News and Updates

The Town of Clinton continues to monitor the situation regarding coronavirus and COVID-19, and will update the community as necessary. As of Friday, March 13, 2020, there are no confirmed or presumptive cases of the coronavirus in Clinton.

As you can imagine, it’s an incredibly fluid situation that changes by the hour. Your patience and perseverance are greatly appreciated. We will update the Clinton Board of Health’s website as more information becomes available.

For an overview of what’s happening in Massachusetts, as well as resources on how to prevent the spread of the virus, please visit the Mass. Department of Public Health Covid-19 website.

UPDATE: Clinton Public Schools have just announced that schools will be CLOSED on Monday, March 16, in order to disinfect all of the schools.

The latest update from Clinton Superintendent of Schools Steven Meyer is available here: Clinton Public Schools 3-13-20 coronavirus update. 

On June 29, I will be seeking a second term on the Clinton Board of Selectmen.

My first three years serving you have been incredible, and we’ve made progress in many areas. But government can move slowly at times, and there’s still much more I’d like to do, especially when it comes to growing our tax base, making Town Hall open and responsive to your needs, and creating a modern Clinton that embraces its tradition while evolving to compete in today’s world.

You deserve a Clinton where you feel safe and satisfied. A Clinton where you can get a good job and live comfortably without going broke. A Clinton where you can be happy and proud to say, “That’s where I live.”

We’re heading in the right direction. With your help, in June and over the next three years, together we can keep Clinton moving forward.

There will be much more to follow in the weeks ahead, so stay tuned. As always, I’m available at kerriganforclinton@gmail.com, kerriganforclinton.org and on Facebook if you have any questions, concerns or good ideas.

At tonight’s Board of Selectmen meeting, I made a motion to move forward with a process to change the name of our board to the gender-neutral Select Board. It’s something that’s long overdue, and something that I wanted to get started before my term was over. The motion passed, 3-2, and now needs town meeting approval (and possibly approval of the state legislature).

I’m proud of the board for backing a move toward this simple change, which I believe will bring greater equality, fairness and inclusion to town government.

Boards of selectmen in Massachusetts go back nearly 400 years, and the town meeting form of government is one of the purest forms of democracy in the world. I do not want to change how we run our town. Recently, however, communities across the commonwealth are changing names as a way to be more inclusive. This past month, the Massachusetts Selectmen’s Association voted unanimously to change its name to the gender-neutral Massachusetts Select Board Association. And almost 90 towns — including West Boylston, Harvard, Grafton, Leicester, Princeton and Westboro in our part of the state — have also made this change. More are coming, because it’s the right thing to do.

After 170 years — in which only two women have served as selectmen — it’s time for Clinton to do the same.

We owe it to every member of our community to improve outreach and show them that anyone can serve their town. If there’s an obstacle to entry when it comes to local government or community service — whether real or implied — we need to remove it.

I’d like to thank Ed Devault and Michael Dziokonski for their support of this motion, and I look forward to taking this to town meeting voters in June. This name change will hopefully communicate to everyone in Clinton that we are their representatives, and they are always welcome to serve.

This week, Clinton was awarded $282,575 in Complete Streets roadwork funding, money that will help the town’s ongoing effort to improve the town’s roads and make Clinton more friendly to walkers and bicyclists.

The money is part of the latest round of Complete Streets Funding Program awards, totaling $8.1 million in funding to 24 communities. These awards will be used to fund local, multimodal infrastructure projects that improve accessibility for bicyclists, pedestrians, public transit users, and people using other forms of transportation.

A “Complete Street” is one that provides safe and accessible options for all travel modes and for all people, taking into account the ages and abilities of individuals. The Baker-Polito Administration has now awarded a total of 148 construction grants at $46 million since creating the funding program for Complete Streets in February 2016.

Water Street Bicycle and Pedestrian Network Connection: $282,575

The project will enlarge and improve sidewalks, improve crosswalks and midblock crossings, improve one intersection, install pedestrian-scale lighting, provide a pedestrian rest area, and install roadway markings and signage for shared bicycle use of Water Street from High Street to Main Street.

This project is the latest in a series of work aimed at making Clinton’s downtown business district more accessible to pedestrians. Town meeting voters approved a $4.5 million reconstruction of the High Street district from Union Street to Water Street this past June, and a federally funded project will make similar improvements (including new sidewalks and drainage upgrades) on High Street from Water Street to Allen Street.

The Board of Selectmen last night approved the placement of a four-way stop sign at the intersection of Church and Chestnut streets, for the safety of vehicular traffic and pedestrians crossing the street.

I’m not sure when this change will take effect, and there will be maximum effort to inform the public of this traffic pattern change, but I wanted to let everyone know as soon as possible so they weren’t surprised when the signs went up at this often busy intersection.

In other Traffic Committee business last night, the board endorsed placement of a dead-end sign for Liberty Street, and a streetlight at the intersection of Chase Street and Bufton Farm Road.

