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massdee
Moderator
5299 Posts |
Posted - 06/05/2008 : 08:30:26 AM
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Lawrence A. "Larry" Vozella
Of Everett on June 4. Beloved son of the late Carmella and Ralph Vozella and loving brother of Ralph M. Vozella and his wife Jane of Medford as well as his nephew William Vozella and his wife Jessica. He is also survived by his late nephew Ralph Vozella as well as 2 great nieces and 1 great nephew. He was a special friend to James A. "Tank" Agnetta, Amando Leo and Jack McGrath. Funeral Services from the Salvatore Rocco & Sons Funeral Home, 331 Main St., EVERETT on Friday June 6 at 10:30 AM. Services will begin at the Funeral Home at 11 AM. Relatives and friends are kindly invited. Visiting hours are Thursday only 4-8 PM. Larry was the first President of the Everett "E" Club as well as its Executive Director. He was a long time educator at the Everett High School and a charter member P.S.N. Club. In lieu of flowers, donations in Larry's memory may be made to the "E" Club Scholarship Fund, PO Box 135, Everett MA 02149. His interment will be at Woodlawn Cemetery, Everett. Rocco-Carr-Henderson Funeral Service 1-877-71-ROCCO You must be logged in to see this link. |
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Tails
Administrator
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2008 : 4:08:01 PM
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After rejecting city's politics, Everett mayor in a tight spot
By Kay Lazar
Globe Staff / June 5, 2008
With six Everett residents - including three city councilors - vying to be the city's next veterans services' commissioner, Mayor Carlo DeMaria said his hiring decision, which was slated to be announced more than a month ago, has been delayed by "extenuating" factors.
more stories like this
DeMaria said he interviewed 17 candidates and decided one from outside the city was the most qualified, but then found that "everyone" he consulted said he should choose an Everett resident.
"So my whole process of trying to stick to my guns and not be political [about hiring] is political," DeMaria said in an interview Tuesday.
The councilors who've applied for the position are: Millie Cardello, Ward 1, and councilors Joseph Hickey and John "Leo" McKinnon, of Ward Four, DeMaria said.
Other local candidates for the job include a man who also is applying for a position on the city's police force and another who recently returned from service in Iraq, the mayor said.
Interest in the position stretched well beyond Everett's borders and included candidates from Billerica, Concord, and Malden.
When DeMaria took office in January, he vowed in his inauguration speech to end "government by politics."
"Gone are the days," he said, "when the city employees are hired because of their acquaintances instead of their qualifications."
As he grapples with the selection, DeMaria said the department's temporary director, Gerri Miranda, is providing great service to the city's veterans.
She is "doing a fabulous job," DeMaria said, "so I won't be rushed because the veterans are being helped."
Left unanswered is a potential conflict-of-interest issue if DeMaria selects one of the councilors.
State ethics law requires that "No councillor shall be eligible for appointment to such additional position while a member of said council or for six months thereafter." |
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justme
Advanced Member
1428 Posts |
 Posted - 06/06/2008 : 11:12:19 PM
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quote:
State ethics law requires that "No councillor shall be eligible for appointment to such additional position while a member of said council or for six months thereafter.
Can this be changed at the city level? If the city could changed it to 12 months, maybe we'd have a better chance of getting people who are truly qualified and fewer elected officials taking advantage of the retirement system. It goes something like............. 17 years on the common council, then 3 years, full time, (in a job they got because of who they know)@ $40,000.00 - $60,000.00 and then retire with 20 years service. A retiree's pension benefit is based on their highest three years earnings. VERY NICE This is only available in the public sector.......... You can bet my employer isn't going to offer a comparable pension to an employee with the same time and salary.
