Library Book Sale

The Friends of the Bridgewater Public Library will sponsor a book sale on Saturday, January 9th from 10AM to Noon. There will be a variety of gently used books for sale including a large selection of children's books.

The Friends are also selling organic/fair trade coffee, cocoa and coffee mugs.

The book sale will take place in the Flora T. Little Meeting Room on the lower level of the library. Parking is available in the back of the library located at 15 South Street in Bridgewater.

American Sign Language Classes

A five week American Sign Language (ASL) program will begin at the Conant Community Center on Wednesdays beginning 01/06/09 and will run through 02/03/09.

Two levels of instruction are now offered. Beginner ASL for those who have little or no signing experience will take place from 5PM to 6:30PM and advanced/voice off ASL will take place from 6:30PM to 8:00 PM. Each class will include cultural content. Students can attend one or both classes however registration is required as space is limited.

The cost is $60.00 which includes all materials. EMT/Paramedic hours as well as Professional Development Points will be awarded according to state guidelines. Donations to the community food pantry will be accepted before and after class.

Those needing ASL instruction due to reasons pertaining to deaf, hard of hearing or non-verbal family members will not be placed on a waiting list. To register, please call Marianne Molinari at 781.447.2470 or email her at manny66@msn.com.

4th of July Committee Meeting

The Bridgewater 4th of July Committee will be holding an organizational meeting on January 19, 2010 at 5:30 PM at The Community Bank located on Main Street in Bridgewater. All members of the Bridgewater community are invited to share their ideas, thoughts and recommendations.

The committee will be looking for ideas for fundraisers to help support the festivities for 2010.

Library Gutters Undergo Improvements

The Trustees of the Bridgewater Public Library have announced that the gutters on the library building at 15 South Street have recently been cleaned, repaired and some have been replaced.

This project was undertaken thanks to the generosity of local resident and businessman Brian Healey. Healey is the owner of Brian Healey Contractors, Inc. and should you wish to thank Healey by supporting his business please call 508.378.8836 to discuss and schedule your project.

Christmas Tree Pick Up

Boy Scout Troop 88 is sponsoring their annual Christmas tree pick up fundraiser. Let the members of Troop 88 come and pick up your Christmas tree after the holidays! The pick up dates are Sunday, January 3rd and Sunday, January 10th. The suggested donation to have your tree removed is $7.00 per tree.

To schedule your pick up, please call 508.697.6841.

Alert Notification System

You can sign up for the Department of Corrections Alert Notification System by clicking here. Make sure you are prepared and sign up today.

Board of Selectmen 12/15/09 Agenda

The Board of Selectmen will meet this Tuesday (December 15th) in the Memorial Building. The agenda for the meeting is as follows:

5:30 PM: Executive Session

1. 6:30 PM: Public Hearing: New Auto Dealer's License - Matthew Marchant DBA DC Auto Reconn

2. 6:40 PM: Mark Gildea, Town Counsel, Human Resources Department - Update on Police Chief Hire

3. 6:50 PM: David Moore: Lodging House License Renewals (Round 1 and 1A)

4. Report of the Municipal Administrator

5. Items requiring Board action:
a. Audit follow up
b. Auto Dealer's License Renewals (Round 2)
c. FY11 Budget guidelines
d. Highway Department Temporary Part-time drivers
e. Holiday Closings 2010
f. Library Entry Bid Awards
g. Professional Conduct Policy (Volunteers)
h. SAVE Committee Appointment, Val Sime
i. Vacation Carry-overs

6. Open Forum

7. Board of Selectmen - Comments/Reports

8. Confidential or otherwise - (If Executive Session - MGL Chapter 39, Section 23b, Subsection 3)

9. Adjournment

Bridgewater Obtains Big Belly Solar Recycling Unit through MTC Grant

The Town of Bridgewater is pleased to announce that through the work of the Bridgewater Energy Committee the town has received a Big Belly Solar Recycling Unit through grant funds provided by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. The grant awarded to the Town of Bridgewater in the amount of $5,627.24 was used to purchase a solar powered recycling unit that will be placed at Legion Field in Bridgewater. The unit contains three separate compartments for bottles/cans, rubbish and paper and through an installed solar powered compactor compacts the refuse inside thereby decreasing the amount of times the rubbish and recyclables needs to be emptied.

