Fire chief notes toll of closing station

DRIVER ARRESTED IN ROAD-RAGE CASE - A Braintree driver was arrested for allegedly waving a handgun at another driver in a road-rage incident. John M. O’Connor, 45, was arrested early Monday. The 25-year-old Braintree victim, whose name was not released, said he was driving on Route 93 when he and O’Connor exited at Washington Street. The alleged victim claimed O’Connor cut him off and they exchanged words, according to police. Both vehicles were side by side at Elm and Church streets and the alleged victim said O’Connor pointed a handgun at him out his window. The man called police, who stopped O’Connor and found a loaded Smith & Wesson 9-millimeter handgun. O’Connor, who was licensed, has been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon. - Matt Carroll

TURBINES TO BE RECONSIDERED - The wind turbines are back. Last May, the Planning Board rejected a private developer’s proposal to build two wind turbines near Route 3A. The developer, CCI Energy of Plymouth, appealed the decision, and the court has ordered the Planning Board to reconsider a revised plan, according to board administrator Jo-Ann Pilczak. “The size [of the project] is the same, the number of turbines is the same, but they’ve slightly relocated one and presented some additional mitigation for the neighborhood,” she said. The board will hold a hearing on the revised plan Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. at Town Hall, she said. - Johanna Seltz

HOLLY DAY SET NEXT SUNDAY - The Duxbury Business Association is sponsoring Holly Day, a townwide event offering free entertainment for all ages from noon until dusk next Sunday. The event will feature a puppet show at the town’s Art Complex Museum at 1:30 and 2:45 p.m. by award-winning puppeteer Wayne Martin, who manipulates over-size hand puppets and marionettes in a performance titled “Santa’s North Pole Express.” His characters include Frosty, Rudolph, Elmer Elf, Peter and Penelope Penguin, dancing candy canes, and a juggling Christmas tree. Recommended for grades kindergarten through 6, the puppet show is a staple of Boston’s First Night. Three “trolleys’’ will link the museum to other Holly Day venues in the day’s entertainment. - Robert Knox

SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO SHARE FOOD DIRECTOR - The Hingham and Cohasset school districts have hired a food-services director whose $73,000-a-year salary and other benefits will be shared by the two towns. Lynn Petrowski, who had been working for Fall River, began her tenure for the two school districts on Nov. 9. School officials cited Petrowski’s extensive experience, which includes food service director positions in Norwell and Middleborough, as well as most recently as assistant nutrition and food services director in Fall River. “She has the experience and she’s a professional,” said David Killory, business director for the Hingham Public Schools. - L.E. Crowley

NEW PANEL TO REVIEW ZONING - Holbrook Town Administrator Michael Yunits said that at the request of selectmen, he will appoint a committee by the beginning of December to review the town’s zoning. Yunits said the committee will consider ways to increase in development, possibly by adding more commercial zoning and mixed use. Committee members will also be looking at expanding uses in current zones through such means as allowing businesses in industrial areas to sell products on site, and will also examine areas that may not be zoned properly. Yunits said an emphasis will be placed on zoning in the center of town and near the commuter rail station. The committee will be composed of five people and will probably begin meeting in January, Yunits said. - Kate Augusto

PLAYGROUND REOPENS; EQUIPMENT OFF LIMITS - The playground for younger children is open again at the Lillian Jacobs Elementary School, but play equipment designated for students ages 5 to 12 is still off limits. Both playground areas were closed this year for safety reasons, said David Twombly, director of operations for the school system. He said the school originally closed the playground used by the older children after the nurse reported a number of injuries from children falling off the hand-over-hand rings. The school system hired a consultant to examine both playground areas, Twombly said. At the consultant’s direction, swings were lowered and protruding bolts replaced at the playground for younger children, and it reopened two weeks ago, Twombly said. The consultant said the other equipment met safety standards, Twombly said, but the town counsel now is researching whether it is age-appropriate. - Johanna Seltz

