Talk Of The Town-June 3, 1970

Across the Town: Pipes, Ponds, and Patrolmen

While the Chamber of Commerce celebrated at their annual meeting, other town boards and the Norwood Police Department were dealing with a remarkably eclectic mix of municipal issues:

The Battle of the Plastic Pipes at Nassau Gardens

A dense technical and legal battle broke out at the Selectmen’s meeting over the construction of the new Nassau Gardens apartments. The selectmen, town engineer, health agent, public works superintendent, building inspector, and plumbing inspector all united to express strict disapproval over the builder’s use of Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) plastic water pipes beyond the water meters.

Nassau Gardens owner George Buehler and engineer William Armstrong argued that changing materials now would inflict a “severe economic penalty” and claimed the installation fell solely under the jurisdiction of the state plumbing code, which permitted residential PVC.

However, Health Agent Bartley J. King and Appeals Board Chairman James J. Sullivan fired back, noting that the town had specifically been granted a state variance on May 18 explicitly banning plastic pipe in Norwood in favor of copper. “They are bound by the special permit and may deviate only by applying for an amendment,” Sullivan warned. No order was given to rip the pipes out yet, but both sides dug in for another showdown the following week.

From Barking Dogs to Flying Eggs

The neighborhood dispute between the Borsa family (112 Gay St.) and the Weta family (114 Gay St.) escalated to the Board of Selectmen for the second consecutive week. Mrs. Borsa reported that while the barking dogs she complained about previously had “nicely quieted down,” her property had since been targeted by vandals.

She claimed her house and roof had been “bombarded with eggs which the sun had baked on.” While Mrs. Weta strongly denied her sons were involved, stating they were out of town that evening, Police Chief James M. Murphy confirmed that the department had received an official complaint and an active investigation into the egg-throwing incident was underway.

Late-Night Crime Blotter

Halon Jewelers Heist: At 1:32 a.m., a burglar alarm shattered the early morning quiet at 644 Washington Street in the center of town. Thieves smashed an 18-inch hole into the display window of Halon Jewelers and successfully made off with at least two wristwatches, leaving two empty boxes tossed on the ground.

The Willett Pond Submersion: At 2:48 a.m., Ralph Brown of 12 Ridgewood Drive reported his 1961 model car stolen from the front of his home. Four hours later, Patrolmen James A. Michienzi and Benjamin J. Grudinskas spotted the empty vehicle sitting 15 feet off the shoreline of Willett Pond on Nichols Street, completely submerged up to its door handles after being driven over an embankment.

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