Westwood Blog

Westwood Blog was a place for news and community discussion from 2007-2011. I moved to the Roslindale neighborhood of Boston in 2010 and could no longer keep creating the content. So much of this site is dependent on the participants "having a stake" in the community, and while I maintain ties with many friends here, I'm just not as connected to what's going on anymore.

Westwood is a great community, and I hope what is archived here can be valuable to people looking to move to Westwood or for Westwood residents who might be curious about some recent local history. For local news, AOL's hyperlocal news project Patch, has aggressively worked to cover many local events. The Boston Globe, through Boston.com launched YourTown Westwood last year. Gatehouse Media produces news related to Westwood through Wicked Local Westwood and compiles those articles into a weekly print publication, the Westwood Press.

I've compiled links to Westwood organizations and am happy to add more if people send me the information.

For those looking to move to Westwood, I would contact Realtors Barbara Shea McDonald, Elena Price, or Jane Duffy. I would use Zillow.com to get a sense of home prices and register with MLSPropertyFinder to get the most complete email updates when homes go on the market. (This service is associated with an agent in Medfield but works for any property in MA).

For those looking to find out what's going on in Westwood, the town website has a ton of information. Sign up for the email lists. Check out WestCAT, the cable access station that is currently archiving web videos of town meetings and will eventually be broadcast on Comcast and Verizon.

I'm not disappearing or anything, but I'm not posting anything new here. You can still (try to) catch me Saturday mornings at 7am at the high school track with my friends in the Westwood Gentlemen's Running Club.

I've been somewhat disconnected from the Westwood Blog ever since Dave Atkins moved from Westwood, but I've continued to believe that this Blog was, and continues to be, a valuable tool and source of information for the residents of Westwood and for the surrounding regions. It is my firm belief that this blog, along with my personal website (http://www.gregagnew.com), and newer online media outlets such as: http://westwood.patch.com, will be what people look towards for informative, real, and honest news about their hometown.

Most recently, the Westwood School System put out notices of hire for two positions: High School Principal, and for a new (and unnecessary) postion referred to as: "Dean of Students." A few weeks ago, I had written an article praising School Committee Member Jack O'Brien's critical comments concerning the high cost of paying this newly created postion (about $78,000), and echoed his concern over the School's Budget, and Westwood's inability to recognize that this newly imposed expense was not an intelligent choice to implement, especially during a poor economy.

The full article is available here: http://gregagnew.com/2011/04/07/obrien-is-right-parks-is-wrong-dean-of-s...

Secondly, as you may have noticed, the Westwood DPW did a pretty decent job handling the plowing this year, considering the amount of snow we received, and the numerous budgetary constraints that Westwood faced. However, during the aftermath of one of Westwood's final snow removal operations, I witnessed a FedCorp contracted plowing employee plow a private driveway during his time on the clock for the Town of Westwood. Reports of this singular incident made its way to Dedham, MA, where FedCorp employees were thought to be doing the same thing, on the taxpayer's dime. Video was taken of the incident, and I entered into a discussion with Westwood Town Officials to remedy the issue in time for next year's Winter Season.

The full article is available here: http://gregagnew.com/2011/02/21/a-final-examination-plowing-and-contract...

My hope is that with contributed stories similar to this, the Westwood Blog will begin to have the high level of activity that it once enjoyed back in 2008!

For Immediate Release
Contact: Mary-Carol Waters
marycarolwaters@verizon.net, 617-680-4764

Bowl at Kings and Support Westwood High
On April 10, 2011, the Westwood High School PTO and Westwood Alumni Association are teaming up with Kings Bowling in Legacy Place to benefit Westwood High School students. Tickets are now available for this fun 21+ night which will begin at 7PM. The $50 ticket price includes appetizers, pizza, soft drinks, bowling and shoes. Attendees can join a team, bowl a casual game, or just come for a fun night out with friends. In addition to bowling, the night will include a silent auction and a "balloon pop" raffle.
PTO Co-President Leslie Maloney explains, "We are so excited to be able to have a fun event for Westwood High School parents and alumni and at the same time raise a significant amount of money to enhance our school. It will be a great night!"
"We'd like to publically thank Kings Bowling for supporting our school. Kings has really shown commitment to helping out our community. Without their support, this fundraiser would not have been possible," added PTO co-President Lee Kouri.
The funds raised from this event will help support a wide range of academic, extra-curricular and community-building activities. Each year, students, teachers and administrators apply for PTO grants which allow them to fund enrichment opportunities that are not supported by the regular school budget. The PTO offers scholarships to graduating seniors, brings in speakers for students and parents, sponsors the “Wolverine Award for Excellence in Teaching”, and celebrates academic achievement. In addition, a portion of the profit will go towards Westwood High School' s All Night Graduation Party. This event helps keep our seniors safe and entertained on the night of graduation.
All of the details and ticket information are available on the event website:
http://www.bowlathon.net/event/westwood_high_school_2010
Kings is located at 600 Legacy Place in Dedham, MA 02026. The phone number is (781) 329-6000. Kings is a 21+ club.