ATTORNEY TO ADVISE TOWN ON DEVELOPMENT - Selectmen have hired attorney Mark Bobrowski, a member of Blatman, Bobrowski & Mead, which serves as Kingston’s town counsel, as a special counsel to advise officials on the development of 1021 Kingston Place, a mixed-use and affordable-housing development to be built by the railroad station. According to Town Administrator Jill Myers, Bobrowski will negotiate on behalf of the town, coordinate issues with the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development, and monitor compliance on agreements reached between the town and Thorndike Development, the project’s developer. The attorney will be paid $7,500 from an account funded by the developer. At their meeting Tuesday, selectmen are also scheduled to consider a request by Thorndike Development for an earth-removal permit. - Robert Knox

SCOUTS IMPROVE RECREATION AREA - Local Cub Scouts have made improvements at the town Recreation Department that will benefit both birds and horseshoe aficionados. Scouts from Pack 97 recently cleared brush near a stone wall at the Recreation Department and built several bird houses, according to recreation director Ned Bangs. The Scouts also built a horseshoe pit and plan to build another one, Bangs said. The department has sets of horseshoes to lend, or people can bring their own. “It looks great. We’re ready when someone is ready to come down and play,” Bangs said. - Johanna Seltz

TWO GET CIVIL RIGHTS INJUNCTION - A Milton man and his Braintree companion have been hit with a civil rights injunction from the attorney general’s office after allegedly beating an African-American man in Milton. The order, granted by Norfolk Superior Court, prohibits Robert Clarke of Milton and Scott Bierlich of Braintree from violating the civil rights of the victim and others in the state. The victim, whose name was not released, said in the complaint he was walking down the street in July when the pair left Clarke’s porch, shouted racial epithets, and began hitting him with sticks. The victim’s cellphone was damaged, his watch was shattered, and he was cut in the head. The victim escaped after one of the pair stopped. The pair also face criminal charges from the Norfolk district attorney’s office, according to a release from that office. - Matt Carroll

LOT TO BE STUDIED FOR HOME FOR DISABLED - The Norwell Housing Authority will seek a contractor to evaluate a town-owned property on Prospect Street, where a home for developmentally disabled people could be relocated. The Norwell Affordable Housing Trust has agreed to pay the $10,000 cost for the housing authority to conduct a site evaluation of a one-acre vacant parcel on Prospect Street. Authority officials have said the town’s current eight-bedroom home for the disabled on Assinippi Avenue is old, in disrepair, and does not meet current guidelines for homes serving the disabled. The site review would be the first step in building a new house for the developmentally disabled on the vacant Prospect Street land. Officials are interested in razing the old house and building a new one on the same site. However, many questions must be answered before making a decision on the old house. - L.E. Crowley

FARMERS’ MARKET PLANNED FOR 2010 - A farmers’ market will begin operating next summer. Matt York and Christine Falk, who are brother and sister, are organizing the market with the help of several other volunteers. Recently, the group received approval from the Recreation Commission to hold the market Saturday mornings on the town green in Pembroke center. The market will begin in July and continue through early October, according to York. (The market will relocate on days when annual events that traditionally use the green are held). York said about 25 potential vendors have expressed interest in participating, from regular vegetable farms to a beekeeper and someone who grows herbs. The group continues to seek other vendors, volunteers, and feedback from the community. For more information, go to pembrokefarmersmarket.org or contact York at 781-953-6177. - John Laidler

CELEBRATIONS, EXHIBITS ON TAP THIS WEEK - The 14th Annual America’s Hometown Thanksgiving Celebration kicked off this weekend and will continue today along the Plymouth waterfront, where there will be food, arts, crafts, and more. For a complete schedule, visit www.usathanksgiving.com. The Federation of Old Plimoth Indian Tribes will have Wampanoag history exhibits and native arts and crafts on display at Plymouth State Memorial Park Wednesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (and yes, they’ll be there Thanksgiving Day). On Thursday, too, the Friends of Pilgrim Progress will march through town in period costumes, starting at 10 a.m. from North Street. And the staff at Plimoth Plantation expect to be busy serving more than 5,000 turkey dinners to visitors. The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, and on Thursday there will be a $17.99 courtyard buffet from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., “or until we run out, which happened two years ago,’’ said spokeswoman Jennifer Monac, in an e-mail. “We strive not to, but you just never know.’’ For more details, visit www.plimoth.org. - Emily Sweeney

