Town of Whately, MA - Official Town Website

There is presently an opening in the Smikes House, the town’s senior housing at 198 Chestnut Plain Road. The Smikes House consists of two one-bedroom apartments for elders. It is managed by the Franklin County Regional Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) and eligibility is based on income, age (applicants must be 60 years of age) and preference given to residents of the Town of Whately. Applications are available in the Selectmen’s Office.

Notice is hereby given that the Zoning Board of Appeals of Whately will hold a public hearing on Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 6:40 p.m. in the Town Hall, 194 Chestnut Plain Road , Whately. Isabel Jurk of Sunderland has applied for a special permit to construct an outpatient veterinary clinic, specifically for ophthalmology to treat various animals such as cats, dogs, horses, reptiles, etc. on premises located at Sandy Lane (map 32, portion of parcel 46) and owned by Alan E. Sanderson, Alan E. Sanderson, Jr., and Bradley T. Sanderson. The proposed project will include construction of a +/- 6,000 square foot facility with associated earthwork, paved parking and drives, sidewalks, utility services, onsite sewage disposal system, storm water management system, site lighting, landscaping and a fenced area for horses. Application for the special permit is to be considered under the provisions of the Whately Zoning Bylaws as provided by Chapter 40A, General Laws, ter ed of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts .

The selectmen have enacted the annual snow removal parking ban effective immediately continuing to April 15. No vehicles will be allowed to park on the streets or in municipal parking parking areas from midnight to 7 am.

Is your driver's license about to expire?

Register for the free service to receive a voice, email or text message
notification prior to your license expiring.
The registry of motor vehicles stopped sending driver's
license renewals by mail, saving the state over $800,000
(not to mention a few trees). But drivers miss receiving the reminders. So, a new service through
Sendza will provide a driver's license renewal reminder to home or cell phone,
by text message or email, to those who register.
The service is free.
Register to Receive a Reminder

Looking for more information about local childcare options or how to get on the state Early Education and Care wait list to see if you qualify for tuition assistance/voucher?

The purpose of the Early Childhood screening is to identify children who may need further evaluation,
to identify potential learning concerns and to provide parents with helpful resources in the following areas:
Speech/Language
Hearing/Vision
Fine Motor/Eye-hand coordination
Gross Motor Skills
Short-term memory/Counting/Reasoning

If you have concerns about your child's development, please schedule a screening appointment by calling Brenda at the Early Childhood office, 665-8928.

Please note that screening is not required for entrance into Kindergarten or Preschool, nor is it part of the
process for selecting children for the preschool programs.

For more information, please contact Michele Regan-Ladd, Early Childhood Coordinator at 665-8928.
A free service provided by your local school under CMR 280

MassSAVE Home Energy Audit
Openings Available....

The demand for home energy audits has dropped off.
Currently no waiting list.
Plus, discounts on insulation and air sealing..
up to 75% ($2000 max)

Call MassSave at 1-866-527-7283 to schedule an audit or visit
www.masssave.com to schedule a free audit.

Mass Save Home Performance Pilot Program
Cozy Home Performance announces a Mass Save pilot program for eligible
WMECO customers.
This pilot will make available generous Mass Save incentives to customers
wanting to improve the energy performance of their home using an
integrated Home Performance approach.

FCAT - Frontier Community Access Television

Local programs produced through FCAT's facility at 8B Elm St in South Deerfield by
community volunteers along with programs from other public access station
and sponsored by residents can be seen on
Channel 12, which features programs from Sunderland, Deerfield, and Whately.

Whately Cable Committee operates channel 15 featuring town government
information for Whately only.

The Library is open
Monday - Wednesday 1 - 8 and Saturday 10 - 3
library@whately.org
Phone: 665-2170
Call to renew by phone

Whately Library Book Bags – Go Green with our new eco-friendly
book bags, available for $10 at the library. All proceeds benefit the
Friends of the Library. Celebrate the library’s 60^th Anniversary
with our bright green cotton bags, made with 85% recycled
cotton fabric, and printed with the library’s name and image.

The Friends of the Library is an organization founded to support activities within the library.
We run an annual book sale in the fall and use the proceeds to fund craft projects,
programs and prizes for the Summer Reading Program.
We have also organized free lecture series, focused on Whately authors, nature, and local history.
We instituted movie times for children and families, provide funding for refreshments at events,
and recently sponsored a concert.

