Posts Tagged ‘Mark Sardella’

The Big Ask

17Apr15

Wakefield School Department officials have acknowledged that their requested 11.4 percent budget increase for FY 2016 is “a big ask.” The largest piece of that increase is $1,176,875 (3.8 percent) for “contractual salary obligations.” Another $658,174 (2.1 percent) is for SPED tuitions and $628,218 (2 percent) goes to fund salaries related to the newly instituted […]


There will very likely be a ballot question in 2016 seeking to legalize recreational marijuana in Massachusetts. We know this because the activists who in 2012 successfully perpetrated the “medical” marijuana scam are the same people who are now working on the 2016 ballot question to make pot available for recreational use. So much for […]


Wakefield, MA eliminates winter ban on overnight on-street parking Last December, I wrote about a storm brewing on Wakefield social media related to the winter parking ban. The ban, which has been in effect so long no one can remember when it started, prohibits overnight parking on the street from Dec. 1 to April 1 […]


Wednesday, March 25 at 7:30 pm at the Savings Bank Theater – Wakefield, MA Those who attend Wednesday’s opening lecture of the 2015 Sweetser Lecture Series at The Savings Bank Theater are in for a treat. Speaker Casey Sherman is not just an author and journalist. He is a born storyteller, entertainer and showman who […]


Wakefield (MA) Police Chief Rick Smith was at Monday night’s meeting of the Board of Selectmen for the presentation of his department’s budget. But in light of what he called “a tough year for law enforcement,” Smith also took the opportunity to correct some misconceptions regarding police work in general and to highlight some positives […]


Alicia Reddin is the new VSO for Wakefield & Saugus, MA “When I really feel strongly about something, I don’t give up,” says Wakefield’s new Veterans Services Officer Alicia Reddin. That’s good news for veterans in the district that includes Reddin’s territory of Wakefield and Saugus. Reddin is replacing former VSO Andrew Biggio who has […]


Not the Time

21Feb15

Normally, I give topics like Global Warming and Climate Change a good leaving alone. It’s a slippery slope that can quickly trigger an avalanche of supercilious lectures from the Reality-Based Community. But in my reality I have eight feet of snow in my front yard and if the AccuWeather Boston forecast holds true, we’ll finish […]


After the town’s traffic consultant, John Kennedy, outlined his findings and recommendations with respect to the 130-unit Brightview Senior Living facility proposed on Crescent Street, Wakefield MA, Board of Appeals member Chip Tarbell had one question. “Based on traffic and parking,” Tarbell asked, “if all of your comments and concerns are answered, would there be […]


Mixed Signals

08Feb15

This has been driving me crazy for years, so I was pleased when a member of the Board of Selectmen raised it at a recent meeting. It relates to the intersection of Salem and Lowell streets (at the Prime Gas Station) as well as the intersection of Salem and New Salem streets. Both of these […]


The passing of another era has been marked with the removal of another landmark from Wakefield‘s downtown. On Sunday, the giant projecting “Santoro’s” illuminated sign was removed from above what was one of the early submarine sandwich franchises in the Wakefield area. Why didn’t the preservationists step in and protect this historic landmark? Were they […]