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This week's stories: (if headline link
doesn't work, scroll down)
 Raise
high the roof beams
Bedford
man convicted of stealing millions
School
board: Academy figures should be public
Free
flowing water?
Airport
access road to be done sooner than expected
Woman
travels the world as a New England Patriots cheerleader
Raise high
the roof beams
Curry barn gets new life as Laconia Bank
By CHRISTINE HEISER
Staff Writer
editor@thebedfordbulletho wanted to tear it down, and a group
of concerned preservationists is being resurrected as the Bedford
branch of Laconia Savings Bank.
A "barn-raising" event to celebrate the completion
of the barn's old frame took place on Monday, Sept. 27. |
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"This is a joyous
occasion," said Susan Tufts Moore, a Bedford resident who
spent years and thousands of her own dollars fighting
to keep Curry from tearing the structure down.
"This is exactly what we wanted," Tufts Moore said.
"We were hoping for adaptive reuse on the site."
The bank, slated to be completed in January, is part of the planned
French-Atwood Marketplace, which will cover 4.7 acres on the
corner of Route 101 and Wallace Road. The barn, which stood on
the site since the 1790s, was moved several hundred feet from
the original site, as new zoning laws and the widening of Route
101 had left the foundation too close to the road.
The original granite foundation will become a flower garden,
and the marketplace will also include a Walgreen's Pharmacy and
a wine and meat store called The Meathouse. Part of the old Curry
home, the town's first switchboard station, will be fitted for
professional office space.
TF Moran Inc., engineers and landscape architects for the project,
supervised a construction team including JB Sullivan, general
contractors; Henry Paige Builders; Berard Martel Architects;
and RE Jenkins Construction Inc.
Barn timbers were taken down, numbered and catalogued so they
could be reconstructed in the original form.
"There are very few instances in the state where historic
barns have been restored, converted and adapted into new space,
and we are very proud of this one," said Robert Cruess of
TFMoran.
"I'm just happy Susan Tufts Moore is happy," said Kevin
Keyes, town councilor. "Everybody came out feeling good
about it. It's a testimony to those in town who went above and
beyond to do what needed to be done, and to the companies involved
who were good corporate citizens." |
TURNING OUT for the ceremonial "barn-raising"
to rebuild the old Curry barn into a bank are, from left, Kevin
Keyes, town councilor; Michael Nolan, commissioner for the New
Hampshire Department of Environmental Services; Ray Wieczorek
of the Governor's Executive Council; Alex Valais, developer with
TFMoran; Tom Sullivan of JB Sullivan, general contractors; Kevin
Morse, project supervisor for JB Sullivan; Bruce Clow, president
and CEO of Laconia Savings Bank; Anne Cruess of TFMoran; and
Robert Cruess, developer with TFMoran. The ceremony took place
at the site of the planned French-Atwood Marketplace on the corner
of Route 101 and Wallace Road, where the barn once stood. (Christine
Heiser Photo)
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Bedford man
convicted of stealing millions
By JODI WOLFE
Staff Writer
jwolfe@yourneighborhoodnews.com
MANCHESTER Koji Goto, 34, formerly
of 22 Steepleview Drive in Bedford, was convicted on 23 charges
by a Hillsborough County Superior Court jury on Monday, Sept.
27.
Goto was found guilty of stealing $3.2 million from clients who
thought they were putting their money into legitimate investments.
He was also found guilty of securities fraud and unlicensed securities
activities.
Goto's $1 million bail was revoked by Judge James Barry.
According to court documents, Goto presented himself to several
people as an investment advisor for John Hancock investments,
enticed them to give him the money to invest, and then took the
money for himself instead of investing it.
Goto instructed people to write checks to many variations of
John Hancock such as John Hancock Financial Services, J.H. Business
Services, John Hancock B.S., and J.H.B.S., which were bank accounts
he controlled, said Attorney General Robert Carey.
Goto was actually employed by John Hancock at one time. but after
leaving John Hancock in October of 2001, Goto no longer had a
license as a broker-dealer. But he still continued the his dealings
on the side for personal gain, said Carey.
Carey said he was pleased with the outcome of the trial.
"We were very happy for our victims who went through an
awful lot," he said.
Many people including the victims, the investigators and the
staff at the attorney general's office, the Manchester Police
Department and the New Hampshire Bureau of Securities put a lot
of time into the case, said Carey.
