Templeton Accident Claims the Lives of Murdock HS Alumni
Nickolas Roy
Photo courtesy of Mack Funeral Home
Scott Laverdure
Photo courtesy of Stone-Ladeau Funeral Home
Templeton Police reported that on Sunday, July 31 at approximately 1:55 a.m., a vehicle traveling at high speed left the roadway at 502 Baldwinville Road and crashed into the home at that address, with significant damage to the home and the vehicle. When first responders arrived, two of the vehicle's three occupants were pronounced deceased at the scene. The third occupant was transported to Heywood Hospital with serious injuries.
According to statements on social media, the vehicle struck the house with enough force to demolish an eight-inch-thick foundation wall with a 12x12 inch support beam behind it. The vehicle also struck the exterior propane tank and lines to the house. Fortunately, there was no fire or explosion, and no one inside the home was reported injured.
One of the deceased persons in the vehicle was Scott Laverdure, age 22, a Winchendon resident and 2018 graduate of Murdock High School. Laverdure was a member of the United States Marine Corps and will be buried with military honors at the Massachusetts Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Agawam. (See obituary in this edition of the Courier.)
Also killed was Laverdure's close friend and Murdock High School basketball teammate, Nickolas Roy, age 22, who also graduated from Murdock High School in 2018. Roy's mother, Jessica Wilson, told MassLive that Roy was a fan of the Miami Dolphins, for which he endured much teasing, and liked the TV show Friends. Wilson described her son as a joker, but compassionate, who could always make you smile. She described Laverdure as "a sweet kid." Roy had planned to join the Marines with his friend, but was disqualified due to a tattoo, his mother said. (See obituary in this edition of the Courier.)
The three young men in the vehicle were "always together," Murdock Coach Lamont Hicks told MassLive, adding, "everybody liked them."
The surviving occupant of the vehicle, also 22, who was in the back seat, has not been named. The Worcester County District Attorney's office told the Courier that the accident remains under investigation.
A candlelight vigil will be held for Nickolas Roy and Scott Laverdure at Murdock High School on Friday, August 12 from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. The high school is located at 3 Memorial Drive, Winchendon. See www.facebook.com/events/1493495054420505/ to respond or follow updates.
Winchendon Water Users Told to Restrict Outside Water Use
Drought map of Massachusetts as of July 21, 2022 showing
Central MA in "Critical Drought"
Image copyright © mass.gov
On Friday, July 29, the Winchendon Department of Public Works sent a communication out to Winchendon residents stating, "The [Massachusetts] Department of Environmental Protection is requesting Winchendon residents refrain from outdoor water usage at this time. We will update residents with a time frame as soon as we are able. Thank you for your patience and understanding."
The Courier reached out to Robert Bostwick, in charge of Drinking Water and Groundwater regulations for the Central Region at the MassDEP, with some questions for clarification. Mr. Bostwick forwarded the query to Edmund Coletta, the MassDEP agency press secretary, who responded promptly.
Mr. Coletta explained that the reason for the restriction is that "we are currently experiencing a significant drought in that area and in many areas across the state." He stated that "[the Water management permit for the Ashburnham-Winchendon Joint Water Board] does not require that private wells abide by these requirements."
Mr. Coletta also stated that "MassDEP specifically allows farmers and [vegetable] gardens the ability to water."
While individual municipalities may have local rules that supercede those of the MassDEP, the Winchendon DPW informed the Courier that Winchendon has no such local rules and goes entirely by the guidelines of the MassDEP.
Mr. Coletta told the Courier, "MassDEP's drinking water program has talked to Winchendon water operator Brian Croteau and he confirmed that he uses calendar triggers for water restrictions (and not streamflow gauges) and they normally restrict nonessential watering every other day from 9-5. MassDEP understands that Winchendon's situation is complicated by the Joint Authority Water Management Act permit it shares with Ashburnham (see the attached document). Winchendon believes the permit requires stricter limits due to the drought declaration and thus went to no watering this week. As of now, Winchendon is meeting the 65 RGCPD (Residential Gallons Consumed Per Day) standard, so it looks like even if they were subject to the permit and following calendar restrictions during a declared drought they just need to restrict nonessential watering to 9-5."
To summarize: if you have a private well, you may use that water as you see fit. (As you are still dependent on the condition of the aquifer and water tables, you should be judicious in your water use--don't waste it.) If you are on town water, you may water farms and vegetable gardens. Food production gets a pass. Use any alternatives to town water (rain water, gray water, etc.) that you can access for watering farm/garden plots. You should not wash cars, water lawns, use a spray hose to clean your driveway, run a sprinkler for the kids to run through, and so on.
The town will inform residents of any changes in these restrictions from the MassDEP.
Mr. Coletta sent the Courier the entire Water Management Permit which Winchendon holds with Ashburnham, and any resident who would like to read it may do so here: Ashburnham-Winchendon Joint Water Board WMA Permit (PDF).
