A busy Saturday

BANK ROBBERY SUSPECT ARRESTED — A man accused of unarmed bank robberies in Braintree and several other communities was arrested in Framingham. Glenn J. LeGere Jr. faces charges related to the robbery of the TD Bank at 44 Granite St. and robberies in Duxbury, Hanover , and Plymouth. The 31-year-old Rockland man was arrested in Framingham, at the home of a relative, by police from Braintree, Duxbury , Framingham, and Salem, N.H., and the FBI Robbery Task Force. — Matt Carroll

SCHOOL BOARD CHAIR LOSES SEAT — The chairwoman of the School Committee lost her bid for reelection last weekend, coming in last in a field of four candidates. Adrienne MacCarthy collected 218 votes, according to the town clerk’s office. The top vote-getter for the two open seats on the five-member board was Linda Snowdale, with 763. Jeanne Astino took the second seat with 686 votes. Unsuccessful candidate Paul Ognibene had 649 votes. Town Clerk Marion Douglas said the committee race seemed to create the most interest on the ballot; recent committee meetings have been crowded with parents questioning, among other things, the move to have more heterogeneous high school classes open to students of different academic levels. — Johanna Seltz

A CAPPELLA CONCERT — Duxbury will host a traditional a cappella singing group at the Ellison Center for the Arts, 64 St. George St., on Friday and at Cox Hall, One Conservatory Drive, on Saturday. The Sherwoods of Cornell, all Cornell University graduates from 1958 to 1973, perform ballads and original close-harmony arrangements, seasoning their concerts with jokes and stories. The group’s musical director and key arranger, Fred Kewley, manages top singer-songwriters in Nashville. Both concerts take place at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 and $5 for children. For tickets, call the South Shore Conservatory of Music at 781-749-7565, ext. 20. — Robert Knox

FIXING HACKETT’S POND DAM — Plants sprout from cracks in its foundation. Vegetation thrives atop its deteriorating shell. Still, Hackett’s Pond Dam begrudgingly remains firm; preserving what for decades has been a popular recreational resource for residents looking to fish or ice skate. “Without the dam, Hackett’s Pond goes back to being a river,’’ said Hanover Community Preservation Committee member Margaret Hoffman. The committee is sponsoring an article at next month’s Town Meeting seeking $50,000 for engineering plans for the aging dam. While the dam’s condition does not pose an imminent threat to the town, a 2008 state inspection showed worrisome signs of deterioration. Town officials estimate fixing the dam could cost upwards of $200,000. — Robert Carroll

HOME FOR VETERANS — Partial funding for a proposed home for up to six homeless veterans won the unanimous approval of Hingham’s Advisory Committee Tuesday, clearing the way for a vote at Town Meeting on April 26. The Committee voted 13-0 for a Town Meeting warrant article that would appropriate $250,000 of Community Preservation funds for the proposed $1.3 million project. Located at 111-113 Fort Hill St., the home would be run by Father Bill’s & MainSpring, which would select the residents with the Hingham Housing Authority. While organizers have been working with neighbors and others in recent weeks to build a consensus for the home, the warrant article still hasn’t received the formal support of the town’s veterans. The Hingham Affordable Housing Trust has pledged $50,000 for the project. The rest of the funding is expected to come from a private mortgage, loans and grants from the state, and private fund-raising. The town’s selectmen also approved the measure, 3-0, Tuesday. — Molly A.K. Connors

RAIN BARRELS AVAILABLE — Holbrook officials are hoping to increase use of rain barrels by residents this year, said Town Forrest Committee chair Pat Greely . The rain barrels, from New England Rain Barrel Co., come with a hose attachment and cost $74.95. Orders can be placed on www.nerainbarrel.com or calling 877-977-3135 by May 14, and will be available for pick up at the Holbrook Town Hall on May 18 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Discounted, efficient composting bins are also available for $89.95. The rain barrels, made from recycled plastic, can hold up to 55 gallons of water and are usually used for gardens. By using them, residents can potentially save 40 percent on water and sewer bills, or between $400 and $600 in the first year alone, Greely said. This is the second year Holbrook officials are organizing a rain barrel distribution. — Kate Augusto

KITE WORKSHOP — The Hull Lifesaving Museum will hold a kite workshop Wednesday at 10 a.m. Greg Lamoureux of Sea Side Kites will share his knowledge of kiting history and guide participants in making their own kites. Weather permitting, the class will meet at Fort Revere after the workshop to fly the new creations. Cost is $5 for museum members and $7 for non-members. To reserve a space, call the museum at 781-925-5433. — Johanna Seltz

