Man About Canton: Stoughton District Court May Close
By Joe DeFeliceDID YOU KNOW …
It appears we are in danger of losing the Stoughton District Court. The Court Relocation Committee, formed to evaluate Massachusetts courts and to recommend changes to save the commonwealth money and help close the $21 million shortfall in the 2011 state budget, recently issued its report to the chief justice of the Massachusetts District Courts and among other things, recommended the district courts in Stoughton, Wareham, and Hingham be temporarily closed. They also recommended that the Norfolk Country Juvenile Court in Dedham be transferred to Stoughton and other Stoughton duties such as arraignment hearings, small claims hearings, and probation be transferred to other locations.
The Stoughton Court first opened in 1962, and it is presently one of 62 district courts in the state. It employs 40 people and serves Stoughton, Canton, Avon, and Sharon. In the event it is closed, the relocation committee recommended all Stoughton employees be transferred to other courts in the state system and no layoffs occur. The closest district court is 15 miles away in Wrentham.
The committee has scheduled a public hearing from 5 to 7 p.m. this evening (August 12) at the Brockton District Courthouse at 215 Main Street in Brockton to discuss its plans to temporarily close Stoughton as well as Hingham and Wareham and three other district courts, all located in Norfolk, Bristol, and Plymouth counties.
Congratulations to the American Legion Auxiliary or the Beatty Post 24, which will hold its 90th anniversary for its auxiliary charter on Sunday, September 19.
The town has received applications for six more Chapter 40B units on Washington Street, Will Drive, and Walnut Street.
MAC extends condolences to the family of Peg Thurler, who recently passed away at age 92. MAC worked with Peg at the old Canton Journal and later here at the Canton Citizen. She was a fine and dedicated news reporter, and her byline will be missed.
We all know that each year it gets more expensive to operate our cars, and it is reflected by gasoline taxes, which vary by state. According to the AARP, the gasoline tax in Alaska, as of April 2010, was only 8 cents per gallon, which was the lowest in the country. Here in Massachusetts, it was 23.5 cents per gallon. Connecticut was 42.6 cents, and in New York, it was 44.9 cents. In Maine, it was 31 cents, Vermont 24.7 cents, New Hampshire 19.6 cents, and Rhode Islanders pay 33 cents per gallon. Among the highest in the country was Hawaii, where the tax is 45.1 cents, and Californians must pay the highest, a whopping 48.6 on each gallon of gas.
Happily, we are going to get another sales tax holiday in Massachusetts. The state legislature has voted to allow tax-saving days on August 14 and 15 to encourage consumers to shop at local businesses across the state. It excludes any single item priced higher than $2,500. It will not apply to gas, steam, electricity, motor vehicles, tobacco products, or meals.
The third annual Charity Ride for Boston Med Flights will be held at the Beatty Post 24 American Legion on Saturday, August 21.
The new superintendent at the Blue Hills Regional Technical School will be James Quaglia, who recently completed four years at Blue Hills as the principal/assistant superintendent. Quaglia, 50, is a lifelong resident of Attleboro. He is an avid motorcyclist, guitarist, and is married with two children. He replaces Joseph Ciccolo, who retired at the end of June after a 36-year career as a teacher and administrator at several school districts.
If you enjoy live Irish music, go over to see Bill Black perform at the Irish Cultural Center of New England Pub at 200 New Boston Drive in Canton. He is there every Friday evening at 9 p.m. where he co-hosts with a different musician from week to week. For information, call 781-821-8291 or visit www.irishculture.org.
Norwood Hospital has been recognized by Press Ganey Associates with a 2009-2010 Hospital Value Index Best of Value Award. The hospital ranked among the top 10 of all hospitals nationwide, achieving high marks in quality, affordability, efficiency, and patient satisfaction. Norwood Hospital was also selected by the Leapfrog Group as a 2009 top hospital, and by Harvard Pilgrim Health Care for its 2009 honor roll.
Finally, time spent at the Registry of Motor Vehicles to conduct our business is still aggravating, despite their efforts to improve their service. According to a DMV spokeswoman, the average wait at the registry’s 31 branches was 28 minutes, 37 seconds, which is about 30 percent longer than the average wait in June 2009, when the registry had four more branches. Apparently, we will never be winners in our ongoing battles with the registry.
The true test of character is not how much we know how to do, but how we behave when we don’t know what to do.
This is all for now folks; see you next week.
Joe DeFelice can be reached at manaboutcanton@aol.com.
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=3038
Posted by Joe DeFelice
on Aug 12 2010. Filed under Man About Canton, Opinion.
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