At the recent Selectmen’s meeting Emma Jean Moulton appeared before the selectmen to discuss a legacy gift the 350th Committee would like to bestow on the town as “something tangible to show our continuing love for the town”. The suggestion is a street clock. Two clocks, actually, one would be in East Milton and the other at Central & Eliot. The selectmen love the idea.
Click on image for larger view
Ms. Moulton went through a brief presetnation. The clocks are manufatured by Electric Time, a company based in Medfield. The clocks come in a variety of styles. The clocks being suggested by Ms. Mouton are ~15 feet highof cast aluminum. They dials are lit at night with LED bulbs and the clocks are GPS enabled. The clock at Eliot and Central would be a 2 dial clock. The one in East Milton would be a 4 dial clock. Imagine a cube sitting atop a pole with a clock face on each side.
The 350th committee has not yet voted on the gift. They sought to gauge the interest of the selectmen first; but there are no reservations on their part. Ms. Moulton said there was consensus on the committee.
All the selectmen endorsed the idea of the gift. Member Sweeney said, “It puts back a little piece of history.” The 350th committee will work with the Town Planner on the specific siting of the clocks.
On a related note, Co-chair of the 350th Committee, Lynda-Lee Sheridan, appeared during Citizens Speak to plant a seed with the Selectmen regarding a possible annual Fireworks display. Ms. Sheridan said she’d heard from quite a few residents regarding the positive town wide sense of community that the all day event last summer generated. “The goodwill of hte big event brought people together in unique ways and [the intent] is to carry that forward,” said Sheridan. She posed the idea of an annual fireworks display. The Selectmen were amenable and next steps will be to look into logistics, costs, funding opportunities, and timing. A committee will be formed and they may look into formation of a non-profit. Selectman Sweeney liked the idea of “preserving the spirit of it” and noted that the red, white, and blue street striping was starting to fade. He speculated whether it might be worth looking into keeping the strip fresh as a reflection of town pride.
Sheridan received the blessing to move forward with developing a plan for what might be involved.
And it goes without saying that the 350th gave more to the town than the time of day – they have given a tremendous amount all benefited from. Thank you!
photo by Frank Schroth
What a wonderful idea !
When I was president of the Milton Kiwanis Club in 2007 I proposed this exact idea to the executive board of Milton Kiwanis to replace the McAuliffe Family Clock which stood on their property on Adams Street for generations. Robert McAuliffe tried to donate the clock to the town but the town refused the gift for some reason and he donated it to Boston College in memory of his father, Dr. McAuliffe.
Sadly, the response I received from the then Kiwanis executive board was not much better than the town’s. The general response I received was ‘who needs a clock’ and they would not support the idea nor would they allow the club to raise money for it.
Not withstanding those objections, this is still a wonderful idea and it would be a great addition to the town.
I too spoke with was the Electric Time Company and they are probably the best “Town Clock ” company in the world located right in Medfield.
This is what the town has needed for too long and it will enhance its character of Milton.
Thank you Emma Jean Moulton for a wonderful idea.
It is about ‘time’ we have a town clock…or two.
If I can help in anyway with this great project please let me know.
I agree it’s a great idea. How about Milton Village (Adams Street) location? Wondering where the McAuliffe clock was originally located?