UPDATE May 17, 2024 – Simple Explanation of Issue – 1. Food Pantry not allowed by State Law in residential area 2. If home was somehow deemed OK for food pantry, permits must first be obtained and inspections must be conducted prior to opening 3. No approvals of any kindContinue Reading

Massachusett Law, click here. Food Pantry liability, click here. Gardner CAC has a Food Pantry located at 294 Pleasant Street in Gardner and would love your donations. Website with secure donation ability, CLICK HERE. Open a Food Pantry at Your House – NO, you can’t do that… A Gardner residentContinue Reading

Gardner Square Two Announces Small Business Saturday and Happy Birthday Gardner Festival The event will be Saturday, June 22, 2024 from 10am to 4pm in Downtown Gardner. Vendor space is still available and Square Two members get a free space. More information from the Gardner Square Two website, CLICK HERE.Continue Reading

450 Degrees and 229 Certificates Conferred to 620 Students at MWCC 2024 Graduation On May 15, 2024, the 59th Commencement was held at Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner MA. Guests were welcomed by MWCC President James Vander Hooven. Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll shared words of welcome. Student speakerContinue Reading

Flag up Again at Gardner City Hall With interior mechanisms of the pole irreparably damaged during a wind storm on February 29th, Gardner’s iconic flag as pictured at left was missing from the Chair City skyline for the past 2 1/2 months. According to Gardner City Hall, “Due to theContinue Reading

For the complete Press Release on pdf, CLICK HERE. — For the website, CLICK HERE. Listen to Library Director Stephanie Young on any device, CLICK PLAY. Gardner MA Levi Heywood Memorial Library Goes Fine Free The Levi Heywood Memorial Library stated in a Press Release on May 15, 2024 “proudContinue Reading

Gardner PD gets Ready for Junior Police Academy 2024 The Gardner Police Department posted the photo collage at left on its Facebook page. and wrote “The Jr. Police Academy is now accepting applications! This free program will start July 15 – July 20, for teens between the ages of 14Continue Reading

Gardner School Committee Met on Monday May 13, 2024 The Gardner MA School Committee Met on Monday May 13, 2024. Complete Agenda and Packet, CLICK HERE. Listen to the meeting on any device, CLICK PLAY. Robert Swartz detailed progress relating to various projects in the schools. pointing out that someContinue Reading

From the Publisher: Gardner Magazine has been publicly criticized on Social Media for its positive reporting on Mayor Nicholson, the Gardner City Council, and the Gardner Team of great municipal and school employees. Our response is simple: It’s not our fault they’re doing a good job. But it is somewhatContinue Reading

Bonanza of Community Events and Project Progress Highlight of Weekly Gardner MA Update Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson updated the Chair City on May 10, 2024. Listen on any device. CLICK PLAY. Community Events: Annie Fields at Gardner Museum on Thursday May 16th —- Gardner Area League of Artists Art andContinue Reading

Public Service Committee in Gardner Hears from Citizens and Department Heads The Gardner Public Service Committee chaired by Councilor Paul Tassone hears water and sewer appeals by ratepayers in Gardner. It also hears reports from Conservation, DPW, and Engineering. Listen to the May 6, 2024 meeting on any device, CLICKContinue Reading

Beautification of Gardner is Underway – Difference is Easily Apparent Top view is the fencing obscuring land which became the Park Street Park. Originally an electrical substation, the substation was abandoned in favor of another site, but the fence and barbed wire remained. Gardner Mayor Nicholson proposed the expenditure ofContinue Reading

Progress at Gardner MA Timpany Plaza Continues Grocery Store Aldi opened in Timpany Plaza in April 2024. The construction crew immediately moved over to its next project, the location leased by Five Below for its new Gardner MA location. Completion is projected to be within several months. With the formerContinue Reading

Article on the April School Committee Budget Meeting, CLICK HERE. School Committee OK doing Voice Vote on Budget In our article about the last School Committee meeting, we questioned the vote as it was not a roll call vote as the Mayor did last year. However, Mayor Nicholson has kindlyContinue Reading

Regular Meeting Agenda and Packet, CLICK HERE. Gardner Regular City Council Meeting for May 6, 2024 The regular City Council meeting on 5-6-24 will concern various aspects and complete details of the Fiscal Year 2025 Budget. Previous article with pdf of budget, CLICK HERE. Other proposed items include an ordinanceContinue Reading

Informal City Council Agenda for May 6, 2024, CLICK HERE. What Could a Quarter Mean in Gardner MA? Gardner Mayor Nicholson is proposing the City adopt a .75% tax on lodging and meals. This would mean a $30.00 restaurant bill would increase by 23 cents to $31.23, a minimal increaseContinue Reading

Keep Gardner Beautiful Cleans Up City On Saturday May 4, 2024, Keep Gardner Beautiful Volunteers led by Diane “Neon” Leblanc cleaned up trash and collected nips in the Chair City. Citizens met at the Gardner Transfer station to begin the cleanup and again there at noon. Local participating officials includedContinue Reading

Gardner Airport Commission Holds Wingy Meeting Various discussions were conducted in a sit-anywhere format with a huge amount of interesting information about significant airport progress. See Photo. Listen on any device. CLICK PLAY. Some of the matters which came up at the meeting included: MassDOT offered to do a reconstructionContinue Reading

Gunshots on Sherman Street In a Press Release from the Gardner Police Department on May 3, 2024, the Gardner PD referenced an incident on Sherman Street in Gardner which discovered bullet holes in a vehicle and a house. “Approximately 7 am this morning, the Gardner Police Department received 911 callsContinue Reading

Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson Informs the Chair City in his Weekly Update Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson presented his update from the GETV studios this week. Listen on any device. CLICK PLAY. May 7-10 is May Yard Waste Pickup (Mailer had a typo) Events: Keep Gardner Beautiful Nip Hunt and LitterContinue Reading

$13,088,995.23 was cut from department requests. Proposal has a buffer of $4,284.51 between anticipated revenue and budgetary expenses. Otherwise, it is balanced. It’s Only May First – And Gardner Mayor Nicholson Releases Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Last December, Gardner Mayor Michael Nicholson informed the City Council that he would beContinue Reading

For more about the following, click the respective links: Gardner Fire Department —- Gardner Police Department —– Levi Heywood Memorial Library. First Responder Day Cooperative Effort Among Gardner Fire Department, Gardner Police Department, and the Levi Heywood Memorial Library Gardner Magazine had the honor of speaking with 3 key individualsContinue Reading