE TYNGSBORO School Committee took a peculiar approach before offering its superintendent job to Darrell Lockwood last week.

Each committee member spoke about the qualifications of both finalists, Lockwood and Christine Tyrie. But other than Barry Dick, not one explained why they picked Lockwood.

Three members -- Diana Keohane, Martina Witts and Collin Manzo -- even said they couldn't decide which candidate to vote for, so they would go along with the majority. Committee members Burt Buchman, Bill Downing and Jeff Hunt simply picked Lockwood without further comment.

When it came time to vote, the audience still had no clue who any of the committee members, other than Dick, favored for the job.

After the meeting ended, Downing and Buchman were asked their reasons for choosing Lockwood. They gladly explained why. Witts, Manzo and Keohane said they came to the conclusion that both would be equally good choices.

WHY AREN'T they running? Littleton has many open seats up for re-election in May, but neither incumbents nor challengers have stepped up to the plate.

Selectmen Incumbents Reed Augliere and Ivan Pagacik haven't said whether they'll run for re-election, while resident Ken Smith is the only challenger so far.

"Board of Selectmen is a pretty important position, and right now we only have one person running for two openings," said Town Clerk Diane Crory. "It's a pretty sad state we're in right now."

Other uncontested races include School Committee, Planning Board, Moderator, Cemetery Commission, Library Trustee, and Park and Recreation Commission.

Neither incumbents nor challengers have pulled papers for the Board of Assessors, Light and Water Commissioner, and Commissioner of Trust Funds.

Papers must be picked up at the Town Clerk's office by March 20, and are due back on March 24.

ALONG WITH serious statistics about domestic violence and unequal pay for women, last Monday's Lowell Women's Week opening breakfast had light moments, too.

State Sen. Steven Panagiotakos compared life at home with his wife and two daughters to living in a Greek sorority house. He also elicited laughs when he recalled a discussion on breaking the glass ceiling he'd had with his girls. "I told them they'd have to break a little glass to get ahead," he said, adding one took him literally and broke the garage window.

Middlesex County Sheriff James DiPaola, another father of daughters, recalled coaching the first female major-league Little League player in Malden, then turning the team over to his sister, making her the first female coach in the city's history.

City Councilor Rita Mercier, always good for a laugh, brought chuckles when she told the men they looked "mahvelous," but that it was the women who made them look good.

Perhaps the most laughs -- and gasps -- came from keynote speaker Diane Patrick, wife of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, who read from a gem of a booklet she'd found somewhere: The 1943 Guide to Hiring Women -- 11 Tips on More Efficiency. Among them?

"Hire young married women, since they won't be as flirtatious" and "It's a good idea to give every girl an adequate number of rest periods, since they like time to apply lipstick and fix their hair."

We've come a long way, but we still have a long way to go," said first lady Patrick.

To which the audience loudly applauded.

FORMER LOWELL Building Commissioner Joe Guthrie is up on his feet and ready to get "dancin' again," he says, after suffering a minor stroke a month ago at his Westford home.

Guthrie has been recuperating at the Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital in Boston, where he's been receiving a steady stream of friends, causing nurses to demand he observe the closing curfew or else.

"What are they going to do, throw me out?" he joked last week. Guthrie is due home in a week

The Column wishes him a solid recovery.

LIKEWISE, BEST wishes go out to Dennis Ready, a former Chelmsford selectman and town official, radio talker and good guy. Ready will go under the knife tomorrow morning at New England Medical Center for quadruple bypass surgery.

LOIS FRANKENBERGER, the amiable public relations specialist at the American Textile History Museum for 10 years, received a heartfelt send-off Tuesday from museum staff. Frankenberger moves to New York this week to be near family and pursue other interests. At the party, she told museum director Jim Coleman "both the museum and I are on the verge of exciting new adventures."

But, she added, "the 10 years I spent here were so rewarding. I've learned more about textiles and seen people come and go. It's a sweet sadness I feel."

The museum gave her with a coverlet, woven in the museum's weave room. She presented the museum with a book on the history of nylon, which she'd received when she worked in publicity for Dupont.

The museum expects to hire Marcia Cassidy, formerly with Lowell General Hospital and The Sun, to handle public relations.

DRACUT SELECTMAN George Malliaros can always be counted upon for a few good quotes.

Selectman James O'Loughlin suggested the town could get Lowell developer Kazanjian to reduce his price further for a 14-acre parcel the town wishes to buy.

Malliaros replied, "There's an old saying: 'You can get milk from cows and eggs from chickens but a pig always get slaughtered.'"

Later, "I think it was Mark Twain who said, 'Land is so valuable because they're not making any more of it.'"

Malliaros also said the $1.02 million price tag was a good deal because, "Dracut taxpayers are only paying half. The state is paying the other half."

The board agreed the price for the land is steep, but Malliaros pointed out that the United States "lost a stealth bomber a couple of weeks ago worth $2 billion. What are we quibbling about?"

ATTORNEY HAROLD Greenspan, who is representing newly hired Dracut School Superintendent W. Spencer Mullin in contract negotiations, was running late for a scheduled meeting with the School Committee.

Seems there was a minor accident and he was trying to call the committee's attorney, Ed Morris, to tell him about his tardiness. Just so happens, Morris was involved in the minor fender-bender.

"I volunteered my services," joked Greenspan.

"I took him up on it," said Morris.

This week's Column was written by Sun Editor Jim Campanini, Assistant Managing Editor Kristopher Pisarik, City Editor Christopher Scott, City Hall reporter Michael Lafleur, Littleton reporter Bridget Scrimenti, Tyngsboro reporter Chris Camire; Dracut reporter Dennis Shaughnessey and Lifestyle reporter Nancye Tuttle.

Posted by Admin at 8:41 AM

February 19, 2008

Husband's revenge: Councilors corrupted

IT WAS not a waste of time for nearly 100 members of Lowell's artist community to march on City Hall and back a failed measure to create a new city Division of Cultural Affairs and Special events, "even if certain councilors had already been corrupted by the forces of evil."

Those are the words of a widely circulated e-mail from Lowell attorney Paul Schor, husband of LZ Nunn, director of the Cultural Organization of Lowell (COOL), currently the cultural-affairs arm of city government.

The message created a buzz, particularly among councilors who voted against creating the new division: Mayor Edward "Bud" Caulfield and Councilors Alan Kazanjian, Michael Lenzi and Rita Mercier.

Schor sent it a few days after the council's vote. The measure's opponents were vocally skeptical that Nunn would be promoted to division director -- and oversee the politically connected city Special Events Coordinator Andrew St. Onge, now essentially her equal -- as well as get an $18,000 raise, to $64,000.

Nunn's $46,000 salary comes from the city budget. The additional money involved in her promotion would have been paid by the budget for COOL, which is incorporated as a private, nonprofit agency.
"In the cost-benefit analysis, there's no cost," Schor said in an interview last week. "There's only a benefit."

To get to that point, Nunn will need support from at least one of those councilors whom her husband implied could have been corrupted by the forces of evil -- and City Manager Bernie Lynch is expected to introduce an amended proposal for another vote soon.

Jim Cook, president of the Lowell Plan and one of the most prominent proponents of the measure, was none too pleased by Schor's e-mail.

"I thought it was ridiculous, and foolish and stupid," he said.

Schor said his message intentionally did not specify who may have been corrupted by "evil." He added that his wife had no knowledge of his e-mail, and was embarrassed and upset with him.

"I felt as though she was being raked through the coals," Schor said.

"I don't think anybody in that council chamber wouldn't have spoken up in defense of their spouse."

He said the e-mail also was meant to bolster "people who came out in force that night because of something they cared about. The worst thing that could happen for this city is for people to feel that they don't count," he added. "What I wanted them to know was that it really matters, even if others had made up their mind due to things you can't control."

SCHOR SENT the message to such varied recipients as the city manager, Assistant City Manager Adam Baacke, Lowell Memorial Auditorium General Manager Tom McKay, Cobblestones restaurant owner Scott Plath, Molly Sheehy, dean of the Middlesex Community College Lowell campus, Lowell real-estate developer John DeAngelis and several dozen others.

Tough to keep a secret in that crowd.

Schor said he never had any intention of keeping his message under wraps.

"To me, it is an important message," he said.

COUNCILOR ARMAND Mercier was one of five councilors who supported the manager's ordinance creating the new cultural affairs office. The ordinance needed six votes to gain approval (it failed 5-4).

Mercier was on the fence two weeks before the vote, but came out strongly in favor of the ordinance on the night of decision.

He said he had championed the cause for an arts district years ago and that he was staying true to that cause.

Mercier's vote left several opposing councilors shaking their heads.

They felt the ordinance wasn't properly presented by the manager and that Mercier should have stood ground with them. Also, before the November election, Mercier was in the council minority where he rarely got the time of day.

So was Mercier being true to the arts or did something else move him?

