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| December 29, 2006 Barnstable Patriot |  |
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13 unlucky for charter
reviewers
The council-appointed com-
mittee reviewing the town char-
terhascometorealizesomething
importantinitsdeliberations: 13
is an indivisible number.
As the committee ponders
different membership options
for the council, including the
possibility of electing at- large
councilors or mergingprecincts
into wards, for example, the
biggest obstacle could be the
town's 13 precincts.
"We don't have any control
over certain components of
what we are doing,"committee
member Michael Daley said.
"No one's doing anything about
a representative town council
until 2012."
The town redistrictsbased on
the results ofthe federal census,
conducted every 10 years.
A special legislation request
could be made to redistrict the
town in advance of the 2010
census, but Town Clerk Linda
Hutchenrider said it would have
to be based on the 2000 census
numbers, as those are the only
recognized standard. Hutch-
enrider advised against such a
move because of the confusion
it would undoubtedly cause.
Daley said that if the council
is truly interested in a report
by Feb. 1, it might simply state
that changingrepresentation in
advance ofthe censusrequires a
special act of the Legislature.
This is a problem only if
the committee attempts to
makethe council'smembership
smallerand maintainsome form
of district representation.
Meade: Don't expect
miracles from the
housing market
Has the real estate market
touched bottom?
"It'sbouncing along the bot-
tom," Register of Deeds Jack
Meade said as he met with the
county commissionersto review
his plans for fiscal 2008.
Implicit within the word
"bounce" is that home buying
will head upward again, and
Meade advised that the sluggish
sales environment of 2006 will
pass as did the feverish growth
in Registry revenues of recent
years.
"I've been through this be-
fore,"he said. "When Ifirst came
here in '89, my first job was to
lay off 15 people. " I had 55 to
75 people on the payroll, and I
have 30 now."
That's due in major part to
computerization of the Regis-
try, and Barnstable 's Registry
is noted as a statewide leader
in that regard.
State funding unlikely
for school building
projects in near term
Barnstable School Superin-
tendent Dr. Patricia Grenier
provided a frank analysis of
Barnstable 's chances of seeing
any state funding for its still-
developing school capital plan,
and things don't look good.
In comments to the school
committee, Grenier ran down
the priority list to be used by
the state 's School Building
Authority tojudge applications,
and Barnstable 's problems fit
uncomfortably in perhaps two
of the eight criteria.
Grenier and facilities director
Joe Slominski are developing a
statement of interest for state
school building funds, aprereq-
uisite to a formal application.
She said that town should not
expect to see any state assis-
tance until after 2008.
Committee member David
Lawlersaid that the good newsis
that Barnstable isinbetter shape
than alot of other communities,
but added that doesn't address
the needs of the district.
"I think it's pie in the sky to
think that the state is going to
drop a boatload of money on
us," he said.
Lawler said that as the dis-
trict looks at the challenges it
faces,the financial answers will
have to be found locally.
Committee members were
quick to say that they are not
suggesting that an tax levy
override is needed,but realize
that whatever capital plan is
developed will likely have to
rely more on local resources
than those from the state or
elsewhere.
School officials
handle bomb threat
"It's been a tough week for
the middle school," said Supt.
Dr. Patricia Grenier as she
addressed the school com-
mittee.
Grenier 's words come in the
wake of a bomb threat made
against the school by an un-
known source. "A bomb threat
was in fact taped to the outside
of the middle school front en-
trance ," she said.
The threat drew the acting
chief of police,Paul MacDonald ,
as well as Grenier, Asst. Supt.
Glen Anderson,BMS principal
Rick Bidgood,and school com-
mittee member David Lawler,
among others.
Although the threat turned
out to be a hoax it highlighted
what Grenier referred to as the
country's loss of innocence in
the aftermath of 9/11.
"There is no 100 percent guar-
antee anymore," said Grenier. "I
would, as a principal years ago,
say to children unequivocally,
'You'll be safe here. Everything
will be OK.' I can't say that any
more."
Compact's rates to
drop significantly
New rates effective Jan. 1for
residents and businesses that
buy their electricity through the
Cape Light Compact will be 10
to 13 percent lower than they
were a year ago.
The Compact announced
that,through June 30, residen-
tial rates will be 11.652 cents
per kilowatt hour and 11.671
cents for commercial users.
