once again, our Professional town Manager failed to file basic reports that were required by the State.
As Reported in the Eagle Tribune today;
EPA fines Atkinson $3,500 for storm water violations
By Meghan Carey
Staff writer
ATKINSON — The Environmental Protection Agency has fined Atkinson $3,500 for submitting its annual storm water reports late in 2006 and 2007.
Towns that are permitted to discharge storm water into "waters of the United States" are required to update the EPA of their permit compliance by May 1, according to a press release issued yesterday. Atkinson, which discharges water into the Spicket and Little rivers, has paid the fine.
Atkinson Road Agent Ted Stewart said yesterday that the report used to be done by the town's first town administrator. When that person left, Stewart took over.
When former Town Administrator Russell McAllister was hired, the report was "lost in the shuffle," Stewart said. As soon as the EPA sent a letter asking for it, the report was completed and submitted in June, he said.
The fine has nothing to do with Atkinson's storm water discharge practices. The town has more than 800 culverts and are properly maintained and cleaned of sand, leaves and debris, Stewart said.
"I was kind of miffed that they fined us for being tardy because we're doing all the right stuff," he said.
A number of other municipalities in New England were charged similar fines, according to the press release.
The Towns comments that the reports were lost in the shuffle, is flat out wrong. The reports in question are for 2006 and 2007, Russ was hired in 2004!
Once again, the selectmen faile din their duty to supervise their employees.
He failed to file the storm water reports, and this was his signature issue for the last two years.
He failed to file the Road reports!
He often failed to have minutes done in time.
He failed to provide the budget committee with warrant article prior to public meeting.
He failed to prepare police union articel for discussion.
He failed to properly complete town report two years in a row.
ALL of these are the responsibility of the selectmen, that they delegate to the town administrator.
THEY FAIL TO SUPERVISE! Just like they fail to do with the police chief! and now they are blase about paying a $3,500 fine.
hey jack, tell us again how fiscally prudent you were.
If the town administrator didnt have time to perform these basic functions of his job, what did he do to earn his $65,000/yr.?
Friday, February 29
Tuesday, February 26
Mistake or Mis-direction ??
article:
Mistake or Mis-direction ?
Water, it’s quality and sufficiency of quantity remains a high priority to the residents of Atkinson. All Atkinson residents and homeowners have a keen interest in our water issues and our town officials should place all water issues high on their agenda. Loss of either quality or quantity of our water supply can place our health at hazard and seriously affect your property values.
That being said.
At Deliberative Session, a Planning Board member informed you, in reply to my comments, that the permit sought by the water company was only to increase the water withdrawal because the 57,600 gallons per day(GPD) would be exceeded as new customers in Atkinson were added. This statement clearly rings untrue to me so I rechecked the water companies application for large groundwater withdrawal, which is available for reading at town hall.
The following is what I learned from the application:
THE PERMIT SOUGHT by THE COMPANY IS FOR THE WITHDRAWAL OF AN ADDITIONAL 576,000 GPD (gallons per day)
The present yield from the company’s existing wells is ~ 419 Gal. Per Min. ( 603360 GPD) and the current PEAK pumping needs is between 400 and 450 Gal. Per Min. (576,000 – 648,000 GPD)
This means that the total available withdrawal of 1,179,360 GPD , is in fact more than 20 times the 57,600 GPD representation by the Planning Board member at Deliberative Session.
Now let’s take a look at the water requirements for Atkinsons residents. The average water usage per. person is ~80 Gal. Per Day with approximately (for simple math) 7000 residents in Atkinson. Therefore the residents use ~560,000 Gal per Day. That accounts for all the residents water usage. The “Water Company” serves ~ half the town. Therefore the unserviced half of the residents would use 280,000 gpd and the water company would need 280,000 gpd for residents use.
That raises additional questions? Why is 4 times the amount of water normally used by the company customers being permitted? If the customers don’t use that much water where is it going? How can a valid test be made today to prove such a withdrawal will not effect both the quality of our water supply and the viability of other private groundwater wells?
The majority of our Town Officers have shown a general disregard for Atkinson’s water protection concerns. Especially, by deed and example, outgoing Selectman Chairman Sapia who has been a prime mover against Atkinson’s water interests. All should be alert to these concerns and insist that our current officials address our water concerns and we elect and appoint only officials who will diligently address our water issues.
Ken Grant
Mistake or Mis-direction ?
Water, it’s quality and sufficiency of quantity remains a high priority to the residents of Atkinson. All Atkinson residents and homeowners have a keen interest in our water issues and our town officials should place all water issues high on their agenda. Loss of either quality or quantity of our water supply can place our health at hazard and seriously affect your property values.
That being said.
At Deliberative Session, a Planning Board member informed you, in reply to my comments, that the permit sought by the water company was only to increase the water withdrawal because the 57,600 gallons per day(GPD) would be exceeded as new customers in Atkinson were added. This statement clearly rings untrue to me so I rechecked the water companies application for large groundwater withdrawal, which is available for reading at town hall.
The following is what I learned from the application:
THE PERMIT SOUGHT by THE COMPANY IS FOR THE WITHDRAWAL OF AN ADDITIONAL 576,000 GPD (gallons per day)
The present yield from the company’s existing wells is ~ 419 Gal. Per Min. ( 603360 GPD) and the current PEAK pumping needs is between 400 and 450 Gal. Per Min. (576,000 – 648,000 GPD)
This means that the total available withdrawal of 1,179,360 GPD , is in fact more than 20 times the 57,600 GPD representation by the Planning Board member at Deliberative Session.
Now let’s take a look at the water requirements for Atkinsons residents. The average water usage per. person is ~80 Gal. Per Day with approximately (for simple math) 7000 residents in Atkinson. Therefore the residents use ~560,000 Gal per Day. That accounts for all the residents water usage. The “Water Company” serves ~ half the town. Therefore the unserviced half of the residents would use 280,000 gpd and the water company would need 280,000 gpd for residents use.
That raises additional questions? Why is 4 times the amount of water normally used by the company customers being permitted? If the customers don’t use that much water where is it going? How can a valid test be made today to prove such a withdrawal will not effect both the quality of our water supply and the viability of other private groundwater wells?
The majority of our Town Officers have shown a general disregard for Atkinson’s water protection concerns. Especially, by deed and example, outgoing Selectman Chairman Sapia who has been a prime mover against Atkinson’s water interests. All should be alert to these concerns and insist that our current officials address our water concerns and we elect and appoint only officials who will diligently address our water issues.
Ken Grant
Saturday, February 23
Is Global Warming a Hoax? Where's the Science?
Anonymous said...
Publius please accept this as an article submission
Is Global Warming a Hoax?
Global Warming? New Data Shows Ice Is Back
Are the world's ice caps melting because of climate change, or are the reports just a lot of scare mongering by the advocates of the global warming theory?
Scare mongering appears to be the case, according to reports from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that reveal that almost all the allegedly “lost” ice has come back. A NOAA report shows that ice levels which had shrunk from 5 million square miles in January 2007 to just 1.5 million square miles in October, are almost back to their original levels.
Story continues below . . .
Moreover, a Feb. 18 report in the London Daily Express showed that there is nearly a third more ice in Antarctica than usual, challenging the global warming crusaders and buttressing arguments of skeptics who deny that the world is undergoing global warming.
The Daily express recalls the photograph of polar bears clinging on to a melting iceberg which has been widely hailed as proof of the need to fight climate change and has been used by former Vice President Al Gore during his "Inconvenient Truth" lectures about mankind’s alleged impact on the global climate.
Gore fails to mention that the photograph was taken in the month of August when melting is normal. Or that the polar bear population has soared in recent years.
As winter roars in across the Northern Hemisphere, Mother Nature seems to have joined the ranks of the skeptics.
As the Express notes, scientists are saying the northern Hemisphere has endured its coldest winter in decades, adding that snow cover across the area is at its greatest since 1966. The newspaper cites the one exception — Western Europe, which had, until the weekend when temperatures plunged to as low as -10 C in some places, been basking in unseasonably warm weather.
Around the world, vast areas have been buried under some of the heaviest snowfalls in decades. Central and southern China, the United States, and Canada were hit hard by snowstorms. In China, snowfall was so heavy that over 100,000 houses collapsed under the weight of snow.
Jerusalem, Damascus, Amman, and northern Saudi Arabia report the heaviest falls in years and below-zero temperatures. In Afghanistan, snow and freezing weather killed 120 people. Even Baghdad had a snowstorm, the first in the memory of most residents.
Editor's Note: Special: Gore Went Nuts When He Read This
AFP news reports icy temperatures have just swept through south China, stranding 180,000 people and leading to widespread power cuts just as the area was recovering from the worst weather in 50 years, the government said Monday. The latest cold snap has taken a severe toll in usually temperate Yunnan province, which has been struck by heavy snowfalls since Thursday, a government official from the provincial disaster relief office told AFP.
Twelve people have died there, state Xinhua news agency reported, and four remained missing as of Saturday.
An ongoing record-long spell of cold weather in Vietnam's northern region, which started on Jan. 14, has killed nearly 60,000 cattle, mainly bull and buffalo calves, local press reported Monday. By Feb. 17, the spell had killed a total of 59,962 cattle in the region, including 7,349 in the Ha Giang province, 6,400 in Lao Cai, and 5,571 in Bac Can province, said Hoang Kim Giao, director of the Animal Husbandry Department under the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, according to the Pioneer newspaper.
In Britain the temperatures plunged to -10 C in central England, according to the Express, which reports that experts say that February could end up as one of the coldest in Britain in the past 10 years with the freezing night-time conditions expected to stay around a frigid -8 C until at least the middle of the week. And the BBC reports that a bus company's efforts to cut global warming emissions have led to services being disrupted by cold weather.
Meanwhile Athens News reports that a raging snow storm that blanketed most of Greece over the weekend and continued into the early morning hours on Monday, plunging the country into sub-zero temperatures. The agency reported that public transport buses were at a standstill on Monday in the wider Athens area, while ships remained in ports, public services remained closed, and schools and courthouses in the more severely-stricken prefectures were also closed.
Scores of villages, mainly on the island of Crete, and in the prefectures of Evia, Argolida, Arcadia, Lakonia, Viotia, and the Cyclades islands were snowed in.
More than 100 villages were snowed-in on the island of Crete and temperatures in Athens dropped to -6 C before dawn, while the coldest temperatures were recorded in Kozani, Grevena, Kastoria and Florina, where they plunged to -12 C.
If global warming gets any worse we'll all freeze to death.
February 23, 2008 11:38 AM
Publius please accept this as an article submission
Is Global Warming a Hoax?
Global Warming? New Data Shows Ice Is Back
Are the world's ice caps melting because of climate change, or are the reports just a lot of scare mongering by the advocates of the global warming theory?
Scare mongering appears to be the case, according to reports from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) that reveal that almost all the allegedly “lost” ice has come back. A NOAA report shows that ice levels which had shrunk from 5 million square miles in January 2007 to just 1.5 million square miles in October, are almost back to their original levels.
Story continues below . . .
Moreover, a Feb. 18 report in the London Daily Express showed that there is nearly a third more ice in Antarctica than usual, challenging the global warming crusaders and buttressing arguments of skeptics who deny that the world is undergoing global warming.
The Daily express recalls the photograph of polar bears clinging on to a melting iceberg which has been widely hailed as proof of the need to fight climate change and has been used by former Vice President Al Gore during his "Inconvenient Truth" lectures about mankind’s alleged impact on the global climate.
Gore fails to mention that the photograph was taken in the month of August when melting is normal. Or that the polar bear population has soared in recent years.
As winter roars in across the Northern Hemisphere, Mother Nature seems to have joined the ranks of the skeptics.
As the Express notes, scientists are saying the northern Hemisphere has endured its coldest winter in decades, adding that snow cover across the area is at its greatest since 1966. The newspaper cites the one exception — Western Europe, which had, until the weekend when temperatures plunged to as low as -10 C in some places, been basking in unseasonably warm weather.
Around the world, vast areas have been buried under some of the heaviest snowfalls in decades. Central and southern China, the United States, and Canada were hit hard by snowstorms. In China, snowfall was so heavy that over 100,000 houses collapsed under the weight of snow.
Jerusalem, Damascus, Amman, and northern Saudi Arabia report the heaviest falls in years and below-zero temperatures. In Afghanistan, snow and freezing weather killed 120 people. Even Baghdad had a snowstorm, the first in the memory of most residents.
Editor's Note: Special: Gore Went Nuts When He Read This
AFP news reports icy temperatures have just swept through south China, stranding 180,000 people and leading to widespread power cuts just as the area was recovering from the worst weather in 50 years, the government said Monday. The latest cold snap has taken a severe toll in usually temperate Yunnan province, which has been struck by heavy snowfalls since Thursday, a government official from the provincial disaster relief office told AFP.
Twelve people have died there, state Xinhua news agency reported, and four remained missing as of Saturday.
An ongoing record-long spell of cold weather in Vietnam's northern region, which started on Jan. 14, has killed nearly 60,000 cattle, mainly bull and buffalo calves, local press reported Monday. By Feb. 17, the spell had killed a total of 59,962 cattle in the region, including 7,349 in the Ha Giang province, 6,400 in Lao Cai, and 5,571 in Bac Can province, said Hoang Kim Giao, director of the Animal Husbandry Department under the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, according to the Pioneer newspaper.
In Britain the temperatures plunged to -10 C in central England, according to the Express, which reports that experts say that February could end up as one of the coldest in Britain in the past 10 years with the freezing night-time conditions expected to stay around a frigid -8 C until at least the middle of the week. And the BBC reports that a bus company's efforts to cut global warming emissions have led to services being disrupted by cold weather.
Meanwhile Athens News reports that a raging snow storm that blanketed most of Greece over the weekend and continued into the early morning hours on Monday, plunging the country into sub-zero temperatures. The agency reported that public transport buses were at a standstill on Monday in the wider Athens area, while ships remained in ports, public services remained closed, and schools and courthouses in the more severely-stricken prefectures were also closed.
