News

Rochester donates 300 gifts to those in need

ROCHESTER — Town residents came together last Monday to support the Congregational Church in their annual participation of The Samaritans Purse — Operation Christmas Child Shoe Box Mission. Rochester Boy Scout Troop 31, Junior Friends of the Plumb...

Boy Scouts’ Haunted Hayride is cancelled for this year

ROCHESTER — The Boy Scouts Haunted Hayride event, planned for Oct. 25 and 26, has been cancelled due to the Eastern equine encephalitis threat levels. The troop used the standards of the Boy Scouts of America Council which has cancelled all camping...

Mattapoisett to help American Legion with hall repairs

MATTAPOISETT — A proposal for the town to help the American Legion repair the dangerously faulty roof on their building in exchange for a more municipal meeting space passed by two votes. Patricia Donoghue, chair of the Finance Committee, started...

Mattapoisett approves most Town Meeting items with little fuss

MATTAPOISETT — Most of the 22 articles at Mattapoisett’s Oct. 21 Special Town Meeting passed without any changes or too much debate, though some required some explanation, or last-minute amendments to meet their required purpose. Finance Committee...

Mattapoisett Town Meeting juggles school, Town Hall needs

MATTAPOISETT — Town Meeting on Monday authorized the formation of a committee to study whether to close one of the town’s two elementary schools and convert the closed building to a new Town Hall. After some debate about the merits of consolidating...

Voters OK negotiations, designs, fees at Marion Town Meeting

MARION — Town Meeting on Oct. 21 approved funding for designs and studies for town facilities, equipment for the Fire Department, taxes and fees on short-term rentals, and negotiations for leaving the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse District...

Halloween Parade to hit Marion streets

MARION — The annual Marion Halloween Parade will gather in front of the Marion Music Hall on Thursday, Oct. 31 at 4 p.m. Participants of all ages are invited, and encouraged to wear a costume. The Sippican Elementary School drummers will lead the...

Blue Cross, Southcoast announce contract agreement

Leading health insurer Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and local healthcare provider Southcoast Health have announced an agreement on a new four-year contract. This agreement ends drawn-out negotiations that had threatened coverage for Blue...

Rochester Boy Scouts named Eagle Scouts

ROCHESTER — Residents Patrick Flannery and Jacob Andrews passed their board review and were named as Eagle Scouts on Oct. 19. For his Eagle Scout project, Flannery, a graduate of Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School, made 28 sturdy...

Marion boy scouts take third at camporee

MARION — Reader Laura Pedulli sent in the following photo and caption: “Boy Scouts in Marion Troop 32 won third place in the Construction Camporee, an event organized by the Narragansett Council Boys Scouts of America. The all-day event on Saturday...

Mattapoisett Land Trust soiree cancelled

MATTAPOISETT — The Land Trust has cancelling its annual campfire and s’mores event scheduled for Sat. Oct. 26 due to the risk of Eastern equine encephalitis. The mosquito-carried disease will be ended by a hard frost, but since a frost has not...

Fall Family Fun Fest comes to Shipyard Park

MATTAPOISETT — Pumpkins, games, costumes, and artwork filled Shipyard Park on Saturday, Oct. 19 for the Mattapoisett Lions Club’s fourth annual Fall Family Fun Fest. King Lion Mario Conde said the purpose of the free event “is just to give back to...

Town of Marion to collect storm debris

MARION — Due to recent storm damage the town will accept brush, branches, and tree limbs from residents with a sticker on Oct. 19 and 26 at Benson Brook Road. The town will accept plant matter between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Limbs must be no more than 5...

Hazardous Waste Day to be held Nov. 16

The Carver Marion Wareham Waste District will be hosting a Hazardous Waste Day on Saturday, November 16, from 9 a.m. until noon at the Carver DPW Building, 51R Pond Street, Carver, and the Benson Brook Transfer Station on Benson Brook Road in Marion...

Windstorm blows through tri-town area

A windstorm swept through the tri-town area on Wednesday night Oct. 16 and into the next morning, causing damage to boats, trees, and telephone poles along the way. Mattapoisett Police reported that overnight it had “quite a few calls with the wind...

Potential voters voice concerns, get clarity on Town Meeting articles

MARION — Town residents gathered at the Marion Music Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 17 to have their questions and concerns on the upcoming Town Meeting warrant articles clarified by the Board of Selectmen and Town Administrator. Voters will weigh in on 22...

