WON’T CHANGE: Several readers called us after reading an article in the Brockton Enterprise Ringside concerning Shawn O’Donnell and his 40-B submission in Middleboro. Shawn, son of Mary O’Donnell, and a very engaging young man, owns the former St. Luke’s Hospital site in that town. His original application called for 61 condo units but he has now changed the plans to apartments. O’Donnell is proposing 200 condos on a 36-acre portion of his mother’s land in the South Industrial Park. Our callers wonder if the Kingston project will also change to apartments. So…we called Shawn and asked him outright. "No, we will not seek apartments in Kingston" was his answer. Save this little blurb and wave it around if he capitulates. We tend to believe him, apartments would not be a good fit for developments of the remaining 70 acres up there.

SEATING PLAN: The latest Silver Lake Regional School Committee policy is… assigned seats. The brain trust of chair Gerry Buckley, it almost resembles a boy/girl arrangement. Well, we are glad to see that the Committee has now decided to handle the truly important issues. A dress code may be a nice touch for further review.

LOCKED OUT: To our irate caller who complained that they took their kindergarten aged child up to the Kingston Elementary School for a walk through and found the doors locked. School principal Christionson explained to the Observer staff that the floors were being waxed and refurbished and that heavy equipment was being moved. The early opening of school this year meant less time for these projects. Additionally, there were safety and insurance factors involved. We found the explanation to be honest and understand its necessity. A sign on the door would be a good idea in the future. In general, our school staff and administration do a really terrific job at both KES and KIS. Here’s to a great year!

SENIOR CENTER plans were lacking in the latest data reviewed by Selectmen by the Conant Group, proponents of new residential development on Maple Street. You will remember that Town Meeting re-zoned the land for this new use. We’re talking about the old C. Drew building that is now occupied by the Elizabeth Company. We heard that part of the problem might be some miscommunication as to where the Council on Aging wants the Center to be located, perhaps even favoring the Vineyard Church. It will all boil down to choices, because we understand that Conant will either build it on Maple Street or provide the equivalent funds for another location.

MUD FLAP: We are still scratching our head to understand how a guy can walk into a retention basin in the wee hours of the morning at the O’Donnell Sand and Gravel pit and get mired in the muck. The explanation was that he was looking for his dog. Even the dog had better sense. It took hours of manpower to extricate the guy…who should be presented with the bill.

SWORN IN: To the caller who said they were at the Selectmen’s’ meeting when Ann Dunn was appointed to fill the empty seat on the Board of Assessors: Even though you said you saw Dunn sworn in by Assessor Jim Judge in the back room, we checked in with Mary Lou Murzyn, who, as Town Clerk, did the swearing in. Only the Clerk has that authority. So, we’re not sure what you saw, and what it meant.

THERE’S MORE: The Rent Control Board will be coming to Town Meeting with a request for $5,000. A secretary would account for $2,000 while the remaining $3,000 would be for an operating budget. The seniors are going to have to stack the meeting to get that money. Word around town is that the money request does not really benefit the community at large. One public official told us "They wanted the Board, they got it, now fund it yourself." Our guess? The meeting will be stacked and the vote won’t even close. the former pit operators their fathers?

TONSBERG POW-WOW: The Selectmen and the Sewer Commissioners met in Executive Session recently. That could only mean one thing, there’s trouble. Tonsberg wants either reduced or no sewer rate up at his site for the Clubhouse and new construction of units at Country Club Way. The fact that secret sessions are going on means that there must be an impasse or crises. The treated water from the town’s sewer plant is collected at the subdivision for the maintenance of the golf course. Tonsberg has been trying to get a better deal from the Sewer boys, who really should have nailed down a signed agreement a long time ago. Nobody’s talking about the session, but there are other ways to skin a cat. We have an idea as to how we can get an answer. Please stand by.

‘MORNING HONEY: It is hard to believe that the Sewer Commissioners couldn’t find another solitary soul to fill a vacant position on the plant work force. They recommended, and the Selectmen hired Grant Richards, husband of Commission Secretary Suzanne Richards. We’re seeing more of this these days, huh? We are told that Selectman Administrative Assistant Nancy Howlett felt it was ok and Brian Donahoe said the Ethics Commission said it was ok, although we have yet to see the opinion. Both Plant Manager Ken Vandell and Donahoe said it was very difficult to find certified waste water personnel. That could be quite true, but it would have easier to swallow if they tried more then a single source, the Ledger. Had Richards been the only applicant after the Ledger ad and they re-advertised using a second or third source and he still remained the sole applicant, we would not have mentioned it.

