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Seekonk Town News
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Florice Craig
The Clerk’s Corner
June is here, and with that comes peak strawberry season in the Northeast. Some varieties are even called “June-Bearing” strawberries! The harvest only lasts for about a month, several local farms in and around Seekonk allow strawberry picking. So, get out and get those delicious strawberries while they last. One of my favorite pies is strawberry rhubarb!
June 7, 2021 6PM - Spring Town Meeting
The twice continued Spring town meeting is set to go off Monday June 7, 6pm at the Seekonk High School Auditorium, with additional seating in the gymnasium. Social distancing restrictions and capacity limits have been lifted by the Governor so we are confident there will be plenty of room for all who want to attend. Please try and get there an hour ahead of time to avoid long lines. Also, please know your precinct ahead of time as this will make checking in faster. If you do not know your voting precinct you can call the Town Clerk’s office and we will help you. 508-336-2920. Thanks again for your patience during these unprecedented times. It looks like things are returning to normal.
Absentee Voter information
In anticipation of a possible special election this summer where the registered voters of Seekonk will vote for or against the construction, renovation and expansion of the Seekonk Public Library and renovation of the Seekonk Connolly Field and Mooney Track, I urge people that have made vacation plans to apply for an absentee ballot. The application to receive an absentee ballot is on our website www.seekonk-ma.gov the Town Clerk page under the heading, “Downloadable Forms”. Please print the form, fill it out and either drop it off in the drop-box outside Town Hall, bring it into the Town Clerk’s office or mail it into Town Clerk’s office, 100 Peck St. Seekonk, MA 02771. For more information please do not hesitate to call the Town Clerk’s office 508-336-2920 and we will be glad to help you.
Dog License Renewal
As of June 1st, Dog License renewals are past due. There will be a $20.00 late fee per dog imposed on license renewals. The license fees are $10.00 for spayed or neutered dogs. $20.00 for un-spayed or un-neutered dogs. If you are late renewing, please remember to add $20.00 per dog to the above fees.
Census 2021 Update
We are still updating census data and will be sending out post cards to residents who did not remember to answer the census this winter. If you receive this post card, PLEASE mail it back so we can update your census information. Failure to respond to census mailings for two consecutive years will result in the removal from the active voting list and may result in removal from the voter registration rolls per MGL Ch. 51 4c.
Have a wonderful June and remember the Town Clerk’s office welcomes inquiries from all citizens seeking assistance, or information in relation to services provided by the Town of Seekonk.
Seekonk Preps for Outdoor Dining Extension By Joe Siegel
Seekonk selectmen are encouraging restaurants to apply for outdoor licenses after Governor Charlie Baker lifts the state of emergency on June 15.
Chairman Justin Sullivan explained Baker has proposed legislation, which is likely to be approved by the state legislature, which will extend outdoor dining through November 29. “We have restaurants here in town which are utilizing their parking lots and walkways,” Sullivan said Wednesday. “I think it’s probably in our best interest from the town side, once we get all the guidelines from the state, we take a pro-active approach to all the on premise accounts if they wish to have the board of selectmen reconsider their license to permanently include an outdoor seating license as well, that they initiate that process so that we could consider it on a case by case basis.”
“Some of these businesses spent a lot of money to make ends meet,” said selectman Michael Healy, who wanted to start the process of establishments applying for the outdoor licenses sooner rather than later. “In some cases, parking might be an issue and I think case by case, we need to look at it,” Healy added.
The state has put out a fact sheet for restaurants offering outdoor dining/seating: https://www.mass.gov/doc/outdoor-dining-factsheet/download.
Town of Seekonk to Auction 32 Properties
The Town of Seekonk will hold a real estate auction of 32 properties on Tuesday, June 8, 2021 at 12:00 P.M. at the Seekonk Senior Center, 540 Arcade Avenue, Seekonk, MA. The live auction, conducted by The zekos Group, Municipal Auction Strategies will feature a wide variety of land parcels ranging in size from 1/10 of an acre to over 13 acres. The auction will provide an opportunity for local residents and investors. zekos Group President, Paul T. zekos said, “We are pleased to have been retained by the Town of Seekonk to offer these properties to the highest bidder in an open and public process.” Town officials are looking forward to the one-time revenue the auction will generate and getting properties back on the tax rolls. Many properties will be ideal for abutters to purchase and expand their existing parcel.
Prospective bidders will be required to present positive identification and a deposit in the form of a bank check (treasurer’s, cashier’s, or certified) to qualify to bid. Interested parties are urged to research the properties and contact The zekos Group at 508-842-9000 or visit their website at www.zekosgroup.com for detailed information.
Seekonk Recycling News
Earth day Activities in April
Although the pandemic has put a damper on Earth Day activities by groups, there were those who chose to continue the clean-up traditions and we commend them for their determination. Members of the Ten Mile River Watershed Council, Land Trust, and Scout Troop 1 Seekonk, collected litter and debris in the areas of the Runnins River, Martin Conservation Area and Gammino Pond. We also had a few family groups collecting litter near Chestnut Street, Hull and Milton Streets, Jacob Street, Cole Street and near Martin School. Thank you for all those who participated.
