Chelsea tag team

It recently took a group of 30 volunteers three hours and 20 gallons of paint to clean up neighborhood graffiti in the first Get Out, Paint Out event organized by a group of residents calling themselves the Community Enhancement Team. With the help of City Manager Jay Ash and Police Chief Brian Kyes, volunteers helped clean up 45 properties, including removing some gang tags. The event was sponsored by Chelsea Neighborhood Developers and Roca, which runs a free graffiti-removal program for property owners in Chelsea. For more information on the program, call 617-889-5210. To become a member of the Community Enhancement Team, call Ben Faust at 617-889-1375, ext. 11. - Katheleen Conti

A NIGHT TO FIGHT CRIME - City residents are invited to participate in a communitywide crime and drug prevention event. Everett is holding its annual National Night Out celebration Tuesday, from 6 to 9 p.m., at the Recreation Center, on Elm Street. Now in its 25th year, National Night Out is an annual anticrime and drug campaign sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch that features organized activities on a designated night in communities across the United States and Canada. Organized by the Police Department, with funding from Target, this year's event in Everett will include police K-9 and self-defense demonstrations, coloring contests for children, music, food, and free items. Families will also have a chance to have identification kits, including fingerprints, created for their children. For more information, call police Sergeant Larry Jedrey at 617-394-2356. - John Laidler

HOME IMPROVEMENT - City officials are reminding residents about the availability of a home improvement program that provides interest-free loans that income-eligible residents can use to weatherize their homes, bring them up to code, or both. Funding comes through the federal HOME grant program. The loans are available on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, contact the city's housing coordinator, Curtis Withers, at 617-394-2313.

- John Laidler

COMMUNITY GARDEN DEDICATION - Community leaders tomorrow will dedicate The Robert L. Ford School Community Garden during a 10 a.m. ceremony at the school on Hollingsworth Street. The 1,500-square-foot garden was built using environmentally friendly building materials, such as nontoxic compost and recycled wood. The Highlands Neighborhood Coalition planned the garden, which will grow vegetables from foreign lands, including Asia and Latin America. Local residents will plant the crops, along with help from Ford School students. They'll help plant and take care of the crops, as they learn about agriculture and nutrition. Students from Lynn Vocational Technical Institute and local carpenters volunteered to build the garden. State and federal grant money, along with donations from private businesses, paid for the project. - Kathy McCabe

BREAKING PAR - In just its first two months of operation as a town-run facility, the King Rail Reserve Golf Course generated more than the $150,000 in revenues town officials had projected for the entire season, according to Town Administrator William J. Gustus. "It's been a great success," he said, noting the revenue figures through mid-July. "The word has gotten out, it's a good track, and people are coming to play." Formerly the Sheraton Colonial Golf Course, it is being run by the town this year under an agreement with National Development, the firm that plans to build a village-style development on 68 acres of the golf course site. Next year, the town plans to reconfigure a portion of the existing front nine holes into a new nine-hole municipal course that will open in 2010. - John Laidler

MEETINGS ON TRASH SYSTEM - City officials have scheduled two informational meetings regarding the city's Pay-As-You-Throw program, which will go into effect on Oct. 6. The first meeting is scheduled to take place Wednesday at the Salemwood School cafeteria, 529 Salem St.; the second is slated for Aug. 27 at the Beebe School cafeteria, 403 Pleasant St. Both meetings will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Under the program, all household trash must be disposed of in special light blue city of Malden trash bags. The 33-gallon bags will cost $2 each and, beginning in early September, will be sold in boxes of 10 at several local stores, the Malden Department of Public Works at 356 Commercial St., and certain Malden Government Center offices at 200 Pleasant St. The program is expected to generate $2.5 million in revenue this fiscal year, and save the city an additional $400,000 in disposal charges as residents increase their recycling efforts. Under the program, recyclables and yard waste will continue to be collected at no additional cost. For more information about the program, call 781-397-7186 or e-mail mail@cityofmalden.org.

- Brenda J. Buote

CLARK OPENS OFFICE - Democratic state Representative Katherine M. Clark of Melrose recently opened her district office at 416 Main St. The office will be staffed Tuesdays and Thursdays through out the summer from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., and by appointment. Clark, a lawyer who served on the Melrose School Committee, as general counsel for the Massachusetts Office of Child Care Services, and in Martha Coakley's attorney general's office prior to being elected in March to replace former Michael Festa, encourages her constituents to stop by the office to discuss any issues. To schedule an appointment, call 617-722-2400 or e-mail Rep.KatherineClark@Hou.State.MA.US. - Brenda J. Buote

GRANT ADVANCES ARTS CENTER EFFORT - An effort to turn the old Marleah E. Graves Elementary School into a community arts center got a hand from the Essex National Heritage Commission. A $4,000 grant from the Salem-based nonprofit has been used to restore the front and back doors. The red-brick building, which opened in 1894, was built in Romanesque Revival-style architecture. It was originally called Cliftondale School, and was later renamed for a beloved former teacher. The M.E.G. Foundation, a private nonprofit, is raising money to renovate the school. Saugus Historical Commission, the Saugus Business Partnership and the Theatre Company of Saugus are working with the foundation on the project. - Kathy McCabe

