Banning latex

School officials in Abington may soon issue a formal policy banning latex products. "Latex products have been kept out of our schools for a while," said Abington School Superintendent Peter Schafer. "But we've never had a formal policy." The School Committee, concerned with possible allergies by students and faculty, is expected to discuss the policy at its next meeting, on Jan. 2. Schafer said that school nurses and custodians do not wear latex gloves and that tennis balls, once popular for use on chair legs to prevent floor scratches, have been removed.

- Robert Carroll

HEALTHFUL FOOD TO GO - South Shore Elder Services, a Braintree-based nonprofit, has started offering special meals that can be delivered at home for those 60 and over who have health problems with special dietary needs, such as diabetics or those who need their food pureed. Healthy, low-salt meals can also be prepared by special order. Those interested should call the agency at 781-848-3910 or visit the website at sselder.org. - Matt Carroll

OFFICER GETS POLICE AWARD - The Greater Boston Police Council this month gave Cohasset Police Lieutenant William Quigley its 2007 award for excellence in police service. The organization runs a regional emergency radio network and gives an annual award to the officer whose police work resulted, in part, from the use of the communication system. Quigley used the system to track a suspect who had fired on a State Police trooper and was fleeing on Route 3A toward Cohasset. Quigley was able to tell police where to deploy "stop sticks" - tire deflating devices - to stop the car and arrest the suspect.

- Johanna Seltz

EYEING DEBT OVERRIDES - Duxbury officials are considering proposing debt exclusion overrides to meet the town's capital needs. There is no room in next year's budget for new vehicles or to pay for technology upgrades that schools and other town departments need, according to Town Manager Richard MacDonald. Debt exclusions allow towns to exempt the cost of specified capital expenses from the limits of Proposition 2 1/2 with the approval of voters. It's a way to "let the voters decide on this issue," MacDonald said. Selectmen are waiting for more input from the School Committee before discussing proposals for overrides. - Robert Knox

SISTERS PAY IT FORWARD - The world - or however much $220 could buy - was there for the taking for Katie and Lauren Gaudet. The Gardner Street sisters, ages 13 and 11, earned the money by selling jewelry they'd designed at a crafts fair. Surely, it seemed, a new bicycle or outfit was in store with their earnings. "The girls told us they wanted to give the money away to charity," said their father, Ed Gaudet. The beneficiary of their generosity was 3-year-old Hannah O'Brien of Weymouth, who was diagnosed with a brain tumor a year ago. The Gaudets learned of Hannah through Meaghan and Michael O'Brien, who are related to Hannah and attend Hanover Middle School with the Gaudets. "It's awesome that Katie and Lauren not only came up with the idea of the jewelry and selling it, but then, with Meaghan and Michael, making the decision to donate the money to Hannah," said Ed Gaudet. - Robert Carroll

RID OF ELECTRIC BILLS? - West Frazier wants to put a wind turbine in his 5-acre backyard on Jones Street, and hopes it will supply all the electricity his family needs. "I'm not super-green, but I feel like I should do something," he said. The plan calls for installing the turbine, with 15-foot blades, on top of a 70-foot pole at the top of the hill behind his house. Frazier said the company supplying the $20,000 system has told him it should generate enough electricity to run his household and return excess power to the town's light plant. "I don't think it will be obtrusive," he said. "Maybe in the winter when the leaves are off the trees you might be able to spot it. And it's supposed to be quiet. Hopefully it will just be sitting up there whirring away and cutting back on my electric bill." Frazier goes before the Zoning Board of Appeals on Jan. 3 for permission to install the structure. - Johanna Seltz

MATTHEWS NAMED TO HOUSING BOARD - Governor Deval Patrick has named Thomas Matthews representative to the Holbrook Housing Authority, Town Administrator Michael Yunits said. Matthews, who applied to be appointed, succeeds Steven McGaughey to the board, which sets policy for low-income and senior housing. A disabled veteran, Matthews has lived in Holbrook for 18 years and is retired from the Boston Fire Department after 40 years of service as a firefighter. He has also sat on many boards. He was the director of the Boston Firefighters Credit Union for 20 years and is the longest serving trustee on the Boston Firefighters Trustee Relief Fund, with 31 years of service, Yunits said. - Franci Richardson Ellement

MARITIME TALES - When the steamship Portland went down during a winter storm in 1898, all 192 passengers and crew lost their lives in one of the worst disasters in New England maritime history. Walter Hickey of the National Archives has been studying the tragedy, following a paper trail of archival materials including seamen's papers filed by the victims' families. He will describe what he discovered in the First Thursday Lecture on Jan. 10 at 7 p.m. at the Hull Lifesaving Museum. Admission is $3 for museum members and $5 for nonmembers. The museum is in the former Point Allerton US Lifesaving Station, 1118 Nantasket Ave.

- Johanna Seltz

ANOTHER AWARD - Kingston received one of two annual planning honors awarded by the Massachusetts chapter of the American Planning Association for its "Smart Growth" zoning and design standards for a transit-oriented, mixed use development proposed to be built at 1021 Kingston Place, beside a commuter rail station. The association praised the town's planning for its combination of design standards and site-specific master plan. The town won a Smart Growth award from state agencies for Kingston Place earlier this month.