HERE'S AN ad from the city of Cambridge that was posted last Sunday in a Boston newspaper:

"Director of Community Arts: Seeking highly motivated person to oversee the Cambridge Arts Council's Community Arts Program. Includes production of community-oriented events & festivals, facilitating city-wide grant-making opportunities for local organizations and providing overall support and collaboration within the city's arts community. BA with 5 years experience in arts administration, project management, budgeting and fundraising."

The salary range listed in the ad: $40,163 to $51,056.

At the high end of the scale, that's about $13,000 less than what Lowell was offering for a similar position.

SURE, IT'S been almost eight months since Marty Meehan took over as chancellor of UMass Lowell.

But it's never too late for a party.

In early April, Meehan and UMass Lowell will host an inauguration for the new chancellor featuring several days of events on campus showcasing the university.

Meehan says the inauguration will be "one big fundraiser" for scholarships and initiatives to support the school.

And in a sign that Chancellor Meehan still has political pull in Washington, D.C., The Column has learned that U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi will come to UMass Lowell to join in the celebration.

Pelosi, D-Calif., will be in Lowell on Friday, April 4, to deliver the keynote address at the main inaugural event. UMass Lowell officials are hoping the Democratic leader will be able to arrive the night before to help with a scheduled fundraiser.

SPEAKING OF Meehan, his campaign war chest keeps on growing months after his departure from Congress. In a year-end filing with the Federal Election Commission, The Marty Meehan for Congress Committee reported a cash balance on hand of $4,997,093.08. The total included $15,373 in donations that were contributed from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31. Meehan took over as UMass Lowell's chancellor in July.

So how much interest income is Meehan's money generating? How about a solid return of $238,248 for the October-December period and a total of $468,964 for the election cycle.

Meehan keeps healthy campaign deposits in four Lowell banks: Enterprise Bank & Trust, The Lowell Five, Butler Bank and Sovereign Bank.

GOV. DEVAL Patrick has found support for casinos in the unlikeliest of places -- on emphatic casino opponent Salvatore DiMasi's home turf.

During a night out in Boston's North End, the House speaker introduced Patrick to many of the locals, including one woman who was eager to support for legalized gambling.

"The older ladies are so physical. You always get a hug and a kiss. People run up and throw their arms around me and they whisper in my ear, 'When am I going to get my casino?'" Patrick said during an editorial board meeting at The Sun on Wednesday.

Patrick added he quickly points to DiMasi.

"I just say, 'Ask him.' It's like this running gag we have," Patrick said.

Some of the women DiMasi has known since he was a kid.

"They'll say, 'The governor's right. Give me my casino,'" Patrick said in a mock falsetto. "I ask him, 'Why don't you listen to your people? These are your constituents.'"

JUST AS Patrick scored his first political touchdown of the year, he also encountered a verbal tackle.

Meehan welcomed Patrick to Lowell one day after DiMasi, a Boston Democrat, supported several corporate tax reforms long championed by the governor.

Meehan accepted a $4 million grant from Patrick and promised to build a new headquarters for the Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center within a year.

"I looked up when I promised to have it done in a year and saw an extra camera. It must be the governor's," Meehan joked. "(Patriots' coach Bill) Belichick isn't the only one taping things."

The crowd, perhaps still tender from the Patriots' Super Bowl loss, groaned.

"That was a low blow," Patrick said.

LIFE IS sweet for the Senate Ways and Means Chairman throughout the year, but it becomes even sweeter during budget season.

Patrick got in on the act Wednesday, cozying up to state Sen. Steve Panagiotakos, D-Lowell, as the senator begins work on the final version of the state budget.

"He is a great friend every day, but he's a special friend during budget time," Patrick said.

Panagiotakos, who is a proponent of expanded gaming, says the governor has made great strides since the initial days of his administration which were filled with controversy over office purchases and the creation of several new staff jobs. "He's settled down into governing and he's showing that he is a quick learner and a good leader. I look forward to working with the governor on many important issues facing our state," said Lowell's leading Democrat on Beacon Hill.

EVER WONDER why veteran incumbents are so tough to beat in an election?

Here's an example from the Lowell School Committee.

Regina Faticanti, first elected in 1985, is the longest-serving member of Lowell's school board.

Faticanti also is the board's most prolific requester of moments of silence to recognize deceased current or former school employees, their relatives, or others who have been involved with the Mill City's public-education system.

Other school board members are free to request them as well, of course.

Afterward, a nice letter is sent to the decedent's loved ones noting who requested the moment of silence.

The default name that goes on those nice letters to potential voters if no one else specifically requests it from the district's central office? Faticanti.

Faticanti said she inherited that role from the previous School Committee dean, the late Kay Stoklosa.

"It became my responsibility now. I don't look at it as a perk," Faticanti said.

"I look at it as we're saying something good and holding a moment of silence about someone who's passed away."

DON'T BLAME her. It is no wonder that Billerica C.A.R.E.S. Committee member Sandi Wilson nearly neglected to recognize state Sen. Jim Marzilli's presence last week at a kick-off event for the cause.

Before Marzilli took office in January, the good people of Billerica were not accustomed to seeing their state senator, Bob Havern, at community events, and probably could not pick him out of a lineup.

The running joke around town was that Havern could not find Billerica with a map and a guide dog.

COULD IT be only a coincidence?

Just as he is preparing to run for reelection, Wilmington Selectman Michael McCoy is going after the Planning Board for what he says was a sloppy job on handling the arrival of a Registry of Motor Vehicles branch in town.

McCoy knows that the timing has not gone unnoticed and made a point last week of assuring his fellow board members that he is "not playing politics."

"I could probably have filled this room with 50 people to lobby (for my position) if I had wanted, but I didn't," he said, pointing at the selectmen's meeting room. "I don't need an issue to win an election."

McCoy is taking the Planning Board to task for its unwillingness to conduct a traffic study as part of its review of the Registry's plans.

He is arguing that Planning Board members should be elected, so that it can be held accountable by the voters.

Town Meeting will consider the matter in May. McCoy had originally requested that the issue be put on the ballot for the town's annual election in April, but that plan was shot down by selectmen last week.

McCoy will be listed on that same April ballot, seeking a seventh term.

A pair of residents have also signed up for the race to challenge McCoy and fellow incumbent Selectman Raymond Lepore.

LOWELL POLICE Superintendent Kenneth Lavallee can't seem to get any respect.

After having an underage drinker from Billerica give him the finger in traffic on Dutton Street a year ago, Lavallee helped arrest an accused drunken driver earlier this month and got spit upon.

Lavallee saw a car barreling at him, straddling the center line of Broadway Street last Friday.

The chief trailed the car and called for backup, which got the car stopped a short time later.

"Annihilated" is how Lavallee described the driver.

"As he's in handcuffs he spit all over my jacket," Lavallee said. "I didn't even see it coming because I had my head turned talking to the officer."

The superintendent said the same man later spit on another officer, too.

The good news for Lavallee?

The motorist received an extra count of assault and battery on a police officer, besides being charged with drunken driving.

THE RANKS below the superintendent will soon see some shuffling.

Acting Capt. James McPadden topped the Civil Service exam for the permanent promotion, but the second-place finisher was Detective Lt. Kelly Richardson, who will likely be moved out of his longtime home in the criminal bureau for his performance.

Lavallee made Edward Dowling an acting captain as he made interim promotions in the wake of his advancement and other moves last year.

The scores mean Dowling will likely return to the rank of lieutenant this spring.

Richardson, who has spent years as a detective, will be low man in terms of seniority among captains, so Capt. Jonathan Webb will retain command of the city's sleuths, while Richardson faces a less-choice assignment.

A similar switch will be made a rank down. Acting Lt. Thomas Lombard had a lower score than Acting Lt. Timothy Crowley, who topped that test, and Sgt. Timothy Kilbride.

Lombard, who will stay in the crime-analysis section, will go back to sergeant while Kilbride gets the permanent promotion.

Sergeants Thomas Siopes and Michael Kilmartin tied for third, meaning they will both be in line for promotion if more vacancies occur in the next two or three years.

That could come in handy if Acting Deputy Superintendent Robert DeMoura gets the chief's job in Fitchburg, where he is one of two finalists.

Captains and acting deputies will take a Civil Service exam for the permanent deputy jobs in May.

Contributing to The Column this week are City Hall reporter Michael Lafleur, Statehouse Bureau Chief Hillary Chabot, Statehouse reporter Matt Murphy, Billerica reporter Jennifer Myers, Wilmington reporter Alexandra Mayer-Hohdahl and police reporter Robert Mills.

Posted by Admin at 4:58 PM | Comments (1)

February 4, 2008

ZBA vote stuns city artist, biz communities

Article Last Updated: 02/03/2008 10:32:55 AM EST
A Sun Staff Report

LOWELL'S ZONING Board of Appeals stunned the city's business and artist communities last week with a vote that seems to run counter to a major city initiative that everyone thought had widespread support.

Voting against developer Karl Frey's proposal to build nearly 50 artist lofts on three Western Avenue properties were ZBA members Vesna Nuon, Corey Belanger, Jack Knox and Kevin Cavanaugh. The lone vote in support came from Bill Bailey.

Some recent history here:

* The City Council voted unanimously last year to extend special zoning to those properties. The objective? Get artists up there.