Scores of villages, mainly on the island of Crete, and in the prefectures of Evia, Argolida, Arcadia, Lakonia, Viotia, and the Cyclades islands were snowed in.
More than 100 villages were snowed-in on the island of Crete and temperatures in Athens dropped to -6 C before dawn, while the coldest temperatures were recorded in Kozani, Grevena, Kastoria and Florina, where they plunged to -12 C.
If global warming gets any worse we'll all freeze to death.
February 23, 2008 11:38 AM
It is Now Official... TRHS and TRMS are academically substandard! And no one seems to care!
READ THIS ART. IN PLACE OF DELETED ART. UP 2
Timberlane Poor NECAP Performance!
Have you seen the articles on our kids necap performance? They are doing terrible -- I should say the SAU is doing terrible.
It's not just that the kids perform poorly nationally and statewide. It's that the educators ignore the results, blame the tests, or blame the parents. In Plaistow, the school CELEBRATED achieving an *exemption* from SINI status.
In Danville, we voted against town and school spending last year and opposed assimilation of the preschools. You guys in the big towns did not. If we are going to fix the schools, we need Plaistow and Atkinson to put up a fight.
If you watch the school board meetings or the pep rallies (evening with timberlane) or read the HS principal's newsletters, you will rarely learn of programs to improve our academic standing. We hear about social clubs, sports programs, global warming, and traffic patterns, but not inept educators and administrators. I find it difficult to blame traffic congestion or ambient temperatures for undereducated children.
We need to make it clear that the schools are for teaching. That we are paying teachers to teach the right things well 180 days a year. I think we should vote down all spending not directly tied to improving test scores. Starting with this year's budget and warrants.
We should also ban all fund raising in the schools. Fund raising compromises tax payer influence on the SAU while depriving the children of much needed classroom time. Peg Ralph brought a Yo Yo peddler into the elementary school for an assembly that ended with the children supporting the school by buying $10 Yo Yos!
We should also not count half days towards the 180 day legal requirement. These half days are not teaching days. When you combine the planned non-teaching days (teacher development, elections, end of year, assemblies) with the weather days, the kids are missing 10% of the year under the best of circumstances. Sometimes you need to dismiss early, but two hour delays put the kids at risk just to 'get the day in.' They are also a problem for parents that rely on daycare. I know some of this is part of the contract, but we don't need to rubber stamp these contracts.
We should publish detailed curricula so parents know what the kids are doing in school. Maybe you saw the high schoolers playing star wars on danvilledelivery.com? My oldest watched videos of the donald trump show every week in class until I complained that there should be something better to do with the time.
The only reason this has become public is No Child Left Behind. The NEA is hoping a democrat win will kill NCLB before it gets teeth. We all need to make support for NCLB an issue in elections at all levels.
Do you have time in your forum to shine a light on this problem before the elections?
Timberlane Poor NECAP Performance!
Have you seen the articles on our kids necap performance? They are doing terrible -- I should say the SAU is doing terrible.
It's not just that the kids perform poorly nationally and statewide. It's that the educators ignore the results, blame the tests, or blame the parents. In Plaistow, the school CELEBRATED achieving an *exemption* from SINI status.
In Danville, we voted against town and school spending last year and opposed assimilation of the preschools. You guys in the big towns did not. If we are going to fix the schools, we need Plaistow and Atkinson to put up a fight.
If you watch the school board meetings or the pep rallies (evening with timberlane) or read the HS principal's newsletters, you will rarely learn of programs to improve our academic standing. We hear about social clubs, sports programs, global warming, and traffic patterns, but not inept educators and administrators. I find it difficult to blame traffic congestion or ambient temperatures for undereducated children.
We need to make it clear that the schools are for teaching. That we are paying teachers to teach the right things well 180 days a year. I think we should vote down all spending not directly tied to improving test scores. Starting with this year's budget and warrants.
We should also ban all fund raising in the schools. Fund raising compromises tax payer influence on the SAU while depriving the children of much needed classroom time. Peg Ralph brought a Yo Yo peddler into the elementary school for an assembly that ended with the children supporting the school by buying $10 Yo Yos!
We should also not count half days towards the 180 day legal requirement. These half days are not teaching days. When you combine the planned non-teaching days (teacher development, elections, end of year, assemblies) with the weather days, the kids are missing 10% of the year under the best of circumstances. Sometimes you need to dismiss early, but two hour delays put the kids at risk just to 'get the day in.' They are also a problem for parents that rely on daycare. I know some of this is part of the contract, but we don't need to rubber stamp these contracts.
We should publish detailed curricula so parents know what the kids are doing in school. Maybe you saw the high schoolers playing star wars on danvilledelivery.com? My oldest watched videos of the donald trump show every week in class until I complained that there should be something better to do with the time.
The only reason this has become public is No Child Left Behind. The NEA is hoping a democrat win will kill NCLB before it gets teeth. We all need to make support for NCLB an issue in elections at all levels.
Do you have time in your forum to shine a light on this problem before the elections?
Friday, February 22
Donation Acct. Audit! find out where the money goes!
MAcciard said...
Publius please accept this as an article submission to answer the question about the donation acct.
What I have tried to do is balance the ACTUAL checks written out of the acct. against the requests for withdrawal made by the chief.
REQUESTS FOR WITHDRAWAL 2007
12/10 $3,073 stairlift, chairlift, candy, postage, toys
12/3 $2,968 dentures, tool box, snow tires, writing bench/bathroom, postage, sirens
11/19 $2,700 stamps, utilities for senior, fuel assistance, transport drivers xmas party, senior dinner functions.
10/15 $2,068 senior bday cards, postage, flu vaccine, coach fare
10/12 $1,850 oil for senior$350, flashlights(3)$375, wheelchair ramp$250, GPS for wheelchair van$375, car phone$100, phone recorder$400.
9/17 $250 Help senior with oil
8/20 $2,315 help resident groceries$200, town wide mailing$850, window decals$350, Misc. items$150, Coach rental$765
7/23 $1,607 graphics wheelchair van$400, postage$117, wax/clean cruiser$225, Misc.$150, senior wellness class$715.
6/25 $17,161 partial payment of wheelchair van
6/18 $2,236 purchase Mercury Marquis
6/11 $25,730 purchase wheelchair van, fund atkinson baseball team$250
5/21 $1,300 Letterring new cruisers$900, decommission old cruisers$400
5/7 $1,021 Rent$254, funeral$500, Misc.$150, postage$115
4/9 $540 DARE Graduation
3/12 $1,217 seniors utilities$150, prescriptions$250, baseball team sponsor$250, PDcars cameras$450, postage$117.
1/29 $1,517 town wide mailing, heating assist.senior, bday cards, postage.
TOTAL $24,662. + $42,861 FOR THE WHEELCHAIR VAN.
Now for the EXPENDITURES FOR 2007
12/31 $75.00 Rick Theberge- assist. snow removal
12/31 $486.75 Mike Murphy & Sons- assist- Oil
12/19 $604.12 Toys R Us- Toys for Kids
12/19 $1,300.00 Mobility and More- Stairway lift
12/12 $45.00 Exeter Flower Shop- Flowers Kinney
12/12 $173.68 P. Consentino- Tool Box
12/05 $45.45 P. Consentino- Kids Christmas party items
11/28 $434.85 Victory Fuel- heating oil for senior
11/20 $100.00 P. Consentino- Gift Certificate
11/20 $15.00 P. Consentino- Parking fee Boston
11/20 $745.00 Coach Co.- Beacon Resort Trip
11/14 $48.00 Pulsar Alarms Med. Alert
11/14 $57.00 Freshwater Farms Crowley
11/14 $287.00 Eagle Tribune Flu Shot Ad
11/14 $173.00 C&D Auto Clinic Car repairs for senior
11/14 $319.92 Anderson, William Paying for cable-resident
11/07 $151.50 Loral Press Flu Shot Flyers
10/31 $252.00 Ram Printing Birthday Cards
10/31 $18.58 McCarthy, C. Rx Items
10/31 $216.00 Lynn Card Co. Police Badge
10/31 $344.99 P. Consentino GPS Unit
10/24 $100.00 Ram Printing Envelopes
10/24 $50.00 Phil's Signs Flu Shot Signs
10/24 $419.85 Adamson Industries Flashlights/elderly cruisers
10/10 $265.00 Bill's Home Improve. Ramp for Senior
10/10 $427.82 Omnicron Electronics Recorder
10/10 $305.00 NSP Window Decals
9/26 $1,328.81 Loral Press 6 pg. mail out to residents
9/26 $135.00 The Photo Stop Photos
8/15 $200.00 Anderson, William Food Cert. for needy
8/15 $150.00 Myles Feuer Car Detailing cars 49 & 50
7/25 $75.00 McCarthy, C. Wax Senior Car
7/25 $50.00 Freshwater Farms Cammillieri
7/18 $65.00 McCarthy, C. Wax Elderly Car
7/18 $90.00 Harold's Locksmith Key for new Mercury
7/18 $175.00 Details on Wheels Wax & Buff Durango
6/27 $17,460.00 Ride-away Equip. 2007 Grand Caravan(wheelchair van)
6/27 $250.00 Atkinson Youth Baseb Donation
6/25 $2,236.00 Ernest Munsey 1998 Mercury Marquis
6/06 $845.00 Summit Signs Lettering Senior Cars
6/06 $21.65 McCarthy, C. Staples/plug/parking
5/30 $200.00 Minor, Donald Sr. Unit 49 Take decals off
5/09 $500.00 Brookside Chapel Assist Burial
3/28 $250.00 Atkinson Youth Baseb Sponsorship
3/21 $40.00 McCarthy, C. Seniors- Pops 4 tickets
3/21 $802.96 Loral Press Wheelchair flyer & postage
3/21 $70.00 Exeter Flower Shop Ashford
3/14 $40.00 Rick Theberge sand and salt driveway
3/07 $58.50 Anderson, William Logo on Jacket
2/13 $35.00 Exeter Flower Shop Ashford
1/31 $252.00 Ram Printing Birthday Cards
1/31 $100.00 Ram Printing Envelopes
1/31 $360.19 Mike Murphy Oil Fuel Assist.
1/16 $117.00 Anderson, William Senior Jackets
1/10 $50.00 Rick Theberge Mailbox
1/10 $350.01 KJ's Electric Storage Shed Power
1/10 $400.00 Anderson, William Gift Cards
These are the requests for money made by the Chief in selectmen's meetings, and the actual money spent out of the account. Hope this helps clear things up. I will try to answer any questions posted to the best of my ability.
Mark Acciard
Publius please accept this as an article submission to answer the question about the donation acct.
What I have tried to do is balance the ACTUAL checks written out of the acct. against the requests for withdrawal made by the chief.
REQUESTS FOR WITHDRAWAL 2007
12/10 $3,073 stairlift, chairlift, candy, postage, toys
12/3 $2,968 dentures, tool box, snow tires, writing bench/bathroom, postage, sirens
11/19 $2,700 stamps, utilities for senior, fuel assistance, transport drivers xmas party, senior dinner functions.
10/15 $2,068 senior bday cards, postage, flu vaccine, coach fare
10/12 $1,850 oil for senior$350, flashlights(3)$375, wheelchair ramp$250, GPS for wheelchair van$375, car phone$100, phone recorder$400.
9/17 $250 Help senior with oil
8/20 $2,315 help resident groceries$200, town wide mailing$850, window decals$350, Misc. items$150, Coach rental$765
7/23 $1,607 graphics wheelchair van$400, postage$117, wax/clean cruiser$225, Misc.$150, senior wellness class$715.
6/25 $17,161 partial payment of wheelchair van
6/18 $2,236 purchase Mercury Marquis
6/11 $25,730 purchase wheelchair van, fund atkinson baseball team$250
5/21 $1,300 Letterring new cruisers$900, decommission old cruisers$400
5/7 $1,021 Rent$254, funeral$500, Misc.$150, postage$115
4/9 $540 DARE Graduation
3/12 $1,217 seniors utilities$150, prescriptions$250, baseball team sponsor$250, PDcars cameras$450, postage$117.
1/29 $1,517 town wide mailing, heating assist.senior, bday cards, postage.
TOTAL $24,662. + $42,861 FOR THE WHEELCHAIR VAN.