That compares with proposed
NStar rates of 11.818 cents for
residential and 11.850 for com-
mercial customers.
Judge Reardon, who
inspired a courthouse
and community,
retires
His head bowed asifin prayer,
Judge Joseph Reardon listened
as a court officer intoned the
ceremonialopening wordsinvit-
ing "all having business"to ap-
proach the bench for Reardon 's
last session of "drug court" at
1st Barnstable District Court.
The vigorous 70-year-old is
required by law to retire,but he
made clear that he willcontinue
to work "not just to maintain
peace,but to create peace."
Frustrated by having to send
a steady stream of non-violent
drug offenders to the county
house of correction,Reardon
spearheaded the creation of
Barnstable Action for New Di-
rections (BAND). The program
stresses treatment and regular
appearances in drug court over
incarceration,and has shown
significant success in returning
men and women to society as
contributing members.
Presiding over drug court as
well as the entire courthouse ,
Reardon has been an encourag-
ing figure both to those whose
cases he'sheard and the officers
of the court.
Addressing the five new
graduates,Reardon placed
the responsibility for change
and advancement not on his
shoulders but on theirs.
"You can do it ," he said ,
beaming down from the bench.
"I can't do it for you. That's
where the victory lies: within
yourself."
County looks for
more from economic
development board
The old discussion about how
the salary of the Cape Cod Eco-
nomic Development Council's
administrator is paid has come
up again as the county faces a
potential $2 million revenue
shortfall for the fiscal year be-
ginning July 1.
The administrator, Dan Dray,
and EDC vice chairman Dave
Willard got the same message
from the county commissioners
that all departments are receiv-
ing: help us find alternatives.
Given the situation,commis-
sioner Lance Lambros asked,
should Dray'ssalary come from
Cape & Islands license plate
funds, or should that money
continue to be protected for
job development grants?
"We're here to be realistic and
be a team player," Willard told
the commissioners. "We don't
want to gothere, but this should
be part of the discussion. "
"We have to support as much
as possible the stable grant-
giving ability " of the council ,
commissioner Bill Doherty said.
The council has made about
$400,000 in grants annually, but
competition with new specialty
license plates may cause that
revenue to dip.
Allagreed that taking a chunk
of that money for a salary was
not ideal, but arranged to re-
visitthe matter inJanuary when
firmer Registryof Deeds revenue
figures for the last sixmonths of
2006 will be available.
Audit: Police
accounting risks
funds misuse
An October audit of the
Barnstable Police Department's
cash policies and payments
showed a system "with seri-
ous weaknesses " and in need
of change.
The audit was requested by
TownManager John Klimm and
prepared by the audit firm Pow-
ers &Sullivan and town Finance
Director Mark Milne.
"The expenses we did examine
for the period of our review did
not reveal any illegal expenses
on the surface ," the auditors
wrote,"but the process being-
used could easily contribute to
some occurring. Serious weak-
ness in the internal controls
over the management of some
of these funds exist that if not
corrected could lead to the in-
appropriate use of funds."
The audit was requested be-
cause "questions have been raised
as to how these funds are main-
tained and how the funds were
spent ," according to the audit's
executive summary, obtained by
The Barnstable Patriot.
Milne said that a routine look
at the department' s finances
earlier this year brought the
existence of numerous cash ac-
counts to light,none ofwhich are
reviewed or processed through
the town's finance division.
The department's cash re-
imbursement practice was
ended by town finance official s
in July.
Among other things,the audit
found that in the past two years,
$54,068.92 in police department
travel expenses were charged to
the following budgets: Federal
forfeiture account,$12,450; com-
munity policing grants $21,428,
and operating budgets $20,189.
Of these amounts, just over
$13,000 was reimbursed to em-
ployees in cash out of various
special investigations accounts
without oversight from the
town's finance division. More
than $6,000 of these cash reim-
bursements were made to for-
mer Police Chief John Finnegan
from 2004 to 2006.
Joakim, Brown to lead
council in 2007
Barnstable Town Council
Vice President Janet Joakim,
Precinct 6. can remove the
qualifier in her title,as she was
unanimously elected council
president for 2007.
Her vice president will be
a man returning to that role.
