Friday Updates - August 18, 2023

Friday, August 18, 2023

This photo, taken in the summer of 2020, shows resident Lee Alexander out on the beautiful Oyster River near Old Landing. Courtesy, Todd Selig

Administrator Selig is back from sabbatical, rested, and looking forward to jumping into the upcoming budget development season for FY 2024! He was able to do quite a bit of kayaking, paddle boarding, swimming, and took a class in Muay Thai Kickboxing and Karate (!) during his time away.

In addition, UNH returns to session next week. It's always a nice change to see the outgoing seniors' excitement at commencement in the spring and equally special to experience the enthusiasm of the incoming freshmen class each fall -- part of the ebb and flow of a college town!

NEXT WEEK'S UNH MOVE-IN MEANS INCREASED TRAFFIC IN TOWN

UNH Student Move-In Weekend is once again upon us.

Organized UNH school opening activities will take place on Friday, August 25th and Sunday, August 27th. There will be a noticeable increase in traffic congestion in the downtown corridor, specifically on Garrison Avenue and at the Madbury Intersection to Garrison Avenue. Traffic will be converted to three lanes, all moving in one direction from Madbury Road to Main Street.

The next greatest impact may occur in the area of Mill Road near McDaniel Drive, as many new students make their way to the dorms adjacent to B-Lot.

Traffic impacts should start to improve by 3:30 PM at the latest.

We recommend all residents find alternate routes on those days to help alleviate any possible congestion if they are not visiting Durham's many terrific local businesses.

August 19th is Farm Day, rain or shine! The Durham and Lee Agricultural Commissions invite you to the 10th Annual Farm Day, featuring farms across Durham and Lee. Free and family friendly activities, information on backyard food production, behind the scenes farm tours, and much more. Download a full list of the events by clicking HERE. Please Note: Laura Brown of Fox Point Oysters will be having two presentations at 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. rather than one presentation at 10:00 a.m. You can purchase tickets for this presentation HERE.

On Sunday, August 20 beginning at 8:30 a.m. (Postponement dates 8/21 and 8/22 in case of marine advisory), nine swimmers and three relay teams will swim from the Isles of Shoals to Rye Beach to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the Save our Shores effort.

This effort stopped an oil refinery from being developed in Durham (!) with a tanker terminal at the Isles of Shoals. 

Swimmers include Durham resident Betsy Sandberg and ORHS graduate Meredith Bennett. Morgan Dudley and Rebecca Dudley will provide shore support for the swim. The 4 daughters have ties to Durham through their mothers, Nancy Sandberg, Phyllis Bennett and Dudley Dudley, three women who were instrumental in Durham's opposition to the Olympic Oil Refinery proposed by Aristotle Onassis.

Each team has committed to raising at least $500 to benefit Blue Ocean Society’s research, education, and conservation programs. The funds will be used to protect the waters we all enjoy.

How to Help:

Support a Swimmer – donate online HERE or mail a check to Blue Ocean Society, 400 Little Harbor Road, #1103 Portsmouth, NH 03801

Join organizers for a beach cleanup! The cleanup will begin at approximately 10:00 AM, starting at the jetty at Wallis Sands Beach and cleaning until we reach Concord Point/Stinky Creek. Learn more and sign up HERE.

Purchase a limited-edition print by swimmer and artist Alyssa Langlais specifically made for this event. You can find this print HERE.

DURHAM IS EVALUATING/CONSIDERING/PRICING ENHANCED PUBLIC MEETING BROADCASTING CAPABILITIES IN ORDER TO OFFER CLOSED CAPTIONING AND POSSIBLE ADDITIONAL LANGUAGE TRANSLATION CAPTIONING

Town Staff met this week virtually with the software provider that manages the back end DCAT Channel 22 broadcast hosting technology to talk about a refresh to the entire portal hosting Durham’s signal. 

As part of a full refresh, that will likely be coming within the next year, staff have requested a price proposal that would allow real time closed captioning broadcasting of our public meetings (on DCAT Channel 22 cable, via the web, or via Zoom), as well as language translation services to selected additional languages. 

The Durham Human Rights Commission has been interested in enhancing Durham’s broadcasting capabilities to better meet the needs of individuals with disabilities in order to meet the Council goal of increased transparency in local government for all citizens. 

More to come ... but positive news.  

As part of the Tideline Public House redevelopment project along Route 108/Newmarket Road, the NHDOT and the Town of Durham had conversations about the relocation of the more northerly crosswalk in front of Town Hall, essentially moving it farther away from the busy Newmarket Road/Dover Road/Church Hill intersection to enhance sight lines for vehicles traveling along the corridor. The result is the reconfiguration shown above, which was integrated by Durham DPW into this year’s sidewalk program in front of Town Hall and unveiled yesterday.

