Category Archives: Downtown

Lord’€™s t-shirt benefits Bill Kelly scholarship

Posted on January 7, 2013 | Comments Off on Lord’€™s t-shirt benefits Bill Kelly scholarship

This from Cris McCue Potts –

Lord’€™s t-shirt benefits Bill Kelly scholarship

In response to customer requests for a Lord’€™s souvenir after it was announced the store would be closing at the end of February, Nancy Kelly-Lavin is now taking pre-orders for a first-ever Lord’€™s t-shirt with 100 percent of the profits going to a scholarship fund in the name of her father and long-time Lord’s owner Bill Kelly, “€œwho is still the heart and soul” of Lord’€™s after passing away last spring, said his daughter.

“€œIt seemed the moment the word got out about the store closing, I’€™ve had a flood of requests from people coming into the store looking for souvenirs,”€ said Kelly-Lavin.   “€œI hope by creating and selling t-shirts, and directing the profits toward a scholarship fund to benefit the Medfield community and pay tribute to my dad, we can bring a little bit of comfort to people who are sad to see the Lord’s legacy coming to an end.”

It will take about a week for the shirts to arrive, so Lord’€™s is taking pre-orders (and flat donations to the Bill Kelly scholarship fund) at the front counter. Youth shirts are $10 each for medium to extra large; adult medium to XL shirts are $15 each; and XXL shirts are $18. Shirts will be short sleeved, grey, with the trademark red Lord’€™s logo prominently displayed.

One of the store’€™s sales staff noted that the Lord’€™s owners have never been a fan of self-promotion, so other than a postcard featuring the store’€™s neon sign, it has shied away from selling merchandise that touts the store’€™s name. The Lord’€™s t-shirt will mark the first time in its 73-year history that the store will sell an apparel item featuring its own name.

Lord’€™s Department Store will close Feb. 28.

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Posted in Charity, Downtown

Lord’s sold

Posted on January 3, 2013 | 1 comment

Patch is reporting the sale and closing of Lord’s, the store that sold everything and that gladly handled the sale of tickets for all the local community events.

The Lord’s store property appears to have been purchased by the same company that is exploring siting a Starbucks at the old Mobil gas station site next to the Town House.

The deed, which was recorded at the Norfolk Registry of Deeds on 12/31/12, lists the buyer as an LLC named for the street address.  It is common for attorneys to recommend a separate LLC for each property owned.  However, the required mailing address for that LLC is the same office address as Salvatore Capital Partners, LLC and GJS Management, LLC, 858 Washington Street, Suite 309, Dedham, MA 02026, which is the entity working on the Starbucks deal.

When Nancy Kelly-Lavin told me of the sale a couple of days ago (she asked me not to say anything, but where Nancy has given the story to Patch, I have been released) , she said that the buyer had not said what they intended for the site.  However, the Salvatore Capital Partners, LLC website lists the firm’s clients, three or four of which struck this reader as possible candidates:  Bertucci’s, Trader Joe’s, Eastern Bank, and/or Walgreens.

Massachusetts deeds are required to list the full consideration, and this one says the property sold for $1,725,000.   The deed says the premises contains about 38,615 sq. ft., slightly less than an acre.

I hope the Medfield Memorial Library parking that the Kelly’s have graciously been providing at the back of their lot gets continued.

I also hope that the Kelly family enjoys the accolades that are sure to come their way in the next couple of months, for having been such a huge part of the recent history of the Town of Medfield.  As I told Nancy this week, Mr. Kelly was the perfect retailer, whose smile and compelling nature always made you feel welcome.  Nancy and Tom have well maintained what Mr. Kelly originally sowed, but it was all of we residents who reaped the substantial harvest that has been having  Lord’s in our downtown.

Mrs. Kelly, Tom, and Nancy – we recognize that change happens, and we wish you all well in your new endeavors, but please know that we will miss you and Lord’s terribly.  I thank you for all the many things that you have done for the Town of Medfield.

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Posted in Downtown

Park Street Books to Main Street

Posted on December 22, 2012 | Comments Off on Park Street Books to Main Street

Park Street Books is moving to a new location on Main Street, the former  Coldwell-Banker site.  It will continue to be called Park Street Books, per Jim and Teresa James, because of their established on-line presence.  Great for the town  to have a great retail shop in such a prominent site.

