Walk for heat

More than 150 walkers flocked to Doherty Middle School on Nov. 2 to raise money to help some of the neediest families in the Merrimack Valley. In all, the "Move Your Feet to Turn on the Heat" walkathon raised more than $4,000, to be used to help area residents pay their heating bills this winter. The event was sponsored by the social action committee at Temple Emanuel. Project Home Again, a nonprofit established by the temple to provide those in need with household items that they could not otherwise afford, oversees the heating assistance program. To learn more, or to make a donation to the heating fund, visit www.projecthomeagain.us or contact Nancy Kanell at 978-470-1356.

- Brenda J. Buote

A WINNING BOOK - Chelmsford voters on Nov. 4 selected a new book to read collectively after the new year. "Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace," by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, will be the 2009 Community Read, beginning Feb. 6 when the library holds its annual WinterFest. Book discussions begin this spring. The book recounts Mortenson's connection to a remote Pakistani village and his subsequent philanthropic efforts to build a school there. Residents voted online for the book on the same day the nation elected a president.

- Joyce Pellino Crane

HOUSING GRANT - The state's Department of Housing and Community Development recently awarded the Dracut Housing Authority close to $3 million for renovations and improvements at the Louisburg Square property at 1476 Mammoth Road. Two years ago, Dracut residents approved a deal bringing 38 new senior citizen housing units into town. Most of the awarded money will go toward construction, while the rest will be for design and development. The Community Preservation Committee will provide additional funding from their housing account, with the remainder coming from the town's general funds. The units will be part of the town's allotted affordable housing. Construction is slated to begin next summer. - Rocco Colella

BOOK SALE - The Dunstable Free Public Library is holding a holiday book sale to raise money. The sale runs from Nov. 28 to Dec. 20 during the library's regular hours and will sell adult and children's books in like-new condition, according to the town website. The maximum price for one book is $4.

- Matt Gunderson

DEVELOPMENT PLANS PUT OFF - Capstone Properties of Burlington is holding off on a development on Station Avenue because of the real estate slump, said David Hamilton, the company's development principal. While the company may float its condominium and office space plans next year, the bottom of the market is hard to predict, said Hamilton. For now, the market for condominiums is not strong, and the company may back off on building condos at the site, he said. "We'd like to think there is a market out there," said Hamilton. "I can't say I've got a ton of buyers banging on my door." - Matt Gunderson

THANKSGIVING EVENTS - In the spirit of Thanksgiving, the Lazarus House Ministries is hosting a number of events to help those in need in the greater Lawrence area, said Lisa McEvoy, director of communications and special events for the Lazarus House. While the need for assistance has increased this year, fewer people are able to donate, she said. On Nov. 21, the Lazarus House is hosting Sharing our Bounty, an annual dinner and silent auction at the Wyndham Andover; on Nov. 26 will distribute hundreds of Thanksgiving dinners to people in the Merrimack Valley; and on Thanksgiving it will serve dinner, McEvoy said. For more information on the auction, call 781-356-6616. To donate food, contact the food pantry coordinator at 978-269-5208. To help deliver food on Nov. 26, show up at Central Catholic High School on Hampshire Street from 6 to 9 p.m.; and to help with the dinner, arrive at St. Joseph Community Plains Center on Hampshire Street at noon.

- Kate Augusto

ENERGY REDUCTION COMPETITION - The city is holding a competition for residents and developers to come up with plans for an energy efficient home. In partnership with National Grid, Advanced Building Analysis, the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, and the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, the city is launching the "Getting to Zero Energy Challenge." Competitors will develop a strategy to implement energy efficiency and renewable energy sources into existing residential buildings that will come closest to a net zero energy building. Two proposals that show the deepest energy reductions for existing residential buildings with one to four units will receive a $25,000 award to help execute the plan. One award will go to an applicant who is classified as low or medium income and the second will be unrestricted by household income limits. Competition winners will serve as a model for developers and homeowners seeking ways to reduce their energy needs. The goal is to transform the houses of Lowell into ones with no fuel or electric bills. For more information go to gettingtozero.lowellma.gov.

- Jennifer Fenn Lefferts

SAVINGS ACCOUNTS - Earlier this month, Mayor William M. Manzi III sponsored an Electronics Recycling Event at the city's transfer station - one in a series of initiatives to promote renewable energy. Manzi has entered the city in the US Environmental Protection Agency's Community Energy Challenge, committing to lower the city's energy consumption by 10 percent by the end of his tenure. Late last month, his office announced the installation of its first solar-powered lighting system to illuminate the flagpole and memorial to Army veteran Arthur M. Hilgendorf at the Raymond J. Martin Park on Riverside Drive. The lighting system was paid for by a grant from the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Earlier this year, Manzi distributed cloth shopping bags at his annual city cleanup event.

- Connie Paige

PLANS FOR MENORAH ON COMMON - This holiday season will bring a menorah to the North Andover Town Common. The Chabad-Lubavitch Jewish Center for Merrimack Valley will install the menorah on Dec. 18 or 19 for the Hanukkah lighting ceremony on Dec. 22. Hanukkah runs from Dec. 21-28, but Chabad-Lubavitch plans to leave the menorah up through the new year, as the Board of Selectmen has requested. The Jewish center has put up a menorah briefly in the past but last year construction on the Town Common prevented it. Hanukkah - the Festival of Lights - celebrates an ancient victory of the Jewish nation over its oppressors.

