Flu vaccines

The Health Department has scheduled a flu clinic for residents from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday, at the town office building, 36 Bartlet St. Families are welcome to come to the clinic. There are a limited number of doses of FluMist, the live nasal vaccine that is used as an alternative to the flu shot for persons ages 2 to 49. Registration forms are available at the Senior Center, library, Health Department, the Andover Town House, and in town offices. Registration is not required; however, bringing a completed form to the clinic will speed the process. Individuals who are 65 or older and receive Medicare benefits are asked to bring their Medicare cards. The clinic is free to residents, regardless of their healthcare coverage. For more information, contact the Health Department at 978-623-8295.

- Brenda J. Buote

AMBULANCE SERVICE STUDY - Members of the Ambulance Study Committee met for the first time last week to explore running an ambulance service through the Fire Department. The town currently contracts with Trinity EMS of Lowell, a private operator. Member Thomas Fleming said the committee is delving into the five or so reports published by proponents since the push toward a town-operated ambulance service began about a year ago. Members will meet again at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the police station, 2 Olde North Road. - Joyce Pellino Crane

AFTER CHRISTMAS - While presents won't be unwrapped for nearly two weeks, the town is already planning Christmas tree removal. Trees may be dropped off at the parking lots of several town buildings, including the Council on Aging, the Cemetery Department on Leavitt Street, and the Town Hall lower lot. Trees may also be left at Hovey Field on Pleasant Street, Richardson Cemetery driveway on Broadway Road, and Varnum Cemetery driveway on Parker Road. Trees will be accepted for recycling until Feb. 3. For more information, contact the town clerk's office at 978-453-0951. - Rocco Colella

SPLIT DECISION - The Planning Board will open a public hearing Monday on subdividing a lot on Massapoag Way, said Cheryl Mann, the board's secretary. The hearing will examine a request to partition the property into three lots to allow the subdivision, said Mann. The hearing starts at 7:45 p.m. in Town Hall.

- Matt Gunderson

TOWN CLERK STAFF HOURS CUT - Selectmen have reduced some hours of support staff in the town clerk's office but have not gone as far as the town's personnel manager recommended this fall, said Jeff Ritter, Groton's interim administrative officer. The recommendation was to cut the town clerk's support staff hours from 52.2 hours a week to 35, which prompted Onorina Maloney's resignation as town clerk. Ritter said selectmen reduced the hours some, but not as much as the original recommendation. He said he did not know exactly how many hours the support staff was reduced. - Matt Gunderson

MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP - A Northern Essex Community College scholarship aimed at GED graduates attending college has been established as a permanently endowed scholarship, the school announced last week. The Daniel Wilson Holroyd Memorial Scholarship, a $500 award, will be given out each year. It was started shortly after NECC GED graduate Daniel Wilson Holroyd was killed in an automobile accident in 2001 at the age of 21. - Russell Contreras

OVER THE BORDER - The University of Massachusetts at Lowell announced last week that some Southern New Hampshire residents are now eligible for a new tuition plan that will save them thousands of dollars a year under the school's new proximity regional rate. According to the changes, Southern New Hampshire undergraduate students can attend UMass-Lowell for $14,173 a year in tuition and fees, compared with the regular out-of-state cost of $20,559. The $6,386 savings goes into effect for the fall 2008 semester, the school said.

- Russell Contreras

AFFORDABLE DAY CARE - A group of Methuen parents is trying to create a Boys & Girls Club in the city to provide more-affordable after-school day care for children. Such clubs typically cost members $5 to $25 a year, with the bulk of the club's expenses covered by local business and community donations. The group already has permission to house the club initially at Tenney Grammar School on Pleasant Street, using the gym, cafeteria, and computer lab, said organizer Kathi Ingram. The group also hopes to partner with the Boys & Girls Club in Lawrence for shared administrative costs. Organizers are starting a steering committee and hope to begin a business plan in February. Those who would like to join the committee or help should e-mail MethuenBGCAProject@yahoo.com. - Kytja Weir

DONATE WITH A CLICK - The North Andover Youth Center is raising money from holiday shopping by letting its website serve as a portal for online stores. More than 120 businesses, from a florist to restaurants to vacation resorts and Amazon.com, will give the center 2 to 15 percent of a purchase if visitors get to the stores through the center's website, nayouth.com. - Kytja Weir

GOVERNMENT MAKEOVER - With more than 20 town employees having the option to retire in the next few years, selectmen are looking at adopting a town charter that could substantially rearrange town government, said Town Administrator Robert Hanson. The board is looking at putting a referendum on the town ballot in the spring, which would establish a commission to explore options for a town charter. The document could include any number of revisions to the government, such as the creation of town manager position. - Matt Gunderson

SEWER PROJECT IN HOME STRETCH - Marshall Street will be closed to through traffic between 7 a.m. and 4 p.m. until Dec. 21 for sewer construction. The work, which is being done between Catherwood and Nelson streets, is the last phase of the town's sewer project. During construction, town officials are urging motorists to follow a detour along Pleasant and Main streets. For more information, contact the town engineering department at 978-640-4370.

