By Carol Britton Meyer
Moving the POW/MIA Memorial to a different location at the harborfront, a capital repair at the water treatment plant, and a harbor dredging update topped the Selectmen's August 13 agenda.
The board approved the relocation of the POW/MIA memorial and flagpole from its current location at Hingham Harbor to "a new, more prominent, and more accessible location on Whitney Wharf due to concerns associated with future rising sea level," Veterans' Services Officer Keith Jermyn told the Hingham Anchor.
[Plans are underway to raise the level of Whitney Wharf and other town wharves.] This was the final approval needed for the project.
"The flagpole will be privately funded," Jermyn said. The Town of Hingham Veterans Benefit Fund is now accepting contributions of any size to help support the project.
Looking back, in 1985 the Conservation Commission reviewed, noted, and approved a request by Robert F. Beal, Jr., a Vietnam veteran, to establish a POW/MIA memorial at Harbor Park on the waterfront. Private fundraising was initiated to raise money to pay for the construction of a flagpole at that time.
However, in November 1985 Hingham resident and developer Thomas Hastings contacted Beal and offered to pay for the installation of the flagpole in memory of friends and classmates lost in Vietnam.
The flagpole was erected and dedicated on Flag Day -- June 14 -- 1986. The Massachusetts state flag was a gift from the State Veterans Commission, and the POW/MIA flag was donated by the father of MIA Joseph Dunn of Hull. A simple plaque donated by Hingham residents Jane and Jerry Goldberg was placed at the time of the dedication. They later donated a permanent engraved bronze plaque.
Part of the inscription reads, "With the continued support of the citizens of Hingham, these flags will continue to fly 24 hours a day until the complete disposition of all POW/MIAs is resolved. Brothers, you are not forgotten." Jermyn maintains the memorial.
Water company capital repair
Officials from Aquarion Water Company met with the board to bring its members up to speed about one of the four filters at the water treatment plant off Main Street. The filter was damaged in a recent lightning strike. Town Meeting 2019 voted to purchase the portion of the water company that serves Hingham, Hull, and part of Cohasset. That transition is in the works.
It was necessary to take the filter off line due to structural and equipment failure. Aquarion had been reporting to the town about the initial assessment of the repairs needed. However, after a full evaluation of the filter it was determined that additional repair work would be required to restore the filter to operation.
“Because additional work is needed to restore the filter, and the costs are over a certain threshold, the Selectmen needed to approve the expenditure. In keeping with good husbandry [continuing cooperation between Aquarion and Hingham during the transition to town ownership], we met with the Selectmen to keep them appraised of the process and the costs involved,” said Steve Olson, director of operations for Aquarion in Massachusetts.
The big takeaway, Selectmen Chair Karen Johnson told the Hingham Anchor, "is that Aquarion and the town are working closely and cooperatively on the continuing transition of the water system. We also hired Environmental Partners Group to help the town with the technical side of the transition," she said.
Harbor dredging to start soon
The Selectmen also approved the harbor dredging contract, with work to begin this fall. Harbormaster Ken Corson secured a $2 million grant toward the overall cost. "This results in [that much] direct savings to taxpayers thanks to the governor's support for coastal communities and Ken's hard work to position Hingham to secure grant funding," Johnson said.
The project was put out to bid earlier this month, with a Aug. 23 submission deadline. "When the bids are opened, we will know the full cost of the dredging," Corson said. "The town has money in the dredging fund in part from mooring permit fees, boat excise taxes, slip fees and other harbor revenue as well as money from the town's waterways account."
Residents -- adults and kids alike! -- will be interested in seeing the dredging equipment in action once the project starts.