Salisbury Town Notebook
For decades pizza lovers have flocked to Salisbury Beach, buying pizza to eat as they enjoyed all the other resources the beach has to offer. When done, however, the boxes were dumped in the beach trash receptacle, often causing a problem. The large, square, heavy cardboard boxes monopolized the limited space in the trash cans, causing them to overflow frequently and giving the town's Public Works Department a summer-long headache.
"Oh, pizza boxes have been a real problem at the beach for years," said Salisbury Public Works director Don Levesque. "Salisbury isn't alone. You'll find the same problem in many other communities. "
This year, construction company SPS New England of Salisbury weighed in to see if they could engineer a solution.
"SPS built the new pizza trash cans you can see at the Beach Center," Levesque said. "We don't know how well they'll work, but we're hoping they will make a difference."
The "pizza boxes only" trash cans have a mouth large enough to slip in a closed pizza box.
"The idea is the boxes will go in, and slide down flat, one on top of the other," Levesque said. "Now, all we need the public to cooperate, look for them and use them."
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Recently Salisbury police dispatcher Scarlette Balkus was recognized as one of 13 public safety communications specialists in the state to receive the prestigious 911 Life Saving Award given out by state safety professionals.
Balkus' award stems from a incident when she worked with a 10-year old boy who had made a 911 call on his dad's cell phone. During the call, Balkus calmly instructed the boy on what and how to do. The result was he was able to save his dad's life, according to police Chief David L'Esperance.
"Scarlette is calm, compassionate and extremely dedicated to the job and community," L'Esperance said. "We're all proud of her here at the Salisbury Police Department. Invariably, the dispatcher is the first person who initiates action (with callers), and we are very fortunate that we have her and the other members of our dispatch team on staff."
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The town clerk's office on the first floor of Town Hall will be closed Friday, July 10 and Friday, July 24, according to Town Clerk Wilma McDonald. Boards and commissions that normally have their agendas for coming meetings stamped on Friday should bring them the Thursday prior, McDonald said.
Residents who need the services of the town clerk's office should also made arrangements to access the office earlier.
For more information, contact McDonald at 978-462-7591 or via e-mail at townclerk@salisburyma.gov.
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School is just out, but Pettengill House's Operation Backpack is officially underway.
Each year, Pettengill House solicits donations to ensure students in pre-K through grade 12 have what they need when school starts in the fall.
Needed are: spiral notebooks, binders, loose leaf paper, markers, scissors, colored pencils, pencils, pens, highlighters, erasers, book covers, pencil cases, crayons, pencil sharpeners, folders, glue, protractors, etc.
The organization gladly accepts gift certificates and monetary donations. Checks can be made payable to The Pettengill House, Inc. and note "Operation Backpack" on the memo line. All donations are tax-deductible.
The backpacks and supplies will begin the week of Aug. 17 and continue throughout the year.
Local drop-off sites include: Seabrook: Wal-Mart; Salisbury: The Pettengill House, Inc., 13 Lafayette Road, Newburyport Five Cents Savings Bank, Cross Road Plaza, Latitude Sports Club, 191 Elm St., The Boys and Girls Club, 18 Maple St., Institution for Savings, 7 Bridge Road.
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Angeljean Chiaramida covers Salisbury for The Daily News. She can be reached via e-mail at achiaramida@newburyportnews.com, or at 978-462-6666 ext. 3271.
