HERITAGE ANSWERED: Last month we discussed a claim that the Friends of Kingston Heritage had received $20,000 in Sampson Fund money, banked it and never made needed improvements. We said we would look into this claim and report back. We are doing that now. First off, there are two groups. The first was established by the Board of Selectmen with representatives from various town boards, citizens at large and the Town Planner. They are officially called The Frederic C. Adams Heritage Center Development Committee. We called the chairman of that committee, Daune Frey who clarified the issues on various levels. They indeed were successful in attaining $20,000 of Sampson money. The money was never banked as alleged. In fact “It would have been inappropriate and illegal to do so” said Frey. She said the money was utilized to obtain architectural drawing and bid documents for the ultimate restoration of the historically significant building. “It was requested for that purpose and spent for that purpose” said Frey. So far as the restoration of the building, about $64,000 was approved for that purpose over the last two years. Although the Committee was hoping for a larger grant from The Massachusetts Historical Commission, they were approved for $25,000. If that figure stands, town meeting fund commitments would be advanced and then be reimbursed from the grant. In other words, we front the money, then get it back from the grant. Sadly, the needed library repairs exceed that figure. The first time it was bid out there were no respondents. The second bid came in at about the $50,000 figure, well in excess of the available funding. That’s where we are at this point. There is another group, and that is The Friends of Kingston Heritage. This is a separate, private organization whose function it is to raise money for the library. They do have a bank account, as is allowed, for a depository for donations collected. They have never received Sampson funding. Roberta Medal chairs that group created in April of 2002. To date, they have collected about $5,000. Expected renovations will run about $250,000. The library is structurally sound, according to Medal and represents unique period charm. As a newspaper, we support the work of both groups and believe that the preservation of our heritage is required. We would encourage the collective efforts of both groups to go before Town Meeting, plead your case for phased funding and get the job done. We are glad to have done an in-depth clarification of this matter, and will encourage these committees to keep us informed of their efforts so we may do the same for our readers.

PULLING STEAKS? There is word on the streets that Handlebar Harry’s in Cordage Park is going to close its doors. What with all our local restaurant fare, Plymouthians should have no problem getting a good across the town line. We must say, however, that it will be a loss for the Park.

SOUND OFF: Not always. The Selectmen may have taken a recess after the Freeman Boynton earth removal hearing on Tuesday (December 30), but the microphone didn’t. It was most interesting to hear all the comments following the hearing. We gotta give Cravenho credit here; he was sticking to his guns on the severity of the fines and defending the fee portion of what was due…and doing so without the knowledge that the political world was eavesdropping courtesy of the live mikes. Kenney, on the other hand, was already lobbying for a reprieve. Sometimes you just never know. The audio went a good five minutes. Clearly Olly was agitated over Town Planner Tom Botte. When the meeting came back live with picture, he openly chastised Botte for not providing the Selectmen with the same paperwork that the Ringside Team obtained. Since when is it Botte’s job to tell the Selectmen how to do their job. We asked Botte for information relative to Boynton’s standing with regard to any site plan approvals, that’s how we got the information. Olly was free to do the same.

DEMACEYU LATER? Speaking of Olly…there is a lot of talk around Town Hall that he is considering moving out of town, to Plymouth. We asked him about it and did concede that his wife would prefer ocean to marsh. Now wouldn’t that be a hoot.

ANKLE/WRIST: Richard Cretinon may still be wearing an ankle bracelet, but it’s his wrist that is now giving him problems. It seems that Richard fell off a ladder and received a compound fracture so severe that it required a specialist, and therefore, a trip to Boston. This latest setup could effect the progress of whatever project he continues to build up there on Pembroke Street.

OPEN UP: Town Administrator Kevin Donovan issued an office memorandum on December to “all town offices” telling them “This will serve as a reminder that the Board of Selectmen voted for the Town offices to be open on Friday, January 18, 2004, during regular business hours. Therefore, it is expected that all offices will be open.” We learned that this memo was caused to be written when it was learned that a particular office was going to shut down. Who might that have been? How do you spell Assessors?

