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The Westfield News Serving Westfield, Southwick, and the surrounding Hilltowns
www.thewestfieldnews.com FRIDAY, JANUARY 29, 2016
VOL. 85 NO. 24
“Misquotations
are the only quotations that are never misquoted.”
— HESKETH PEARSON
75 cents
Flood commission report cites concerns over city’s dike system
Westfield parents Melissa Rutkowski, Megan Stanton, Sarah Scott and Marie Yvon all volunteered for the selection committee for the new superintendent following the Parents Forum Thursday evening. “The concerns that were brought to the table were spot on,” said Yvon. (Photo by Amy Porter)
School Committee gets parent input on superintendent search By AMY PORTER Correspondent WESTFIELD – Twenty-five parents and residents joined all but one School Committee member at a meeting Thursday at South Middle School to express their thoughts on who would make an ideal candidate for superintendent. Following the opening of the meeting, Mayor Brian P. Sullivan gave the floor to Vice Chair Ramon Diaz, Jr., who is taking the lead in the search process. Diaz passed out questionnaires and asked that they be answered in small groups, and then shared with the whole room. “I do promise you that we are going to use these, and it’s not a waste of time,” Diaz said. “We know what’s important to us. We want to know what’s important to you.” The small groups were then given about a half hour to discuss the questions. During the sharing time, led by School Committee member Cynthia Sullivan, many common themes emerged. Among them were transparency, a commitment to Westfield, familiarity with special education and its processes, and the need for more and newer technology. Also mentioned several times was the
Control Commission beforehand. Also among those oversights, were several potential violations of state and federal agreements.” The commission, wrote Giguere, acted with due diligence “and prevented this from becoming another large issue tied to the proposal.” The USACE, stated the report, informed the City Engineer, the Flood Control Commission that the City of Westfield “failed to secure the Rights of Way for the entire Little River Dike in 1955. This was and still is a requirement, under Federal Law, and the City must take actions to rectify the issue.” In June 2015, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Massachusetts Office of Dam Safety conducted bi-annual inspections and an evaluation of the Arm Brook and Powdermill Brook Flood Control projects. “We were informed that each See Concerns, Page 3
Senate panel advances bill to overhaul public records laws
superintendent should possess, several groups emphasized the need for both an educational and business background, someone who could manage the directives from
By BOB SALSBERG Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Government watchdog groups praised a bill outlined by Massachusetts Senate leaders Thursday that seeks to modernize public records rules that critics have labeled among the most outdated and cumbersome in the nation. The measure, advanced by the Senate Ways and Means Committee, would establish new timetables for compliance by state agencies and municipalities with public records requests and reimburse legal fees to people who fight and successfully overturn a decision to deny a records request. The full Senate scheduled a vote on the measure for next week. The House approved a similar version last fall that’s designed to replace an existing law that was written more than four decades ago. “Back in 1973, we didn’t even have such a thing as electronic records, and today, of course, almost all the records that are produced are electronic,” said Sen. Jason Lewis, a Winchester Democrat who sponsored the bill. A coalition of organizations called the Massachusetts Freedom of Information Alliance has pressed lawmakers to overhaul the law, citing examples of records seekers enduring long delays and exorbitant costs for accessing documents that should be open to public inspection. Both the House and Senate bills agree on provisions that would require state agencies to provide records in electronic formats when possible and limit fees charged for hard copies and staff time devoted to preparing material. Pam Wilmot, executive director of Common Cause Massachusetts, said the Senate version goes further than the House by requiring that courts, in most cases, award attorney fees to residents who successfully challenge the denial of a public records request; the House bill
See Superintendent, Page 8
See Public Record, Page 8
Parents and residents broke into small groups to discuss questions for the superintendent search process at a forum on Thursday held by the School Committee. (Photo by Amy Porter) need to build the new elementary school, as well as consistency of programs and quality of education across all the schools. In response to the first question regarding the characteristics, background and experiences the new
By DENNIS HOHENBERGER Correspondent WESTFIELD – The Westfield Flood Control Commission recently released the 2015-2016 annual report. The report cites the continued deterioration of the Little River Dike, which routinely fails U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE) standards. The report was sent to Mayor Brian Sullivan and the City Council. Flood Commission Chairman Albert Giguere Jr., wrote that the dike, built in 1955, is considered “unacceptable” by USACE standards. The City of Westfield is obligated under federal law to maintain the structure to acceptable standards, read the report. On March 15, 2015, the commission was made aware of the Ponders Hollow-Park Land Swap Proposal, stating, “Upon further inquiry, this Commission discovered a number of significant oversights and miscategorizations in the proposal, including a critical failure to confer with the Flood
Interstate Towing to assist Southwick police By HOPE E. TREMBLAY Staff Writer SOUTHWICK – A week after the town’s main police tow operator announced it would no longer provide service, an additional backup tow company was approved. The Board of Selectmen, with a recommendation from Police Chief David Ricardi, agreed to allow Interstate Towing to subcontract for Southwick Collision Center, now the town’s main police tow operator. Longtime tow company Prifti Motors no longer does police towing. Owner Donald Prifti said last week that it was “not profitable any longer.” Prifti Motos has served Southwick for 70 years. The resignation came just months after
Southwick Collision was added as a second operator late last summer. Prifti protested the addition of another tow operator and said he always answered the police calls. Prifti still offers private tow service in town and contracts with other police departments. Ricardi said Interstate would not contract with the town, but with Southwick Collision and would mainly handle large needs. “His first interest was in heavy duty stuff,” Ricardi said. “But with the loss of a tow operator, he is offering to help.” Southwick Collision would contact Interstate if there was a need to move a heavy vehicle or to serve as a backup if Southwick Collision was unable to respond. Interstate Towing is run out of Chicopee. Interstate Towing will now serve Southwick as a subcontractor for police tow operator Southwick Collision Center.