June 7, 2013 — "The Starter," a sculpture by Hopkinton resident Michael Alfano of the late  George V Brown, purported former owner of the Bruins as well as the Celtics (See HopNews video featuring grandson), is showing his preference in the hockey playoffs today despite the pouring rain.

BELCHERTOWN – Thursday, June 6, 2013 – Governor Deval Patrick today joined Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Secretary Rick Sullivan, Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game (DFG) Commissioner Mary Griffin and the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife) staff to band bald eagle chicks at the Quabbin Reservoir. MassWildlife has banded bald eagle chicks since 1982 as part of a bald eagle restoration project.

As part of MassWildlife’s annual effort to band all bald eagle chicks hatched in the Commonwealth every spring, each eaglet is outfitted with uniquely numbered metal leg bands that will enable researchers to identify it later. Banding young eagles is an important tool for measuring the success of species restoration programs by enabling scientists to gather information about survival rates, how far birds disperse when they leave the nest, habitat preferences and causes of death.

“The bald eagle population continues to rebound throughout the Commonwealth thanks to restoration efforts that began more than 30 years ago,” said Secretary Sullivan. “Since then, the year-round dedication of biologists and conservationists has helped protect these national symbols and their natural habitat.”

A victim of habitat loss and reproductive failure linked to exposure to pesticides such as DDT, bald eagle populations had plummeted across the country by the time they were placed on the U.S. Endangered Species List in 1973. Their numbers have since rebounded and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service removed bald eagles from the federal endangered species list in 2007. 

In Massachusetts, the bald eagle was down-listed from Endangered to Threatened status in 2012. 

“It is particularly satisfying to study and band bald eagles at the Quabbin Reservoir, where the restoration effort for this magnificent species began in Massachusetts,” said DFG Commissioner Griffin. “We appreciate all the hard work MassWildlife staff puts in for bald eagle research and restoration in all regions of the Commonwealth, and are grateful for the help of the Department of Conservation and Recreation at the Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoirs.”

In 1982, MassWildlife and its partners brought young eagles from Canada and Michigan and raised them in cages overlooking the Quabbin Reservoir. Through a wildlife management practice known as “hacking,” in which young birds of prey are raised in an outdoor cage with no direct human contact and later released into the wild, the eagles established breeding territories at the reservoir.

In April 2013, there were close to 40 active eagle nests counted in the state’s first Nesting Eagle Survey, including the Quabbin Reservoir, Connecticut and Merrimack Rivers and areas in Plymouth, Berkshire and Worcester Counties. In 2012, 19 of 27 nests produced chicks, and 31 young eagles survived to fly.

Contributed press release.

June 6, 2013 — This chipmunk and a nearby friend are residents of the downtown, and have the uncanny ability to squeeze through the most narrow openings, as some shop owners can attest to.

Hopkinton Artist to Have Solo Exhibit - Reception June 14, 2013

A reception for Dustin Neece, graduate of Hopkinton High School and Rhode Island School of Design, will take place at the Hopkinton Center for the Arts, 98 Hayden Rowe Street, Hopkinton from 6:00 - 8:00 p.m. on Friday, June 14. As the winner of the HCA's Viewer's Choice Award last year,  Neece will be having a solo exhibit of his paintings at the HCA from June 7 - 15.  Some of his most memorable paintings include Honoring the Spirit, a memorial to the veterans of Iwo Jima; a painting of marathoners Rick and Dick Hoyt; and The Grist Mill featuring a building at the Wayside Inn.  

June 5, 2013 — This creature, apparently some sort of moth, flitted around the pansies and other flowers outside of the office early this afternoon. The wings, antennae abdomen and thorax are standard for insects of this type an are easily identifiable, but the pincers appear to be an optional accessory that is not frequently seen.

June 4, 2013 — The Hopkinton Education Foundation held its annual Golf Ball Drop behind Hopkins School this evening, nearly selling out 1000 tickets for $10 each, and earning around $8,500 for their kitty. The foundation awards grants to Hopkinton teachers and administrators for innovations in education. The two top granyts this year were recently featured on HopNews; $37,440 toward STEM curricular for Middle School students, and $26,500 for a foreign language lab for High School students.
The incentive for participation in this evenings event was a top prize of $1,000 for the ball closest to, or in, the hole. That was won by Lisa Drienzo, whose ball went directly into the hole. The only other prize, $100, was awarded to former board member Ruth Ann Cote, whose ball appeared to be about 100' from the hole.

       While waiting for the moment, there were many activities to occupy the youngsters who gathered with their parents. Please check out the gallery below on SmugMug, which we have recently begun to use for hosting our galleries in a bright, orderly presentation. But SmugMug is not free, so we hope to offset the cost with sales of a few of the prints we present for viewing.

June 3, 2013 — President and CEO of Foxwoods Scott Butera (above) brought an entourage of planners to Milford High School Monday evening to present their proposal for a 1 million square foot resort casino to the Milford Board of Selectmen, promising a world-class facility "like you've never seen before." They offered benefits to the infrastructure of the town, the schools, the water system, the sewer system, and help building new ball fields and a soccer stadium. They promised to acquire more water capacity, in part, by retrofitting the schools with such things as low-flow fixtures. They promised to extend the Milford
 sewer line to the town line with Holliston. The meeting drew hundreds of attendees.
"We can enhance the playgrounds. We want money in this town's hands," said Mr. Butera. 
Downplaying the gambling aspect of the venture, Mr. Butera called the project a resort that "happens to have a casino element."
 Before using the land for the robust development that they say will provide 3,000 permanent jobs, they must first address the very large National Grid power lines that dissect the property diagonally. Mr. Butera said that they have been in discussions with Nation Grid and that moving them is doable. Foxwoods would be picking up the tab to run the lines instead around the perimeter of the property.
  The consultants and planners gave lessons in architecture, showing slides of design elements and their origins in New England and speaking in metaphors.
 "The building is having a conversational relationship" with the water, said one speaker, describing the spatial relationship of the main structure and a pool in front of it.
"We wanted something that looks like it has been here forever," said Mr. Butera, and then described integrating the new facility with the land with bike and walking trails, and other recreational aspects.
He revealed his intimate knowledge of the area by describing "Vietnam," a series of mountain biking trails around the property, and promised that the front of the facility will be adorned with the world-famous Milford-pink granite.
The increase in traffic will be facilitated by a bridge over Route 495 and collection-distribution roads on both sides of the highway. Route 16 would be the main entrance, as required by traffic standards the gathering was told, but that aspect was not elaborated on in detail.
The traffic engineer presented traffic studies that showed increases of 28 cars on one road and 36 on another, which drew a collective sigh of disbelief from the otherwise silent, spellbound audience. The next speaker said that in their haste, the decimal point was put in the wrong place, which drew more disbelieving groans.
Mr. Butera promised a $15 - $20 million PILOT [Payment In Lieu Of Taxes] annual payment to the town of Milford as well as up to $2.5 million annually to the fire and police departments.
Toward the end of his presentation, Mr. Butera, a New England native and superb salesman, was referring to Milford, which will need to negotiate a Host Community Agreement with Foxwoods, as "our town." He said his group already had one drafted.
At the closing of the presentation, Selectman William Buckley thanked the listeners in the audience.
"I appreciate the respect this community gave [to the presenters]," he said. 
And except for the name being at the border on one or more maps shown in the Power Point presentation, the town of Hopkinton, which is leading an anti-casino coalition of several surrounding towns to have their voices heard, was never mentioned.
Not once.*
* The HopNews reporter left at the intermission, which followed the Foxwoods presentation.