Officials seeking seaweed strategy

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The Hull Board of Health posted the following message on its Facebook page today:

"Residents of Gunrock Beach area and T St.- Bradford Ave., we are aware of the large accumulation of seaweed in those areas. We are working with the DPW and Conservation on a plan and to resolve it. Thank you for your patience."

Times photographer Roger Jackson took the photo at an almost deserted Crescent Beach this afternoon.

Fundraising page set up to benefit Judeth Van Hamm

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The Times received a letter from Judeth Van Hamm's son yesterday that we want to share with our readers.

Longtime residents know how much the town owes to Van Hamm's long efforts to preserve Hull's resources, natural and historic. It is not too much to say that we would not have the lifesaving museum, the carousel, the Weir River Woods, and many other town treasures, without her.

Van Hamm last week lost her longtime partner, Michael Connelly, who died unexpectedly. So she is faced with financial hardship to compound her grief. We know that her many friends and admirers will want to help. Here's one mechanism to do so:

To the Editor:

Readers of The Hull Times might like to know about a fundraiser set up for Judeth Van Hamm in memory of her late parter, Michael Connelly. Michael passed away July 21st after sharing three decades of sunsets over Hull Bay with my mother. His unexpected departure has come with additional financial pressures for Judeth. If any readers would like to contribute to her wellbeing through this difficult time, the link is https://www.gofundme.com/picture-judeth-a-millionaire. Thoughts on peace, love, light, joy, health, and abundance also welcome!

Thank you, Blake Wiers

Settlement paves way for cable, dredging work in Boston Harbor

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By Colin A. Young
State House News Service

An electrical cable under Boston Harbor that has been the source of delays for a dredging project required before new supertankers can dock in Boston will be removed and replaced, the result of a federal court settlement that clears the way for the Boston Harbor Deep Draft Navigation Improvement Project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Massachusetts Port Authority are pursuing a $310 million project to carve out a deeper channel in Boston Harbor, making the port accessible to the larger class of ships now able to fit through an expanded Panama Canal and already serving deeper ports.

But a cable laid in 1990 to bring power to the Deer Island Wastewater Treatment Plant was installed closer to the seafloor surface than allowed by a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit and would pose a danger to people and equipment dredging the harbor, according to the suit filed by the federal government and MassPort.

Last week, the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority and Eversource settled the suit filed against them over the cable that spans two of the harbor's shipping channels, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced, an outcome that will allow the dredging to move ahead.

“The Deep Draft project is necessary to keep the Port of Boston and its shipping facilities competitive with other East Coast ports,” William Weinreb, acting U.S. attorney for the district of Massachusetts, said in a statement. “The settlement also means there will be no interference with the provision of electricity to the Deer Island Waste Water Treatment Plant, which is critical to keeping Boston Harbor clean. This is a victory for both the local economy and the environment.”

The Deer Island facility was built by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) as part of the effort to clean up Boston Harbor. The MWRA now serves 2.5 million people, supplying 215 million gallons of water and treating an average of 350 million gallons of sewage daily.

The settlement requires Eversource to install a new cable connecting the K Street substation in South Boston to Deer Island and have it powered by Dec. 31, 2019. That cable is expected to cross land in South Boston, cut through MassPort's Conley Terminal, and enter the harbor just north of Castle Island. It is to be laid at least 75 feet below the low-water line.

The existing and improperly installed cable is to be de-energized by Feb. 28, 2020, per the settlement, and the 1.4-mile section closest to the container terminal is to be removed by May 31, 2020. The settlement allows the other portion of the cable to be abandoned in place if the various permitting agencies allow it.

“We're pleased to have reached a resolution with all parties that permits us to continue providing safe and reliable service to MWRA, while also accommodating the moving forward of the Massport/ACOE harbor dredging project,” Eversource spokesperson Rhiannon D'Angelo said in a statement.

D'Angelo said Eversource is still working to determine the cost of installing a new cable and removing the old one, and expects to file its plan with the state Department of Public Utilities later this summer.

"Once the cost recovery is approved by the DPU, we'll recover the cost from the MWRA, Harbor Electric Energy Company's sole customer," she said, referring to the Eversource subsidiary that powers Deer Island.

 

Lots to do in Hull today

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Tales from the Peace Corps. Hull’s own Steven Greenberg joined the Peace Corps in 2013 and spent two years in Armenia. He was 64. He will be at the Anne Scully Senior Center at 10:30 a.m. to share tales of his exciting and rewarding experience and stories about other retiree Peace Corps volunteers. The senior center is located at 197A Samoset Ave.

Meet the Author. Richard ‘Butch’ Neal grew up in Hull and rose through the ranks of the Marine Corps to retire as a four-star general who had been the Corps’ assistant commandant. His life story – and life lessons he wants to share – are the stuff of his memoir, the recently published “What Now, Lieutenant?” Neal is tonight’s featured speaker at this month’s Nantasket Beach Lecture Series installment, which begins at 7 p.m. at the Nantasket Beach Resort, 45 Hull Shore Dr. These popular talks are free [Donations are welcome!] and sponsored by the Hull Lifesaving Museum, the Friends of the Hull Public Library, and the state Dept. of Conservation & Recreation. Bring your copy of Neal’s book to have it signed, or purchase one at the event and have the genial general autograph it on the spot. For event details, call the lifesaving museum at 781 925-5433.

Aquarion Water Rate Increase Hearing. The state Department of Public Utilities will hear public comment about Aquarion Water Co.'s petition for a rate increase that would add about $9 a month to the average water bill in Hull. The forum begins at 7 p.m. at Hull High School auditorium.

Michael Devine named new school superintendent

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By Susan Ovans

The Hull School Committee voted Monday evening to promote Hull High School Principal Michael Devine to the helm of the town's three public schools.

The original school board vote was 3-2 in favor of Devine. Chairman Eric Hipp and board members Kelley Huxtable and Jennifer Fleming voted for him.

SchoolCom members Stephanie Peters and David Twombly cast their votes for Assistant Superintendent Judith Kuehn. When it became clear that she could not win a board majority, Peters and Twombly made the vote for Devine unanimous.

During the course of four hours of interviews and deliberations, board members repeatedly spoke of how conflicted they were in having to choose between two stellar in-house candidates, agreeing among themselves that they could not make a bad choice.

Board members credited current Superintendent Kathleen Tyrell for having successfully mentored two colleagues to prepare them to lead school districts of their own.

After 10 years as Hull's superintendent, Tyrell will retire next month.

A full account of Monday's meeting will be published in Thursday's Hull Times.

 

 

MassDOT schedules 1-night closure of Atlantic Avenue in Cohasset

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The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Highway Division District 5 has announced that Atlantic Avenue over Little Harbor Inlet in Cohasset will be closed to vehicular traffic for one night on Tuesday, July 11. 

This portion of roadway will be closed from 8 p.m., on Tuesday to 5 a.m. on Wednesday. The action is necessary to allow for installation of the temporary utility bridge. 

MassDOT advises motorists to seek alternate routes during these times. All scheduled work is weather dependent and/or may be impacted should any sort of emergency situation occur.

Minyanaires needed next week

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Arnie and Lois Freedman, new members of the Temple Beth Sholom community, asked temple staff to arrange several minyans next week for a visiting relative who is reciting kaddish. 

The times are Monday and Tuesday evenings, July 10-11, at 7:30, and Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, July 11 -12, at 8 a.m. 

Please call the temple at 781 925-0091 if you can attend any – or all – of the minyans.