PEEK-A-BOOO: Embattled Health Board novice member Joe Casna asked the Ringside Observers to be present two weeks ago when the Board was expected to deal with his shenanigans covered elsewhere in this newspaper. He also asked others to be present to lend moral support. A few actually did show, including former Board member and community legend David Fitzgerald pictured above. For goodness sakes David your cover-up makes it look like a bail hearing instead of a board meeting. The next time we saw you was at the polls holding signs, again with your face all covered up. Yea, blame it on the freezing temperatures. Anyway, it was interesting to see you again, all agitated over something, again. Might he be looking to run for a Health seat in April?

TAKING HEAT: Kevin Donovan has a very good sense of humor. We couldn’t resist a wisecrack when Kevin was explaining the condition of his office after the sprinkler system blew during the cold spell. He told us “What with the water all over my office and the heat still functioning, it was like a sauna in there.” We told him that if such was the case “Go on inside for another 30 minutes.” Without missing a beat, he suggested we take an hour.

POLITICAL CAULDRON: The old pot is certainly beginning to boil. People were just hanging back and waiting for the Special Election to be history. And what a race it was. This brief respite can give activists a chance to assess the results and see what the numbers all mean. And trust us, the numbers are examined with a fine tooth comb, precinct by precinct, candidate by candidate. One thing is certain; Precinct 1 has come into their own. They lead the way in voter turnout and showed that a strong showing in Precinct 1 could be hard to overcome. Rocky Nook has decided to become more active along with the newer neighborhoods off Anderson Avenue and the old neighborhoods surrounding the L. Knife plant. Tactics will be scrutinized, there will be an analysis of radio advertising, general mailings, target mailings, signage, flyers, newspaper advertising, group “showings” at the post office, transfer station, Bickfords and elsewhere, fundraisers and candidate’s night persona. There is a growing realization that all this is important to our community…but we stray. Several candidates have already pulled papers. Maryann Musto and Richard Scanlon drew papers for Constable, Priscilla Palombo for Tax Collector, Fred Svenson for Water Commissioner, and back, by popular demand, Mauro Mazzilli for Sewer Commission. It is expected that Joe Kelleher, Frank Basler and Joel Michaud will be pulling papers at any time. Actually, Ringside analysts are expecting to see only three races, Selectman, Sewer Commission and Board of Health. Lots will happen and things can change on a daily basis.Joe Chaves has opted to make a return appearance on the Elementary School Committee and we have a three-way race for Selectman. Joel Michaud and Joe Kelleher will be back for another shot at the top seat and will be joined by Frank Basler.

GRAVEL RABBLE: We cannot imagine the blood temperature of gravel hauler got caught Freeman Boynton. At the request of Olly DeMacedo, using Zoning Officer Paul Armstrong as the conduit, Boynton turned in a three-page sheet that was supposed to be showing every gravel delivery made since his permit expired. The total yards of gravel was added up on page 3 with a total of 8,388. Every trip recorded was shown to be delivered out of town. The commercial fee for taking sand out of town is .50 cents, or $4,194.00. We hear he was prepared to write out a check on the spot. Not so fast though. What probably came as a shock was that the larger problem lay in the number of days involved. Each day constitutes a violation at $200,00 per day. There were over 70 days of operation, added to the fees and you get over $18,000. Looking at the sheets one has to ask a question: Doesn’t the man ever sell a single yard of material in Kingston? Not one trip in over seven months saw a single yard of product ever sold in in this town. How odd. This matter is far from over (See related story elsewhere).

HISTORY FUNDING: Just how important is the preservation of our history? 3 Taco Supremes and a coke ($4.99), a movie at Hoyt’s ($10.00), a candlepin string at Alley Kat ($3.00), preserving history (priceless). The position of archivist at the Kingston Public Library is currently part-time. Voters in April will have a chance to make it full-time. Current archivist Carrie Elliot has done a splendid job for several years and we are lucky to have such a consummate professional. The fact is however, we need the position to be full-time in order to attract such competence and to allow that person, whoever it may be, to earn a living. We will, over the next three months, have more to say about this matter.

C’MON JIM: We asked Jim Colman, Jr. if he would be looking to keep his seat on the Planning Board. We were shocked when he indicated that he was uncertain. He cited family and time considerations. We have watched Jim grow into the Board and have seen him become an effective chairman (a little gruff at times, but a kewpie doll at heart). We hope Jim can find the means to find a balance to continue on and become a candidate once again. Few people realize these are five year positions requiring long-term commitment.