WRONG FORUM? People who suggest that a Special Town Meeting is not the place to deal with a new zoning change for "Inclusionary" housing has approached us. They say that an Annual Meeting is more appropriate. By Inclusionary, we mean a bylaw that requires that a certain percentage of all future subdivisions set aside a ratio of units as "affordable." Simple solution: If you feel that strongly, make a motion to table the matter to the Annual. Ringside pundits say the public should attend all meetings, if you don’t, so be it. Live with the decisions of those who did go.

RENT CONTROL: No the Rent Control Board was not disbanded. The original study committee was disbanded now that the Board is in place. So trust us when we say the Board is alive and well and meeting on a regular basis at the Faunce school. They draw a pretty big crowd each time they meet, mostly residents of the Mobile Home Parks, who have become a major political influence in our community. Senior power, we love it!

GONE SOUTH: The Davis Pottle Street land case is on hold. Why? The Town and Mike Pieroni, counsel for Sharon Davis was notified that the Town’s insurance company has been liquidated. That means more then just the Davis cases are on hold. The parties were notified that all matters of claims will be evaluated, prioritized and examined. The process is expected to take at least six months. We’ll find out exactly how many cases are so affected.

CASNA FINED: Word has reached the Ringside Observers that Health Board member Joe Casna has been fined by the Hanover Conservation Commission for discharging pool water into a catch basin that leads to a wetlands water supply. He was nabbed by the Hanover DPW and appeared before the ConsCom recently. Sources in Hanover (Casna’s old hometown) said he was belligerent and unapologetic, claiming he does it thousands of times. The disclosures and the attitude angered the Chairman and the two became furious. "I was an A** ***e" Casna told the Observer. "I came that close to jumping over the table and choking the chairman." He said there is nothing to direct him with regard to disposal of the pool water. "It was just stagnant water, I knew the pool, and I installed it years ago." Hanover officials disagree. We were told that pools require drywells for that purpose and that older pools must have the water drained into a pumper. Casna told us he appealed the fine to Hingham District Court but might just pay it. We think paying it earlier may have kept the story in Hanover. By the way, does Joe do the same thing in Kingston. DEP Regulations disallow such practices even if town by-laws are silent to the issue.

COPY WOES? Olly DeMacedo says he becomes a target because he is a Kingston Selectman. He believes that his good deeds also make him a target for someone with an agenda. Cora Lee Lonardo of Plymouth, who served on the Board of Directors of the America’s Hometown Parade Committee, disagrees. Her committee was the original sponsors of the Plymouth Thanksgiving Parade. She is serving a summons to DeMacedo to be sure he shows up on October 3, at 9:00 am at the Barnstable District Court where Lonardo is locked into a legal battle over who is responsible for the payments on a copy machine. She claims that her Committee leased the machine and she signed the paperwork as an officer. The payments were down to a $1,600. At that point Lonardo says the work of her Committee was taken over by The Plymouth Rock Foundation and that DeMacedo was the key figure in the group. "He is the only one who signs checks," she said, a statement that DeMacedo takes issue with. "We never made any legal arrangements to take responsibility for that copy machine. It doesn’t work and it never worked when they had it." DeMacedo said the machine still sits at the site of Plymouth Rock Foundation’s old offices in Plymouth at 1 Sandri Place. Several months ago they re-located to the Pinehills. DeMacedo says that his organization did pay off certain outstanding bills by Lonardo’s organization, but did so "to help them out. We were under no legal obligation to do so." In hindsight he believes he would have been better off never to have undertaken any paybacks, since he is now paying the price. Lonardo says a lien of $4,500 now sits on her house because of the ordeal. "Add at least $1,200 in legal fees and another $1,800 for this upcoming trial, and it becomes significant. I just want to be made whole." She said that her attorney, Mike Pieroni of Plymouth has received several counter offers by DeMacedo, but Olly says none of these matters were recent. Lonardo said the most recent was just days ago. DeMacedo, who is knee deep in the planning for the Plymouth Thanksgiving Parade in November, needs this problem like he needs water in his shoe. Frankly, we’re not completely clear on who has the greater claim in this matter…but a judge and jury will sort it all out. When that happens, we’ll let you know the result.

WE KNOW! Why does Master Plan Implementation Committee Chairman Sue Boyer begin every speech with "I’m Chairman of the Master Plan Implementation Committee." After the third time last week we began to wonder if she ran the risk of losing the title between speeches.

JOE PALOMBO has indeed decided to run for Plymouth County Sheriff. Go Joe. He will make it official at a rally in October.