Weekly News Roundup – 08/15/2021

Weekly News Roundup – 08/15/2021

Main Street Corridor Project – Weekly Update • Census: Hopkinton up to 18,758 residents • School Committee roundup: Mask use for upcoming school year debated • Superintendent to discuss return to school, face coverings at School Committee meeting Thursday • Town seeks remedy to accident-prone location on West Main Street • Artwork submissions sought for Art on the Trail display in October • Conservation Commission fines The Trails, Pulte Homes for stormwater violations • Town reviews gas leak related to Main Street Corridor Project • Planning Board approves Connelly Farms development with conditions • COVID-related emergency housing relief available


Main  Street Corridor Project – Weekly Update

What to Expect for the Week of August 16, 2021

  • Continuation of the Drainage Installation along Main Street (from Claflin Ave to 89-91 Main Street)
  • Continue installation of Mast Arm Foundation for Traffic Signals along the corridor
  • MassDOT Survey Crews to continue to locate limits of easements within the corridor
  • Delivery of Drainage Materials

https://hopkintonmainstreet.com/

RELATED: Live Construction Video Feeds are available for the Main Street Corridor Project, check where crews are working and traffic / weather conditions before you leave your home or office.

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Census: Hopkinton up to 18,758 residents

The results of the 2020 census were released Thursday, and it shows Hopkinton with a population of 18,758. That’s a substantial rise from the 2010 total of 14,925, and ranks as the sixth-biggest jump in the state.

The census also puts some specific numbers to Hopkinton’s growing diversity. The number of white people in town is 13,733, consisting of 73.2 percent. That’s only a slight increase from the 2010 total of 13,687.

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School Committee roundup: Mask use for upcoming school year debated

The use of masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19 was discussed at Thursday’s School Committee meeting, with a vote expected at the next meeting on Aug. 19.

Representatives for two groups — one for and one opposed — presented their viewpoints, as did a few community members. Their opinions were diametrically opposed, with some parents strongly advocating for masks as a safety measure while others saying that masks inhibited children’s social and emotional growth and are unnecessary.

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RELATED ARTICLE: 

Superintendent to discuss return to school, face coverings at School Committee meeting Thursday

 

Town seeks remedy to accident-prone location on West Main Street

At the Aug. 3 Select Board meeting, the board addressed an issue raised by a resident regarding a traffic issue at Cumberland Farms on West Main Street, where a number accidents — including some serious ones — have occurred.

Town Manager Norman Khumalo recommended that the board authorize him to continue to evaluate how recent measures are working as well as “taking into account any other new information that the town may have now in defining a solution for this.”

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Artwork submissions sought for Art on the Trail display in October

UPDATE, Aug. 11: The Hopkinton Cultural Council extended the deadline for submissions to Aug. 18.

The Hopkinton Cultural Council is inviting artists to submit work for display as part of 2021 Art on the Trail. The program will run from Oct. 7-17 (setup is from Oct. 4-7) on the mile-long Center Trail, which starts on Main Street, across from Hopkinton Lumber.

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Conservation Commission fines The Trails, Pulte Homes for stormwater violations

At Tuesday’s meeting the Conservation Commission made headway on several ongoing proposals, which were either approved or are near the approval stage. Fines were assessed on two projects for failure to comply with stormwater mitigation procedures.

The commission addressed the issuance of fines for a series of violations at The Trails, Hopkinton, a 55-and-over housing development located off Legacy Farms North Road. Cease and desist orders previously were issued by the commission as well as the town’s building department after sediment ran into the Hopkinton Reservoir, impacting the town of Ashland as well as Hopkinton.

There has been a history of violations on the site dating back to 2018. Fines had been held in abeyance but have been reconsidered in light of the current situation.

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Town reviews gas leak related to Main Street Corridor Project

On Monday August 9, A.F. Amorello & Sons, Inc., the general contractor for the Main Street Corridor Project, hit an active gas line while installing drainage infrastructure near the intersection of Main and Pleasant Streets. A detail officer reported that a gas line had been struck and the call was logged with the Hopkinton Police Department at 11:43am. Eversource Gas was notified and they repaired the leak within a couple of hours. Road closures on Main and Pleasant Streets were required.

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Planning Board approves Connelly Farms development with conditions

The Planning Board met on Monday to approve the Connelly Farms nine-lot subdivision at the corner of Hayden Rowe Street and College Street by a 6-0 vote with a number of conditions after considering numerous waiver requests.

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COVID-related emergency housing relief available

The town is offering an Emergency Housing Relief Program funded by Community Preservation Act funds approved at the 2021 Annual Town Meeting. The program provides COVID-19-related emergency mortgage and rental assistance for low- and moderate-income households.

Mortgage assistance may be provided only to those households living in housing subject to an affordable housing restriction (recorded deed restriction) or in exchange for an affordable housing deed restriction.

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