HOLIDAY SHOW ON DEC. 8 - The Quincy Symphony Orchestra and the Combined High School Choral Group will perform holiday favorites on Tuesday, Dec. 8. The show - “ ’Tis the Season . . . Symphony & Song!’’ - will be at the Boston Marriott Quincy. There will be a sing-along. The orchestra has 65 members and the choral group has about 100. Tickets are $25 and will benefit Quincy Public School music programs. The goal is to raise $10,000. Call Keith Segalla at the high school 617-984-8731 for more information and tickets. - Matt Carroll

FIREFIGHTERS TO BE HONORED - Eight Randolph firefighters will receive a group award at the state’s Firefighter of the Year ceremony Dec. 3 in Worcester. Deputy Chief Daniel Kreckler, Lieutenant Thomas LaBelle, Captain Paul Lyon, and firefighters William Brewer, Kevin Donovan, Richard Potter, Joseph Messia, and Michael McCarthy will be honored for their actions during a three-alarm fire last year. Mikelange St. Paul, 41, is accused of starting the Nov. 24, 2008, fire at his Reed Street apartment building. Police reports say St. Paul believed his girlfriend was cheating on him, and set fire to their apartment in an attempt to kill her, her 3-year-old son, and himself. St. Paul, who was burned over 85 percent of his body, has pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with the fire. Firefighters rescued at least seven people from the 16-unit, three-story building. Chief Charles D. Foley Jr. nominated the firefighters for the award. “I am extremely proud of the men and women who serve the Randolph Department and their heroic acts in rescuing and treating these victims,’’ said Foley in a statement. - Wendy Chow

WIND TURBINE GETS OK - Selectmen have unanimously approved allowing a Woburn energy company to build a wind turbine that’s estimated to save the town as much as $300,000 a year in electricity costs. “If it works out the way we think, let’s build more,” said Selectman Rick Murray. Selectmen approved the 15-year agreement with Solaya Energy last Tuesday. The 390-foot windmill will be installed on town-owned land at the Driftway next to the sewer plant. The company will pay the costs for construction and must obtain permits from local, state, and federal boards. Officials said the town is locked in at 8.9 cents per kilowatt hour for the first two years of the agreement, a figure much less than the 17-cent per kilowatt hour rate that is the t average cost for electricity to businesses and municipalities. Under the contract, the town would pay no more than 10.9 cents during the 15 years of the contract. - L.E. Crowley

DOOR-DECORATING CONTEST - Mayor Sue Kay and the Weymouth Garden Club are getting into the holiday spirit early with a holiday door-decorating contest. Participants have until 4:30 p.m. tomorrow to register by calling the mayor’s office at 781-340-5012. Decorating must be completed by Friday so the doors can be filmed and judged over the Thanksgiving weekend. The winner will receive a $100 gift certificate to a local garden center, which will be presented by the mayor. Last year, 15 people participated and Kay hopes for more this year, said her assistant, Lee Hultin. “It’s a promotional thing. We want to get people more involved in the community,” Hultin said. - Johanna Seltz

MORE TIME FOR DAM STUDY - The state has granted the owners of the former Plymouth Rubber Co. property a two-month extension to complete an engineering study of Canton’s aging Reservoir Pond dam, which it found to be in poor condition in 2007. Canton Development Properties acquired the dam when it purchased the rubber company site on Revere Street three years ago. Rick Brandstatter, director of real estate for Canton Development’s Chicago-based parent firm, the Napleton Co., said the study will give engineers a clearer picture of the dam’s condition and design. “Nobody has an actual drawing of what it looks like,’’ he said. The report, due for completion by the end of January, will also provide options as to what work should be done, Brandstatter said. He noted that the dam has been determined to be sound, except in the case of a 100-year storm, if the pond is kept at a lower level than in past years. - Elaine Cushman Carroll