Politics & Government
A Gift To Hingham: The 1913 Ballot Box
The box is not expected to be used, it will just stay in the Town Hall to be seen as a piece of history.
If last week was notable for the lengthy discussions by the Selectmen on proposed projects in Hingham, last night’s regular meeting was short but included a historical gift, a positive vote to sign off on the warrant for the Special Town Meeting and the signing of an Emergency Medical Services Plan that has been discussed since 2002.
John Riley, Chairman of Selectmen, made sure that the meeting got off on the right note by donating a wooden Ballot Box from 1913 that had been discovered in the garage of a resident.
Eileen McCracken, Town Clerk, accepted this piece of Hingham history with a smile and declared “we’ll put it in very special place.”
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Riley then put the age of the locked box into context by reeling off a number of important events from that year which included the opening of the Panama Canal, the inauguration of Woodrow Wilson as 28th President and the introduction of an assembly line by Henry Ford.
Emergency Medical Services Zone Plan
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The Selectmen also agreed to the latest version of the Emergency Medical Services Zone Plan. This document has seen multiple drafts filed since it became a requirement for all towns in Massachusetts and it is hoped that the latest application will finally be the one accepted by the State for Hingham.
The document sets out standard response times by emergency services and allows a uniform template to be adhered for every town. The Town has been working on this for a number of years and Hingham residents can expect to have a response from a local EMS on average within 8 minutes.
Agreement to lease the Tree and Park Building
An agreement to lease the Tree and Park Building to a local furniture maker was also discussed by Selectmen as part of the ongoing plan to rent unoccupied buildings to local businesses. These properties have been marked for sale but in the meantime, they could provide a steady stream of income to the Town and ensure that they remain in a reasonable condition as opposed to falling into disrepair. Hingham resident Richard Orr was the successful applicant and will now be responsible for maintaining the property for the foreseeable future.
