Intersection study

INTERSECTION STUDY - Town officials are considering improvements to the intersection of Main Street and Hayward Road. A meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Faulkner Room at Town Hall for residents to express their thoughts on how the intersection affects commuting, safety, and property. Residents last spring approved funds to study the intersection. The town hired a consultant to conduct the study, which also extends to intersections and neighborhoods along Main Street from Route 2 to Brook Street. For more information, call the Acton Engineering Department at 978-264-9628.

- Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

FIRE DEPARTMENT OPEN HOUSE - The Fire Department will hold its annual open house Saturday. Fire Chief Allan McEwen said the event is part of Fire Prevention Month, and those who attend will have the opportunity to view fire apparatus and receive educational materials. The event is free. Papa Gino's will donate pizza for those attending. The open house will be held at fire headquarters, 112 Mystic St. from noon to 2 p.m. - Melissa Beecher

GLEASON APPOINTED - Dan Gleason, 47, has been unanimously appointed to a vacant position on the five-member School Committee. Gleason, who is a software salesman, earned a master's in business administration from Babson College. He said he was interested in the position because his son is entering the school system and he hoped to play a role in dealing with the challenges facing Ayer. Gleason has lived in town for nine years. - Melissa Beecher

FRESH, LOCAL AT HIGH SCHOOL - Participating in the state's Harvest for Students Week, Bedford High School is purchasing local produce for lunches through Lanni Orchards, a Lunenburg farm. Buoyed by the statewide Farm-to-School Project, Harvest for Students was held last week in Bedford and other communities. According to the state, 40 local farms are selling produce to 85 public schools and 13 colleges across the Commonwealth. - Melissa Beecher

SCHOOL SAFETY FORUM - The Belmont Special Education Advisory Council will hold a panel discussion Wednesday on safety and students with special needs. The discussion, scheduled from 7.30 to 9 p.m. in the Chenery Middle School cafeteria, will outline the role of the school system's new safety officer, the law on special needs students and discipline, and how parents can work with school and police officials regarding safety issues. - Dan Tuohy

STAINED GLASS FOR THE LIBRARY - Four stained-glass windows by artists Amy G. Custis of Trinity Stained Glass & Windmill Studio in Warwick, R.I., and Peter McGrain of McGrain Glass International of Bingen, Wash., were to be installed in the children's room of the public library this week. The windows show garden scenes with flowers and insects, as well as hidden objects for the children to discover. Funding for the artwork, which cost $3,000 per window, was provided by local donors, said Barbara Flaherty, library director. Installations of two other stained-glass windows were completed this spring, said Jan Hagman, supervisor of the children's room.

- Joyce Pellino Crane

COMMUNICATION IS A PRIORITY - The Board of Selectmen has approved goals for 2008. One of its top priorities is improving communication among town departments and boards and commissions. As a part of that effort, the board will organize several all-board meetings, the first of which is scheduled for Oct. 25. The topic will be the town's budget forecast for the next fiscal year and its current financial situation.

- Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

MONEY OK'D FOR DRAINAGE, SEWER NEEDS - Voters at last week's Town Meeting unanimously approved an open-ended amount - $1 million "or any other sum" - for structural repairs to the town's drainage system and to plan and design a bypass for the Terrace Hall sewer main, which carries roughly two-thirds of the town's waste and passes under Burlington's Vine Brook drinking-water aquifer, said Thomas F. Hickey, assistant town administrator. The nearly half-century-old sewer line, a force main that is always full, predates the town's use of the Vine Brook water supply, Hickey said. - Eric Moskowitz

OPERA SERIES - The Gleason Public Library is taking reservations for its fall opera series. John Tischio, president of the New England Opera Club, will present a series of five operas from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, Nov. 7, Nov. 14, Nov. 28, Dec. 5, and Dec. 12. The Friends of the Carlisle Council on Aging and Friends of the Gleason Public Library will present the series free, but registration is required. For more information or to register, call the library at 978-369-4898. - Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