Late registrations for baseball are still being accepted through this Sunday, February 13, 2011. Check out the Westwood Little League website for more information.

St. John’s Nursery School has space available in the two day program for the 2011 – 2012 school year.

Days and Hours:
Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00am – 12:00pm
Lunch Bunch Available (optional) each
Tuesday and Thursday until 1:00pm

For more information please contact Mal Tennihan, Director, at (781) 329-2032 or via email at registration@stjohnsnursery.org

St. John’s Nursery School
95 Deerfield Ave
Westwood, MA

***Children must be 3 years old by September 1, 2011***

St. John's Nursery School is a private, non-denominational preschool. St. John's is accredited by the National Accreditation of the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and has served children and their families for nearly 40 years.

The Dedham Community Theatre will show Race to Nowhere on February 26 and 27, at 9:30am, followed by a panel discussion of parents and educators. The documentary tells the stories of young people "pushed to the brink," in the pressure-cooker environment of an achievement-oriented culture. The movie is a conversation starter and "a call to mobilize families, educators, and policy makers to challenge current assumptions on how to best prepare the youth of America to become healthy, bright, contributing and leading citizens." Tickets are $5.

The National Weather Service reported -2 degrees at Norwood Airport, but a couple of gentlemen turned out for the weekly run of the Westwood Gentlemen's Running Club. Roads were clear but we did not linger after the run! The running club meets every Saturday morning at the high school track for a 3-4 mile run around Westwood. A small group of 5 started in March 2006. Membership has grown to almost 20, although apparently, the cold weather this morning proved too much for many of the members ;)

To join the club, potential members should arrive at the high school prior to 7:30am and complete a rigorous qualifying run from the parking lot to the track. Membership is open to residents of Westwood and people who have moved to Roslindale, but receive special permission from the group. Membership dues are collected annually at the "Murph's Banquet" in Norwood and consist of paying your share of the meal and tip. New T-shirts will be available once we design them.

We all know that the Metro West and coastal areas of Massachusetts have been hit hard with two massive snow storms in 2011, and that most cities and towns have already blown through their allocated budgets, and have since requested to take more taxpayer money, which prompts the question that has been asked frequently: why continually go over budget when you’ve been dealing with snow removal for centuries in Massachusetts?

Each year, our budget is faced with a puzzling question: why do DPW department heads continually ask for so little, when the numbers indicate they always need more? Especially since the past two snow removal jobs in Westwood, MA have been sub-par at best, even with crews supposedly working long hours day and night to resolve the many transportation issues we face with the Public Schools, and our residents venturing out to work each day.

The past snow removal that occurred on January 12, 2011, was particularly atrocious. Streets were left partially plowed for up to three hours, driveways faced mountain-esque blockages due to loader-plowing, and main roads (such as Route 109) were almost un-drivable for almost two days. The DPW, from hearing radio communication, were down a few trucks due to malfunctioning sanders, which is understandable. However, contractor CJP & Sons, responsible for most of Precinct 4, were fully operational, yet very unprofessional, slow, and unresponsive to the needs of those wanting to drive to work, or leave their homes.

After two appalling snow removals by Millis, MA based CJP & Sons, I question the town’s ability to award contracts to qualified bidders. These comments come in lieu of seeing the superior snow removal of the neighboring towns of Dedham, Norwood, Walpole, and Medway. Now, I am not sure who contract plows for the aforementioned towns, but they sure did a far better job. For all I know, CJP & Sons could just be over extended, but if they are, they should have the sense to tell the town of Westwood they will not be able to perform quality snow removal.