Hyannis councilor Gary Brown
served two terms as vice presi-
dent and two as president,and
he 'll spend what' s expected
to be his final year in office as
second in command.
Brown beat out Barnstable
Village Councilor Ann Canedy
on an 8-5 vote.
Hundreds turn out
for forum on drivers'
licenses
State Registrar of Motor
Vehicles Anne Collins treated
her listeners well at a forum on
how to obtain a driver 'slicense ,
but that's not how some of the
nearly 300 in attendance at
Federated Church of Hyannis
feel they 've been treated by her
employees.
Responding to concerns that
the color of one 's skin and the
country of one'sbirth affect how
immigrants and temporary in-
ternational workers are treated
when they apply for licenses,
Collins said the message she
conveys to staff is to "treat
people with dignity and respect.
I will send it again."
With the sound of simultane-
ous translations in Portuguese
and Spanish buzzing in head-
sets throughout the audience ,
Jane Nichols Bishop, whose
company helps bring temporary
international workers to the
region every year, told Collins
that she has seen Registry offi-
cials grant approvals to lighter-
skinned foreign national s and
turn away others with exactly
the same documents.
She urged the Registrar to
provide sensitivity training
regarding the variety of cul-
tures present on the Cape
in-season.
"We're a mini-U.N " Nichols
Bishop said, a comment echoed
by Collins about her own staff.
The Registrar said the training
"sounds like a very reasonable
idea."
Neighbors sound off
on Bumbalini's sound
There was no generation
gap in the criticism of recent
changes at Bumbalini'son Main
Street in Hyannis.
Elderly and young neighbors
of the restaurant told the licens-
ing board that sound from the
establishment is keeping them
up late at night,and some
said they haven't been treated
well by a "new manager" when
they've asked for quiet.
One man said the trouble
j
began around Thanksgiving
when that "new manager " put
a stereo speaker outside the
establishment and declined to
turn down the volume when
asked. A woman who lives
above the establishment said
she'd pleaded with employees
to at least lower the bass level,
which set her teacups dancing,
to no avail.
The licensing board seemed
willing to give owner Louis Che-
schi another chance himself,
agreeing to review his entertain-
ment license at its next meeting,
on Jan. 8. Cheschi said he has
hired someone to manage his
kitchen, but that man is not
the restaurant manager.
Judge keeps Rectrix
talking at first court
date with town
From the judge 's introduc-
tory remarks,it was clear
that the burden would be on
Rectrix Aerodrome Center 's
attorneys to show why the
Federal Aviation Administra-
tion should not be consulted in
the company 's federal civil suit
against Barnstable Municipal
Airport .
That was the narrow mat-
ter before U.S. District Court
Judge Richard G. Stearns at
the hearingin Boston'sMoakley
Courthouse.
In his opening comments,
Stearns characterized Rectrix's
suit and motions as attempts
to "plead around" the other
statutes implicated in the suit,
The judge also made repeated
references to three tilings made,
then withdrawn,by Rectrix to
the FAA for rulings on some of
the same material presented
in the suit. At one point,Stea-
rns observed, "At least three
times you thought the FAAwas
important enough" to seek its
review.
The proceedin gs will even-
tually lead to a decision as to
whether certain claims can be
sent to the FAA for its review
and ruling, as requested as
part of the airport's "motion
to stay."
The airport' s strategy, as de-
lineat ed in its filings before the
court and at the hearing, is to
have the FAA rule on matters
the airport contends are under
its jurisdiction,and then for
the court to determine how to
handle what remains.
Astro Park
observatory named for
Cobb trustee
Twenty-five years agoHyannis
attorney and Osterville resident
David Cole became the trustee
of the Cobb Trust, a position"
that inspired a tremendous
passion in an otherwise quiet
man.
Through dedication and ere-
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KATHLEEN SZMIT PHOTO
HOLIDAY SMILE - Abigail Reed, 2, of Hyannis, is all smiles during a special holiday party at A Baby Center
in Hyannis on Wednesday. Children and infants were treated to sweet treats,balloons,and a visit with Santa,
who gave each child a special gift to take home. Abigail got a snuggly baby doll but had great fun playing
peek-a-boo with her balloon. For more information about A Baby Center, visit www.ababycenter.org.
Buoyant as a balloon