* The Planning Board also voted unanimously and for the same objective.

* Even the state Department of Housing and Community Development supported the change.

The vote left Frey's lawyer, Jim Flood, scratching his head.

"Needless to say, I was very surprised and very disappointed," said Flood, who has a strong batting average when presenting development plans to city regulatory boards.

Nuon, who served as chairman on this proposal because full-time Chairman Steve Geary stepped down due to a conflict, said the board's vote reflects what neighboring industrial interests wanted.

"Owners of buildings wanted more business and commercial in that area," said Nuon. "Many expressed their disapproval of this."

Nuon said the city's previous actions on the property didn't matter to the ZBA majority. "The ZBA has to be an independent board," he said.

THE ZBA vote triggered a minor dust-up at the following night's City Council meeting.

Councilor Rodney Elliott, concerned the city is squandering a prime development opportunity of old mill buildings, asked City Manager Bernie Lynch for a report on the vote. In Elliott's view, the ZBA should have voted unanimously in favor.

City Councilor Alan Kazanjian, the former ZBA chairman, said he explained the ZBA process to Elliott. Kazanjian also said the ZBA members are concerned about residents living in an industrial zone.

"That's like oil and water," he said.

IS DRACUT School Superintendent Elaine Espindle really not interested in becoming Lowell's next school chief?

The Column suggested that she might be the right fit to replace Karla Brooks Baehr, to which Espindle replied: "Oh, that's funny."

So we asked her point-blank later in the week. Espindle said, "You can't ask me that, it's personal."

Espindle, who replaced Christos Daoulas in 1998, decided not to renew her contract, which expires in June.

She has been a tireless advocate for the construction of a new high school and talk around town is that she might be asked to stay on as a consultant. She initially refused to comment, but when pressed on Thursday's night's NewsTalk Live with Sun Editor Jim Campanini, Espindle said she would love to see the project through to the end.

But would she be able to work shoulder-to-shoulder with her replacement, W. Spencer Mullin? There are those who don't think so.

ESPINDLE IS credited with getting the state School Building Authority to take a good, hard look at Dracut's situation. Her application was one of 19 selected by the SBA for funding consideration. More than 60 school districts applied. Dracut's high school was built in 1957 and underwent a renovation in 1996. While the facility is functional, Espindle and School Committee members say it is ill-equipped to provide the science and technological learning that will be required in the future. "Globalization has changed everything," Espindle said on NewsTalk Live. "Our kids will need to be better prepared educationally than at any time in our nation's history. They deserve to get the tools they need to compete for highly skilled jobs."

School Committee member Nancy Mendonca-Gagnon also appeared on the show. Asked if she thought Espindle would do a good job as a project consultant, Mendonca-Gagnon answered in the affirmative.

THE DEADLINE for applications for Lowell's superintendent search is tomorrow. Assistant Superintendent Susan Mulligan said 18 applications had been received by the end of business on Friday.

School Committee member Jim Leary says the committee should actively recruit candidates past the deadline, or possibly extend it, depending on the number and quality of candidates who apply.

But committee member Regina Faticanti says recruiting "leaves a bad taste in my mouth that I don't want," casting a political pall over the process and making some candidates appear to be the favorites.

School Committee member Connie Martin said she would not be opposed to extending the deadline if it means finding the best person, but she is not wild about the idea of recruiting candidates.

"I don't have anyone in my back pocket that I have been thinking would make a great superintendent," she said. "People coming into this position need to be prepared, excited and enthusiastic. I'd be concerned about someone who has to be convinced."

Martin pointed out that a job as complex as that of Lowell school superintendent does not draw scores of takers.

"You have to hit people at the exact right point of their careers and we will never have 30 to 40 candidates," she said.

FATICANTI SAYS the rest of the committee should have listened to her in the first place.

Last December, she pushed to delay the entire process, including advertising the position until mid-January. Her colleagues disagreed and voted to begin advertising in late December, to prevent missing out on good candidates.

"Now I'm fine with moving ahead with the applicants we have, and I don't want to delay," Faticanti said. "The people who are now saying delay, delay, all disagreed with me asking to wait to post the position. You can't have it both ways, you should have voted with me in December."

THE NAMES of the 12 unknown voting members of the Superintendent Search Committee will be released by Mayor Edward "Bud" Caulfield's office tomorrow.

The committee will be chaired by former Mayor Eileen Donoghue, who does not hold a vote. The one known voting member is former Deputy Superintendent of Schools Ted Rurak.

Names expected to show up on the list include: United Teachers of Lowell President Paul Georges, Lowell Plan Chairman James Conway III, Citywide Parent Council Chairman Anita Downs and Cindy McAndrews of the Special Education Parents Advisory Council.

One local person who will not be a candidate for the superintendent's job is Ann Murphy, the deputy superintendent of student services. After giving it some thought, Murphy said she's staying put.

THE COLUMN has learned that city of Lowell lawyers are on the verge of settling a series of controversial and long-standing lawsuits filed against the city nearly a decade ago. The lawsuits, filed by four employees of a high-profile department, eventually found their way to federal court, where the settlement is being ironed out. If everyone does, however, sign on the dotted line and everything gets resolved, it will be great for the city as whole, the department involved and especially the key players.

STATE REP. Dave Nangle jumped on Kazanjian's bandwagon last week, supporting the idea of moving the Lowell Transitional Living Center from Middlesex Street downtown to the grounds of Tewksbury Hospital. But Nangle was careful not to step on the toes of the dean of the Greater Lowell delegation, state Rep. Jim Miceli.

Nangle said any plan to move the shelter to Tewksbury must have the blessing of the man who has represented Tewksbury since 1977. And considering Miceli's reaction, that is not likely: "I would look askance," he said. "What the city is essentially saying is that we want to pretty up that area, so let's stick this facility in a neighboring town."

NANGLE INTRODUCED House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi at a "Hillary Clinton for President" rally held at Lowell's Shedd Park yesterday morning. Nearly 100 supporters turned out on a sunny, blustery day to hear Mr. Speaker and other legislators back the U.S. senator from New York. DiMasi said leadership is the key, and Hillary has it all over her Democratic rivals. DiMasi joked, "29 years ago, when I was elected to the Statehouse, I said, 'It's time to give a young guy a chance. Twenty-nine years later, I now know 'It's all about experience.' ... Hillary's got the experience to get America back on track." State Reps. Kevin Murphy, Tom Golden, Colleen Garry and Miceli also attended the rally, as did Senate Ways and Means Chairman Steve Panagiotakos.

WAS THAT Hall of Fame Jockey Jerry Bailey in Nangle's Statehouse office Tuesday afternoon? Bailey, who rode the great thoroughbred Cigar to two consecutive Massachusetts Handicap wins, was doing promotional work for Suffolk Downs when he popped in on Nangle for a few words. Saints Medical Center CEO Mike Guley and Saints Foundation President Mike Kuenzler had also stopped by after attending a health-care hearing. Bailey was kind enough to pose for a photo with the Saints executives.

BILLERICA SELECTMEN and their sweethearts now are free to celebrate Valentine's Day. Some members considered holding a special meeting on the Hallmark-generated-day-of-love, to hear a presentation from Dr. Jack Spengler, the town's environmental health consultant on the power-plant project proposed for North Billerica.

"But that's Valentine's Day," echoed Selectman Bob Correnti and Town Manager Rocco Longo (possibly marking the first time they have agreed on anything).

Selectman James O'Donnell did not seem too worried, stating he would celebrate the following night.

"I thought you told me that every day is Valentine's Day at your house," Correnti teased O'Donnell, who warned him not to "go there."

In the end, the romantics won out. Longo was asked by Chairman Mike Rosa to ask Spengler for a Monday night availability.

"I think we are all going to have to go home and explain why we were so quick to sacrifice Valentine's Day," mused Selectman Kathy Matos.

We are sure that O'Donnell's wife, Brenda, left a very comfortable pillow and blanket for him in the doghouse.

WITH LONGO leaving for Marshfield in about a month, selectmen now have to choose an interim manager, who by charter must come from among town officials and employees. The leading contenders are Town Accountant Paul Watson, who held down the fort for five months in 2005 between the tenures of Town Manager Richard Montuori and Longo, and Principal Assessor Rich Scanlon, who unofficially acts as the town's director of economic development. But, don't be surprised if the name of another town department head is thrown into the ring.

But the charter limits the new manager to those with at least five years as a manager elsewhere, precluding anyone in Town Hall from taking the job permanently.

LOWELL NATIVE Kerry Ahern's nearly 14 years as a prosecutor came to end this month when she decided to leave the district attorney's office to stay home with her children. She will be forever be linked in cyberspace with some of the area's biggest criminal cases, including the conviction of Vuthy Seng in the triple murder retrial and suspected serial killer Adam Leroy Lane. Stepping up to fill Ahern's shoes is another Lowell native, Elizabeth Dunigan, daughter of the late Lowell Superior Court Clerk-Magistrate Brian Dunigan.

