USA > Massachusetts > Norfolk County > Weymouth > Town annual report of Weymouth 1928 > Part 16
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To the Honorable Board of Selectmen of Weymouth:
I hereby submit my report for the year 1928 as Inspector of Animals :
Number of places inspected 106
440
Number of Young Stock 220
Number of Bulls 10
130
Number of Sheep
41
Number of Goats
18
Respectfully submitted,
DANIEL SULLIVAN,
Inspector of Animals
174 Pond Street, South Weymouth
Number of Cows
Number of Swine
...
Patrol wagon calls
96
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REPORT OF THE MILK AND DAIRY INSPECTOR So. Weymouth, Mass.
Jan. 1, 1929 .
To the Honorable Board of Health of the Town of Weymouth. I herewith submit the following report as Milk and Dairy In- spector, also for the issuing of permits for the sale of Oleomargarine for the year ending Dec. 31, 1928.
Total Number Permits issued 216 Milk Licenses 189
Oleomargarine Registrations
27
Respectfully submitted,
MERTON L. LOUD Inspector.
REPORT OF THE SEALER OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES North. Weymouth, Dec. 31, 1928.
To the Honorable Board of Selectman of the Town of Weymouth; Gentlemen :
I herewith submit my annual report for the year 1928. and with the increased number of gasoline pumps and with more stores sell- the different commodities has increased the sealing fees to the amount of $364.08.
During the year 28 Fish, Fruit, and Vegetable Licenses were granted at $10. each; 11 Junk Licenses at $25. each.
My general work for the year was as follows :
Sealed 3871 Articles Not sealed 97 Articles 14 Articles
Condemned
Gas Pumps Reweighings
186 Articles 275 Articles
Respectfully submitted, CHARLES W. BURGESS. Sealer of Weights and Measures.
REPORT OF THE PLANNING BOARD
To the citizens of Weymouth :
Frank A. Pray and Arthur I. Negus were elected for two years and Allen C.Emery and Thomas J. Kelly for three years as members of the Weymouth Planning Board.
At our first meeting Mar. 23, 1928. Frank A. Pray was again chosen as Chairman and Ralph H. Haskins as clerk & treasurer.
We have held monthly meetings at each of which some special topic regarding the interest of the town was considered. the more im- portant ones in our judgment being ,Traffic lights, the taking of the so called "Common Land" at Weymouth Heights, the location of a new street connecting Commercial & Middle Streets following the general line of the present street, thereby forming a triangle bounded by Commercial, Middle and the proposed street.
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The improvement at the corner of Commercial & Cottage streets by the removal of the hedge and the substituting of a retaining wall has much improved conditions both as to looks and for safety, and while the expense was some what in excess of what was anticipated we feel that it was a good investment for the town.
At one of our first meetings the matter of installing two traffic lights on trial was taken up and arrangements made for their install- ation.
These lights have been on trial for seven months and while they have been in working condition only part of the time. We are fully convinced that had some other company furnished the lights and equipment they would have proved very satisfactory.
In support of our belief that the town should install traffic lights an article has been inserted in the town warrant calling for the in- stalling of (4) four lights, one at Central Square, one at the junction of Washington and Middle Streets, one at Lovell's Corner and one at Nash's Corner.
The question of the collection of garbage was considered by us and in order to get first hand information we invited Mr. Bailey of Braintree to meet with us. He is chairman of the committee who has charge of the collection of garbage in that town and he gave us much valuable information relative to their experience and cost of collect- ing.
At a later meeting we invited Mr Creig of Milton who has the contract for the collection of garbage and ashes in Milton, to look over our town and give us an estimate of the cost of collecting gar- bage for Weymouth.
He gave the Planning Board a figure at which he would collect the garbage of the entire town, taking the garbage out of the town and give a bond, thereby safe guarding the town for the fulfillment of his contract.
We would therefore recommend that the (town) advertise for bids for the collection of garbage.
The Planning Board opposed the granting of a permit on Union St.South Weymouth, as we felt that another gasoline station in that locality was not needed and furthermore the value of taxable property in that vicinity would be very much reduced.
The Planning Board were unanimous in their endorsement of the building laws for the town.
The annual meeting of the State Planning Boards was held at New Bedford in October.
