Summerfest planning committee chair Steve Slozack said 3 key committee members had to bow out of the planning because they lost their homes in the tornado.
View full sizeMonson officials inform town residents about the status of the annual Summerfest celebration during an informational meeting TuesdayMONSON - The annual Summerfest celebration will not be held this year, as the town is continuing to rebuild and recover after a devastating tornado blasted through it two weeks ago.
While Summerfest Committee chairman Steve Slozak’s announcement drew some sighs and cries of “oh no,” he told the crowd gathered in the Granite Valley Middle School auditorium on Tuesday that Summerfest will be held in July 2012 instead.
“We will be back,” Slozak said, to applause.
The signature celebration features a parade through downtown, music, vendors and food, and is traditionally held around the July 4 holiday. But the tornado battered downtown, leaving nails, debris and destruction in its wake.
Slozak explained that several factors played into the decision, including safety concerns after talking with Fire Chief George L. Robichaud and Highway Surveyor John R. Morrell.
He said that three key Summerfest committee members also lost their homes - his sister-in-law Kim Slozak, Russell Bressette and Jeanne Bailey - and without them it would be too difficult to plan. Also, all the equipment for the Girl Scout breakfast was damaged.
“It was a difficult decision to make,” Slozak said.
The fireworks, originally scheduled for June 25, will be moved to Labor Day weekend at Quarry Hill Community School pending the approval of the Board of Selectmen, he said.
Joan Copperman, PHD, from the Griswold Center at Wing Memorial Hospital in Palmer, talks about emotional trauma recovery at the Granite Valley Middle School during a townwide informational meeting about tornado damage and recovery.The Summerfest update was part of a tornado recovery information meeting sponsored by the town for residents. This was the second meeting held since the June 1 tornado struck, causing $2.1 million in public property damage in Monson.
“You have been an inspiration to all of us,” Town Administrator Gretchen E. Neggers told the crowd. “Certainly no one ever expected us to be sitting here talking about recovering from a tornado, but we’re doing it really well, just like we do everything else.”
Selectman John F. Goodrich II reported that 234 buildings, 8 percent of the structures in Monson, were inspected after the tornado, and 51 were “red-tagged,” which means uninhabitable. That number also includes homes destroyed entirely.
An additional 67 received yellow tags, meaning they are unsafe to live in, but temporary access is available; the remainder have green tags because they are damaged, but still considered safe to live in, he said.
Neggers said the Adams grocery store on Main Street, which lost part of its roof, is not expected to reopen until late August. It is the town’s only grocery store.
Town offices have been relocated to Hillside School, where the Medical Reserve Corps also is set up, offering legal, fax and notary assistance. A storm assistance center, featuring representatives from various state agencies, is at Monson Developmental Center.
Neggers said the last day of work for the part-time building inspector, Harold Leaming, was Friday, and the town now has someone assigned by the state to help with building-related needs. Goodrich explained that the fee for demolition permits has been waived, but the permits still need to be obtained.
He told residents the permit is there for their protection, as “unscrupulous people” may come to town “looking to make a buck at a time when you’re down.” Goodrich said to make sure to get a contractor’s license number, and to ask for a certificate of insurance.
Principal Assessor Ann Murphy said they have been taking pictures of homes that were affected by the tornado, and tax bills should be temporarily lower for those properties. Tax bills also will be delayed, and will be due Sept. 1 instead of Aug. 1. She told displaced residents to provide her office with their new addresses.
Morrell said numerous trees were ruined in the tornado, but he said they hopefully saved the blue spruce Christmas tree at the monument, even though it was 30 to 40 percent uprooted.
“Hopefully it will make it,” Morrell said.
Ely Road will be closed until about 2 or 3 p.m. on Wednesday for paving work, he added.
Robichaud said he is sympathetic to the residents’ plight, but said he cannot allow open burning, as that could create a forest fire. There is just too much vegetative debris, he said.
A forest fire “could very easily happen in Monson, just like the tornado we never thought we’d see, we could see a forest fire,” Robichaud said.