by Frank Schroth

Last week the School Committee voted to remove Good Friday and Yom Kippur as days off for Milton students. The recent snow days have forced a re-examination of the calendar. In an attempt to shorten the length of the school year slightly the administration made the recommendation. This year school started before Labor Day and will run almost to the end of June.

This was done after conducting an online survey to obtain parent feedback on the proposal. The response favored removing the holy days of Good Friday and Yom Kippur as days off.  The response was 367 in favor of having school in session on those days. 144 did not. The vote by the school committee was 4-2 with members Padera and Zullas voting against holding school on those days.

You can find the revised 2015-2016 calendar here.

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At a brief meeting of the Board of Selectmen Macolm Larson, former Chief of the Milton Fire Department, addressed the Board during Citizen Speak, to discuss an override that will be on the ballot in April. The ballot question will seek approval of an override to Prop 2 1/2 that will fund health expenses for a firefighter hurt in the line of duty.

Mr. Larson is the chair of a committee that includes Joseph Patrick O’Malley, Steve Morash, John Michael Shields, and Selectman Conlon among others, that seeks to educate the community on the purpose of the override. Larson explained that to date the expenses had been funded through bonding which the Department of Revenue has informed the town is not an appropriate sustainable means for funding the obligation. The override will allow the town to meets its commitment, actually cost less over the long term than the bonding, and prevent the cost from impacting the town’s operational budget. MyTownMatters sat down with Mr Larson and Mr. Hurley last week to discuss the issue. The program will air on MATV starting this Friday at 7:30PM (You can find the MATV program guide here.)

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The Selectmen also unanimously approved a letter in support of Historic New England‘s effort to convert the Eustis Estate into a museum and study center.  The Planning Board also heard from Diane Viera, COO of Historic New England and members of her team discuss plans for a new driveway into the estate in advance of their opening the museum. A new driveway is required for safety of access. The current carriage house entrance cannot accommodate fire apparatus and school buses. The house will be preserved and the new driveway will be designed consistent with the character of the property and preserve the experience of entering it. It will be two lanes wide. Steve O’Donnell, Chair of the Historic Commission, expressed the strong support of the Commission for the development.

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A longtime MIlton business is now for sale to the disappointment, we suspect, of many. Dave’s Bike Infirmary building in East Milton is on the market.

You can find the listing here.