FREEDOM’S PRICE: Interesting to see that Richard Cretinon’s cash bail was increased by $15,000. That would be in addition to the $10,000 already posted for a whopping $25,000 in cash for one’s immediate freedom. The guessing game around town is, who paid the first bail, how long will it take to get the balance, and will it come from the same source(s)?

MIDGE CRONIN certainly has hit the bigtime. We were impressed when somebody provided us with a copy of the New York Times with a story and picture of Midge herself. The article ran on November 19 and focused in on how she and her family continue to celebrate Thanksgiving in the old fashioned ways of early Plymouth. The article was headlined: Practically a Pilgrim, Celebrating the Old Way.

GOTTA MINUTE? Now that the Rent Control Board has a paid secretary, one would think that they could put some minutes on file at the Town Clerk’s office. How’s 3.5 months behind. They met last week and attendee Bob Pinato mentioned the lapse. He was assured they were on the way. Still waiting.

ATTENDANCE CHECK: You had to be at the L. Knife hearing the other night. Here you have 50 residents watching their lives change by the keg, bleeding from the increases in commercial use by the beer distributor giant, and then there are the hired hands. The Sheehan’s (owners of the plant) always use that trump card. Parade a half dozen Kingston employees into the hearing and have each one rise and dutifully say what a great place they work for. The message boards at Knife must say “bonuses to follow,”

GOT SMOKED: The Health Board reports that Kingston Texaco and Cumberland Farms South were bagged for selling cigarettes to a minor. The other 17 tobacco venders did not. It seems the BOH will submit this information to the press any time a compliance check is done.

PHASE TWO: We wondered where our Pottle Street Ballfield czars would go once the fields open. We never thought they could just get a handshake, or some kind words spoken during the dedication, there had to be something more. Tex Alexiades, et al, while engaged in their municipal “service” were lobbying for a private, non-profit corporate status to run all planning, coordination, management, maintenance, fund-raising, expenditures and everything else…all outside the municipal process. As a private group, operating a municipally funded complex, there would be no requirement to follow the Open Meeting Law, bidding procedures, or have books open for public inspection. Frank Basler, one of the movers of the project, told Ringside that Ballfield Chairman Ted Alexiades has generously offered to serve as treasurer.

TRADING SPACES: Word on the streets is that the Compass Bank proposal on the Main Street property of the Viscariello Family may be off the table. The other word is that there is a different bank interested in the location, one with a shaved back need for drive-thru service. Compass attorney Larry Winokur is in Italy so we can’t ask him. You’d think Larry could get a good pizza right here in town.

SEWER TALK: Sewer Commission chair Brian Donahoe says it was the Selectmen who removed Schoefield Road from the streets to be sewered. Go figure. Brian does say the street, along with others, will be on the list for Phase 2. As for the Advisory Committee that the sewer guys set up, some of the names include Elaine Fiori (does a good job wherever she serves), Ed Devnew (a very good person, if it’s the fellow we know), Mike O’Meara (soon to be running for the Commission, so we’re told), Peter Baird (by all accounts a nice guy and hard worker) and David Fitzgerald (lots of gas, no octane). There are two more but Brian was driving when we spoke to him and couldn’t check his list. They are expected to have their first meeting on January 17.

SUPER SHAKEUP: With the loss of Pembroke from the SL Region by the end of the school year, Assistant Superintendent Maurice Splaine will go back into retirement. A terrific guy who came out of retirement when we needed him most. He deserves more then a gold watch.

MALL-MART IMPACTS: Now that Plymouth appears to be clearing the way for a Super Wal-Mart on the connector road between the site and the Independence Mall, it should make for some interesting traffic impacts. In case you haven’t heard, the Court Street Cordage location will close and the discount behemoth will move to the new town line location. Just to give you an idea of size: the toy department alone will be larger then the Kingston Toys-R-Us. It will include meats and produce, a hair salon and as many other things that will tend to kill small business, and more traffic. No wonder you see so many for sale signs on Smith Lane.