The matter of sewerage for the town is still in the hands of a committee who. report progress.
The Planning Board recommends that the corner of Madison Street at the junction of Commercial Street be widened. We also re- commend that the water department continue the purchase of land on the water shed of great pond.
Respectfully submitted,
FRANK A. PRAY. Chairman
RALPH H. HASKINS, Clerk & Treas. RUSSELL H. WHITING ARTHUR I. NEGUS ALLAN C. EMERY THOMAS J. KELLY LEWIS W. CALLAHAN
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TOWN OF WEYMOUTH OFFICE TREE WARDEN AND MOTH SUPERINTENDENT
South Weymouth, Mass., January 1, 1929. TO THE HONORABLE BOARD OF SELECTMEN OF THE TOWN OF WEYMOUTH
Gentlemen.
Herein please find my report as Moth Superintendent for the year 1928 .. .
Speaking from the Gypsy & Brown tail standpoint I claim to have as clean a town as there is in this section. Not one Brown tail and while we have some few gypsys scattered all over town we have-no stripping. We have quite an infestion of satin moths on willows & poplars.
Our Orchard work was as satisfactory as I could wish as the weather was against us most of the season. I trust that we shall not have two seasons like the last two for spraying.
C. L. MERRITT. MOTH SUPERINTENDENT.
TOWN OF WEYMOUTH OFFICE OF TREE WARDEN AND MOTH SUPERINTENDENT TO THE HONORABLE OF SELECTMEN OF THE TOWN OF WEYMOUTH
Gentlemen.
Herein please find my report as Tree Warden, for the year 1928.
Owing to the scarcity and exorbitant price of trees fit to set out on our streets we have not spent much of the quite liberal sum ap- propriated for that purpose. This will account in a large measure for the return of so large an amount to the treasury. There must be a large number of trees set as soon as they are available. This shortage is caused by the lack of starting of maple trees during and following the war period and the great demand for street trees since then.
Aside from the lack of young trees I feel that our department is in very good shape.
C. L. MERRITT TREE WARDEN
REPORT OF TOWN ENGINEER
To the Honorable Board of Selectmen of the Town of Weymouth, Gentlemen :-
I submit herewith my twenty-second annual report showing the surveying or engineering work done for the town during 1928.
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Primarily each year is the necessary revision of the sixty-five Assessor's sheets covering the town, each full sheet comprising an area of approximately 200 acres.
On this work all transfers of land in Weymouth for the preceding year ending April 1st inclusive are copied; all buildings moved, razed, destroyed by fire or otherwise changed or eliminated are noted; all new taxable buildings erected during that period are measured and located; and all plans of new streets or of new land subdivisions are obtained and inspected.
With this information at hand the original tracings are revised and corrected to the date of assessment, (April 1st), each year. This re- quires many erasures, changes in property lines, the addition of new streets, of new subdivisions or developments, of all new buildings, and the making of all changes of whatsoever nature affecting buildings, boundary lines, areas, or ownership. This is the necessary routine work that is done each year.
For the year ending last April about 1380 parcels of land in Wey- mouth were conveyed. A parcel conveyed may require simply the erasure of the old owner and the substitution of the new; in many cases however, it means a subdivision of an existing parcel, various erasures, the addition of the new property lines, the addition of the new areas and the names of the new owners.
Of the above number of parcels about 112, or an increase of 38% over the previous year, were registered in the Land Court. For the same period approximately 351 houses, 349 other taxable buildings, both of these figures a material increase over previous years, the new wing on the Weymouth High School, the new Pratt school building, a portable school and about 115 additions to existing buildings were measured, located and entered on the tracings.
The increase in transfers from year to year, and sepecially the in- crease in the number of buildings erected each year is a fair index of the growth of the town, and this growth is also shown in the increased valuation of the town from year to year.
After these revisions and corrections have been made, negatives are taken from the tracings and a complete set of prints furnished the assessors.
All of the above together with other minor work appurtenant thereto comes under the head of the town survey, so-called, and is charged to that appropriation. I would recommend an appropriation of $2500. for this purpose for the year 1929.
I would once more call attention of all persons to the desirability of promptly recording all deeds, all mortgage releases or discharges, and all plans relative to any land owned by or conveyed to them; in many cases such data is invaluable in future years, and a present small recording fee may mean a substantial saving to them or their successors in surveying or legal work made necessary by lack of in- formation to properly fixed boundary lines.
