Patch Facts

5 Things: Town Meeting, Exercise for Successful Aging

A quick look at what you need to see, do and know on April 8 in Lexington.

1. Town Meeting Reconvenes Tonight: At 7:30 p.m. at Cary Hall. 2. Exercise for Successful Aging at Youville Place: At 2 p.m. this afternoon at Youville Place Assisted Living Residence, you can learn from Pat Agostino, physical therapist and co-owner of Peoplefit, how exercise can transform your body and mind. 3. Other Pubic Meetings: According to the town website, other public meetings posted for today include the School Committee at 6:30 p.m. at Cary Hall, the Board of Selectmen at 6:30 p.m. at the Town Office Building, the Appropriation Committee at 6:30 p.m. at the Town Office Building, the Lexington Council for the Arts at 7 p.m. at Cary Library and the Minuteman School Committee at 7 p.m. at Minuteman High. 4. Like Us on Facebook: …

• Photos (1)

$172M Budget, Financial Items Approved at Annual Town Meeting

Monday’s session was all about the money, and budget talks delved into enrollment and foreign language programs within the Lexington Public Schools.

The budget was the night’s biggest—and longest—item, but once Lexington’s annual Town Meeting approved a roughly $172 million budget for fiscal 2014, members made quick work of the other seven articles on Monday evening’s agenda.  Other items approved included school capital projects (Article 13), fiscal 2013 enterprise fund budgets (Article 5), a $20,000 appropriation to supplement the Senior Services Program (Article 6), reauthorization of revolving funds (Article 7), $900,000 for water system improvements (Article 11) and $1.3 million for Wastewater System improvements (Article 12).  Each of these passed with little discussion and less opposition. Article 4 dealt with the FY14 operating budget, and a good deal of conversation around the…

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)

Jack Lo Cicero

10:41 pm on Thursday, April 4, 2013

$172 million is a lot of money... Any chance there might be enough to help pave those horrible back roads? Today I almost got my self killed trying to avoid an oncoming vehicle that turned wider than they should have! And in my attempt to avoid an accident, I hit a pot hole that I think may have bent the frame of my new 2012 vehicle. I chose to hit the pot hole, rather than a really large tree …   more ›

Election Results: Pato Joins Selectmen, Corcoran-Ronchetti to Planning Board

The (unofficial) results are in.

  Fewer than 10 percent of Lexington’s registered voters turned out for the annual Town Elections held Monday, March 4. But every vote counts, and after every vote was counted, Lexington voters elected a new selectman and a new Planning Board member, and re-elected a handful of other officials. A host of Town Meeting members were also elected and re-elected to seats representing the town’s nine precincts. The only contested race for town office was for Planning Board, where Nancy Corcoran-Ronchetti defeated Richard McDonough by a tally of 1,138 votes to 429.  Running unopposed, Joseph Pato and Deb Mauger were elected to the Board of Selectmen. Pato received 1,251 votes while Mauger, the board’s current chair, was re-elected with 1,429 …

• Photos (1)
• Documents (1)

Town Election: A Guide to Election Day in Lexington (UPDATED 4 p.m.)

Your one-stop shop for info on polling locations, sample ballots and dispatches from the field.

Updated 4 p.m. -- The voting booths at Cary Hall, home to the polling locations for precincts 1 and 5, were completely empty just before 3 p.m. The good news, however, was that the voter turnout had hit triple digits. With that being said, election workers were not optimistic about hitting 200. Low turnout was reported throughout the day by voters around town. But this town election did have some chatting about the special state election(s) to come and what the various scenarios might mean in terms of cost and candidates. You can read more about that here. Updated 11:46 a.m. -- Low and slow can be a good thing when it comes to barbeque. When it comes to elections, not so much. But that's how reports from around town are describing the …

• Photos (1)
• Documents (9)

Lexington Selectmen Bid Farewell to George Burnell (VIDEO)

At his last meeting as a member of the Board of Selectmen George Burnell promised ‘I’m not going too far away.’

