Officials scooting around?

The City Council last week voted 7-3, with one absent, to have City Manager Jay Ash look into the possibility of purchasing Segway scooters for city departments required to visit various locations throughout the city. Council president Stanley Troisi said he voted against the purchase because he doesn't think the Segway offers any more protection to city workers than a bike. The Segway is used by security personnel at shopping malls and by some police departments, including Everett. - Katheleen Conti

BUDGET DIRECTOR HIRED - Mayor Carlo DeMaria has hired Clayton Carlisle to be the city's new budget director. Carlisle recently resigned as town manager in Southbridge. Erin Deveney, DeMaria's chief of staff, said the mayor interviewed three other candidates for the position but Carlisle, with some 25 years of municipal experience in several communities, including Southbridge, Chelsea, and Watertown, was most qualified. Of local Southbridge press reports that Carlisle was suspended for a week without pay in late December after the Town Council voted him guilty of "insubordination of his duties," Deveney said the mayor was "satisfied that Clayton's actions were based on his best professional and ethical judgments, and he was satisfied with the explanations furnished." - Kay Lazar

STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS - Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. will deliver his annual State of the City address to the Lynn Area Chamber of Commerce at 7:30 a.m. April 17 at the Porthole Restaurant. Clancy is expected to touch on development activity in Lynn, the city's finances, and various projects, including the ongoing construction of Manning Field. He will also provide an update on the status of the longstanding effort to relocate power lines along the Lynnway, a project initiated to open up that area to development. For tickets, call the chamber at 781-592-2900. - John Laidler

DOODLEBOPS RETURNING - The Doodlebops, the popular musical trio that stars in its own television show on the Disney Channel, will return to Lynn Memorial Auditorium next month. Last spring, the group, which features an interactive performance style, drew some 4,000 children and parents in two concerts held at the auditorium, an entertainment space at City Hall. The group is performing two shows at the auditorium April 13, at 1 and 4 p.m. Tickets are $20 to $56. Go to lynnauditorium.com. - John Laidler

PAY CITY BILLS ONLINE - Officials recently made it easier for residents to give the city money: Excise and property taxes and water-sewer bills can now be paid online. Residents can sign up for the service on the city's website, and can get more information by e-mailing the treasurer's office at treasurer@cityofmalden.org or by calling 781-397-7090. - Erin Ailworth

FIREFIGHTERS SETTLE IN RECORD TIME - For the first time in more than 25 years, the city and Melrose Firefighters Local 1617 have concluded contract negotiations before the existing contract has expired or nearly expired. "This is the first time in at least two decades that things have gone so smoothly," Mayor Robert Dolan said in a news release. "Neither side gave in on their core beliefs," he added. The new contract provides for: a 2 percent raise every year for the three years of the contract; incentives for firefighters to continue their education in fire science; a salary increase for firefighters who earn their masters' degree; a requirement that all firefighters be certified EMTs; an incentive for perfect attendance; and a reduction in the number of firefighters who can take vacations simultaneously, to reduce overtime pay expenses. "This is the first performance-based contract," Fire Chief John O'Brien said in a news release. - Kay Lazar

MAYOR GETS CAPITAL REQUESTS - The City Council Monday approved a loan of $1.55 million for the purchase of Fire Department vehicles and $1.6 million for computer equipment. Mayor Thomas G. Ambrosino made the requests, which will fund two pumps and a ladder truck for the Fire Department. City Hall will be switching computer server platforms to improve the methods by which data is retrieved and to support an ongoing citywide mapping program, according to George Anzuoni, director of finance. -Katheleen Conti

RINK SUBLEASE DELAYED - Town officials have extended by nearly a month the deadline to submit bids for subleasing the Kasabuski Arena. The deadline, originally last Wednesday, is now April 22, according to Town Manager Andrew Bisignani. The town, which operates the ice rink under a lease with the state, wants to sublease to a private operator to address financial problems at the rink, which has a $650,000 deficit. The operator would assume the costs of eliminating the deficit and invest the money needed to overhaul the 48-year-old facility. A Special Town Meeting in January authorized the town to file legislation allowing Saugus to sublease the arena for 20 years. The measure, which Bisignani expects will be filed by the town's legislative delegation in the next week, would also extend Saugus's lease with the state by another 10 years following its current expiration in 10 years. Bisignani said the extended deadline gives more time for prospective bidders and for the legislation to be processed. According to Bisignani, the town has received "a very positive response" to its request for bids, noting that there are at least four qualified parties interested. The town held a walk-through last Monday. -John Laidler

