THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, SEpTEmbEr 15, 2023 Page 15 THE SOUNDS | FROM PAGE 14 two of the precincts that had more than five candidates two years ago have just five candidates running at this time – Precincts 5 and 9. Stay tuned. Special “Shout Outs” We had one nomination for a “Shout Out” this week. Doris Napier: “A great big thank you to Laurie Davis for allowing a free lunch to the art class at our Saugus Senior Center for the celebration of our first art show ever. All who visited the senior center that day were allowed to vote for their favorite painting. It was a great time had by all.” Editor’s Choice: A “Shout Out” to Donna Gould, the driving force behind Founder’s Day, and often called the true founder of a community event that has thrived in Saugus for over four decades. Donna showed up at Town Hall to be a part of Saturday’s festivities, particularly the presentation of the “Person of the Year Awards” near the front steps of Saugus Town Hall. Want to “Shout Out” a fellow Saugonian? This is an opportunity for our paper’s readers to single out – in a brief mention – remarkable acts or achievements by Saugus residents or an act of kindness or a nice gesture. Just send an email (mvoge@ comcast.net) with a mention in the subject line of “An Extra Shout Out.” No more than a paragraph; anything longer might lend itself to a story and/or a photo. Precinct 9 makes the most of “Saugus Over Coffee” Normally, I set up 24 chairs in the Community Room at the Saugus Public Library an hour or so before each “Saugus Over Coffee” forum. But on this past Monday night (Sept. 11), I wound up setting up four extra chairs, as 28 people showed up in addition to the three Town Meeting members from Precinct 9 – Katrina Berube, Judith Worthley and Robert J. Long. Not only was it the most people who showed up to one of our forums – double the previous high of 14 – it was the most passionate crowd we’ve had. And there was some intense, sometimes contentious discussion – particularly on the location of the proposed West Side Fire Station, which has been talked about for more than four decades. Four of the town’s five selectmen appeared at the forum: Board Chair Anthony Cogliano, Board Vice Chair Debra Panetta, Selectman Corinne Riley and Selectman Michael Serino. Robert M. Strasnick did not respond to our invitations via email and a letter to his home address and did not attend the session. Daniel Kelly emailed ahead of time to say he wouldn’t be attending the meeting because of his work schedule. Kelly did, however, offer to write a brief statement to the residents of Precinct 9 who he won’t be able to address on Saugus TV: “I am a lifelong Saugus resident and a precinct 9 resident for approximately 40 years. I work in inspectional services for the town of Saugus as a local building inspector. I serve on the Board of Assessors also. I have served as a town meeting member for the last 6 years and I am seeking re-election this year. I think some of our biggest issues in precinct 9 are a new fire station for the west side of rt 1. The lack of usable playground equipment at our neighborhood park. The small basketball court is in very poor condition. Many of our streets are in need of resurfacing. I would like to see the town seek grants to purchase some of the remaining open land to preserve the integrity of the watershed that supplies the 3 ponds. I hope voters will support me with one of their votes.” The final “Saugus Over Coffee” forum is set for 6:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 23 in the Community Room of the Saugus Public Library and will feature Precinct 10. For those Saugus residents who are unfamiliar with the “Saugus Over Coffee” forums, they are cosponsored by The Saugus Advocate and the Saugus Public Library. The primary purpose is to give citizens in each of the town’s 10 precincts an opportunity to voice their concerns about top issues in their respective precincts. It THE SOUNDS | SEE PAGE 16
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