Planning Board Approves Modified Site Plan for Spring Street Solar Installation
Rodney Galton of ECOS Energy LLC appeared before the Planning Board at their meeting on Tuesday, August 2 to request approval of a site plan modification for the proposed solar array at 875 Spring Street. This project has been pending for some two years, with ECOS Energy first appearing before the Planning Board in August, 2020 (see "ECOS Energy Plans Solar Array on Spring Street" in the August 20-27 2020 edition of The Winchendon Courier). The initial hearing for the site approval was continued through multiple Planning Board meetings from August through November 2020.
Mr. Galton opened his presentation by explaining, "In late 2020, this project was approved and due to several factors, part of it was COVID, and supply chain issues, the modules that we had originally ordered and designed the project for are no longer available. So we have been searching for modules that are available to us. We finally found some, so we redesigned the project based on those modules we were able to procure. So based on the larger more efficient modules, we were able to reduce the footprint quite a bit." He pointed out two arrays on the original plan which have been completely eliminated, reducing the amount of footprint by about seven acres. In addition, the distance from the array to the abutter on the east, or Ashburnham, side has been increased from 148 feet to 184 feet.
The original plan included a seven-foot chainlink fence around the perimeter. ECOS Energy was now proposing to use a type of fencing they are using in other installations. "It's a wood post and a fabric known as fixed knot. It actually looks much more agricultural and it's much less industrial looking. So therefore it's a lot less offensive to the eye. And we've been using that in Vermont, in Vermont we're required to use it, but we've started to use it in all of our projects. Because people just tend to prefer that over the industrial looking chainlink fence," Mr. Galton said. Regulations require the fence to be at least seven feet high.
The third change involves eliminating concrete pads around the site for equipment, and instead constructing a garage near the road (Route 12) where equipment will be protected from the weather. "We find that here in New England some of the equipment doesn't do well during the transition periods, spring and fall where you have that freeze-thaw cycle. A lot of the equipment, especially the gaskets, don't react well to that," he explained. The garage will be by the entrance gate and close to the utility pole.
Planning Board member Burt Gould brought up the concerns raised by the abutter on the east, saying that resident should be notified of changes to the site plan. "I've had several conversations with that abutter, I know their concerns," Mr. Galton responded. "They don't believe the property line shown on the survey is what it is. But we've had that verified twice now and we are increasing the distance from the array to that residence...we're adding over 35 feet of distance between that residence and the array itself."
He went on, "we have not adjusted the buffer zone only because of where we're putting the fence. I have spoken with that abutter, and they...think that the vegetation is dense enough that they don't feel anything needs to be added. And I have to get that in writing. I know that that's part of the conditions, but they did not feel that any additional vegetation would be needed."
The Planning Board members in attendance voted to approve the modified site plan.
Minutes of August 18, 2020 Planning Board Meeting with beginning of ECOS Energy hearing (PDF)
Minutes of October 20, 2020 Planning Board Meeting with continuation of hearing (PDF)
Minutes of November 17, 2020 Planning Board Meeting with continuation/conclusion of hearing (PDF)
Complete packet for modification of site plan application, 7/13/2022 (PDF)
By Popular Demand! Battle of the Bands Winners Faceless Hobos Close Out GAR Park Concert Series This Friday
Faceless Hobos, winners of The Battle of the Bands at the Food Truck Festival on June 24, will wrap up the Winchendon Recreation Commission's Friday Night Concert Series with a performance on Friday, August 5. Appreciative audiences will get to see and hear all three of the Hobos harmonizing, as one group member couldn't make it on June 24.
Faceless Hobos is a relatively new ensemble founded by acoustic musicians Dave Romanowski and Patrick Townsend. Dave and Pat played together for their own enjoyment for a couple of years, and began playing at some open mikes in the past year. They were joined by acoustic musician Maggie Neff. The three decided to try some concert dates this year, and were invited to play at the Gardner Area League of Artists (GALA) Art & Music Festival at Red Apple Farm on May 21.
Dave told the Courier, "Maggie and Pat have been playing for most of their lives, they've been playing for a long time. I started playing guitar about four years ago. But I've been playing harmonica for most of my life." Pat used to play with a band in Holyoke, where he grew up, starting out on drums, Dave said.
Dave said that being proclaimed the winners of the June 24 Battle of the Bands "felt really good. It really did. It gave us this opportunity. We're really looking forward to this opportunity to play in the gazebo."
Faceless Hobos play a style of music that "comes through Nashville," Dave told the Courier. It might be called Americana folk rock with a country flavor, with covers of Nashville singer-songwriters and a couple of original songs of their own mixed in.
Dave is a Winchendon resident, while Maggie hails from Westminster and Patrick from Gardner. Dave told the Courier that they haven't decided whether they'll go on playing more public gigs. "We're playing more for the fun of it," he said. Maggie plays as a solo act and often is booked on Friday and Saturday nights. A graduate of Oakmont Regional High School, Maggie also runs a dog-training business.
Faceless Hobos will be playing in the gazebo at G.A.R. Park, located at Grove Street and Murdock Avenue next to the Old Murdock Senior Center. Music begins at 6:00 p.m. and runs until around 8:00 p.m. Concerts are free and open to all. Bring a lawn chair or blanket. Don't miss this last concert of the 2022 season!
