Mailed free to requesting homes in Charlton, Charlton City and Charlton Depot Vol. V, No. 35 PROUD MEDIA SPONSOR OF RELAY FOR LIFE OF THE GREATER SOUTHBRIDGE AREA! COMPLIMENTARY HOME DELIVERY ONLINE: WWW.CHARLTONVILLAGER.COM Friday, September 2, 2011 Three-alarm blaze hits truck, garage FIREFIGHTERS ALSO CONTEND WITH TROPICAL STORM-FORCE WINDS BY AMANDA COLLINS VILLAGER STAFF WRITER CHARLTON — A three-alarm fire broke out at 184 Burlingame Road on Sunday,Aug. 28, causing an estimated $200,000 to $300,000 in damage. It was the day Tropical Storm Irene was slated to hit the area, and Jo-Ann Burlingame thought she was prepared for anything. “Never in a zillion years did I Courtesy photo think of this,” she said. A giant maple tree dangled over the roof of 25 Ten Schoolhouse Road on Sunday, after tropical storm-force winds ripped Courtesy photo Burlingame and her husband, through Charlton. Board of Health member A 16-wheeler truck and garage went up in Nelson, had brought in their flames Sunday, Aug. 28 on Burlingame Road. outside furniture and spent Saturday getting ready for the thick, white haze of smoke. storm. They were watching a movie Charlton Fire Chief Charles E. Charlton meets Irene Sunday morning when a neighbor Cloutier Jr. said that the Fire came pounding on their door. Department received the call at 12:45 “He told us our truck was on fire p.m. The department had extra staff STORM’S WINDS BRING DOWN TREES, POWER LINES and that he had called 911,” she said. on that day in anticipation for the BY AMANDA COLLINS Sunday. about the trees. The storm The truck, a 16-wheeler, tri-axel storm, but they weren’t expecting a VILLAGER STAFF WRITER Peterbilt the Burlingames used for fire. “We brought in all the patio fur- brought down branches and limbs their family business, NBC “We were expecting the winds, the CHARLTON — Residents of niture, made sure everything was throughout town, and tress fell on Construction Co., was parked along down power lines — we anticipated Ten Schoolhouse Road did all they secure and could fly around or to the roves of two houses on the side of their garage, which sits sev- some extra calls,” he said. “But obvi- could to prepare for the predicted into the house,” said Bill Dighton, street. eral hundred feet away from their ously the fire, we weren’t expect- wrath of Hurricane Irene, which who lives at 64 Ten Schoolhouse At 25 Ten Schoolhouse Road, house. Burlingame said by the time ing.” was downgraded to a tropical Road. Robert Palkovich was sitting in she and her husband were alerted of storm before it reached the area Still, they couldn’t do much Turn To IRENE page A9 the fire, the truck was covered in a Turn To FIRE page A14 Something for all at Old Home Day 115TH ANNUAL CELEBRATION THIS WEEKEND BY AMANDA COLLINS VILLAGER STAFF WRITER CHARLTON — For more than a century, the people of Charlton have gathered around the common on Labor Day to for an end-of-summer celebration for the whole community. It’s finally here — Charlton’s 115th annual Old Home Day will take place the weekend of Sept. 3. As usual, the festivities will feature something for everyone — young and old alike. “It’s always a great day for every- one,” said Cathy Kuehl, Old Home Day Committee member and parade organizer. The festivities will kick off on Saturday, Sept. 3 on the Overlook lawns at 44 Masonic Home Road (Route 31), where a Billy Joel tribute band will perform at 7 p.m. Food and beverages will be available, and the weekend with start with a bang — lit- erally — as fireworks light up the sky Shawn Kelley file photo shortly after dark. Sisters Skylar Jessing, 10, of North Brookfield and Britany Larson, 9, of Charlton smile The celebrations continue on Courtesy photo for the camera with their crazy hats on at last year’s Old Home Day. Charlton will hold Sunday, Sept. 4 when the Charlton After rescuing victims from a four-car crash, Julien Freeman kisses his bride, Kait, the 115th annual edition on Monday, Sept. 5. Turn To OLD HOME DAY page A9 on their wedding day Saturday, Aug. 20. Schools let kids play before they eat Above the call of duty SWITCHING TO A NEW RECESS-BEFORE-LUNCH SCHEDULE GROOM RESCUES CRASH VICTIMS MOMENTS BEFORE GETTING HITCHED BY AMANDA COLLINS Elementary schools — are switching modate the change, the elementary VILLAGER STAFF WRITER to a new recess-before-lunch sched- children’s morning snack time will BY AMANDA COLLINS Freeman are hoping for a smooth CHARLTON — Kids heading back ule. be pushed up 15 minutes earlier. VILLAGER STAFF WRITER to school might need an extra The decision was a consensus “At first just one elementary school ride, after starting their marriage icepack in their lunchbox this year, between the schools’ principals and was going to pilot the program, but WEST