Bill Manzi.com

The grand opening of the Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union occurred today, and I was pleased to be there to welcome Lowell Mayor (and fellow CCHS Alum)Bill Martin and the Jeanne D’Arc staff to Merrimack Street in Methuen. The offices, located in the new office condominiums on Merrimack Street, are part of a strong Economic Development effort. My thanks to Karen Sawyer, our Economic Development Director, and the fine folks from Jeanne D’Arc, including my Woodburn Drive neighbor P. Scott Flagg.

The grand opening of Fuddruckers in Methuen occurred this past weekend. The brand new store, located in the Village Mall on Rte 28, is a great addition to our fine mix of restaurants in Methuen. Congratulations to owner Jim Boland, whose investment will bring forty jobs to Methuen.

I was on hand for the Grand (re) Opening of the brand new Mann’s Orchard farm stand. This Methuen icon, relocated as part of the process that brought Methuen a new Target, is bigger and better than ever. Sitting across from the Loop, this destination point for so many is a proud achievement of the Fitzgerald Family and a testament to the great advances we have made in the area of Economic Development. Visit the farm stand for the very best in pies and fresh produce. Good luck to Bill, Kathy, and the family.

I was honored to be the keynote speaker at the Friends of the Nevins Family of Services annual dinner. From the Nursing and Rehab Center, to the Adult Day Health Center to the state of the art Alzheimer’s Family Care Center, the web of human services that Nevins provides is second to none. The facility is also home to an residential wing that was saved from the potential for demolition by a HUD 202 Grant. It is an important part of our historic heritage, and provides Methuen and the Merrimack Valley with the finest of care. I am pictured with Billy Pittochelli, Director of Admissions, and Felix Albano, President and CEO. I have family at this facility, and from a personal point of view I cannot say enough about the care they provide. My CCHS classmate from 1974, Brian Sheehy, founded the Friends with Bill Pittochelli, and they delivered a ten thousand dollar check to the Nevins Family of Services that night.

The possibility of Methuen accepting a one year grant to implement the State ELT (Expanded Learning Time) program was defeated tonight by the Methuen School Committee. The Committee vote was unanimous. This process began in Methuen when the School Committee voted to accept a ten thousand dollar state grant to study the possibility of bringing ELT to Methuen. As that grant driven process began both the Superintendent, Dr. Jeanne Whitten, and the School Committee pledged that such a program would not be implemented without community and committee consensus. Such consensus was not able to be built around this issue. My own vote against ELT was driven by the inability to reconcile the necessary school reassignments that the program would have mandated. Under this voluntary program not all of Methuen’s four K-8 schools would have participated, forcing us to designate two “ELT Schools” with the attendant student reshuffling that would have occurred upon program adoption. The unrest this potential had created in our community simply outweighed, in my opinion, the benefits of the program. Having made that point I must concede that the program does have many positives, and could have benefited some section of our student population. As the State of Massachusetts looks at this program they need to consider the problems that led Methuen to turn down ELT. I feel that Superintendent Whitten kept her word, and ran a strong and open process that truly took into account the strongly held views of the parents. Is there any view on ELT that you would like to share? Did the Committee do the right thing, and is there any redeeming value to ELT? Does anyone think that the Commonwealth may move towards mandatory ELT?

I was able to cut the ribbon at the New Tokyo Restaurant in the area of the Loop in Methuen. The restaurant is another good piece of economic news for Methuen. The Loop area boasts some outstanding restaurants, and New Tokyo certainly will be a good addition. Try it out, and be sure to visit The Loop in Methuen for all of your shopping needs.