The Saugus Review

Saugus Founders’ Day 2011

Peter Manoogian, a Precinct 10 Town member developed a very useful tool that can help residents in their tax calculation concerns. The web-based tool is an online calculator that will allow residential taxpayers to assess values and easily calculate their own tax bills.

The online calculator will allow a residential property owner to see last year’s property value, this year’s current value, the dollar amount of increase or decrease and the percentage of increase or decrease.

The creation of the device is timely, especially when the average residential tax bill will undergo an increase around $300 because of the latest tax rate approved by the Board of Selectmen. Even so, some homeowners may see a decrease in their tax bills but it all depends on home value fluctuations and this online calculator can help people approximate an increase or decrease in their residential tax bill.

Here are directions for using the online calculator:

Step 1: Click HERE . It should lead to the town assessor website page and then “search for parcel”

Step 2: Enter your house number in the box that indicates ‘NUMBER’. Enter your street name in the box that says ‘STREET NAME’ after that. You only need to enter the street name.

Ex: if you live on Central Street, just enter the word Central. Then click “FIND PARCEL.”

Step 4: Click – ‘PARCEL ID Number’. It will begin with a 262.

Step 5: A new screen should pop-up. On the new screen find “TOTAL VALUE” for “CURRENT YEAR” and “PREVIOUS YEAR”  Make sure to write down the values on a piece of paper. Note that  you should be writing the numbers to the right of TOTAL VALUE.

Step 6: Click HERE and enter the Current Year and Previous Year values in the yellow boxes. Your old and new tax bill will automatically appear in the boxes to the right as will the dollar and percent change. You may have to arrow over.

For further questions and inquiries, contact Peter Manoogian HERE.

NOTE: Figure is based on the proposed minimum residential tax rate. Not for commercial properties.

The compost site and recycling drop-off site of the town of Saugus will be closed for the holidays. The last day the site located behind the Department of public Works will still be open is on Dec. 18, for the recycling of yard waste, televisions and computers, cardboard, paper, plastic, tin and glass.  The drop-off site for recycling of televisions and computers however will be open again on on the third Saturday of the month in January, February and March if the weather permits.

The Georgetown police was called last night because of a disturbance in the office of Highway Surveryor Peter Durkee. The Police were alerted after the person who called 911 said that a suspicious package left  by an unknown male. The person who left the package also “made several concerning statements to Mr. Durkee about the package and left,” according to the release that the Georgetown police issued about 10:15 yesterday morning about the happenings last night’s at the Highway Department Complex at 203 East Main St.

Businesses as well as the Highway Department Complex were evacuated and the State Police Bomb Squad was called after the call. A computerized robot then investigated the device that was left in the area and determined that it was not dangerous.

Zachariah Alkhatatbin, 43, 5 Warden St., of Saugus, the primary suspect, was arrested and is now facing charges of possession of a hoax devise which was a felony, disturbing the peace and possession of marijuana. His vehicle was stopped by Officer Brian Neeley, of the Boxford Police Department  and after a brief investigation, the driver of the vehicle was marked as the suspect. Alkhatatbin was then arrested by Georgetown police officer Keith Deguio and Detective James Rodden.

After the arrest and the investigation in the area, the town’s highway complex was determined to be safe and was reopened by 1:30 p.m. yesterday.

Positions in the Cemetery Commission are now open and the Saugus Board of Selectmen are now accepting applications. The volunteer paid/non paid positions are open to Saugus residents and parties who are interested in the job may submit a letter of application with their resume until November 23 2010. Kindly address your letters of interest to Saugus Town Hall, 298 Central St.

After a decade of serving Saugus, Shaw’s Super market officially closed on October 30, 2010 from the decision of Shaw’s not to renew the lease on it’s Saugus location.

Steve Sylven, Shaw’s Spokesman, stated that Shaw’s continuously evaluates its stores to identify opportunities to strengthen its overall business,and since the Saugus branch was not meeting financial goals, the decision was to close  the store on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2010 at 5 p.m.

In the release statement, Sylven adds: “We have enjoyed being part of the Saugus community for the past 11 years and would like to thank our customers and associates for their patronage.”