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Posted in Downtown

North Street water main status

Posted on December 17, 2012 | 3 comments

Mike tells me that the rains caused a pothole to form in a recently dug up area along North Street where the water main has just been replaced.  Water filling the pothole to the top, such that drivers could not see the hole.  Unfortunately, a number of cars got flats and/or damaged hitting the hole.  Fortunately for the town, the liability rests with the contractor.

The work is mostly finished now, with just a few house connections left and sidewalk clean up remaining..  I asked Mike if the roadway would be smoothed out so the town does not have to live with it in such poor shape for the whole winter, and he reported that yes it would be.  They need to let is settle and compact for a year before they do the final resurfacing.

3 Comments

Posted in Downtown, Safety, Town Services, Water & Sewer

On being a selectman

Posted on December 12, 2012 | Comments Off on On being a selectman

I met this morning with four people from the state’s Cultural District group, who came to do a site visit, and perhaps six Medfield residents who have been pushing to create the Medfield Cultural District.  Library Director Deborah Kelsey has been the prime over.

The Board of Selectmen have not been involved at all, except to approve it moving forward, so I mainly sat and listened.  I did share that I knew it was a good idea, especially as I listened to the ideas that were discussed, but that I cannot to date see the practical benefits.  Joint marketing was named as one benefit.

I had to go to work after our meeting at the TownHouse, so I missed the tour, and the group discussion at the Library with about eighteen listed attendees, with a lunch.

I can see the Cultural District as becoming a destination for visitors, if we can parlay the critical mass of really old colonial era structures that we have in town.  I sure hope that the Clark Tavern gets reused for some commercial enterprise like a restaurant or a B&B that allows it to be open to the public.

I met the new planning director on Monday evening, and I was wishing that she had been able to attend.  She does not start work until 12/19.

 

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Posted in Cultural, Downtown, History, Planning

Massachusetts Cultural District Initiative Site Visit – 12/12/12

Posted on November 30, 2012 | Comments Off on Massachusetts Cultural District Initiative Site Visit – 12/12/12

Massachusetts Cultural District Initiative Site Visit  

TOWN OF Medfield

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

9:30 am to 12:30 pm

 

Massachusetts Cultural Council Attendees:

Anita Walker, Executive Director

Meri Jenkins, Program Manager, MA Cultural District Initiative

Kylie Sullivan, Program Coordinator, MA Cultural District Initiative

Maren Brown, Site Advisor, MA Cultural District Initiative

 

9:30 – 10:30 am           Round table with municipal officials

Chenery Room, 2nd Floor, Town House, 459 Main Street, Medfield

           

Participants:

  • Mike Sullivan, Town Manager
  • Ann Thompson, Chair, Board of Selectmen
  • Osler Peterson, Selectman
  • Brandie Morris, Downtown Study Committee

 

10:30am – 11:30pm     Tour of District

 

Participants: Deborah Kelsey, Library Director and Richard De Sorgher, Town Historian will join MCC for part of the tour.

            

Tour route:

  1. Medfield Town House/Town Hall/Chenery Hall
  2. James Ord Block
  3. David Fairbanks House
  4. Joshua Fisher House
  5. Cheney-Curtis House
  6. Clark Tavern
  7. Peak House
  8. Daniel Sanders House
  9. George Inness Studio
  10. First Baptist Church
  11. DeVasto/GAR Hall
  12. Zullo Gallery Center for the Arts
  13. Medfield Town Common and Gazebo
  14. Medfield Historical Society/Memorial Public Library Annex
  15. Memorial Public Library
  16. Baxter Park
  17. Plimpton-Hamant-Bartlett House
  18. Vine Like Cemetery
  19. Metcalf Homestead
  20. Plimpton-Woodard House
  21. Monks Block/Elijah Thayer Block
  22. Frost Block
  23. First Parish Parsonage
  24. First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church
  25. Meeting House Pond/Baker’s Pond
  26. Dwight-Derby House
  27. Montrose School
  28. Site of the first school
  29. Unnamed park
  30. Memorial Public Library

 

11:30 – 12:30 pm         Round table with partners, participants, stakeholders

 

Dailey Room, Memorial Public Library:

 

