Greg Jarboe

Unmarked cars, masked agents: ICE operations spark fear and outrage in Acton and Boxborough

June 7, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

A chill ran through the communities of Acton and Boxborough last week as eyewitness accounts and official statements revealed a heightened, and often opaque, presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. An employee of an agency that provides services to low-income families said that many immigrants…

Area residents demand halt to raids: “Enough Is enough”

June 7, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Following reports that “masked men purporting to be ICE agents abducted individuals off our streets in unmarked cars” in Boxborough on Friday, May 30, 2025, a crowd of over 200 people gathered peacefully at Acton Town Hall on Sunday June 1, 2025, for what was described as an…

Acton rallies to defend immigrant rights amid ICE raids

May 31, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

On the evening of May 21, 2025, the Acton Democratic Town Committee (ADTC) convened a packed Community Forum on Immigration, responding to a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in Acton and nearby towns that has shaken this small, diverse Massachusetts town. Just ten days earlier,…

Acton Garden Club’s annual plant sale is beehive of activity

May 31, 2025

Greg JarboeandAnn Marie Testarmata

The Acton Garden Club’s annual plant sale transformed the grounds of the historic Red House at 468 Main Street into a beehive of activity and joy on Saturday, May 17, 2025. Garden Club members hurried to and fro, attending to last minute details and donning their Acton Garden…

Town Manager Mangiaratti updates seniors on Town projects, roadwork, and budgets

May 31, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Acton Town Manager John Mangiaratti provided a series of Town updates and engaged in a lively question-and-answer session with residents at the Acton Senior Center during his “Java with John” program on Friday morning, May 16, 2025. The event, broadcast live on local television, covered a wide range…

ICE conducts federal immigration enforcement operation in Acton

May 18, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

On Saturday afternoon, May 10, 2025, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conducted a federal immigration enforcement operation in Acton, Massachusetts. Several residents of the town witnessed what happened on Great Road (Route 2A). However, the community didn’t know who had been taken away by U.S. Immigration and…

ABRHS senior organizes “Senior Prom” at Acton Senior Center

April 19, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Sarah Willard, a senior at Acton-Boxborough Regional High School, organized an innovative cross-generation event recently for her year long senior project. She invited older Acton residents to attend a “Senior Prom” at the Acton Senior Center. The theme for the event, which was held April 8, 2025, was…

What’s on your pizza? A March Madness review

March 29, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

March Madness is a time for basketball, statistics, and hanging out with friends and family. As for many folks around the country, it’s also a time when Acton residents make fast breaks to a dozen pizza places or order a large pizza with their favorite toppings for delivery…

Craic travels fast at the Lions Club St. Patrick’s Day Lunch

March 22, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

“Craic travels fast” is an Irish idiom that means news or information spreads quickly, often gossip or rumors. And you could have knocked me down with a feather when I heard the latest “craic” about The Acton Senior Citizen Newsletter during the Lions Club St. Patrick’s Day Lunch…

$125,000 grant fills transportation gap for Council on Aging and CrossTown Connect

March 15, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

The Healey-Driscoll Administration has just awarded $5.8 million in grants to 44 organizations for 56 projects aimed at improving mobility for older adults, people with disabilities, and low-income individuals across Massachusetts. This includes a $125,000 grant to the Town of Acton for a shared regional dispatch system for…

Acton 250 lecture: Renowned Acton Sculptor draws appreciative crowd

March 15, 2025

James ConboyandGreg Jarboe

March 6, Acton Town Hall: Thirty-three fans of fine art were treated to a presentation by one of their neighbors, as sculptor, essayist, and poet Meredith Bergmann, an Acton resident, offered a talk about her work, complete with a comprehensive slideshow. Part of the Acton 250 celebration, the…

Was Silver Girl ribbon cutting prelude to bigger plans this fall?

March 15, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

There have been so many ribbon cuttings at new restaurants in Acton lately that Maura Haberman, the event coordinator for the Town’s Economic Development Office, has just sent out the giant scissors used by business owners and local officials for these ceremonies to be sharpened. The latest ribbon…

Acton 250 Lecture: A snapshot of Acton’s early Black residents

March 8, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

On Feb. 26, “A Snapshot of Acton’s Early Black Residents” featured historical research documenting that Black residents were here when Acton first became a town in 1735, and several fought in the Revolution at the Concord Bridge and other New England battles. This latest event in the Acton…

Acton Area League of Women Voters explores Town Meeting effectiveness and accessibility

February 21, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

The League of Women Voters-Acton Area held a webinar entitled, “The State of Town Meeting and Weighing Alternatives for Local Governance” on Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. Four panelists spoke about what works with Open Town Meeting as well as what we can learn from other types of local…

Who won the food fight at Super Bowl parties in Acton?

February 15, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

According to a story by Brian Steinberg in Variety, viewers of last Sunday’s “Big Game” witnessed a veritable food fight during their Super Bowl parties. The actual football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs was squeezed between ads from a plethora of food and beverage…

Representatives Cataldo and Sena share legislative priorities

February 15, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Acton has two state reps. State Rep. Simon Cataldo (14th Middlesex) represents Precincts 1, 2, 6, and 7 of Acton, while State Rep. Danillo Sena (37th Middlesex) represents 3, 4, 5, and 6A of the town. So, some voters think our community’s political clout is split in half,…

ABRHS whiz kids on GBH’s High School Quiz Show

January 25, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Acton-Boxborough Regional High School (ABRHS) has a team that will be competing in Season 16 of GBH’s High School Quiz Show, and a strategy for winning the academic tournament for Massachusetts high school students. I interviewed three of four members of the ABRHS team last week along with…

Town Manager updates residents at Java with John

January 25, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Acton Town Manager John Mangiaratti gave town updates at his monthly Java with John meeting at the Acton Senior Center. Here are the key takeaways from the meeting: The second half of the meeting focused on specific town initiatives and resident concerns. Finally, the meeting concluded with a…

Acton apartments sold for $13M to Needham firm

January 25, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

RCMA Properties, a property management firm owned by a Needham family, has recently acquired six apartment buildings located in Acton, in a $13 million transaction. The acquisitions include the Assabet Garden Apartments and the Nagog Gardens Apartments. The Assabet Garden Apartments, a 30-unit complex situated on 3.9 acres,…

A graph showing age and gender distribution in Acton.

BACKGROUNDER: Acton’s changing population

January 17, 2025

by Greg Jarboe

Population and population growth impact many aspects of life in Acton, from school population, to traffic density, to drinking water demand, to viability of the Town Meeting form of governance. To provide a context for these and other issues, the Acton Exchange offers this backgrounder, digging into who…

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