Now for the EXPENDITURES FOR 2007
12/31 $75.00 Rick Theberge- assist. snow removal
12/31 $486.75 Mike Murphy & Sons- assist- Oil
12/19 $604.12 Toys R Us- Toys for Kids
12/19 $1,300.00 Mobility and More- Stairway lift
12/12 $45.00 Exeter Flower Shop- Flowers Kinney
12/12 $173.68 P. Consentino- Tool Box
12/05 $45.45 P. Consentino- Kids Christmas party items
11/28 $434.85 Victory Fuel- heating oil for senior
11/20 $100.00 P. Consentino- Gift Certificate
11/20 $15.00 P. Consentino- Parking fee Boston
11/20 $745.00 Coach Co.- Beacon Resort Trip
11/14 $48.00 Pulsar Alarms Med. Alert
11/14 $57.00 Freshwater Farms Crowley
11/14 $287.00 Eagle Tribune Flu Shot Ad
11/14 $173.00 C&D Auto Clinic Car repairs for senior
11/14 $319.92 Anderson, William Paying for cable-resident
11/07 $151.50 Loral Press Flu Shot Flyers
10/31 $252.00 Ram Printing Birthday Cards
10/31 $18.58 McCarthy, C. Rx Items
10/31 $216.00 Lynn Card Co. Police Badge
10/31 $344.99 P. Consentino GPS Unit
10/24 $100.00 Ram Printing Envelopes
10/24 $50.00 Phil's Signs Flu Shot Signs
10/24 $419.85 Adamson Industries Flashlights/elderly cruisers
10/10 $265.00 Bill's Home Improve. Ramp for Senior
10/10 $427.82 Omnicron Electronics Recorder
10/10 $305.00 NSP Window Decals
9/26 $1,328.81 Loral Press 6 pg. mail out to residents
9/26 $135.00 The Photo Stop Photos
8/15 $200.00 Anderson, William Food Cert. for needy
8/15 $150.00 Myles Feuer Car Detailing cars 49 & 50
7/25 $75.00 McCarthy, C. Wax Senior Car
7/25 $50.00 Freshwater Farms Cammillieri
7/18 $65.00 McCarthy, C. Wax Elderly Car
7/18 $90.00 Harold's Locksmith Key for new Mercury
7/18 $175.00 Details on Wheels Wax & Buff Durango
6/27 $17,460.00 Ride-away Equip. 2007 Grand Caravan(wheelchair van)
6/27 $250.00 Atkinson Youth Baseb Donation
6/25 $2,236.00 Ernest Munsey 1998 Mercury Marquis
6/06 $845.00 Summit Signs Lettering Senior Cars
6/06 $21.65 McCarthy, C. Staples/plug/parking
5/30 $200.00 Minor, Donald Sr. Unit 49 Take decals off
5/09 $500.00 Brookside Chapel Assist Burial
3/28 $250.00 Atkinson Youth Baseb Sponsorship
3/21 $40.00 McCarthy, C. Seniors- Pops 4 tickets
3/21 $802.96 Loral Press Wheelchair flyer & postage
3/21 $70.00 Exeter Flower Shop Ashford
3/14 $40.00 Rick Theberge sand and salt driveway
3/07 $58.50 Anderson, William Logo on Jacket
2/13 $35.00 Exeter Flower Shop Ashford
1/31 $252.00 Ram Printing Birthday Cards
1/31 $100.00 Ram Printing Envelopes
1/31 $360.19 Mike Murphy Oil Fuel Assist.
1/16 $117.00 Anderson, William Senior Jackets
1/10 $50.00 Rick Theberge Mailbox
1/10 $350.01 KJ's Electric Storage Shed Power
1/10 $400.00 Anderson, William Gift Cards
These are the requests for money made by the Chief in selectmen's meetings, and the actual money spent out of the account. Hope this helps clear things up. I will try to answer any questions posted to the best of my ability.
Mark Acciard
Selectmen Sapia screams at Town Clerk, resident in CLERKS Office!
Some of you may remember this story appearing on this blog last year, well it happened again yesterday!
Selectman Sapia saw a resident in the Town Clerks office near Linda's desk, with Linda, and he stormed into the room, screaming at both the Town Clerk, and the resident! Linda to her credit, tried to explain to this arrogant, out of control selectman that he had no legal authority in her office, but he refused to listen. Could he have been upset because the resident was Ken Grant, and Mr. Sapia is curently being sued by Mrs. Grant, we don't know, and it doesn't matter, because if you can not do your job, especially in the face of someone you don't personally like, you are not fit for the job.
It would appear that three years of abusing residents as selectmen has STILL not taught him the limits of his authority. Becaue when told that he had no authority in the Town Clerks office, it is reported that his loud, and angry response was "THIS IS MY BUILDING, I RUN THIS PLACE!!!!!"
Mr. Sapia, thank God you will only be a selectmen for less than a month, because in the eyes of this blog you are obviously too arrogant, disrespectful, and bullying to be a selectmen! It is not YOUR building, and YOU run nothing! you are merely part of a board of managers who are answerable to the people, you would do well to remember that! We have no kings in America!
Selectman Sapia saw a resident in the Town Clerks office near Linda's desk, with Linda, and he stormed into the room, screaming at both the Town Clerk, and the resident! Linda to her credit, tried to explain to this arrogant, out of control selectman that he had no legal authority in her office, but he refused to listen. Could he have been upset because the resident was Ken Grant, and Mr. Sapia is curently being sued by Mrs. Grant, we don't know, and it doesn't matter, because if you can not do your job, especially in the face of someone you don't personally like, you are not fit for the job.
It would appear that three years of abusing residents as selectmen has STILL not taught him the limits of his authority. Becaue when told that he had no authority in the Town Clerks office, it is reported that his loud, and angry response was "THIS IS MY BUILDING, I RUN THIS PLACE!!!!!"
Mr. Sapia, thank God you will only be a selectmen for less than a month, because in the eyes of this blog you are obviously too arrogant, disrespectful, and bullying to be a selectmen! It is not YOUR building, and YOU run nothing! you are merely part of a board of managers who are answerable to the people, you would do well to remember that! We have no kings in America!
What the Re- evaluation is about
Anonymous said...
Publius: Please post this as an Article Submission
The country knows that the mortgage crisis is up side down. The assessment policies of the town of Atkinson are also up side down, and has been for many years. The Atkinson Taxpayers For Fair Evaluations Committee realize this article is long, but worth reading to make our point. Please take the time to read what the New York Times has to say about this crisis, and imagine what it is going to cost all taxpayers to correct the problem. (and the time it will take to correct it.)
Most homes in Atkinson are over valued. Those over $400,000.00 less so than those under $400,000.00. That’s not proportional and fair assessment required by law. If we are successful in getting the BTLA to order the revaluation of the town at no cost to the taxpayer, why not? If we have to pay for revaluation, (which your committee doesn’t believe will happen) it’s still better to know the real value of the property, as compared to what we hope we can sell it for. The necessary corrections will be made, and the tax rate will fall more closely to where it should be. It’s better to know the truth before making critical decisions, as compared to making decisions on false data.
Our currant selectmen are responsible by RSA to verify that assessments are done correctly. The fact that they obfuscate their responsibility, should not be a comfort to the taxpayer.
Your committee would like all taxpayers to support the revaluation of Atkinson, so fair and proportional assessments are assured. We are not against everybody paying their fair share, but we are against anyone paying more than their fair share.
The question should be: Why are our selectmen and the “Powers To Be” working so hard to defeat that goal?
Your comments please.
Sincere regards,
Leon Artus
Atkinson Taxpayers For Fair Evaluations Committee (spokesperson
From today’s New York Times
February 22, 2008
Rescues for Homeowners in Debt Weighed
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS and LOUIS UCHITELLE
WASHINGTON — Prodded in part by some of the nation’s biggest banks, the Bush administration and Congress are considering costly new proposals for the government to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners whose mortgages are higher than the value of their houses.
Not since the Depression has a larger share of Americans owed more on their homes than they are worth. With the collapse of the housing boom, nearly 8.8 million homeowners, or 10.3 percent of the total, are underwater. That is more than double the percentage just a year ago, according to a new estimate of the damage by Moody’s Economy.com.
Administration officials say they still oppose any taxpayer bailout for either people who borrowed more than they could afford or banks that made foolish loans during the height of the speculative bubble in housing.
But with the current efforts to arrest the housing collapse so far bearing little fruit, Washington is being forced to explore new ideas, among them the idea of a federal mortgage guarantee for troubled borrowers.
And policy makers are listening to proposals from industry and community groups to use government funds to purchase and refinance billions of dollars in mortgages now in danger of default.
Many owners are only gradually becoming aware that their homes would sell for less than the debt against them — a phenomenon, said Richard T. Curtin, director of the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers, that is “beginning to weigh on people, making them uncertain and nervous about the future.”
That nervousness is evident across the country, particularly in places like Memphis, a city of nearly 1.3 million people where falling home prices and negative equity are new experiences.
The housing slumps of the mid-1970s and late 1980s were confined to the coasts. The current bust, while leaving some cities relatively unscathed, has cut a far wider path and it comes just when home debt is at its highest level since World War II.
For Stuart B. Breakstone, the problem hit home when he was forced to come to the closing on the sale of his eight-year-old custom-built house with a check for $65,000. The money, out of his own pocket, was to pay the difference between what he still owed on the mortgage for his home and the lower selling price.
Mr. Breakstone, a 42-year-old lawyer, and his wife, Lori, chief of customs agents at Memphis International Airport — who together earn more than $250,000 a year — managed to extricate themselves by paying off the mortgage. But millions of others are trapped in their homes. They have jobs, make their mortgage payments on time, but cannot raise enough cash to cover the shortfall.
Some eventually default, surrendering to foreclosure. But the vast majority — embedded in their communities, their children in public schools, their reputations at stake — wait nervously in hope that prices will bottom and rise once again, eliminating their negative equity and restoring their freedom to sell or refinance.
“People can’t believe this is happening to them,” said Robert Moulton, president of the Americana Mortgage Group in Manhasset, N.Y.
In Washington, it will be difficult to engineer a bailout similar to the one for savings and loan companies in the early 1990s, because Democrats and Republicans alike cringe at the very word bailout and fear a backlash by people who never became overextended.
But with millions of homeowners already underwater and the prospect that millions more may face the same situation, Democrats and Republicans alike are scrambling for ideas to keep people from simply walking away from their homes and to help those struggling to pay their bills.
Bank of America, which is in the process of acquiring Countrywide Financial and has potentially huge exposure, has circulated a proposal to create a new federal agency that would buy vast quantities of delinquent mortgages at a deep discount and replace them with fixed-rate federally guaranteed loans.
The bank warned that tightening credit conditions were leading to “escalating levels of delinquency and default among borrowers” and “an unprecedented number” of homes that would enter foreclosure.
Administration officials have given the Bank of America plan a cold reception. But the idea is similar to one proposed by Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
The Federal Housing Administration, meanwhile, is examining ways to expand its new insurance program, known as FHA Secure, to help people replace their costly subprime mortgages with federally guaranteed fixed-rate mortgages.
Mortgage industry executives have complained that the F.H.A.’s eligibility requirements are so restrictive that the new program has helped only a trickle.
Credit Suisse executives said they have held lengthy meetings with F.H.A. officials and have urged the agency to relax rules that currently disqualify many borrowers.
One idea, company officials said, was to allow borrowers who had simply made six payments during the course of their mortgage to qualify.
Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts and chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, has ordered his staff to come up with options for a broader rescue bill. An aide to Mr. Frank said his bill would, among other things, allow the government to buy up at least some troubled mortgages.
A more modest plan is being developed by John M. Reich, director of the Office of Thrift Supervision, the agency that regulates savings and loan companies. His plan, still in rough form, would create a voluntary system under which mortgage lenders would reduce debt and monthly payments to reflect the diminished sales value of a home.
It would take the remainder of the mortgage as a “negative amortization certificate,” a lien that the investor could recoup if the house were later sold for its original mortgage value or higher.
In an interview, Mr. Reich said he hoped that most of the old mortgages would be replaced by cheaper mortgages insured through the F.H.A.
“It isn’t a bailout,” Mr. Reich said. “It is a market-driven solution.”
For Americans caught in a mortgage trap and owing more on a home than it would sell for, consumer spending and confidence are the most immediate casualties, Mr. Curtin reports. But the damage goes deeper.
People cannot move easily to jobs in other cities if they have to sell their homes at a loss. The $168 billion federal stimulus package is likely to be less effective than intended because many homeowners may simply use their government checks to pay down their debts.
Housing prices in Memphis fell by 2.5 percent last year, only the second decline since records began to be kept in 1968, and by far the largest dip, according to Chandler Reports, which gathers this data for Greater Memphis.
The Memphis metropolitan area highlights the larger national trend, with the average first-mortgage debt, at $153,764, edging above the average home price, $152,815, for the first time. And that does not count refinancing and home equity loans, as well as closing costs.
Collie Tuttle, in her early 60s, is caught in this bind. Four years ago, she purchased a newly built four-bedroom three-bathroom house in the Memphis outer suburb of Olive Branch, Miss., for $270,000. She put nothing down, relying on her six-figure income from selling furniture to pay down the mortgage, reducing it to $248,000.
But then she lost her job, and in her next one — also selling furniture, but at lower pay — she is being forced to choose between her home and the rest of her life.
“It was a big mistake on my part to buy this house,” she said. Divorced, with two grown sons, she rattles around in it alone. She had thought the house would add to her wealth.
But now, to sell it for the $269,000 a potential buyer was recently willing to pay, “I would have to come up with $6,000 from my pocket,” Ms. Tuttle said, explaining that she cannot afford to invade her meager retirement account. “All I’m asking is for enough so that I come out even.”
Her house payments and utilities come to nearly $2,400 a month. That is affordable, she said, on her present income. But very little is left over to replace her 11-year-old car, to travel, to pay down her credit card debt, or even to buy new clothes.
“I’m stuck,” she said. “I’ve tried everything and I can’t get rid of this house.”
The reluctance to sell at a loss helps to explain why the number of homes listed for sale in the Memphis area has climbed to more than 13,000 from 9,000 a year ago.
Jane and Kevin Naus, in their mid-40s, have had their home on the market since last May; their attempts to sell for a price that covers their debts are skewing their lives.
Mr. Naus took a job in Greenville, N.C., last March, at a local bank. His wife stayed behind, putting their house up for sale, just a month before prices began to unravel.
But there were no offers at the $239,000 the couple asked for their four-bedroom brick house on a one-acre corner lot, so they gradually cut the price to $220,000, barely enough to cover the $192,000 in mortgage debt and an additional $22,000 in closing costs and broker’s fees. It still did not sell.
Mr. Naus says prices are under downward pressure because of competition from the auctioning of foreclosed homes at bargain prices. There were 5,714 foreclosures in Memphis in 2007. “In our neighborhood alone,” Mr. Naus said, “five houses were sold last September and October, and four of the five were foreclosures.”
Mrs. Naus joined her husband in Greenville in December but he lost his job in January, when his division was shut down. The couple decided to stay in Greenville, to be near the family of Mrs. Naus, who has multiple sclerosis and no longer works.
