News

News

Planners pressure Tabor on Student Center parking spots

MARION — So close, and yet so far. A procedural error at a March 1 Planning Board meeting led to confusion and frustration, after a decision to allow a special permit for Tabor Academy’s proposed student center parking lot was reversed later that...

Rochester extends emergency services agreement

ROCHESTER — The Regional Old Colony Communications Center intermunicipal agreement with Duxbury has been extended through July 2022. Under the agreement, Rochester’s 911 calls, Police, Fire, and EMS dispatching are handled by the ROCCC in Duxbury...

Pick up nomination papers for Rochester Town Election

ROCHESTER — The Rochester Town Election is scheduled for May 26, 2021. Nomination papers for registered voters wish to seek election or re-election are now available — by appointment only — at the town clerk's office. Those seeking election are...

Sippican Lands Trust happenings in March

MARION — From story walks to St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, the Sippican Lands Trust is providing multiple opportunities for community members to walk — or March — their way into spring. From now until May 3, the Lands Trust is offering a new story...

Rochester State Senator awarded Legislator of the Year by disability advocates

ROCHESTER — State Sen. Michael Rodrigues has been awarded Legislator of the Year by the Massachusetts Developmental Disabilities Council and The Arc of Massachusetts. On March 3, Rodrigues will accept the award and give a speech alongside co-...

No towns in ‘red,’ according to state data

Despite new cases of covid increasing in Marion and Mattapoisett this week, all three towns have shifted down from a “red” designation in the state’s color-coded risk designation system. New cases in Marion and Mattapoisett rose this week, with 17...

Marion Lockheed Martin location to close in 2022

MARION — Founded in 1940 as Francis Associates, the Marion location of Lockheed Martin is set to close in 2022. Lockheed Martin and its subsidiary Polaris, an electronics manufacturer, are the largest employers in Marion. 400 jobs will be relocated...

Marion residents speak out about proposed Hiller Street changes

MARION — The town is planning to add safety signage to Hiller Street, but some residents think ‘no parking’ signs and new road paint may not be enough. A Board of Selectmen public hearing on Feb. 25 drew comments from residents and selectmen alike...

Tri-Town proposes vaccine clinic for teachers

The Tri-Town, alongside the Old Rochester Regional School District, have proposed a clinic at the which would provide the covid vaccine to over 1,000 teachers. The proposal, announced in a Feb. 25 press release, would provide the first dose of the...

Officials rap on-again off-again approach to vaccine rollout

The first state-run mass vaccination clinic on the South Coast is set to begin operating on Feb. 24 — and Southcoast Health clinics will be once again administering doses in the region after a weeklong hiatus. But officials say efforts by individual...

Telling the history of First Congregational Church of Marion

MARION — From the Revolutionary War to the Civil War to now, the First Congregational Church of Marion has seen it all. Marion First Congregational and the Sippican Historical Society resurfaced a sermon from 1861 given by Reverend Leander Cobb,...

Marion wastewater lagoon project to receive $250,000 in funding

MARION — The town will be receiving at least $250,000 from the state to aid in lining one of its Wastewater Treatment Plant lagoons — helping mitigate the cost of the $9.5 million project. The town received an email from State Representative Bill...

Marion increases inflow and infiltration rates

MARION — After learning that inflow and infiltration mitigation fees in town were outdated, the Selectmen moved at a Feb. 23 meeting to raise prices from $0.60 to $13.80 per gallon. “Anyone who’s asking how much that is,” Selectman John Waterman...

Rochester History: Moving house

The writer of this piece, Connie Eshbach, is the vice president of the Rochester Historical Society. This is part of a series of Rochester history briefs. The phrase "moving house" is most often used by people who are packing up their...

Possible harbor fee increase for Mattapoisett

MATTAPOISETT — In an effort to increase revenue for the town’s Harbormaster budget, Mattpoisett could see a slight increase in its harbor fees in the next year. At a Feb. 23 Board of Selectmen meeting, Harbormaster Jamie McIntosh said that his...

Southcoast Health vaccine clinics to resume Feb. 24

Southcoast Health’s vaccine clinics — operated at the Gleason Family YMCA in Wareham, the Vanity Fair outlet in Dartmouth, and in Fall River — will resume vaccinating patients from across the region on Wednesday, Feb. 24. The clinics opened on Feb...

Mattapoisett Library, Museum to co-host historical talk

MATTAPOISETT — On March 21, the Mattapoisett Museum and Mattapoisett Library will co-host a talk with Author Stephen C. O'Neill via Zoom about his work, “The Life of Peregrine White: The First Englishman Born in New England.” Peregrine White was...