  It might be said that Monday night marked the end of an era, but that would be lazy. And being lazy isn’t necessarily part of the plans for George Burnell, the town government fixture leaving the Board of Selectmen after completing two terms. In sending off their colleague on Feb. 25, the selectmen did not say “goodbye” to Burnell, rather they thanked him for his service to date and said they look forward to working with him in the future – as an appointee to one or more other town boards. To hear what the selectmen and Burnell had to say, check out the videos posted to your right. First up was Selectman Norm Cohen, who noted Burnell’s past service including turns on Lexington’s Capital Expenditures and Appropriation committees and his …

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)
• Videos (2)

You Ask, Patch Answers

An Early Primer on Annual Town Meeting

Breaking down the What, the When and the Where of Lexington’s legislative body.

Wondering about annual Town Meeting? Because, yes, it is that time of year again: Lexington’s annual Town Meeting is set to begin Monday, March 18. And, per the usual, Town Meeting will be held at the Cary Memorial Building. The opening date is March 18, but Town Meeting will not convene during Passover (March 25) or the school vacation week from April 15 to April 19. There are 34 articles on the warrant, but one of the most eye-catching items – the proposed purchase of Scottish Rite property on Marrett Road – will be taken up in the special Town Meeting immediately preceding the annual. Beyond budgetary items, other articles of interest can be found among the “general articles,” from 26 to 33 on the warrant. Among them include an official…

• Photos (1)

What’s Your 2020 Vision for Lexington?

A new survey from the town’s 2020 Vision Committee is designed to gather forward-looking information for guiding community decisions.

When you think about Lexington’s future, what do you see? A new survey from the town’s 2020 Vision Committee doesn’t ask that question specifically, put it does pose a series of questions about the town’s future in terms of things like economic development, education, the environment, town government, population diversity and physical characteristics. The survey, posted online earlier this week, is available on the town website and at www.surveymonkey.com/s/J3DVLZR. It will remain live online until Feb. 20.  A printed version of the survey questionnaire will also be made available at the Council on Aging offices, Cary Memorial Library and at the Clerk’s office in Town Hall. According to a town announcement of the survey, input from …

• Photos (1)

LWV Candidates Night Scheduled for Valentine's Day

Must. Love. Politics.

The following announcement was provided by the League of Women Voters of Lexington. The League of Women Voters of Lexington will present a Candidates Night on Thursday, Feb. 14 in the Science Lecture Hall at Lexington High School. An annual event presented by the league to encourage greater participation in Town elections, this is an opportunity for candidates to present their positions on the issues and to listen to their constituents’ concerns.  In the first part of the evening, candidates for Town Meeting will gather in assigned classrooms to meet and exchange ideas with voters from their own precincts. In the second part, the audience will meet in the school auditorium to hear the views of people seeking Town-wide elective office, …

• Photos (1)

Looking Ahead to the Annual Town Elections

As candidates emerge and resignations roll in, an updated look at open seats and deadlines ahead of the March 4 annual Town Elections.

The paper chase for town office in Lexington began last month and, while a couple of candidates have emerged, the resignation of a Town Meeting member has opened up an additional spot for the March 4 Town Elections. Joe Pato, a TMM from Precinct 2 and recently resigned Appropriation Committee member, has announced his intentions to seek one of two open seats on the Board of Selectmen. And Deb Mauger, the current selectmen chairwoman, has indicated she will seek re-election. Selectman George Burnell is expected to retire from the board. The aforementioned resignation was of a Town Meeting member from Precinct 3. It was received Dec. 28, before the deadline for setting the ballot, bringing the total number of Town Meeting positions on the …

• Photos (1)
• Documents (1)

Meet Joe Pato: He Wants To Be Your Next Selectman

Pato has announced his candidacy for one of two seats opening up on Lexington’s Board of Selectmen.

  You might know Joe Pato from the neighborhood, or Town Meeting, or the Appropriation Committee, or as Jeri Zeder’s husband. Or maybe you don’t know him at all. Whichever of the above has been the case, it’s about to change, or at least evolve: A Lexington resident of 16 years, Joe Pato is running for the Board of Selectmen. Pato announced his candidacy last week, after pulling papers Dec. 14, the first possible day he was able to do so. That was quickly followed by a note to the Yahoo group and the launch of his website, JoePato.com, on which he explains his approach thusly: My approach is to throw away assumptions, dig for facts, and clarify the issues for the community. I believe in aligning support by stating a clear, transparent case…

• Photos (1)