Please join us at our next Friends meeting.
For more information call the library at 665-2170 email friends@whately.org.

Volunteers Needed
The Library is looking for volunteers to lead craft projects for and workshops for adults. Please contact Tiffany with your ideas and suggestions.

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South County Senior Center News
67 North Main St
South Deerfield
665-2141
Mary Wheelan, Director

Hours:
The Center is open M, W, F from 9am-1pm

UPCOMING SENIOR

CENTER HIGHLIGHTS

DENTAL HEALTH

February 6 at 11 am

MEDICAID & ESTATE PLANNING

February 8 at 11 am

VALENTINE'S DAY MUSIC
With Ruth Fairman

February 13 at 11 am

THE GRANGE EXPERIENCE

February 15 at 11 am

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Every Mon & Wed. at 9:15 a.m.
Walking Club leaves the Center for a mildly paced walk around
South Deerfield.
Come join our fun group!

South County Senior Center
67 No. Main St.
So. Deerfield
665-2141

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Water Department Report

The 2009 Consumer Awareness Report from the
Water Department is available here ...
or, you may contact Water Superintendent,
Bill Smith at 665-3080 to receive a copy...or,
pick up a copy at the Selectmen's Office.
Previous reports: 2008, 2007

In December 2008, the Department of Environmental Protection passed regulations affecting the sale, installation,
and use of outdoor wood burning furnaces (called Outdoor Hydronic Heaters).
DEP and the Board of Health have responsibility for enforcing these regulations.
If you own or are considering the purchase of an outdoor wood burning furnace,
I urge you to read the regulations, which can be found online at:
http://www.mass.gov/dep/service/regulations/ohhregfl.doc

For more information, contact the District office at (413) 772-2438, visit: www.franklincountywastedistrict.org,
or email: info@franklincountywastedistrict.org. MA Relay for the hearing impaired:
711 or 1-800-439-2370 (TTY/TDD).
The District is an equal opportunity provider.

This Earth Day the Springfield Materials Recycling Facility Advisory Board (MAB) collaborated with local newspapers on the third annual Reduce, Reuse, Recycle Guide. The guide published in the Daily Hampshire Gazette and Greenfield Recorder is specific to Hampshire and Franklin counties.

The guide includes a MRF recycling guide, an article on local resale and repair shops, “Top 10 Ways To Reduce Household Waste,” "Composting Is Easy," a Kids’ Page, a quiz called “Are You Waste-Wise," local reuse options such as area donation centers and resale/ consignment shops, and a section entitled “What Do I Do With…?” that lists over 70 hard to dispose of items and their proper disposal procedures.
The Community Recycling Information page lists what items are acceptable at local transfer stations.

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The Franklin County Solid Waste Management District runs special battery recycling and disposal programs. Household batteries should not be put in the trash. Free recycling and disposal is available at all Franklin County Solid Waste District transfer stations. Give batteries to the transfer station attendant. There are many different types of batteries and some contain mercury and other heavy metals. Batteries can release mercury, cadmium or other heavy metals into the air and water, ultimately entering the food chain and posing health threats to people and the environment. Please read below for disposal instructions for specific battery types.

Rechargeable batteries are found in those electronics and appliances that can be recharged, such as cell phones; ipods; cordless phones; laptop computers; power tools; some toys; some digital cameras; and rechargeable toothbrushes, razors, flashlights, and handheld vacuum cleaners. In addition, rechargeable batteries that can be recharged with a battery recharger should also be recycled. Cell phones should also be recycled in this manner. Rechargeable batteries and cell phones contain heavy metals and should never be thrown away; they should always be recycled. District transfer stations have a special “Call 2 Recycle” box for rechargeable batteries and cell phones. The specific batteries accepted in these boxes are: Nickel-cadmium (Ni-cad), Nickel Metal Hydride (Ni-MH), Nickel Zinc (Ni-Zn), Lithium Ion batteries (Li-ion), and Small Sealed Lead (Pb). These abbreviations are printed on rechargeable batteries. The boxes for free rechargeable battery recycling are also available at Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Radio Shack.

