“FRIDAY
UPDATES”

October
23, 2009

View from
Mill Pond
Road across Mill Pond

Courtesy Frank
L. Pilar

This week, UNH hosted its annual
Durham Community Breakfast at Huddleston Hall. To view The New Hampshire article on the
breakfast, visit http://www.tnhonline.com/unh-town-regroup-at-community-breakfast-to-clarify-upcoming-projects-1.797606

Town
Offices Closed for Veterans Day

All Town Offices will be closed on
Wednesday, November 11, 2009, in observance of Veterans Day. Offices will reopen
for regular business hours on Thursday morning, November 12, 2009. All commercial recycling and refuse routes will
continue as regularly scheduled.

POTENTIAL
FIRE DEPARTMENT SITES – PUBLIC INFORMATIONAL
MEETING

The Durham Fire Department will hold
a public forum On Tuesday, November 17, 2009, 7:00 PM in the Council Chambers at
the Town Hall to discuss potential locations for a future fire station. Durham
Fire Chief Corey Landry, along with Senior Associate Lynn Reda from Lemay
Erickson Willcox Architects, will outline the process and talk about the three
potential sites for consideration at this point which include: 17 and 21 Madbury
Road, “B” lot (28, 30, and 32 Mill Road), and the corner of Route 108/Stone
Quarry Drive (first lot on the left). The public is invited to attend and
provide input regarding these potential sites.

OYSTER
RIVER DAM AND MILL POND INVESTIGATION

On September 23, 2009 the Governor
and Executive Council authorized awarding of a grant to the Town of Durham “to assess principal
questions associated with the potential repair or removal of the Oyster River
Dam in the amount of $40,000”. The source of the funds is from the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The consulting firms Vannasse Hangen
Brustlin, Inc., and Hydroterra Environmental Services are working with the Town
on the Mill Pond Investigation. 

The initial field work for the
Oyster River Mill Pond investigation began this past Tuesday when a survey crew
arrived to layout ground controls in preparation for the bathymetric survey of
the Mill Pond’s bottom sediments.  The bathymetric survey is conducted from
a small boat which measures the water depth over the entire area of the mill
pond and produces a topographic map of the Mill Pond’s bottom.  The ground
controls are needed to accurately tie the bathymetry to the perimeter of the
pond so that a seamless map of the ground surface in the pond and outside the
pond can be produced.  After the survey work is completed samples of the
pond sediment will be collected and analyzed to determine if the sediments are
contaminated.  The contract with notes requires that this work be completed
by December 31^st.

The second part of the effort
involves a close examination into the structural integrity of the dam’s
concrete. The Department of Public Works is in the process of finalizing a scope
of work with Stephens Associates and UNH Professor David Gress who will soon
collect core samples from various locations on the dam and analyze the cores for
strength and composition. We anticipate this work to be completed by the end of
January.

WISWALL BRIDGE REPLACEMENT
PROJECT

The contractor for the Wiswall
Bridge Replacement Project, R.S. Audley, began in earnest this week when their
crane arrived and barges were placed in the Lamprey River. The Audley crew has started to
dismantle the bridge deck on the east side and will soon be removing the center
pier and existing abutments.  For their own safety, residents are strongly
encouraged to please not enter the work area and to heed the “No Trespassing”
signs.  The construction work is scheduled to continue through the winter
and spring. If all goes well the new bridge should be completed sometime early
next summer. 

ALTERNATE
MEMBER VACANCY ON EDC

The Economic Development Committee
(EDC) has an opening for an alternate position.  If you are interested in
serving on the EDC please feel free to contact with Jim Campbell, Director of Planning & Community
Development, to discuss the position and what it entails. An application
for board appointment is available on the Town’s website at http://www.ci.durham.nh.us/generalpdfs/boardapplication.pdf.