AYER SELECTMAN Frank Maxant, who has prostate cancer, is taking part in a study for the Veterans Administration.

Instead of a procedure to remove the prostate, the Army veteran is letting them freeze it, a procedure called cryoablation. That way the prostate dies and shrinks, killing the cancer with it. The study is to learn if the body can inoculate itself against cancer by absorbing the dead tissues. He has to travel to a VA hospital in New York City's Bronx for the procedure.

JAY BOOTH'S announcement that he won't run for selectman this year has ripped the Tyngsboro race wide open. So far, Ashley O'Neil appears to be the hungriest candidate.

O'Neil, a 21-year-old senior at Emmanuel College, has already printed bumper stickers, is launching a Web site and has a fundraiser in the works. The political science major is the daughter of Planning Board member Steve O'Neil, a sergeant in the Lowell Police Department and real-estate developer.

The only other confirmed candidate for the town's two, three-year posts is incumbent Rich Lemoine, the board's current chairman. But one possible -- albeit unlikely -- challenger is Fred Perrault, the former selectman and current Finance Committee member, whom Lemoine helped oust from office in 2002.

Perrault said he has been approached by people in town who want him to run although he maintains that the chances he'll actually go for a seat are slim.

THEY MAY be preaching for a united front in the face of a multimillion-dollar deficit, but Tewksbury officials still have some solidifying to do.

During a municipal retreat for selectmen and department heads on Jan. 28, the continuing tensions between some departments were undeniable -- not much of a surprise given that they will be competing for ever-shrinking dollars.

Police Chief Al Donovan was upset that the School Department has submitted a preliminary budget for fiscal 2009 that includes a 10 percent increase. All other departments are cutting from the current budget, he said.

"Every year, it's the same. We get the short end of the stick," Donovan complained.

That drew a testy response from Selectman Anne Marie Stronach.

"Not to sound disrespectful, but that's not what we're here to talk about," she shot back. "We need to get over the 'what they're doing, what we're doing' thing. We as a group have to talk in one voice. If we're not willing to do this, we might just as well go home now."

A CHALLENGER has entered the selectman's race in Chelmsford, but he is remaining somewhat of a mystery.

Boston Road resident Eric Dahlberg has pulled nomination papers to challenge incumbent Selectman Sam Chase for a three-year term. Chase currently serves as board chairman and is the only selectman up for re-election.

The town Web site lists Dahlberg as a member of the Stipend Committee, but few other details about the man were available late last week. The listed phone number and the number he provided to the town clerk's office were out of service on Friday.

To secure a spot on the ballot for the annual election, candidates must gather the signatures of 50 registered voters and return them to the Board of Registrars by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 12.

This week's Column was written by City Editor Christopher Scott, Dracut reporter Dennis Shaughnessey, Billerica/Lowell Schools reporter Jennifer Myers, Ayer reporter Jack Minch, Tyngsboro reporter Chris Camire, Tewksbury reporter Alexandra Mayer-Hohdahl, Lifestyles reporter Rachel Briere and Court reporter Lisa Redmond.

Posted by Admin at 1:34 PM

January 14, 2008

Can Baehr rack up enough votes for ed post?

KARLA BROOKS Baehr, Lowell's superintendent of schools, is finding the road to the state education commissioner's job bumpier than expected.

Baehr is acknowledged to be Gov. Deval Patrick's choice, but her track record in Lowell and elsewhere is coming under scrutiny from GOP appointees on the state's nine-member Board of Education. Baehr needs six votes to get the job.

Three Romney appointees -- Tom Fortmann, Sandy Stotsky and Chris Anderson -- are said to be concerned with Baehr's anti-charter-school stance, mediocre reform results in Lowell, and her MCAS rollback leanings.

Another GOP appointee, Ann Reale, could hold the key vote to Baehr's fortunes. Reale was budget director during the Cellucci/Swift administration and Romney's education adviser.

When the BOE interviewed the three finalists for the commissioner's job, observers said Baehr came out second best to Mitchell Dan Chester, Ohio's senior associate state superintendent.

A BOE probe into Baehr's handling of a 1991 sexual-misconduct charge against a principal while she was superintendent of schools in Wellesley is also dogging her
The BOE is expected to make a recommendation to Patrick on Jan. 17.

JUST THE facts.

Lowell City Councilor Alan Kazanjian pulled his land deal off Dracut's table recently.

The old Canney Farm, a 14-acre parcel off Lakeview Avenue, was appraised at a little more than $1 million. Town Meeting in November approved the expenditure of $1.34 million from the Community Preservation Fund for the land. The property was to be used for much-needed ball fields.

State law stipulates that the asking price cannot exceed the appraised value.

Kazanjian opted to withdraw his sale offer late last year after some in town, including Selectmen James O'Loughlin and Joe DiRocco, questioned whether the sale price would pass legal muster.

Asked last week about why he had decided not to sell, Kazanjian said he doesn't "need the aggravation."

"I feel like I'm coming out as the bad guy here," he said, "and all I was trying to do was work something out with the town. They approached me."

Kazanjian bought the land in 1998 for $575,000. The Dracut sale would have represented a 74 percent profit.

Last week, Kazanjian said he is thinking of putting 29 condominium units on the parcel.

TUESDAY MARKED Kazanjian's first City Council meeting.

Kazanjian, a business owner, real-estate investor and housing developer, twice had to recuse himself from the council chamber because of potential conflicts. He spent his time in the hallway.

"I'm spending more time out there than I am in here," a laughing Kazanjian could be overheard telling Councilor Kevin Broderick after returning from his second self-imposed exile.

The first vote was to acquire properties at 49 and 55 Rock St. from landowner Paul G. Niven, with whom Kazanjian said he has had a past business relationship, for $435,000.

The second was during the council vote on Councilor Rita Mercier's motion to begin setting parameters for deciding what constitutes a qualified bidder for a city tow contract.

Kazanjian owns the city's largest tow firm, which became ineligible to participate in the city's towing program when Kazanjian took his oath of office recently.

NO CALL, no courtesy.

Rita Mercier was dumfounded to learn last week through word of mouth that she had been replaced as a council representative to the Lowell Telecommunications Corp. board of directors. Evidently, in one of his last official acts as mayor, Bill Martin took Mercier's name off the list of appointees, and added his own name and four others. The mayor and city manager each make five appointments to the LTC board. Martin never called the city's top vote-getter about the change.

"I don't know why he did that without talking to me. I had no idea (I was off the board) until someone told me this week," Mercier told The Sun.

On Jan. 16, the 24-member board will meet to select a new executive board. Middlesex Register of Deeds Dick Howe Jr., has been lobbying to become LTC's board chairman, replacing Alan Taupier, who is stepping down. Martin is a Howe ally.

COUNCILORS ON Tuesday also spent considerable time complaining to City Manager Bernie Lynch about property taxes and the city's recent property-valuation process.

Kazanjian and Rita Mercier both complained about an senior citizen in the Acre whose bill skyrocketed. Though never mentioned by name, the resident is former Mayor Tarsy Poulios, whose assessment on his two-family home on Bowers Street rose by about $80,000 this year to $288,000. The land value alone on the 2,600-square-foot lot increased by $50,000.

On Thursday night, Mercier appeared on NewsTalk Live hosted by Sun Editor Jim Campanini where she fielded angry calls from residents complaining about their tax bills. Several wanted to know how the bills could increase by more than $500, when Lynch said the average bill would increase $30 to $70? Mercier urged them to file an abatement.

The city Board of Assessors, which the city manager appoints, sets annual property values. The board consists of longtime members Joel Cohen, son-in-law of late Mayor Ray Rourke; Karen Golden, sister of state Rep. Tom Golden; and Chief Assessor Susan LeMay, wife of former Councilor Curtis LeMay.

It's doubtful the politically connected assessors would lose their jobs over the controversy, even if councilors aren't pleased with the job they are doing.

LYNCH HAS joined the blogosphere at lowellma.wordpress.com.

Lynch said the blog will give him the opportunity to converse directly with city residents on a multitude of city issues, while also giving him an opportunity to express his own opinion on those issues, and on what others opine about.

Besides Lynch, Methuen Mayor Bill Manzi, also blogs.

ED WALSH is off to Italy on a skiing trip, after 350 friends attended a surprise retirement party in Walsh's honor Thursday night at Mt. Pleasant Golf Club. Lowell's former Department of Public Works chief, says he isn't slowing down following his 80th birthday.

"I'll be looking for a full-time job when I get back," he quipped to John Cox, one of five former city managers who attended Walsh's bash. The others were Jim Sullivan, Jim Campbell, Richard Johnson, and Brian Martin.

EVAN DOBELLE, the former Middlesex Community College president, is back in the state system. On Friday, the state Board of Higher Education unanimously approved Dobelle as Westfield State College president from among 140 applicants

Dobelle, who lives in Pittsfield, was most recently employed by the New England Board of Higher Education. he also has left Trinity College in Hartford, City College of San Francisco and the University of Hawaii.

LAST WEEK'S Lowell School Committee meeting was full of warm and fuzzies.

