Week in Review: Hibachi Restaurant to Open at Patriot Place, Thefts at Ice Rinks, FACES Grants Awarded & More

Miss anything in Foxborough this week? Here's your chance to sit back and catch up on some Patch. Below is a recap of this week’s biggest headlines on Foxborough Patch:

Patriot Place Adds High-End Japanese Hibachi Steakhouse to Restaurant Mix

Patriot Place continued its recent boom in business by adding a high-end Japanese hibachi steakhouse to its restaurant mix.

Saga Hibachi Steakhouse & Sushi Bar is coming to Foxborough, expected to open this summer after the town’s Board of Selectmen unanimously approved all licenses and applications at Tuesday’s meeting.

The restaurant will be located at 295 Patriot Pl., next to Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill, across from Red Robin and near the Renaissance Hotel. The 7,857 sq ft. vacant space will feature a dining room, lounge bar, sushi bar, kitchen and restrooms. There will also be a 662 sq ft. outdoor patio area that seats 32.

Inside, the hibachi dining room will seat 95, the dining area 77 and the lounge bar 18. The premises holds a max capacity of 275 persons. Renovations and construction of the restaurant space is expected to cost just over $1 million, according to the restaurant’s application.

Saga’s owner, Xing (Steven) Lin, owns similar restaurants in Pennsylvania and Ohio. The Patriot Place location will be the first in Massachusetts.

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Police Searching for Thieves Who Stole Money from Area Hockey Rinks

Police are on the lookout for two male suspects who have reportedly stole money and car keys from the locker rooms of three area hockey rinks.

The two men allegedly entered the Iorio Arena on Route 1 in Walpole on Sunday, Dec. 30 and stole between $200 and $300 in cash from locker rooms while hockey players were on the ice, according to Walpole police. The men were last seen wearing hooded sweatshirts and winter jackets, according to Walpole Patch.

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Police Logs: Plainville Woman Charged with OUI after Vehicle Strikes Utility Pole in Foxborough

Bridget M. Bowes, 29, of 1 Barna Woods Wy., Plainville was arrested following a motor vehicle accident on Cedar Street and charged with OUI liquor, marked lanes violation and negligent operation of motor vehicle. Foxborough police received multiple calls on Saturday, Jan. 5 for a motor vehicle accident (no injuries) on Cedar Street just after midnight. Bowes’ motor vehicle struck a National Grid utility pole on Cedar Street, according to police reports.

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Waxy O’Connor’s Liquor Violation Hearing Continued to Jan. 22; Settlement Possible

A conflict of interest between Foxborough’s special counsel for liquor license hearings, Lou Cassis and Waxy O’Connor’s left the town without legal representation Tuesday, forcing the Board of Selectmen to continue Tuesday’s liquor license violation hearing with the establishment to Jan. 22 at 7:30 p.m.

“Our normal special counsel for liquor matters is conflicted on this because he [he has represented Waxy O'Connor's in the past],” said Foxborough Town Manager Kevin Paicos. “We’ve been searching for a liquor license specialist and haven’t found one yet.”

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FACES Awards Over $22K in Grants to Foxborough Public Schools

The non-profit community organization F.A.C.E.S. (Foxborough: A Community Enriching Schools) continued its mission to enhance student achievement and development throughout Foxborough’s Public Schools Monday by awarding several grants to the following schools:

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Rex Trailer, a Boston TV icon who had been recovering from pneumonia recently, died on Jan. 9, according to his website.

“Rex Trailer left this earth peacefully last night surrounded in love and song by his family. Rex had been in Florida for the holidays when he became ill into the New Year. While everyone’s prayers and support have been of great comfort to Rex, he decided it was time to go home. Rex and family thank all of you and love you,” a statement on his website reads.
Trailer hosted “Boomtown,” a children’s show with a western theme on WBZ-TV from 1956-1974, according to WBZ-TV.
The New England icon also had strong connections to Foxborough. Trailer spent many years performing with his horse Goldrush at Foxboro Company outings and even rode and performed rope tricks in the 2008 Founders Day Parade.

To read more on Trailer's 2008 visit to Foxborough, click here.

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Living History: Lafayette House has Occupied Foxborough Since 1784

Ron Young has owned the Lafayette House in Foxborough more than 20 years, but the building itself has been around for a lot longer.

Young said the house has been around for 229 years. It was originally the Bristol County Courthouse and stagecoach house called the Everett Inn, even though the property is not in Bristol County.

“At some point, the court left,” he said. “This building is not in Bristol County … the building was located here primarily because it’s halfway between Boston and Providence – what a horse does in one day is 20 miles and it’s 20 miles to Providence from Boston. That’s why it was built here. It was once called the halfway house, the white house ... this road out front [Route 1] was the main road.”

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Foxborough Police Department Pursuing Statewide Accreditation

The Foxborough Police Department is pursuing something that has been achieved by only 59 of the state’s 351 communities: accreditation.

“I like to think we are following the best practices that exist in policing and by obtaining this status it will make us one of 59 communities out of 351 in the state that have achieved [either certification or accreditation],” O’Leary said.

