Reporter’s Notebook: Welcome back, Ed Prisby; a Grafton connection to The Amityville Horror

“So I’m Ed Prisby, for those who don’t know me.”

Yeah, that guy looks familiar.

Former Select Board member Ed Prisby appeared before his former colleagues Tuesday to talk about one of his favorite topics: affordable housing. He was one of seven candidates for a spot on the Affordable Housing Trust and, not surprisingly, the unanimous choice.

“He is the sole reason the Affordable Housing Trust even has a project right now,” Select Board member Colleen Roy said of Prisby, who sponsored a citizen’s petition at the 2020 June Town Meeting to have 25 Worcester Street transferred to the Affordable Housing Trust to develop senior housing.

Prisby previously was appointed to the trust and later served as the Select Board’s representative.

The board also praised Brittany Morgan, whose background as an architect made her an intriguing candidate, and Ava Fantasia, a realtor and retail banker who served on the original Housing Opportunity Partnership.

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But the committee appointments didn’t end there! The Select Board also appointed…

OK, here’s a confession. I Google just about everyone who appears before Select Board. Which is why I’m going to start this entry by noting that Laura DiDio was appointed to both the Emergency Management Committee and the Economic Development Commission. In her interview and her application, she mentions her past work as an investigative reporter, her current work as a high technology analyst, her fondness for horses, and work with a German shepherd rescue.

She does NOT mention that she has an IMDB page that includes production credits on work such as “Shock Docs,” a TV series on the paranormal and no less than four documentaries on the Amityville Horror house, including “My Amityville Horror,” where she interviews Daniel Lutz, who was 10 when his family infamously moved into a house allegedly filled with demonic happenings.

I’m sorry, but I would probably be dropping that into every conversation. “Oh, in my spare time? I’m kind of an expert on The Amityville Horror.”

This is now my favorite discovery of the entire week, and it’s only Tuesday.

Where was I? Right. Committee appointments that did not include anyone with a supernatural background included:

Waste Reduction and Recycling Committee: Andy Jefferson, Cherilyn Reno, Maura McCormack

Council on Aging: June Enos

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The Select Board only recently returned to in-person meetings in good old Conference Room A at the Municipal Center, a move prompted by what looked like a continued decline in COVID-19 cases.

That was before the Delta variant, a Covid variety that’s easy to spread and filling hospitals nationwide, started taking Massachusetts by storm, particularly in tourist-heavy areas like Cape Cod.

That’s right. Masks are back in fashion. And the Select Board, along with Town Administrator Evan Brassard and everyone else appearing before the board in-person, were modeling them Tuesday. The CDC now recommends that everyone — even those who are vaccinated — mask up while indoors.

How long will it be before we’re all back on Zoom?

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