Alkaline batteries are the most common household batteries. They are available in many sizes and shapes such as AA, C, D and 9 volt. Alkaline batteries manufactured since 1994 do not contain mercury or other hazardous materials. District residents should bring alkaline batteries to their town’s transfer station and give them to the attendant. All batteries should be checked carefully before disposal, as some non-alkaline batteries resemble alkalines.

If you would like to reduce the number of alkaline batteries you are using, you could purchase an inexpensive battery charger and some compatible rechargeable batteries. These batteries can be used and recharged over and over again, but remember to recycle them in a rechargeable battery box when they can no longer be recharged.

Carbon Zinc and Zinc Chloride batteries may be disposed of in the same manner as alkaline batteries; see above.

Lithium batteries are used many applications but most often in cameras. The word “lithium” is printed on the battery. Be sure to check all batteries; some lithium batteries, such as the AA size or short and fat lithium batteries used in cameras, resemble alkaline batteries, but should be recycled properly with button batteries. See below.

Button batteries are the small round silver batteries found in watches, clocks, calculators, hearing aids, toys, remote car locks, flameless “flicker candles,” electric fence dog collars, singing greeting cards and singing balloons. Many button batteries contain mercury; therefore, button batteries must be disposed of properly.

Lead Acid batteries from cars, trucks, golf carts, motorcycles, etc. must be recycled by law. Recycling programs, some for cash or credit back, are available at auto supply stores, local scrap metal recyclers, and at some transfer stations. Lead acid batteries are also accepted at household hazardous waste collections.

For a handout with pictures of the various batteries and disposal instructions, please ask your town’s transfer station attendant or click the link below.

For information specific to your town, or for more information on recycling, composting, hazardous waste, and more, please see: www.franklincountywastedistrict.org.

If you have any questions please contact the Franklin County Solid Waste District at 413-772-2438, or email info@franklincountywastedistrict.org. MA Relay for the hearing impaired: 711 or 1-800-439-2370 (TTY/TDD).

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Attention Whately Residents -
The Whately Health Center is a sharps collection site. Hours are Tuesday from 9 am - 2 pm.
An alternative location site is The Franklin Solid Waste Management Office at
50 Miles St, Greenfield
Hours vary, call first: 772-2438

The Solid Waste District provides free one quart or one gallon sharps boxes to residents who use needles and lancets.
Once a sharps box is full, you can bring it to one of ten Franklin County locations, and pick up an empty sharps box
to take home. This program is open to all Franklin County residents, and you may use whichever collection site is
most convenient for you.
Please call our office, 413-772-2438, for information about the locations
and hours of the collection sites. This program is completely free to residents.

· General / AdministrativeCommittee

· FRCOG Council

· FRCOG Regional Issues Committee

· FRCOG Finance Committee

· FRCOG Personnel Committee

· FRCOG Bylaws Committee

· FRCOG Strategic Planning Committee

Community Coalition for Teens

· Community Coalition for Teens (CCT) Advisory Board

· Communities that Care (CTC) Full Coalition

· CTC Coordinating Council

· Regional School Health Task Force

· Youth Recognition workgroup

· Community Laws and Norms workgroup

· Parent Education workgroup

· CTC Funding and Strategy

Emergency Planning and Preparedness

· Regional Emergency Planning Committee

· MEMA Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan Update

· Franklin County Emergency Communications System (FCECS) Oversight Committee

Public Health / Inspection

· Mohawk Area Public Health Coalition (MAPHCO)

· Franklin County Cooperative Inspection Program (FCCIP) Advisory Board

· Public Health Futures Planning Group

Planning

· Franklin Regional Planning Board

· Franklin Regional Planning Board Executive Committee

· Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Committee

· Economic Development District Governing Board

· Brownfields Steering Committee

· Joint Facilities Committee – Transit Center

· Franklin County Transportation Planning Organization

· Route 2 Task Force

· Route 122 Scenic Byway Area Committee

· Connecticut River Streambank Erosion Committee

· Four Mile Brook Watershed Advisory Committee

· MEMA Natural Hazard Mitigation Plan Update

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Website Update
Are you interested in having your Whately company, business or farm
listed on our Area Attractions section of the website?
If so let Lynn Sibley in the Selectmen ’s Office know by
email: tclerk2@comcast.net or by phone 665-4400.
If you are a Whately business and already have a website
and you would like us to link your website from ours call Lynn as well.

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