Thursday, November 21, 2019
www.plainvillecitizen.com
Council acts on teacher salaries, OSHA issues
SEASON OF GIVING
By Devin Leith-Yessian The Citizen
Teachers will receive a nearly 9 percent salary increase over three years under the new contract approved by the Town Council during its Tuesday, Nov. 12 meeting. Kris Dargenio, fourth from right, presented a ceremonial check to the Plainville Community Fund on Nov. 12. Dargenio has organized the Plainville Pumpkin Festival since 2015 and donates the proceeds to the fund. Devin Leith-Yessian, The Citizen
Town rallies for non-profits By Devin Leith-Yessian The Citizen
The holiday season got off to a good-hearted start this year with local events raising thousands of dollars and hundreds of pounds of food for non-profits in town. The 5th annual Plainville Pumpkin Festival generated $7,000 for the Plainville Community Fund. A ceremonial check was presented to members of the endowment’s board on Tuesday, Nov. 12.
In addition, the Bucci family’s annual Halloween display and Thriller dancing crew amassed around 300 pounds of food for the Plainville Community Food Pantry. In the past, the pumpkin festival has made up more than half of the money distributed by the community fund each year, said Robyn Poulos, vice co-chairperson. “When we get money like this it gives us a greater opportunity to do more,” she said.
Fund contributors can see the impact it has firsthand through its Plainville-centered grants, which went to purchase laptops for the Middle School of Plainville’s robotics program and chipped in for bus tours around town highlighting historic landmarks for the town’s 150th anniversary. The grant application process is open through January and awards are announced in March. See Giving, A8
Superintendent Steven LePage said the committee bargaining on behalf of the town aimed to balance the need to fairly compensate teachers with the interests of taxpayers.
"The negotiations went really well and we ended up meeting in a place we could agree was fair to both sides. And so I thought the process, although tense at times — and you have to protect what you believe in – but I agree 100 percent that our teachers work really hard and we do tremendous things in Plainville," the first-year superintendent said. See Council, A12
Pugliese reappointed By Devin Leith-Yessian The Citizen
The Town Council unanimously reappointed Katherine Pugliese to be its chairperson during an organizational meeting on Tuesday, Nov. 12. Deborah Tompkins, who was unanimously named vice-chairperson, said she
nominated Pugliese after finding her to be fair and impartial during council deliberations. Both chairperson positions are served for oneyear terms, after which the council will hold another meeting, around November 2020, to consider designating new officers. See Pugliese, A11
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Volume 16, Number 42