As a result of the closing, there has been much activity at the Shaw’s over the last two weeks as the supermarket branch held an auction to sell items to the high bidders and there were also a lot of freezers and fridges leaving in trucks,” according to Building Inspector Fred Varone.

Currently there are no tenants to move to the building where Shaw’s once was, Varone adds.

Despite the Lynn Fells Parkway branch closing, the Shaw’s stores in nearby Wakefield and Melrose locations will still be open for business and The Citizens Bank branch inside Shaw’s will also remain open for the next few months while they bank is transitioning to a new location.

As soon as the next location is decided, the bank intends will notify customers bank employee Zachary Fortin said.

With Election Day coming up, we would like to help get all registered voters in Saugus, Massachusetts ready to vote! The notice below is from Saugus, MA’s official Election and Registration page.

Voter Registration

Voter registration requirements

• A person must be 18 years of age by election day
• A person must be a citizen of the U.S.
• A person must be a legal resident of Massachusetts
• A person must supply identification

A person has the right to register at any City or Town Hall in Massachusetts. Once registered the person is placed on a voting list in the Town where they reside. When registering, an applicant must give his/her date of birth, legal name, address and identification. The applicant will then sign an affirmation under the pains and penalty of perjury that all information given is truthful and correct.

The registration is permanent until a voter moves to another city or town or signs an affidavit stating they no longer wish to remain a voter. In order to remain registered, you must also return the town census. If you have not returned the census and have not voted in the past two state or federal elections you may be taken off the voters list. If a person moves within the Town, they must notify the Board of Registrars in writing.

Mail-in affidavits are also available by calling the Town Clerk’s Office.

Registration Deadlines

• If you are not a registered voter and plan on voting in the next election, the last day to register is 20 days prior to the election.

Absentee Ballots

Applications for absentee ballots must be made in person or in writing no later than noon of the day prior to an election, but preferably much sooner. A ballot is then mailed to the applicant and must be received in the Town Clerk’s Office before the close of the polls on Election Day. You may vote absentee if you are a registered voter and unable to go to the polls on election day due to a physical disability, religious belief or you will be out of town. Illegal absentee voting is punishable by up to a $500.00 fine and one year in prison.

Board of Registrars

The Board of Selectmen, from a list submitted by the Democratic and Republican Town committees, appoint the Board of Election Registrars. In accordance with the law, two members must be registered Democrats and Two members must be registered Republicans. The board is composed of three members and the Town Clerk, who serves as ex-officio. The registrars are responsible for certifying nomination papers, conducting the registration of voters, officiating at recounts and ruling on any voting/election discrepancies.

Members of Board of Registrars

Polling Locations

For further information on your polling location, please call the Town Clerk’s Office.

A teenage boy jumped off Route 1 overpass near Kelly’s Roast Beef at Saugus Lynn Fells Parkway  around 9:23. The manager of Kelly’s Keri Rebidue said a witness saw the boy land in front of a truck that was on a halt on the highway.

It is still unknown whether the teen fell, jumped or if he got knocked off the overpass but Patrol units from Troop A, the State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section, are now investigating on the scene.

The teen is currently at Massachusetts General Hospital with serious injuries while the breakdown lane and right-hand lane are currently closed.

On Tuesday, September 21, there will be a shingles vaccination clinic on Rite Aid, 359 Broadway in Saugus. The vaccine Zostavax will be available to patients who pre-register and it will be administered on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Zostavax is a live vaccine which uses a weakened version of the virus to boost the body’s natural immunity to the disease. Once Zostavax is given to a patient once, they need not get shots for it again. It  is a vaccine for the painful nerve disease Shingles or zoster, which is caused by the same virus (varicella-zoster) that is brings chicken pox.

It is important to get the vaccination especially for people who already had chicken pox because the virus can remain dormant in a patient’s spinal fluid. Those who did not have chicken pox before are also encouraged to get the shot. It is used with adults 60 or older and is given in one dose once in a patient’s lifetime.

Zostavax requires a prescription from your physician, under state law. Customers can ask their pharmacist to contact their doctor for them.

For those who want to register or learn more about who should and should not be vaccinated, contact Tony Valenza the organizing pharmacists and the contact person for questions regarding Zostovax at 781-233-4990.