Mayor of Dedham: White Is A Volunteer Staple

Tracey White is running for Mayor of Dedham to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.

  It's springtime, which means many things to many people, but for Tracey White, it means keeping an eye on the young umpires calling Dedham Youth Baseball games four nights each week and on Saturdays. It's just one of many jackets she wears throughout the year to help youngsters in Dedham. White, 43, gives time to the Dedham Parks and Recreation Department at the Dedham Pool and at a variety of fundraisers. She helps with the Dedham High School Boosters, the All-Night Graduation Party, James Joyce Ramble and works on election days. "Pretty much any event in Dedham, because I can't sit still," White said. Mayor of Dedham is a fundraiser to benefit the Dedham Parks and Recreation Department and a charity of the winner's choosing.  If White …

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Mayor of Dedham Fundraiser Moves Forward

Two candidates will campaign to become the next Mayor of Dedham.

  After tabulating poll and comment results, two Mayor of Dedham candidates have emerged: Tracey White and Mary Hathaway. Each woman now will hit the campaign trail to fund-raise money for local charities. The candidates have planned fundraisers over the next month, and, as in years past, $1 will buy a voter one vote, Dedham Parks and Recreation director Bob Stanley said. There isn't a limit to the number of votes a person can cast. Cash raised between now and June 11, the end to the campaign season, will be split between Parks and Recreation and a charity - or charities - of the winner's choice, Stanley said. The Mayor of Dedham will receive, among other prizes, an opportunity to ride in the lead car at the annual Flag Day Parade on June …

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Patch Facts

5 Things You Need to Know Today: March 28

Today's weather, an emergency Avery dirt meeting and storytime at Endicott Library.

  "Five Things you Need to Know Today" is a Patch column that provides readers with essential, daily information at a glance. 

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Dedham Skating Night Postponed

Rain has forced organizers to move the free outdoor event to Feb. 4.

An ice skating event scheduled for Saturday has been postponed due to rain, Dedham Parks and Recreation director Bob Stanley said Friday. The free event is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4 from 4-6 p.m. For the third consecutive year, folks are invited to hit the ice (bring your own skates) at both Memorial Park and Condon Park. Construction supplies, hot chocolate and doughnuts will be supplied by Needham Bank, the even't sponsor. For more details and updates, please visit www.needhambank.com/local-community-events.aspx. “The ice skating rink at Memorial Field [sic] has been the talk of the town in past years and this year the excitement is even greater with the addition of the second rink at Condon Park; we can’t say thank you …

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Top 5 Stories from Town Hall

A look at the government story that dominated conversation in 2011.

It was certainly a busy 2011 inside Town Hall. In many respects, it was the "Year of the Neighbor." AliMed neighbors rallied against a cell phone tower, many were uneasy about plans for night construction during the Dedham Square Improvement Project - which led to a 50/50 split, and neighbors have cried out agaisnt the planned closure of the East Dedham post office. But collective voices were heard loud and clear in several of our top government stories of 2011: Library Director Leaving Post Friday Under Dark Cloud Near Empty: Planning Board Growing Frustrated With Gas Station 'Hardest Vote' Favors Business Over Residents Dogs Go Wild: Parks and Rec Drafting Dog Park Plans Residents Rally Against Outside Hockey Rink

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Dedham Dogs on Parade: Park Opens Today

A pilot dog park on Common Street opens to the public as part of a 90-day trial.

Less than eight months after Chuck Dello Iacono restarted a plan to open a dog park in Dedham, dog owners will have a place to take their four-legged best friends beginning Thursday. A 90-day pilot dog park at the Dolan Center on Common Street is ready and welcoming dog owners. "It's been madness - in a good way," Dello Iacono said of the whirlwind process. Dello Iacono, who is not a dog owner, spearheaded the effort as a member of the Parks and Recreation Commission, as he researched, developed and pitched the idea to town officials. The park hit a snag in the fall when proponents learned it would take special permission from the state to override a bylaw mandating dog leashes in parks, but commissioners acted swiftly to put forward an …

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Dedham Selectmen Support Temporary Dog Park

The Board of Health must give its approval before moving forward, however.

Dog owners moved a step closer to having a dog park to safely walk their pets Thursday evening as Dedham selectmen voted unanimously to support a temporary dog park on Common Street. The vote, however, came with the stipulation that the Board of Health director Cathy Cardinale sign-off on the plan. Dedham Parks and Recreation commissioners are seeking to open a temporary dog park at the Dolan Center for a 90-day pilot period to gauge best practices and use of a park before it moves forward with a plan for a permanent park at a different location. "I credit Parks and Recreation for pursuing this - it's something that's been on the town's list for quite some time," selectman Michael Butler said. "I think we have to do [a pilot park], I think…

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If Selectmen Bless, Pilot Dog Park May Open in November

In front of more than 150 people, the Dedham Parks and Recreation Commission laid out a plan to open a temporary dog park.

The American Legion function room filled with more than 150 people – mostly dog owners – as Dedham Parks and Recreation commissioners laid out their plan to push ahead with a new dog park. "We are trying to get a dog park this year. It could be as soon as November," said commissioner Chuck Dello Iacono. Just last week, the Finance Committee took a bite out of the dog park passing at Special Town Meeting with a 4-3 vote not to support. The commission, however, has shifted gears this week and will seek support from the Board of Selectmen to temporarily bypass Town Meeting. The plan calls for a temporary park to open on town-owned land at the Dolan Center on Common Street. A town bylaw bans unleashed dogs on parkland, and a bylaw revision – …

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Question of the Day: Do You Support a Dog Park?

Let us know in the comment section.

Dedham Town Meeting members will vote in November whether to give the Dedham Parks and Recreation Commission authority to find a suitable place for a dog park in Dedham. A park for pups would be a first in the town. Several areas in Dedham are still up for discussion for a possible park. Tell us if you support a dog park in Dedham in the poll below. Note: Votes in polls are annonymous.

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