Student art at Ashland library

OPENINGS ON YOUTH PANEL - The Bellingham Public Library is seeking local middle- and high-school students to serve on its Young Adult Advisory Board. The board recommends books, movies, CDs, and other materials to be purchased for the library’s young adult collection, writes reviews of favorite books, helps organize young adult programs, and builds up the library’s online presence. To apply, visit the library’s information desk or its website, www.bellinghamlibrary.org, and attend a board meeting. The next meeting is tomorrow, 4:30-6 p.m., in the library’s community room. - Rachel Lebeaux

ARTIST OF THE MONTH - Natick artist Holly Lombardo is being featured this month at the Dover Town Library. Lombardo’s works feature acrylic paintings of trees, snow, and flowers, with a focus on lighting and shadows. Lombardo, a Maine native who previously worked as a chemist, now teaches math and science at a local Montessori school. For more information, visit the artist’s website at www.paintedpaperbyholly.blogspot.com. Each month, a different local artist’s work is displayed in the library, sponsored by the Friends of the Dover Library. Pieces are available for purchase and 10 percent of all sales go to the library. - Anna Fiorentino

SLOW MARKET FOR BULLARD HOUSE - The Isaac Bullard House, a National Register of Historic Places property that dates to 1710, has been on the market for almost six months, and has the rapt attention of the Holliston Historical Commission. Chairwoman Judy Grosjean said her committee has been monitoring the house’s situation closely to ensure that such an essential piece of the town’s history is preserved, and the committee has offered its historical and resource coordination expertise to the house’s realtor and potential buyers. Grosjean said the house is from American architecture’s “First Period,’’ from 1625 to 1725, which spanned the arrival of the first European settlers up to the beginning of the American Georgian period. The Bullard house is one of only a few buildings in the country to feature English wind bracing, a technique that reinforces the roof with two additional beams. The four-room, two-bathroom house on Ashland Street, listed at $239,000, needs significant renovation. - Megan McKee

GOOD SCOUT AWARDS - Project Just Because director CherylAnn Walsh Lambert and town volunteer David Stoldt were honored at the biannual Hopkinton Good Scout Awards dinner for their involvement in the community. Walsh Lambert started Project Just Because in 1998, and since then the organization has grown to serve more than 10,000 people annually through 18 programs, including career counseling, family support services, and assistance for victims of domestic abuse. Stoldt has served on many town panels, including the School Committee, Athletic Association, and Land Use Study Committee. “My heart has been so caught up in all these special children,’’ Walsh Lambert said in accepting her award. She said she was amazed by the amount of hard work and dedication the Boy Scouts put into helping the community, and was proud to be among them for the evening. The June 24 event also served as a fund-raiser to help local youths attend weeklong Boy Scout camps this summer. - Megan McKee

LOCALS ABOARD TALL SHIP - When the US Coast Guard tall ship Eagle arrives at the Charlestown Navy Yard on Wednesday as part of the Sail Boston festival, a pair of cadets from Medfield will be on deck. Matt Malacaria, 21, is a cadet first-class in the Coast Guard, and has been aboard the Eagle since May 9, when the training vessel set sail from Spain. He is accompanied by cadet third-class Cory Pray, 20. On the leg of the Eagle’s journey from Bermuda to Charleston, S.C., Malacaria said, he was in charge of giving commands to the helmsman during a tricky change of course into the wind. “I got to call out the commands to all the guys on the lines,’’ Malacaria said from Charleston, shortly before getting underway to Boston on Monday. The voyage is Malacaria’s first aboard the 295-foot vessel. Malacaria said he would be on duty, giving tours of the Eagle, on July 9, but will also have a chance to spend some time at home with his family. “I’m looking forward to a bed big enough to roll over in,’’ said Malacaria. “And not sharing a room with 14 other guys.’’ - James O’Brien

APPLY FOR NEW HABITAT HOUSE - The South Shore Habitat for Humanity and its Tri-Valley Local Partnership Committee are building a single-family house at 9 Walker St., with construction slated to start in the fall. Households interested in obtaining an application to live in the completed house are invited to attend a meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday at the Medway Community Church, 193 Main St. Child care will be provided. Additional meetings will be held Saturday, at 10 a.m. at the United Church of Christ in Medfield, and 1 p.m. at the Church of Christ in Millis. For more information, visit www.townofmedway.org. - Rachel Lebeaux

