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Editorial
Ballot voting is still the best way to represent us all
It seems to us there is very little difference whether a
town or school district is governed by a traditional
Town Meeting form of voting or by the official ballot
law, commonly called SB2.
In either case, a tiny percentage of people can make
drastic changes or vote down a warrant article. Both
forms of government depend on having a representative
sample of the population come out to sit through the
explanation of each article and voting on it, whether
right at the meeting or later in a voting booth. We have
seen examples of both forms of government hijacked by
just a few people with a special interest. It simply does
not matter whether your town or school district has ballot
voting or Town Meeting voting when few people are
in attendance. When you have 50, or 150 or 300 people
at a meeting and they represent barely 3 percent of a
town's population, that town is being ruled by a tiny
minority that may or may not represent the public as a
whole.
We continue to favor official ballot voting if only
because it allows everyone to have a say in the spending
decisions and governing of their town and school district.
We do think the offical ballot law needs to be
changed so that articles can't be zeroed out at the deliberative
sessions. Perhaps other changes would also
improve the law.
The larger question really should be: Does either form
work the way we want it to? Perhaps New Hampshire is
living in the past with its Town Meetings, a form that
works best for very small communities that can get a
representative percentage of the population into one
room to discuss decisions.
No matter what the form of voting, it's important to
learn about the issues and make an informed decision.
Don't come out to vote on Election Day if you have no
idea who is running or what the issues are. Or vote only
on the candidates or issues you do understand. And if
you do attend deliberative sessions of Town Meeting or
School District Meeting, keep your neighbors in mind
who may not be able to attend due to children, work,
sickness or other issues. Let them have their say at the
polls. Their vote should matter too.
-Ginger Kozlowski
Goffstown School Board News & Views
Elm Street site looks good for building a kindergarten
by Ellen Vermokowitz
Contributing Writer
The Goffstown School
Board and the Goffstown
Board of Selectmen have continued
to work together during
these cold winter months
in pursuit of available land
opportunities for the voterapproved
kindergarten project.
Currently, the August
property on Tibbetts Hill
Road remains tied up in litigation.
A mediation session
was held recently. Forging
ahead, the school board and
selectmen have discovered
yet another exciting land possibility.
Recent research has highlighted
town property on Elm
Street by Glen Lake.
Purchased in 1977 by the
town, this land is located in
the Grasmere section, one of
the fastest growing areas in
Goffstown. The possibility of
building a public school on
this property fits nicely within
the tenet that the land be used
for "public use." The town is
currently developing warrant
article language for the voter
approval in order to convert
this land to school property.
To date, study of this
Goffstown Back Road property
has provided feedback
which supports our excitement.
Test pits dug on the
land have proved favorable
on soils. There is town water
available on this site. Also, a
wetlands scientist has determined
that there would be
minimal disturbance of wetlands.
The Goffstown School
Board invites all community
members to both attend the
Feb.7 deliberative session and
come out to the polls this
March. We appreciate your
continued support, and will
work to keep you informed as
the kindergarten program
develops.
-Ellen Vermokowitz is the chairman of the Goffstown School Board.
Planning a Middle School for Weare
Renovation of existing facility a temporary solution at best
by Dianne Hathaway
Contributing Writer
The Weare School Board
and building committee have
answered questions about a
renovation of the dilapidated
Weare Middle School in comparison
to the costs for a totally
new school.
This information was
requested by many members
of the community at other
meetings about a new Weare
Middle School.
The board has worked for
many months and is committed
to an open and honest discussion
with the community
about all aspects of the project
In addition, the board and
Principal David Pabst recently
conducted tours of the middle
school to give townspeople a
first-hand look at the educational
difficulties and safety
problems of the current
buildings.
Team Design Inc., is the
well-known architectural firm
that has worked on the project
with the Weare School Board
since spring 2003. They have
experience with middle school
design and engineering and
have assisted the board with
the cost comparisons. During
the renovation, as well as
after, modular units would be
used as classroom space for
many of the students; asbestos
would be removed, a muchneeded
sprinkler system
would be installed, walls
would be demolished, the
mechanical and plumbing systems
would be replaced as
well as the replacement of the
entire electrical system. All
roofing systems would be
replaced and the school facility
would be renovated to meet
current building and life safety
codes, one of the biggest concerns
of the school.
The renovation would not
include an expansion of the
core facilities for a growing
student body: library, gymnasium
and cafeteria.
There just isn't enough
space on the property to cover
that expansion and keep costs
in check.. In addition, the two
buildings would still not be
connected at the end of the
renovation and less-desirable
modular structures would be
used rather than building permanent
space. No playing
fields are in the renovation
plan and no separate or sufficient
access is included for
cars, buses and delivery vehicles.
