Friday Update December 31, 2009

“Friday Updates”

(On
Thursday)

December 31, 2009 

On Tuesday afternoon of this week, a pine tree fell across
Pettee Brook
Lane in
downtown Durham blocking the roadway and interrupting power to many
local businesses.  Residents Ron
Streelman and Nick Isaac caught the image on film. 

Inclement Weather Approaches the
Seacoast – Be Prepared

The N.H. Office of Homeland Security and Emergency
Management reports that there is a significant winter storm predicted for this
weekend.  Here is their outlook as of Thursday morning, 12/31/2009:

o      
Predictability of snow
amounts and winds is still somewhat confused due to models – a very confusing
storm

o      
Light snow today
(Thursday) and tomorrow (Friday) with not much accumulation.  May see 2-4”
by Friday night.

o      
Heaviest impact of the
larger storm will be felt late Saturday night into Sunday.

o      
5-10” of snow throughout
much of the state with more in the higher terrains and
mountains.

o      
No significant winds
predicted throughout most of state with the exception of the
Seacoast.

o      
Concern still expressed by
National Weather Service for the seacoast area on late Saturday night (midnight
high tide) and, more importantly and more concerning is the high tide expected
around noon on Sunday

o      
The highest astronomical
tides will be the one around noon Sunday, combined with wind gusts up to 40 mph
(possibly higher) may push the tide 1 to 1 ½ feet ABOVE FLOOD STAGE.  Some
coastal flooding and surge should be expected.

o      
Combined with wind, may
see some power outages on coast during Saturday
night/Sunday.

o      
By Sunday night/Mon. a.m.
tide the winds will have shifted, the tides will be lower.

We have coordinated with the
Oyster River Cooperative School
District
regarding utilizing the High School on Coe Drive as a shelter if needed should extended power outages
impact Durham, Lee, Madbury, or the region.  If necessary, the community is
prepared.  As in the past, residents
should tune in to the Town’s list server to obtain information in the event of
extended power outages. 

Anthrax in
Durham – An Update

Durham Fire, Police, Health, and
UNH officials have been working in close support of
the state's efforts relative to the Anthrax public health concern at the United
Campus Ministry’s Waysmeet Center here in Durham at 15 Mill Road.  Despite its good faith best intentions, the
state, which is operating a multi-jurisdictional public health task force
(including state, Federal, and local officials), has become highly bureaucratic
by necessity.  We recognize this
phenomenon and as such throughout the incident our staff has endeavored to ensure individuals impacted in Durham are treated with courtesy and respect. 

The Town has
also worked to improve information flow to Durham Fire and
Police officials so that they can
anticipate state actions within the municipality relative to this Anthrax
incident so our staff does not find out about events in
Durham via the news. 

UNH has been highly supportive of our combined efforts,
and I am pleased to indicate that cooperation between
Durham and UNH is outstanding. 

It is also important to note that the United Campus
Ministry has been immensely cooperative as part of this very difficult
public health investigative process, and on behalf of the Town I would
like to extend a sincere thank you to the Rev. Larry Brickner-Wood and the
United Campus Ministry at this challenging time. 
Durham is at its heart a community and it is at times such
as this that we come together to offer assistance and support. 

Comcast Franchise Agreement
“Ascertainment” Hearing Scheduled

On Monday, January 11,
2010, at 7:00
p.m. at the Durham Town
Office, the Town Council will conduct and initial “ascertainment” hearing
regarding the cable services provided by Comcast as part of its regularly
scheduled Council meeting.  The
purpose of this hearing is to begin the process by which the Town will gather
information for the negotiations the Town will soon engage in with Comcast for
renewal of the cable franchise in Durham. 

The Durham Cable Access Television (DCAT) Committee
will ultimately take the lead as part of franchise negotiations with Comcast
with the assistance of Mr. Selig and Attorney Robert Ciandella who specializes
in cable franchise negotiations. 
The focus of this hearing is the future cable-related needs and interests
of the Town. 