  1. Deborah Kelsey, Memorial Public Library
  2. Bill Pope, Zullo Gallery Center for the Arts
  3. Brandie Morris, Medfield Employers and Merchants Organization
  4. David Temple, Medfield Historical Society
  5. Richard De Sorgher, Town Historian, Downtown Study Committee
  6. Cheryl O’Malley, Dwight-Derby House
  7. Bob Luttman, First Parish Church, Medfield Cable
  8. Rob Gregg, Vine Like Preservation Trust
  9. John Guthrie, Lowell Mason Foundation
  10. Patricia Weller, Woodland Theatre Company

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Posted in Cultural, Downtown

Cultural district to get site visit

Posted on November 20, 2012 | Comments Off on Cultural district to get site visit

Town of Medfield to get a 12/12/12 site visit from the state of our proposed Cultural District – mailing from state Cultural Council follows

=======================

Massachusetts Cultural Districts Initiative

Site Visit Guide
Introduction
The Massachusetts Cultural Districts Initiative staff will review applications on a rolling basis. If an application is incomplete, or ineligible, staff will contact you with further instructions.
If your application is complete, clears all the eligibility criteria, and passes the MCC’s internal review process, MCC staff will contact you to set up a site visit. The site visit is an opportunity to demonstrate the district’s readiness to obtain state designation, and is central to the designation process.

Review Criteria
Applications with a strong management plan; well-defined strategic goals; a plan to fully utilize local cultural assets through creative programming and marketing; and inclusion of the community’s unique history and topographic features, are likely to be the most successful.
Applications will be assessed based on the following categories:
• Management & Budget
• Cultural Assets
• Public Infrastructure & Amenities
• Marketing
• Incentives & Evaluation

Site Visit Protocol
Each site visit is in three parts, and must include:
􀂃 A meeting with the town or cities municipal leaders and relevant department heads, which must include the management organization if there is a third party management agreement in place, then:
􀂃 A tour of the district by the MCC’s Cultural District site advisor and staff to meet with district stakeholders and business owners on a semi-formal basis. The applicant may decide who accompanies the tour from the community, but representatives of the municipality are expected to be present throughout the tour to answer questions and
make introductions, then:
􀂃 After the tour, a meeting must be arranged with partnering organizations or individuals, and district stakeholders  NOTE: If the partnership and stakeholder meeting is more than 25 people, then the meeting should be split into two parts. Each meeting will last no longer than 45 minutes. The applicant and the district partners should be prepared to respond to questions about the proposed district, the district goals and plan of action during the meeting. Stakeholders are expected to be fully apprised of the district’s plan of action.
Every site visit is unique; the agenda will be negotiated with the applicant, but must be confirmed at least two weeks prior to the site visit, and a list of attendees forwarded to the MCC.  The visit should total no more than four (4) hours. Site Visit Team Each site visit is conducted by a team comprised of MCC staff and the Cultural District Site Advisor. MCC executive staff and board members may also attend. If this is the case, advance notice will be given.

MCC Staff
MCC staff will make arrangements for the visit, serve as the meeting facilitator, and take notes to document the visit. Meri Jenkins, Cultural Districts Initiative Manager is available to answer any questions and work with you to help organize a successful site visit that provides value for all concerned.

Cultural District Site Advisor
The Cultural District Site Advisor is contracted by the MCC to assess the readiness of a district for designation. Site advisors are experts in community and economic development issues, particularly in regards to creative economy development and place making. The site advisor
allocated to your visit will have been cleared of any conflict of interest prior to the visit.

Preparation for Site Visit
The MCC and the Cultural Districts applicant each have responsibilities in preparing for the site visit.
The MCC will:
􀂃 Work with you to set a visit date that is convenient for as many of the partnering organizations as possible.
􀂃 Assemble the site visit team and notify the applicant of attendees and site advisor.
􀂃 Provide other information as requested in a timely manner.
􀂃 Coordinate with the applicant to finalize meeting arrangements
The Partner organization will:
􀂃 Invite participants for each component of the site visit
􀂃 Prepare name tags for all participants
􀂃 Provide meeting space and refreshments for the site visit
􀂃 Provide necessary tickets/access to performances/exhibitions
􀂃 Coordinate with the MCC on confirming the site visit agenda
After the site visit
The Cultural District Site Advisor will create a site visit report based on the information presented and his /her observations that will be reviewed by the board of the Massachusetts Cultural Council. The report will be sent to the district representative. The MCC board will make all final decisions regarding the state designation of a district. Applicants will be notified of the outcome of their application following the board meeting.

