News

Laughter, tears as rector leaves Marion church

MARION — With mixed gratitude and sadness, St. Gabriel’s Episcopal Church said goodbye to its Rector, Geoffrey Piper, and Choir Director and Organist, Leslie Piper. Though there were many tears, there were also moments of levity, power tools as...

Vendors, singers, residents come to Knights of Columbus for fair

MATTAPOISETT — The front of the Knights of Columbus looked like a parking lot, but behind the hall, almost 50 vendors set up booths with wares and food, turning a grassy area into a market for the Knights’ Fall Festival. This year was the first year...

Marion students net sea creatures

MARION — During a Marion Natural History Museum program, children not only indulged their curiosity and desire to explore nature, but also became pretty impressive identifiers and talliers. The group met at the Harbormaster’s Beach on Sept. 25. The...

Fundraiser helps improve YMCA access

MARION — The Toast of the Coast fundraiser may have been to benefit the Gleason Family YMCA in Wareham, but the Sept. 27 event was heavily tri-town dominated. Held at the Marion Music Hall, the event offered the chance to eat food from local...

70-year-old cyclist transported to hospital after accident

MATTAPOISETT — A bicycle and car accident on Sept. 27 sent a 70-year-old man to Rhode Island Hospital with what appeared to be non life-threatening injuries. The cyclist was wearing a helmet at the time that a 27 year-old struck him. Mattapoisett...

Middle schoolers celebrate ‘Boosterbash’ for fundraising success

MATTAPOISETT — Students at Old Rochester Regional Junior High School took a break from classes on Thursday, Sept. 26 to get outside and enjoy the sunny weather, music, a variety of inflatable games and obstacle courses, and even got to see their...

Rochester Planning Board takes action to clean up messy solar project

ROCHESTER — The Planning Board will start the process of collecting a maintenance bond from IGS Solar after the company failed to meet maintenance agreements. But the decision prompted discussion on how the board should deal with applicants who are...

Mattapoisett raises shellfishing violation fines

MATTAPOISETT — Shellfishers in Mattapoisett waters who fail to abide by town regulations can now expect to be hit with much more severe fines, following the unanimous approval of the Board of Selectmen on Tuesday, Sept. 24. Natural Resource Officer...

Construction underway at Rochester Senior Center

ROCHESTER — The Rochester Senior Center has started construction on a new section of its parking lot, which would double the number of spaces available. The current lot is not big enough to accommodate parking for special events, and participants...

Marion Senior Center nears fundraising goal

MARION — The Marion Council on Aging is only $5,000 away from its goal of raising $75,000 to install new floor-to-ceiling walls between offices in the Council on Aging and Recreation Departments. The walls would provide privacy for seniors or...

Donor appreciation takes the stage at celebration

MATTAPOISETT — Superheroes walked among the crowd, a police chief quoted Winnie the Pooh multiple times, and donors heard how attention to the small details childhood pediatrics can make a big difference for children at the Sept. 21 Fourth Annual...

Scouts showcase skills at Center School

MATTAPOISETT — The Center School playground was home to a variety of games and activities on Saturday, Sept. 21, as the Mattapoisett Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts showcased their skills, and looked to recruit new members. “It’s not just camping,”...

After director’s departure, waste district works on accountability 

CARVER — When it comes to accountability they’ve come a long way, said members of the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District committee. But there’s still a lot to be done to match how the district says it runs with how it actually...

Marion considers improvements for streets, sidewalks

MARION — After listening to a presentation about a proposed $5.7 million dollar capital improvements plan, Marion Selectmen gave Director of Public Works David Willett their approval to finish design plans with engineering and construction firm CDM...

Marion appoints new town clerk

MARION — With the recommendation of Town Administrator James McGrail, Marion Selectmen appointed Elizabeth Magauran as the new full-time town clerk on Friday morning, Sept. 20. Magauran was previously the assistant town clerk, and took over as...

Mattapoisett dog day care case reveals a need for cleanup

MATTAPOSIETT — An application to add a doggy day care at 123 Fairhaven Road, next to Denise’s Pet Care Center didn’t meet much resistance from the Zoning Board once it clarified the terms of the business, but it did let the property’s owner know...

Marion Fire Department awarded federal grant to increase personnel

MARION — The Marion Fire Department received a $152,398 federal grant to help recruit and retain call firefighter in the town. The Staffing for Adequate Fire & Emergency Response Grants, or “SAFER” for short, is distributed by the Federal...