Those expecting a showdown between committee members Jim Leary and Dave Conway, following a contentious week of bickering over the superintendent search process, walked away disappointed.

At Wednesday's meeting, Leary and Conway both had competing motions forwarded to the personnel subcommittee. There was no discussion, frustrating many community members who attended the meeting expecting discussion and a resolution.

Mayor Edward "Bud" Caulfield, the chairman of the School Committee, worked as a unifier, praising both members for taking on the leadership position of drafting a proposal, stating that "both of these motions have merit."

Conway congratulated Leary on the presentation of his motion, saying that they are 95 percent in agreement.

All parties said they just want the most effective process to choose the best candidate for the job. We'll see. The subcommittee consists of Chairwoman Connie Martin, Regina Faticanti and Conway.

THERE ARE bound to be local candidates for the search committee.

One name that has surfaced is that of Paul Schlichtman, the district's coordinator of research, testing and assessment. He's a veteran member of the Arlington School Committee and served as president of the Massachusetts Association of School Committees in 2004. (We got this info from Schlichtmann's Web site, in which he poses with an Elmo doll.)

This could be a good time for local applicants.

The main issue in top vote-getter Conway's School Committee campaign was Baehr's alleged preference for out-of-town hires to fill the ranks of elementary and middle-school principals.

Combined with the past rhetoric of committee members Faticanti and Leary, that certainly will create considerable pressure for the school board to include one or two local applicants among the list of finalists.

DAVID LAFERRIERE'S name was left off an invitation to Wednesday's swearing-in ceremony for recently elected Greater Lowell Tech School Committee members.

While Laferriere missed the ceremony due to a bout with pneumonia, the invitation left out the fact that he was re-elected along with Michael Lenzi last November.

Granted, Laferriere isn't as politically popular as Lenzi is, but he deserved a nod, especially considering his family attended the event.

THE CITY Council that was sworn in Monday features several firsts, according to Councilor Armand Mercier.

Kazanjian is the first councilor of Armenian descent in Lowell's history. Armand Mercier said he is oldest sitting councilor in city history. At 74, Mercier beats out former Councilor Richard Howe, who turned 73 just before he retired at the end of the 2004-2005 council term.

THERE'S A price tag for getting along.

While Westford selectmen won't be holding hands and sitting around the campfire, the town is shelling out $2,400 on a team-building seminar for the board.

The seminar at Middlesex Community College teaches selectmen to "develop mutual respect between board members and learn how to manage conflict and differences of opinion," according to Town Manager Steve Ledoux, who will leave for his new job in Acton on Feb. 22.

Ledoux said Billerica town officials completed a similar workshop in recent years.

FLAGRANT GRANDSTANDING. That is how some have characterized Selectman Marc Lombardo's nearly hourlong speech at last week's board meeting opposing the $230 million power plant proposed for North Billerica.

"I never visioned a power plant in my community, my Yankee Doodle community," he declared.

It is an election year, after all, and Lombardo's passion for the subject did win him admirers who are ready to catapult him to higher office.

As a throng of Billerica and Tewksbury residents -- many members of the anti-power-plant group Billerica Watchers -- exited the Conway hearing room, they made a bee-line for Lombardo's desk.

"If you want to run for governor we are with you," gushed one woman.

ONE OF those supporters will soon be joining Lombardo in candidate debates.

Ed Bunker, a member of Billerica Watchers, stormed out of last week's selectmen's meeting after board Chairman Mike Rosa refused to let him speak about the power plant.

Two days later he pulled papers to run for selectman.

Rosa explained that it was not a public hearing, and if he let Bunker speak he would have to let everyone speak.

"You are hiding behind the truth, you are hiding," Bunker accused.

"There is only one man on this board, and he is standing up (Lombardo)."

"What the hell is wrong with you people?" Bunker muttered as he left the room.

Bunker later explained he was frustrated that Lombardo's colleagues won't make a final determination on the power-plant proposal until the final Environmental Impact Report is released.

GOV. Patrick has promised before not to hitch a ride on the Barack Obama gravy train should the presidential candidate make it to the oval office.

At least not until his term is over.

Patrick took it a step further Thursday as he unveiled his education-reform plan to the press.

"We have a responsibility to take education to the next level, and make changes which will last long after I have finished my second term. Or my third term," Patrick said while looking pointedly at reporters.

Later, Patrick mentioned again he's in it for the long haul, while discussing education changes during his "term ... s."

We get it, governor. You're no Mitt Romney. At least not until that ambassador position opens up.

DRACUT SCHOOL Business Manager Terry Wiggin's Manchester, N.H., home became Obama Central in the week leading up to the New Hampshire Primary.

"More like Obama west," said Wiggin, who said that as many as 60 volunteers were inside his home at one point.

"It was all very exciting. People were staying overnight. College students were coming by to pick up literature and canvass the streets and to work the phones on primary day.

Although he has met the Illinois senator several times in the past, Obama did not visit this time.

Several staff members spent time there, however, as did Chicago Sun-Times columnist Monroe Anderson.

THE TALK in Tyngsboro is Ashley O'Neil, daughter of town Planning Board member Steve O'Neil, is considering a run for the Board of Selectmen.

O'Neil, 21, is a political-science major in her senior year at Emmanuel College. An O'Neil candidacy could pit her against Selectmen Rich Lemoine and Jay Booth, whose terms are up this year.

Lemoine says he's looking forward to seeking a third term on the board. Booth hasn't yet decided if he's going to run for a second term. Neither has pulled nomination papers.

Steve O'Neil is a Lowell police sergeant and real-estate developer.

NUMBERS: Did you know that of the 94 city employees who earned $100,000 or more during the 2006-07 fiscal year, 56 lived outside Lowell? That's according to payroll statistics obtained by The Sun. Stay tuned for more interesting data in the weeks ahead.

Contributing to The Column this week were City Hall reporter Michael Lafleur, City Editor Christopher Scott, Billerica/Lowell schools reporter Jennifer Myers, Statehouse Bureau Chief Hillary Chabot, Dracut reporter Dennis Shaughnessey, Tyngsboro reporter Chris Camire, Washington reporter Evan Lehmann, Westford reporter Bridget Scrimenti and Sun Editor Jim Campanini.

Posted by Admin at 6:41 PM

January 7, 2008

Political Column

Conway, Leary effort makes little music
The Lowell Sun
Article Last Updated: 01/06/2008 06:35:29 AM EST

Sun Staff Report

LIKE JOHN Lennon and Paul McCartney.

That's how Lowell School Committee member Jim Leary describes his brief collaboration with member-elect Dave Conway.

The two teamed up to devise a process for selecting a successor to Superintendent of Schools Karla Brooks Baehr, but the partnership quickly soured when Conway decided to go solo, Leary said.

The dynamic duo had been co-drafting a motion to present to the rest of the committee this week outlining a proposed screening process and timeline to choose the district's next superintendent.

On New Years' Day, Leary sent an e-mail to Conway asking him for a heads-up about any changes, adding that he would send out the motion the following day with their names, and that of committee member John Leahy if he was interested, as co-sponsors of the motion.

Later that night, Conway sent a press release presenting the motion as his own.

"He got upset because I asked him to make changes," said Leary. "Most of what he has in his motion is what we worked on together."
Conway says he "had been working on the motion for quite some time. We shared some ideas over the phone, but that was all."

Conway said their proposals are similar, but he found the wording in Leary's motion to be "too lengthy and confusing."

Both men agreed that, despite their differences and the exchange that followed, all of the committee members should put their ideas on the table Wednesday night to arrive at a process that works best for the district.

"It is time that we put our egos aside and get the best person we can to run our schools," said Conway.

IT APPEARS that Conway's ego may have been a little bruised by his exchange with Leary, who previously had felt he had Conway's support to be the school board's next vice chairman.

Asked if he still intends to give that support, Conway said, "that is debatable. I am still thinking about that."

Leary called Conway on election night to solicit his vote for the position -- which involves filling in for the mayor, the board's chairman. Leary seemed to have the position in the bag until the band broke up.

Committee member Regina Faticanti, for her part, said the disagreement means she and Conway are no longer likely to vote for Leary, paving the way for another School Committee member to get the post.

That person could be Jackie Doherty, who is the most senior board member who has yet to serve in the role and who has been lobbying for the post.

Leary, contacted Friday evening, said he is no longer interested in the vice-chairman's post even though he believes he could muster the votes to win it. He said he is throwing his support to Doherty. "I don't want to begin the new year expending energy on a battle that is not a high priority," said Leary. "We as a committee have to focus on finding the best superintendent we can, and that's what I want to do."

AL PARE, Lowell High's football coach, will get to keep his job after a dismal, injury-riddled 2-9 inaugural season, providing he shakes up the assistant coaching staff.

Pare was initially given a one-year contract. Several sources tell The Column Pare's contract will be renewed only if he agrees to several items:

* He must hire new offensive and defensive coordinators, preferably folks who've played some serious ball.

* He must consider at least one minority candidate.

* And whomever he hires, he must impress upon them that yelling at players isn't an effective motivator.

If Pare's contract is renewed, he automatically gets two more years under union rules.