Marion Natural History Museum teaches kids about turtles

MARION — The Marion Natural History Museum’s afterschool group learned about freshwater turtles in Massachusetts recently. Brian Bastarach of Bristol County Agricultural High School’s Natural Resources Department gave a presentation to children...

Mattapoisett Land Trust finalizes purchase of 120-acre property

MATTAPOISETT — The Mattapoisett Land Trust purchased 120 acres of woods, wetlands, and salt marshes in the Pine Island Pond watershed. This is the largest land acquisition in the organization’s 74-year history, and brings their total land holdings...

Shellfishing reopens in Mattapoisett

MATTAPOISETT — As of sunrise on Oct. 15 Mattapoisett waters have been reopened to shellfishing. Waters were previously closed on Oct. 10 per order of the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries due to heavy rains.

Tri-town offers flu protection

As flu season gets well underway, several clinics will be held in the tri-town area to help protect residents from the disease. The Marion Board of Health will offer flu clinics for all residents over the age of 2 regardless of ability to pay. The...

Shaping the future at Town Meetings

Marion and Mattapoisett voters will weigh in on the future of town facilities and new regulations at their Special Town Meetings on Monday, October 21. In Marion, voters will hear a total of 22 warrant articles with topics ranging from new...

Waste District talks funding for next year

MARION — The Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District Committee thought that increasing sticker fees might be a way to increase revenues as it looks to start operating without the backing of its primary funding source, Covanta SEMASS...

Car crash temporarily closes section of North Street in Mattapoisett

MATTAPOISETT — A two car crash temporarily closed a section of North Street on the night of Sunday, Oct. 13, however no injuries were reported from the incident. According to Mattapoisett Fire Chief Andrew Murray, one car was traveling northbound on...

Photo gallery: fall foliage at Washburn Park

As summer turns to fall, and foliage illuminates the tri-town area, Sippican Week reporter Kenneth Borges took time out of a busy day to capture images of the various plant life found at Washburn park in Marion. Take a visual walk in the woods by...

Photos: Rochester hosts ‘Touch a Truck’ event

ROCHESTER — For the third year in a row, the Rochester Fire Department and Lions Club teamed up for the “Touch a Truck“ event at the Rochester Country Fair Grounds on Sunday Oct. 13. Donations and food sales at the annual event helps fund the Junior...

Kids get firefighting, rescue demos at Mattapoisett Open House

MATTAPOISETT — The Mattapoisett Fire Department pulled all of its trucks out on Oct. 12, but not for an emergency. This time, it was to make room for kids and families in the fire station garage, for the department’s Open House. In addition to...

Tabor Academy will demolish historic house

Following years of consideration in an attempt to preserve the historic building, Tabor Academy has announced its intention to demolish the home at 192 Front Street known as the Tenbrook House. The house was designed by famous architect H.H...

Shellfishing closed until further notice in Mattapoisett waters

MATTAPOISETT — The town has sent out a notice to say that shellfishing will be closed until further notice as of sunset on Oct. 10. This closure comes per order of the Division of Marine Fisheries.

Cranberry harvest kicks off in Massachusetts

It’s October, and the cranberry harvest is in full swing. Industry estimates predict a large, healthy crop. Marketers are finding new ways to sell local produce in the Bay State and an array of cranberry products around the world. Meanwhile,...

Marion introduces Employee Handbook

MARION — In an effort to improve consistency in work contracts and compensation for town employees, Town Administrator James McGrail presented the Board of Selectmen with the town’s first ever Employee Handbook on Wednesday, Oct. 9. The...

Fall Family Fun Fest fast approaching

MATTAPOISETT — The Lions Club will host its fourth annual Fall Free Family Fun Festival on Oct. 19 at Shipyard Park. The event will run from 12 to 4, and offer hay rides (complete with a goody bag, while supplies last), a pumpkin patch, pin the nose...

Rochester Planning Board, affordable housing group brainstorm plans

ROCHESTER — On Oct. 8 Planning Board members and members of the Rochester Affordable Housing Inc. brainstormed ideas to help the fledgling nonprofit get off the ground with its mission to allow seniors and veterans to stay in town. The nonprofit...

Marion Selectmen to review Town Meeting articles Oct. 16

MARION — The Board of Selectmen will hold an informational meeting at the Music Hall on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at 6 p.m. to review the warrant articles for the Oct. 21 Special Town Meeting. Residents will have the chance to ask any questions they might...