The Weare School Board
considers a renovation project
a temporary solution to the
growth issues the school
would be facing in the future
and the only permanent solution
is to build a new school
facility.
What about the cost comparison?
The costs associated
with a new site and a new
middle school that will ultimately
serve 920 students is
about 18 million dollars. The
cost of the renovation that has
been presented is $12,023,750.
That is more than two-thirds
the cost of new construction.
The rule of thumb is that "a
building should not be renovated
if the true costs of renovation
… amount to more than
half the price of a new building."
(American School Board
Journal/October 2004)
The Weare School Board
has determined that spending
more than $2 million on an
undersized lot for a less than
optimally designed school that
fits the current site was not in
the best interest of the students,
faculty or the taxpayers.
However, the board continues
to explore the present site
as the location for building the
new middle school. The board
will also still continue to listen
to the Weare community in
order to respond to their concerns
and questions.
- Dianne Hathaway is a member of the Communications Committee for Weare Middle School.
Letters
More reasons for parking problem at GHS than public knows
To the Editor:
There are many reasons for
problems at the high school
regarding parking. Many people
who are not associated with the
teen population of Goffstown,
Dunbarton and New Boston are
in the dark.
The high school runs on the
"block" system. That means that
on Monday, all students have
eight periods or classes. For the
rest of the week, the students
only have three classes or
"blocks" of instruction. If a student
has study or lunch on these
days, then they don't necessarily
have to be in school. This
means that they can leave early
for part-time jobs or come in
late. Many juniors and seniors
have this option.
A lot of students live very far
away. I know of some that get
on the bus as early as 6:30 a.m.
That is very difficult for the teen
to be up and dressed for school
so early in the morning.
The other issue is car pooling.
The state does not allow firsttime
drivers to have more than
one person in a car with them
for six months. Also, as a parent,
I would not allow my child
to drive in a "car load" of kids
everyday, or be a passenger. It is
too dangerous for this newly
licensed group of young adults.
There are three choices, in my
opinion, for a solution. Build
more parking (the most expensive).
Have more buses at different
times throughout the day, in
line with the "blocks" (kind of
expensive) or go back to traditional
schedule at the school,
with students being at the school
all day, every day (least expensive.)
Blocks are good for instruction.
It gives the students more
instruction time, without interruption.
It gives them time to do
projects, homework assignments.
etc. I teach in
Manchester and a third of my
students are from Goffstown. I
prefer the block system as do
many students.
Mollie Chase, Goffstown
Teacher, Manchester School of Technology
Goffstown’s 'Big Blue' recycling program has been successful
To the Editor:
As chairman of the
Goffstown Solid Waste
Advisory Committee, I am
pleased to report that the singlestream
recycling program initiated
in October 2004 is an
unqualified success. The previous
curbside recycling project
netted only 17 percent of the
recyclable materials. Today,
after only a few months of operation,
we have reached 28 percent
thanks to all of you pitching
in!
The savings mount, and
exceeded $50,000 by the end of
December 2004. Some citizens
have even reported that they do
not have to place their green
trash containers out every week
as a result of the excellent recycling
effort. A combined multimedia
campaign will be
launched in the coming month
to encourage a goal of at least
40 percent recycling.
If achieved, this would shorten
the payback period for the
town substantially. If you need
a larger "Big Blue" recycling
container, please contact the
Transfer Station at 497-4824 to
trade in your 65-gallon unit for
a 95-gallon unit.
Frequently overlooked items
that can be recycled curbside
are telephone and other softcover
books, magazines, and junk
mail. Other items include No. 1
through No. 7 plastics. This is
virtually every kind of plastic
except the plastics in toys and
appliances. It includes the containers
meats come in (just rinse
before recycling so the plastic
won't turn rancid). Items that
can only be recycled at the
Goffstown Transfer Station, 400
Elm St., are automobile batteries,
any rechargeable batteries,
fluorescent light bulbs, all
forms of waste oil, window
glass, mirrors and all electronics,
yard waste, etc. There is no
charge for any of the aforementioned
items. Glass bottles and
jars may be either recycled in
"big blue" or brought to the
transfer station. There is an
added benefit of bringing your
glass containers to the transfer
station, as the town uses the
crushed glass in road and
drainage projects to prevent
frost heaves.
To avoid spillage when your
recycle container is emptied, it
is helpful to bag your recyclables
in clear plastic bags.