High School Headmaster Bill Samaras, who has been reluctant to discuss that matter, is expected to make an announcement this week, The Column has learned.

Lowell High cannot afford another season like last year's, or else it could set the program back for years.

TOMORROW IS D-Day for Baehr, as she'll be interviewed by the state Board of Education to be the next state education czar.

It's widely perceived in these parts that Baehr, who clearly has the respect of Gov. Deval Patrick, has the job in the bag. Otherwise, she would not have recently notified the School Committee that she will not seek a contract extension on June 30.

If, for some reason, Baehr's candidacy goes south, at least one School Committee member is apparently interested in having her back: Leahy.

The Column has learned that Leahy allegedly had a conversation with Leary regarding that very subject.

The Board of Education is scheduled to make a decision no later than Jan. 22. The Lowell School Committee is set to make its decision on a new superintendent on or before April 1. The deadline for applying for the job is Feb. 1.

That would give Baehr nine days. But don't count on a "Bring Back Baehr" rally any time soon. As one board member said this week, "that train has left the station and it ain't turnin' around."

THE COLUMN had an impromptu, but interesting, conversation with a Lowell school teacher last week.

The teacher left no doubt that Ann Murphy, assistant superintendent for student services, should succeed Baehr.

Murphy, the teacher said, has worked in the system since 1978, starting out as a special-needs instructor. In her current job, Murphy oversees many department operations, including special education, parent information and crisis plans, just to name a few. She knows it all, the teacher said, from curriculum to finances.

So is Murphy, the wife of state Rep. Kevin Murphy, interested? "I really don't know. I have given it no serious thought," she said.

ONCE A politician, always a politician.

Marty Meehan, who last year bid adieu to the hallowed halls of Congress for the halls of academia as chancellor at UMass Lowell, will analyze New Hampshire primary results Tuesday night for Channel 5.

Meehan will appear on "Commitment 2008" starting at 7:30 p.m. with anchors Ed Harding and Liz Brunner.

Reporters will be around New Hampshire doing live shots. Meehan will be in studio to provide political perspective, along with Ken Chase, Republican who ran unsuccessfully against Sen. Edward Kennedy; as well as Mary Anne Marsh, Democratic analyst, and Ron Kaufman, a Romney advisor.

FOR THE second year in a row, the Billerica political scene is all atwitter with news that a seat on the Board of Selectmen is up for grabs in the April town election.

Selectman Kathy Matos announced last week that she will step aside when her first term expires in April.

Understanding the importance of urgency, police dispatcher Bob Accomando was first to throw his hat into the ring. He was followed by 22-year-old Frank Ciccone II.

The names of several other potential contenders buzzing around the hive include Zoning Board of Appeals member Pat Flemming, who finished fourth in last year's election; Ron Diorio Jr., who made an unsuccessful bid to unseat Selectman Jim O'Donnell in 2006; and Finance Committee Chairman David Gagliardi, a confidante of Matos who finished third in last year's race.

Accomando also owns Ma's Dry Cleaning at the Billerica Mall and backs the $20 million plan that will bring Home Depot to the site.

Some questions: Will anti-Home Depot group Billerica First put up a candidate to thwart Accomando? Will former state representative and two-term selectman Brion Cangiamila, fresh off a failed run for state Senate, jump into the fray now that his political fire has been reignited?

MATOS' DECISION is potentially good news for Selectman Marc Lombardo, whose term also expires in April.

Incumbents have been hard to unseat in Billerica, more so when there's one incumbent running with two open seats. Mike Rosa easily topped the ticket in last year's six-way race, following Ellen Rawlings' decision to leave the board. In 2002, lone incumbent Robert Correnti finished first to easily retain his seat. It didn't work as well for Cangiamila, who finished third in 1999 behind Peter Coppinger and Correnti, despite being the lone incumbent.

IF ANYONE should know that Lowell's next mayor hasn't been decided until all the votes are cast, it's City Councilor Edward "Bud" Caulfield.

Caulfield won his first term as mayor, from 1996-97, after former Councilor Larry Martin abruptly switched his allegiance from former Councilor Stephen Gendron as the procession of councilors-elect was walking into the council chamber at City Hall for the inauguration. Gendron, now a Planning Board member, had expected Martin's support and his many family members in attendance at the event were shocked to find otherwise.

But given the current political landscape, it's extremely unlikely that such a turn of events will give Lowell's next mayoral term to Councilor Rodney Elliott, Caulfield's rival for the post.

That's why Caulfield was able to pick the priest who will give the benediction at tomorrow morning's inauguration, the Rev. Mario Orrigo of St. Michael's Church in Lowell.

The ever-verbose Caulfield said he also has spent quite a bit of time crafting his acceptance speech, which will be a nod to peace and harmony.

Caulfield said he intends to talk about everything "we should be thankful for" in the Mill City, such as Lowell's two hospitals, UMass Lowell, Middlesex Community College, the Lowell public schools, its tourist attractions and business leaders.

"Then I'm going to ask my colleagues to prioritize some things that I have come up with, such as supporting public safety and improving it as well throughout the entire city," Caulfield said. "We have to address the flooding issues in certain neighborhoods. We have to address our infrastructure. Many of our streets and sidewalks need attention."

Caulfield said none of that will happen unless councilors work together with City Manager Bernie Lynch.

IT LOOKS like Councilor Rita Mercier has the votes sewn up to be vice mayor, the person who serves as council chairman in the mayor's absence and fills in for him at events he cannot attend.

Asked for confirmation last week, a laughing Mercier said she could neither confirm nor deny her selection for the post. But she had been calling around to her colleagues to let them know about the situation.

She likely will garner the support of the same five who will elevate Caulfield to mayor: herself, Caulfield, Armand Mercier and Councilors-elect Alan Kazanjian and Michael Lenzi.

IT TAKES a lot of faith to go on the presidential campaign trail.

Just ask state Rep. Tom Golden, D-Lowell, who canvassed for Hillary Clinton last weekend in Portsmouth, N.H.

One resident began yelling at Golden before he could even begin his pitch, exclaiming, "She's an atheist, and if you support her, you must be an atheist, too!"

Golden didn't engage the man.

He simply waved goodbye and walked down his front stairs, saying, "God Bless!"

WILL MARTIN P. Dunphy please come forward?

Dunphy, who claims to be a Dracut resident, wrote a letter to the editor that appeared in the Dec. 31 edition of The Sun. In his letter, he criticizes the Dracut Community Preservation Commission and Selectman George Malliaros for supporting a land deal with Lowell Councilor-elect Kazanjian, in which the town will pay slightly more than the assessed value for Kazanjian's 14-acre parcel on Lakeview Avenue.

The letter was verified by The Sun through a telephone number that led to an answering machine message. The name of the letter writer, however, appears to be fabricated.

In his letter, Dunphy says he is a "fairly new resident," and says he was "stunned by what I witnessed at Town Meeting recently."

First, there is no record anywhere of a Martin P. Dunphy. Not in the resident's list. Not in the voter's list. Not even in the phone book. Secondly, the tone of the letter suggests that he is not a new resident. In fact, he writes that he voted for the Community Preservation Act when it first came before the town. That was in 2001. Third, the "recent" town meeting actually took place two months ago, but has been rebroadcast numerous times on Dracut Access Television.

ONE GROUP may have arrived a little too late to the dance in the search for a replacement for Dracut Housing Commissioner James Gookin.

According to sources, behind-the-scenes maneuvering began well before Gookin notified the state Department of Housing and Community Development that he would be stepping down.

Sources say Gookin was among a small group that hand-picked his replacement and forwarded the name to Gov. Deval Patrick. Another group, who is rumored to be tight with Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, put a different name on his desk, but only after the first name had been submitted.

THE WESTFORD selectmen's race is heating up.

Selectmen Chairman Valerie Wormell, Selectman Dini Healy-Coffin, Finance Committee member Kelly Ross, and resident Kirk Ware are running for two open seats on the board.

Healy-Coffin, who served with Ware on the East Boston Camps Master Plan Committee, said builder and developer Ware's profession could cause a conflict of interest on the board.

"I don't think that's the right direction the board wants to take," Healy-Coffin said, adding, "I have not taken money from builders or businesses like my other fellow members of the board," a reference to Nancy Rosinski and Jim Sullivan.

Ware, owner of Nagog Consulting, an Acton-based building, developing and consulting firm, said his skills will benefit the town, while officials analyze what to do with Town Hall.

"Isn't it ironic, here's Dini facing an issue where these skills would be critically important," Ware said.

Rosinski and Sullivan both say their decisions on the board aren't influenced by campaign donations.

Sullivan, meanwhile, said Healy-Coffin has held hard feelings against Ware since their service on the camps committee.

"She didn't get her way on the committee and it's been a personal issue ever since," Sullivan said. "If it was anyone else but Kirk Ware running she probably wouldn't be running."

Papers are due on Tuesday, March 18.

THE END of an era for chelmweb.com?

Users of the town's online discussion board claim its domain name is set to expire Jan. 25 due to a lack of interest. No new registrations have been successfully completed in almost a year, according to postings.