As the ascertainment process moves forward, the Town
will solicit input from its administration, public library, public schools,
those interested in PEG (Public, Education, and Government Programming –
Channel 22 (DCAT)) Access, and the police and fire departments, as well as the
future cable-related needs and interests of the business community, other
institutional elements of the community such as UNH, and Town residents.  The renewal standard requires a look
backwards, to determine whether Comcast has materially performed under the terms
of the existing agreement which runs through 2012, as well as a look forward
toward future cable related needs of Durham, taking into account the costs of
meeting those needs.

All interested parties are invited to attend the
initial January 11th hearing at which time the overall cable franchise renewal
process will be outlined for the Council and the community.  If you are unable to attend, please feel
free to submit any comments you may have in writing to the Town Council, Town of
Durham, Town Hall, 15 Newmarket Road, Durham, NH 03824.  The
ascertainment hearing record will remain open until further
notice.

Durham Police Officer Ann Champagne to
Retire

The Town is sad to announce that Officer Ann
Champagne has tended her resignation as a patrol officer at the Durham Police
Department, effective January 14, 2010.  Ann is
moving to Delaware with her husband who is employed there.  She has secured a position as a civilian
police officer at the Dover United States Air Force Base.   Ann has served the community
admirably since March of 1998 as a patrol officer, detective, and DARE
instructor.  She has made many good
friends and acquaintances especially during the day shift when she frequently
visits with our senior citizens. 
She also has extended her sincere compassion and understanding to many
children in Durham over the years who think of her as a role model and
refer to her respectfully as “Officer Ann.”

Town Report Preparation Well Under
Way

The Town Administrator’s Office is working busily
these days on pulling together the Annual Town Report for 2009.  If residents have photographs that they
would like to submit outlining key events in Durham’s history for the last twelve months, please forward
these along to Administrative Assistant Jennie Berry at jberry@ci.durham.nh.us. 

Public Meeting
Schedule

The following public meeting is 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.

Durham Energy Committee  – Monday, January 4,
2010 (4.30
p.m.)

Historic District Commission – Thursday, January
7, 2010

Economic Development Committee – Friday, January
8, 2010 (7:30
a.m.)

Durham Parks & Recreation
Offerings

Michael Mengers, Durham’s new(ish) Parks and Recreation Director and the
members of the Parks and Recreation Committee are doing a terrific job
developing a host of new programs intended to appeal to the entire
community.  A listing of some
upcoming programming follows.

Winter Carnival at Mill Pond &
Chili Cookoff

 Saturday, February 6th – Mill Pond &
Smith Chapel

From 10:00am to 2:00pm Mill Pond will be turned into a winter
wonderland.  There will be free ice
skate and snowshoe rentals, pickup hockey and family skating areas, a community
bonfire with smores, free hot chocolate, winter arts and crafts and much
more.  The Chili Cookoff will be
held at Smith Chapel from 11:30 am to 2:00pm.  For a
$5 donation you get an opportunity to sample the best chili that
Durham has to offer and you get to judge which is
best!  Get a chance to tour Smith
Chapel, one of Durham’s oldest and most historic landmarks.  All proceeds of this event go directly
to renovating the Chapel.

If you would like to donate a chili, volunteer at the
event or if you would like more information, contact Michael Mengers at mmengers@ci.durham.nh.us,
817-4074. 

Free TAI CHI

Monday January 4th, 6:00 pm at the Durham Parks & Rec Building.  Join
instructor Lin Lin Choy for a free introductory Tai Chi
class.

January Early Release
Movie

Wednesday, January 13th: Free Early Release Movie:
Imagine That

Movie begins at 12:45 pm at the Durham Parks & Recreation
Department.  Imagine That - Rated
PG, starring Eddie Murphy, runtime 107 minutes.  Free popcorn provided.

New Churchill Rink Program - Beginner
Youth Hockey Stick Hour

Starting Sunday
1/10/2010, Churchill Rink
will be offering a Beginner Youth Skill Hour Sunday mornings from
10:00 am
– 10:50 am.

