By Joan F. Simoneau, Community Reporter
Marlborough – A spirit of gratitude prevailed at the Sept.12 City Council meeting as city officials thanked those who participated in and attended the 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony Sept. 11. A second message of thanks came from the city's Emergency Management Director Donald Cusson via a letter that was discussed at the meeting. In his letter, Cusson thanked everyone involved with the recent Tropical Storm Irene event – residents and workers.
Ward 5 Councilor Robert Seymour, who volunteered to lead the observance of the 10th anniversary of the Sept.11, 2001 terrorist attacks, said he was proud and honored to be a part of “something that is near and dear to me.” He thanked the members of the group who had planned the event, including Police Chief Mark Leonard, Acting Fire Chief Fred Flynn, Veterans Agent Gary Brown and John Ghiloni, the director of Public Facilities for the city and the public schools.
“We placed over 3,000 flags on the lawn of the Walker Building, which provided the proper setting and gave a strong message,” Seymour said.
Cusson's letter to Mayor Nancy Stevens and Council President Arthur Vigeant, expressed his appreciation to city residents for their patience during the long periods of power outage after Tropical Storm Irene hit the city. Cusson also thanked department heads, volunteers, National Grid workers, volunteers from the Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT) and the Algonquin Amateur Radio League (AARL), whose members “spent endless hours in the shelter sites communicating with state and local officials,” grocery store Price Chopper for breakfast donations, and custodians at the Francis J. Kane Elementary School and the 1LT. Charles W. Whitcomb School personnel were also recognized for “setting up and taking down shelters and servicing all the needs of the citizens.”
At the recommendation of the city's broker/consultant, the council voted to expand the list of potential electricity suppliers when the agreement of the current supplier, ConEdison Solutions, expires in November. In a communication from Stevens regarding the Municipal Aggregation Program, Proposed Pre-Qualification of Additional Suppliers of Electricity, it stated the city would stand to benefit from this action. The list includes the following, all licensed by the Department of Public Utilities: Constellation, Easy Energy LLC, GDF SUEZ Energy North America, Halifax-American Operating Co., Hampshire Council of Governments, Integrys Energy Services, Inc., Noble Americas Energy Solutions, Patriot Energy Group, and TransCanada Power Marketing Ltd.
The council also unanimously approved several appointments recommended by the Personnel Committee.
They include: reappointment of Sean Fay to the Planning Board, term expiring February 1, 2016; reappointment of Albert DeSimone as plumbing inspector for a three-year term, expiring February 11, 2014; appointment of Brenda Calder to the Parks and Recreation Commission to serve out the remaining term of Robert Lazaros, which expires May 6, 2013; and reappointment of Jeffrey Long for a three-year term from the date of approval; reappointment of Jean Peters to the Library Board of Trustees for a three-year term expiring February 3, 2014; and reappointments of Dorothy Hodgson and Rita Connors and appointment of Marie Elwood to the Council on Aging Board of Directors for four-year terms expiring the first Monday in May 2015.