TOWN ELECTION SATURDAY —Absentee ballots for the annual Town Election Saturday are available at the Town Clerk’s Office in Town Hall. A registered voter unable to vote at the polls on Election Day due to absence from town during polling hours, physical disability, or religious belief may request an absentee ballot by noon on Friday. The polls are open Saturday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Precincts 1, 2, and 3 vote at Kingston Elementary School, 150 Main St. Precinct 4 votes at Town Hall, 26 Evergreen St., in Room 200. This year’s ballot includes the offices of town moderator, selectman, assessor, tax collector, three seats on the elementary school committee, two seats on the Silver Lake Regional School Committee, two library trustees, two board of health seats, water commissioner, planning board member, recreation commissioner, sewer commissioner, three seats on the Housing Authority, and two constables. — Robert Knox

CLEANUP A SUCCESS —Volunteers picked up 3.24 tons of trash from around town last weekend in the annual Rid Litter Day, according to town recycling coordinator Debbie Sullivan. “We have nothing to compare it to because we’ve never totaled it up before,” she said “But we had a really great turnout. . .We had Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, families together picking up stuff. A lot of people were actually excited to be doing it.” Sullivan said there a few large items, such as tires and televisions, but “the majority of it was just roadside trash. Driving around town, you can really tell the difference.” — Johanna Seltz

2 PRINCIPALS TO LEAVE — Two principals are leaving Milton schools, and one has been replaced. Dore Korschun, at the Glover Elementary, is retiring, while Christine Gerber, at the Cunningham Elementary, is leaving for a new post in Cambridge. Stephanie Nephew, the humanities coordinator at the Pierce Middle School, is replacing Korschun. A search to replace Gerber is just beginning, according to the superintendent’s office. The changes take effect July 1. — Matt Carroll

ANTIQUE APPRAISAL DAY — The Friends of the Norwell Public Library will hold an “Antique Appraisal Day” at the Middle School on Saturday from 10 to 3. Stuart Whitehurst and LaGina Austin from Skinner Auctioneers & Appraisers will meet with individuals to verbally appraise up to three items. The cost is $10 per item or $25 for three. For large or delicate items, a high-quality photograph can be substituted. Coins, stamps, jewelry, and musical instruments will not be appraised at this event. All proceeds will benefit the Friends of the Norwell Public Library. — Molly A.K. Connors

GRAND OL FISH FRY — Residents can take part in a traditional community celebration while helping preserve Pembroke’s history. On May 2, the Pembroke Historical Society is holding its annual Grand Ol Fish Fry from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Thomas Reading Memorial Herring Run Park, on Route 14. In addition to the serving of fish cake and hot dog meals, the event will feature rubber duck races, music, and a silent auction. Proceeds will benefit the society’s efforts to restore and maintain three historic buildings: its museum, located in the former Bryantville school house; the Adah Hall House; and the Friends Quaker Meeting House. The three buildings, all prominent landmarks in town, are open to the public for research and educational use. — John Laidler

SEASONAL DOG BAN — Dogs are no longer welcome on portions of Plymouth Long Beach. In an effort to protect nesting shorebirds, the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife is requiring the town to keep dogs off certain parts of the beach between April 1 and Sept. 30. That means dogs are prohibited from all public property north of the Day Parking Area (the small parking lot for 4 x 4 vehicles) all the way out to Long Point. Leashed dogs are still allowed on Ryder Way and along the beachfront from the main parking lot north to the Day Parking Area, except for the areas closed for shorebird nesting. Watch for the big red signs — violators can be fined up to $100. An informational brochure for dog owners, which includes a map, is available on the town’s website. To download a copy, go to www.plymouth-ma.gov, go to the Public Works page, click on the link for the Environmental Management Division, and then click on the link for Plymouth Long Beach. — Emily Sweeney

NEW CATHOLIC SCHOOL LOSES PRINCIPAL — Quincy Catholic Academy, which is expected to open this fall, is again looking for a principal after Paul Kelly, a Quincy resident, decided not to take the job he accepted in March. The new school will be a consolidation of the schools at St. Mary’s, Sacred Heart, and St. Ann’s parishes. Officials say combining the schools will improve the overall educational opportunities and experiences. Each school had seen enrollments decline by up to 37 percent in the past six years. An archdiocesan spokesman said Kelly gave enough notice so that the withdrawal won’t adversely affect efforts to open the new school. The academy will be at the site of Sacred Heart School at 370 Hancock St., the only site that would not have required millions of dollars in improvements, the archdiocese said. — Molly A.K. Connors