While not required, it will help
ensure that all of the recyclables
make it into the automated collection
truck. Also proper placement
of your containers at least
4 feet apart will lessen overturned
containers.
If you have comments or concerns,
please feel free to address
them to me by e-mail at
RecycleZealot@Techie.com.
You will receive a prompt
response.
All of us benefit in the form
of lower taxes by your participation
in the recycling effort,
and we sincerely thank you.
Frank V. Leffman, Chairman
Solid Waste Advisory Committee
Zoning board must not allow gravel operation in New Boston
To the Editor:
As a group of very concerned
New Boston residents, we are
alerting the town's people of a
proposed major gravel operation
on the shores of the Middle
Branch of the Piscataquog
River.
This project has been proposed
by Lull Road Corp./Tris
Construction and will involve
more than 55 acres of land. The
land was formally owned by the
Barnetts on West Lull Place.
The magnitude of this project
is unprecedented for New
Boston. Per the ZBA meeting of
Dec. 21, it is estimated that
more than 900,000 cubic yards
of gravel exist on the property
and the owners estimate that
700,000 will be taken with an
estimated project time of well
over four years.
This project will affect the
entire town because in excess of
11,000 truck loads of gravel per
year could be hauled on Route
7, Route 14, Route 13, Twin
Bridge Road and through our
village.
Currently, New Boston has
approximately 29 small gravel
operations. The zoning board of
adjustment can permit a gravel
operation in residential areas by
special exception - if the operation
does not have an adverse
effect on the capacity of existing
or planned community facilities,
the character of the area,
or traffic on roads and highways
in the immediate vicinity.
Any resident of this town can
clearly see that this type of
operation would adversely
affect, if not ruin for the foreseeable
future, the character of
the area, and cause potential
dangers with the type of
increased traffic.
As residents of this town, we
must stand up and insist that the
town reject new major gravel
operations in established residential
areas. We all understand
that development will continue
in this town. But it should proceed
without reckless abandon
and without having significant
impact on our quality of life, the
value of our property, the quality
of character of the town, and,
in this particular area, the quality
of our natural resources.
On Tuesday, Feb. 15, at 7
p.m., at Town Hall, the zoning
board of adjustment will hear
the proposal of Lull Road
Corp./Tris Construction and
will decide on granting a special
exception.
If it does so, it will set a
precedent in this town like no
other before it. This is the first
step in a process of permitting.
But if stopped at the zoning
board level, the process will go
no further.
Please attend the meeting, or
contact the zoning board of
adjustment to express your
objection to granting this special
exception.
Paul Annis & Lyn Dubey
Tome & Denise Atkocaitis
Paula & David Bellemore
JoAnn Bouchard
Susan Boynton
Al & Elizabeth Brooks
Jon Brooks & Jami Boyle
Charli & Jennifer Brown
Andrew & Kristen Carlson
Cheryl Christner & Tim White
James Denesevich &
Donna Mombourquette
Kim DiPietro
Dona & Gerry Fairbairn
Pattie & Don Grosso
Joni & Dana Haley
Karen & Richard Heselton
Carol Hess
Dan & Pam Jamrog
Katie Kachavos
Deborah & Paul Keiner
Julie Kirkl& & Jim Scott
Mary Koon & Floyd Guyette
Marcel LaFlamme & Carol Swiech
Jack & Deb LaPointe
Ken & Lyn Lombard
Ken & Jane Marcks
Dot & Jay Marden
Jennifer Trimbur McCormick
Ruth & Wayne Miller
Bill & Catherine Morrissey
David & Jeanne Mudrick
Janet Nixon
Mike Pare & Lin Poither
Gail & Randall Parker
Laura & Steven Peach
Nonah Poole
Karen Marden Roach
William & Mary Lou Rollins
Gordon & Barbara Russell
Kevin & Elizabeth Short
Paula Stockinger
Cathy & Larry Strausbaugh
Cora & Joe Trimbur
Susan Weiss-Alexant
Betsy & Bob Whitman
Barry & Lois Wicklow
Rick & Kathy Widener
Hollie & Joshua Young
New Boston
Goffstown’s Iris Frame Shop, like the flower, makes you smile
To the Editor:
Recently, there have been
many changing "faces" in
downtown Goffstown. I sincerely
hope that Iris Frame Shop is
one that stays around to make
memories for your families for
years to come. I miss Barry
Mortgrage's shop, but they have
certainly filled his moving nicely.
I recently entrusted Iris Frame
shop to make a very special
Christmas gift for a family
member. It was a challenge; my
request was something I don't
believe they've ever encountered.