PARR TO WORK FOR FEMA - The official date is Sept. 5, but Fire Chief David Parr is getting a quick start with the next chapter of his life. Parr, who is using accrued vacation time from last Friday through his retirement date, is set to begin work tomorrow as regional fire program specialist for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Region One office in Boston. It was the FEMA job opportunity that prompted Parr, 52, to retire this year rather than in 2010, as he had initially planned. "It was really an opportunity I couldn't pass up," he said. "It's a very interesting job. It presents me with some new challenges. I'll continue to work with fire departments, helping them get grants and if they do get them, helping them manage them." Still, he said his retirement in Wakefield brought mixed emotions. "I love my job. I've been involved with the Wakefield Fire Department since I was kid," he said, recalling how he used to hang around the fire station at age 10 or 11 when his brother was a call firefighter. Hired as an auxiliary firefighter at age 16 in 1972, Parr became a call firefighter in 1977 and a permanent firefighter in 1978. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1983, captain in 1986, and chief in 1993. "I feel honored and privileged to have been able to serve the town of Wakefield's fire department for 30 plus years," said Parr, a lifelong Wakefield resident. "The town has been very good to me, and good to the Fire Department." - John Laidler

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT - Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop will be taking part in the 25th annual National Night Out Tuesday. The event is sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch and focuses on crime and drug prevention awareness. Residents, public safety officials, civic groups, government officials, and businesses throughout the United States and Canada participate in the National Night Out campaign. In Chelsea, the festivities will take place at Washington Park from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. In Revere, festivities will include food, rides, music, and a movie at Curtis Park at the Garfield Magnet School from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Winthrop's festivities will include food, a police K-9 demonstration, child fingerprinting, a vehicle parade, and fireworks from 4 to 9 p.m. at the Winthrop Police Station, 3 Metcalf Square.

- Katheleen Conti

GROUP HOME TO REOPEN - A Coming Home Ceremony will be held on Tuesday at a group home at 2 Bates St. in Danversport that was destroyed in the chemical explosion in November 2006 at a nearby factory. Triangle Inc., a nonprofit agency based in Malden, operates the home for mentally disabled men. The clapboard home has been completely renovated, with new walls and ceilings. New furniture and furnishings were donated by local businesses. The project was estimated at $150,000, much of which was covered by private insurance. State and local officials are expected at the ceremony, scheduled for 11 a.m. - Kathy McCabe

FALL CRAFT FAIR - The Bagnall School Parent Teachers Association is seeking crafters for a fall fair scheduled for Nov. 1. The PTA held a spring craft fair in May 2007 that raised approximately $3,000, and hopes to match that figure this year, according to Robin McIntosh, an association vice president. Space rental is $40 for the fair, which will be held at the school. For information or to rent space, call 978-372-8856, ext. 368, or e-mail bagnallptaonline@comcast.net. - David Rattigan

OBJECTION TO USE OF CPA FUNDS - The City Council's Budget and Finance Committee has rejected a recommendation by the Community Preservation Committee to spend $35,000 in Community Preservation Act funds on a master plan for the Kelley School, which now sits empty on High Street. The Budget and Finance Committee questioned whether preservation funds should be used to develop a plan for the school, since the building is owned by the city. "If the school were owned by a nonprofit, and the nonprofit were going to renovate it, then the use of CPA funds would be appropriate," said Ed Cameron, a Ward 4 councilor and a member of the budget and finance committee. "But since the school is owned by the city, we thought the master plan for the building should be paid for out of the general fund." Under the Community Preservation Act, Newburyport adds a 2 percent surcharge to property tax bills and spends the funding on open space, affordable housing, and historic resources. The City Council is likely to take action on the funding requests at its Aug. 11 meeting.

- Brenda J. Buote

FEEDING FRENZY - Residents have a new low-cost way to sample the fare at some of Peabody's downtown restaurants. As part of the 25th anniversary of the International Festival, the city is holding its first Restaurant Week. From Sept. 7-11, residents can enjoy a three-course meal at any participating restaurant for $15 per person. The event, which the city hopes will become an annual affair, is being organized by the International Festival Committee with the help of the Peabody Chamber of Commerce. For more information, contact city grant manager Julie Rydzewski at 978-538-5772 or go to peabodyrestaurantweek.blogspot.com. The International Festival is Sept. 14. - John Laidler

FREE CONCERTS - Several area musicians will perform next weekend at free concerts at the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival. The concert schedule includes Manami Morita on Saturday from 5 to 7 p.m. at Derby Square; the Nat Simpkins Band featuring Henri Smith, at Derby Square Aug. 10, 1 to 3 p.m.; and Boston Horns with Barrence Whitfield, at the Museum Place Mall fountain, Aug. 10, 2 to 4 p.m. Visit salemjazzsoul.com. - Steven Rosenberg