LIBRARY CELEBRATES GROWTH - The Lucius Beebe Memorial Library has planned a two-day celebration on April 12-13 to mark the 10th anniversary of its building renovation. A fund-raising party at the library from 7 to 11 p.m. April 12, sponsored by the library in conjunction with the Wakefield Chamber of Commerce and Friends of Beebe Library, will feature music, dancing, a flower show, wine and beer tasting, and a silent auction. Tickets for the event are $25 with 60 percent of the proceeds to benefit the library's book fund and the remaining 40 percent to be used for the chamber's civic projects. The following day, from 1 to 5 p.m., an afternoon of family events will include flower show exhibits, a paper flower-making program, and a family scavenger hunt. Tickets are not required. Go to wakefieldlibrary.org, or call 781-246-6334. - John Laidler

SCHOOL FINANCIAL RELIEF VOTE - The Town Council is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a request from Town Manager Richard White to transfer $225,000 from free cash reserves to help cover a deficit in the School Department's budget. As a result of unrealized retirements, decreased school lunch program participation, and special education expenses, the department projected a deficit of $448,022. The council's Finance Committee and the Citizen's Advisory Finance Committee have voted in favor of recommending the transfer to the Town Council, said council president Thomas E. Reilly. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at Town Hall. - Katheleen Conti

PROGRESS TOWARD NEW FACILITY - Roy Nagy, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club, reports that $1.34 million has been raised toward a $4 million building renovation on Campbell Road. he gym was framed this month and cement for the flooring poured. The new athletic facility will have six baskets and a regulation volleyball court. Once completed later this year, the building will total 24,000 square feet. - Joyce Pellino Crane

WIND TURBINE PROPOSED - The City Council Tuesday will discuss a request from a Gloucester resident for a special permit to construct a 180-foot-high wind turbine. Mac Bellwants to build a 250-kilowatt turbine to generate electricity for commercial use at 33 Emerson Ave. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. at City Hall. - Steven Rosenberg

GRAFFITI A GROWING CONCERN - City officials are trying to scrub the city of graffiti and prevent its spread. At its meeting last week, the City Council passed a resolution from Breanna Lungo-Koehn, council vice president, seeking cleanup help from the Middlesex sheriff's office as well as a report from the city's Police Department, in response to constituent requests. "I don't think we're dealing with any issues that other cities and towns are not dealing with, but we want to take the proactive step and get rid of it as soon as possible," said Councilor Paul Camuso, adding that he had spoken already with Mayor Michael J. McGlynn, who plans to seek assistance from Sheriff James V. DiPaola and the inmate community-work program. - Eric Moskowitz

RECALLING BLIZZARD OF '78 - The Nahant Historical Society will offer an illustrated presentation entitled "Nahant and the Great Blizzard of 1978," at 1 p.m. next Sunday at the Nahant Community Center. The presentation will focus on how the town and residents coped with and recovered from the storm. Donations are accepted. For more information, call 781-581-2727 - David Rattigan

MASCONOMET TEAMS QUALIFY FOR STATE FAIR - Three student teams from Masconomet Regional High School placed in the top 40 in the Massachusetts Regional IV Science Fair, held recently at Somerville High School. Students whose projects place in the top 40 at each of the state's six regional fairs qualify for the Massachusetts State Science Fair May 1-3 at MIT. The Somerville event featured 150 projects entered by 20 schools. Included were nine projects by 13 Masconomet students that were selected by teachers, according to Larry Lowe, the school's science fair coordinator. The Masconomet teams placing in the top 40 were Andrew Li and Claire Chan, for a project on fluid dynamics; Kenneth Vogel and Peter Orfanos, for a project on bacterial growth in milk; and Hannah Bergh and Kathryn Gikas, for their project on bacterial growth in eggs. Molly Cannon earned an honorable mention for her project on the quality of bottled water. Each school is allowed to send an individual and a team to the state fair on top of those who qualify at the regionals. Masconomet is sending Nick Bettencourt and Michael Gannon, for a project on DNA fingerprinting, and Caroline Gallagher for her project on solar panels. - John Laidler

CITY RECEIVES AWARD - Woburn recently received the 2008 E-Government Award from Common Cause Massachusetts, along with 89 other cities and towns out of 351. All have been honored for open government on the Internet. Common Cause, a nonprofit government watchdog group, reviewed the websites of every municipality in Massachusetts and bestowed the E-Government Award to those that met minimum standards for regularly posting the following records on their websites: Board of Selectmen or City Council agendas, their meeting minutes, the current fiscal year budget, the municipal bylaws, and, if applicable, the warrant and the minutes for town meetings. - Eric Moskowitz