BROOKFIELD — For bet- off with a crash. as they’ll be waiting a little longer to nurses and Superintendent Sean after seeing the research and suc- ter or for worse, for richer or for “It was definitely not what I had eat it. Gilrein, who point to research that cess, we decided all four should try poorer — it’s promises like these imagined,” U.S. Navy Petty Officer The four elementary schools in the suggests students may eat more of it,” said Kathleen Pastore, Heritage that prepare couples for what is 2nd Class Julien Freeman said of Dudley-Charlton Regional School their food at lunch and be more School principal. sometimes the bumpy road of mar- his Aug. 20 nuptials. District — Charlton Elementary, focused in the classroom if they get riage. But Charlton newlyweds Heritage, Mason Road and Dudley recess out of the way first. To accom- Turn To RECESS page A9 Julien and Kait (Glinsky) Turn To RESCUE page A11 NICHOLS FOOTBALL Almanac ................. 2 Calendar ...............11 GETTING HOSTS SUCCESSFUL Police Logs .............. 5 Real Estate ...B Section ‘THE JITTERS OUT’ Opinion ................ 10 Sports ....................3 YOUTH SKILLS CLINIC INDEX INDEX PAGE 3 Learning................ 5 PAGE 13 2 •THE CHARLTON VILLAGER• Friday, September 2, 2011 www.charltonvillager.com Woodland Walk celebrates completed construction BY AMANDA COLLINS at risk for losing their affordability could lose funding for the project, VILLAGER STAFF WRITER status. HAPHousing bought units and in 2008 there was a dispute CHARLTON — HAPHousing in 2005, and partnered with CEDAC between the towns of Southbridge hosted a picnic at the Woodland and the United States Department and Charlton over the ownership of Walk Apartments on Tuesday, Aug. of Agriculture, which supplies the the units’ waterlines. 23 to celebrate the completion of apartments with rental assistance, “It takes many funders, many their reconstruction and grand to pass subsidies along to local low- years, and a lot of work to complete opening there. income families. a project like this,” she said. HAPHousing partnered with var- “The federal government man- It wasn’t smooth sailing for resi- ious local and state agencies to dates that you cant just buy these dents, who were displaced and rehabilitate the affordable housing [units] that haven’t had proper moved around during the recon- units at 239 Southbridge Road maintenance. They had to be reha- struction project. (Route 169), formerly known as bilitated and preserved, which has “Trying to rehab and tenants liv- Cady Brook Apartments. More now given them a new life cycle,” ing there doesn’t work well,” noted than $6 million was put into the said Richard Lavoie, USDA direc- Herzog. reconstruction, which began in tor of rural housing and program Francis and Melissa Lapierre January 2010. The rehabilitation support. and their 6-year-old daughter, includes new kitchens, bathrooms, Preserving this kind of afford- Rosemary, were moved to different lighting fixtures and appliances in able housing is important to the apartments within the Woodland the 39 low-income units, and new community of Charlton as whole. Walk community four times insulation, siding, windows and According to Chapter 40B of state between February and July 2010. roofs to the buildings. The apart- law, affordable lodging must repre- They said the disturbance was at ments’ water and sewer systems sent 10 percent of a town’s housing. times hard to bear. were also upgraded, and two hand- Currently,just 1.9 percent of homes “We were living out of boxes for a icap-accessible units were in Charlton are considered by the while,” said Melissa Lapierre. “It installed. state as affordable housing. The was useless to unpack. But it was To officials who worked on the town’s other affordable housing, really hard on my daughter to not project, there was more to cele- the Meadowview Drive develop- even have a bedroom for a while.” brate than the completion of con- ment run by the Charlton Housing Still, she said the look and feel of struction. Authority, has 36 units — meaning her family’s upgraded home was “These units could have lost Woodland Walk makes up more worth the upheaval. their affordability,” said Roger than half of the town’s low income “They made it bigger and Herzog, executive director of the housing. changed the heating system. They Amanda Collins photo Community Economic According to Michelle put sprinklers in and so I think it’s The rehabilitated units at Woodland Walk Apartments on Southbridge Road (Route Development Assistance McAdaragh, associate director for safer now, too. I’m happy with it,” 169) represent more than half of Charlton’s affordable housing. Corporation (CEDAC), an organiza- real estate and development for Melissa Lapierre said.