A forum for residents to talk about local politics -- and vent about town officials -- one user writes, "The BOS have had their prayers answered."

Regulars on the site are praying that it will be rescued before going off-line.

SOURCES AROUND Chelmsford also are murmuring about this year's election.

Selectman Sam Chase is the only candidate who has pulled papers for his seat.

Word on the street is Fred Marcks could be stiff competition for Chase. Marcks, who recently worked as a consultant for Repeal 40B, the group behind a petition to strip four major provisions out of the state's affordable-housing law, also helped Clare Jeannotte in her successful campaign for selectman in 2007.

Chelmsford resident Tom Fleming, a Lowell police officer, also is rumored to be a potential candidate.

Contributing to The Column this week were City Editor Christopher Scott, City Hall reporter Michael Lafleur, Billerica/Lowell schools reporter Jennifer Amy Myers, Statehouse Bureau Chief Hillary Chabot, Dracut reporter Dennis Shaughnessey, Chelmsford reporter Rita Savard and Westford reporter Bridget Scrimenti.

Posted by Admin at 11:44 AM

January 2, 2008

Wirtanen 'shining the light of truth' on LTC

HE'S BAACK.
Lowell attorney Tom Wirtanen has ended his self-imposed exile from the Mill City's civic life, returning to the scene just in time for the Lowell Telecommunications Corp.'s search for a new executive director to replace Robert Haigh, who resigned Nov. 15 amid speculation that the timing of his departure was forced.

Wirtanen resigned from the LTC board of directors with great flourish in February, irate that his fellow board members were not following his advice on what those of us in the Fourth Estate refer to as "boobgate."

His LTC departure came shortly after Wirtanen ostentatiously quit the city Election Commission to protest City Manager Bernie Lynch's decision to stop providing health benefits to board and commission members, a practice Lynch said violated state law.

Wirtanen lately has unleashed a torrent of e-mails and faxes to LTC content producers and staff revisiting his complaints from February and beseeching his recipients to force out all the board members who refused to heed his advice and to fire Haigh from his nearly $83,000 per year job sooner.
In an interview this week, he had particular scorn for Middlesex Register of Deeds Richard Howe Jr., a member of the LTC board's executive committee who Wirtanen referred to as "the crown prince."

Howe's intervention back in February derailed Wirtanen's attempt to get his way with "boobgate".

There is some thought that Wirtanen intends to seek re-election to the LTC board or will apply to be the organization's next executive director.

Wirtanen said he is "very, very unlikely" to attend the Jan. 16 annual meeting during which both issues will be decided, however. He added that neither he nor his documentary videos will grace LTC again unless some significant changes are made.

"I would love to contribute down there, but things have to happen first," he said. "If it happens on the 16th, and the producers, the members and the staff stand up like I did, like I led by example, and take it back, then just maybe I'll go back there and help them clean up the mess. If not, then they have only themselves to blame, don't they? Then they have no complaint, because they didn't stand up. All I'm doing is shining the light of truth upon them."

HOWE SAID Wirtanen's light of truth is unlikely to do him much good -- at least if he intends to return to the LTC board as an elected member.

According to the organization's bylaws, Howe said, the board nominating committee puts forward a slate of candidates upon which LTC content producers then take an up or down vote. Wirtanen's name is not on that slate, which is now full, Howe said.

"It's my understanding of the bylaws that it's only in the absence of a full slate that nominations are allowed from the floor," he added.

Howe also said he has no hard feelings toward Wirtanen.

"He's to be pitied," Howe said. "He's crying out for attention."

As for being the LTC "crown prince," Howe said will not actively seek to be the organization's next president and board chairman, but if he is nominated, he would not refuse it.

If elected, Howe might be walking into an ethical dilemma. Should an elected official be influencing and overseeing the board that controls local access public television and its programming?

And isn't Howe up for re-election soon as Middlesex registrar?

SENATE PRESIDENT Therese Murray isn't known for her warm, outgoing personality.

So it was quite a shock when she charged into the press gallery during a holiday party bearing a case of champagne and mingled with members of the Fourth Estate for a glass of bubbly.

She even chided Senate Ways and Means Chairman Steven Panagiotakos, a Lowell Democrat, for showing up to the shindig empty-handed.

COULD IT be?

The wait for the much-anticipated decision on whether to appoint state Rep. Dave Nangle, D-Lowell, to the lofty position of Sergeant at Arms could soon be over.

House Speaker Sal DiMasi said he would hold off on the appointment until the House and Senate were back in formal session. That session begins Jan. 2.

THE LENGTHS to which Panagiotakos will go to win state money for his constituents were tested this summer by a $500,000 grant he helped win for the Lowell Parks & Conservation Trust for the Concord River Greenway.

In an effort to convince state Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles to see the value of the project, Panagiotakos said during the grant's award ceremony, he and his top aide, D.J. Corcoran, had to go water skiing with Bowles in the Boston Harbor. The trip was made on Bowles' boat, Panagiotakos said.

Panagiotakos made clear that he and Corcoran never actually engaged in the sport themselves, but he credited Bowles' skills. ("He was even up on one ski.")

Bowles in turn credited Panagiotakos and Nangle, whose district is home to the Greenway, for being "relentless advocates for your city."

FRESH FROM his spirited but unsuccessful campaign for Lowell City Council, Mehmed Ali has apparently turned his political talents to another purpose.

In this instance, the director of the Lowell National Historical Park's Patrick J. Mogan Cultural Center turned his attention to ensuring that Dan Holin would not serve as interim facilitator of the Lowell Plan's new cultural committee, which is tasked with carrying out the recommendations of a consultant's study, commissioned by the Lowell Plan, which focused on improving Lowell's cultural economy.

Ali reportedly viewed Holin, executive director of the Concord-based Jericho Road Project, as an out-of-towner who would be inappropriate in that role -- an issue that surfaced during the committee's first meeting earlier this month.

Ali declined comment on the subject, but rumor has it he lobbied other committee members to oppose Holin, earning himself a rebuke from Lowell Plan President Jim Cook and national park Superintendent Michael Creasey, who has since replaced Ali as his representative on the committee.

Holin could not be reached. He continues to serve on the committee.

Cook declined comment.

Rosemary Noon, wife of UMass Lowell community-relations guru Paul Marion and former executive director of the precursor agency to the Cultural Organization of Lowell, has been tapped to oversee the committee's work.

TSONGAS ARENA General Manager Craig Gates' Dec. 21 appearance on the WUML 91.5 FM's Lowell Sunrise program featured some eye-opening remarks about the Lowell Devils minor league hockey franchise.

Gates asked to appear on the show to respond to City Councilor Armand Mercier, who the previous morning had argued that the city is losing too much money on the arena and would better off if struck a deal with UMass Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan to give the facility to the university.

During his appearance, Gates said Mercier was one of the eight councilors who adopted the Lowell Devils lease in June 2006, which is now blamed for many of the arena's financial woes.

"Our biggest problem turning a profit is the Devils' 40 home games," Gates said. "The Devils don't do a good job bringing people in. We did turn a profit before the city gave the deal to the Devils and the Lock Monsters," he said, referring to the hockey franchise that preceded the Devils in Lowell. "I feel like the orphan child," Gates said. "No one wants you."

Councilors agreed to cut the Lock Monster's rent in half in 2004 and then further reduced the rent for the Devils in a last-ditch attempt to keep professional hockey in the Mill City.

"If it were up to me, I'd keep the River Hawks and give the Devils a map to wherever," Gates said.

THE ADDITION of Kellie Hebert to Lynch's administration marks the third person from the former Chelmsford town manager's staff to make the move to Lowell in the past year.

Besides Hebert, the assistant to the town manager in Chelmsford and the incoming human-relations director in Lowell, there's Andy Sheehan, the new assistant to the city manager and former Chelmsford community-development coordinator, and Donna McIntosh, Lynch's executive assistant in Chelmsford, who is doing the same job in Lowell.

All three saw their salaries boosted significantly by their new jobs with the Mill City.

The addition of Sheehan and McIntosh -- whose positions were created by a controversial budget vote in June that saw Councilors Edward "Bud" Caulfield, Armand Mercier and Rita Mercier dissent -- caused Lynch some political heat.

But to date no such stink has been raised over Hebert's hiring, which was announced Wednesday.

Perhaps that is because she is a Lowell resident who formerly worked for the city, though McIntosh also lives in Lowell. Sheehan lives in Acton.

TOMORROW MARKS the end of Edward Walsh's career as Lowell's Department of Public Works commissioner.

The popular and feisty Walsh may be 80, but the avid downhill skier likely won't be slowing down.

Walsh's friends have scheduled a party in his honor early next month at Mt. Pleasant Golf Club in Lowell.

He will be replaced as DPW commissioner by Assistant City Manager T.J. McCarthy, in a controversial staffing move that Lynch was able to push through during the same June budget deliberations that saw the establishment of Sheehan and McIntosh's positions.