During the year the sale of 95 town survey sheets, including one complete set, and of several lithograph maps of the town resulted in a small profit to the town.
As in former years an appropriation of $500. for use in purchasing and setting stone bounds on town streets was made and bounds have been set on the following streets: Squanto road, Pilgrim road, North
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street, Commercial street, Fiske avenue, Roosevelt road, Washington street and Thicket street. Also bounds moved or dug out have been corrected or replaced. This work should be continued each year.
In addition 79 stone bounds were set on newly accepted streets, in- cluding Ocean avenue, Fairlawn road, Orlando avenue, Princeton avenue, Sagamore road, Academy avenue, Nevin road, Georgia road, Elinor road, Lakewood road, and Partridge road, the cost of this latter work being taken from the appropriation made for such streets.
The taking of profiles of streets for use in the study of a sewerage system for Weymouth, with the establishment of accompanying bench marks along the route traversed, has been continued and practically all of the town has been gone over and the results are being plotted on a map of the town streets at this writing. .
Supplementary to the recent system of street numbering, various new streets have been numbered.
The general routine work for the town during 1928 covered the following: survey, staking, and setting stone bounds along line of the staking east of Weymouth Great Pond for the Water Department; design for grading of the Pratt School lot, and staking same; design, staking, taking profile and giving grades for drive on the Dunn (school) lot; taking levels and making estimate for grading the Nevin School grounds; grades for pond on the Bicknell School grounds; locating and staking portable school building 'at Washington and Winter streets; the last five being done for the School Department; survey, elevations and preliminary plan showing a suggested relocation of Pleasant street starting from a point at or near land of Bradford Hawes and running northerly by a route easterly of its present location to Lovell's Corner, together with a preliminary plan showing a suggested widening of the present location from land of Bradford Hawes to Lovells' Corner; staking and giving grades for newly accepted, and for other streets; descriptions of streets recommended to the town for acceptance; stak- ing street lines for abutters when so instructed by your Board; exam- ination. of street lines on plans filed for registration in the land court; surveys, staking and grades for permanent construction of Pleasant street; giving lines and grades for curbstone and for permanent side- walk construction and measurement of the latter when completed; taking profiles, staking and giving grades for town drains; surveys for and court attendance on land damage cases; staking entrance to Weston Park; survey and plan of a proposed junction of Middle and Com- mercial streets at the northerly end of Legion Field; and other work for various committees and departments of the town.
Perhaps the most important of this latter work was the design and construction for the High School building committee of a septic tank 3 feet long, 14 feet wide and 9 feet deep (inside 'dimensions) or rein- forced, waterproof concrete, with all necessary appurtenances, connect- ing with a sewer. nearly 1-4 mile in length skirting the meadow on the easterly side of Middle street; this tank was designed for 800 pupils and will probably care for 1000 if necessary. About 135 tons of con- crete and. 3 2-3 tons of steel were used in its construction.
Later a smaller tank to accommodate 100 persons was designed for the new town office building and connected with the above mentioned sewer.
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I wish in closing to extend my thanks to your Board, to other town officials, and to many citizens of the town, for assistance rendered and for courtesy shown to me or my assistants in our work throughout the town.
Respectfully submitted, RUSSELL H. WHITING, Civil Engineer.
REPORT OF THE BOARD OF HEALTH
To the Citizens of the Town of Weymouth
Gentlemen,
The Board of Health organized March 16 with the same mem- bers as last year.
J. E. Ludden was appointed inspector of plumbing and Geo. Marshall deputy inspector.
M. L. Loud inspector of milk and dairies.
James Menchin inspector of slaughtering.
Catherine Pratt tuberculosis nurse and Jeremiah Donovan care of the dumps.
Much time and labor has been expended in gathering data on the collection of garbage and the various methods of disposal investigated.
The following is a report of our investigations :-
To the Selectmen of the Town of Weymouth :
in pursuance of a vote passed at the annual Town Meeting held in March, 1928. that the Board of Health report at the next annual Town Meeting, an expression of their opinion relative to the collection and disposal of garbage, this report and recom- mendations are submitted to you for consideration.