Goto's attorney, Mark Sisti, said he is ready to appeal.
"We feel there are some substantial appellate issues in
this trial," he said. "From what I can tell, my client
wishes to continue jury trials."
Goto will be brought back to court in six to eight weeks for
sentencing. At that time, the victims will be awarded restitution,
said Carey.
Goto is faced with 45 more charges in two other cases to be tried
in court.
One trial expected to begin Jan. 10 involves a charitable foundation
scheme in which Goto allegedly solicited funds for a charity
and kept the money, said Carey.
In April, Goto will be tried for getting people to invest in
a hot dog stand that did not exist.
"We'll be preparing for those," said Sisti.
Goto remains in the Valley Street Jail without bail.
School board:
Academy figures should be public
By JENNIFER CLAISE
Staff Writer
jclaise@yourneighborhoodnews.com
Several members of the school board are
calling on the Bedford academy team to release the financial
information to support its claim that the private academy could
be a cheaper alternative than the public option.
Although academy proponent Haig Yaghoobian said each school board
member has had access to the financial backup figures, School
Board Chairman Paul Brock said only members Sue Thomas and Dan
Sullivan, who worked with the academy team over the summer, have
seen the numbers.
Brock said he, along with members David Sacks and Cindy Chagnon,
received sealed copies of the financials but chose to return
them unopened when Yaghoobian terminated discussions with the
board in August and ordered the materials to be returned.
At the board's meeting Monday, Sept. 27, Sacks clarified his
situation to fellow members and to the public.
"I want to make it absolutely clear that I do not have any
supporting material on the Bedford academy," Sacks stated
in notes he prepared for the meeting. "As it stands right
now, I have absolutely no ability to be able to verify assumptions,
nor am I able to even understand these assumptions."
Brock and Sacks both said that since they had signed nondisclosure
agreements with Yaghoobian, they did not want to see the materials
if they would not also be made available to the public.
"All material related to Bedford academy, with the exception
of that information protected by Right to Know Law ... should
be public so that we may conduct the public's business in public,"
Sacks said.
Thomas, who did see the academy's budget, said both she and Sullivan
also had to return the materials in August, so at this point
she is relying solely on memory.
And although she believes she is closer to being able to make
an informed decision about the academy than the school board
members who did not see the team's budget, she still has some
unanswered questions.
"I've seen the numbers, but I'd like to know the reasons
behind the numbers and how they arrived at them," Thomas
said.
But Yaghoobian said he and his team had already gone through
the reasoni
ng with both Thomas and Sullivan at meetings over the summer,
and continuing questions at this point are simply a delaying
tactic.
"People that continue to ask questions are trying to avoid
having to process and assimilate the information they've gotten,"
Yaghoobian said. "It's a form of denial."
Yaghoobian said the academy team will meet with some of the school
board members Wednesday, Sept. 29, for further discussions about
what a contract with the academy would look like.
Schedule for high school bid hearings set
In other news, the board has set its schedule for nonpublic sessions
to meet with the five bidders preparing plans for a public high
school.
The sessions must be private, Brock said, to protect the reputations
of the bidders and to ensure that none of the bidders gets an
unfair advantage by hearing other proposals.
The teams will present proposals for both a 7-through-12 and
a 9-through-12 school to Jordan and Baker, the board's consulting
architects, by Oct. 18.
On Oct. 27, the board will review each proposal, and Brock said
they have asked the consultants to present the plans anonymously,
to preserve objectivity.
The board will then interview two of the bidders Nov. 1, one
on Nov. 2 and two on Nov. 4. After those interviews, the board
will deliberate at a meeting Nov. 8 and narrow the field to three
finalists.
There is a tentative meeting scheduled Nov. 16, where members
will have their last chance to question the bidders, and the
bidders will have the final opportunity to make changes to their
proposals.
A final selection will be announced to the public Nov. 18, Brock
said.
SIZE="+2"Free
flowing water?
Residents on Magazine Street want to be
hooked up to town water without paying
By DEVON CORMIER
Staff Writer
dcormier@yourneighborhoodnews.com
A few residents on Magazine Street say
they are considering suing the town so they won't have to pay
for their water if they decide to be hooked into the municipal
system.
In 1998, wells of eight residents on the street were contaminated
by the town's use of salt on winter roads. Those houses were
then hooked up to town water.