DEVELOPMENT REVIEW STARTS - A developer plans to file an application for a 350-unit housing complex in West Concord within the next few weeks. Trammell Crow Residential received the go-ahead from the state's housing agency to move forward with the local permitting process. The town's Zoning Board of Appeals will review the project once an application is filed. The project would be built under the state's affordable housing law and, if approved, would be the town's largest development. It would also bring the town up to the state requirement for affordable housing. The proposed development, off Old Powder Mill Road, is expected to include a mix of apartments and town houses. - Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

FLEA MARKET - The annual Columbus Day Flea Market will be held Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The market benefits the Harvard Conservation Trust and the League of Women Voters. Admission is $3 for people 12 and older and $1 for senior citizens. More than 200 booths of antiques, crafts, and collectibles will be available. The market is held at the Bromfield School on Route 111. - Melissa Beecher

WATERGATE FIGURE TO SPEAK - Chuck Colson of Watergate fame is scheduled to speak tomorrow at Grace Chapel, 59 Worthen Road, at 7:30 p.m. The former aide to President Richard M. Nixon will appear again on Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to noon for a panel discussion, workshop sessions, and a question-and-answer period. Colson, who pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice after the Watergate burglary and served time in prison, founded the Prison Fellowship, a group of Christian ministries promoting prisoner rehabilitation and prison system reform. He also has a daily radio broadcast, BreakPoint. For more information about the free events, visit the website grace.org, call 781-862-8351, or e-mail communications@grace.org. - Connie Paige

NO WATER SYSTEM FLUSHING - The Water Department has canceled its annual fall flushing program, which was set to take place this week. The flushing is now scheduled to take place during the spring when water levels are higher. Savos Danos, the department's general manager, said the delay will give the water system more time to recover from the dry summer. The purpose of the yearly flushing is to remove mineral buildup from inside the water pipes.

- Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

CONDOS PLANNED AT SCHOOL SITE - The city is planning to sell the shuttered Kennedy-Lincoln School complex to Ronald A. Lopez of North Shore Construction for $2.3 million. Lopez wants to build 50 condominiums and a municipal parking lot with 30 to 60 parking spaces for community use. The city's Community Development Board is reviewing the developer's plans. The board needs to approve the plans before Lopez can start work.

- Christine McConville

CPA BEFORE TOWN MEETING AGAIN - The Nov. 13 Town Meeting is scheduled to consider a property tax surcharge under the state's Community Preservation Act. Selectmen voted last month to include the item on the agenda - the second time the town is taking up the proposal. The commission that studied the issue has recommended a 2 percent surcharge, but the actual number would be set by Town Meeting up to the 3 percent permitted under the law. The law allows cities and towns to use preservation act money as well as matching state funds to support open space, historic preservation, affordable housing, and recreation initiatives. Before the town can collect the revenue, the Community Preservation Act must be approved at Town Meeting and by voters in a townwide election, according to Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner. In April 2002, a 1 percent surcharge under the preservation act was defeated at the polls by 75 votes, Hechenbleikner said.

- Laura M. Colarusso

FARM FUTURE TO BE AIRED - Selectmen will hold a public input session Wednesday on the future of Hamilton Farm. The board is soliciting feedback on the two finalists in the partial development of the 20-acre site. The alternatives will be presented and people interested in the farm will speak starting at 7 p.m. at McCall Middle School. Documents of the proposals are available on the town's website, winchester.us. - Melissa Beecher

REENACTING THE PAST - The Historical Society's Living History Guild will present dramatized tours of the city's old burial grounds on Oct. 20, using actors in period dress and a pair of live oxen. The beasts of burden will help illustrate the tale of local farmer Simeon Reed, who reportedly traded his wife in 1789 for a team of oxen. The Reed oxen story will be presented at Citizens Park in downtown Woburn. The tours will then continue to nearby First Burial Grounds on Park Street, which dates to the 1640s. There, the Historical Society will present four other tales from Woburn's past, including the saving of Count Rumford from the hands of a lynch mob and the story of the "Mad Hatter of the Ark Tavern," a ghost tale. The tours will be held at 1, 1:50, and 2:40 p.m. Admission is free but tickets are required. For ticket information, call 781-937-8848 or visit woburnhistoricalsociety.com. - Eric Moskowitz