They created a piece of art
for my loved one that far surpassed
my expectations. Even as
the Christmas deadline drew
near, they hand-delivered my
gift to my home!
Those of you who have never
stopped by to check out Iris
should. Not only do they do custom
frame work, but they also
have a small art gallery featuring
local artists' work. There are
greeting cards, jewelry, soaps
and painting.
No, they did not compensate
me for penning this letter, nor
did they know I was writing it. I
was just so impressed with their
creativity and flexibility that I
felt I had to share my experience
with Main Street shoppers.
Deb Luscombe, Goffstown
Privatizing Social Security will only aid wealthy and cut benefits
To the Editor:
Social Security is the taxpayer's
safety net and should
not be privatized! It has meant
the difference between dignity
and despair for generations of
Americans and the only crisis is
the one being "manufactured"
by radical right wingers who
want to kill a program that they
have never liked.
Keeping Social Security
healthy for the next century will
require only a small future revenue
infusion; less than we are
paying for the Iraq war fiasco
and only a quarter of the amount
lost annually to Bush's tax cuts
for the wealthy. In fact it will
mean cutting benefits to
retirees, raising taxes or massive
government borrowing, quite
probably all three.
The real danger would be in
diverting our retirement savings
to the profit-driven corporate
account managers of Wall
Street. It is a gamble and a risky
strategy meant only benefit the
rich, who after all, are Bush's
base.
After the less than truthful
shuck and jive, the shuffling and
shadow boxing in the run-up to
the Iraq war fiasco, how can
anyone of us believe the hype of
this so-called Social Security
"crisis"?
"Ownership Society" is merely
a euphemism for the ongoing
transfer of wealth from the middle
classes to the corporations
which now control our government
through their influential
political contributions, rightly
called "bribery" by those who
see the system for what it is.
Speak up now or you will regret
it later.
Charles B. Carr, New Boston
I’m on a fixed income and I’m voting for middle school
To the Editor:
Building schools is an expensive
project but one that has to
be faced as a town grows and
young families move in. Weare
has reached that crossroad.
There is growing need for a new
middle school to finally solve
the safety, health and educational
needs of the children in our
community.
Because of the "band aid"
approach the Concord politicians
have used in the past to
provide school funding, more of
the expense of education falls
onto the towns. It is an approach
we have also used in Weare to
keep us in a school that has far
outrun its lifespan and usefulness.
This, of course, means
higher taxes. The ugly "T"
word.
I am a senior citizen on a fixed
income and any raise in taxes
affects me perhaps more than
those that are still working. I
also do not have children in the
school system; however, I have
attended some of the school
board meetings and listened to
the discussions.
I have also toured the middle
school and saw the desperate
need for a new school firsthand.
I will vote for a new middle
school based on what I have
learned and I urge you all to do
the same.
Pat Gareri, Weare
Please help me raise money for student ambassador program
To the Editor:
My name is Natalie Sroda and
I am an eighth-grade student at
Mountain View Middle School
in Goffstown.
I was recently interviewed and
accepted to participate as a
member of the People to People
Student Ambassador Program to
Europe this summer.
The objective of the program
is to promote international
understanding while building
leadership skills among
America's youth.
The 20-day experience
includes meetings with government
officials, interaction with
other students my age, educational
activities and home stays
with host families.
I am currently seeking financial
sponsors to help me with
tuition and hope I can count on
your support. In case you
haven't head of People to
People, please allow me to share
some history with you.
President Dwight D.
Eisenhower founded the organization
in 1856.
He believed that if people
from different cultures could
come together in peace and
friendship, so eventually would
countries.
Since its founding, People to
People has launched many international
programs, including
Sister Cities, Project HOPE and
Pen Pals.
People to People student
ambassadors are carefully interviewed
and evaluated before
their acceptance and I am honored
to have been selected.
Personally, I am looking forward
to broadening My perspective
of the world and gaining a
better understanding of
European history.
As an ambassador, I can also
earn high school and college
credit because of the many educational
elements in my program.
The program tuition is $4,895,
which includes all transportation,
accommodations, meals
and educational activities.
I am asking contributors to
donate $100 to $200 to help me
reach my goal.
Is it possible for you to assist
me by making a contribution?
Any amount would be
appreciated.
My program tuition is due
March 1. Checks can be made to
People to People and returned to
me at 129 Black Brook Road,
Goffstown, NH 03045.
Feel free to contact me at 497-
4091 if you need more information.
Your generous contribution
would enable me to share in this
wonderful opportunity.
Thank you in advance for your
consideration and support.
Natalie Sroda
Student ambassador
Goffstown
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