Mattapoisett Planning Board weighs in on proposed marijuana bylaw change

MATTAPOISETT — The Mattapoisett Planning Board voted 3-1 to recommend a proposed bylaw change at the Nov. 4 Special Town Meeting that would allow the cultivation of recreational marijuana in the Limited Industry District, which is within the town’s...

Rochester Selectmen approve most Town Meeting articles

ROCHESTER — If a review session with Selectmen, the Finance Committee and the Capital Planning Committee is any indication, a proposal to add a handicap accessible press box at Old Rochester Regional High School will find its second time through...

Garden group helps to get the message out

MARION — The Marion Garden Group’s installed a new reader board at the intersection of Route 6 and Route 105 on Oct. 1. The nonprofit group, which aims to improve public areas in Marion with landscaping, installed the new board as part of its...

Cats rule at fundraising fair

ROCHESTER — Penguins, superheroes, witches and local businesses showed out to support the It’s All About the Animals cat shelter’s annual Octopurrfest on Oct. 6. White booths lined the outside of a field by the shelter, and bright orange tables on...

Riders start in, pass through Rochester on a quest for clean water

ROCHESTER — Two groups of cyclists on the Buzzards Bay Coalition Watershed ride met briefly at East Over farm on Oct. 6, the 75 and 100 mile riders to stop for lunch, and the 35 mile riders to start up their ride. The ride raises money to improve...

Geocachers explore the Pierson Woods property

MARION — A group of adults spent their Saturday morning on Oct. 5 trekking through the Sippican Lands Trust’s Pierson Woods property, hunting for sentimental treasures in an activity known as “geocaching.” Geocaching involves the use of a GPS and...

Mattapoisett residents discuss bike, pedestrian safety

MATTAPOISETT — When the bicycle and pedestrian committee asked for feedback on safety in the North Street neighborhood north of Route 195, residents were quick to recall bike accidents and close calls with cars, leading to a discussion of potential...

Coastline offers seniors heating, utility relief

NEW BEDFORD — Coastline Elderly Services, Inc. is offering assistance to seniors in Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester who need help with paying the heat or electric bills. The $350 sum will pay for gas, electric, propane, wood, or other heating...

Mattapoisett selectman will apply for top job

MATTAPOISETT — Tyler Macallister resigned his position on the Board of Selectmen to apply for the town administrator job, as the position enters a second round of applications. As of Oct. 2, the search committee for the role has yet to choose a...

Marion Selectmen consider assistant DPW director role

MARION — The Department of Public Works is tackling $20 million in projects, and Town Administrator Jay McGrail thinks that they need an assistant director to manage the workflow. The department is currently working on a water main design project, a...

Marion Town Administrator makes a case for leaving Waste District

MARION — Town Administrator wants Marion to seriously consider leaving the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District, so much so that he has already sent out for proposals for other options, even ahead of a formal town vote. At an Oct...

Marion Health officials discuss vaping during state-wide ban

MARION — With Governor Charlie Baker’s four month vape ban in full effect, the Marion Board of Health took time to discuss vaping and tobacco use in the town at their meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 1 The statewide ban prohibits the sale of all vaping...

Mattapoisett continues search for next town administrator

MATTAPOISETT — As Mattapoisett Town Administrator Michael Gagne’s official retirement date draws closer, the town has yet to find a suitable replacement. Gagne first announced his plan to retire on Oct. 15 at a Board of Selectmen meeting on Feb. 26...

Friends of Marion COA celebrate progress, plan next step

MARION — The Friends of the Marion Council on Aging gathered at the Benjamin D. Cushing Community Center on Monday, Sept. 30 to celebrate their progress in the past year, and to plan ahead for the future. The Marion Council on Aging has recently...

Marion Board of Health announces flu clinics

MARION — The Marion Board of Health will offer flu clinics for all residents over the age of 2 regardless of ability to pay. The flu vaccine will be available as a shot for ages 2 and over. There is also a high-dose vaccine for ages 65 and older...

Hunting season to open Oct. 7

MATTAPOISETT — Hunting seasons in Mattapoisett open Oct. 7th and continue through the end of the year, with limited small game and waterfowl hunting continuing into January and February 2020. Hunting activity will peak from Dec. 2 to 14. Detailed...

Mattapoisett-based researchers study plastic-eating bacteria

Mattapoisett-based researchers Michael and Alissar Langworthy and their “pirate scientists” participated in a 46-day scientific expedition to the Arctic Circle to learn about plastic-eating bacteria and their possible benefits for the environment...

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