There seems to be some differences in the understanding of the terms, garbage, swill, refuse, and waste. There are many complaints made of the mal treatment of garbage, when refuse and waste are the disturbing elements. Let us consider garbage to be the animal and vegetable waste matter produced wherever food is handled or prepared for consumption, and not the waste and refuse such as crates, cartons, papers, tin cans, and the like.
The collection of the garbage would not clean our streets of the refuse and waste that adorn many a road side, and, therefore, a simple system of garbage collection would not De adequate. For this reason the Board of Health recommends that these two prob -. lems be considered as one, and now present a plan for such im- provement. -
This collection and disposal of garbage and refuse may be either a private or municipal enterprise. If it is to be undertaken by a pri- vate contractor, it is essential to the Town of Weymouth that an agreement, like the one appended, be made and properly signed. If it is to be a municipal endeavor, it should be placed in the hands of the Public Works Department, so that the advantages to be gained by unified control, e.g., supervision, garages, trucks, chauf- feurs, and labor, may be appreciated.
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COLLECTION :
Let us first consider collection. In most of the towns in Massa- chusetts the collection is attended to by the Health Department, but in the cities, the Street, Highway or Public Works Department is gen- erally held responsible.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health states that the collection and handling of garbage should be under what corresponds to the Department of Public Works rather than the Board of Health because of the fact that the other resources of the Public Works De- partment, such as surplus equipment and labor, make for efficiency in handling garbage at times of pressure and at times following heavy snowstorms, but the department felt that it was important that the transportation of garbage on the highways should be subject to regula- tions by the local Board of Health. The Collection and transporta- tion of garbage is a matter of traction rather than health, and is seems preferable that the work should be done by the Street, Highway, or Public Works Department. It is inevitable, however, that complaints will be made to the Board of Health, and it would seem advisable that the local Board of Health should maintain some supervision over the collection of garbage.
In the recent reorganization of various local Boards of Health the tendency has been to give these Boards of Health power to super- vise the collection of garbage. The Board of Health should be author- ized to inspect the work of garbage collection and its results, partic- ularly as regards the suppression of odors and nuisances, in order to protect the public health.
REGULATION FOR HOUSEHOLDERS :
Certain definite regulations would need to be made for guidance of householders in obtaining most satisfactory service, such as uniform- ity in size and type of containers, their proper placing for collection accessibility, draining and wrapping in paper before depositing in con- tainer, etc.
If the garbage is to be fed to swine, much more stringent regulations must be enforced, such as forbidding use of disinfectants in contain- ers and the placing of glass, crockery, razor blades, nails, cans, etc., with the garbage. If the material is to go to an incinerator, the latter restrictions are unimportant.
COST OF COLLECTION :
The cost of collection is dependant, first, on the total amount handled; second, the frequency of collections and third, the length of the haul to disposal stations.
TOTAL AMOUNT :
Considering, first, the total amount of garbage, we find that the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reports as follows on municipalities in Massachusetts :-
18 municipalities under 25,000 pop .- 143 lbs. per capita per year 8 municipalities 25,000 to 50,000 pop .- 223 lbs. per capita per year 11 municipalities over 50,000 pop .- 196 1bs. per year
It is to be expected that in the case of small towns a considerable portion of the garbage is never collected, but is fed to hens or buried or burned in back yards; also, in the smaller towns, a relatively large proportion of the population is located in the sparsely settled portions and is not served by garbage collectors.
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And the Boston Society of Civil Engineers, in a comprehensive survey of the same subject, states that the following average values are characteristic of the quantity of garbage collected in New Eng- land :
Quantity of garbage, 250 lbs. per capita per year Seasonal variations : Minimum month (spring), 75 per cent of average.
Maximum month (fall), 130 per cent of average. Average weight per cubic foot, 40 to 50 1bs.
Assuming a Weymouth population of 20,000 we have therefore a yearly collection of 2500 tons, or a daily collection of about 8 tons. Rubbish and refuse would probably run 2 to 3 tons per day, or an average total of 10 tons per day, with seasonal variations.
FREQUENCY OF COLLECTION :
Frequent collections increase costs very materially, as they re- sult in longer hauls. Such increased costs have to be balanced against the greater satisfaction to those served.