TOWN
HIRES CONSULTANT TO REVIEW ZONING FOR THE CENTRAL BUSINESS
DISTRICT

The Town of Durham has contracted with
B. Dennis Town & Building Design to review the Central Business District
zoning, suggest changes to the Central Business District zoning, and create a
strategic plan for the community core.  Part of this process will include
public forums, both formal and informal.  The formal public design workshop
will be held in November from November 5-9.  This workshop is often
referred to as a Charrette.  A Charrette is an intense, participatory
planning process where ALL MEMBERS OF A COMMUNITY work directly with a design
team that includes town planners, architects, traffic engineers, retail experts,
landscape architects, illustrators and coding experts to define a COLLECTIVE
VISION for the future. There will be some marketing done prior to the event to
ensure a good turnout. Please tell your friends and neighbors about this
exciting workshop that will help shape the future of Durham’s downtown and
community core. There is some information about this workshop on the town’s
website and more information will be coming very soon.

More conversation about drugs and parents

Talking to your kids is not
always easy, especially when it comes to drugs.  Parents my find it
interesting to discover how much they know, or think they know, by taking a quiz
about some of the challenges are kids face today that differs from when we were
younger.

www.theantidrug.com/advice/teens-today/navigating-the-teen-years/drug-quiz.aspx.

ZIPCAR
SHARING SERVICE ARRIVES AT UNH

The University of New Hampshire now has Zipcars available
for UNH community members 18+. Also, as part of the Town’s collaborate efforts
with UNH, Zipcars are available for use by Durham residents over the age of 21. For more
information about Zipcar, including sign up, visit: http://www.zipcar.com/unh/.  To read the Manchester Union Leader article about
Zipcar, visit:: http://www.theunionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Zipcar+sharing+service+arrives+at+UNH&articleId=9ff23714-bf35-4bed-86f0-98042e789b1d, and the UNH Media Relations
article at http://www.unh.edu/news/cj_nr/2009/oct/em22zip.cfm.

ORCSD
Strategic Planning Oversight
Committee

The ORCSD Strategic Planning
Oversight Committee is seeking interested community members to help with
collecting data about the school district and its Pre-K-12 programs. Three
Working Groups have been established to complete this work. These groups will
begin meeting in November and volunteers must be able to meet several times a
month for three months. This work will help shape the strategic plan and
contribute to the district’s efforts toward sustainable and purposeful
improvement. More detailed information, including a list of possible topics that
each group may explore, can be found on the Oversight Committee’s website at http://orcsdstrategicplan.wetpaint.com/.
Persons interested in participating are asked to send an email to stratplan@orcsd.org or contact Wendy
DiFruscio at the SAU office, (603) 868-5100 ext.
20.

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. To view the
agenda 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. 

Planning Board – Wednesday, October
28, 2009

Oyster
River School Board meeting schedule, please click HERE. 

Durham
Public Library Board of Trustees meeting schedule, please click HERE.

DCAT
Programming Schedule, please click HERE

**********************************************

DURHAM
PARKS
& RECREATION PROGRAMS

Instructor Pam Faltin leads her
students in stretching exercises before beginning a walk during the Parks &
Recreation “Get Walking in Durham” program that meets on Saturday mornings
at Durham Landing. 

Meet
Durham Parks
and Recreation

On Tuesday,
November 10, 2009 from 7:00 – 8:00 PM come tour the new Durham Parks and Recreation Facility (the
old Durham Court House) and meet our new Director, Mike Mengers. See how
the department has grown, offer suggestions, sign up for new programs, and
meet members of the Parks and Recreation committee. Light refreshments will be
served. For more information, please contact Sara Badger at badgernh@comcast.net.

§        
Sunday, October 18, 2009, 12:00 noon-2:00 PM, Oyster
River Middle School Athletic Field: Pickup
Ultimate Frisbee. Enjoy a relaxed, family-friendly game of pickup
ultimate Frisbee.  Bring a light and dark colored shirt.

§        
Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 5:30 PM, Durham Parks
& Recreation Activities Room: Tai Chi for Free!

§        
Saturday, October 31, 2009, 5:30-7:30 PM, Jackson’s Landing: 
Durham
Spookfest. 