Marion Bylaw Codification Committee tackles the minor stuff first

MARION — Marion switched over to a new set of bylaws in 2016, and ever since the Bylaw Codification Committee has been playing, well, not catch up, but clean up. The group’s Chairman, Norm Hills says that most of the changes that the group has...

Rochester weighs in on Waste District moves

CARVER — Rochester isn’t in the Carver Marion Wareham Regional Refuse Disposal District, but it’s still concerned with traffic around the District’s transfer station and rising sticker fees. In a meeting with the District’s Executive Director...

Tri-town works to combat teen vaping

With over 8,000 fun flavors to choose from, including cotton candy and hot dogs, vaping can seem harmless. But according to Marion Public Health Nurse Kathy Downey, students in the tri-town have complained of massive headaches, trouble breathing and...

Stalled negotiations may force residents to travel for healthcare

Residents may be caught in the crossfire between one of the largest healthcare providers in the area and the leading health insurer in Massachusetts after a dispute over reimbursement rates has stalled negotiations. Southcoast Health is threatening...

Third round of aerial spraying to begin Sept. 17

The Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources will conduct a third round of aerial spraying for mosquitoes starting on Tuesday, Sept. 17. The spraying is weather-dependent and will continue for several evenings. Rochester, Mattapoisett and...

Marion Cub Scouts to kick off the year Sept. 19

MARION — Marion Cub Scout Pack 32 will hold an Open House on Sept. 19 from 6 to 8 p.m. for girls and boys in Kindergarten through grade 5 who are interested in joining Cub Scouts. The open house will be held in Sippican School’s multipurpose room...

Mattapoisett Tree Committee changes policies to promote planting

MATTAPOISETT — The Town Tree Planting Committee has made changes to two of its policies to get residents planting more trees. In the past, utilities, sidewalks, and other public features have limited the number of trees that could be planted on town...

Shining a light on Bird Island Lighthouse

MARION — Marion residents gathered to celebrate the 200th anniversary of Bird Island Lighthouse on Sept. 14 with a party that featured daring and humorous stories, a brief history lecture and a donation of historical art to the town’s Historical...

Rochester Historical Society celebrates 50th anniversary

ROCHESTER — A celebration of the Rochester Historical Society’s 50th birthday introduced many audience members to the concept of sheep ghosts, and brought them back down the memory lane to a time when gas was $0.35 per gallon, there were just under...

Midway through renovations, Music Hall takes on new life

The Marion Music Hall was designed by William Gibbons Preston in 1891 at the request of Elizabeth Taber, who wanted a place for lectures, concerts, meetings and other celebrations that would “put some snap into her village.” For over 20 years, the...

Knights of Columbus hope new Fall Festival will revitalize building

MATTAPOISETT — The Knights of Columbus are so good at giving away money to charitable causes that they don’t leave enough to fix up their own building. A new Fall Festival, a family event planned for the end of September, will provide the group with...

New regulations planned for Mattapoisett roads

MATTAPOISETT — The Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen agreed to write two separate letters to the Massachusetts Department of Transportation after hearing the input of Highway Surveyor Barry Denham at a meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 10. The first letter...

Work to begin on Countryside Daycare

ROCHESTER — After months of working through details and drainage issues, work should begin on Countryside Daycare’s playground very soon. Two representatives from the daycare appeared at the Sept. 10 Planning Board meeting to ask whether adding a...

Planning Board gives update on Rochester Crossing progress

ROCHESTER — The Planning Board gave a brief update on the Rochester Crossroads development work at a Sept. 10 meeting. Town Planner Steven Starrett told board members as part of his update that Steen Realty and Development Corp. had done a lot of...

Aquaculture site approved for Blue Stream Shellfish

MATTAPOISETT — The Mattapoisett Board of Selectmen approved a permit transfer for Dale Leavitt of Blue Stream Shellfish to use a ten acre plot in Nasketucket Bay for an aquaculture site for oysters and kelp on Tuesday, Sept. 10. The permit was...

Applicant for marijuana facility withdraws, Special Town Meeting canceled

MATTAPOISETT — An applicant requesting a town bylaw change to create a marijuana cultivation facility for recreational use has withdrawn their application, canceling the Special Town Meeting on Sept. 23. The applicant, David McIntire, had attempted...

Buzzards Bay Coalition asks to start two restoration projects

MATTAPOISETT — The Buzzards Bay Coalition is starting the process of restoring its “The Bogs” property with two projects, one to gather data and one to eliminate invasive reeds. As the name implies, the conservation property was once a cranberry bog...

