Thursday, June 13, 2013
The former FINCOM chair says he will push to bring back the open comment section at selectmen meetings if elected.
As a former chairman of the Sudbury Finance Committee, Chuck Woodard understood the importance of letting people voice their opinions at meetings. Whether you agreed or disagreed, he felt it was crucial for members to listen to the public. And unlike the current Board of Selectmen, residents did not have to submit requests ahead of time to speak, wondering if it would be declined. Woodard says if he's elected to the newly created two-year seat on the Board of Selectmen on June 25, he'll support bringing that back to their meetings — without the censorship. "I believe in it to my core," he said. "You want two-way communication. If we start to listen, then maybe the anger may abate a little bit." Woodard and his wife, Lisa Eggleston, moved …
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
The Board decides to wait until after Special Town Election when 2 new members will be elected.
Sudbury's decision on whether to extend the current contract of Town Counsel Paul Kenny long term or look to hire new services will wait until after the Board of Selectmen expands to five members. During its June 4 meeting, the current three-member Board agreed such a decision should be made with all five members present. "We shouldn't tell the new board we have new counsel for three years," Selectman John Drobinski said. "It looks unfair to the new board." Before the Board expands to five, the current Board has one more meeting on June 18, followed by the Special Town Election on June 25. The first meeting of the new five-member Board is slated for July 9. Kenny's current contract expires June 30. To bridge the gap, the Board discussed …
Friday, May 24, 2013
Sudbury resident Leonard Simon announces his candidacy for Board of Selectmen.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Selectman candidate Dan DePompei alerts residents of Sudbury's way of spending.
Friday, May 10, 2013
Resident Leonard Simon is one of six candidates for the two new seats on the Board of Selectmen.
If you are ever invited into Leonard Simon's basement, you will see a toy train set that took hundreds of hours for him and his son to build. There are platforms, an oil rig, lights and more. The planning, research and dedication they put into it is obvious. As an attorney, Simon used those same qualities to best serve his clients. And now, the Sudbury resident wants to use those attributions to serve the town's residents as a member of the Board of Selectmen. Simon, who is now mostly retired from law, is one of six residents vying for one of the two newly created seats that will be voted on during Special Town Election on June 25. But despite being new to town politics, he has already shown a desire to improve Sudbury. More than two years…
Thursday, May 2, 2013
In the latest You Ask, Patch Answers installment, we headed over to Town Hall to get the latest scoop.
Special Town Election is less than two months away and buzz is already circulating over who will run for one of the two news seats on Sudbury's Board of Selectmen. Former Planning Board member Eric Poch was the first to pull papers. As of May 1 five other residents have joined him: All six have pulled papers for both the two- and three-year term seats. Those candidates must choose between those seats by May 21 at 5 p.m. or be taken off the ballot altogether. DePompei is no stranger to running for selectman as he missed dethroning current Chairman Larry O'Brien by about 100 votes in 2012. Simon is a "mostly retired" lawyer. Gentile is also a lawyer, based out of Framingham. Woodward is a current member of FINCOM. His term ends this year. …
Sunday, April 28, 2013
Resident Rita Bourne says certain members of the Board lacked integrity during its last meeting.
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Sunday, April 28
Attending the most recent meeting filled me with hope and renewed energy, but also with little more than a tinge of caution. The changes are noticeable: interested residents were able to present their positions with fewer interruptions, and Bob Haarde acknowledged problematic lack of consistency in adhering to the bylaws by Town officials. But let’s not get complacent. We have a long way to go. As I see it, addition of two selectmen will only signify that our fight for a better Sudbury has an increased chance of succeeding; Drobinski, O’Brien and Valente will not leave until their tenures expire. In my premature excitement, I was foolishly expecting O’Brien to recuse himself from discussing penalties for liquor license violations. When …
Thursday, April 25, 2013
One other restaurant in town that failed an undercover sting was given a warning.
A second violation in the last three years for serving liquor to minors was enough of a reason for Sudbury's Board of Selectmen to hand Acapulcos a one-day liquor license suspension during Tuesday night's meeting. The most recent violation occurred on Feb. 21, when Sudbury police performed multiple compliance checks. Acapulcos also had a violation in 2010, Nix said. According to Lt. Scott Nix, three minors ages 18 to 19 years old walked into these restaurants in an attempt to buy liquor. "Unfortunately these three individuals were able to purchase liquor (from these establishments)," Nix said. "Once we completed the compliance check, we went back to see the manager and server responsible for the transaction." Chairman Larry O'Brien asked …
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
The former Planning Board member was the first to pull papers for one of the two new seats residents will vote on at Special Town Election on June 25.
When it comes to being involved in town government, it would be hard to find many Sudbury residents as involved as Eric Poch. The 18-year resident and father of three is, or has been on, the: On Friday, April 12, he decided to try and add another title to his impressive resume when he pulled papers for one of the two new seats for the Board of Selectmen. "It's time for some leadership and some upward management," he said when asked why he would run for selectman. "The Board of Selectmen is a tough spot that requires leadership and self motivation. It's a thankless job with no pay and not much authority in terms of absolute decision making. But it still needs to be the voice of reason for the town." The Board's voice became mostly silent …
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Sudbury resident Dan DePompei questions why the town is paying top-dollar contracts.
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Thursday, April 18
At a recent Board of Selectmen (BOS) meeting, a resident questioned why the BOS was not actively searching for competition in the contract for Town Legal services. Town Legal Services is a fairly lucrative part time contract (apparently>$80,000/yr in current $). The questioning resident had recently read Sudbury’s Town Bylaw VII, Legal Services, which seemed to require competition every 3 years. Sudbury had not competitively procured legal services for approximately 18 years. The BOS was not pleased with this resident questioning their knowledge of Town Bylaws; after all, they are men of tenure and experience. In response to this perceived violation of Town Bylaws, the BOS asked Town Counsel to research and advise the legality of his own …
Cynthia B
1:18 pm on Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Chuck, Thanks for answering my question. As a potential leader of our town can you tell me where and when the RFP was publicly posted that your wife responded to? How many other Engineering firms responded? How many engineers are also employed by your wife's firm? Since the current BOS is waiting for 2 new Selectmen to get elected before they make decisions on important long-term personnel … more ›