One-Stop Shopping at Swampscott Town Hall Restaurateur Aiming for Uncommon Success
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SATURDAY, JANUARY 4, 2020 COURTESY PHOTO From left, town employee Chrissy Raposo, assistant town administra- PHOTO | PAUL HALLORAN tor Ronald Mendes, and employees Diane Folan and Elana Berube pro- Uncommon Feasts owner Michelle Mulford and restaurant employee vide assistance to a town resident in the new customer service of ce at Paula Agganis prepare food in their Lydia Pinkham building location. Swampscott Town Hall. Restaurateur aiming One-stop shopping at for Uncommon success Swampscott Town Hall By Paul Halloran The hallmark of the restaurant, Mul- By Steve Krause at Town Hall. FOR THE ITEM ford said, is that she uses locally grown ITEM STAFF The new of ce is called Town Hall food as much as possible and everything Custom Service, and it is situated, said If you cook it, they will come – and that is served is made on site. In 2020 SWAMPSCOTT — The people in Mendes, to assist taxpayers with assess- hopefully stay around to enjoy the am- she plans to focus more on dinners in the Swampscott have always been proud of ing and payment questions, along with bience. restaurant and launch a lunch delivery their Town Hall for its attentiveness to other inquiries such as trash/recycling, That philosophy is what prompted service. its history. vital statistics, voter registration and Michelle Mulford to parlay her catering If Milford had any doubts that her idea The one-time home to General Electric new resident issues. business – which she moved to the Lyd- was is a good one, they were eliminat- founder Elihu Thomson contains much “To begin with, the of ce started off as ia Pinkham building last May – into a ed by two incidents on the same day in of the architecture and ambiance that being the Town Clerk and Tax Collec- restaurant that offers breakfast, lunch December. In the morning, a customer architect James Templeton Kelley de- tor’s of ce,” Mendes said. “For any other and dinner ve days a week. asked if the community was embracing signed more than a century ago. concerns, we were bouncing residents all “We originally planned to have occa- the business. Mulford assured the wom- So when the interior of the building was over the building. sional meals,” said Mulford, who opened an that is absolutely the case, to which redone late last year, for the sake of ef - “We thought it would be better to keep the catering business in Boston nine she replied, “Good, because we need you ciency, much attention was paid to staying all of the transactions and concerns to years ago. “We weren’t sure how it would to be here.” as historically accurate as possible while one of ce, on the rst oor.” take off, but people in the building have At the end of the day, a young artist making the most sensible use of space. When Sean Fitzgerald, the town ad- been very supportive and we have been from RAW Art Works came in to ask if Thus, the Town Clerk and tax collec- ministrator, took over two years ago he getting more and more people coming in he could use the space to do a lm shoot. tor’s of ce were combined an expanded noticed the amount of distance within from outside the building.” Mulford couldn’t say yes fast enough. onto a sort of one-stop shopping room, the building people had to travel to go The wide open, 2100-square-foot space “We wanted to create a community said assistant Town Administrator Ron- between of ces, even if they were per- is certainly conducive to interaction space where people could get really good ald Mendes. among diners. Uncommon Feasts, which forming duties that put them in constant food and spend some time with one an- The last pieces of the new of ce were contact with each other, Mendes said. is open Tuesday through Saturday, fea- other,” Mulford said. “That is absolutely put into place on New Year’s Eve, when tures a “French and Italian in uence” “There wasn’t a ow to where the of c- happening. With dinners, our goal is not the second of two custom-built desks, es were located,” Mendes said. “You have to the entrees, while also offering soups, costing $1,726 each, made from solid salads and homemade ice cream. UNCOMMON, A3 maple wood with a laminate top, arrived SWAMPSCOTT, A3 Lynn eld Mapping will be out a Grand thinking of plan on Michael Andrew St. By Anne Marie Tobin By Thor Jourgensen ITEM STAFF ITEM STAFF LYNNFIELD — Carmela Dalton, LYNN — A nonpro t organization president of the Think of Michael and city of cials are mapping out Foundation, has announced that short-term maintenance plans for radio and television personality, an historic Andrew Street building Billy Costa, will be emceeing the and its Civil War collection while foundation’s Second Annual Trivia looking for ways to raise