An overflow crowd - many angry with TA Andrews for his certification of the Lynne Road rehab facility - has prompted the Selectmen to reconvene the BOS meeting to Town Hall's auditorium next door at 8pm this evening. WCTV broadcast coverage of the meeting will also continue employing station's portable equipment.

Stay tooned.

Last edited by billw (2011-06-28 19:35:20)

Wow just watching Ellen get cranky at the audience...she seems very angry

The broadcast was a "mess"...started at 7 pm.. stopped after awhile..then resumed at 8 pm..but then the video feed seemed to be "out" for about twenty minutes.. So, bear with me and I'll try and get a good copy up asap..

But, while I'm here...

Mark Andrews and Myles Burke? Yeah…we tried to tell ya. Are you seeing it now? I’m in agreement with the residents concerns about the “Lynne Rd. issue”. It definitely seems like Andrews and Myles screwed up (royally) once again (unlikely to be the last time). They need their “hands held” through everything…(the accounting audit, “Biz”..the hiring of Stanley..Lt. Bliss..the handling of Lynne Rd, etc..). Why are we paying them?? I guess those kinda things happen when you hire your buddies (qualified or not) for big money (our money). So, we're in agreement that they suck, right? OK, but to those who’ve said Andrews and Burke won’t be around much longer.. I don’t see it happening. Unless Andrews resigns (fat chance) he ain’t go anywhere…and I don’t see Andrews firing his friend Burke (well, unless it might save his own job.. like he did to former..current?? town accountant “Biz” Zaleski). Or unless you can get four selectmen to “fire” Andrews (with cause).. then it won’t happen. Hey, personally I think there’s a boatload of “cause”.. But the BoS recently rated him as “totally awesome” during his review and gave him a 3K bonus (on top of his 100K base salary). Even if they did fire him..Andrews would say he inherited a mess and “did his best”…and we’ll still have to pay him..and any legal costs if he brought a wrongful termination suit against the town. I’m not at all confident that Holmes and Cruz would fire him anyway..and I’m very confident that Begley and Schneider won’t fire him. That would take admitting they were wrong..and I don’t think they can do that. 

It took a “fire” in the backyards of the folks around Lynne Rd. to notice what we’ve been saying all along. We've got problems "at the top" in Wareham. Better late than never to this party though. Welcome! There are many, many “issues” that need attention in our town all the time. If we can have enough people continue to “pay attention”..be informed..and participate in our town’s governance by voting at the ballot box, attending and voting at town meeting..maybe even gaining a “working knowledge” of our town charter..then we (the people) can help guide our town by supporting individuals better able to lead Wareham (in it's "recovery").

An open meeting law violation would surely have occurred (and maybe technically did) on Tuesday night. Chairman Cruz, and indeed the entire BoS instructed citizens to leave an open, public meeting. Cruz told them to leave and then had the doors closed. Holmes also asked a couple of times to have the door closed..and even instructed someone to “guard” the door.. WTF?? As soon as one citizen could not be accommodated, then the “open” public meeting is not “open” or “public” at all. Had town counsel not been present for other matters, I’m confident that “justice” would not have been served. Hey town officials..learn, and abide by, the open meeting law..will ya?? The fact is that those meetings are OUR meeting’s..the public’s. Not the Chairman’s..not the BoS’s..not the Town Administrator’s…Ours. They might make up the agenda’s..but it’s PUBLIC..maybe our town officials need to look that word up in the dictionary. And maybe more importantly they need to understand the importance of the public’s knowledge on all matter’s concerning the public..and why our participation is a vital part of our government and one of our core rights as citizens.

One other thing. On the issue of the sewering at Agawam Beach and Mawflower Ridge costing (at least) 32K. I think at a BoS Mtg a few weeks ago there were a couple of people who had to pay betterments right away, with no option to “spread” the expense (finance) the fee. One guy changed his single residence into four units and the town required that he add one sewer tie-in and be assessed a betterment fee (much to the man’s dismay since he said no one had ever made him aware that this large expense would be assessed). If I’m not mistaken..Guy Campinha stated that the policy is that the betterment that’s to be assessed is based on the most recent betterment charged to those who’ve most recently had to pay fees (in neighborhoods like Agawam and Mayflower).. I think the individuals were charged about 22K for the betterment fee.. If this 32K is approved, I think the fee to people like those who were before the BoS a couple of weeks ago would then “jump” to 32K..which (again) the town has no “mechanism” in place to offer a “financing program” like they do for those in neighborhoods that are being sewered together. Can’t come up with the cash now? Sorry Charlie..

About 2:14 Ellen loses it - "OHHHHH NO!"  and "Please, how old are we here?"