The pension benefits city employees receive are, generally, well deserved. Unfortunately, the current system begs to be abused. |
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2008 : 12:45:28 AM
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Justme,
I don't think that there would be a problem with changing this at the city level since is not less restrictive than the state law. However, I'm not sure where the votes to support it on the city council would come from. |
Edited by - tetris on 06/07/2008 12:48:43 AM |
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justme
Advanced Member
1428 Posts |
Posted - 06/07/2008 : 10:48:52 AM
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You're right Tetris, I just hate seeing people take advantage of the taxpayers the way they do. They get elected by claiming they're going to work hard for the taxpayer and look out for the best interest of the city. Unfortunately, too many end up hardly working and looking out for the best interest of themselves!
I'm off my soapbox now.............. |
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Tails
Administrator
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06/08/2008 : 11:57:17 AM
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I am at a complete loss of words right now. It took a lot of heads to come up with all this BS. It is BS and anyone that buys this line of crap is naive and selling out the city. I feel so sick right now I have to go throw up.
EVERETT, NEWBURYPORT
Waste site owner proposes development deal
Aims to move wood debris, build hotel or biotech center
By Kay Lazar, Globe Staff | June 8, 2008
A high-stakes development deal that links Everett's future to Newburyport's past now hinges on a mountain of trash that neither community wants.
At issue is a proposal by William Thibeault to double the number of daily truckloads of construction debris taken from his Everett Wood Waste facility to his landfill in Newburyport, called Crow Lane. But that would be just the first step in this pungent tale of two cities.
Thibeault's master plan, said his lead lawyer, is to clean up, expand, and redevelop the Everett site on Boston Street into a hotel or biotechnology center, moving the recycling operation to a 3.5-acre corner of another contaminated 32-acre parcel in Everett that Thibeault is negotiating to buy, clean, and develop into a "massive" office, retail, and residential center.
While sour smells from open-air mountains of recycled construction debris waft over Revere Beach Parkway from Thibeault's current Everett facility, his new construction recycling center would be enclosed to curtail odors, said lawyer Anthony Rossi. The request to increase the amount of waste trucked from Everett to Newburyport, he said, would alleviate neighborhood odor issues at both sites by removing debris that wasn't meant to be stored long-term in Everett, but could be disposed of properly in Newburyport. That portion of the deal depends on state and local authorities lifting stop-work orders in Newburyport because of repeated environmental violations.
"Right now, we have everything pretty much in place to help everybody," Rossi said.
State environmental officials, who are reviewing the proposal and must sign off on it, declined comment and referred questions to the state attorney general's office, which is overseeing a court-ordered capping and closing of Crow Lane landfill. Amie Breton, a spokeswoman for the attorney general, declined to comment.
The mayors of Newburyport and Everett said in separate interviews last week that they back the proposal, but residents of both communities, along with other local officials, are skeptical. After years of neighborhood complaints about the stench and leaks at each facility, and fines assessed at both for violating state environmental rules, they said the deal should be more carefully scrutinized.
"I am leaning toward saying no, but we need to hear much more," said Lawrence McCavitt, a Newburyport city councilor.
Newburyport's council, which must approve increased truckloads into the landfill, held a public hearing on the issue last week. Just before that meeting, councilors met in a closed session at which they were briefly shown, for the first time, a copy of a thick document that detailed Thibeault's proposal.
That deal, according to Thibeault's lawyer, includes an offer to release Newburyport from some, but not all, of its liability under state environmental law for waste dumped by the city at the landfill years ago. In exchange, Newburyport would have to agree to allow more waste to be brought from Thibeault's Everett facility.
"They are asking us for something and we are asking them for something," said Newburyport's mayor, John Moak, who sent a May 22 e-mail to councilors urging them to approve the increase.
In Everett, Mayor Carlo DeMaria said his office has reached agreement on a pivotal portion of Thibeault's proposal. The city, pending approval from its council and Board of Aldermen, will sell Thibeault a 5-acre parcel that used to house the city's public works garage, a site described by the mayor as an eyesore. The property borders Thibeault's Wood Waste facility and has been the focus of litigation between the city and Thibeault for several years over public access rights to an abutting street. The deal would maintain public access to the roadway.