Her $1,800-a-month in disability pay, however, falls short of the $1,400 in monthly payments on the Memphis house and the $700 in rent for an apartment in Greenville. The Nauses make up the difference with his severance pay, and occasional dips into their savings, which have fallen below $100,000.
“We don’t want to lose the house or cut the price,” Mrs. Naus said, “and end up owing money.”
“Basically,” she added, “we are praying that the house sells before my husband’s severance runs out.”
The Breakstones are similarly in danger of sinking, despite their high income. After forking over $65,000 on the house they just sold, they are struggling with $670,000 in debt on their present, larger home — perhaps more than the house itself is worth.
The Breakstones, each previously divorced, married in 2006, bringing three children to their union. They needed a bigger house than the one Mr. Breakstone had built.
Mr. Breakstone thought that he could sell his other home quickly, but it sat on the market for 17 months and finally brought only $170,000. He covered the shortfall by borrowing against his present home — bringing it closer to being underwater, too.
Now the Breakstones are saddled with $4,000 a month in house payments, and $14,000 more in fixed outlays, including child support, car leases, taxes, consumer debt and utilities, using up the bulk of their income.
“I used to think,” Mr. Breakstone said, “that I would pay the piper later and enjoy life now. I’ve totally reversed that view.”
Edmund L. Andrews reported from Washington and Louis Uchitelle from Memphis and New York.
Publius: Please post this as an Article Submission
The country knows that the mortgage crisis is up side down. The assessment policies of the town of Atkinson are also up side down, and has been for many years. The Atkinson Taxpayers For Fair Evaluations Committee realize this article is long, but worth reading to make our point. Please take the time to read what the New York Times has to say about this crisis, and imagine what it is going to cost all taxpayers to correct the problem. (and the time it will take to correct it.)
Most homes in Atkinson are over valued. Those over $400,000.00 less so than those under $400,000.00. That’s not proportional and fair assessment required by law. If we are successful in getting the BTLA to order the revaluation of the town at no cost to the taxpayer, why not? If we have to pay for revaluation, (which your committee doesn’t believe will happen) it’s still better to know the real value of the property, as compared to what we hope we can sell it for. The necessary corrections will be made, and the tax rate will fall more closely to where it should be. It’s better to know the truth before making critical decisions, as compared to making decisions on false data.
Our currant selectmen are responsible by RSA to verify that assessments are done correctly. The fact that they obfuscate their responsibility, should not be a comfort to the taxpayer.
Your committee would like all taxpayers to support the revaluation of Atkinson, so fair and proportional assessments are assured. We are not against everybody paying their fair share, but we are against anyone paying more than their fair share.
The question should be: Why are our selectmen and the “Powers To Be” working so hard to defeat that goal?
Your comments please.
Sincere regards,
Leon Artus
Atkinson Taxpayers For Fair Evaluations Committee (spokesperson
From today’s New York Times
February 22, 2008
Rescues for Homeowners in Debt Weighed
By EDMUND L. ANDREWS and LOUIS UCHITELLE
WASHINGTON — Prodded in part by some of the nation’s biggest banks, the Bush administration and Congress are considering costly new proposals for the government to rescue hundreds of thousands of homeowners whose mortgages are higher than the value of their houses.
Not since the Depression has a larger share of Americans owed more on their homes than they are worth. With the collapse of the housing boom, nearly 8.8 million homeowners, or 10.3 percent of the total, are underwater. That is more than double the percentage just a year ago, according to a new estimate of the damage by Moody’s Economy.com.
Administration officials say they still oppose any taxpayer bailout for either people who borrowed more than they could afford or banks that made foolish loans during the height of the speculative bubble in housing.
But with the current efforts to arrest the housing collapse so far bearing little fruit, Washington is being forced to explore new ideas, among them the idea of a federal mortgage guarantee for troubled borrowers.
And policy makers are listening to proposals from industry and community groups to use government funds to purchase and refinance billions of dollars in mortgages now in danger of default.
Many owners are only gradually becoming aware that their homes would sell for less than the debt against them — a phenomenon, said Richard T. Curtin, director of the Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers, that is “beginning to weigh on people, making them uncertain and nervous about the future.”
That nervousness is evident across the country, particularly in places like Memphis, a city of nearly 1.3 million people where falling home prices and negative equity are new experiences.
The housing slumps of the mid-1970s and late 1980s were confined to the coasts. The current bust, while leaving some cities relatively unscathed, has cut a far wider path and it comes just when home debt is at its highest level since World War II.
For Stuart B. Breakstone, the problem hit home when he was forced to come to the closing on the sale of his eight-year-old custom-built house with a check for $65,000. The money, out of his own pocket, was to pay the difference between what he still owed on the mortgage for his home and the lower selling price.
Mr. Breakstone, a 42-year-old lawyer, and his wife, Lori, chief of customs agents at Memphis International Airport — who together earn more than $250,000 a year — managed to extricate themselves by paying off the mortgage. But millions of others are trapped in their homes. They have jobs, make their mortgage payments on time, but cannot raise enough cash to cover the shortfall.
Some eventually default, surrendering to foreclosure. But the vast majority — embedded in their communities, their children in public schools, their reputations at stake — wait nervously in hope that prices will bottom and rise once again, eliminating their negative equity and restoring their freedom to sell or refinance.
“People can’t believe this is happening to them,” said Robert Moulton, president of the Americana Mortgage Group in Manhasset, N.Y.
In Washington, it will be difficult to engineer a bailout similar to the one for savings and loan companies in the early 1990s, because Democrats and Republicans alike cringe at the very word bailout and fear a backlash by people who never became overextended.
But with millions of homeowners already underwater and the prospect that millions more may face the same situation, Democrats and Republicans alike are scrambling for ideas to keep people from simply walking away from their homes and to help those struggling to pay their bills.
Bank of America, which is in the process of acquiring Countrywide Financial and has potentially huge exposure, has circulated a proposal to create a new federal agency that would buy vast quantities of delinquent mortgages at a deep discount and replace them with fixed-rate federally guaranteed loans.
The bank warned that tightening credit conditions were leading to “escalating levels of delinquency and default among borrowers” and “an unprecedented number” of homes that would enter foreclosure.
Administration officials have given the Bank of America plan a cold reception. But the idea is similar to one proposed by Senator Christopher J. Dodd, Democrat of Connecticut and chairman of the Senate Banking Committee.
The Federal Housing Administration, meanwhile, is examining ways to expand its new insurance program, known as FHA Secure, to help people replace their costly subprime mortgages with federally guaranteed fixed-rate mortgages.
Mortgage industry executives have complained that the F.H.A.’s eligibility requirements are so restrictive that the new program has helped only a trickle.
Credit Suisse executives said they have held lengthy meetings with F.H.A. officials and have urged the agency to relax rules that currently disqualify many borrowers.
One idea, company officials said, was to allow borrowers who had simply made six payments during the course of their mortgage to qualify.
Representative Barney Frank, Democrat of Massachusetts and chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, has ordered his staff to come up with options for a broader rescue bill. An aide to Mr. Frank said his bill would, among other things, allow the government to buy up at least some troubled mortgages.
A more modest plan is being developed by John M. Reich, director of the Office of Thrift Supervision, the agency that regulates savings and loan companies. His plan, still in rough form, would create a voluntary system under which mortgage lenders would reduce debt and monthly payments to reflect the diminished sales value of a home.
It would take the remainder of the mortgage as a “negative amortization certificate,” a lien that the investor could recoup if the house were later sold for its original mortgage value or higher.
In an interview, Mr. Reich said he hoped that most of the old mortgages would be replaced by cheaper mortgages insured through the F.H.A.
“It isn’t a bailout,” Mr. Reich said. “It is a market-driven solution.”
For Americans caught in a mortgage trap and owing more on a home than it would sell for, consumer spending and confidence are the most immediate casualties, Mr. Curtin reports. But the damage goes deeper.
People cannot move easily to jobs in other cities if they have to sell their homes at a loss. The $168 billion federal stimulus package is likely to be less effective than intended because many homeowners may simply use their government checks to pay down their debts.
Housing prices in Memphis fell by 2.5 percent last year, only the second decline since records began to be kept in 1968, and by far the largest dip, according to Chandler Reports, which gathers this data for Greater Memphis.
The Memphis metropolitan area highlights the larger national trend, with the average first-mortgage debt, at $153,764, edging above the average home price, $152,815, for the first time. And that does not count refinancing and home equity loans, as well as closing costs.
Collie Tuttle, in her early 60s, is caught in this bind. Four years ago, she purchased a newly built four-bedroom three-bathroom house in the Memphis outer suburb of Olive Branch, Miss., for $270,000. She put nothing down, relying on her six-figure income from selling furniture to pay down the mortgage, reducing it to $248,000.
But then she lost her job, and in her next one — also selling furniture, but at lower pay — she is being forced to choose between her home and the rest of her life.
“It was a big mistake on my part to buy this house,” she said. Divorced, with two grown sons, she rattles around in it alone. She had thought the house would add to her wealth.
But now, to sell it for the $269,000 a potential buyer was recently willing to pay, “I would have to come up with $6,000 from my pocket,” Ms. Tuttle said, explaining that she cannot afford to invade her meager retirement account. “All I’m asking is for enough so that I come out even.”
Her house payments and utilities come to nearly $2,400 a month. That is affordable, she said, on her present income. But very little is left over to replace her 11-year-old car, to travel, to pay down her credit card debt, or even to buy new clothes.
“I’m stuck,” she said. “I’ve tried everything and I can’t get rid of this house.”
The reluctance to sell at a loss helps to explain why the number of homes listed for sale in the Memphis area has climbed to more than 13,000 from 9,000 a year ago.
Jane and Kevin Naus, in their mid-40s, have had their home on the market since last May; their attempts to sell for a price that covers their debts are skewing their lives.
Mr. Naus took a job in Greenville, N.C., last March, at a local bank. His wife stayed behind, putting their house up for sale, just a month before prices began to unravel.
But there were no offers at the $239,000 the couple asked for their four-bedroom brick house on a one-acre corner lot, so they gradually cut the price to $220,000, barely enough to cover the $192,000 in mortgage debt and an additional $22,000 in closing costs and broker’s fees. It still did not sell.
Mr. Naus says prices are under downward pressure because of competition from the auctioning of foreclosed homes at bargain prices. There were 5,714 foreclosures in Memphis in 2007. “In our neighborhood alone,” Mr. Naus said, “five houses were sold last September and October, and four of the five were foreclosures.”
Mrs. Naus joined her husband in Greenville in December but he lost his job in January, when his division was shut down. The couple decided to stay in Greenville, to be near the family of Mrs. Naus, who has multiple sclerosis and no longer works.
Her $1,800-a-month in disability pay, however, falls short of the $1,400 in monthly payments on the Memphis house and the $700 in rent for an apartment in Greenville. The Nauses make up the difference with his severance pay, and occasional dips into their savings, which have fallen below $100,000.
“We don’t want to lose the house or cut the price,” Mrs. Naus said, “and end up owing money.”
“Basically,” she added, “we are praying that the house sells before my husband’s severance runs out.”
The Breakstones are similarly in danger of sinking, despite their high income. After forking over $65,000 on the house they just sold, they are struggling with $670,000 in debt on their present, larger home — perhaps more than the house itself is worth.
The Breakstones, each previously divorced, married in 2006, bringing three children to their union. They needed a bigger house than the one Mr. Breakstone had built.
Mr. Breakstone thought that he could sell his other home quickly, but it sat on the market for 17 months and finally brought only $170,000. He covered the shortfall by borrowing against his present home — bringing it closer to being underwater, too.
Now the Breakstones are saddled with $4,000 a month in house payments, and $14,000 more in fixed outlays, including child support, car leases, taxes, consumer debt and utilities, using up the bulk of their income.
“I used to think,” Mr. Breakstone said, “that I would pay the piper later and enjoy life now. I’ve totally reversed that view.”
Edmund L. Andrews reported from Washington and Louis Uchitelle from Memphis and New York.
Thursday, February 21
Review of Candidate's Night
Anonymous said...
Publius: Article Submission
Review of Candidate's Night
The following is just one person's humble opinion and is in part to provide a little humor to a town that could use a sense of humor.
The overall rating for Atkinson's Candidate's Night was a "neutral" rating. Not too much to write about but we'll give it a shot.
Let's start with the moderator. Frank started off talking about the food at Candidate's Night. Like it would lead to all of us stampeding down to Town Hall for chow. He mentioned the beans and some people's apparent lack of a sense of smell. Great kickoff Frank. A fart joke. Nothing like a tasteless moment to start the night. I'm sure the Women's Civics Club appreciated it.
We got to hear from a number of people running for offices where they are unopposed. Thank God for the services of these people. Our town would not function without them. The hard part is that it's tough to get excited about the moment. They're running unopposed. They will win. No controversy here and we want controversy! So I will skip the majority of the candidates because the only exciting moment thus far has been Frank's fart joke.
Let's get right to the selectman's race because it was truly the highpoint of the evening. First, I am pleased we have a choice. And the fact there are 3 people running for such a thankless position is amazing to me. I think Frank put it well when he asked them all: "Are you nuts?". Another high point from our moderator. Frank, I don't think you should seriously consider the position of stand up comedian. Just my opinion.
Candidate Rich O'Leary. Will someone please give that guy a cup of coffee or let him get some sleep? Rich, I love ya, man, but you need some nap time. I consider a person's energy level an important trait because of the demands of this position along with one's other life commitments and Rich was low on energy. Rich, while he seemed very open and I felt he was straightforward, was short on details and I think he hurt himself when he admitted he really didn't have a "platform". Rich, ya gotta stand for somethin'. Standing for nothing is like that old Seinfeld episode - about nothing. We need details. Otherwise, we have nothing to complain about and I need material to work with. You're not helping me here. As for answering the softball questions thrown to the candidates, nothing in my mind stands out from Rich's responses. He just kind of went along. Making no waves, here. Kind of the Rodney King of the crowd: "Can't we all just get along?".
