According to the town of Shrewsbury, as of July 1, 2012, the following is the compensation chart for the top positions in town. The following are annual salaries: Fire Chief, Police Chief, Town Engineer: Minimum of $87,002.70 min and maximum of $103,751,54 Weekly rate of $1,666.72 to $1.987.58 Director of Parks and Recreation, Director of Public Health, Building Inspector, Principal Assessor, Superintendent of Highways, Town Accountant, Treasurer/Collector: Minimum of $71,869,57 and maximum of $85,705,01  Weekly rate of $1,515.50 to $1,808.07 Director of Council on Aging, Town Clerk: Minimum …

Putting the Thanksgiving dinner together this year may cost you more than you expect. Boston.com is reporting that the cost of a typical Thanksgiving dinner is up 13 percent over last year, but local supermarkets have some deals that may help you keep the meal within your budget. Price Chopper is offering a complete Thanksgiving dinner with either a 10-12-pound fresh turkey (serves 7-8) or a turkey breast dinner (serves 6 to 7) with the fixings including: gravy, herb dressing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, dinner rolls and pumpkin pie, all for $59.99. Orders must be placed by 5 p.m. on …

The following businesses pay the most taxes in town: Name: Address: Amount: Charles River Laboratories Inc. 334 South St. $39,330,464 Avalon Bay Shrewsbury Inc. 1 Avalon Way $31,666,500 SSB Realty LLC 8 Centennial Dr. $24,024,200 Arbor Commons Realty LLC 10 Arbor Dr. $23,507,500 White City Partners LLC 20 Boston Tpke. $17,520,400 The information was provided by the Shrewsbury Assessor's Office

While residents and town officials were surprised to see snow before Halloween, the community came together to respond to the Fall nor'easter. During the storm, the Shrewsbury Police received 56 phone calls between 5:24 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 29 and the end of the day on Oct. 30 for downed trees, transformers exploding, trees and branches on wires and roads blocked. They also received 10 calls for car crashes during the storm and one woman on Baker Avenue had no power, though she needed an oxygen machine. The town removed trees, branches and debris and SELCO restored power to the more than 2,…

From the Route 9 state bridge project to the South Quinsigamond traffic signal near Route 9 intersection, town officials recently discussed what projects need to be fixed or replaced. While there were 55 on the wish list, many won't be done anytime soon with little funding available to complete the projects. At the selectmen's meeting on Tuesday night, the selectmen met with all the department heads and here's the highlights: Route 9 Bridge Replacement: The Massachusetts Department of Transportation is still working out the details of the project including the aesthetics, traffic flow and …

Since the beginning of July, one elusive suspect has had his name in the daily police log 14 times. Elusive may not be the right word, sly would be better. Especially since this suspect is a fox, or possibly foxes. Since the summer, foxes have been reported sunbathing on a deck on Main Street, greeting a mail carrier on Slocum Meadow Road and eluding the animal control officer most times the incidents are reported. Only twice was a sickly fox found by the animal control officer, who had to kill it for safety reasons. Around town, many people swear they have seen the fox in their backyard, …

This edition of our "By the Numbers" column includes some statistics plucked from the U.S. Census Bureau website. All statistics below are from the 2005-2009 American Community Survey 5-year estimates. 33,939: Shrewsbury's estimated population. 26.2: The average time, in minutes, it takes residents to travel to work. 2.71: The average size of a Shrewsbury household. 3.22: The average family size. $83,608: The median household income. $100,674: The median family income.

During 2010, the Shrewsbury Fire Department was very busy and responded to more than 3,000 calls, an average of about 10 calls per day throughout the town. They responded to: Building Fire 77 Mutual Aid Given 12 Automotive Fire 14 Brush Fires 35 Dumpster / Container Fire 7 Fire, Other 5 Explosion 1 Fire Alarm Response 378 Emergency Medical Response 2,125 Vehicle Accident / Medical 171 Lock Outs 63 Elevator Related 6 Water / Ice Rescue 3 Animal Rescue 4 Rescue, Other 1 Natural Gas Leak 35 Hazardous Material Response 27 Carbon Monoxide Alarm 74 Electrical Hazard 50 Industrial Accident 0 Water …

One of the largest populations in town in 2010 are Shrewsbury's 7,011 residents who more than 60 years old. A large growth was seen in the number of seniors over the age of 90, which is currently at 443 residents, 6 percent of Shrewsbury’s senior population, according to the annual town report. Like the other age groupings, men are continuing to lessen the gap. Although women still dominate those aged 90 to 108, over 1/3 of the group are made up of males. Of this age group, over a dozen residents can be seen regularly at the Shrewsbury Senior Center, volunteering or taking part in activities…

Thanks to almost 1,000 building projects and renovations through the town, the Building Department approved $43,941,682 in taxable revenue in 2010. Here's the breakdown: Type: Amount: New dewllings (63) $16,651,730 Apartments/Condos (8) $ 2,324,700 Residential Renovations (619) $ 9,638,984 Other residential projects (63) $ 1,068,384 Commercial, new and additions (80) $13,320,573 Demolition, relocation (26) $    280,775 Other: sheds, stove, etc. (117) $    653,535 Not sure when you need a building permit? Contact the town's Building Department.

During 2010, a total of 984 building permits were issued by the town's Building Department. The permits were for new buildings, signs, swimming pools, wood and pellet stoves and accessory structures. The valuation of the almost 1,000 construction projects was $43,941,682. The permits were for: 59 single-family homes four, two-family dwellings five multi-family dwellings in Madison Place on Route 9 commercial building permit for Price Chopper in January commercial building permit for AutoZone in front of Home Depot. For more information about getting a building permit, visit the Building …

This week, we look at all the miles of roads around the town and who owns them. With town with a little more than 20 miles of roads, 20.78 square miles to be exact, the town has almost 275 miles of roads owned by the following: Who owns it: Amount: State Roads: 18.41 miles Town Roads:  150.47 miles Private Roads:  13.07 miles Subdivision:  4.77 miles Now, that's a lot of roads to care for—hats off to the town's highway department.

The following is a comparison of vital statistics and licenses for the past five calendar years.       2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Births 383 361 372   367 256 Marriages 139 144 129   126 115 Deaths 261 281 258   281 263 Dog & Kennel Lic 2,638 2,628 2,679   2,785 2,685 Hunting, Fishing 354 512 340   506 526 & Spt. Lic. Cemetery Deeds 88 67 47   59 47 Gasoline Permits 20 21 22   28 25 Raffle Permits 9 6 11   10 8 Planning Board 30 36 34   31 29 Filings Board of Appeals 85 68 46   60 74 Filings

This new weekly column featuring numbers that are pertinent to the town. This week we look at the town's population through the years. Hasn't Shrewsbury grown? Population Year 1723 40 families 1790 963 (after incorporation of Boylston) 1860 1,558 1930 6,910 1940 7,586 1950 10,594 1960 16,622 1970 19,229 1980 22,674 1990 24,146 2000 31,640 2010 35,608 *All the numbers are from the local census.