This skill hour is to give children 8 and under and
their parents an opportunity to practice hockey skills in a low-key pond hockey
type environment.  It is
specifically for beginners and younger kids that may be uncomfortable with older
hockey players.  Children must be
accompanied by a skating adult and helmets are required.  The fee is $5 for an adult and
child.  Additional children are $3
each.

New Kathy Kerrigan Classes

Along with Zumba and Pilates, Kathy will now be
teaching Core Fusion, Circuit Training, Kick and Core and 20/20/20 at Durham
P&R.  New classes start in
mid-January.  Please contact
P&R, 817-4074, mmengers@ci.durham.nh.us for more
information.  Examples of class
offerings follow:

Classical Mat Pilates: Traditional Pilates exercises that promote core
strength, muscular balance and improved flexibility.  By incorporating
Pilates into their training programs many professional athletes have found they
can hit harder, run faster and jump higher.

Mon: 9am @ Durham P&R

Wed: 7pm @ ORMS Cafeteria

Sat: 10am @ ORMS Multi-Purpose Room

Zumba: Cardio dance fitness.  An exhilarating hour of
easy to follow, calorie  burning cardio dance moves set to hypnotic
Latin rhythms such as salsa, cumbia, merengue and flamenco.  No
dance experience or coordination required.  Class is open to all
ages and fitness levels.  Join the fitness phenomenon that has swept the
nation!  www.zumba.com  Check it out!

Wed: 6pm @ ORMS Cafeteria

Thurs: 3:15pm @ ORMS Multi-Purpose Room

Sat: 9am @ ORMS Multi-Purpose Room

Core Fusion: Pilates and fitness core exercises infused with
yoga inspired poses and stretches.  An invigorating class that will leave
you feeling relaxed and refreshed.

Mon: 10am @ Durham P&R

Fri: 10am @ Durham P&R

Kick and Core: Kick, punch, jump and jab.  Kickboxing drill
and intervals followed by core conditioning.

Thurs: 4:30pm @ ORMS Multi-Purpose Room

20/20/20: Upper and lower body strength training/core
work/deep stretch.  Multi-muscle exercises for maximum
efficiency.

Wed: 10am @ Durham P&R

Small Group Interval Circuit
Training: 1 hour of cardio/ strength
intervals.  Burn fat.  Build muscle.  Bump up your
metabolism.  Small group training provides the benefits of a personal
trainer at a fraction of the price.

Wed: 6:15am @ Durham P&R

Wed: 9am @ Durham P&R

Thurs: 5:30pm @ ORMS Multi-Purpose Room

Fri: 9am @ Durham P&R

To register for any of the above classes please
contact Durham P&R Director Michael Mengers at 817-4074 or
mmengers@ci.durham.nh.us

For All and Sundry – A Lovely Submission
by Resident Diane Freedman

“Thanks to the Mill Pond Impoundment, which enables
enough water to be retained to create a giant winter skating rink and/or ski
area, there have been folks enjoying ice skating up and down the river and
backwater since last Friday. Today: nine people and three dogs on one
hockey-size rink on the  backwaters
and several by the Schidlovsky home. I saw two more boys skating, through the
snow, up the river from the Mill Pond end to the end of
Laurel
Lane
(Schwartz and beyond). There are many ski tracks. Cindy Cooper
(Mill Pond
Road) and I
(Laurel
Lane) met on
the frozen pond with our dogs (I came from one side, she from the other) for a
neighborly  visit. Fox footprints
are all over the upper reaches of the impoundment.  Please come join in the
fun.”

New Year’s
Humor

Q: Why are fish easy to weigh?

A: 
Because they have their own scales.

Q: Where do fish get their
petrol?

A: Shell

Q: Why didn’t the skeleton go to the New Year’s Eve
party?

A: He had no body to go with.

Please have a health, happy, and joyous New
Year’s!

Todd