- Brenda J. Buote

STORM-WATER PLAN ON HOLD - A draft of a storm-water-management plan, posted at tyngsboroughmass.com on the Conservation Commission page, is in limbo while officials await new regulations from the state Department of Environmental Protection, due in early January. The plan was authored by a consulting team at Lowell-based Northern Middlesex Council on Governments, at a cost of $91,000, and includes mapping of catch basins and detention ponds. The town is required to reduce pollutants discharged by its storm-water system by March, but officials said they will hold off on filing a final version of the plan until they make sure it meets the state's new requirements. - Joyce Pellino Crane

UNSAFE TO INHABIT - Town Hall was in an uproar early last week after a consulting engineer deemed the building unsafe for occupancy due to structural failure. The weight of heavy file cabinets was causing floor joists inside the historic building to bend and crack, said Valerie Wormell, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen. Staffers were quickly moved to other buildings in town, and the new locations are listed on the town's website, westfordma.gov. Phone numbers and e-mail addresses are the same, according to a notice posted to the website. Wormell said selectmen are considering how to resolve the issue.

- Joyce Pellino Crane

NEW POLICE STATION - Plans for a new police station at the town's safety complex were unveiled this month during a facilities committee public hearing. If approved by voters in March, the $1.7 million project would add a police station to the west side of the building, which houses the town's volunteer ambulance service. The committee will hold a bond hearing Jan. 14 and a second public hearing Jan. 23.

- Meg Villeneuve

WIDER CELL COVERAGE - A proposed cell tower at Nelson Field may soon become a reality. The Planning Board signed plans for the town's communication tower at that location; now it's up to Verizon Corp. to submit its plans to locate one of its antennas on the tower. Verizon will pay to install the tower, but will not own it. The tower is expected to improve the Fire Department's radio communications, especially for firefighters with portable radios. In addition, it should improve cell coverage and eliminate some dead spots in town. - Meg Villeneuve

SEX-OFFENDER PROPOSAL - Only three residents attended the personnel/administrative affairs committee meeting on Dec. 3, and two of them spoke in favor of a proposed city ordinance that would prevent state-registered sex offenders from moving within 1,000 feet of schools, day-care facilities, or parks. The other resident spoke out against the plan. The proposed ordinance was submitted last fall by Alderman at Large James Tollner, who said the committee will discuss the issue at its meeting tonight. The goal, he said, is to send the proposal to the Board of Alderman for a vote by the end of the year. - Meg Villeneuve

LAND FOR NEW HIGH SCHOOL - The School Board is buying two properties that would become home to a new high school. The approximately 43 acres is located off Windham Road. Final approval for the $3 million purchase lies with the voters, who will decide in March. The School Board plans to present voters with a $44,665,000 warrant article to construct the new school. Of that total, $3 million would be used transform the current high school into a school for seventh- and eighth-graders, according to School Board member Mike Conrad. - Meg Villeneuve

VISITOR FROM CHINA - A high-ranking Chinese official spent two days in Acton recently meeting with town officials about the operations of local government. John Murray, Acton's temporary town manager, said Zhengyong Zhao, vice governor of the Shaanxi province, was most interested in learning about reforms that could be implemented in China. Murray said the meeting was a good opportunity for both officials to learn more about the different cultures and forms of government. "Through these exchanges, my hope was to break down stereotypes that divide us, to promote good governance, economic growth, human rights, to contribute to conflict prevention by building respect for cultural expression and identity," Murray said. - Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

POWER PLAYERS - Opponents of a proposed natural gas-fired power plant near the Tewksbury line met at the Tewksbury Public Library Dec. 5 to raise awareness about the project and strengthen their ranks. Tewksbury resident Judi Luciano, a member of the BillericaWatchers group, said about 50 people attended, including two selectmen from her town. In February, two private developers filed a petition - still under review - with the state Department of Transportation and Energy seeking permission to begin construction of a 348-megawatt plant on Billerica Avenue. Proponents say the region has growing energy needs. BillericaWatchers is a grass-roots effort that will be reaching out to Lowell residents over the next several weeks, according to Luciano.

- Joyce Pellino Crane

QUESTION ON IMMIGRATION FACILITY - The warrant for Wednesday's special Town Meeting session about the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility is available at Town Hall and at the town's website, burlington.org. A majority plus one of the 108 Town Meeting members must be in attendance for a vote to be counted. In addition to the one-ques tion warrant - a petitioned article that asks Town Meeting to provide funding and hire a special counsel to fight the opening of an ICE headquarters that would have temporary holding rooms - a slide presentation on the issue is available on the town's website. The meeting will be held at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Burlington High School in the Fogelberg Auditorium. - Eric Moskowitz

HOLIDAY GIFTS FOR SENIORS - Minuteman Senior Services, a nonprofit agency that serves senior citizens in 16 communities, is looking for people to buy holiday gifts for seniors through its Giving Tree program. People can find tags from the Giving Tree with gift requests. The tags can be selected at The Crafty Yankee, 1838 Massachusetts Ave., Lexington. Gifts should be returned by Monday. - Eric Moskowitz