“FRIDAY
UPDATES”
February
20, 2009
The Parks and Recreation Committee
gave out approximately 150 cups of hot chocolate at Wagon Hill Farm on Sunday,
February 8th. Community members also shared popcorn, brownies, and
cookies.
Photos courtesy
Sara Badger Wilson
Department of Public Works crews
were busy plowing this week after the snowstorms from Wednesday and Thursday
evenings, and it appears that another round of snow will be arriving later this
weekend. The current forecast calls for a 70-80% chance of precipitation
arriving on Sunday. At least the sledding should be good at Wagon Hill
Farm!
Citizens interested in learning more
about the prospective candidates who have signed up to run for various Town
elected offices in March may now view candidate profiles of each candidate. To
view this information, click HERE.
Town
Election/School Elections
Elections for the Town and School
officers, as well as for the
TOWN
ELECTION Absentee Ballots Available
Absentee ballots for the Town
elections on March 10, 2009, are available at this time at the Town Clerk’s
office, Monday-Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Absentee ballots for the School elections will be
available on Wednesday, February 25th. Absentee ballots
may be obtained from the Town Clerk’s office in person or by written request and
must be returned by 5:00 PM on Monday, March 9th or received by mail
on Tuesday, March 10th.
On Tuesday, March 3, 2009, beginning
at 7:00 PM, the Durham Neighborhoods Alliance (DNA) will sponsor a Town Council
Candidates Forum in the Town Council chambers of the Town Hall located at
Beginning at 7:00 PM this evening
(February 20th), the public is invited to attend an informational
meeting relative to the Main Street West project to be held in the Council
chambers at the Town Hall, 15 Newmarket Road. This project is scheduled to
include roadway reconstruction/resurfacing and development of
sidewalks/multi-use path and bicycle lanes along
www.unh.edu/ecd/designmainstwest.html The meeting will
be taped for future rebroadcast on
On Wednesday, March 4, 2009, at 7:00
PM, the Department of Public Works will hold a public informational meeting in
the Council Chambers of the
PURCHASE
OF LARGE LOADER-MOUNTED SNOW BLOWER
Last week, the Department of Public
Works opened bids for a new large loader-mounted snow blower and will be
submitting its recommendation for award of the bid to the Town Council on
Monday, March 2, 2009. The lowest bidder, HP Fairfield of
UNH/DURHAM
WATER SYSTEM
This week, the UNH/Durham water
system changed the anti-corrosion chemicals that had been used in the system for
over ten years. The water system had used sodium hydroxide to control the
corrosion within the piping of the water distribution system. A recent
evaluation of the system concluded that changing to orthophosphate would do a
better job of corrosion control and significantly less chemical will be
needed. This should translate to an overall lower cost to the water users
and an improved water distribution. The water system operators also expect
less of a problem with sediment within the system. Water users will likely
not notice any change in quality or taste of the water.
Annual
Appointments of Citizens to Fill Vacancies on Various Town
Boards
On April 30, 2009, terms on various
Town boards, commissions, and committees will expire. In mid-April, the Town
Council will begin the process for making its annual
appointments/reappointments to Town boards, with appointments to take effect May
1, 2009. The Durham Town Council is seeking interested residents of the Town of
Churchill Rink at
Conservation Commission - (2 regular
vacancies; 2 alternate vacancies)
Durham Cable Access Television
(DCAT) Governance Committee - (2 vacancies)
Durham Energy Committee (1
vacancy)
Economic Development Committee – (1
regular vacancy; 2 alternate vacancies)
Historic District Commission - (2
vacancies)
Integrated Waste Management Advisory
Committee - (2 vacancies)
Parks and Recreation - (2 regular
vacancies)
Planning Board - (2 regular
vacancies; 2 alternate vacancies)
Strafford Regional Planning
Commission & MPO Policy Committee - (2 vacancies)
Zoning Board of Adjustment - (2
regular vacancies; 1 alternate vacancy)
2008
Audit Scheduled
Representatives from the Town’s
audit firm, Plodzik and Sanderson Professional Association, will be on site to
begin the FY 2008 financial audit of the Town’s financial records beginning on
April 13, 2009. Auditors typically spend several days reviewing records as part
of their due diligence. The results from the FY 2007 audit can be found in the
2008 Durham Annual Report that was recently mailed to all property
owners.
Application
for Elderly Exemptions
Eligible citizens may apply for an
Elderly Exemption or other exemptions/credits (Veterans Credit, Blind Exemption,
Solar, etc.) by the deadline of
April 15, 2009 for the 2009 spring
tax bill. An application may be obtained from the Planning, Zoning, and
Assessing Office located on the first floor of the Town Hall,
Income
Criteria
Single net
income:
Not more than
$28,077.00
Married, combined
income:
Less than
$37,647.00
Asset
Criteria
Net
assets:
Not in excess of $150,000.00
Age Eligibility
Criteria
Exemption Amount
65 years up to 75
years:
$ 96,000.00
75 years up to 80
years:
$128,000.00
80 years or
older:
$175,000.00
Town
Board Meeting DVDs Available on Loan at Public Library
DVD copies of the Town Council,
Planning Board, and Zoning Board of Adjustment meetings are available at the
Durham Public Library for residents to check out and view. To purchase a
personal copy of a meeting, please contact DCAT Coordinator Craig Stevens at
868-5571 or email dcat@ci.durham.nh.us. The charge per DVD
is $10.00.