Bill Friel: Wow, what an opening statement. I had enough time to make a sandwich. Lots of good content, though. I mean, this guy put some effort into this. And we know for a fact the chief couldn't have written it because it was eloquent and used big words. But what was with the crossed arms? Bill came across as a professional guy, but his body language indicated he was either nervous or maybe just had a fight with the wife beforehand. I think Bill would have done better if he had a cocktail primer and relaxed a little. As for his answers to the softball questions, he tried to convey his business approach to things which was OK. No big surprises. He did seem a bit too willing to expand on existing programs. Again, let's not make any waves. His "voice for all" theme, consistent with his postcard, sounds good, but it wasn't 100% clear to me he conveyed the "how" side of the equation. I got the reaching out part but he didn't directly tackle the toughest issue, head on. He was close, but no cigar. Would he be a good selectman? Probably. I'm just glad his responses to questions were not as long winded as his opening statement. He took a stand on the state law vs. Will of the Voters issue and sided with state law (this issue ties to our aquifer protection ordinance and NH RSA). In my opinon, you could argue either side of this equation until you are blue in the face. Ultimately, the courts are going to have to sort it out. Will Bill win? Vegas line current odds are 1:1.
Valerie Tobin: I thought her opening statement was a bit short on details. She missed an opportunity to really tell her story. I think she agreed with the other candidates too much (although they were all like best buddies that night). Valerie took a stand on the Carol Grant question about the amendment of citizen petitions at deliberative session. While her response probably played well to the Grant faction, reality is, she can't do much about it as a selectman. We give Valerie kudos for making a clear stand on something which demonstrated her willingness to do so. If she was going to go out on a limb, I just wished she had taken the risk on something she could actually impact. Sorry, big swing and a miss, here. Valerie directly addressed the lack of civility in town with the way people treat each other, in particular at selectman's meetings. OK, she said it. She told the town the emperor has no clothes. While this is a real issue in the mind of many, the problem is I think it only resonates with those who are paying very close attention to town matters. And the abusers know this is a small % of the population which is why they keep doing it. Again, kudos for making a stand, however, it remains to be seen how much this will play at the ballot box. Valerie's responses to the softball questions were pretty much in line with the other candidates. She differed from Friel on the issue of following existing state law vs. the will of the voters issue regarding the water ordinance. So if that is a defining issue for you, Val is your gal. Vegas line is 1:1.
Highlights of the evening. There were 2. The first was the banter between Carol Grant and our moderator when she tried to ask questions. Carol, first let me say I know you have done many good things for this town and I appreciate your hard work. However, when you come to these meetings, please, please take some time to prepare written questions, in advance, and read them - and then stop when you reach the period at the end of the sentence. You only give Frank the opportunity to shush you, and I hate to say this, but for the most part, he handled it correctly. You know better and should be prepared for his behavior. I am not condoning the way he handled it as it came across very rudely -yes, it seemed he enjoyed shutting you down. All I am saying, you and Frank know each other, so you should both deal with it better for the rest of us. You two fight like little kids. Just my humble opinion/observation.
The second highlight of the evening was not the selectmen candidates but none other than the Consentino moment where he was captured on video apparently throwing a spitball at Carol Grant.
Whether he actually tossed something or not, it looked like he did (Carol, please check your hair). Phil, it is getting hard to take you seriously. I'm just glad you didn't throw anything at the candidates.
Overall, it was worth tuning into but I didn't see any knock out punches. It seems we have a horse race between Friel and Tobin with O'Leary in third (sorry, Rich, just my opinion). Who will win? Your guess is as good as mine.
Publius: Article Submission
Review of Candidate's Night
The following is just one person's humble opinion and is in part to provide a little humor to a town that could use a sense of humor.
The overall rating for Atkinson's Candidate's Night was a "neutral" rating. Not too much to write about but we'll give it a shot.
Let's start with the moderator. Frank started off talking about the food at Candidate's Night. Like it would lead to all of us stampeding down to Town Hall for chow. He mentioned the beans and some people's apparent lack of a sense of smell. Great kickoff Frank. A fart joke. Nothing like a tasteless moment to start the night. I'm sure the Women's Civics Club appreciated it.
We got to hear from a number of people running for offices where they are unopposed. Thank God for the services of these people. Our town would not function without them. The hard part is that it's tough to get excited about the moment. They're running unopposed. They will win. No controversy here and we want controversy! So I will skip the majority of the candidates because the only exciting moment thus far has been Frank's fart joke.
Let's get right to the selectman's race because it was truly the highpoint of the evening. First, I am pleased we have a choice. And the fact there are 3 people running for such a thankless position is amazing to me. I think Frank put it well when he asked them all: "Are you nuts?". Another high point from our moderator. Frank, I don't think you should seriously consider the position of stand up comedian. Just my opinion.
Candidate Rich O'Leary. Will someone please give that guy a cup of coffee or let him get some sleep? Rich, I love ya, man, but you need some nap time. I consider a person's energy level an important trait because of the demands of this position along with one's other life commitments and Rich was low on energy. Rich, while he seemed very open and I felt he was straightforward, was short on details and I think he hurt himself when he admitted he really didn't have a "platform". Rich, ya gotta stand for somethin'. Standing for nothing is like that old Seinfeld episode - about nothing. We need details. Otherwise, we have nothing to complain about and I need material to work with. You're not helping me here. As for answering the softball questions thrown to the candidates, nothing in my mind stands out from Rich's responses. He just kind of went along. Making no waves, here. Kind of the Rodney King of the crowd: "Can't we all just get along?".
Bill Friel: Wow, what an opening statement. I had enough time to make a sandwich. Lots of good content, though. I mean, this guy put some effort into this. And we know for a fact the chief couldn't have written it because it was eloquent and used big words. But what was with the crossed arms? Bill came across as a professional guy, but his body language indicated he was either nervous or maybe just had a fight with the wife beforehand. I think Bill would have done better if he had a cocktail primer and relaxed a little. As for his answers to the softball questions, he tried to convey his business approach to things which was OK. No big surprises. He did seem a bit too willing to expand on existing programs. Again, let's not make any waves. His "voice for all" theme, consistent with his postcard, sounds good, but it wasn't 100% clear to me he conveyed the "how" side of the equation. I got the reaching out part but he didn't directly tackle the toughest issue, head on. He was close, but no cigar. Would he be a good selectman? Probably. I'm just glad his responses to questions were not as long winded as his opening statement. He took a stand on the state law vs. Will of the Voters issue and sided with state law (this issue ties to our aquifer protection ordinance and NH RSA). In my opinon, you could argue either side of this equation until you are blue in the face. Ultimately, the courts are going to have to sort it out. Will Bill win? Vegas line current odds are 1:1.
Valerie Tobin: I thought her opening statement was a bit short on details. She missed an opportunity to really tell her story. I think she agreed with the other candidates too much (although they were all like best buddies that night). Valerie took a stand on the Carol Grant question about the amendment of citizen petitions at deliberative session. While her response probably played well to the Grant faction, reality is, she can't do much about it as a selectman. We give Valerie kudos for making a clear stand on something which demonstrated her willingness to do so. If she was going to go out on a limb, I just wished she had taken the risk on something she could actually impact. Sorry, big swing and a miss, here. Valerie directly addressed the lack of civility in town with the way people treat each other, in particular at selectman's meetings. OK, she said it. She told the town the emperor has no clothes. While this is a real issue in the mind of many, the problem is I think it only resonates with those who are paying very close attention to town matters. And the abusers know this is a small % of the population which is why they keep doing it. Again, kudos for making a stand, however, it remains to be seen how much this will play at the ballot box. Valerie's responses to the softball questions were pretty much in line with the other candidates. She differed from Friel on the issue of following existing state law vs. the will of the voters issue regarding the water ordinance. So if that is a defining issue for you, Val is your gal. Vegas line is 1:1.
Highlights of the evening. There were 2. The first was the banter between Carol Grant and our moderator when she tried to ask questions. Carol, first let me say I know you have done many good things for this town and I appreciate your hard work. However, when you come to these meetings, please, please take some time to prepare written questions, in advance, and read them - and then stop when you reach the period at the end of the sentence. You only give Frank the opportunity to shush you, and I hate to say this, but for the most part, he handled it correctly. You know better and should be prepared for his behavior. I am not condoning the way he handled it as it came across very rudely -yes, it seemed he enjoyed shutting you down. All I am saying, you and Frank know each other, so you should both deal with it better for the rest of us. You two fight like little kids. Just my humble opinion/observation.
The second highlight of the evening was not the selectmen candidates but none other than the Consentino moment where he was captured on video apparently throwing a spitball at Carol Grant.
Whether he actually tossed something or not, it looked like he did (Carol, please check your hair). Phil, it is getting hard to take you seriously. I'm just glad you didn't throw anything at the candidates.
Overall, it was worth tuning into but I didn't see any knock out punches. It seems we have a horse race between Friel and Tobin with O'Leary in third (sorry, Rich, just my opinion). Who will win? Your guess is as good as mine.
Deliberative Session Rules: Show up or lose.
Anonymous said...
Publius: Article Submission
Deliberative Session Rules: Show up or lose.
I feel badly for people who have significant commitments and can't participate at deliberative session. I also appreciate the effort put forth by those to create a citizen petition. It is a LOT of work.
The reality is this: the moderator controls deliberative session. Period. End of story. Thats the fact Jack. Accept it, get over it and quit whining. There are no selectmen at deliberative session. Only the legislative body is there and selectmen are reduced to citizen level. Frank is running the show because WE elected him to do it. If you don't like the moderator, find a new candidate that can do a better job.
If you don't show up to deliberative session with enough people to be there for as long as it takes to defend your pet warrant article, guess what? You lose. That is the law. Get over it and get recruiting. If you want to play the game, you have to play by the rules. Endlessly whining about the rules is a waste of time and energy. Your time would be far better spent recruiting the 50 people you need to SHOW UP and make sure your warrant article does not get changed or watered down. And no individual selectman can change this.
That's the way it is. The sooner you accept reality, the better off you will be. Sorry, I didn't write the rules so don't shoot the messenger. Your option is to keep whining or start recruiting. You make the call.
Publius: Article Submission
Deliberative Session Rules: Show up or lose.
I feel badly for people who have significant commitments and can't participate at deliberative session. I also appreciate the effort put forth by those to create a citizen petition. It is a LOT of work.
The reality is this: the moderator controls deliberative session. Period. End of story. Thats the fact Jack. Accept it, get over it and quit whining. There are no selectmen at deliberative session. Only the legislative body is there and selectmen are reduced to citizen level. Frank is running the show because WE elected him to do it. If you don't like the moderator, find a new candidate that can do a better job.
If you don't show up to deliberative session with enough people to be there for as long as it takes to defend your pet warrant article, guess what? You lose. That is the law. Get over it and get recruiting. If you want to play the game, you have to play by the rules. Endlessly whining about the rules is a waste of time and energy. Your time would be far better spent recruiting the 50 people you need to SHOW UP and make sure your warrant article does not get changed or watered down. And no individual selectman can change this.
That's the way it is. The sooner you accept reality, the better off you will be. Sorry, I didn't write the rules so don't shoot the messenger. Your option is to keep whining or start recruiting. You make the call.
Friday, February 15
Campaigning, could it be illegal?
Well, the election season is off to a fast start, as we approach candidates night, we see signs popping up everywhere, and the candidates take to the streets(the community center) and the phones to drum up support.
But, Once again in Atkinson there is a legal issue, I know, unbelievable, right? It would appear that all the signs appearing around town, heralding the efforts of SELECTMAN Jack Sapia, MODERATOR Frank Polito, and POLICE CHIEF Phil Consentino, are illegal! Thats right, Illegal! And why you may ask, because there is no Fiscal Agent listed on the sign. I know, it seems trivial, right? But these are some of the very same people who have, at least in the chief's and Jack's cases, publicly decried others for not having fiscal agents on their signs. One would think that a sitting Chairman of the board of selectmen, and a long serving town moderator, would know this basic law regarding the display of campaign signs. And if they were lax in their duties, then surely a 30 year chief of police knows the law.
This practice is appearing to be a hallmark of campaigns which Mr. Sapia is involved with. Some of you may remember Bill Baldwins campaign for school board 2 years ago. Mr. Sapia was actively campaigning for Mr. Baldwin. He put signs up all over town, and stood and campaigned for him on the post office lawn.
Mr. Sapia had to be told by residents that it was illegal for him to put signs on town property. He had to be told that the signs he was putting up were illegal because they did not list a fiscal agent, he remedied this by driving around and writing his wife's name on the signs, with a sharpie marker, as fiscal agent. This blog has always wondered if Mrs. Sapia, could have produced the campaign's financials if asked, as required of a fiscal agent. I wonder if anyone ever pointed out to him that campaigning on post office property is a violation of FEDERAL LAW?
So, as we can see, history does indeed repeat itself. And what about this elderly event at the community center? This Blog doesn't remember a valentine's day elderly event at the community center last year. And if this was not an annual event or not, it was still hallmarked by a town employee, actively campaigning for a candidates for the job of his boss, on town property! Wouldn't that be considered electioneering?
But this is how the powers that be conduct business in Atkinson, and why we are so anxious to send them home.
Mr. Friel, if you are what you say you are, and we have no empirical evidence to prove otherwise, you would be wise to distance yourself from these gentlemen, as their unpopularity is dragging you down with them.
But, Once again in Atkinson there is a legal issue, I know, unbelievable, right? It would appear that all the signs appearing around town, heralding the efforts of SELECTMAN Jack Sapia, MODERATOR Frank Polito, and POLICE CHIEF Phil Consentino, are illegal! Thats right, Illegal! And why you may ask, because there is no Fiscal Agent listed on the sign. I know, it seems trivial, right? But these are some of the very same people who have, at least in the chief's and Jack's cases, publicly decried others for not having fiscal agents on their signs. One would think that a sitting Chairman of the board of selectmen, and a long serving town moderator, would know this basic law regarding the display of campaign signs. And if they were lax in their duties, then surely a 30 year chief of police knows the law.
