SPORTS
Clockers’ girls tennis
ASHLANDTAB
Community Newspaper Company ■ Vol. 22, No. 49
COMING
UP
in Ashland
Rabies clinic Saturday
aids MetroWest
Humane Society
The Farmer’s Exchange and
Blue Seal are hosting a rabies
clinic benefit for the MetroWest
Humane Society Saturday, April
11, rain or shine, at the
Farmer’s Exchange, 72 Nicker-
son Road, Ashland.
Vaccinations will be available
from 1 to 3 p.m., with a veteri-
narian from Healthy Paws.
Other activities go until 4 p.m.
In addition to vaccinations, de-
fleaing and de-worming med-
ications, Blue Seal staff will
answer pet feeding questions.
Hops-N-Lops Bunny Rescue
will show how to trim a bunny’s
nails and ear care.
Meet with staff and volunteers
from MetroWest Humane soci-
ety to discuss pet behavior prob-
lems or adopting a pet. Take a
chance to win a year’s supply of
World’s Best cat litter. There will
be prizes and free samples.
The cost to vaccinate is $15;
distemper, $15; rabies and dis-
temper, $25; wormer, $5; and
for the spring tune-up (every-
thing), $40.
Cats, including barn cats or
semi-feral cats, are welcome in
carriers. Bunnies must be in
carriers and dogs on leashes.
Bring a muzzle if your dog may
bite. For more information, visit
www.webpaws.com/mwhs or e-
mail mwhspaw@yahoo.com.
Get creative for
Ashland Emergency
Fund
The Ashland Rallying Togeth-
er Project seeks volunteers for a
food sculpture exhibition to ben-
efit the Ashland Food Pantry
and Ashland Emergency Fund.
Participants will design and
build sculptures made of canned
or boxed food in a 6-by-4-by-5
space. A sample sculpture is on
display at the Ashland Public
Library.
An information night is April
16, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., in the
library meeting room. Entry
forms are due May 1. Sculptures
will be displayed at Rediscover
Ashland on June 20.
Last year alone, the Emer-
gency Fund and Food Pantry
helped hundreds of families in
Ashland, and demand for ser-
vices has been increasing dra-
matically.
Rules and registration are
available at AshlandEmergen-
cyFund.com. For more informa-
tion, contact Roland Houle at
RH6599-AEF@yahoo.com or
508-736-8892.
WE WANT YOUR »
MarathonPHOTOS
Are you training for the Boston Marathon? Do you have a family member or friend who plans to run? Or are you one of the many thousands
who will cheer along the 26.2-mile route from Hopkinton to Boston on April 20? Whatever your role, we want to showcase your photos – from
training and race day. Please be sure to include names and hometowns of those pictured and where the photos were taken.
FEATURE
Ashland moms run
slams Norton, 5-0
 SEE PAGE 15
www.wickedlocal.com/ashland
School board deadlocks on leader
By Aaron Wasserman
STAFF WRITER
After a 90-minute debate, the School
Committee Monday night could not settle
on who will be the schools’ next superin-
tendent.
Members were divided between two of
Wash and Earn
Don Barrett, 12, of Ashland, gets soapy during Ashland Boy Scout Troop 23’s annual car wash fundraiser Saturday at the Ashland
VFW. Proceeds went toward new equipment for the troop.
Parking
proposal
revised
Changes may limit
business vehicles
By Aaron Wasserman
STAFF WRITER
After a lengthy hearing last
week, town officials agreed to
make adjustments to a Town
Meeting article that would
change the rules for parking
commercial vehicles at houses
overnight.
Responding to suggestions
from residents, selectmen said
they would include school buses
and limousines in the new rules,
clarify that someone would be
fined for each vehicle that is vio-
lating the new bylaw, and cap at
four or five the standard-sized
commercial pickup trucks that
could be parked at a house.
The board will likely vote on
PARKING, page 6
Opinion Page 4
Town Report Page 2
marathon for library
 SEE PAGE 3
APRIL 9, 2009
the three finalists for the job.
Instead, committee members decided to
ask the Massachusetts Association of
School Committees for input to again
evaluate Ashland Assistant Superintendent
Ann Dargon and Acton-Boxborough
Assistant Superintendent Susan Horn, and
E E R I E H I S T O RY
Stone’s Public House, above, is the subject of a talk at the Ashland Historical Society next Sunday. On the right, David Francis and David
Retalic search for signs of the paranormal at the inn last year.
Talk delves into ominous inn’s past
The Past:
A fine spot for a burger and a beer,
Stone’s Public House on Main Street has
long been just as well-known for rumors
of its haunted past. Paranormal investiga-
tors last year descended on the inn, built in
the 1830s, to investigate tales of bloody
clothes in the attic and doors that refused to
stay shut.
Events
Classified
Complete index on page 2
to resolve the impasse. They did not speci-
fy how long the process will take.
Ashland’s schools need someone to fill
the role Richard Hoffmann has held for
nine years. He is stepping down at the
school year’s end, and taking the same role
at Nauset regional schools in Cape Cod.
PHOTO BY SHANE GERARDI
The Present:
David Francis, who investigated the inn
last year, says it has more to offer than
scary stories — it’s got history. Digging
into historical records and news accounts
with help from the Ashland Historical Soci-
ety’s Cliff Wilson, Francis says he can shed
new light on the inn and the town it calls
home.
Page 7
Page 1cc
28 Pages ■ 3 Sections 75¢
The committee needs a unanimous vote
to appoint a new superintendent, and it
became quickly apparent that members’
opinions were split. While everyone said
all the finalists are excellent candidates,
Co-Chairwomen Kathy Bach and Marcia
SUPERINTENDENT, page 6
Water
grants up
for grabs
Nyanza damage
spurs funding
By David Riley
STAFF WRITER
State officials are offering up to
$201,630 in grants for projects
that will protect or restore
groundwater in Ashland, the first
step in efforts to heal pollution-
damaged natural resources along
the Sudbury River.
Last week, the Executive
Office of Energy and Environ-
mental Affairs put out a request
for proposals for groundwater
projects in Ashland, at or near the
old Nyanza dye factory site.
Applications must be postmarked
by April 30.
Until the 1970s, companies at
the Nyanza site dumped tons of
mercury into the Sudbury River,
polluting about 26 miles of the
waterway, which runs through
much of MetroWest.
State and federal authorities
reached a roughly $3 million set-
tlement with the companies in
1998. A portion was set aside
specifically for groundwater
NYANZA, page 6
STAFF FILE PHOTO BY MIKE SPRING/PHOTO BY KATHLEEN CULLER
The Future:
Francis will give a free public talk on the
history of Stone’s Public House on Sunday,
April 19, at 2 p.m. at the Historical Soci-
ety’s Ocean House at 2 Myrtle St. A coffee
gathering will follow. Get there while you
can — this will be the nonprofit society’s
last public meeting until next fall.
— David Riley
SUBMIT
PHOTOS
Please e-mail your BOSTON
MARATHON PHOTOS to
driley@cnc.com and we’ll run
them in our print edition and on
our Web site
www.wickedlocal.com/ashland