Police Log: Loud Muffler Leads to Arrest of Driver Without License

The following information was supplied by the Wellesley Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.

Disabled Vehicle Leads to Warrant-Related Arrest Edward J. Zani Jr., 41, of Wakefield was arrested last week after an officer discovered there was a warrant out for his arrest. Wellesley Police Officer Nate Derby, on routine patrol March 14, drove by what he believed to be a disabled vehicle on Cedar Street, according to Wellesley Police records clerk Sue Morse. Derby noticed the vehicle attempt to drive away, but it appeared it was having engine trouble, Morse said. Derby stopped and spoke to the operator, Zani, and ran his license plate. Derby learned there was a warrant out for Zani’s arrest from Lynn District Court for shoplifting over $100. Zani was arrested. Driver Without License Arrested after Making Illegal Left Turn Kathleen L. …

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Police Log: Tanker Truck Driver Pulled Over for Driving 5-Ton Vehicle on Rte. 16

The following information was supplied by the Wellesley Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.

Driver Pulled Over, Arrested for Warrant-Related Motor Vehicle Related Charges Scott E. Ashton, 33, of Manchester, N.H. was arrested on Route 9 last week for warrant related charges after being pulled over for a faulty brake light. Wellesley Police Office Conor Ashe was on patrol in the area Feb. 1 when he observed Ashton’s van’s right rear brake light was out. He pulled Ashton over, and upon doing a routine check of his license, Ashe found there was a warrant out for the driver’s arrest for motor vehicle related charges. Passenger in Vehicle Arrested on Warrant-Related Charges Terrance Rutledge, 31, of Roslindale was arrested last week on warrant-related charges after an officer conducted a routine check on his license revealing a warrant…

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Town to Study Washington/Central/Linden Traffic ‘Loop’ Signals

The study will look into signal timing and peak hour traffic.

The town’s traffic engineer will study traffic signals in the town’s “loop” beginning next year, as decided at Monday’s Special Town Meeting. Town Meeting appropriated $34,800 from parking meter receipts to fund an evaluation of traffic signal timing in the town’s traffic loop, a system of 12 networked signals at intersections which run between the Route 16/Route 9 bridge at the Wellesley Community Center to Wellesley College and along Kingsbury and Linden streets. The study is directed toward finding deficiencies in signal timing, according to Advisory Committee reports. Beta Engineering will analyze information stored in the software that operates the system and turning movements at six of the loop’s intersections – which include …

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Patch Facts

5 Things You Need to Know Today: Oct. 18

Your daily roundup of news and events.

1.    Hydrant flushing will continue today and last through Friday. The Department of Public Works will flush the hydrants from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day this week. 2.    Washington Street from Walnut Street to the Newton line will be closed tonight starting at 10 p.m. and ending at 5 a.m. Crews in the area are adding a curb extension and moving a crosswalk near Mica Lane. 3.    The School Committee will meet tonight for the first time in three weeks at 7:30. 4.    Today’s weather should mirror yesterday’s, according to the National Weather Service, which predicts a blustery, 67-degree day. 5.    …Which means nearly every Wellesley High School and Middle School team should get its game in today.

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Town to Reassess Washington Street Traffic Loop

Backups, delays getting worse due to new Whole Foods, according to Larsen.

The town will be looking into a “complete reassessment of the whole traffic loop” on Washington Street. Hans Larsen, executive director of general government, said during Monday night’s Board of Selectmen meeting, that he has heard complaints of increased traffic and delays on Washington Street in recent weeks. Kien Ho, the town’s consulting traffic engineer, will conduct a study of Wellesley's main road, Larsen said. “With all the minor adjustments we’ve made, the time has come for us to step back and take a more holistic look at the overall workings of the entire system,” he said. The new Whole Foods, which opened in late August at 442 Washington St., is at least partially responsible for the delays due to the “ripple effect” caused by …

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Viewfinder

The New Whole Foods in Pictures

The new Whole Foods opens Monday.

Wellesley Patch took a tour of the brand new Whole Foods supermarket on Thursday. The store opens to the public Monday morning at 8 a.m.

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Man Arrested with Stolen Vehicle After Asking Police Officer for Directions

The following information was supplied by the Wellesley Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction.

A Western Massachusetts man was arrested last week after Wellesley Police learned the van he was driving was stolen when he asked a Wellesley Police officer for directions. Wellesley Police officer Matt Farwell was on patrol on Route 9 when he noticed a green van parked in front of the Wellesley Fire Department, which had stickers from a car sales lot, according to Wellesley Police records clerk Sue Morse. The van, being driven by John G. Harden, 59, of Indian Orchard, crossed over Route 9 toward Washington Street. Farwell followed. Farwell ran a check on the vehicle’s license plates, which showed the plates belonged to a red Jeep, not the green Plymouth being driven by Harden. Up the road, Farwell noticed Harden’s vehicle had stopped and …

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Board of Selectmen Delay Removal of Lower Falls Parking Space

The Board decided to keep the space until the town could review the impact of the space’s removal further.

The Board of Selectmen delayed a decision to take away one parking space in front of the building which houses Dunkin’ Donuts and Papa Razzi restaurant in the Lower Falls neighborhood Monday night. The town proposed that the eastbound-most parking space directly in front of the Washington Street building be removed, thus reducing the number of the row of spaces from six to five and better enabling drivers traveling straight on Washington Street toward Newton to pass cars turning left into 1 Washington St. However, building owner William Roberts and his attorney Dennis R. Brown fought the parking space removal before the board and ultimately got their way. Hans Larsen, executive director of general government, said the space reduction would…

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Question of the Day: What Will Happen With ‘Wellesley Commons?’

Tell us your opinion in the comments.

Last night, the Zoning Board of Appeals denied a developer’s bid to change the zoning of his 40B housing project. Developer Michael Connolly went before the Board of Selectmen May 24 in an attempt to get the board to sympathize with his inability to sell the five condos. He’d requested a zoning change to split the single plot up in an effort to make the project more economically viable. The project has been riddled with backlash since the start, and with the ZBA’s latest ruling, there is no telling what will become of the three nearly completed properties at 65 Washington St. What do you think will happen? Will the properties ever be sold?

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Residents Decry Measure to Restrict Left Turn Onto Washington Street From River Street

They said the restriction would cause heavy neighborhood traffic and attract speeders.

Drivers on River Street will have to think twice before making a left onto Washington Street because it’s now illegal to do so, much to the ire of several area residents. The Board of Selectmen last night passed a measure to amend a town traffic regulation that would restrict a left turn onto Washington Street from River Street during morning and afternoon commuting hours. The restriction, which was part of a project of significant impact (PSI) traffic study conducted in 2008 by National Development in conjunction with plans to build at 27 Washington St., was proposed because the PSI found that for every one car trying to turn left onto Washington Street from River Street, five cars would be delayed. About 20 residents of Walnut Street, …

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