Chairman of the Bridgewater Energy Committee Carlton Hunt described the hopeful impact that the Big Belly Solar unit will have upon the town. "One of these units is a good starting place for the town to really drive people's thoughts about the impact that we can each have upon our town," explained Hunt. "The MTC grant funding this Big Belly Solar unit will allow the town to not only improve the recycling in town on a small scale at Legion Field but will hopefully serve as a visual to the residents of Bridgewater that small scale steps such as this can positively impact our town in a large way."

The Energy Committee decided to place the unit at Legion Field because of the visibility of the location as well as the intended high usage the unit will get with sports drink bottles, water bottles and newspapers that are often times brought to the field. "It is our hope that this one unit that we secured through grant funds might spur other civic groups and/or private businesses in Bridgewater to partner with the Energy Committee in securing more of the units to place around town," explained Hunt.

Special Town Meeting Information

There will be a special town meeting on December 14th at 7:00 PM at the Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School Auditorium. One of the major issues on the agenda will be the work that the Town Government Study Committee has now put to the voters of Bridgewater.

The Town Government Study Committee will present an article at the STM on 12/14 that will give the citizens of Bridgewater the opportunity through an election in April 2010 to decide whether to adopt a charter form of government.

The Town Government Study Committee (TGSC) has invested over 3000 hours in the research and development of recommendations that are positioned to guide the future of Bridgewater culminating with the development of charters as recommended and approved at May Town Meeting in their final report to town. These charters represent 2 potential new forms of government for Bridgewater: Town Council/Town Manager and Open Town Meeting/Town Manager.

The charters put forth address the major concerns of Bridgewater's citizens notably financial management and accountability. Once approved by the town on December 14th, the charters will then proceed through a home rule petition/special act process with the state legislature. Upon completion of that process, the citizens would then have the opportunity in April 2010 to vote on onne of the charters or maintain the current governmental structure.

The approval of Article #5 at the December 14th STM is a critical step toward taking positive steps of change that will set a new direction for the town and get us out of the deep hole that we are in. If the article does not pass, the entire process stops dead in its tracks.

For more information about the recommendations, please click here.

Christmas on the Common

The Bridgewater Business Association is sponsoring Christmas on the Common this Sunday from 12:30 PM to 4 PM. The event will feature food, hot drinks, photos with Santa, pony rides, holiday music and local businesses booths.

Library Coffee Mug Sale!

The Friends of the Bridgewater Public Library are currently selling coffee mugs with the slogan Sit-Sip-Read-Relax-Repeat. These mugs make great hostess gifts during the holiday season.

The mugs are for sale at the library's circulation desk and will also be available at the Friends Book Sale this Saturday. The regular price of the mugs is $8 however until December 25th you can buy a mug for $6 with the purchase of Friends coffee of cocoa.

For additional information, call the Bridgewater Public Library at 508.697.3331.

Santa's Workshop and Craft Fair

The Friends of Williams and George Mitchell School Parents Association are sponsoring Santa's Workshop & Craft Festival. The event will be held on Saturday, December 5th from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Bridgewater Middle School located at 166 Mt. Prospect Street. All proceeds from this event will benefit the students at the George Mitchell Elementary, Williams Intermediate and Bridgewater Middle School directly.

This exciting annual event will feature a "Just for Kids" Shop, photos with Santa, a bake sale, holiday crafts, raffles (including the new Ipod Nano and Game Stop gift cards), and a vendor/craft fair. The "Just for Kids" Shop offers hundreds of items priced at only $1.25 so children can purchase items for their family and friends. There will be more than twenty five vendors at the fair, including: The Cookie Jar, Mary Kay, Earth's Elements, Tastefully Simple, Tupperware and Lia Sophia. Also, stop by and see Jean Cochran, author and publisher of many children's books including "On A Dark, Dark Night."

Library Book Sale

The Friends of the Bridgewater Public Library will sponsor a book sale this weekend!

Date: Saturday, December 5th
Time: 10AM to noon
Location: Lower level of the Bridgewater Public Library

This is a name your own price event! Hope to see you there!