The $3.5 million sale price is the same amount Thibeault offered in 2002, before litigation, and includes his proposal to clean up both properties and develop them into more desirable businesses that would complement the city's plan to upgrade that neighborhood near Revere Beach Parkway.
DeMaria said Thibeault's lawyers also confirmed that his client is negotiating to buy a 32-acre parcel on lower Broadway behind the Gateway Center, where Thibeault intends to move his Wood Waste facility and develop the rest of the contaminated property after a $30 million cleanup. The property is now owned by a bonding company that took possession from former owner Modern Continental Construction.
"Hopefully," DeMaria said, "he is a man of his word."
But since 2004, state officials have been in a legal tug-of-war with Thibeault over orders to enclose his Wood Waste facility, said Ed Coletta, spokesman for the state's Department of Environmental Protection.
Tomorrow, Everett's Board of Aldermen is slated to hear details of Thibeault's proposal at a 7 p.m. meeting.
Newburyport's council will probably schedule another session soon to debate the issue, said City Clerk Richard Jones.
As officials grapple with Thibeault's proposed deal, one longtime Everett neighbor of his Wood Waste facility said she has doubts. "They want to be nice to him so whatever agenda they have goes through, and the heck with the people who live and work here," said Jeanne DiStefano, a 64-year-old woman who has asthma and lives a block from Wood Waste.
"He has never followed through on anything he has said, so why should I believe him now?"
Kay Lazar can be reached at klazar@globe.com.
© Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/09/2008 : 08:02:58 AM
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EVERETT
RECYCLING A SMASH - The rewards-based recycling program the city launched in mid-February has been so successful that it will be expanded by July 15, according to Mayor Carlo DeMaria. Under the pilot program, the amount of recyclables in a resident's bin is weighed and recorded. Then points are issued to the resident based on the amount of recyclables, which can be redeemed for rewards at national and local businesses. The program also allows residents to place all items for recycling in one container, without sorting them. By increasing the amount of recycling, the city diverts materials from the regular trash and reduces Everett's costs for trash disposal. DeMaria said the program offered by RecycleBank is so attractive, the mayors of Revere and Malden recently told him they are also interested in joining. - Kay Lazar |
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n/a
deleted
11 Posts |
Posted - 06/09/2008 : 12:12:23 PM
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| Is this for all wards? I wait and wait eveything in the trash. You can not get a bin from city hall they have nothing. |
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 10:44:06 AM
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Flower power
Spearheaded by Stacy DeMaria, wife of Mayor Carlo DeMaria, the city's new beautification program is seeking sponsors for floral baskets and new perennial plantings on traffic islands around Everett. The city will be working with Everett-based Archidron Design and individual sponsors to personalize each traffic island, said Marzie Galazka, Community Development director. Sponsorship of a basket costs $100, while the price of islands varies, she said. Checks should be made payable to the Everett Beautification Program and sent to the Community Development Office, Everett City Hall, 494 Broadway, Everett MA 02149. For more information, call 617-394-2245. - Kay Lazar |
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Tails
Administrator
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 11:19:34 AM
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It's funny (not really) that I read a post on Topix yesterday and when I read I thought of it as another nonsense post however, LOL, I don't know anymore because this post was from before this article came out..
Everett
United States 13 hrs ago
The wife needed something to do so she volunteers in community development so screw Hanlon was the attitude from Carlo and of course Marzie kissing butt and how dumb can someone be to treat people like trash that got u elected in the first place. Whats hiliarous about this is people got so mad and said Hanlon hired his wife in city hall and he never did volunteer or not. Carlo lost those votes & Carlo had it very very easy in jan and theres no reason for the budget mess. Hes messing up the city in a big way. None of his staff know what there doin and the budget guy from southbridge is devious and worked with Teebow years ago. |
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 12:34:17 PM
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Tails,
A link to a notice about "The Everett Beautification Program" has been on the front page of the city website (You must be logged in to see this link.) for a while now, at least a week if not two. I'm over there all the time and assumed others are too so, I didn't think to post about it. |
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Tails
Administrator
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06/12/2008 : 1:27:44 PM
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| I just saw it. It's very pretty and Catherine Tomassi Hicks will be thrilled. |
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Tails
Administrator
2682 Posts |
Posted - 06/16/2008 : 10:27:44 AM
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Curious if anyone will stand behind their brother RVC or just rubber stamp this, lets not forget, the proposed budget was 8 million more than last years budget.