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Posted in Cultural, Downtown

Starbucks still a go

Posted on November 12, 2012 | 4 comments

I had noticed as I jogged that the Mobil station pumps have had their hoses removed and the station looks closed (and ratty), so I asked at our meeting of the Board of Selectmen last Tuesday whether the town should be looking whether to take some action.  Kristine Trierweiler responded that the developer who has been pursuing the Starbucks at that location had in fact recently been in contact with her, that he is still going forward with ht Starbucks, that he is making progress, and that he is planning on an opening next fall.  Kristine Trierweiler indicated that she is looking to get the town’s pocket park built on the town owned land between the Mobil station and Zebra’s as part of the development of the Starbucks.

Nice to know that prominent downtown site will get back into productive use – I just wish it would happen sooner.

4 Comments

Posted in Downtown

Goals for the next year

Posted on September 27, 2012 | Comments Off on Goals for the next year

Selectmen will discuss their goals for the next year next Tuesday.  These are my suggestions.  Let me know if you have ideas for different things the Board of Selectmen and the town administrators should be working on this next year.  I just sent these to Ann and Mark and asked for copies of theirs – as I hope to get them before we meet.

2012 Goals and Objectives for the Medfield Town Administrator
and the Board of Selectmen

By Osler L. Peterson, Selectman
September 27, 2012

1.    Conduct a zero based review and revision of our town government departments and their systems to determine whether we are using best practices.
a.    Establish expectations, policies, and procedures for all town boards and departments.
b.    Evaluate staffing levels and positions.
i.    Consider hiring a Finance Director.
c.    Consider partnering with an educational institution to get interns for this task.
d.    Reconsider using the former selectmen to perform this task.
2.    Have Town Administrator institute use of annual calendar for the Board of Selectmen.
3.    Hold a Board of Selectmen joint meeting annually with all town boards and commissions to review our shared purposes and goals.
4.    Determine road repair plans, priorities, and funding – Superintendent to outline.
5.    Work with Water and Sewer Commission on its operations and its master plan.
6.    Oversee the process of dealing with the clean up and reuse of the Medfield State Hospital site.  Complete the bylaw review for issued related to the Medfield State Hospital site.
7.    Annually get written five year written plans from the Town Administrator and department heads.
8.    Work with planning board for new economic growth, on Town’s master plan, and on  downtown zoning.
9.    Develop a strategy for maintenance and renovation of all town buildings.
10.    Develop a strategy to build a new DPW Garage, Public Safety, and Community Center.
11.    Examine opportunities for additional revenue streams.
12.    Identify opportunities for regionalization of services.
13.    Target completion of union negotiations before contracts expire.
14.    Create an evergreen three-year financial forecast of the town, working with the Warrant Committee and the School Committee.
15.    Implement succession planning for key town staffing positions.
16.    Installation of solar PV arrays on town owned land.
17.    Become a Green Community.
18.    Solve the issues about the Veterans Service Officer position.
19.    Perform an analysis of whether overtime is being used the way the town wants.
20.    Maintain town’s fiscal status.
21.    Plant street trees.
22.    Develop a historic house walking tour.

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Posted in Charter & Bylaw Review, Development, Downtown, Employees, Planning, Select Board matters, Town Services, Zoning

Native Plant Garden at library

Posted on September 17, 2012 | Comments Off on Native Plant Garden at library

Two girl scouts, Sophie Werner and Allegra Pericles, created a wonderful native plant garden in a triangular space between a walkway and the parking lot, next to the library.

Per Girl Scout leader, Katherine Steeger,  The “purpose was to establish a garden that would showcase not only native plants, but endangered, native plants.  Sophie and Allegra have created a pamphlet and three-fold display board explaining their garden.  In addition, they created a book where each plant in the garden is shown in a photograph and the details about it are presented.  They have also established a website which talks about what is happening in the garden and other information  –  website.

What a great addition to the downtown.   See it here.

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Posted in Downtown, Library, Teens, Volunteers