August News Notes

Acting Chief Lt. James Trombetta Appointed Chief of Police

Lt. James Trombetta has been appointed permanent police chief. He served as acting chief for four years and has been a member of the department for more than 30 years. Trombetta reportedly signed a three-year contract.

Construction Bid Awarded on Wheeler Street Bridge Project

The bid on the Wheeler Street Bridge construction project was recently awarded to Walsh Contracting of Attleboro. MassDOT issued a notice to proceed on July 27. The project, which is expected to cost approximately $1.5 million, will be paid with federal and state funds. The work should be starting soon. It will reportedly take about a year to complete.

Helen Dennen Named Interim Town Administrator

Helen Dennen has been named Interim Town Administrator for six months. She has served the town for 16 years. This is the third time she has worked as interim. Former Town Administrator Jeff Ritter recently resigned to accept a similar position in Holliston. 

Police Department Hires New Officers

The Police Department has hired two new officers, Greg DiCastro and Gilbert Lima, to fill open positions on the force. DiCastro previously served in the Providence Police Department for 26 years. Lima has been a reserve officer for four years. The department has been short staffed since last year when budget cuts forced the elimination of three patrol positions and the detective division.

Town Has New Veterans Officer

Selectmen appointed Richard Grenier as the town’s new veterans officer last month. Grenier worked as an engineer for Raytheon for more than 36 years and served in the Air Force, working in communications, for six years. He replaces John Taylor, who resigned. Grenier’s first day is August 3.

Public Hearing Planned for SRPEDD Municipal Aggregation Plan

The community electricity aggregation program is moving forward. The purpose of the program is to create a buying group for the purpose of procuring electricity for residents and businesses in bulk, in order to leverage the towns’ collective purchasing power. In July, thirteen local communities including Rehoboth, Seekonk and Attleboro filed a petition with the Department of Public Utilities seeking approval of a municipal plan. The towns have contracted with Good Energy to assist with the preparation of the plan and related filings. The Department of Public Utilities will conduct a Public Hearing at its offices located at One South Station, 5th floor, in Boston on Wednesday, August 26 at 2 pm to receive comments on the plan. Any person interested in commenting may do so at this public hearing or submit written comments to the department no later than close of business (5 pm) on Tuesday, August 25. The procedure to submit comments can be found on the town website homepage.

Police & Fire Departments Still Have Problems with New Radios

Town officials complained that East Coast Electronics, the company hired to make upgrades to the police and fire department’s communications systems, has not yet fixed problems with the radios. An East Coast Electronics representative was expected to attend a selectmen’s meeting last month to discuss the issue, but did not show up. The cost of the radio upgrades was $85,000.