With over 32 years of knowledge from a family member who worked everything from small snowplows to Caterpillar front-end loaders in the snow, I know the difference between a quality job, and an unqualified or over extended crew.

Let’s right this situation by re-visiting our plowing contracts for 2012, and make sure they can get the job done. Especially since our taxes are rising at least 6% more in 2012 (without the new library project figured in), due to Westwood’s mistake of allowing developer CC&F to demolish buildings before funding was secured for the Westwood Station Project.

To combat this residential tax increase, I 1). Advise residents to file for a tax abatement at town hall, and 2). Encourage residents to share their ideas on how we may attract more commercial development to the Economic Development Advisory Board, on which I sit. From here, we can start developing a more inclusive discussion to allow everyone to share their solutions for a better Westwood, where each resident can have a say in what they think is best for the town’s health and overall growth.

In the future, I hope we all can enjoy a problem free commute in the snow, and a lower tax burden next time around. With better ideas and thought processes from our Board of Selectman and other elected officials, we can all benefit in the end.

Makes me wonder why I decided not to run for Selectman.

The full post can be found at: http://bit.ly/agnewsnowremoval 

One lucky winner will drive away with a Honda CR-Z valued at more than $26,000 MSRP. 

The car, a sporty and economically-friendly Honda hybrid, is being offered up for raffle by the Westwood High School Alumni Association.

The raffle is intended to jump start the group’s new focus on the whole of the Westwood school system.

“We are growing and redefining the association’s overall mission and objective by expanding our scope beyond the high school,” said Jason Lee, president.

To do that, Lee says, the association will offer to partner with the elementary and middle schools as well as other town organizations on projects that benefit PTOs and students at each institution.

Lee stresses that the Alumni Association will not overlap with other groups already working with the town’s schools.

“We are not here to replace WEF or WESC,” he said. “We are offering to be a complementary and supporting vehicle to these organizations.

 “We are a registered non profit 501(c)3 that can provide many benefits for those organizations that are not registered non-profits,” Lee explained, adding that the first such affiliation is the association’s partnership with the high school PTO on its April 10th Bowling Bash.

Lee calls the Alumni Association’s expanded focus a win-win for the town, its school and the Alumni Organization.

“The goal is to further the success of the Westwood educational system.”

The group’s expanded focus calls for a larger panel of involved individuals. The association will start an Advisory Board for this endeavor and is seeking town officials as well as representation from the elementary and middle schools.

The Alumni Association will continue to provide scholarships to deserving high school students. Lee says that, in the past six years, the group has given more than $30,000 in scholarship money to deserving Westwood High School students.

Click here for full article

http://www.wickedlocal.com/westwood/news/x2012964645/Westwood-alumni-to-give-away-car

There's no need to worry about sorting your recyclables or obtaining a special bin. Paper, cardboard, bottles and cans can now be mixed together for recycling, thanks to new sorting equipment at Waste Management Recycle America in Avon. To make it easier to bring recyclables to the curb, Westwood residents may convert a trash barrel to a recycling container with a FREE Recycle sticker. Stickers are available at Town Hall, the DPW on Carby St., the Senior Center, and both libraries, courtesy of Waste Management.

Materials collected for recycling are still the same. Please do not place plastic bags, Styrofoam, other non-container plastics or food contaminated paper products in the recycle bin. Do include all clean paper, cardboard, metal cans and lids, glass bottles and jars, and rigid plastic containers 1 gallon or less. Those are the only materials that can be sorted and sold to make new products. Paper clips, staples, window envelopes and bottle caps are ok. Other contaminants may degrade the whole load or damage the sorting equipment.

Recycling is not just a good idea, it saves Westwood money. Trash costs over $70/ton to dispose of at the Wheelabrator waste to energy facility in Millbury. Recycling is processed at no additional cost to the town. (If every resident reduced their weekly trash weight by 10 pounds, it would save the town thousands of dollars per week.) Composting non-meat kitchen scraps in a backyard bin is another great way to make better use of your waste.

For more information go to http://westwoodeac.com/WMRF2.aspx, or http://townhall.westwood.ma.us/index.cfm?pid=10205

(Thanks to Westwood Environmental Action Committee for this information)