Marion native dies after swim in frozen bog resevoir

A middle-aged man who died after entering the water at a frozen-over bog reservoir on Feb. 21 was there for a swim, according to officials. The deceased man was identified by the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office as Thomas Bartholomew, 44,...

Victim airlifted to Rhode Island Hospital after Rochester crash

ROCHESTER — Darren Moran, 28, was arraigned in Wareham District Court after allegedly hitting a pedestrian near 144 North Ave. on Feb. 20. The pedestrian was transported by helicopter to Rhode Island Hospital in critical condition after the crash...

Mattapoisett seed library ready for checkout

MATTAPOISETT — Just restocked, the Mattapoisett Free Public Library's Seed Library is ready to fill requests. Patrons can now pick exactly the variety of seeds they want by filling out an easy form. The form lists the many varieties of vegetables,...

Mattapoisett to halt vaccine registration for local clinics

MATTAPOISETT — The pre-registration process to receive the covid vaccine in Mattapoisett is being updated, following the state’s prioritization of mass vaccination sites. In Mattapoisett, the last day to submit registration forms to the police...

An historic sermon at First Congregational Church of Marion

MARION — The First Congregational Church of Marion will host an historic sermon originally authored in 1861 by Rev. Leander Cobb, on Feb. 21 at its 10 a.m. Founders’ Day worship service. A public discussion of the sermon that will follow immediately...

St. Gabriel’s gets a new rector

MARION — Saint Gabriel’s Episcopal Church is bringing in Father Eric Fialho as its new rector. Fialho comes to Saint Gabriel’s with experience preaching and teaching bible and theology. He described his theological leanings in a Feb. 17 press...

Grab nomination papers for the Mattapoisett town election

MATTAPOISETT — The annual Town Election in Mattapoisett is scheduled for Tuesday, May 18, 2021. Nomination papers will be available by appointment only starting on Monday, February 1, 2021. Interested parties should call 508-758-4100 x 2 or email (...

Marion Institute to oversee food distribution program

A free meal distribution program designed to combat childhood food insecurity in Wareham, the Tri-Town and surrounding communities is expanding, according to the Marion Institute’s Executive Director Liz Wiley. The Marion Institute collaborated with...

Marion remains red as Rochester, Mattapoisett shift to yellow

As Mattapoisett and Rochester have both shifted down to yellow in the state’s color-coded risk designation system , Marion is the only town that has maintained a red designation. New cases in Marion rose by one this week, according to Feb. 18 state...

Marion Institute aids in food program expansion

A free meal distribution program designed to combat childhood food insecurity in Wareham, the Tri-Town and surrounding communities is expanding, according to the Marion Institute’s Executive Director Liz Wiley. The Marion Institute collaborated with...

‘Bikes for All’ looks for donations, volunteers

MATTAPOISETT — In anticipation of the Mattapoisett Rail Trail connection to Depot Street opening this year, Mattapoisett Recreation and the Friends of the Mattapoisett Bicycle and Recreational Path (the Friends) have teamed up to bring bikes to more...

Mattapoisett Selectmen talk future of Highway Department

MATTAPOISETT — Barry Denham is leaving two vacancies behind this year, as he steps back from his position as Highway Surveyor and Veterans Agent. The Selectmen thanked him for his time with the town and discussed how to handle the surveyor position...

Marion bylaw may reduce housing density

MARION — In an effort to curb potential for dense housing that Board Chair William Saltonstall said could "scar the Marion landscape," the Planning Board has moved forward a bylaw change which would restrict high-density housing developments. The...

Marion completes projects with green energy grant

MARION – Marion has been awarded a grant totaling $120,238 that will support energy efficient projects in town, according to a Feb. 17 press release. The grant was awarded to Marion by the Green Communities Program through the Massachusetts...

Rochester Council on Aging plans vaccine trips for seniors

ROCHESTER — After the town’s efforts to coordinate a covid-19 vaccination site fell through due to lack of state support, the Rochester Council on Aging decided to take matters into its own hands. Selectman Woody Hartley, who is also a member of the...

Southcoast Health halts vaccine registration

Southcoast Health vaccination clinics will no longer be booking appointments for first doses of the covid vaccine, according to a Feb. 12 release from the healthcare system to its patients. According to Southcoast Health, the state’s Department of...