EVERETT
FINALIZING THE BUDGET - The city's proposed budget for the new fiscal year, starting July 1, is now in the hands of the Common Council. The Board of Aldermen Monday approved the fiscal year 2009 spending package of $133,117,285. The council is slated to vote on the issue at its meeting tomorrow night at 7 in City Hall. - Kay Lazar |
Edited by - Tails on 06/16/2008 10:58:56 AM |
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2008 : 08:14:24 AM
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HICKEY NAMED VETERANS DIRECTOR - Bowing to the wishes of constituents, Mayor Carlo DeMaria has tapped local resident Joseph Hickey to be the city's new Veterans Services director. Hickey, a Ward 4 common councilor, resigned his seat on the board Monday night. After a three-month search that included interviews with 18 candidates, DeMaria announced his decision Tuesday. "I was impressed by a couple of candidates that resided outside of Everett who have experience in benefits administration," DeMaria said in a news release. "Ultimately, I decided to honor the wishes of the Everett veterans that I spoke to about this position, who all advised me that it was important to them that the director be a resident of the city." In addition to Hickey, Millie Cardello a common councilor from Ward 1, and Ward 4's John McKinnon also applied for the position. DeMaria said Hickey's combat experience as a two-tour Vietnam veteran was one of the key factors in getting the job. State ethics law requires that no councilors shall be eligible for a local appointment while a member of the council or for six months after leaving office. Erin Deveney, DeMaria's chief of staff, said that before the mayor made his final selection, he required Hickey to get an opinion from the state ethics board on whether the appointment violated rules. Hickey said the board cleared the appointment, according to Devaney. "We obviously take Mr. Hickey at his word that he has done it," Deveney said. "If it became an issue, we can request the councilor to request a written opinion and he can disclose that publicly." Hickey's pay for the full-time job is $53,106. - Kay Lazar
STUDYING PARLIN PLAN - City leaders need a lot more information before they authorize any design, construction, and remodeling plans for the Parlin School, said Lorrie Bruno, Common Council president. A request from Mayor Carlo DeMaria to borrow $2 million for the school was referred to the council's Finance Committee, which is tentatively slated to meet Tuesday at 6 p.m. in City Hall. The mayor, treasurer, auditor, budget director, and a School Department representative have been invited to the session, Bruno said. "We want to know if we are getting the best bang for our buck. Financially, everybody is in trouble and we just can't hand out money anymore." - Kay Lazar |
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tetris
Moderator
2040 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2008 : 08:16:27 AM
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Developer draws flak for donations
By Kay Lazar
Globe Staff / June 22, 2008
A controversial proposal to double the daily truckloads of debris from an Everett construction recycling facility to a Newburyport landfill has sparked community anger about the money and the man behind both operations: developer William Thibeault.
In public meetings, blogs, and e-mail chains in recent weeks, residents in Newburyport and Everett have questioned whether the 46-year-old businessman, known for buying junkyards and developing them into retail sites, has influenced decisions by local and state leaders through campaign contributions. Officials in both communities, as well as the state, have been locked in litigation with Thibeault over various business dealings, including his latest proposal involving the Everett-to-Newburyport runs.
At the same time, state and local records indicate that Thibeault is no stranger when it comes to campaign contributions, donating to a number of politicians with clout in Everett and elsewhere in the region.
A fragmented state monitoring system makes it difficult to pinpoint how much Thibeault - or any individual - has contributed to a candidate. State law caps the maximum aggregate contribution to all state, county, and local candidates by an individual to $12,500 per calendar year. But the state agency charged with monitoring and enforcing the law does not track donations in municipal races, except for those in the state's five largest cities: Boston, Cambridge, Lowell, Springfield, and Worcester. Records from the rest of the communities, often hand-written and at times haphazard, are left to local officials to monitor.