CHEER ON QUIZ SHOW TEAM — Residents are invited to a viewing party tomorrow to cheer on the Randolph High School team competing on WGBH’s High School Quiz Show. The celebration will be held at the Piccadilly Pub Restaurant, 1050 North Main St., at 7 p.m. Randolph competed against Minuteman Career & Technical High School in Lexington during a segment that was taped Jan. 31. Participants and the studio audience were asked to keep the results quiet until after the segments are broadcast on WGBH Channel 2. Randolph was one of 20 schools chosen to compete in this first season of the quiz show. The Randolph team consists of Christopher Tam, James Briggs, Stephanie Binjour, DeVante Anderson, Phu Nguyen, and Christina Pierre-Louis with coaching by English teacher Woodly Pierre-Louis. The top four qualifying teams will move on to the next rounds to be filmed at the station’s Brighton studio on May 1 and 2. The championships will be broadcast in June. Each episode can also be viewed online, at www.highschoolquizshow.org. — Wendy Chow

MONEY FOR ROAD REPAIRS — Rockland has received some good financial news from the state for a change, reports Town Administrator Allan R. Chiocca — some extra money for street repairs. The town is getting $321,224 in Chapter 90 funds for road improvements, up $10,000 from last year. The money, which is due July 1, is part of $155 million statewide for road and bridge repairs. The Chapter 90 money comes from a three-year transportation bond package. — Steve Hatch

$60M BUDGET PASSES — A $60 million town budget that could lead to service cuts and layoffs of up to 40 school employees passed Monday at Town Meeting. The town approved about $1.6 million in community preservation measures including building a harbor walk and acquiring about 60 acres of open space. Three units of affordable housing on Stockbridge Road also won approval. Attended by 353 of Scituate’s estimated 13,300 registered voters, the meeting featured passionate discussion on the school budget, including a failed proposal to tap the $2.2 million in the town’s “rainy day’’ fund to close the schools’ approximately $1.5 million budget gap for the coming fiscal year. — Molly A.K. Connors

POPE FINALIST FOR MARLBOROUGH JOB — Weymouth High School principal Anthony Pope is still in the running to become superintendent of the Marlborough public schools. Pope is one of four finalists for the job, which opens in the fall when Superintendent Mary Carlson retires. Marlborough has about 4,600 students, a third of whom are Hispanic. Representatives from the Marlborough schools will visit Weymouth High School April 28 to see Pope on his home turf. He has been principal in Weymouth since July 2008 and oversaw a revamping of the school’s curriculum and structure into six “career academies” for upper classmen. Pope was a finalist for the Randolph school superintendent job. Oscar Santos, the principal of Boston International High School was appointed to that job April 1. — Johanna Seltz

ROAD DAMAGE TALLIED — The town is counting up the costs as officials continue to repair roads and culverts after what Public Works director Mike Trotta called a “100-year storm” last month. Several roadways had to be closed during the flooding and several homes were evacuated, he said. Trotta said the integrity of the Shepard Pond Dam, which had water flowing over the top at the storm’s height, could require repairs costing between $1.2 million and $2 million. Trotta said the town hopes to receive up to 75 percent reimbursement from federal and state sources for the work. — Elaine Cushman Carroll

MOSQUITO SPRAYING UNDERWAY — The Norfolk County Mosquito Control Project will conduct helicopter applications of the biorational larvicide Bti, or bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, to control mosquito larvae from now through Friday. Go to the project’s website at www.massnrc.org/ncmcp/ for spring wetland locations. Summer wetland locations will be posted if these applications are warranted and will be conducted over parts of Avon, Bellingham, Braintree, Canton, Dedham, Dover, Foxborough, Franklin, Holbrook, Medfield, Medway, Millis, Milton, Needham, Norfolk, Norwood, Plainville, Quincy, Randolph, Sharon, Stoughton, Walpole, Westwood, Weymouth, and Wrentham. For further information, contact project director John J. Smith at 781-762-3681 or the boards of health in the towns listed above. — Michele Morgan Bolton

HAVE A BEER WITH THAT LAUNDRY? — Coin-laundry owner George Moniz Jr. will get an opportunity to make his case for serving wine and beer to his patrons at a hearing before the state’s Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission in Boston on April 28. Raynham selectmen had turned down Moniz’s request for a beer and wine license at the Raynham Laundry Center, saying they believed that offering alcohol at a coin laundry would result in more problems than benefits. The town’s police chief agreed, voicing concern at the thought of patrons who have been drinking trying to cross a busy street nearby. Moniz appealed the selectmen’s decision to the ABCC. — Christine Legere