Watch ‘Now, Voyager’ with the Sippican Cinema Series

MARION — The Sippican Cinema Series Continues on February 22 with “Now, Voyager.” With performances by Bette Davis and Claude Rains, this is the love story of delicate, middle-aged Charlotte Vale, who suffers a nervous breakdown due to the influence...

Learn about a South Coast philanthropist with the Mattapoisett Library

MATTAPOISETT — Learn more about Paul Cuffe, South Coast mariner, entrepreneur, and philanthropist with a Mattapoisett Library discussion from authors David Cole and Betty Slade about their book, “Paul Cuffe: His Purpose, Partners and Properties.”...

Civics workshop for teachers

MATTAPOISETT — The League of Women Voters Southcoast has partnered with the LWV Greenwich on a civics workshop using a case method approach. The case method civics project is a collaboration between the Case Method Institute, a Harvard program which...

Take the ‘zoo to you’ with Mattapoisett Library

MATTAPOISETT — Mattapoisett Library’s “ZOO to You” virtual program is bringing animals to kids through a series of virtual lessons. Sign up on the library’s online events calendar found at mattapoisettlibrary.org for any of the Zoom virtual programs...

Marion exhausts vaccine supply

MARION — After administering 886 doses of the Moderna covid vaccine, the town has exhausted its supply. According to the town, all residents over 85 who requested the vaccine have been vaccinated. According to an email to residents on Feb. 12,...

New cases rise in Mattapoisett

As Marion and Rochester cases continue to decline, new covid cases in Mattapoisett rose for the first time in five weeks. Mattapoisett recorded 15 new cases in Feb. 11 covid data, up six from last week. The town saw a four-week decline in covid...

Public Health Nurses detail vaccine distribution

MATTAPOISETT — While the town is unsure when it will receive more doses, its first 100-dose covid vaccine clinic for residents 75-and-up was a success. Public Health Nurses Emily Field and Amanda Stone updated the Board of Health on vaccine...

Girl scouts brave it out in freezing-temperature cookie sale

Last year on Valentine’s Day, Girl Scout Troop 67047 sold cookies at the Marion General Store under the leadership of Nicole Rickard, who passed away unexpectedly in 2020. This year looked a little different with an outdoor only sale, where and the...

Mattapoisett bike path construction extended

MATTAPOISETT — The deadline for completion of the currently in-progress portion of the Mattapoisett bike path has been extended to November 2021, according to Town Administrator Michael Lorenco. Lorenco updated the Board of Selectmen on the status...

Massachusetts’ vaccine hotline is up and running

Tri-Town seniors who prefer the phone to the internet now have a way to schedule a covid-19 vaccine appointment. On Friday, Feb. 5, Gov. Charlie Baker announced that the state had launched a call center for those age 75 and older who were unable to...

Sippican Woman’s Club scholarships

MARION — Since 1947, the Sippican Woman ’s Club has awarded scholarships to Marion students. The scholarships are usually funded by proceeds from the Holiday House Tour but this year due to the pandemic it was funded by donations from various...

Socially distance outside with the Buzzards Bay Coalition

In lieu of in-person events, the Buzzards Bay Coalition has organized a set of suggested activities and guides that can be used by children, adults and families this winter. The goal is to spend time in the outdoors and discover the beauty of the...

Marion begins vaccinations for older residents

MARION — Marion began vaccine clinics for its older population on Feb. 5, and Town Administrator Jay McGrail said the town will continue working hard to get its most vulnerable residents inoculated. “Our main concern was with the population that’s...

Five Mattapoisett businesses receive covid aid

Five Mattapoisett businesses have received covid aid as part of the Small Business Grant program, according to State Senator Mark Montigny’s office. In the most recent round of aid, the Tastebuds restaurant, GLOCO, Inc., Jeffrey Charles Paine, and...

Covid case drop continues

New covid cases continue to fall in all three towns, following a spike over the Christmas and New Years holidays. While new cases in Marion are down from a Jan. 17 peak of 46 to 17 in state data released on Feb. 4, Sippican Healthcare Center...

Marion man arrested for animal cruelty

MARION — A man was arrested on Feb. 4 on charges of animal cruelty and unlicensed possession of ammunition. According to Marion Police, Brandon Davis, 26, was arrested after Marion Animal Control Officer Susan Connor received complaints regarding a...

Marion budget presented to Selectmen

MARION — School expenses, the Benson Brook Transfer Station and water revenue highlighted conversation about the town’s budget at a Feb. 2 Selectmen’s meeting. Town administrator Jay McGrail and Town Accountant Judy Mooney presented an unbalanced...

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