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Vol. 51 | No. 50 | December 12, 2025
‘I love what I do’
A peanut-shaped rotary still possible in Downtown Westborough
Shrewsbury PD ‘fills the wagon’ for local families
Parenti retiring after 10 years with Northborough Fire Department
By Leighah Beausoleil Assistant Editor
shrewsbury | 5 UniBank gives back, offering 10cent gas to community
WESTBOROUGH – Discussions continue as town officials grapple with the option of a peanut-shaped redesign of Westborough’s downtown rotary. The design’s reduction in parking, elimination of the center as a public space, and the level of safety for bikes, pedestrians, and vehicles were discussed by the Select Board after the most recent presentation from KimleyHorn consultants Dec. 2. The proposed plan would transform the five-legged rotary into a peanutshaped, single-lane roundabout. This design would keep the southern Milk
region | 6 What will replace Buca di Beppo?
Peanut | 13
Northborough schools plug $30K hole after Peaslee budget misstep
shrewsbury | 21 For the first time ever, Grafton will field a girls’ hockey team
Parenti has served as Northborough’s fire chief for 10 years. (Photo/Melanie Petrucci)
By Shealagh Sullivan Reporter
By Shealagh Sullivan Reporter NORTHBOROUGH – The Northborough School District carved $30,000 from its operating budget to cover a budgeting “snafu” in the Peaslee Building Project. In 2024, residents voted at Town Meeting to allocate $900,000 for the feasibility study and schematic design of Peaslee. The funds were designated to cover the costs of an Owner’s Project Manager (OPM) and an architect firm. The town entered negotiation with its OPM, PMA Consultants, in June. However, when the town received the architect contract from
NORTHBOROUGH – After 10 years of serving as Northborough’s fire chief, David Parenti is set to retire in March. The Select Board formally accepted Parenti’s retirement Dec. 1. He will officially retire March 31, 2026. Wrapping up his 40-year career in firefighting, Parenti said he couldn’t think of a better place to end it. “I’ve been doing this for a long time, and I love it. I love what I do. I love the people of this community,” Parenti told the Community Advocate. Parenti started his career as a volunteer firefighter in upstate New York when he was a 16-year-old. He was inspired
Peaslee | 13
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by his father, a longtime volunteer firefighter. Parenti spent 30 years at fire departments — including rising through the ranks in Merrimack and becoming assistant chief. He later served as chief for the Belmont Fire Department in New Hampshire for five years. At the end of those years, Parenti said it was his wife that encouraged him to make a change: “I needed a challenge. I needed something different,” Parenti said. He applied to chief openings in both Marlborough and Westborough — but wasn’t offered either position. At first, he thought it was a sign that making the move to Massachusetts wasn’t in the cards, and that it would be better to stay where he was comfortable.
grafton | 31
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