Cedar Woods: Recent photographs

http://framinghammatters.blogspot.com/2014/09/eye-towards-cedar-woods-trail.html

Decayed tree trunks are natural safe havens for birds and small animals

Signs of spring when Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) flowers start to make an
appearance. The insects that pollinate it are attracted by its odor,
which resembles decaying flesh.

Hoarding in a New Age

Drowning in Email, Photos, Files? Hoarding Goes Digital
by Melinda Beck,  from Wall Street Journal 

Digital hoarding is a huge problem. There is so much available storage, we don't have to make decisions anymore. The problem isn't that it slows down your computer—it slows down your brain,"

since each of those photos, links and folders demands some mental energy.
 

Of course, plenty of people manage to keep vast collections of emails, files and digital media organized and accessible, cutting down on physical clutter in their lives. Kathy Riemer, a communications consultant in Chicago, says her "digital retentiveness"—including 2,400 Word documents and 39,575 business emails, divided into 69 file groups—enhances her productivity and gives her peace of mind. "Saving it all helps me avoid recreating an already-built wheel and enables me to provide historic context for long-term projects," she says.

There isn't a set number of emails in an inbox or photos saved that defines a hoarder. Accumulating crosses the line into hoarding, experts say, when it is disorganized and dysfunctional and gets in the way of other relationships and responsibilities.

Framingham Taxpayers Association holds well-attended event

(Information about Saturday's Framingham Taxpayers Association meeting at Heritage House to come)

Take The Needle Out Of Our Vein

"There's no crisis in Framingham", at least in taxes, according to comments said to be made by some Town insiders. Indeed, property taxes will be remain relatively stable, so say reports attributed to officials in the Administration. But, to the rank and file of taxpayers, it would be most wise for them to remember the biblical story of Joseph in ancient Egypt, and its warnings about how to prepare for problems in the immediate future.

Larry Schmeidler,
Pct 4, FTPA Board Member

The Framingham Taxpayers Association (FTPA) will once again play Joseph -- as it did in 2012 -- basing its statistical analyses on data provided in budget and tax projections, benchmarking of other towns and cities, corrective action taken by Worcester in eliminating manual overrides (special discounts), to name just a few elements. This effort will not be just a one-shot deal. It will be carried over into the Annual Town Meeting, a planned Special Town Meeting, and a possible town-wide referendum on an issue, if necessary.

It will also and hopefully be carried forward on social electronic media -- YouTube, Facebook, Twitter; blogs, and other electronic media -- so that the average taxpayers can ask questions and have a say on how their money is spent. News and commentary will thus not be "managed" in the traditional manner.

Promising news for a skatepark

At last night's meeting of the Standing Committee on Ways and Means, Judith Grove, Town Meeting member, Precinct 15 Chair and a member of Ways and Means, presented a Town Meeting Article of the Skatepark.  The slide presentation provided a great amount of researched information and statistics. Mrs. Grove expects the Skatepark to cost $350,000 with the Town providing $175,000 and Framingham Skateboard Committee raising $175,000.

Creativity, coordination and athleticism of ice skating vs. skate boarding

Compare skateboarding to ice skating. Change the skates to boards, ice for concrete. Both are singular sports and allow players to compete with others on an individual basis.  Both activities involve creativity, coordination and athleticism. As with freestyle ice skating, the spins and jumps come after you have learned the basics.

Related articles:

      Parents speak up for a skatepark
      Miconceptions of a skateboarder

Construction of the H.H. Richardson Train Station

A massive train improvement program began in 1881 by the Boston & Albany Railroad that included the building of over 30 new stations. Famed architect H. H. Richardson was hired to design nine of these stations, including South Framingham which was commissioned in October 1883. The $62,718 station, built in 1884-85 by the Norcross Brothers company, was the largest and costliest of the nine. The station is a prime example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style, built of rough-hewn granite with contrasting details. The dominant roofline,

dormers, arched bow window, and wooden interior are typical of the style. Like many of Richardson's designs, the station was well-praised; Henry-Russell Hitchcock called it a "better and somewhat more personal work" in The Architecture of H.H. Richardson and His Time. A small square baggage room was built in the same style just east of the station, near the Concord Street (Route 126) grade crossing.

  Henry Hobson Richardson, or better known as H. H. Richardson, was born on September 29, 1838 in
St. James Parish, Louisiana. After spending his youth in both Louisiana and New Orleans,
Richardson initially attended Harvard University to study Civil Engineering. Realizing his true interest
was in architecture, he attended the famous École des Beaux-Arts in Paris until money ran out
towards the end of the US Civil War in 1865.