Have a good suggestion for improving traffic safety in your neighborhood? Contact the Board of Selectman’s Traffic Committee via Town Administrator Michael Ward at 978-365-4120 or mward@clintonma.gov, or let me know and I’ll forward your good idea.

 

The Worcester Business Journal breaks down Monday’s Town Meeting votes to renovate downtown and update our zoning bylaws to make development here more attractive.

That work will be most visible to residents and visitors, but a new zoning bylaw is meant to bring more people living in the neighborhood, bringing the town more tax revenue and more people to eat and shop downtown.

Check out the story here: Clinton turns focus to downtown

Did you miss Clinton candidates night, and want to get caught up on where the candidates for Board of Selectmen, School Committee, moderator and Library Trustees stand on the issues? You’re in luck.

Candidates night is on YouTube, so you have all weekend to watch in the comfort of your home or office. Heading to the beach, or hanging out by the pool? Check it out on your phone!

Bottom line? There’s never been a better time to learn more about the people running for office in Clinton.

Election Day is Monday, June 10, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

For the first time in many years, Clinton has two open seats on its Board of Selectmen. It’s a tremendous opportunity to shape the future of the board, and our town, and that is why I am enthusiastically endorsing Jessica Spano for one of those open seats.

Jessica isn’t your typical Clinton candidate. She’s young, a woman, and relatively new to town. That newness, however, hasn’t stopped her from getting involved and sharing her ideas and expertise. She brings a point of view that is hers alone in the field, one I think the Board of Selectmen sorely needs.

When I formed the board’s Marketing and Communication subcommittee in 2017, Jessica was the first to apply. But it’s how she applied that really impressed me. Where most would send a simple email expressing interest in serving, Jessica took the time to spell out in detail what she loved about Clinton and what we could do to make the town and quality of life here better, both for residents and potential business owners.

Jessica has a background in retail marketing and management, with an eye toward customer service and user experience — two things I find critical in a good public servant. I have always found her thoughtful and easy to work with, yet determined and firm in her beliefs. She is a good teammate and a steady leader. She is passionate about Clinton, but understands the challenges working in municipal government brings when trying to enact change. She will make our town a better place to live, work and own a business.

Jessica Spano is the kind of fresh, forward-facing person the Clinton Board of Selectmen needs. She believes in our community, and I believe in her. I hope you’ll join me Monday, June 10, in voting for her for Board of Selectmen.

Polls are open Monday, June 10, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Clinton Town Hall. For more information on Jessica Spano, visit facebook.com/jessicaspanoforselectwoman.

For the first time in many years, Clinton has two open seats on its Board of Selectmen. It’s a tremendous opportunity to shape the future of the board, and our town, and that is why I am enthusiastically endorsing Ed Devault for one of those open seats.

I have known Ed for close to 15 years. He’s been a good friend, always eager to offer help or advice whenever needed. He loves Clinton, and lives to make his hometown better.

His achievements on the School Committee are well documented, including a key role in the search for a new superintendent, helping transition the School Department into the new town-wide Facilities Department, and a reorganization of the FIRST Robotics program. He’s been a leader in pushing for more aggressive and transparent marketing and communication on behalf of the School Department.

In fact, Ed’s early time on the School Committee served as an inspiration to me when I first considered a run for public office. I have no doubt he’ll continue this hard work, and steady success, on the Board of Selectmen.

Ed has a keen sense of how this town works, and isn’t afraid to point out the places we need to be doing better. While every job has its learning curve, his familiarity of the town budget process and familiarity with other boards and committees means he can hit the ground running and help us get to work right away. That’s important, since we have a lot of work to do.

One look at his platform and priorities shows how serious Ed is about improving the quality of life here, for residents and business owners. He has thoughtful, aggressive (but realistic) proposals for everything from attracting business to Clinton, to cleaning up graffiti and litter, to expanding job skills training and after-school options for our kids. As serious as he is about policy, however, Ed never loses his sense of humor, or his cool. This appreciation and understanding of the quirks and complexities of our town will go a long way toward making it better.

Ed Devault is the kind of public servant we need more of in Clinton. I’m thrilled he’s running for the Board of Selectmen, and can’t wait to cast my ballot for him on Monday, June 10. I hope you’ll join me.

Polls are open Monday, June 10, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Clinton Town Hall. For more information on Ed Devault, find him on Facebook or visit devaultforselectman.com.

Clinton’s Annual Town Meeting is this Monday, June 3, at 7 p.m.

If you have any questions about the Town Meeting warrant or the FY2020 budget, I’ll be holding online office hours on Friday, May 31, from 9 to 10 a.m. on my Facebook page. If you can’t make it at that time, just leave a question, or email me at kerriganforclinton@gmail.com, and I’ll do my best to answer it.

Town Meeting will decide several important articles, including a major reconstruction of the downtown High Street business district and changes to zoning that could help development. Make sure you check out the warrant before Monday to familiarize yourself with what we’ll be voting on.

Also, if you’re interested in the details of how the budget came together, Finance Committee meetings are now on YouTube, so you can catch up in the comfort of your home or office.