TRAIL FRIENDS SEEK MEMBERS - As plans for the second phase of the Upper Charles Trail continue to unfold, the Friends of the Milford Upper Charles Trail are looking for new members. Members help with developing and executing plans for the state-funded 20-mile trail, slated to run through Milford and surrounding communities. The project began after a 1997 Metropolitan Area Planning Council study outlined the communities’ need for the recreational trail. The next phase will cover a 4.7-mile section that will pass through the downtown area and connect to neighboring trails in Milford and Sherborn. Membership costs $10; benefits include a discount card, e-mail updates, and the chance to weigh in on plans for the trail. Meetings are held on the first Tuesday of each the month. For more information, call the town’s Parks & Recreation Department at 508-478-1110, ext. 2650, or e-mail mlfrdtrl@yahoo.com.

CENTENNIAL PLACE TO GROW - Though the brand-new Centennial Place on Main Street isn’t quite full after being open for several months, owner John Kazis is mapping out his next move. In about a month, the blue building next door that used to house his business, Quality Cleaners, is set to be torn down to make way for a second Centennial Place building that will be the mirror image of the first, Kazis said. The timing of construction is based on when his first building nears full occupancy. Early next month, a new hair salon will open next to his relocated cleaning business, he said. Of the four offices on the second floor, one is occupied, but three of the four third-floor luxury condos have sold for about $250,000 each. Kazis has owned Quality Cleaners since 1996.

SECURING LIBRARY’S FUTURE - Though Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved the historic Bacon Free Library’s $116,000 operating budget for the new fiscal year, trustees are undertaking a new fund-raising effort to secure more private funding for the public library as a buffer against future uncertainty. Board chairman Steven Wilson said that the library, which was established with a trust by Oliver Bacon in 1881, gets all of its money for capital expenses - about $500,000 over the last 10 years - and 10 percent of its operating budget from private sources. But it’s not enough, he said, since town officials have signaled future funding could be imperiled. He said the library will be starting an outreach campaign to increase its $250,000 endowment. Wilson said he has started meeting with town officials to stress the important role the library plays in the community, pointing toward the doubling of the library’s circulation in the past four years. “It’s not as though this is something that’s withering on the vine,’’ said Wilson. The Bacon Free Library is on one of the most historically significant sites in town, as it sits on an Indian burial ground, and was at the epicenter of Natick when the town was settled by John Eliot in 1651. Town money pays for staff salaries and books, while the rest of the library’s costs are covered by donations and the endowment. - Megan McKee

COUNCIL ON AGING BARBECUE - The town Council on Aging’s annual barbecue will take place Thursday at Woodhaven Care Center, on Village Way. Food and drinks at the barbeque will be provided by the staff of the Council on Aging. Everyone is welcome; however, the council asks that those planning to attend RSVP by calling 508-651-7858. - Anna Fiorentino

SITE FOR NEW LIBRARY - The trustees of the Upton Town Library have signed a letter of intent to lease property at Maplewood Cemetery for the site of a new facility. Matthew Bachtold, the library’s director, said the trustees of both the library and the cemetery put their signatures to the agreement on May 11, and library officials are now waiting for quotes from architects in connection with the planning of a new building. “We’re looking at the north end of the property, away from the cemetery side and closer to Victoria Drive,’’ Bachtold said. The public library has been operating out of a 2,500-square-foot space in the Knowlton-Risteen Building. Bachtold said plans for a new building called for a 10,000-square-foot preengineered steel-frame structure. The cost of the project’s design phase is estimated at about $20,000, which Bachtold said could be financed through a combination of private fund-raising and state grants. Funding of construction, estimated to cost between $2 million and $3 million, would be a question for Town Meeting, said Bachtold, who added the timeframe on that process was not yet clear. - James O’Brien

SELECTWOMAN CLEARED IN TEEN PARTY - Police say after completing an investigation into teen drinking at the home of Selectwoman Annie LaCourt, they found no criminal conduct on her part. Lieutenant Robert Bongiorno said after interviewing LaCourt, the teens, the teens’ parents, and others about the June 13 incident, they did not believe LaCourt “knowingly or intentionally’’ furnished alcohol to the teens or allowed them to drink. LaCourt told police she had been home while her 17-year-old daughter held a party at their Chatham Street residence, but was not aware that teens were drinking beer. The Middlesex district attorney’s office, which was asked by police to investigate, also concluded there was no misconduct by LaCourt, said Bongiorno. In an e-mail statement, LaCourt said she was “very appreciative of the thorough investigation that the APD did. I am hoping that the publicity surrounding this incident will lead to a conversation among parents about how we can best support each other in our efforts to keep our kids sober and safe.’’ - Christina Pazzanese