- Robert Knox

CANDIDATES IN LINE FOR ADMINISTRATOR - Who will be the next town administrator in Marshfield? A search committee recently recommended the following four people: Norwell Town Administrator James Boudreau, Kingston Town Administrator Kevin R. Donovan, Billerica Town Manager Rocco Longo, and Owen Quinn, a former town manager and mayor from Connecticut. "We feel these are really strong candidates," said Ed Diamond, chairman of Marshfield's town administrator search committee, which spent 3 1/2 months reviewing applicants. The selectmen are expected to begin interviewing the candidates in January. - Emily Sweeney

BACK ON TRACK - Trolley service connecting the Ashmont and Mattapan MBTA stations was scheduled to resume over Christmas week. Trolley service through Milton, Dorchester, and Mattapan was suspended for 18 months. The MBTA needed to work on the viaduct at the Ashmont station and at the Mattapan station. Improvements at the stations include: elevated platform ramps for easier access, new signs, and new lighting. - Matt Carroll

THOMS ON RECYCLING PANEL - The Board of Selectmen recently appointed Norm Thoms to be one of the town's two representatives to the board of the South Shore Recycling Cooperative. A retired industrial sales representative and longtime Norwell resident, Thoms worked at the town's recycling center last spring as part of Norwell's program in which seniors work in town jobs for a break on their property taxes. He had always had an interest in recycling and "that just further piqued it," he said of the job. The experience led to his being named to the town's Recycling Committee last summer, and then to his most recent appointment. Thoms joins Joanne Dirk in representing the town on the cooperative, a 10-year-old nonprofit that helps its 15 member communities improve their recycling programs. - John Laidler

PERMIT FOR TUNNEL SOUGHT - The Planning Board on Jan. 7 will hold a public hearing on a proposal by Arnold Hall Conference Center on Randall Street to build a tunnel connecting its two buildings. The center is seeking site plan approval for the project. According to its website, the center offers retreats and workshops for men and women. Its activities are conducted by priests of Opus Dei, a Catholic organization. The proposed tunnel would be used by the center's housekeeping staff. The Planning Board's Jan. 7 meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, with the Arnold Hearing scheduled for 8 p.m.

- John Laidler

TAX RATE SET - The Plymouth Board of Selectmen decided to keep a single tax rate for fiscal 2008, which means that residential and commercial real estate will be taxed at the same rate, as in the past. The new rate will be $10.33 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, subject to approval by the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. Last year's tax rate was $9.71 per $1,000 of assessed valuation. - Emily Sweeney

MAYORAL STAFF MOVES ON - As a new mayoral administration comes in, members of the old administration are looking for new positions. David Murphy, the spokesman for former mayor William Phelan since 2003, said he is scouting around for a job in "either public relations or the nonprofit world." Murphy, 36, previously worked as a program manager for the city parks department. - Matt Carroll

LOW MARKS - A state agency charged with evaluating performance in public school districts relative to statewide MCAS scores gave Randolph low marks in a 28-page report. The Office of Educational Quality and Accountability deemed Randolph a low-performing district with moderate scores in English language arts and low scores in math. District management earned a rating of poor, with the district receiving its lowest marks in leadership and governance. "The district suffers from recurrent staff turnover, and it lacks a comprehensive curriculum, stable student enrollment, community support, and a formal structure for formative and summative assessment," the agency declared. On a positive note, the agency's review team reported district leaders are working to improve student achievement with math and English language arts task forces. The report is available at www.randolph.k12.ma.us. - David Connolly

LAWSUIT CONTINUES - Town lawyers are seeking the dismissal of a court complaint filed by a mobile home park owner seeking more than $120,000 in lost rent revenue. A hearing has been scheduled for next month. Hometown America, which owns the two mobile home parks in Rockland, filed a suit in the summer alleging the rent control board failed to hold hearings on the company's proposals to raise rents, resulting in the loss of revenue. Town officials were named in the suit after the board said it couldn't hold hearings because it lacked funding. Two weeks ago, town voters agreed to fund the board $15,300 in order to hold hearings. But Hometown America is proceeding with its suit, saying it lost $120,000 in revenue because of the delay. - Milton Valencia

HUMAROCK ZONING HEARING NEARS - The Planning Board is holding a public hearing on proposed zoning changes for the Humarock business district. The hearing is scheduled for Jan. 10 at 7 at in the Library/Media Room at Gates Intermediate School, 327 First Parish Road. One of the changes would allow limited density condominium or multifamily developments in an area that includes part of the business and residential zoning districts in Humarock. The second change would rezone oceanfront and other parcels from business to residential. The proposed changes will be considered by the March 29 annual Town Meeting. - John Laidler

COSTLY STORMS PRESSURE SNOW BUDGET - This month's snowfall is emptying the town's snow removal budget. "We've had more snow this year than we had all of last year," said Robert O'Connor, director of the Weymouth Department of Public Works. The town appropriated $240,000 for snow removal this winter and O'Connor said he's spent almost $200,000.

- Johanna Seltz