The Harvard Press

11/14/2025

Harvard’s Addiction Abatement Working Group has a new plan in the works for a portion of the town’s uncommitted opioid settlement funds. In partnership with Riverbend, a Lowell organization that provides addiction recovery services, the group plans to contribute $75,000 to open a peer counseling facility for the seven towns in the Nashoba Opioid Abatement Collaborative: Littleton, Bolton, Shirley, Ayer, Pepperell, Groton, and Harvard. The contribution is contingent upon the collaborative receiving a $96,000 grant from Mosaic RIZE, a nonprofit organization that funds community opioid response efforts in the state.

Harvard’s Addiction Abatement Working Group has a new plan in the works for a portion of the town’s uncommitted opioid settlement funds. In...

11/14/2025

As temperatures hovered a little above freezing on Veterans Day, about 30 people gathered under gray skies on the Common to honor all those who had served in this nation’s armed forces. They stood at the southwest corner of the Common, near the World War I flagpole and memorial.

Photo caption: From left: John McCormack, Steven Cronin, Carl Sciple, Ralph Fehlberg, Nancy Cronin, and Jon Schoenberg stand at attention in a Veterans Day ceremony, Nov. 11. (Photo by Hannah Taylor)

https://harvardpress.com/News/News-Articles/harvard-honors-veterans160with-ceremony-and-gratitude

11/13/2025

In January the tax bills of most property owners will jump several percentage points to cover the rising cost of town government, including the Proposition 2 ½ override approved by voters last spring.

In January the tax bills of most property owners will jump several percentage points to cover the rising cost of town government, including the...

11/12/2025

It’s been more than six months since the town has had a full-time Department of Public Works director. The position was filled by a contract employee during the summer, but that employee’s contract was temporary, and he will be leaving in a few weeks. That will leave Harvard without a public works director as snowplow season approaches, prompting Town Administrator Dan Nason to increase the town’s hiring salary from $124,340 to a range of $135,000 to $160,000. The position was reposted at that salary in October, and three candidates were interviewed last week; Nason told the Press the interview process is ongoing.

It’s been more than six months since the town has had a full-time Department of Public Works director. The position was filled by a contract...

11/07/2025

Costumed kids and their parents had already begun to arrive for Harvard’s annual celebration of Halloween Friday, Oct. 31, before the town bell struck 5 o’clock, and the crowds grew as darkness fell and a gibbous moon rose among the clouds. The event drew hundreds from Harvard and beyond between the hours of 5 and 7 p.m. in one of the town’s signature annual events.

Costumed kids and their parents had already begun to arrive for Harvard’s annual celebration of Halloween Friday, Oct. 31, before the town bell...

11/06/2025

The Massachusetts School Building Authority voted this week to approve Harvard’s application for a grant to pay nearly half the cost of a new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system for the Bromfield School. The MSBA vote was held Wednesday morning, Oct. 29, and Superintendent of Schools Linda Dwight was informed of the result soon afterward.The Massachusetts School Building Authority voted this week to approve Harvard’s application for a grant to pay nearly half the cost of a new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system for the Bromfield School. The MSBA vote was held Wednesday morning, Oct. 29, and Superintendent of Schools Linda Dwight was informed of the result soon afterward.

The Massachusetts School Building Authority voted this week to approve Harvard’s application for a grant to pay nearly half the cost of a new...

11/05/2025

Two recommendations from the Addiction Abatement Working Group to spend some of the town’s opioid addiction settlement funds on area programs met with Select Board approval at its Oct. 21 meeting. The board voted unanimously to increase its contribution to the Nashoba Opioid Abatement Collaborative and to approve a $10,000 mini grant to the Addiction Referral Center for sober housing rental assistance.

Two recommendations from the Addiction Abatement Working Group to spend some of the town’s opioid addiction settlement funds on area programs met...

11/03/2025

The Harvard Police Department rolled out a new fleet vehicle this month: a 2022 Harley Davidson Police Electra Glide motorcycle. MC1 (motorcycle one), as the department is calling it, hit the streets on Sept. 30 and made appearances at the Hildreth Elementary and Bromfield School’s morning traffic detail.

The Harvard Police Department rolled out a new fleet vehicle this month: a 2022 Harley Davidson Police Electra Glide motorcycle. MC1 (motorcycle...

11/01/2025

Town will not charge betterment fees to Depot Road residents for new water line

Depot Road residents are breathing easier this week, now that they have been assured they will not be charged betterment fees for the new line connecting Harvard’s municipal water supply to the Devens water system. At an Oct. 20 meeting, the two members of the Water Commission agreed that charging a betterment fee to the property owners along Depot Road for this project was not appropriate.

Depot Road residents are breathing easier this week, now that they have been assured they will not be charged betterment fees for the new line...

10/30/2025

Harvard’s Emergency Medical Services took a major step up in recent months. Massachusetts issues three levels of licenses for EMS departments. Using a state grant that paid for additional training and equipment, Harvard EMS moved from the first level of licensure level to the middle level.

Photo caption: Fire Chief Rick Sicard (left) shakes hands with Firefighter and Emergency Medical Services Coordinator Jason Cotting as he is promoted to Lieutenant. Cotting has served Harvard for more than a decade. (Courtesy photo)

https://harvardpress.com/News/News-Articles/harvard-ems-advances160to-higher-level-of-licensure

10/28/2025

The ambitions of Harvard’s volunteer-driven boards and committees were on full display at last Wednesday’s Oct. 15 all-boards meeting in Volunteers Hall at the library, but overshadowing their goals for the coming fiscal year is a growing deficit that stretches far into the future.

The ambitions of Harvard’s volunteer-driven boards and committees were on full display at last Wednesday’s Oct. 15 all-boards meeting in...

10/21/2025

What is it like, going to a predominantly white school as a person of color? All you have to do is read Autumn Allen’s young adult novel to gain perspective, and then attend her talk on Thursday, Oct. 30, at 6:30 p.m. in Volunteers Hall at the Harvard Public Library.

Photo caption: Autumn Allen. (Courtesy photo)

https://harvardpress.com/Features/Feature-Articles/allen-brings-debut-novel-to-harvard-with-the-message-all-you-have-to-do-is-feel