This practice is appearing to be a hallmark of campaigns which Mr. Sapia is involved with. Some of you may remember Bill Baldwins campaign for school board 2 years ago. Mr. Sapia was actively campaigning for Mr. Baldwin. He put signs up all over town, and stood and campaigned for him on the post office lawn.
Mr. Sapia had to be told by residents that it was illegal for him to put signs on town property. He had to be told that the signs he was putting up were illegal because they did not list a fiscal agent, he remedied this by driving around and writing his wife's name on the signs, with a sharpie marker, as fiscal agent. This blog has always wondered if Mrs. Sapia, could have produced the campaign's financials if asked, as required of a fiscal agent. I wonder if anyone ever pointed out to him that campaigning on post office property is a violation of FEDERAL LAW?
So, as we can see, history does indeed repeat itself. And what about this elderly event at the community center? This Blog doesn't remember a valentine's day elderly event at the community center last year. And if this was not an annual event or not, it was still hallmarked by a town employee, actively campaigning for a candidates for the job of his boss, on town property! Wouldn't that be considered electioneering?
But this is how the powers that be conduct business in Atkinson, and why we are so anxious to send them home.
Mr. Friel, if you are what you say you are, and we have no empirical evidence to prove otherwise, you would be wise to distance yourself from these gentlemen, as their unpopularity is dragging you down with them.
Thursday, February 14
Candidate of the......... stars?
Publius please accept this as an article submission
Candidate of the ....Stars?
or
NOt For ReaL
It appears seletmen candidate Bill Friel is being pushed by the very same establishment that has caused all the problems in town for the last three years. Is it a coincidence that all of the lawsuits, screaming at residents, bullying by the board, cutting off speakers, ignoring town votes, all happened in the last 3 years, the exact same timeframe that Jack has been a selectman?
I see Friel signs in the yards of Sapia, Consentino, Morelli, et al. I hear Polito and Sapia are asking people how many Friel signs they want.
Although I know little of Mr. Friel, I have seen him in ZBA meetings, and I know he is a successful builder, but it would appear that he is the handpicked candidate of Jack and Phil. And that gives me chills, because the last handpicked candidate of these two, was Fred Childs, and before that Jack Sapia!
From what I hear Jack Sapia called Mr. Friel and asked him to run, and Mr. Friel agreed.
I know that I saw him having dinner after town meeting at the country club with Jack, Frank, and a few others of that clique.
I am worried that we will have another three years like we had with Jack if we elect this guy.
Candidate of the ....Stars?
or
NOt For ReaL
It appears seletmen candidate Bill Friel is being pushed by the very same establishment that has caused all the problems in town for the last three years. Is it a coincidence that all of the lawsuits, screaming at residents, bullying by the board, cutting off speakers, ignoring town votes, all happened in the last 3 years, the exact same timeframe that Jack has been a selectman?
I see Friel signs in the yards of Sapia, Consentino, Morelli, et al. I hear Polito and Sapia are asking people how many Friel signs they want.
Although I know little of Mr. Friel, I have seen him in ZBA meetings, and I know he is a successful builder, but it would appear that he is the handpicked candidate of Jack and Phil. And that gives me chills, because the last handpicked candidate of these two, was Fred Childs, and before that Jack Sapia!
From what I hear Jack Sapia called Mr. Friel and asked him to run, and Mr. Friel agreed.
I know that I saw him having dinner after town meeting at the country club with Jack, Frank, and a few others of that clique.
I am worried that we will have another three years like we had with Jack if we elect this guy.
Atkinson library director interviews for Mass. job
Atkinson library director interviews for Mass. job
By Katie Farrell
Staff writer
AMESBURY, Mass. — The one remaining candidate for library director told trustees last night that she has a "lifelong love of libraries" and is passionate about the rewarding career choice she has chosen.
Kathleen "Katie" McDonough, current director of Kimball Library in Atkinson, N.H., was interviewed for half an hour by a library trustees subcommittee consisting of acting Director Patty DiTullio, Chief of Staff Kendra Amaral and Trustees Laura Buckley, Sydney Baily-Gould, Johanna Kimball and Jeannine Bailey.
The group asked a range of questions seeking to determine her vision of a public library's role, her background in fiscal management and budget preparation, her experience with library building projects, and her background with professional development and transition.
"I have a lifelong love of libraries," McDonough told the committee, adding that she first began working in a library as a teenager.
The town has been searching for a new library director since the death of Marc Lankin in July. McDonough was one of four candidates the trustees intended to interview, but the three others have since dropped out.
McDonough has a master's degree in library science. Her career includes time spent at the Library of Congress and the New Hampshire State Library. She has been director of Kimball Library for almost five years and helped that community through two efforts to gain approval for a library building project.
That project was approved by voters in 2007 after an initial failed attempt, and construction is now underway.
While working for 10 years at the New Hampshire State Library, McDonough said her role there was to work with libraries planning renovations or additions.
Serving as Atkinson's director during the effort to get the expansion project approved was "a real learning experience," McDonough said, and she worked with the library building committee, the library building consultant and the trustees. Later, a joint task force was formed by the trustees and the Board of Selectmen to get the project approved.
The trustees and the Friends of the Library are two "key groups" for a facility's success, McDonough said. As director, it's important to make sure the trustees have the resources they need and that they understand their role.
http://www.eagletribune.com/punewsnh/local_story_039061620.html
By Katie Farrell
Staff writer
AMESBURY, Mass. — The one remaining candidate for library director told trustees last night that she has a "lifelong love of libraries" and is passionate about the rewarding career choice she has chosen.
Kathleen "Katie" McDonough, current director of Kimball Library in Atkinson, N.H., was interviewed for half an hour by a library trustees subcommittee consisting of acting Director Patty DiTullio, Chief of Staff Kendra Amaral and Trustees Laura Buckley, Sydney Baily-Gould, Johanna Kimball and Jeannine Bailey.
The group asked a range of questions seeking to determine her vision of a public library's role, her background in fiscal management and budget preparation, her experience with library building projects, and her background with professional development and transition.
"I have a lifelong love of libraries," McDonough told the committee, adding that she first began working in a library as a teenager.
The town has been searching for a new library director since the death of Marc Lankin in July. McDonough was one of four candidates the trustees intended to interview, but the three others have since dropped out.
McDonough has a master's degree in library science. Her career includes time spent at the Library of Congress and the New Hampshire State Library. She has been director of Kimball Library for almost five years and helped that community through two efforts to gain approval for a library building project.
That project was approved by voters in 2007 after an initial failed attempt, and construction is now underway.
While working for 10 years at the New Hampshire State Library, McDonough said her role there was to work with libraries planning renovations or additions.
Serving as Atkinson's director during the effort to get the expansion project approved was "a real learning experience," McDonough said, and she worked with the library building committee, the library building consultant and the trustees. Later, a joint task force was formed by the trustees and the Board of Selectmen to get the project approved.
The trustees and the Friends of the Library are two "key groups" for a facility's success, McDonough said. As director, it's important to make sure the trustees have the resources they need and that they understand their role.
http://www.eagletribune.com/punewsnh/local_story_039061620.html
WHO OVERSEES THE ASSESSOR?
Anonymous said...
Publius please accept this as an article submission
WHO OVERSEES THE ASSESSOR
Not the DRA! Not the ASB! It You! (and me and other taxpayers)
This should be viewed as a reason to file for abatements and appeals as the BTLA recognizes that there are "problems"
BTLA DETERMINES THAT THERE IS NO EFFECTIVE AUDITING OF ASSESSING PRACTICES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE !
The following is a statement from (two separate) decisions from the NH Board of Tax and Land Appeals (BTLA) in regard to Avitar (contract assessor) asking to be compensated by the taxpayers (retribution) for their bringing a reassessment petition action before the BTLA.
Please read carefully for the nuances and acknowledgement by the BTLA that the “State” has “no comprehensive auditing procedures in place to verify that assessments are being performed correctly and accurately at the local level. “ Additionally, the BTLA presented to the Assessing Standards Board (ASB), in 2007, several cases of poor municipal assessing in which they took action. The BTLA presented no encouraging news to the ASB as to the state of assessing in New Hampshire. The ASB response has been silence and inaction.
According to the statement that follows, the burden of auditing and providing “checks and balances” falls to the taxpayers!
Beginning BTLA quote:
“The legislature has provided this process for New Hampshire taxpayers to challenge, on a systemic basis, the need for improved assessment equity throughout a municipality in addition to appealing their individual assessments through RSA 76:16-a or 17. While certainly petitions and appeals require municipal officials and their contractors to invest significant time, they are important processes for taxpayers to audit the assessing function entrusted to municipalities in the first instance. These RSA 71-B:16, IV petitions are part of the "auditing procedures" and "enforcement measures" to ensure equitable market related assessments as discussed, in Sirrell v. State, 146 N.H. 364, 374 and 384 (2001). ("[I]n 1999, no comprehensive auditing procedures are yet in place to verify that assessments are being performed correctly and accurately at the local level." The State must implement effective enforcement measures to ensure assessments are proportional.)
Avitar may believe it to be inefficient and troublesome to have to explain and defend how assessments were derived and calculated; however, our representative form of government requires that those entrusted (either directly by statute or indirectly by contract) with the important responsibility of assessing and equitably dividing the tax burden be responsive and accountable to those who are directly and immediately impacted: the taxpayers. By its very nature, a government with built-in checks and balances may result in some inefficiency; however, that is one of the necessary costs so that no one branch of government dominates and so that its citizens have recourse. See Opinion of the Justices, 141 N.H. 562, 569 (1997); Town of Littleton v. Tavlor. 138 N.H. 4.19, 423 (1994); and Foote v. State Personnel Commission. 116 N.H, 145, 148 (1976).”
Mr. Leon Artus
Publius please accept this as an article submission
WHO OVERSEES THE ASSESSOR
Not the DRA! Not the ASB! It You! (and me and other taxpayers)
This should be viewed as a reason to file for abatements and appeals as the BTLA recognizes that there are "problems"
BTLA DETERMINES THAT THERE IS NO EFFECTIVE AUDITING OF ASSESSING PRACTICES IN NEW HAMPSHIRE !
The following is a statement from (two separate) decisions from the NH Board of Tax and Land Appeals (BTLA) in regard to Avitar (contract assessor) asking to be compensated by the taxpayers (retribution) for their bringing a reassessment petition action before the BTLA.
Please read carefully for the nuances and acknowledgement by the BTLA that the “State” has “no comprehensive auditing procedures in place to verify that assessments are being performed correctly and accurately at the local level. “ Additionally, the BTLA presented to the Assessing Standards Board (ASB), in 2007, several cases of poor municipal assessing in which they took action. The BTLA presented no encouraging news to the ASB as to the state of assessing in New Hampshire. The ASB response has been silence and inaction.
According to the statement that follows, the burden of auditing and providing “checks and balances” falls to the taxpayers!
Beginning BTLA quote:
“The legislature has provided this process for New Hampshire taxpayers to challenge, on a systemic basis, the need for improved assessment equity throughout a municipality in addition to appealing their individual assessments through RSA 76:16-a or 17. While certainly petitions and appeals require municipal officials and their contractors to invest significant time, they are important processes for taxpayers to audit the assessing function entrusted to municipalities in the first instance. These RSA 71-B:16, IV petitions are part of the "auditing procedures" and "enforcement measures" to ensure equitable market related assessments as discussed, in Sirrell v. State, 146 N.H. 364, 374 and 384 (2001). ("[I]n 1999, no comprehensive auditing procedures are yet in place to verify that assessments are being performed correctly and accurately at the local level." The State must implement effective enforcement measures to ensure assessments are proportional.)
Avitar may believe it to be inefficient and troublesome to have to explain and defend how assessments were derived and calculated; however, our representative form of government requires that those entrusted (either directly by statute or indirectly by contract) with the important responsibility of assessing and equitably dividing the tax burden be responsive and accountable to those who are directly and immediately impacted: the taxpayers. By its very nature, a government with built-in checks and balances may result in some inefficiency; however, that is one of the necessary costs so that no one branch of government dominates and so that its citizens have recourse. See Opinion of the Justices, 141 N.H. 562, 569 (1997); Town of Littleton v. Tavlor. 138 N.H. 4.19, 423 (1994); and Foote v. State Personnel Commission. 116 N.H, 145, 148 (1976).”
Mr. Leon Artus
Assessing and Abatements, the Facts
Anonymous said...
Please submit as an article
ASSESSING and/or ABATEMENTS
I have been a resident of Atkinson for 23 years. Currently I am the Assessing Clerk in Danville and also held this same position in Atkinson for some years. Having some small knowledge of the process I submit this article to outline the process.
Property assessments are across the board utilizing the same information and formulas for everyone.
Each and every resident has the responsibility of keeping informed on their own property value. This is available at the Town Hall. If obtaining a copy of your personal property card is not free (as it should be in my opinion) it is at a minimal cost.
If details are incorrect (such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, measurements or other details) an abatement can be filed, which by the way the town offices should help you to process at NO COST. I personally process with the resident each and every abatement before it goes to the Assessor and then the Board of Selectmen.
Filing an abatement is done after the second tax bill has been generated and before March 1st of the following year. The Assessor then has until July of the following year to process.
The Assessor will visit the property, adjustments will be made, and if you have been overtaxed a refund will be generated to inlcude interest from the day you paid your taxes until the day the town reimburses you the difference.
If you feel that you are improperly assessed because of like properties that are assessed for less then a resident can also file an abatement, which by the way the town offices should help you to process at NO COST.
An abatement is filed by submitting a form found at the Town Hall and attaching a bank appraisal along with comparatives of like properties. Again the Assessor will visit the property and make adjustments.