§        
Tuesday, November 17, 2009, Durham Parks &
Recreation Activities Room:  On The
Ball: Basic Stability Ball Training. Bounce your way to better
health.  6-week sessions start in November.  One class meets at 2:00
PM and another meets at 5:30 PM. 

Contact Michael Mengers at 817-4074,
mmengers@ci.durham.nh.us, for more
information or to register. Follow the Town of Durham Parks & Recreation Department on
Facebook.  Search “Town of Durham Parks”. 

**********************************************

COMMUNITY 
EVENTS

§        
Saturday, October 24, 2009 from 1 – 3:00 PM, Durham
Public Library:  Durham Public Library
Open House featuring: How to download an audio book from the library
website; where to sign up for personalized computer help; how to do your own
research using the library’s free databases; what the library’s children’s
programs have to offer; and where the library keeps that book you have been
looking for. Refreshments will be served.

§        
Saturday, October 24, 2009, Community Church of
Durham: 
“Day of
Action on Behalf of Earth—Joining the ‘350’ Campaign”. For more information,
please contact the Church Office at 868-1230, office@durhamcommunitychurch.org.

§        
Saturday, October 24, 2009, 8:00 AM –
5:00 PM, Oyster
River High
School: Kathy for
the Cure Fundraiser. For more information, contact Kathy
Kerrigan, kerrigan6@comcast.net.

§        
Sunday, October 25, 2009, 3:00 – 4:30 PM, Durham Public Library:
Active Retirement Association Memorial Fund
Book Event. Free and open to the public. Features two publisher
representatives discussing current children’s and young adult books. For more
information, contact Beverly Johnson, bhjohnson@comcast.net.

§        
Thursday, October 29, 2009, 5:00 – 7:00 PM, Mills
Hall at UNH:  6th annual Halloween
Extravaganza. Free to the public. All children must be accompanied by
an adult. For more information, contact Hall Director Julia Pond, 862-1111, Julia.pond@unh.edu.

§        
Thursday, October 29, 2009, 7:00 PM, Community Church
of Durham:  Speaking
engagement by Abdulsattar Younus, a leader in the Iraqui
Non-Violence Movement, La’Onf. For more information, contact the Church Office,
868-1230, office@durhamcommunitychurch.org.

§        
Friday, October 30, 2009, 5:00-7:30 PM: 
Durham
Trick-or-Treating.

§        
Saturday, October 31, 2009, 10:00 AM -1:00 PM, and
again on Sunday, November 1, 2009, 11:30 - 1:00 PM, Community Church: Fair Trade
Products Sale. 

§        
Saturday, November 7, 2009, 6:30 PM, Huddleston Hall,
UNH: Growing Places Fall
Auction. For more information, contact
Sue
Chase, 868-1335, suechase@growingplacesnh.org.

§        
Saturday, November 7, 2009, 7:00 PM,
Stone
Church, 5 Granite Street, Newmarket, On Belay event: Hypnotist
Paul Ramsay and “When I Say the Word”. For more information or to make a
reservation contact Sasha Eisele, Executive Director of On Belay, sasha@on-belay.org, or visit On Belay’s
website www.on-belay.org.

§        
Thursday, November 12, 2009, 7:00 – 8:30 PM; Friday,
November 13, 2009, 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM; and Saturday, November 14, 2009, 10:00 AM
– 1:00 PM, Durham Public Library, 7 Mill Plaza: Friends of DPL Fabulous Fall Used Book Sale. For more
information, contact the Library at (603) 868-6699.

Weekly
Police Arrest Report

*Commenced September 1, 2009 

Historical data
for the same week

This data represents the 2009/10
Academic year report which begins anew each August

when UNH students begin arriving in
Durham.

FROM
HISTORY IN AN OYSTERSHELL – 1600 – 1976

“1957 – All Durham churches held
their Fair Day simultaneously, the first Thursday of December. The plan proved
so successful for each church that it has continued. National magazines featured
this unique cooperation. As new churches have been established they join in Fair
Day also.”

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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Town of Durham
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