The questions of frequency of collection, size of household con- tainers and complaints are closely related. By providing sufficient con- tainers of ample size, and by keeping them clean, householders can obviate the necessity for undue frequency of collection and at the same time will have less cause for complaining about the service. The size and care of household garbage pails seem to be matters that might well be regulated by municipal ordinance. Many complaints about frequency of collection are undoubtedly due to the failure of the house- holder himself to provide enough pails, or pails of sufficient capacity, to hold the garbage accumulating between collections.
The general practice in Massachusetts seems to be two collections a week from residences. In many cases one collection per week is made during the colder months.
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In the case of restaurants, hotels and markets, daily collections appear to be very generally in effect, because of the large quantities of garbage produced. Here frequent collection does not involve as heavy costs as in residental districts, due to the fact that the business district is usually of limited extent, and the amount of time, labor and haul involved is relatively small. Such collections are frequently made by crews and equipment specifically assigned to that duty. ,
While it is impossible to lay down any hard and fast rule relating to the frequency of collection, it does seem desirable to have not less than two collections weekly in summer and not less than one in winter from residences, and daily collections from hotels, restaurants and markets.
METHOD OF COLLECTION :
Collection can be made either by private contract system or by the town itself.
The disadvantages of the contract system are :-
(1) Tendency to sacrifice sanitation to profit. "
(2) Slowness in responding to complaints of the public, and there fore.
(3) Disinclination of the public to co-operate.
(4) Difficulty in dealing with emergencies with a limited equip- ment. This includes the handling of complaints.
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(5) Difficulty on the part of public officials of obtaining data
(6) Difficulty in determining qualifications of bidders.
(7) Tendency of Contractor to cut corners on a losing contract.
(8) Difficulty in anticipating changed labor or commodity con- ditions.
Whereas the advantages of municipal collection are. :
(1) The governing motive is sanitation, not profit.
(2) Public officials having direct control respond more readily
to the demands or complaints of the public, and therefore - The public co-operates more readily.
(3)
(4) The service is more flexible, since other city departments can aid; this flexibility is important in emergencies.
(5) Facility in obtaining data.
It is significant that nearly all the larger municipalities in this country have adopted municipal collection, and we recommend it for Weymouth.
COST OF COLLECTION
Cost per ton. Because of the fact that very few municipalities record the quantity of garbage collected, the data available in regard to cost of collection per ton of garbage are very meager. The cost per ton ranges from $2.26 at Pawtucket, R. I. (1926) to $8.13. at Lynn (1925.
Municipal collection in Brookline, where the service is quite sat- isfactory, cost $4.48 per ton in 1924 and $5.62 per ton in 1926. using motor trucks.
The average cost of garbage collection in five New England Muni- cipalities for 1925, was $5.23 per ton, and the corresponding figure for seven municipalities in 1926 was $5.05 per ton.
Based on 2500 to 3000 tons per year, the cost of collection for Weymouth might be expected to approximate $15,000 per year.
DISPOSAL :- Feeding or Incineration.
The two most common methods of disposal in the smaller muni- cipalities are by feeding to swine and by incineration.
Hog feeding has the advantage of reducing the municipal cost thru the sale of garbage collected, or its utilization by the town for feeding if it wishes to engage in the business of swine raising. It has the dis- advantages, first, that feeding garbage to swine may creat very un- sanitary conditions.
Conditions at some piggaries are objectional, due to such causes as low ground, poor drainage, improper cleaning, storage of surplus garbage in unfit places, accumulation of waste garbage, and. manure, lack of water supply, and careless, unsanitary methods. Many pigger- ies are located too close to the main highways or to building develop- ments.
Second, that length of haul and passage through other munici- palities may involve sanitary as well as economic difficulties. ยท
Third, that existence of danger from hog cholera, from epidemics of hoof and mouth disease and other diseases, and from harmful sub- stances found in garbage.
Fourth, that part of garbage is unsatisfactory as hog feed.
Coffee grounds, grape fruit and orange skins, melon rinds, dry sweet-corn husks and cobs, celery tops and potato parings are bulky and practically worth less for hog-feeding.
Fifth, that production of manure and accumulation of uneaten gar- bage involve many problems of sanitation that are difficult of solution.
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