Shredding Event on May 22, 2021 Thank you
I wish to thank the volunteer members of the Recycling Committee and the town Department of Public Works for making our document shredding event at Seekonk Town Hall a success. The vendor, Proshred Security, was very professional and the result was that approximately one hundred town residents were able to dispose of their sensitive mail and documents safely. We may consider sponsoring another such event in the near future. Bill Kirchmann - Recycling Coordinator
June 2021 The Reporter 21
BSA Scouts Still Pitching in for Doorways
The McShane brothers of Seekonk BSA Troop 1 have volunteered throughout the pandemic, along with their fellow scouts from BSA Troops 1 & 9. Here they stand, with their mom, ready to assist curbside. Over the past year, as Doorways Food Pantry has struggled to reinvent itself as a contactless food distribution, one of the few constants has been the unwavering support of BSA Troops 1 and 9, who volunteered from the very beginning of the pandemic to assist with curbside, “pop your trunk” distributions of prepacked bags of non-perishable essential grocery items. “This was very big for us”, said Paul Hodge, one of Doorways’ curbside coordinators. “We were cut off from our volunteer base at the very beginning, and the scouts stepped in to fill a void, twice a month, without fail. It was very helpful.”
Doorways would like to thank not only the scouts, but the many people in town who have dropped off food donations, or mailed a check, or run a food drive. “We don’t make it all the way through the pandemic without a lot of help” said Hodge. “God bless all of you who helped this past year.”
L to R: Sheri McShane, Logan, Deacon & Finn McShane
Town Fair Tire Fights Hunger with Doorways
Eric Correia of Town Fair Tire on Route 6 in Seekonk presents a check for $1,000.00 to members of the Doorways Food Pantry Board of Directors.
22 The Reporter June 2021
Town of Seekonk Awarded $750K in
federal & State Partners Committed to Working with Town in Revitalizing brownfields Site
Imagine driving by the Ten Mile River and seeing it reflecting back a bright pink or purple! While that may sound shocking to us today, many lifelong Seekonk residents recall this as a regular occurrence and have even shared stories of swimming in the river and coming out with a colorful tinge to their skin as a result of the textiles being dyed at the Attleboro Dye Works site upstream. Like many communities in New England, the Industrial Revolution left a legacy of contamination along Seekonk’s rivers that we are faced with mitigating today.
Nestled in a residential neighborhood, the 7.8-acre former Attleboro Dye Works Site (ADW), includes a firedamaged, collapsing 101,000 SF abandoned industrial building, which for over 60 years, conducted dyeing processes that used dye fixing agents and waste dye carriers as well as mixed, transferred and stored metals, solvents and petroleum hydrocarbon compounds. The wastewater was then discharged to three, large unlined wastewater lagoons located on-site. Lagoon sediments are contaminated with heavy metals, PCBs, chlorinated solvents, petroleum hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These contaminants pose a threat to public health as well as the surrounding sensitive riparian corridor.
However, over the last five years, the Town, its partner agencies, and key stakeholders have made great strides at the site. In 2016, the Town worked with the EPA to perform a limited removal action of containerized hazardous materials. The following year, the Town was successful in securing $450K grants from both the MassDevelopment and U.S. EPA Brownfields programs to complete assessment activities over the last three years. In 2019, the Town pursued a tax-taking of the abandoned site to facilitate cleanup efforts. And now the Town has been awarded an additional $750K in grant funding from state and federal partners to remediate all three contaminated wastewater lagoons, moving the Town one step closer toward site development and revitalization of the Baker’s Corner neighborhood.
“Knowing the competitive nature of the EPA Brownfields Cleanup Grant selection process, the Town of Seekonk is honored to be amongst a handful of communities across New England selected for an award this year. As anybody involved in the cleanup of these former industrial sites will tell you, it takes a determined and dedicated team effort with local, state, and federal partners to see these projects through each stage of the process. Our team has given the former Attleboro Dye Works site a voice at every step along the way, telling the compelling story of its industrial past and how critical its redevelopment is to revitalizing the Baker’s Corner neighborhood. In that vein, we’d like to thank our team, especially the U.S. EPA and MassDevelopment Brownfields programs, for their continued investment and support in the former Attleboro Dye Works site.” said Town Administrator Shawn Cadime.
For additional information about this project, please contact Jennifer Miller, Conservation Agent: jmiller@seekonk-ma.gov or (508) 336-2944.
Evander, the bunny
Seekonk Animal Shelter News
Meet Evander. He is an adorable, black & white, adult male bunny who was found near the Seekonk Speedway. This poor little guy is missing an ear but that doesn’t hinder his good natured personality. He is a friendly boy who has been neutered. While he enjoys the good life at the shelter, he is looking forward to finding a forever family to call his own! Stop by to meet Evander at the Seekonk Animal Shelter, 100 Peck Street, Seekonk, MA 508-336-6663
