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PUBLIC SAFETY
CONGRATS
Relay team performs well against peers
Fire capt. commends crews for lifesaving actions
Native’s movie wins Oscar
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March 22, 2023
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VOLUME 1, ISSUE NO. 17
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MARBLEHEADCURRENT.ORG
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ON SOCIAL @MHDCURRENT
TOWN MEETING
Schools to be included in override proposal Use of stabilization fund could also be put before voters BY WILLIAM J. DOWD For the first time in a public meeting, the Marblehead Select Board acknowledged that the funding needs of the Marblehead Public Schools would be included in the Proposition 2 1/2 override proposed under Article
31 of the 2023 town warrant. “We have been working hard to develop a more collaborative relationship with the town,” Superintendent John Buckey told the Marblehead Current, calling the Select Board’s direction “a very encouraging sign.”
Buckey added, “The Select Board’s inclusion of the schools in its override request affirms that they recognize the school district’s financial constraints and will join us in asking voters to invest appropriately in public education here in Marblehead.” The statement of the board’s
position came Friday, March 17, as members of the Select Board discussed a draft document that would put forward two separate proposals to increase property taxes to address a projected structural deficit in Fiscal Year 2024. While no numbers were
‘SERVICE ABOVE SELF’
Rotary Club surprises Siegel with 90th birthday party
provided on the size of the structural deficit or the overrides, the first override request would target the projected structural deficit stemming from the town’s reliance on free cash to balance OVERRIDE, P. A4
THREE-PEAT
Plan to extend Select Board term returns to Town Meeting BY KRIS OLSON
CURRENT PHOTO / NICOLE GOODHUE BOYD
Carl Siegel blows out the candles on his 90th birthday cake during a surprise party staged by his fellow Marblehead Rotary Club members on March 16.
Congressman Moulton, officials honor longtime Rotarian BY WILLIAM J. DOWD Marblehead Rotary Club members pulled out all the stops when they threw a surprise party for fellow Rotarian Carl Siegel on his 90th birthday on March 16.
The occasion saw the Rotary Club devote the entirety of its weekly meeting to showering praise and commendations on the volunteer. Select Board Chair Moses Grader presented a proclamation declaring March 16 as “F. Carlton Siegel
Day” in Marblehead in honor of Siegel’s decades in public service. Grader read the citation recognizing everything from Siegel’s work with youth football and baseball and his
The proposal pops up periodically — including as recently as the 2020 Town Meeting. But is this the year that voters decide to extend the terms of members of the Select Board from one to three years? Article sponsor Jim Zisson certainly hopes so. His research has shown that Marblehead is an outlier among towns with select boards in electing their members annually. A common misconception is that the Select Board is like a city council, Zisson said. The two bodies may have a similar number of members, but the similarities end there, he explained. “The Select Board is an executive function,” more like a mayor, Zisson said. Mayors almost always serve multi-year terms, which makes sense, Zisson argued. “The reason is there are a lot of long-term strategies and objectives that need to be addressed,” he said. With nomination papers now available at the Town Clerk’s Office, another Marblehead election cycle is underway. While most voters might mark the beginning of the season by the signs they see sprouting on lawns, for the candidates, the quiet part of the campaign began months ago for many, Zisson suggested.
SIEGEL, P. A11 EXTEND, P. A12
END OF AN ERA
After century in business, Bartlett’s Garage to close shop For generations, family of mechanics kept locals’ cars running BY WILLIAM J. DOWD Bartlett’s Garage, an Old Town institution whose owners have repaired ‘Headers vehicles for three generations, will soon close after more than a century in business.
BLACK CYAN MAGENTA YELLOW
Thursday, March 30 will be the last day for one of the oldest continuously operated independent auto shops in the county, according to Greg Quillen. A private buyer has bought the Stacey Street garage and has
other plans for the property. on the property, “It’s not going to be an auto shop after we leave,” Quillen told the Marblehead Current. By “we,” he means himself and his older brother, Mike. The brothers are retiring from the family business that their maternal grandfather, Edgar Bartlett, acquired in the 1920s. Their father, James Quillen,
subsequently took over the business and ran it for 50 years. “This shop has been working on automobiles since the very beginning of automobiles,” Greg Quillen said. The car garage, a stone’s throw from the Old North Church, housed a machine shop in the late 1800s, and people would occasionally bring their bicycles for repairs, Greg Quillen said.
As automobiles came into widespread use, Edgar Quillen transitioned the business to repairing them. The brothers took over a little over 20 years ago. Today, they interact with between 50 and 60 customers daily who are either picking up their cars, lining up repairs or just saying hello. GARAGE, P. A11