Fire Safety for Seniors

Cooking was the Leading Cause of Fire Injury to Seniors
   • Seniors were at the greatest risk for cooking injuries; 36% of all fire injuries to seniors were from cooking fires. Electrical fires were the second leading cause of injury to seniors at 16%.
   • Wear short or tight-fitting sleeves when cooking. Loose sleeves easily catch fire.
   • Stand by your pan! Never leave cooking unattended. If you must leave the kitchen while you are cooking, take a potholder or cooking spoon with you as a reminder.
   • Put a lid on stovetop fires to put them out.

Storm warnings loom for homeowners

Once again, elements of a "Perfect Storm" loom ahead for huge tax increases caused by unsubstantiated assessments in commercial property values as had happened in 2012.  A public information meeting will be held on Saturday, April 11th at Heritage House, Peloguin Room, 747 Water Street, beginning at 2 pm.

The Framingham Taxpayers Association is responding to neighborhood requests to hold another town-wide conference on assessing inequalities and what positive steps to correct them. This action was specified in the reports to the Board of Selectmen regarding the recommendations made by the Ad Hoc Committee and the consultant.

350 Irving Street maps in 1915, 1930 and 1979

Boston and Albany map in 1915 showing former Framingham Gas Works location of equipment at 350 Irving Street with overlay of current aerial photograph.

1979 Assessor's Map showing placement of Northeast Utilities
gas tanks and equipment at 350 Irving Street.

Combined maps of former Gas Companies at 350 Irving Street.
Yellow markers indicate location of gas equipment in 1915.
Red markers indicate location of gas equipment in 1979.

1930 Diagram map showing part of Southside. Area at bottom shows Eversource
property which was then called Associated Gas and Electric Company.

More contamination in Southside

Lawsuit claims Framingham salvage yard released pollutants
By Scott O'Connell/Daily News Staff
March 17, 2015

An environmental group is suing a local metal recycling facility it accuses of polluting local waterways, court records show.

Clean Water Action filed the civil suit against Framingham Salvage Co. in U.S. District Court on Monday. The Boston-based advocacy organization is seeking a court order that stops the company from releasing pollutants into nearby water sources; forces it to restore the allegedly damaged water bodies; and requires it to pay civil penalties for violations.

Rear of Framingham Salvage Company
Not a pretty view for residents living on Morton Street

On Tuesday, however, both sides said they were already working together to reach a resolution on those issues.

According to a copy of the suit, Clean Water Action claims the 120 Waverly St. scrap metal recycling yard has been discharging stormwater runoff into the town’s municipal storm drain system and into Beaver Dam Brook, “the largest tributary of Lake Cochituate.” The organization specifically claims

Youth skateboarders ask the town for a park

by Danielle Ameden, Daily News Staff
March 19, 2015

A group of young skateboarders asked the Board of Selectmen Tuesday for help building a skate park so they don’t have to ride in the street.

The kids joined Precinct 15 Town Meeting member Judy Grove in asking selectmen to sponsor an article at annual Town Meeting this spring. Grove said the group is seeking $175,000 from the town — half the project cost — and the youngsters will go after grants and raise money to pay for the other half.

Young skateboarders from in and around Framingham, along with 

Town Meeting member Judy Grove, in the front row on the left,
went to the Framingham Board of Selectmen Tuesday to present their
request for a skate park. Daily News photo/Danielle Ameden

Crispus Attucks: Framingham Revolutionist

Today, March 5, marks the 245th anniversary of the Boston Massacre. Crispus Attucks was an African-American man killed during the Boston Massacre.

Early years 

Crispus Attucks is believed to have been born around 1723, in Framingham, Massachusetts. Born into slavery, Crispus Attucks was the son of Prince Yonger, a slave shipped to America from Africa, and Nancy Attucks, a Natick Indian. Little is known about Attucks' life, or his family, who resided in Framingham, Massachusetts.

Asbestos and other toxins prevelant at former gas plant in Worcester

 By Gerard F. Russell TELEGRAM and GAZETTE STAFF
March 1, 2015

WORCESTER — Asbestos had many common uses, such as insulation, high-temperature processes, large heating systems, fire-retardant products, roofing materials, floor tiles, ceiling tiles and clothing, according to the state DEP.

It was widely used and was not specific to manufactured gas plants such as the one that was on Quinsigamond Avenue where the WRTA is to build a garage for its fleet.

Worcester: Dirty site, costly cleanup

 Taxpayers left with bill to clean toxins, asbestos at future WRTA home

By Gerard F. Russell TELEGRAM and GAZETTE STAFF
March 1, 2015

WORCESTER — In December 2012, Worcester Regional Transit Authority Administrator Stephen F. O'Neil told his board he didn't know how much it would cost to rid toxic waste from land being eyed as a new home for the region's bus fleet.

"We know it will be bad, but how bad is the issue," he said.

His prescient observation was posited two years before the authority decided to buy land on Quinsigamond Avenue on which to build a garage and maintenance building. Executive