PUBLIC
MEETING SCHEDULE
The following public meetings are
scheduled for the coming week in the Town Council chambers at the Durham Town
Office and will begin at 7:00 PM unless otherwise indicated
below.
Planning Board – Wednesday,
February 25, 2009
Economic Development Committee –
Friday, February 27, 2009 (7:30
AM)
To view the agendas for the meetings
listed above, please click HERE.
All meetings recorded on DCAT are available on DVD at the Durham Public Library
for checkout and viewing.
To view the Oyster River School Board meeting schedule,
click HERE.
To view the Durham Public Library Board of Trustees
meeting schedule, click HERE.
To view a listing of the DCAT
programming schedule, click HERE
In the spirit of new snow and winter
sports, the Parks and Recreation Committee would like to suggest some
cross-country skiing for this weekend. As a sport, cross-country skiing is
one of the most difficult endurance sports, as its' motions use every major
muscle group and it (along with running, rowing, and swimming) is one of the
sports that burn the most calories per hour in execution.
PARKS
AND RECREATION BROCHURE
The Parks and Recreation brochure is now
available as a pdf document that can be downloaded on to your computer. To
print a copy of the document, legal-sized paper (8-1/2 x 14) will be required.
To view the brochure, please click HERE.
FEBRUARY
EVENTS AT CHurchill Rink SCHEDULE
Teen Skate
Night
Saturday, February 21, 2009, 7:30-9:00 PM, Cost:
$3.00
Public skating – times offered every
day
* Public skate times below will
remain the same during school vacation week.
Mon., Wed., Fri.
2:00 - 3:20 PM
Tue., Thurs.
9:00 - 10:20
AM and 2:00 - 4:00 PM
Sat.
2:30 - 4:20 PM
Sun.
2:00 - 3:50 PM
The rink is
adding youth pickup hockey for vacation week
only:
Mon., 2/23; Wed.,
2/25; Fri., 2/27 9:00 - 10:20 AM
$3 per person; helmet and equipment
required.
For more information, call the rink
at 868-3907, or visit our website at www.churchillrink.com
Saturday,
February 21, 2009, 10:15 AM – Lapsit Storytime. Come to the library the third
Saturday of the month for stories, fingerplays, and songs for children ages 0-18
months and their caregivers.
Tuesday, February
24, 2009, 10:15 AM – Preschool Storytime. Join the library staff for "all
ages" stories, songs, and a simple craft.
Tuesday, February
24, 2009 6:30 PM - Pajama Storytime. Come to the library in your pajamas! Stories
are followed by a snack and a craft. Sponsored by Oyster River Parents and
Preschoolers (ORPP), this is a great time to network with other parents.
Wednesday,
February 25, 2009, 2:00 and 7:00 PM - Database Workshop.
2:00 PM –
Databases for Adults. This session will focus on the needs of adults for
news, business, medical, and genealogical information.
7:00 PM – Databases for Students. Students and their parents are invited
to explore the information available in the library’s databases and how it can
be applied to school work.
Thursday,
February 26, 2009, 10:30 AM – Singer/Storyteller Alicia Quintano at the ORHS
Multipurpose Room. Ms. Quintano has toured to 38 states
performing at theatres, universities, schools, libraries, festivals, art
centers, and on the radio. Co-sponsored with Madbury and Lee Libraries. There will be no Preschool Storytime at DPL on this
day. See you at the High School!
Friday, February
27, 2009, 4:00 PM – Castles for Kids. UNH Lecturer and Medieval Historian Jonathan Couser
will present a hands-on program for kids. Learn about the parts of a medieval
castle and then use recycled materials to build a simple (and smaller!) one to
take home. Please call the library to pre-register at
868-6699.
Saturday,
February 28, 2009, 10:30 AM –
GROWING
PLACES HOSTS CELEBRATORY CHILDREN’S ART SHOW
On Wednesday, March 4, 2009,
beginning at 6:30 PM, Growing Places, Early Care, Education and Youth Recreation
will host a celebratory children's art show at the
FUND-RAISER
FOR ORHS SENIOR CLASS
Parents of
·
Two month-long raffle calendars for $10 per calendar.
Drawing date for the March calendar will be March 18. The drawing date for the
February calendar was held on February
18th.
·
Chances to win a beautiful jewel-tone handmade
twin-size quilt made by a mother of one of the high school seniors - $5 for 1
chance, $10 for 3 chances.
Participants in this fund-raiser
will be at Durham Marketplace on occasional weeknights, and at Market Basket in
Lee on Saturday, March 14th. Raffle tickets can be obtained through committee
co-chairs, Diane Gallant (
FROM
HISTORY IN AN OYSTERSHELL – 1600 – 1976
“1894 – The Village Improvement
Society organized by citizens interested in the maintenance of roadside by
cutting of grass, planting of shade trees, and keeping waste matter out of
streets. Clarence Scott was president, Lucien Thompson, secretary, and Chauncey
Hayes, treasurer.”
“1894 – Central for the telephone
system was in Caveno’s store, on
Have a nice
weekend.
Todd
Todd I. Selig, Administrator
Town of Durham
15 Newmarket Road
Durham, New Hampshire 03824
Tel
(603) 868-5571
Fax (603) 868-5572
tselig@ci.durham.nh.us
www.ci.durham.nh.us
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