WELCOMING THE TROOPS HOME - A group of 50 men and women who returned from active military deployment over the past six months received a heroes’ welcome at a homecoming ceremony at Hanscom Air Force Base. The participants included Colonel David Orr, commander of the 66th Air Base Wing; members of the New England Patriots cheerleading squad; the Patriot Guard Riders; and Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray. At the ceremony, three local organizations and two individuals were honored as Hanscom Community Heroes in recognition of their support to deployed military personnel and their families. The awards were presented to Operation Troop Support Inc. of Danvers; Helping Our Troops of Stoneham; and Operation American Soldier of Watertown, along with citizens Jean Mallon and Bill Haas.

LOOKING AT BENTON LIBRARY’S FUTURE - A committee studying the reuse of the Benton branch of the Belmont Public Library met with the Board of Selectmen last week to discuss options for the building. The branch was shut down early this year to save money. Since then, residents and town officials have looked into ways to reuse the space. Assistant Town Administrator Jeffrey Conti said the committee is interested in leasing the building for three to five years with the hope of eventually using it as a library again.

ELECTRIC BILL OVERCHARGE FOUND - Customers of Marlborough-based Colonial Power Group, which brokers the sale of electric power to city customers by aggregating residential and business users into block buying groups for lower rates, identified a price error in bills for the last two months. Group auditors on June 24 discovered residential customers had been charged 12.29 cents per kilowatt-hour for May and last month, approximately 2.6 cents over the accurate price. Business customers were similarly overcharged, by approximately 2.5 cents per kilowatt-hour. The error was the result of late reporting of a price change to power distributor National Grid by power supplier ConEdison Solutions, said Brian Murphy, president of Colonial Power Group. Sam Morgan, spokesman for ConEdison Solutions, acknowledged the mistake, and said the approximately 13,200 affected customers would receive credit for the overcharge on this month’s bill. For more information, contact Murphy at 508-485-5858.

WIDE SUPPORT FOR TAX HIKE - A proposal to raise property taxes by $647,000 through a Proposition 2 1/2 override was passed by a large margin Monday, with 2,222 residents voting in favor and 868 opposed. Without the additional funds, officials said, the town’s public library, senior center, and community center would have been closed. The tax increase was specifically tied to the operating budgets of the buildings and their programs. - Matt Gunderson

COMBATING INVASIVE PLANTS - Various invasive plants are becoming a problem in town, with the fast-growing plants beginning to overrun native species and landscaping. The town’s Conservation Commission is forming a group of volunteers to combat the invasive plants, with help needed to remove plants, survey the town for the troublesome vegetation, and educate residents about the plants, which are often imported as exotic landscaping elements and then spread into other areas. For details, call Rebecca Chizzo at 978-505-1301. - John Guilfoil

BIRDS OF PREY AT GORE PLACE - Gore Place is hosting Birds of Prey shows today at 11 a.m., and 12:30 and 2 p.m. Visitors will get a close-up look at hawks, falcons, owls, and a bald eagle from raptor demonstrator Tom Ricardi. Gore Place is at 52 Gore St., off Route 20 (Main Street). - Lisa Kocian

WATER WISE WORKSHOPS - The Organization for the Assabet River will host the first of six Water Wise workshops Wednesday at Lake Chauncy. The workshops are designed to teach children about the uses of water and the effect that humans have on watersheds, according to Sarah Edwards, the environmental organization’s education coordinator. A new workshop will be held each week, with the sessions held on Wednesdays in Westborough. The free workshops are aimed at children ages 6 to 12. To register for the program, e-mail sedwards@assabetriver.org.

CASE ESTATES MEETING - Selectmen will hold another public meeting 7 p.m. Wednesday at Town Hall to discuss the town’s planned acquisition of the Case Estates property. Last month, the board held two meetings to solicit feedback and to inform residents about the ongoing talks with Harvard University over how the school will remove contaminated soil from the 62-acre property. Officials say many residents have expressed concern over the long-term exposure to arsenic-tainted dust and soil related to the property’s agricultural uses, and whether the material would be spread across a wider area during the proposed clean-up effort. - Christina Pazzanese