Celebrating charitable growth, raising funds for the future 

MATTAPOISETT — As Jilline Fearons prepares for her fourth annual Friends of Jack Celebration on Sept. 21, there’s a lot of growth to celebrate with her charity efforts. She has volunteered for Southcoast Hospitals since 2014, as a baby cuddler,...

[Photos]: Turtles get a helping hand while hatching

MARION — A group of Marion residents has been working for months to see threatened baby and mama turtles through the egg laying and hatching process. Their intensive volunteer effort focuses on diamondback terrapins, which are named for the diamond...

Women learn firearms skills and safety

ROCHESTER — Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction, always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot, and always keep the gun unloaded until ready to use. Those are the three main rules taught at the sixth annual “NRA Women on...

Sippican Lands Trust holds first Beer and Oyster Fest

MARION — Beer, oysters, fried food, ice cream and beautiful weather made for a successful first Beer and Oyster Fest for the Sippican Lands Trust on Sept. 7. In addition to the food items in its title, the event featured door prizes and a silent...

Marion Natural History Museum to start after school program Sept. 18

MARION — The Marion Natural History Museum will host a variety of programs for the students enrolled in its after school activities. On Sept. 18 the museum will host an Open House on a half day of school to allow students to get to know the museum,...

Photo: Topping off the Elizabeth Taber Library

MARION — Reader Jay Whalen snapped and submitted this photo of workers preparing to fit the cupola on the Elizabeth Taber Library with a new top on Thursday, Sept. 5.

Solar array proposed for Rochester Memorial School

ROCHESTER — Matt Shortsleeve, of the Hopkinton-based Solect Energy, proposed a 300 kilowatt rooftop solar array for Rochester Memorial School to the Rochester School Committee on Thursday, Sept. 5. According to Shortsleeve, the proposed array could...

Rochester Selectmen talk library, Snow’s Pond survey, Town Clerk

ROCHESTER — In her Town Administrator’s report at a Sept. 3 meeting, Suzanne Szyndlar mentioned that the Joseph H. Plumb Memorial Library recently received a grant for around $17,000. The funds come from the estate of George Church. Plumb Library...

Ray Pickles resigns as Marion Town Clerk

MARION — Town Administrator James McGrail announced that Ray Pickles has resigned from his position as Town Clerk, effective immediately, at a Board of Selectmen meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 3. In his resignation letter, dated Aug. 28, Pickles wrote...

Rochester Selectmen order signs removed

ROCHESTER — Selectmen will have the building inspector “make a collection” of signs on public property. The issue came up when Selectmen approved the Annual Buzzards Bay Watershed Race for Oct. 6 at a Sept. 3 meeting. Selectman Woody Hartley noted...

Rochester farm rescues two horses

ROCHESTER — Last August, Knox and Bravo were in rough shape. The two were extremely thin, and needed work on their hooves and teeth. Rochester’s Sterling Pointe Farm took them in, and a year later their conditions are much improved. The two horses...

Kids make edible slime

MATTAPOISETT — Librarian Michelle Skaar taught children a chemistry lesson that ended with a sugary snack at the Mattapoisett Library on Saturday, Aug. 31. Skaar reviewed the three states of matter, solid, liquid, and gas, and then introduced a...

Rochester teen has knack for animals, big dreams

ROCHESTER — Elsie Woodland said that she grew up in a horse family, but she brought the rest of the animals that her family keeps on their farm into their lives. And it’s not an inconsequential number. At a recent 4H show in Marshfield, the 13-year-...

Rochester Senior Center says farewell to director

ROCHESTER — Though her last day of work is Aug. 30, the Rochester Senior Center, Rochester and state officials gathered to celebrate retiring director Sharon Lally on Aug. 29. Lally has worked at five Councils on Aging, but stayed at Rochester the...

Marion Codification Committee continues bylaw improvements

MARION — In 2016, the Town of Marion hired General Code, a consultant company who specializes in reviewing municipal bylaws for content and conflict. General Code provided some 280 comments on discrepancies, ambiguities, and misplaced items in the...

Tri-town adapts as EEE threat continues

A Rochester man over the age of 60 was the first human case of Eastern Equine Encephalitis in Massachusetts since 2013. Since then, three more Massachusetts residents have contracted the virus, and tri-town communities have had to adapt to keep...

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