But now, about 15 other residents on the street, whose wells
are not contaminated but may become so in the future, have the
opportunity to hook up to the town system. But some say they
should be able do so without ever having to pay a water bill.
The original eight homes are now hooked up to municipal water
lines for free but not for much longer. Councilors ordered
that six of the eight start paying their own water bills. The
two remaining homeowners have easements on their land that the
town traded for free water, so they will not be required to pay.
At the town council meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 22, residents
came to discuss the options the town has given them.
"These people have wells they've been able to maintain at
their own discretion, but at this point in time, we're making
an offer," said Town Manager Keith Hickey. "We aren't
forcing anyone to connect."
Around the second week in October, those who have signed an agreement
with the town will get a free line to their house, along with
up to $500 of internal plumbing. They will then have to pay a
monthly water bill.
Those who have not signed will not be hooked up, and the same
deal will not necessarily be available to them later if they
decide to hook up or if their wells become contaminated.
"My understanding from (Mayer) is that we created a problem
and have offered a solution," said Hickey. "Our obligation
ends there."
About five residents have signed the offer and about 10 haven't,
saying the deal is unfair and not legal.
When the council voted to leave the agreement almost entirely
the same, Arthur Greene of 58 Magazine St. said he may file suit
against the town.
"I understand the town has made an offer it considers generous,
but the town has contaminated our wells," Greene said. "The
town has a responsibility to provide residents with water, not
just find someone to sell us water."
Councilor William Van Anglen made a motion to offer the same
deal to residents who choose not to sign the agreement in the
event that their well does get contaminated. Council Chairman
Michael Scanlon seconded the motion, but everyone but Van Anglen
voted against it; it failed 5-1.
Councilor William Greiner was absent.
Scanlon said it will cost too much money to keep going back and
running lines one by one instead of all at once.
Hickey suggested that if residents choose not to sign the agreement,
the town is no longer responsible.
He argued that people who have wells do have to pay for their
water because of pump maintenance and replacement expenses, plus
electricity costs, so they're not really getting free water now.
But he also said that, out of fairness, future requests should
be handled on a case-by-case basis.
The construction work has already been scheduled, and to delay
it would cost more money.
"I think what we're doing, what we've set out to do, is
the right thing," said Councilor David Danielson.
Airport access
road to be done sooner than expected
By DEVON CORMIER
Staff Writer
dcormier@yourneighborhoodnews.com
Town council members got a glimpse into
the future of the Manchester Airport access road at their last
meeting on Sept. 22, and the future looks good.
Alexander Vogt came to the meeting from the state Department
of Transportation to update the council on the access road.
The $135 million project is slated to be complete in 2009. The
councilors exhibited surprise at the early finish date. They
were expecting it to take years longer.
"I can't imagine that it will be done that quickly,"
said Councilor David Danielson. "That will be great."
Vogt said that the construction will cost approximately $94 million
and other costs will weigh in at about $41 million.
Eighty percent of the project is being funded by federal money.
In order to get federal funds, the state DOT made a commitment
that all access to and from the airport would be free. There
will not be tolls on any of the roadways.
Vogt said an engineering team looked at the plan before it was
completed in order to cut costs and increase efficiency.
The team looked at the value, purpose and cost and recommended
ways to save money.
"They had some excellent ideas," said Vogt. "We
eliminated some of the bridges and there is still full access
to all the major roads from the airport."
The biggest change was a straightening and widening of the main
bridge that travels across the Merrimack River.
The bridge was originally planned to be curved and to gradually
narrow at one end.
Vogt said they had also incorporated a half-mile pedestrian sidewalk
in the project. Vogt said the town council had requested the
sidewalk at a past public hearing in 1998. Councilors said they
will have to budget for maintaining it.
Woman travels
the world as a New England Patriots cheerleader
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By JODI WOLFE
Staff Writer
jwolfe@yourneighborhoodnews.com
Alison Preston never dreamed of being a
New England Patriots cheerleader until a former member of the
squad encouraged her to try to out.
Even then she never imagined she would make it. Now she's cheering
for her third season in a row and serving her second year as
a line captain.
After the Patriots won the Super Bowl in 2002, Preston met Dance
Vision owner Heidi Sullivan-Laroche, a former Patriots cheerleader,
who encouraged Preston to try out because of her dance experience.
They met at a local pageant through Preston's former dance teacher
at the New Hampshire School of Ballet.
