5 Things You Need To Know Today, Thursday, Jan. 3

Here are 5 pieces of information designed to get your Thursday off and running and to help make you the smartest person in the cafeteria.

1. Your 3-Day Local Weather Forecast:

• According to the NWS, today will be mostly sunny, with a high near 21. Wind chill values as low as -5. Calm wind becoming west 5 to 7 mph in the morning.
• Thursday Night Mostly cloudy, with a low around 15. West wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening.
• Friday Mostly cloudy, with a high near 37. West wind 5 to 13 mph, with gusts as high as 29 mph.
• Friday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 23. West wind 7 to 10 mph.
• Saturday Sunny, with a high near 32.
• Saturday Night Partly cloudy, with a low around 15.

2. Reader Comment of the Day: "One of the biggest reasons we have such high residential tax rates is the fact that we don't have the commercial base that many of those other communities have. That is a key factor as to why the percentage of town revenue is overwhelmingly towards the residential... As a community we have to encourage business to move to Tewksbury or forever bear the weight of the tax burden on the residents..." Reader Dave, commenting on the story, "2013 Tax Rates by Municipality: How Does Tewksbury Compare?"

3. It's Happening Today: The Board of Health is scheduled to meet tonight at 7 p.m. in Town Hall. For a complete agenda of the meeting, click here.

4. It's Also Happening Today: The Dewing/North Street PAC Meeting is scheduled to take place tonight at 7 p.m. at the North Street School, 133 North St.

5. Quote of the Day: "It's the height of absurdity to mandate that taxpayers have an obligation to pay the massive bills of vicious murderers, but those same law-abiding citizens have no right to equal legal benefits. This is an issue of fundamental fairness.” State Rep. Jim Lyons, talking about a judge's ruling that forces Massachusetts taxpayers