SHREWSBURY

The warrant for a special Town Meeting on Dec. 10 has been posted online. The meeting is at 7 p.m. at the Oak Middle School Auditorium, 45 Oak Street.

-- Lisa Kocian

MARLBOROUGH

Skaters, especially beginners, can hit the ice for a cause next weekend in Marlborough.

On Saturday, Dec. 1, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Dec. 2 from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., half of the $4 admission fee to the Navin Ice Skating Rink will go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Massachusetts.

The foundation works to grant wishes to children with life threatening illnesses. Around the state, 23 other rinks operated for the state by Facility Management Corporation will hold similar fundraisers with a goal to raise at least $10,000, the company annnounced.

-- Lisa Kocian

PLAINVILLE

Members of the Plainville Redevelopment Authority recently told selectmen that they are considering asking the town to designate a redevelopment area that would allow the town to take land by eminient domain.

The area would cover about a half mile of South Street and about 300 yards of West Bacon Street, and the designation would have to be be approved at town meeting.

Town Administrator Joseph Fernandes said the town may be better off starting with a smaller area closest to the intersection of the two streets.

"I'd rather that they made some progress in the immediate area and use that as an example of what they can do," Fernandes said.

-- Calvin Hennick

HOLLISTON

Holliston Public Library patrons can now pay their fines and fees with their credit cards, online, through the Minuteman Library Network.

Patrons can access the network through the library's website and can get into their account with their library card and personal identification number. Those without a PIN can set one up at the library.

Library Director Leslie McDonnell said library patrons have long asked for the ability to pay their fines with credit cards.

"It's gotten to the point where they don't ask us if we take credit cards," McDonnell said. "They just pull it out of their wallet."

-- Calvin Hennick

SHREWSBURY

State Rep. Karyn Polito has urged local politicians to lobby for her measure to return more money to cities and towns.

Polito, a Shrewsbury Republican, told Shrewsbury's selectmen earlier this week that her late-file bill to return $450 million in lottery money to municipalities needs a lot of help to get out of the House Rules Committee. In the House of Representative, bills filed late must go through the rules committee before going on through the legislative process, she said.

Lottery money is supposed to go to cities and towns but the state always keeps some in reserve. That is unfair, Polito said, particularly when the state has a stabilization fund balance of $2.2 billion.

For Shrewsbury, the measure would mean about $1.5 million back if approved.

-- Lisa Kocian

MARLBOROUGH

Green Marlborough, a local environmental group, will give away reusable shopping bags at the post office on Saturdays from Dec. 1 to Dec. 22

About 380 billion disposable plastic bags are given out annually around the country, costing retailers – and therefore consumers--about $1 billion a year, a press release from the group states. In addition, millions of barrels of oil and petroleum are used annually to produce the bags, depleting natural resources and producing pollution during the manufacturing process.

Hannaford’s Market in Marlborough has donated 200 of the bags to be distributed, according to the release.

-- Lisa Kocian

UPTON

The Friends of Upton State Forest are encouraging those who walk in the forest to stay safe by wearing bright orange during the shotgun hunting season for deer, which starts on Nov. 26 and runs through Dec. 8.

Dogs should also be outfitted in orange and kept leashed, the group said.

-- Calvin Hennick

MEDFIELD

The Medfield Parks and Recreation Department will hold a skiing program on six Sundays in January and February at Wachusett Mountain Ski Area for children and teens from third grade through high school.

The deadline to sign up is Dec. 6 and the cost for skiing is $37, with additional charges for transportation, equipment rental, and lessons. Children in grades 3 through 5 must be accompanied by a paying adult.

Anyone seeking more information is urged to call the Medfield Recreation Department at 508-359-2715.

-- Calvin Hennick

NORFOLK

Selectmen will hold a public hearing Monday on whether to grant an earth removal permit for the new site of the Elite Food Company.

The company, which negotiates contracts between food suppliers and the military, plans to move from its downtown site and construct a larger building off of Route 1A. Last spring, Town Meeting voters approved a tax break for the company to aid the expansion.

-- Calvin Hennick

SHREWSBURY

State Rep. Karyn Polito's bill to set mandatory minimum sentences for child rapists had a recent public hearing before the Judiciary Committee and could move forward in the legislative process before the end of the year, lawmakers said.

Polito, a Republican from Shrewsbury, is also pushing for minimum sentences for child pornography crimes and for "predator free" zones around schools and day care centers. Opponents say such measures don't work and can be counter-productive.

Chairman of the Judiciary Committee Sen. Robert Creedon, a Democrat of Brockton, told the State House News Service after the hearing that the committee plans to get portions of the sex offender bill "out by the end of the year."

-- Lisa Kocian

WRENTHAM

Detective Sergeant William McGrath, the former president of the Wrentham Police Association, said Wrentham officers oppose allowing the town's police chief to serve beyond the age of 65 because "it would compromise the promotional process that is in place."

Town Meeting voters last week voted down a proposal to ask the state for permission to allow the chief serve beyond the mandatory retirement age.

McGrath said the officers' stance against the change is not a reflection on Richard Gillespie, who selectmen named to serve as a provisional chief until they appoint permanent replacement for Joseph Collamati. Gillespie will turn 65 next September.

"We're 100 percent behind Chief Gillespie," McGrath said.

-- Calvin Hennick

UPTON

Uptonites jarred by the sight of police surrounding Santa this year on Christmas Eve should stay calm. They're not busting the jolly old guy, just giving him an honorary escort.

The police department will escort Santa as he visits homes in Upton on Dec. 24 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. To reserve a visit, call the Police Department at 508-529-3200.

-- Calvin Hennick