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Local Business Owners Ready to Cash in on Another Patriots Postseason

During the 2010 season, the New England Patriots were positioned for a deep playoff run as the AFC’s number one seed but were upset by the rival New York Jets in the AFC Divisional Round at Gillette Stadium on Jan. 16, 2011.

The early postseason exit left local business owners expecting to cash in on another Patriots playoff run disappointed.

“Regardless of what time a year it is, we look forward to the prospect of hosting another game,” Mark Jeffery, general manager of the Renaissance Hotel and Spa at Patriot Place told Foxborough Patch following the Jan. 16, 2011 loss to the Jets. “I think most businesses here at Patriot Place will agree that [the 2010 postseason] was a missed opportunity."

By contrast, the Patriots – and local businesses - rebounded in 2011 with a Super Bowl run that went through Foxborough. The Pats earned the AFC’s top seed for the second straight season and hosted playoff games in the AFC divisional and championship rounds enroute to the team’s seventh Super Bowl appearance.

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Foxborough High School to Bolster 2013-14 Curriculum with Several Course Additions

First-year principal Diana Myers-Pachla has spent the first three months of the school year reviewing the Foxborough High School curriculum to identify opportunities for academic growth and expansion.

She presented her findings to the Foxborough School Committee in December with a proposal to bolster courses in special education, math, science and social studies.

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Foxborough High School to Add TV Production Courses to Curriculum in 2013-14

Foxborough High School was awarded a grant from F.A.C.E.S. Monday that will fund the development of a video production lab and provide 10 iMac editing computers to help reinstate a TV production program at FHS.

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History Comes Alive as Foxborough Students Learn Congressional Process Through Interactive Simulation

History came alive at Monday's school committee meeting as Foxborough High School students reported on the active learning of our country's law making process in their US History I class during this week's Teaching and Learning Highlight.

Present to describe the learning by doing activity of sophomore students’ participation in a congressional simulation were: History department head Mr. Thomas Murray, history teachers Mr. Matthew Carroll, Mrs. Kristen D'Errico and sophomore student Wes Young.  

Mr. Murray, FHS history department head, explained that history classes have moved away from the traditional lecture-style class to a much more hands-on approach where students have the opportunity for "incredibly interactive activities."

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Foxborough Girls' Basketball Stunned by Stoughton's Last-Second Hoop; Boys' Lose

With the Foxborough girls' basketball team trailing Stoughton by one, 43-42, with time running out in Tuesday's Hockomock League Davenport Division contest at Foxborough High, Ashley Snyder was fouled and she hit both free throws to put the Warriors up by one, 44-43.

Stoughton then called a timeout with 16 seconds remaining and on the ensuing Black Knights' possession, Mackenzie McGrath hit a short baseline jumper with her back to the Stoughton bench and just 1.5 seconds left on the clock, handing Foxborough a heartbreaking, 45-44 loss.

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New England Patriots Lead NFL in Designated Driver Pledges for Third Straight Year

For the third consecutive season, the New England Patriots are the NFL leaders in designated driver pledges.

Nearly 22,000 fans in the stands at Gillette Stadium pledged to be designated drivers during the 2012 season, ensuring families and friends a safe ride to and from Patriots games this season. The Patriots again finished the season in the top spot among all NFL teams after first doing so in 2010 and then breaking a single-season NFL record for pledges with 23,000 in 2011.

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Dunkin' Donuts Teams Up with American Red Cross to Celebrate Blood Donor Month at Patriot Place

Nearly 100 people joined Dunkin’ Donuts and the American Red Cross at Patriot Place on Jan. 3 to celebrate Blood Donor Month by giving a pint of blood in exchange for a pound of coffee.

The American Red Cross was able to collect 63 units of blood during the “Give a Pint, Get a Pound” event inside the Patriot Place Activity Center, which will help save up to 189 lives, according to Donna M. Morrissey, Director of Communications for the American Red Cross Blood Services – Northeast Division.

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Around Town: Foxborough Function Hall Undergoes Name Change; Selectmen Recognize Special Olympic Medalist Steven Aucoin & More

Foxborough resident Steven Aucoin was recognized by the Board of Selectmen Tuesday for his accomplishments during the 2012 Special Olympics Massachusetts Summer Games at Harvard University this past summer.

Selectmen clerk Lorraine Brue read an official citation during Tuesday’s meeting to congratulate Aucoin for earning a gold medal in the Games.

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One day after learning the Houston Texans will be making a return trip to Foxborough for next Sunday's AFC divisional round game, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said the team is well into its preparation for its first opponent of the postseason.

"We’re full speed ahead here on Houston," Belichick told reporters in a conference call Sunday. "It really gives us a little bit of a jump on the situation so we can spend [Sunday] and really every day now going forward totally focusing our attention on them. Obviously they had a terrific year and a big win [Saturday] against Cincinnati."

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WANTED: Car Break-in

Subject broke into car via window in Norton. Stole credit cards. Cards were then used at Shaw's and Home Depot in Mansfield. They also attempted to use at Target in Easton.

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