She had danced since she was 7, but she had never been a cheerleader.
The Patriots cheerleaders use a lot of dance routines, so she
fit in perfectly.
Her mother, Sharon Preston,, thinks it's great.
"I'm really proud of her because it's extremely competitive
to be one," she said.
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PATRIOTIC CHEERLEADER Bedford native
Alison Preston, a New England Patriots cheerleader, tests some
artillery in Kunsan during the Operation Pacific Greetings tour,
during which Preston and other Patriots cheerleaders visited
troops overseas to boost their morale. This is Preston's third
year on the squad and her second as line captain. She combines
cheering for the reigning Super Bowl champs with her studies
at the University of New Hampshire. She would like to become
an athletic trainer for the National Football League. (Courtesy
Photo)
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To make the team this year, Preston, 21,
attended auditions in April with 400 other potential cheerleaders.
Cheerleaders have to audition each year, she said, regardless
of whether they were on the squad the year before.
Not all 24 from last year made the team, and only 13 new cheerleaders
made it this year.
Sharon Preston said she gets nauseated from the intense competition
when she goes down to Boston each year with her daughter.|
"It's stressful every time we go down," she said. "We
were absolutely thrilled to make it and stay on it. It's a big
feat."
Preston has enjoyed her time as a Patriots cheerleader.
"The opportunities and experiences I've had are incredible,"
she said.
Her mother tries to get to Patriots' games as often she can.
When she doesn't go, she watches them on TV.
"I'm thrilled when they show the cheerleaders on TV because
they don't often," she said.
As line captain, Preston helps teach dances to a line of cheerleaders.
She has also gone on trips to boost the morale of soldiers overseas,
attended the 2004 Super Bowl, and been featured in Maxim magazine.
Last Thanksgiving, she went with other three Patriots cheerleaders
to visit soldiers in Turkey, the Azores, Germany, England and
Italy. In May, she toured Japan, Korea and Hawaii.
Preston was one of four girls selected from the team to go overseas,
said her mother.
"She's got to have personality, showmanship and compassion,"
she said. "You have to be a giver, not a taker."
Her boyfriend, who has been obsessed with the NFL since he was
6, was jealous she got to go to a Super Bowl before him, she
said.
"It was unbelievable experience," she said. "I
will never forget it."
On top of cheering, Preston, a 2001 graduate of Manchester West
High School, is a full-time student at the University of New
Hampshire. She is in her senior year, majoring in kinesiology
and athletic training.
Her mother said she does a good job balancing, even with the
overseas travel.
"She's very directed and organized," she said. "She
is able to maintain almost a 3.5."
Her major and her after-school job tie in very well.
"I'd certainly like to do athletic training for a NFL team,"
she said.
Her schedule consists of practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays
with games on Sundays. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, she goes to
class in the morning, then works with gymnastics teams for major,
then goes down to Foxboro for practice. Then she turns around
to make class at 8 the next morning.
"It's a lot of work, but it's worth it," she said.
She is used to the time commitment that comes with extra-curricular
activities, because of her dancing history, she said.
She tries to carpool to Foxboro with girls on the team who are
from around New Hampshire. There are two girls on the squad from
Goffstown.
"The team is very close," Preston said.
For many of the Patriots cheerleaders, cheering is a hobby. Lots
of the girls are teachers or have other full-time jobs, she said.
"This isn't all that we do," she said.
While Patriots cheerleaders don't attend away games, there are
lots of promotional events to attend.
"That's a great time to show we aren't just girls who smile
and wave on the sidelines," she said.
Preston usually does three or four promotions each month. A couple
weeks ago, she and four other cheerleaders went to a Nashua Pride
game and performed between innings.
It was nice to attend an event close to home, as most events
are in places such as Maine or south of Boston, she said.
Although she wouldn't disclose a dollar amount, Patriots cheerleaders
are compensated for each hour of practice, promotion, and game,
she said.
For younger girls interested in being cheerleaders, dance experience
is the most important, she said.
"You have to have a love of performing," she said.
"We are out there performing for 68, 000 fans, you have
to have energy."
Girls have to be 18 to audition to become a Patriots cheerleader,
but there is a junior cheerleading camp for younger girls.
"It's a great opportunity to have girls come and see what
we do," Preston said. "We have 24 different girls who
bring something special to the team."
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