Further, if the resident disagrees with the Assessors findings, they have the option to take the entire abatement to the Board of Tax and Land Appeals for a second decision.
There is no doubt that property values are down.......the stock market is down.......available jobs are down.......times are tough.
When total revals are done it is unrealistic and impossible for the Assessor to enter each and every residence in town. There are times when no one is at home or the Assessor is not allowed entry that a best guesstimate must be used. Like properties will have assumptions made that interiors are the same.
A total reval is VERY expensive. Mailing each and every resident a property card every time there is a change major or minor is expensive and we, the taxpayers, pay for this.
You never hear of a resident complaining because they are under assessed until they are ready to sell and then they want their property truly reflected so they can sell at the highest price.
Likewise if a resident's property is sold for more than the assessed value they are not beating down the door of town hall to pay their extra share of tax.
If the current assessing practices can be improved I am all for it. If there is a better and fairer way to raise taxes it should be investigated and implemented.
How Atkinson can better manage this process is unclear. The method in which taxes are raised has little effect on the outcome. We still haved to pay a certain amount in taxes.
Jill Fleming
Please submit as an article
ASSESSING and/or ABATEMENTS
I have been a resident of Atkinson for 23 years. Currently I am the Assessing Clerk in Danville and also held this same position in Atkinson for some years. Having some small knowledge of the process I submit this article to outline the process.
Property assessments are across the board utilizing the same information and formulas for everyone.
Each and every resident has the responsibility of keeping informed on their own property value. This is available at the Town Hall. If obtaining a copy of your personal property card is not free (as it should be in my opinion) it is at a minimal cost.
If details are incorrect (such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, measurements or other details) an abatement can be filed, which by the way the town offices should help you to process at NO COST. I personally process with the resident each and every abatement before it goes to the Assessor and then the Board of Selectmen.
Filing an abatement is done after the second tax bill has been generated and before March 1st of the following year. The Assessor then has until July of the following year to process.
The Assessor will visit the property, adjustments will be made, and if you have been overtaxed a refund will be generated to inlcude interest from the day you paid your taxes until the day the town reimburses you the difference.
If you feel that you are improperly assessed because of like properties that are assessed for less then a resident can also file an abatement, which by the way the town offices should help you to process at NO COST.
An abatement is filed by submitting a form found at the Town Hall and attaching a bank appraisal along with comparatives of like properties. Again the Assessor will visit the property and make adjustments.
Further, if the resident disagrees with the Assessors findings, they have the option to take the entire abatement to the Board of Tax and Land Appeals for a second decision.
There is no doubt that property values are down.......the stock market is down.......available jobs are down.......times are tough.
When total revals are done it is unrealistic and impossible for the Assessor to enter each and every residence in town. There are times when no one is at home or the Assessor is not allowed entry that a best guesstimate must be used. Like properties will have assumptions made that interiors are the same.
A total reval is VERY expensive. Mailing each and every resident a property card every time there is a change major or minor is expensive and we, the taxpayers, pay for this.
You never hear of a resident complaining because they are under assessed until they are ready to sell and then they want their property truly reflected so they can sell at the highest price.
Likewise if a resident's property is sold for more than the assessed value they are not beating down the door of town hall to pay their extra share of tax.
If the current assessing practices can be improved I am all for it. If there is a better and fairer way to raise taxes it should be investigated and implemented.
How Atkinson can better manage this process is unclear. The method in which taxes are raised has little effect on the outcome. We still haved to pay a certain amount in taxes.
Jill Fleming
Monday, February 11
What qualities do you want in your elected officials?
It is election season, and the Atkinson Reporter would like to invite the candidates to post their positions, ideas, philosophy, and whatever else they deem appropriate here on this blog.
In light of this goal, we thought that we should solicit, first, from you the voters, what it is you want to see in a town official.
So please respond to this article with your comments, and suggestions for the candidates, and hopefully they will respond with their answers to your requests.
In light of this goal, we thought that we should solicit, first, from you the voters, what it is you want to see in a town official.
So please respond to this article with your comments, and suggestions for the candidates, and hopefully they will respond with their answers to your requests.
Marines kicked out of Toledo, Oh. by the Democrat Mayor!
MAcciard said...
Publius, please accept this as an article submission.
Marines kicked out of Toledo, Oh. by the Democrat Mayor!
I heard this story reported to day, and it sums up so much that is wrong with my Country.
When I served and traveled in uniform noone noticed. Today there are many people like myself, who will take the time to go over and introduce ourselves to a uniformed soldier, sailor, marine, airman that we see in public. I usually will go over and greet them by name and rank, introduce myself, and say, simply thank you, no matter what you may read in the papers, you and your service are appreciated.
But I read today, that the mayor of Toledo, Oh. managed to accomplish, in AMERICA, what Al Queda has not been able to accomplish in Iraq, that is to run the U.S. Marines out of town!
OK, so 200 Marines stationed in Grand Rapids, Michigan, piled on to five buses and came to Toledo, Ohio, yesterday to practice some urban patrol exercises. The Toledo police knew about the request for the three-day exercise well in advance, but somehow Mayor Carty Finkbeiner didn’t see the memo requesting permission for the event. So when when the first bus arrives at 3:20 p.m. and Staff Sergeant Andre Davis steps off, he is greeted by a city employee and told that the mayor wanted him and his soldiers out of town by 6 p.m. “I wish,” Sgt Davis drily remarked, “they would have told us this four hours ago.” [Update: a reader points out that it is incorrect to refer to Marines as “soldiers”: soldiers serve in the army, not the Marines. I regret the mistake. I further regret referring to SSgt Davis incorrectly as “Sergeant”!]
Indeed.
I gather that Mayor Finkbeiner (a Democrat, readers will be surprised to learn), like the folks in Berkeley, California, can’t think of the United States Marines without having the first lines of “The Destruction of Sennacherib” float through his head (“The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold …”) “The mayor asked them to leave because they frighten people,” said Brian Schwartz, the mayor’s spokesman.
Gee, isn’t that a shame?
Lance Corporal Brandon Bukrey-McCarty recalled how useful such training was when he had been deployed in Fallujah in 2006-2007. The training, he said, “got me used to looking up on rooftops, looking around every alley, every open door.”
Too bad, Brandon! Carty Finkbeiner thinks having U.S. soldiers in town will frighten the voters, so your comrades will just have to do without that training.
The company’s commanding officer, Major Jeffrey O’Neill, was disappointed by Carty Finkbeiner’s cold shoulder—it would, he noted, be difficult to find a suitable alternative venue for the exercise—but “we’re Marines,” he said, “We’ll adapt and overcome.”
I have no doubt about that. I hope part of the adaptation will be to present the City of Toledo—or maybe Carty Finkbeiner himself—with the $10,000 tab that the aborted exercise cost the Marines.
Mayor Finkbeiner can boast on his official website that Tony Packos Restaurant in Toledo was “made famous on the television show M*A*S*H.” But when he has an opportunity to help the men and women who in real life protect this country, including the City of Toledo, he refuses to grant them the sort of permit he would routinely give to a bunch of anti-American activists who wanted to organize a protest march down Main Street.
I am having trouble believing that I am now living in a world where in the United States of America, the UNITED STATES MARINES, the greatest fighting force on earth, are routinely ridiculed by the Majority political party in the land!
I am appalled everytime I hear Hillary talk about the military when her treatment of the military members she came into contact with during her husbands term, are well documented.
These are the people that wish to serve as commander in chief of the military, yet they dont respect them enough to let them train for the ordeals they will be facing in a foreign land.
You can debate all you want about whether or not we should have gone in there in the first place, but the fact is we are there now, and to leave will merely create a vacuum in the second largest oil supply on earth. Do you really want Al Queda controlling that kind of wealth?
The issue here is that the United States Marines coordinated a training exercise with local police, and first responders, and the MAYOR decided they were "too scary" to be within the city limits.
Also note that the city of Berkeley, CA. is currently trying to evict the armed forces recruiting offices from within the city limits.
People, we are now in a time of WAR! Our sons and daughters are now IN HARM'S WAY! Politics should STOP AT THE WATER'S EDGE and you should do everything within your power to support and help these fine young people.
For those of you who do not know any military people these people by and large represent the very best among us! They understand fully the principles this country was founded upon, and they have sworn an oath to defend it.
Maybe we can deport the mayors of Toledo and Berkeley to Cuba or Venezuela, and see how they like it there.
Publius, please accept this as an article submission.
Marines kicked out of Toledo, Oh. by the Democrat Mayor!
I heard this story reported to day, and it sums up so much that is wrong with my Country.
When I served and traveled in uniform noone noticed. Today there are many people like myself, who will take the time to go over and introduce ourselves to a uniformed soldier, sailor, marine, airman that we see in public. I usually will go over and greet them by name and rank, introduce myself, and say, simply thank you, no matter what you may read in the papers, you and your service are appreciated.
But I read today, that the mayor of Toledo, Oh. managed to accomplish, in AMERICA, what Al Queda has not been able to accomplish in Iraq, that is to run the U.S. Marines out of town!
OK, so 200 Marines stationed in Grand Rapids, Michigan, piled on to five buses and came to Toledo, Ohio, yesterday to practice some urban patrol exercises. The Toledo police knew about the request for the three-day exercise well in advance, but somehow Mayor Carty Finkbeiner didn’t see the memo requesting permission for the event. So when when the first bus arrives at 3:20 p.m. and Staff Sergeant Andre Davis steps off, he is greeted by a city employee and told that the mayor wanted him and his soldiers out of town by 6 p.m. “I wish,” Sgt Davis drily remarked, “they would have told us this four hours ago.” [Update: a reader points out that it is incorrect to refer to Marines as “soldiers”: soldiers serve in the army, not the Marines. I regret the mistake. I further regret referring to SSgt Davis incorrectly as “Sergeant”!]
Indeed.
I gather that Mayor Finkbeiner (a Democrat, readers will be surprised to learn), like the folks in Berkeley, California, can’t think of the United States Marines without having the first lines of “The Destruction of Sennacherib” float through his head (“The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold …”) “The mayor asked them to leave because they frighten people,” said Brian Schwartz, the mayor’s spokesman.
Gee, isn’t that a shame?
Lance Corporal Brandon Bukrey-McCarty recalled how useful such training was when he had been deployed in Fallujah in 2006-2007. The training, he said, “got me used to looking up on rooftops, looking around every alley, every open door.”
Too bad, Brandon! Carty Finkbeiner thinks having U.S. soldiers in town will frighten the voters, so your comrades will just have to do without that training.
The company’s commanding officer, Major Jeffrey O’Neill, was disappointed by Carty Finkbeiner’s cold shoulder—it would, he noted, be difficult to find a suitable alternative venue for the exercise—but “we’re Marines,” he said, “We’ll adapt and overcome.”
I have no doubt about that. I hope part of the adaptation will be to present the City of Toledo—or maybe Carty Finkbeiner himself—with the $10,000 tab that the aborted exercise cost the Marines.
Mayor Finkbeiner can boast on his official website that Tony Packos Restaurant in Toledo was “made famous on the television show M*A*S*H.” But when he has an opportunity to help the men and women who in real life protect this country, including the City of Toledo, he refuses to grant them the sort of permit he would routinely give to a bunch of anti-American activists who wanted to organize a protest march down Main Street.
I am having trouble believing that I am now living in a world where in the United States of America, the UNITED STATES MARINES, the greatest fighting force on earth, are routinely ridiculed by the Majority political party in the land!
I am appalled everytime I hear Hillary talk about the military when her treatment of the military members she came into contact with during her husbands term, are well documented.
These are the people that wish to serve as commander in chief of the military, yet they dont respect them enough to let them train for the ordeals they will be facing in a foreign land.
You can debate all you want about whether or not we should have gone in there in the first place, but the fact is we are there now, and to leave will merely create a vacuum in the second largest oil supply on earth. Do you really want Al Queda controlling that kind of wealth?
The issue here is that the United States Marines coordinated a training exercise with local police, and first responders, and the MAYOR decided they were "too scary" to be within the city limits.
Also note that the city of Berkeley, CA. is currently trying to evict the armed forces recruiting offices from within the city limits.
People, we are now in a time of WAR! Our sons and daughters are now IN HARM'S WAY! Politics should STOP AT THE WATER'S EDGE and you should do everything within your power to support and help these fine young people.
For those of you who do not know any military people these people by and large represent the very best among us! They understand fully the principles this country was founded upon, and they have sworn an oath to defend it.
Maybe we can deport the mayors of Toledo and Berkeley to Cuba or Venezuela, and see how they like it there.
Saturday, February 9
Questions about where money goes from the donation acct.
There have been a lot of questions on this blog about where the money goes from the donation acct. and how money gets into it, and what the money is used for.
Doing an audit of this acct. would be an involved process, so please express your opinion here, as to whether or not you wish to see this done.
Doing an audit of this acct. would be an involved process, so please express your opinion here, as to whether or not you wish to see this done.
Thursday, February 7
Deliberative Session Change??
Publis
Please consider this as a new topic for discussion.
It's in regards to the length of time we take at our deliberative session.
Atkinson's is too long and we don't get a very good turn out, especially at the end.
So, why do communities like Hampstead succeed with starting their deliberative session at 7PM. Hampstead has their meeting tonight, Feb 7th. I wonder if they are going until 2AM ?
This is from yesterday's tribune:
Deliberative sessions
Salem
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Salem High School auditorium, 44 Geremonty Drive
Sanborn
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Sanborn Regional High School auditorium, 17 Danville Road, Kingston
Timberlane
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Timberlane Performing Arts Center, 40 Greenough Road, Plaistow
Hampstead
What: Town deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Hampstead Middle School, 28 School St.
Londonderry
What: School deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Town Hall, 268B Mammoth Road
Windham
What: School deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Golden Brook Elementary School, 112 Lowell Road
Please consider this as a new topic for discussion.