The red circled area shows the prior location of the Newmarket Road crosswalk (where low-tech flags/buckets had been used for several years to give pedestrians greater visibility while crossing). 

The green circled area shows the new position of the crosswalk, which is being considered for further enhancement in 2024 by adding button activated LED blinking technology, depending upon both discussions with the Historic District Commission/Heritage Commission and the upcoming 2024 budget development process. 

The blue circled area shows an additional reconfigured crosswalk along Schoolhouse Lane, which has been moved several feet up Schoolhouse Lane, thereby moving it farther away from busy Route 108 and creating a shorter crossing for pedestrians.

DURHAM TOWN ENGINEER ELECTED TO AMERICAN SOCIETY OF CIVIL ENGINEERS NH SECTION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

April Talon, P.E. has been elected to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) New Hampshire Section Board of Directors in the position of Clerk for 2023-2024. Service to the profession is an important aspect of an engineer’s career. ASCE NH works to uphold and enhance the integrity and ethics of the Civil Engineering profession and to foster professional and technical interaction among students, younger members, and experienced professionals. Congratulations to April!

To learn more, you can check out ASCE NH's webpage HERE.  

Congratulations, April Talon, Durham Town Engineer!

DO YOU NEED TO REGISTER TO VOTE IN DURHAM OR CHANGE YOUR PARTY AFFILIATION?

The Supervisors of the Checklist will hold the following session for the purpose of accepting new voters and for making changes in party, address, or name:

Monday, August 21, 2023  7:00 – 7:30 PM     Durham Town Hall

Applicants for registration should bring with them proofs of identity, age, citizenship, and domicile (in Durham). Driver’s license and passport are helpful. Affidavits may be signed under oath if proofs are lacking. 

Keep in mind that our next election in Durham will be a primary (Presidential Primary). New Hampshire has not yet announced that date, but it could be as early as January. Party changes MUST be made before the filing period opens, which will probably be in early November. To check your current party registration, click HERE. You may get a frowny face but scroll down to find your party affiliation and polling place. You can easily change your party affiliation (Republican, Democrat, or Undeclared) by visiting the Town Clerk’s office and asking to fill out a “change of party” form or by coming to the above Supervisor Session.

If you are registered as Undeclared at the time of a Primary, you will be asked to choose either a Republican or Democratic ballot. You will then become a member of that party until you request to be returned to Undeclared. You will have a chance to do that as you leave the polls that day, or you may do it any other day in the Town Clerk’s office up until about 90 days before the next Primary.

This is also a good time for recent high school graduates to consider registering to vote if they think they will want to vote in Durham in 2024, either in person or absentee. You may register to vote AS LONG AS you will be 18 by the next election (Presidential Primary).

SEVERAL TECHNOLOGY ENHANCEMENTS IN THE MIX TO BOLSTER DURHAM’S CYBER SECURITY EFFORTS

Staff are actively pursuing many important processes and procedures to better secure Durham’s IT infrastructure. Here is a summary of a few local efforts…

• .gov domain (versus ci.durham.nh.us) - Durham is considering this change within the next year or so.
• Hardening password efforts across all departments. 
• Integrating additional Multi-Factor Authentication.
• Additional Employee Training – Looking to enhance cyber security awareness training, as employees can be the weakest link in an entity’s cyber security measures.

CEMETERY COMMITTEE UPDATES THE REGULATIONS REGARDING BURIAL AT TOWN CEMETERY - Updates to go into effect September 1, 2023

At its June 23 meeting, the Cemetery Committee voted to adopt updated Procedures and Regulations regarding burial at the Town Cemetery, including increased prices for burial plots. The updated regulations will go into effect September 1, 2023, and can be read HERE.

DID YOU KNOW? - RECYCLING CLOTHING

Bringing your used clothing, shoes and textiles to the Raymond A. LaRoche, Sr. Transfer Station and Recycling Center and putting them in the Salvation Army or Ecosmith bins for reuse by people in need is an important way to contribute to a sustainable community.

Because the drop-off bins for the Salvation Army and Ecosmith are not watertight, all dropped off items MUST be put in closed plastic bags to be accepted.

Any wet items found in the bins at pick up will be thrown out and will end up in the landfill. In addition, wet items can potentially contaminate other donated items in the bins which will lead to further waste.

Please take the extra step of placing all donated items in plastic bags before placing them in the bins.

Brought to you by the IWMAC Committee

Questions about recycling or composting? Email us at Durhamrecycles603@gmail.com

Not sure if an item can be recycled? Check out this site to find out: www.recyclesmartma.org

Want to know more about the Swap Shop?  Find out HERE.

