Page 6 THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, March 10, 2023 ~ Letter to the Editor ~ Northeast Metropolitan Technical School District’s Bait and Switch Cannot Stand Dear Editor, F riends of the Middlesex Fells Reservation is dedicated to the conservation, appreciation, and sustainable enjoyment of the Fells. We have long been interested in preservation of open public land. about: We are deeply concerned • the Northeast Metropolitan Technical School District’s (NEMT’s) plans for a new facility to be sited on a forested hilltop site rather than a more accessible site on existing playing fi elds, Need a hall for your special event? The Schiavo Club, located at 71 Tileston Street, Everett is available for your Birthdays, Anniversaries, Sweet 16 parties and more? Call Dennis at (857) 249-7882 for details. Law Offices of Terrence W. Kennedy 512 Broadway, Everett • Criminal Defense • Personal Injury • Medical Malpractice Tel: (617) 387-9809 Cell: (617) 308-8178 twkennedylaw@gmail.com • the lack of transparency in the site selection process, and • the lack of information provided to residents when they voted regarding the Building Committee’s final siting decision and lack of a separate ballot question on this signifi cant decision. In the site plans approved by the Building Subcommittee but revealed only after the 2022 Special Election, instead of using an existing road as access to “the site” abutting it, an entirely new entrance and one-half mile access road would be constructed next to wetlands, then carved through rock ledge, to a perched site scoured of trees and other living things, then blasted extensively to remove the hilltop covering many acres, creating a new “footprint” 60-feet above student parking and other student access to the new building. For the January 2022 Special Election, information posted on the NEMT’s own website as well as reporting in The Boston Globe did not disclose that the Building Committee no longer intended to use the specific building site as recommended by the design consultant. Instead, the term “site” then began to be employed to mean “somewhere generally on the entire 60-acre site,” even though NEMT’s public-facing plans still showed the site as the playing fi eld. Similarly, the materials circulated in support of the ballot item lacked suffi cient detail for the public to know that the Forest was targeted. A signifi cant number of our members are residents and voters in the communities ultimately providing funding for site preparation and building construction, including cost overruns and other contingent expenses to maintain a completed project and comply with state and federal code, such as accessibility accommodations under Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) and their continuing upkeep in all weather conditions from Hemlock Road to the new “site.” The issue presented on the ballot was a matter of the fi nancing, whether to accept funds from the Massachusetts School Building Authority and support the balance from the school systems served by NEMT. The need for the “New Voke” was supported by the longstanding pre-feasibility recommendation. Since the only documentation about the plan for the school was the pre-feasibility recommendation of using the playing fi elds, voters that were paying attention would reasonably believe that was the intent. For the NEMT to then publicize their more fi nancially and environmentally costly plan only after the vote can only be described as a bait and switch ~ Letter to the Editor ~ The Mail Must Go Through! But not in Maplewood Malden ~ Home of the Week ~ SAUGUS....Nice Colonial offers spacious kitchen with maple cabinets, granite counters, office area, living room with wood flooring and full bath on first floor, two spacious bedrooms and full bath on second level, mudroom, great side deck, fantastic wrap-around, enclosed porch, storage shed with electricity, updated heating system, driveway and kitchen (10 years old), lovely yard, split rail fencing, 4 car driveway, close to Saugus Center. Offered at $469,900 335 Central Street, Saugus, MA 01906 (781) 233-7300 View the interior of this home right on your smartphone. View all our listings at: CarpenitoRealEstate.com Dear Editor, For the past 14 months the mail delivery (lack thereof) in the Maplewood area has been sporadic at best - calls to the Malden Post offi ce continue to go unanswered and our regular mail carrier Brian does Youmans’ work but when he is out due to vacation or illness our mail on Bowman St. and Constance St. goes undelivered for days. Elderly neighbors are not receiving their medications which are depended upon by the USPS. No manager or supervisor returns calls to anyone; important documents being delivered after 4:00 PM - days of sitting in the Malden Post offi ce. Poor excuses as, “Oh sorry, short staff ed.” So, Maplewood pays the price for all of Malden. Whomever is the Postmaster in Malden, you should be terminated on the spot as this is unacceptable practice. I have contacted Congresswoman Katherine Clark’s offi ce – let’s see how this plays out. If the residents of Maplewood do not get any satisfaction; then my next letter is going to the Postmaster General of the US. Rain, sleet, snow never stops the USPS. Only in Maplewood Malden it does. Signed, Kevin Larson Malden resident maneuver. We stand with the Sierra Club-Massachusetts in its recent letter to the Massachusetts School Building Authority detailing the environmental value of this hilltop forest. The NEMT must also consider the quantifiable environmental services provided by a mature upland forest and the other benefi ts to human habitation it confers. It provides shade that cools ambient air temperatures for the surrounding areas, serves as a windbreak to extreme winds, presents structures and features that aid stormwater retention, erosion control, and groundwater recharge during extreme weather events, and provides a ready means for exchange and sequestration of atmospheric carbon, all in addition to the preserving relative tranquility and enjoyment of place by neighbors and the community at-large. On behalf of our members, we join with the many voices opposing the current site plan. A well designed, suitably sited, and solidly constructed “New Voke” should be built on the fi rst site proposed, with traffi c access via the existing improved right of way, Hemlock Road. Chris Redfern (he/him) Executive Director Friends of the Middlesex Fells Reservation chris.redfern@fells.org
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