At the time, Lynch had wanted to force Walsh's hand into retiring early as a cost-cutting move. According to Walsh, the manager tried to get him to take a random drug test which Walsh refused.

The DPW chief said he told Lynch he had never been asked to take one in all his years of public service to the city so he wasn't going to take one now. Lynch's actions infuriated Walsh supporters and prompted a group of them to ask Mike Lenzi to run for City Council. Lenzi is a longtime friend of Walsh's.

Lenzi, who was elected in November, downplays the Lynch-Walsh feud and said he ran for office to best serve the city's interest and nothing else.

ONORINA MALONEY, who resigned from the Groton town clerk position on Friday, and incoming Interim Town Clerk Michael Bouchard have something in common -- Sophie the dog.

Maloney, who liked making her office appear homey and welcoming to visitors, has had a stuffed animal resembling a small chocolate Lab named Sophie lying on a cushion underneath her desk. Upon her departure, another town worker has "adopted" Sophie.

Coincidentally, Bouchard's real dog's name is Sophie, too.

LITTLETON RESIDENT Jeffery Yates is now a permanent member of the Zoning Board of Appeals.

Yates, an architect, was appointed to the board last week, after serving as an alternate member for the past seven months.

"We're excited to welcome him (Yates), said ZBA Chairwoman Sherrill Gould. "He has extensive experience with planning and zoning matters and makes a wonderful contribution."

Yates replaces Chris Meier, who moved out of town.

The board's new alternate members include Cheryl Hollinger, Rod Stewart, Marc Saucier, and Matthew Field.

KARIN SWANFELDT, executive director of Ayer's Council on Aging this week said the expected cost of a 2,000-square-foot office and counseling space addition at the town senior center could cost nearly $1 million.

The construction estimate was just under $700,000 when Swanfeldt first proposed the idea in 2005.

Lowell architect Jeff Cook could have bid-ready plans ready by February but then Swanfeldt has to find funding -- not an easy task.

She's already started lobbying state Rep. Bob Hargraves and state Sen. Pam Resor.

Contributing to The Column this week were City Hall reporter Michael Lafleur, Statehouse Bureau Chief Hillary Chabot, Groton reporter Hiroko Sato, Littleton reporter Bridget Scrimenti, Ayer reporter Jack Minch and Sun Editor Jim Campanini.

Posted by Admin at 9:08 AM

December 11, 2007

Hunt ban sought after dog shooting

By Michael Lafleur, mlafleur@lowellsun.com

LOWELL -- The fatal shooting of a dog in the Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest last week has prompted City Councilor Rodney Elliott to seek a ban on hunting in the 1,140-acre woods.

Elliott has filed a motion for Tuesday's meeting that asks City Manager Bernie Lynch to have attorneys in the city Law Department research whether such a ban is possible and how it could be implemented.

"Given the number of people that use the forest for recreational purposes, there's an inherent danger with people hunting in the forest," said Elliott, who lives in the city's Pawtucketville neighborhood, which borders the forest. "Unfortunately, there was that shooting of a dog. I want to make sure that the next time, it's not a person."

Lowell police have said they believe a hunter was responsible for the Nov. 30 incident.

Michelle Verville of Lowell was walking her 4-year-old Labrador retriever-German shepherd mix, Smokey, when the dog was shot that Friday morning. Verville, who was unaware hunting was allowed in the forest, said she confronted a hunter, who emerged from the woods nearby almost immediately after the shooting. The man said he wasn't responsible but left the area without offering help, she said.
State environmental police are investigating the case and had yet to make any arrests as of yesterday afternoon, said Lisa Capone, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Fish & Game, which issues hunting licenses.

Elliott noted that many homes abut the forest and that it is heavily used on a daily basis by mountain bikers, dog walkers and others.

"I'm not against hunting, but not in such a heavily settled section of this state," he said.

City officials would not be able to impose a ban on their own, even in the portion of the forest that lies within Lowell's city limits.

State law trumps local ordinance.

Capone noted that if a city were to impose a ban on hunting within its boundaries, that ban would not apply to any state land within those boundaries where hunting is allowed.

In Massachusetts, the state Department of Conservation and Recreation has the power to determine if hunting will be allowed in a state forest.

DCR officials already have prohibited hunting in a 252-acre swath in the northwest corner of the forest that is used by the Greater Lowell Indian Cultural Association for ceremonial purposes.

DCR spokeswoman Wendy Fox yesterday said it was not clear what the process is for extending the ban.

Local hunters said imposing a ban on hunting in the forest because of one individual would be unfair to all other hunters who use the land.

They said hunters use off-trail sections of the forest where dog walkers, mountain bikers and hikers rarely venture and added that a ban on hunting in the forest could rapidly lead to deer overpopulation and the denuding of smaller brush both in the forest and on neighboring private land.

"You're going to have issues with the deer in people's backyards," said Dracut resident P.J. Mercier, a bow hunter who lives on the edge of the forest and hunts there during deer season.

Mercier, grandson of City Councilor Armand Mercier, said most deer in the forest stick to the marshy areas around Spruce Swamp, where there are no trails.

"I get off the beaten path and most other guys I see walking through the woods, if I do see some, they're doing the same," he said.

Under state law, the discharge of a firearm is not allowed within 500 feet of any home. There also is a buffer zone around roads.

Dracut resident Dave Pinard, who described himself as an avid bow hunter, said he does not hunt in the forest, but those who do "certainly need to use extra caution and be very aware of where they are in the forest and what's around them."

Pinard added that last Friday morning's incident -- if it was an intentional, criminal act -- should not be considered indicative of how all hunters behave.

"He certainly does not represent the mentality of 99.9 percent of the hunters in this country," Pinard said. "All the people that I know who hunt, if anything, they have a greater respect for life in the animals than the nonhunting public because we appreciate it more."

Posted by Admin at 3:21 PM

December 10, 2007

Billerica board's battle brewing for a while

THE BILLERICA volcano that erupted on Monday night has been smoldering for months.

Selectmen Bob Correnti and Jim O'Donnell stormed out of the meeting after Chairman Mike Rosa refused to add their evaluations of Town Manager Rocco Longo to the board's composite score, because each missed Rosa's deadline significantly.

"The deadline is Nov. 2," Rosa told Correnti and O'Donnell. "How do you not understand that? That was pretty simple."

"Hope you have a quorum. Good night," O'Donnell said, as he and Correnti left the room, leaving a surprised Rosa and Selectman Marc Lombardo no choice but to end the meeting with no quorum.

Ultimately, everyone ended up looking bad. Correnti and O'Donnell never told Rosa they would be late; Rosa never asked why, nor said he would move ahead without them.

The Rosa-Lombardo-Kathy Matos composite gives Longo an average 4.2 out of 5. Correnti and O'Donnell are not big fans of the manager, and their grades could have dragged down the final score. Longo's contract expires in June, and a high score could be the basis for a long contract and significant raise.
CORRENTI RETURNED to the board following a two-year absence in April's election, after Ellen Rawlings decided not to seek re-election.

O'Donnell has been emboldened now that he has an ally. He and Rosa have had numerous pointed exchanges in recent months over the chairman's style.

He blasted Rosa for poor communication earlier this year when Town Counsel Donna Gorshel Cohen had changed her position on eliminating trash pickup at multifamily units -- which only Rosa and Longo knew.

"Are you going to tell us of this new opinion or is it a secret?" O'Donnell asked Rosa.

Monday, O'Donnell threw a promise Rosa made during election season back in his face.

"I thought there was a sense when you became chairman of bringing people together," O'Donnell huffed before his grand exit.

GEORGE GATZIMOS lost his seat on the Lowell Memorial Auditorium Board of Trustees in part because of the feud between Greek-American Legion Commander George Tzanetakos and Lowell Veterans Council Commander Robert Page.

Tzanetakos, who did not return a phone call, recently has been highly critical of the veterans council under Page.

The council, an umbrella group for the city's vets organizations, nominates three people to serve as the veterans' rep on the trustees board. The city manager chooses one of them.

Page said neither Tzanetakos nor Gatzimos has attended a veterans council meeting "in several months," including the nominating meeting in the fall. Gatzimos has served two terms on the board, but was not nominated this time.

"You can't be nominated if you're not there," Page said. "If he had been at the meeting, I'm sure somebody would have nominated him."

Gatzimos, the city's longtime former civil defense director, will be 84 in February. He normally gets a ride to the monthly council meetings from Tzanetakos, Page said.

Page added neither Gatzimos nor anyone else from the Greek American Legion contacted him "or anyone that I know of" to inform them that Gatzimos was still interested in serving.

"I thought they did the man a disservice by making such a foolish thing out of it," Page said of the Lowell City Council. "But the reality is we followed the rules that we live by, and that's what we do."

CITY MANAGER Bernie Lynch caught an earful for replacing Gatzimos without telling him.

Councilor Rita Mercier said Gatzimos was unaware he was out until he read about it in Monday's Sun. She then proceeded to lambaste Lynch for being insensitive.

Lynch said he called Gatzimos and apologized, after learning Gatzimos was interested in continuing to serve.

"I'm not a professional by any means, but I would have taken him to my