money to Night. PHOTO | ASSOCIATED PRESS meet long-term preservation goals. This year’s event, featuring food, Pakistani Shiite Muslims demonstrate over the U.S. airstrike in Iraq Friends of the Grand Army of fun, music, raf es and a silent auc- that killed Iranian Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the Republic Hall and Museum of tion, will be Friday, Jan. 10 from near the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, Pakistan, Friday. Lynn hope the memorandum of un- 6:30-10:30 p.m. at Breakaway on derstanding under review by city Route 1 in Danvers. attorneys will lay out “lines of com- “We are indeed fortunate to have munication” between the nonpro t Billy emceeing our event this year,” ‘A more dangerous world’ and the city. Dalton said. “Last year we had 400 Friends President Wendy Joseph people attend our Trivia Night U.S. killing of Iranian general triggers global alarm said fundraising is an urgent priority. event. We expect another great “The building is in such shape turnout (this year). Our goal is a that the collections are in danger,” good time for a good cause.” By John Leicester scrambled to chart a way forward. Joseph said. Dalton said last year’s event ASSOCIATED PRESS “A further escalation that sets the City attorney James Lamanna is raised more than $90,000, well in whole region on re needs to be prevent- reviewing the memorandum’s draft PARIS — Global powers warned ed,” German Foreign Minister Heiko excess of the foundation’s goal. Friday that the American airstrike language and anticipates it will be “The goal was $15-20,000 with one Maas said. He said he told Pompeo that formalized sometime this month responsible for killing Iran’s top gen- presenting sponsor, but instead we the strike had not “made it easier to and outline the Friends’ goals and eral made the world more dangerous got seven,” said Dalton’s husband, reduce tensions.” But Maas also noted the trustees’ authority. Dick. “The outpouring of support and that escalation could set the en- that the assault “followed a series of “As a nonpro t corporation, they from the community was amazing.” tire Mideast a ame. Some U.S. allies dangerous Iranian provocations.” can seek donations and apply for The Think of Michael Foundation suggested Iran shared in the blame by The White House justi ed the kill- grants. But, at the end of the day, is a registered 501c(3) non-pro t provoking the attack. ings with a tweet alleging that Solei- they can’t usurp the power of the organization that is dedicated to The deaths of Gen. Qassem Solei- mani “was actively developing plans trustees,” Lamanna said. helping those individuals and their mani and associates drew immediate to attack American diplomats and ser- Built in 1885 by Union Army vet- families who are struggling with cries for revenge from Tehran and a vice members in Iraq and throughout erans, the Grand Army hall was substance use disorder. chorus of appeals from other countries the region.” The 62-year-old led Iran’s a social and political hub into the The Daltons, along with their chil- for reduced tensions between Iran and elite Quds Force, which undertakes the 20th century. In 1919, the hall’s ag- dren, Stacie and Jamie, established the United States. As U.S. Secretary of country’s foreign campaigns. Iranian ing members turned the building the foundation in June of 2019 after State Mike Pompeo called world cap- over to the city with the trustees their 39-year-old son, Michael, died itals to defend the attack, diplomats IRAN, A3 placed in charge. in 2018 from an opiate overdose In the ensuing 100 years, the hall while in outpatient treatment. stored volumes of Civil War histo- The foundation provides aid to Opinion Sports • ries and records, Civil War weapons recovering addicts to pay for sober and uniforms, with its grand hall We can prevent Lynn eld Girls Basketball Swampscott Boys Basketball TRIVIA NIGHT, A3 student suicide. A4 beats Newburyport. B1 takes down Peabody. B1 GAR, A3 OBITUARIES ..............................A2 ENTERTAINMENT .......................A7 COMICS/DIVERSIONS ........... B4-5 HIGH 43° VOL. 142, ISSUE 22 OPINION ...................................A4 LOOK! .......................................A8 CLASSIFIED ........................... B6-7 LOW 33° POLICE/FIRE .............................A6 SPORTS ................................ B1-3 REAL ESTATE .............................B8 PAGE A8 $1.50 A2 THE DAILY ITEM SATURDAY, JANUARY 4, 2020 OBITUARY R.I. congressmen urge Trump Phyllis M. Berfield, 64 1955-2020 LYNN — Phyllis Marie (Vio- to avoid war with Iran lanto) Berfield, 64, of Lynn, PROVIDENCE, R.I. said the Trump adminis- standoff between Wash- needs to be informed of passed away peacefully in her (AP) — Members of Rhode tration must immediately ington and Iran.