Deputy Town Clerk-Tax Collector Audrey MacKenzie swore in Officer Jeffrey Mullaney on August 15, 2023. Officer Mullaney recently retired from the UNH Police as a Sergeant and has decided to return as a Reserve Police Officer. He has over 30 years of experience, including time spent as the Commandant of the NH Police Academy. 

Chief Paul H. Dean and the entire UNH police team are happy to have Jeff back on campus!  

INVITATION TO BID FOR BUILDING AND PURCHASE OF CUSTOM HEAVY RESCUE APPARATUS - Deadline for sealed bids extended to August 31, 2023, at 3:00 pm.  

The Town of Durham Fire Department will receive sealed bids until no later than 3:00 pm, prevailing time, August 30, 2023, at the Durham Fire Department Chief’s Office, Durham Fire Department, 51 College Road, Durham, New Hampshire for Contract #2023-DFD-Heavy-Rescue for building a custom heavy rescue truck to include all necessary labor, equipment, and materials as outlined in the full specifications for the Town of Durham Fire Department at the following link HERE.

The Durham Professional Firefighters Local #2253 would like to introduce Smokey the Fire Dog. Smokey will give short tips on Fire Safety, weekly so Parents and guardians can generate conversation with their children about Fire Safety. Keep an eye out in the weekly updates These small questions and tips are a great way for you as a Parent to teach your kids about Fire Safety, the more they know the safer they will be.

WEEK #32

Fun with the family means walking tails or hiking. You need to have the right equipment to make it safe.  For some helpful safety tips, click HERE.

COMMUNITY INVITED TO PROVIDE INPUT FOR THE SEARCH FOR THE NEXT OYSTER RIVER SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS

Superintendent Morse has announced his coming retirement at the end of the current school year and the ORCSD School Board has officially announced the search for his successor. The School Board invites highly qualified and future-focused candidates to apply for the position of Superintendent of Schools, with a start date of July 1, 2024. The district has hired The New England School Development Council (NESDEC) to assist with the search. Applications are due on Oct 27, 2023.

The School Board invites the community to take part in the search by providing input during the search process. A survey will be provided on the district’s website in September and shared with targeted stakeholders. Community members will also be invited to attend focus groups during the month of September. 

The information gathered at these meetings and through the survey will be used to establish a profile of the preferred candidate. More information, including dates and locations, will be provided soon, including on the Superintendent Search page on the district’s website. The webpage also contains more information about the entire search process, which is anticipated to run through the end of December 2023. 

Community members interested in reading the School Board's letter and obtain additional information regarding the superintendent search process, can visit ORSCD's website HERE.

OYSTER RIVER SCHOOL BOARD NEWS

The School Board met on Wednesday and began with an excellent presentation by Christianna Wiechert. Christianna is a Scout working on a Silver Award, the highest award a cadette can earn. For the project, Christianna developed a texture key for the school lunch menus for neuro diverse students.

The High School will be hosting the incoming freshman and new students on August 25th from 11:30 am – 3:00 pm. A pizza lunch will be provided. Athletics have begun and the turnout is fantastic. Good luck to the student athletes this fall!

The Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) came in to speak to the Board about spectator behavior. The students created a Code of Conduct for all fans attending sporting events in (or out of) the District. The code will be on large, easy to read, posters at all the venues.

Do you have a child starting Kindergarten at Mast Way or Moharimet this fall? Come meet classmates at these summer 2023 playground events hosted by Oyster River Parents and Preschoolers and the Oyster River Alumni Association. Siblings Welcome!

Moharimet Kindergarten Meet-Up:

Saturday August 19th 10am-12pm at Moharimet Playground, 11 Lee Rd, Madbury

Mast Way Kindergarten Meet-Up:

Saturday August 19th 10am-12pm at Mast Way Playground, 23 Mast Rd, Lee

Please also join the (private) "Oyster River Class of 2036" Facebook group by clicking HERE.

Email the organizers at: rskoysterriver@gmail.com

For more information, please click HERE.

ORHS DANCE TEAM FUNDRAISER

The ORHS Dance Team is holding a car wash fundraiser to raise money to pay the school back for new uniforms. The car wash will be held Tuesday August 22nd from 12pm-4pm at the ORHS High school gym parking lot.

The cost is $10 per car. CASH ONLY

UNIVERSITY DAY IS THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7 - Rain Date: September 14

UNH will be hosting University Day on Thursday, September 7th (Rain date: Thursday, September 14th). Main Street will be closed from Garrison Avenue to Edgewood Road for the event from approximately 10 AM to 8 PM.

The event will take place on both sides of Main Street. Citizens may wish to plan ahead for any travel plans they may currently have scheduled for those dates.