- Brad Kane

POLICE PRESENCE AT SCHOOL - Pepperell police officers are regularly taking walks through the Nissitissit Middle School this fall, in what Principal Michael Tikonoff calls a "familiarization program." Tikonoff wrote in a recent newsletter that he coordinated the weekly 20 minute police visits as a way to forge a connection between law enforcement and the school community, which could help in future emergencies. - Matt Gunderson

FUND-RAISER FOR VET TECHNICIAN - The Shawsheen Animal Hospital is scheduled on Nov. 22 to host a benefit to raise money for a veterinary technician who has been diagnosed with lymphoma. The money will help offset the cost of medical care for Kelly Burns, 26, a 2002 graduate of the University of New Hampshire who has worked at the animal hospital since July 2005. The benefit will be held from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Veterans of Foreign Wars function hall at 87 Vernon St. in Tewksbury. Use of the hall was donated for the event. Several businesses in Tewksbury and surrounding communities have made donations of food for the benefit, and goods that will be raffled. Tickets are $15 and may be purchased at Shawsheen Animal Hospital, 1415 Main St., or the Barkery, 1300 Main St. Donations may also be made. Checks made payable to the Kelly Burns Medical Fund may be dropped off at any Bank of America branch or at the animal hospital. For more information, call 978-851-5558. -Brenda J. Buote

SCHOOL BOARD SEAT TO BE FILLED - School Committee members will meet with selectmen tomorrow at 6 p.m. at Town Hall to fill the seat vacated last month by William Downing. The committee's seventh member will be appointed from a pool of three candidates, according to School Committee Chairman Jeff Hunt. The long-tenured Downing resigned for personal reasons, according to the Oct. 7 minutes posted at www.tyngsboroughps.org.

- Joyce Pellino Crane

CONSERVATIVE BUDGETS REQUESTED - The rising costs of utilities, pensions, and health care premiums are outpacing income from local receipts, according to Town Manager Jodi Ross. In addition, the state is facing its own fiscal challenges and is likely to cut aid to cities and towns, she added in an online newsletter. As the budget planning process revs up this month, Ross said she is asking department heads, boards, and committees to submit fiscally conservative budgets for the year that begins July 1. The town holds cash reserves of $4.7 million as of Oct. 15, which can be used to supplement a future deficit, if necessary. But Ross cautioned that budget projections are flat for the next several years, making it unlikely that nonrecurring revenues could be replenished. The current fiscal year's operating budget is $83.9 million. - Joyce Pellino Crane

EMERGENCY RULE CLARIFIED - New Hampshire residents who refuse to leave their homes during a flood can be criminally charged, according to a recent N.H. Supreme Court decision. Under state law, fire officials have the authority to order a person to leave a building or place during an emergency. The argument before the court was whether a flood constitutes an emergency, according to the court's opinion issued Nov. 6. The justices determined that flooding by definition, was an emergency. So a person refusing to leave a residence or building during a flood could be charged with disobeying an officer. Justices also pointed out that under state law, a police officer can not order a person to leave his or her residence during an emergency. - Melanie Plenda

TOWN OFFICIALS REMAIN MUM - Residents still don't know why the town's treasurer and deputy treasurer abruptly resigned their posts last month, since the two decided against speaking at a public forum they requested. Treasurer Joe Stapleton and Deputy Treasurer Bruce Sanderson asked to be allowed to speak at a board meeting, and were given permission to speak by the Litchfield Board of Selectmen. However, Nov. 10, the day of the scheduled meeting, the two men decided against speaking, and did not answer requests for comment as to the reasons. - Melanie Plenda

POLICE DETAIL COMPENSATION INCREASED - Police will get an extra $5 per hour to idle, according to a recent decision by the town's Board of Selectmen. By a unanimous vote, the board raised the amount police are paid from $10 per hour to $15 when they are hired out to stand by or direct traffic during, for example, a road construction detail. Police Chief Michael Milligan explained to the board that these details brought in $19,400 in revenue for the town last year, but that this year's budget would include a significant funding increase for fuel costs, according to selectmen's' minutes. During a detail, police cars are left running at the scene, using up fuel. Town Manager Keith Hickey told selectmen that due to the rise in fuel costs, at only $10 per hour, the town can't break even on these details. - Melanie Plenda

TECHNOLOGY UPDATES RECOMMENDED - Improvements to the school district's Applied Technology Center, could run taxpayers an extra $670,000. Members of the Regional Center Advisory Committee, which has been studying the needs of the center for the past year, recently told the Milford School Board that in order for the center to stay relevant and effective, new equipment would be needed. Joseph Stella, a member of the committee, pointed out to the board that there were already areas in the curriculum that had to be slowed down or stopped altogether for lack of adequate equipment. - Melanie Plenda

TEEN CHARGED IN SCHOOL FRACAS - What started out as "horseplay" in a pottery class at a local high school, could land a teenager in jail for up to two years, Nashua police said. The 16-year-old boy, whose name was not released because he is a juvenile, was charged with second-degree assault after allegedly pushing another student into a filing cabinet during class at Nashua High School North Nov. 6. Police Lieutenant Jeffrey Bukunt said that the two boys were roughhousing in class, when one boy pushed the other from behind into the cabinet. Because the pushed boy was seriously injured, in the mouth, the other boy is facing a felony charge in juvenile court, Bukunt said. If convicted, he could be sentenced to a juvenile detention center until his 18th birthday.

- Melanie Plenda

CHRISTMAS CHEER FOR THE TROOPS - Mahoney's Garden Center is participating in the Trees for Troops program in collaboration with Fedex and the Christmas Spirit Foundation. The program donates Christmas trees to families at more than 40 military bases worldwide, said Lauri Mahoney, marketing director. Now through Dec. 7, customers can buy balsam firs for $19.98 or $29.98 at the nursery at 242 Cambridge St. for donation to military families. Mahoney's will donate $5 for every tree purchased to help defray other costs associated with the program. For more information, visit mahoneysgarden.com or call 781-729-5900. - Bella Travaglini