"We don't go to the 351 cities and towns and data-entry the contributions that are reported to the local officials," said Brad Balzer, deputy director of the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance.
Records in Newburyport's city clerk's office going back to 2000, when Thibeault bought Crow Lane Landfill in Newburyport, do not show any contributions from the developer.
But state records indicate that in 2005, Thibeault and his sister, Della Thibeault, each contributed $500 - the maximum individual donation allowed to a candidate - to state Senator Steven Baddour, a Democrat who represents Newburyport. The records also show Della Thibeault contributed $500 in 2005 to then-state senator Jarrett Barrios, a Democrat who represented Everett. Both Thibeaults contributed $500 to Barrios in 2006. Barrios left the Senate last year.
William Thibeault then contributed $300 to the 2007 campaign of Anthony Galluccio, who took over Barrios's Senate seat. Thibeault also gave $500 in 2006 to Everett Ward 1 Alderman Frank Nuzzo for his unsuccessful run for state representative. Thibeault's Wood Waste facility is in Nuzzo's ward.
In Everett, the city clerk's records show Thibeault, his sister, and one other relative have donated a total of $3,060 since 2003, mostly in mayoral campaigns and usually to former mayor David Ragucci. Half of the total - $1,500 - was donated last year to Carlo DeMaria, an alderman who was elected mayor in a hotly contested race. No other Everett candidates received money from Thibeault last year, the records show. DeMaria was the only mayoral candidate to publicly back Thibeault's latest development plans in Everett.
Thibeault, who is not an Everett resident and has several New Hampshire addresses, said critics are taking his campaign contributions out of context.
"I donate to a lot of political events throughout the state that I like and that I believe in," Thibeault said. "I believe in Carlo DeMaria. He is a gentleman who can bring a lot of positive developments for [Everett]. I liked what his vision was and what his ideas were, and that's what I wanted to support. That's my right to do that."
Thibeault also said he has given a lot of money to various charities and civic programs in Everett, where his company has been headquartered for 20-plus years. He said he hasn't donated to local leaders in Newburyport because he has been "at odds" with officials there since entering into a contract in 2002 to cap and close the Crow Lane Landfill.
Thibeault's latest proposal to double the daily truckloads of debris from his Everett Wood Waste facility to his Crow Lane Landfill in Newburyport was unanimously rejected by Newburyport's City Council late Wednesday. Residents had repeatedly urged leaders to oppose it because, they said, the landfill already has generated noxious odors that have created a variety of health problems. The council instructed Newburyport Mayor John Moak to instead continue negotiating with Thibeault.
Under the plan that was rejected Wednesday, Thibeault had offered to release Newburyport from some, but not all, of its liability under state environmental law for waste dumped by the city at the landfill years ago. In exchange, Thibeault wanted Newburyport to accept the increased waste from his Everett facility. Newburyport and state officials have issued fines and stop-work orders at Crow Lane in recent years for repeated environmental violations.
State environmental officials, who are still weighing Thibeault's latest proposal and must sign off on it, have declined comment. The state attorney general's office is overseeing a court-ordered capping and closing of Crow Lane, and all sides in the dispute are due back in Suffolk Superior Court on Tuesday.
After Newburyport's leaders rejected the proposal Wednesday, Mark Reich, the city's attorney, said in an interview that he was "worried" the move would generate more litigation.
Thibeault said he is frustrated.
"As a show of good faith and good will, I agreed to give up almost half the [environmental liability] claim against them, which in essence could be valued in the millions of dollars," Thibeault said. "They want to get the landfill capped and we are trying to do that, and now they are using [their authority to regulate the volume of waste] as a squeeze play to hold me hostage.
"I've given them a lot. I don't know what the alternative is. The landfill is going to sit there uncapped and we will be in lawsuits."
Kay Lazar can be reached at klazar@globe.com.
© Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company.
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BOSTON GLOBE
