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MARBLEHEAD, MA PERMIT NO. 25
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April 12, 2023
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VOLUME 1, ISSUE NO. 20
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MARBLEHEADCURRENT.ORG
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ON SOCIAL @MHDCURRENT
TOWN MEETING
UNWELCOME DISCOVERY
Dueling proposals target leaf blowers
Neighbors push back on sober house
One seeks to erase bylaw; other endeavors to strengthen it BY WILLIAM J. DOWD When the Town Meeting convenes May 1, residents are poised to enter a lively debate over dueling articles targeting regulations governing leaf blowers in town. In 2022, the Town Meeting passed a seasonal ban on the use of gaspowered leaf blowers from Memorial Day to Labor Day. The ban passed on a vote of 254 to 202, a 52-vote margin, and that victory was hard-earned following more than a decade of failed
leaf-blower proposals. Now on the 2023 Town Warrant, the Town Meeting will consider two citizen petitions. Article 47, sponsored by Todd R. Norman, seeks to erase the leaf-blower regulations, and its passage could come before the ban goes into effect for the first time in May. Meanwhile, Article 48 endeavors to strengthen the existing bylaw, adding enforcement provisions and penalties for noncompliance. Marblehead police and health departments and their designees would enforce the bylaw,
targeting property owners upon whose land infractions occur — not landscapers or lawn care businesses. Penalties would progress with each violation, and they would be as follows: » First offense, written warning » Second offense, $100 fine » Third and subsequent offenses, $200 fine According to an analysis of gasolinepowered leaf blower bans, those penalties fall in line with others across BLOWERS, P. A8
At heated meeting, demand for answers, tighter controls BY LEIGH BLANDER
ENVIRONMENT
Tensions ran high as more than 100 people crowded into a meeting with the leaders of a new sober house on Humphrey Street in Marblehead on April 3. “I empathize with these people, but I don’t want them in my »Recovery backyard,” said one expert neighbor, who identified weighs in, herself as an ER nurse. Page 5 “What are you going to do about our property values?” “And keeping our kids safe?” shouted another woman. The men’s sober house opened about a month ago and is run by Vanderburgh House, which has 31 sober houses in seven states. Marblehead Fire Capt. Scott Murray, who is also an addiction counselor and social worker, is the supervisor at the house. He also supervises a Vanderburgh sober home in Beverly. “I have 36 years of experience and have committed the rest of my life to helping
Sustainable Marblehead leads Green Homes Tour
NEIGHBORS, P. A5
POLITICS
MHS grad seeks Salem’s corner office
CURRENT PHOTOS / EMILY STEVENS
Pangallo won Witch City’s preliminary election in March
George Hooper shows off his Tesla solar panel rooftop during Saturday’s Green Homes Tour sponsored by Sustainable Marblehead.
Rebates, incentives bring energy efficiency technology closer to home for many BY CHRIS STEVENS Behind Lynn Nadeau’s Surf Street home is her “energy-free clothes dryer.” You might recognize it as a clothesline. “I had a consulting service for a while,” Nadeau said, standing on her back porch. “I had a little red wagon, and I’d go around and consult with people about where or how a
clothesline would work for them. It’s very idiosyncratic.” Nadeau’s clothesline was just one small stop on Saturday’s Green Homes Tour, an event sponsored by Sustainable Marblehead and aimed at teaching participants just how easy it can be to go green. According to Sustainable Marblehead Executive Director Louise Yarmoff, heating and cooling homes and buildings accounts for more than one-third of the town’s greenhouse gas emissions. With a goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, the local organization is putting an emphasis on educating residents.
BY WILLIAM J. DOWD
That led to nearly a dozen residents opening their homes Saturday to let visitors see various energy-efficient technologies in action and talk to the homeowners who installed them. More than just a car For visitors to George and Jane Hooper’s Pine Cliff Drive home, it was easy to see green technology at work. All George Hooper had to do was take out his phone and open an app, and one could see exactly how many kilowatts the Hoopers were racking up via their Tesla solar glass roof. And the solar panels were,
Dominick Pangallo, who graduated from Marblehead High School in 1999, has dedicated his career to public service, working as a legislative aide or chief of staff for elected officials. Most recently, he served as chief of staff for former Salem mayor and current Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll for a decade. Pangallo is now running to succeed Driscoll in a special election in May. In a five-way preliminary election held in March, he emerged victorious, securing 42.7% of the 7,211 votes cast. Neil Harrington, the secondplace finisher, captured 31.9%, and the two now face off in the lead-up to the special
GREEN, P. A11 PANGALLO, P. A12
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