It's in regards to the length of time we take at our deliberative session.
Atkinson's is too long and we don't get a very good turn out, especially at the end.
So, why do communities like Hampstead succeed with starting their deliberative session at 7PM. Hampstead has their meeting tonight, Feb 7th. I wonder if they are going until 2AM ?
This is from yesterday's tribune:
Deliberative sessions
Salem
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Salem High School auditorium, 44 Geremonty Drive
Sanborn
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Sanborn Regional High School auditorium, 17 Danville Road, Kingston
Timberlane
What: School deliberative session
When: Tonight at 7
Where: Timberlane Performing Arts Center, 40 Greenough Road, Plaistow
Hampstead
What: Town deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Hampstead Middle School, 28 School St.
Londonderry
What: School deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Town Hall, 268B Mammoth Road
Windham
What: School deliberative session
When: Tomorrow at 7 p.m.
Where: Golden Brook Elementary School, 112 Lowell Road
Tuesday, February 5
The "WHITE HATS" may return
It has been rumored that the "White Hats" may be reincarnated.
The origin of "White Hats" is is a nickname, I believe penned by Jane Cole as a Haverhill Gazette reporter, in the mid 1970's. They, "White Hats", saw a need for changes in Atkinson and in a short time were the force behind accomplishing these changes.
The origin of "White Hats" is is a nickname, I believe penned by Jane Cole as a Haverhill Gazette reporter, in the mid 1970's. They, "White Hats", saw a need for changes in Atkinson and in a short time were the force behind accomplishing these changes.
Monday, February 4
Civility is disappearing from Atkinson politics.
MAcciard said...
Publius, please accept this as an article submission.
Civility is disappearing from Atkinson politics.
I LOVE POLITICAL DEBATE!
I do, I admit it. I love the give and take, the raw examination of both sides of an idea, or issue. The effort by both sides to get thier point of view in front of the voters. And like any other contest, there are proper ways to do this, and there are gutter tactics.
I know; the old adage is "all is fair in love and war"(and politics) but I would disagree. I believe in the time honored military concept of honor; that you dont harm non-combatants.
Although I did not attend the deliberative session this year(my first miss in 8 years) I have seen most of the tape, and I am appalled at the lack of civility on the parts of our elected, and appointed officials.
As I said earlier in a comment, there was a time in the not to distant past when a resident could come into a public meeting, and speak their mind, without fear of being belittled for their opinions on camera, without fear of retribution, without fear of having their names and reputations harmed within the community. Sadly, it would appear those times are gone.
This is the first town meeting that I have been to where I have heard the moderator start out the meeting by telling(it sounded like advice to me) the assembly that they could ammend an article till it meant nothing.
Unfortunately this is the third time I have seen our board of selectmen, who, by the way, have no official function at town meeting, abuse the privilege of having a microphone in front of them, to heckle, interrupt, and demean the very residents that elected them. That microphone is there, by the way, so that they may answer questions put to the board of selectmen by the people, not for them to pontificate from. The proper actions for town officials if they have something to say, is to descend from their thrones and speak from the floor like every other resident. And the moderator should have reigned them in for that, as a former moderator, Jack Herlihy, did many times.
I always thought the purpose of deliberative session was to debate issues, to debate warrant articles placed before the legislative body(the people), The actions of our selectmen, police chief, and moderator over the last three town meetings, four if you count the special town meeting in 2007, have shown me that there is an inherent risk for those who come into that meeting in opposition of those officials.
I have watched residents interrupted, bullied, belittled, heckled, demeaned, and for what? It is apparent to me that we have a town government of dictators, but not benevolent ones.
It is time for a change in town politics. It is time for the people to be treated with respect. It is high time we DEMANDED THIS FROM OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS!
Publius, please accept this as an article submission.
Civility is disappearing from Atkinson politics.
I LOVE POLITICAL DEBATE!
I do, I admit it. I love the give and take, the raw examination of both sides of an idea, or issue. The effort by both sides to get thier point of view in front of the voters. And like any other contest, there are proper ways to do this, and there are gutter tactics.
I know; the old adage is "all is fair in love and war"(and politics) but I would disagree. I believe in the time honored military concept of honor; that you dont harm non-combatants.
Although I did not attend the deliberative session this year(my first miss in 8 years) I have seen most of the tape, and I am appalled at the lack of civility on the parts of our elected, and appointed officials.
As I said earlier in a comment, there was a time in the not to distant past when a resident could come into a public meeting, and speak their mind, without fear of being belittled for their opinions on camera, without fear of retribution, without fear of having their names and reputations harmed within the community. Sadly, it would appear those times are gone.
This is the first town meeting that I have been to where I have heard the moderator start out the meeting by telling(it sounded like advice to me) the assembly that they could ammend an article till it meant nothing.
Unfortunately this is the third time I have seen our board of selectmen, who, by the way, have no official function at town meeting, abuse the privilege of having a microphone in front of them, to heckle, interrupt, and demean the very residents that elected them. That microphone is there, by the way, so that they may answer questions put to the board of selectmen by the people, not for them to pontificate from. The proper actions for town officials if they have something to say, is to descend from their thrones and speak from the floor like every other resident. And the moderator should have reigned them in for that, as a former moderator, Jack Herlihy, did many times.
I always thought the purpose of deliberative session was to debate issues, to debate warrant articles placed before the legislative body(the people), The actions of our selectmen, police chief, and moderator over the last three town meetings, four if you count the special town meeting in 2007, have shown me that there is an inherent risk for those who come into that meeting in opposition of those officials.
I have watched residents interrupted, bullied, belittled, heckled, demeaned, and for what? It is apparent to me that we have a town government of dictators, but not benevolent ones.
It is time for a change in town politics. It is time for the people to be treated with respect. It is high time we DEMANDED THIS FROM OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS!
Sunday, February 3
FUZZY MATH- THE SEQUEL
Chief Consentino's indignant ranting at the town meeting gave us the idea for a review of this issue that STILL, 6 MONTHS LATER has him upset, one wonders why?
http://atkinson-reporter.blogspot.com/2007/08/fuzzy-math.html
Here is a reprint of the original article, analysis and discussion follows;
For years we have heard questions about the umber of vehicles in the police fleet, and their relative value. We have also recently heard questions about the value of vehicle being disposed of by the chief, and the value of thier replacements, well the Atkinson-Reporter decided to look into these figures and found some startling results.;
The old Wheelchair van 1994 Dodge Ram Van Wheelchair conversion;
Kelly Blue Book Value:$3,170.00
http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars
The selectmen, you will remember, refused to accept a $750 bid from a Danville gentleman, in favor of a $1.00 sale to a Danville family.
Loss to the taxpayers -$3,169.00
2000 Ford Crown Victoria Cruiser;
Kelly Blue Book Value: $3,080.00
http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars
This vehicle was traded in to Irwin Ford by the Town?, Irwin gave the town $300 for it, It is rumored that the very next day the chief's son bought the vehicle for $400, it is a fact that this car can now be seen occasionally at the apartment building on Main st. across from Robie ln. Shady, Yes, Legal, not quite. RSA 95 prohibits a town employee from benefitting form the disposal of town property, and there is much case law that prevents a family member from serving as straw man for the transaction. By law all town property must be disposed of by competitive bid.
Loss to the taxpayers: -$2,780.00
Just in the improper disposal of these two vehicle the taxpayers were screwed and the town lost a total of -$5,949.00
The important issue here is not the price which he paid for the car, if it was more than it was sold for than the town could have gotten that money if it was disposed of by competitive bid, as the law states. I mean the chief's kid COULD have been on a car lot 80 miles away, looking for a good used cruiser, the day after it was traded in by the town, it could've hapenned that way, right? Only in Atkinson!
This blog thinks that the selectmen and the chief can no longer be trusted to dispose of vehicles on their own, it is time for a warrant article to force them to put a disposal article before the voters like they used to. They are failing miserably in their fiduciary responsibilities to the voters.
It is high time we hold them accountable! THROW THE BUMS OUT!
Now the chief stood up at town meeting, making quotation marks in the air with his fingers to punctuate his claim to tell us the truth about this transaction, and this Blog believes that he finally did just that!
At town meeting he claimed;
1.) the car was traded in to Irwin Ford for about $300.00
2.) He told his son the car was up there and that Irwin Ford paid $300.00 for it
3.) His son went up there and bought the car for $450.00, within days.
ALL OF THIS IS AS WAS STATED IN THE ARTICLE CHIEF CLAIMS WAS LIES!
He also claimed that the car had absolutely no value, he had to demand they pay him something for it, this suggestion is ludicrous on its face, but we'll go with it.
Kelly Blue Book value for a 2000 Ford Crown Victoria, police package, with 170,000 miles is over $3,000.00
Ebay has a number of them;
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Crown-Victoria-Police-Inter-2000-Ford-Crown-Vic-Police-Interceptor-New-Inspection_W0QQitemZ280198237886QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item280198237886
Miles: 131,000 Price: $4,995.00
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Crown-Victoria-P71-2000-FORD-CROWN-VICTORIA-POLICE-INTERCEPTOR-P71-SILVER_W0QQitemZ170190871129QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item170190871129
Miles: 163,000 Price: $1,725.00 currently
Cars.com has a number of them;
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=243619766&recnum=57&leadExists=true
Miles: 83,000 Price: $6,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=245965742&recnum=71&leadExists=true
Miles: 59,000 Price: $6,950.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=258904518&recnum=74&leadExists=true
Miles: 125,000 Price: $6,724.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=251395748&recnum=83&leadExists=true
Miles: 116,000 Price: $5,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=253747766&recnum=96&leadExists=true
Miles: 125,758 Price $4,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135541925&recnum=102&leadExists=true
Miles: 165,082 Price $4,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135446511&recnum=106&leadExists=true
Miles: 154,128 Price $4,877.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=134864719&recnum=126&leadExists=true
Miles: 213,641 Price $3,800.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135541083&recnum=132&leadExists=true
Miles: 183,340 Price $2,990.00
Click the links and check these online listings for yourself! These are all dealer listings, this is what DEALERS are pricing these vehicles with this HIGH MILEAGE for!
AND WHY?
Because as government owned vehicles they have been meticulously maintained!
So, THis blog's question to our police chief would be; Who decided the car had "absolutely no value at all"?
and if it was in such lousy condition why is your son driving it daily?
And if we can get these kind of prices for former cruisers with this much mileage online, is it reasonable to believe you when you tell us that the $500.00- $800.00 we normally get or the $300.00 we got before your son got HIS deal, is the BEST THE TAXPAYERS CAN DO?
The Problem with this entire scenario is that the law prevents officials form using information they acquire through their office for personal gain, or the gain of their families.
This is prohibited in the towns conflict of interest ordinance, as well as state law;
CHAPTER 643
ABUSE OF OFFICE
Section 643:2
643:2 Misuse of Information. – A public servant, as defined in RSA 640:2, II, is guilty of a misdemeanor if, knowing that official action is contemplated or in reliance on information which he has acquired by virtue of his office or from another public servant, he:
I. Acquires or divests himself of a pecuniary interest in any property, transaction or enterprise which may be affected by such action or information; or
II. Speculates or wagers on the basis of such action or information; or
III. Knowingly aids another to do any of the foregoing.
This is what he refuses to acknowledge, that he provided his son information that was not available to the general public, and his son benefitted. Further the taxpayers lost by not getting fair market value for their property.
http://atkinson-reporter.blogspot.com/2007/08/fuzzy-math.html
Here is a reprint of the original article, analysis and discussion follows;
For years we have heard questions about the umber of vehicles in the police fleet, and their relative value. We have also recently heard questions about the value of vehicle being disposed of by the chief, and the value of thier replacements, well the Atkinson-Reporter decided to look into these figures and found some startling results.;
The old Wheelchair van 1994 Dodge Ram Van Wheelchair conversion;
Kelly Blue Book Value:$3,170.00
http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars
The selectmen, you will remember, refused to accept a $750 bid from a Danville gentleman, in favor of a $1.00 sale to a Danville family.
Loss to the taxpayers -$3,169.00
2000 Ford Crown Victoria Cruiser;
Kelly Blue Book Value: $3,080.00
http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars
This vehicle was traded in to Irwin Ford by the Town?, Irwin gave the town $300 for it, It is rumored that the very next day the chief's son bought the vehicle for $400, it is a fact that this car can now be seen occasionally at the apartment building on Main st. across from Robie ln. Shady, Yes, Legal, not quite. RSA 95 prohibits a town employee from benefitting form the disposal of town property, and there is much case law that prevents a family member from serving as straw man for the transaction. By law all town property must be disposed of by competitive bid.
Loss to the taxpayers: -$2,780.00
Just in the improper disposal of these two vehicle the taxpayers were screwed and the town lost a total of -$5,949.00
The important issue here is not the price which he paid for the car, if it was more than it was sold for than the town could have gotten that money if it was disposed of by competitive bid, as the law states. I mean the chief's kid COULD have been on a car lot 80 miles away, looking for a good used cruiser, the day after it was traded in by the town, it could've hapenned that way, right? Only in Atkinson!
This blog thinks that the selectmen and the chief can no longer be trusted to dispose of vehicles on their own, it is time for a warrant article to force them to put a disposal article before the voters like they used to. They are failing miserably in their fiduciary responsibilities to the voters.
It is high time we hold them accountable! THROW THE BUMS OUT!
Now the chief stood up at town meeting, making quotation marks in the air with his fingers to punctuate his claim to tell us the truth about this transaction, and this Blog believes that he finally did just that!
At town meeting he claimed;
1.) the car was traded in to Irwin Ford for about $300.00
2.) He told his son the car was up there and that Irwin Ford paid $300.00 for it
3.) His son went up there and bought the car for $450.00, within days.
ALL OF THIS IS AS WAS STATED IN THE ARTICLE CHIEF CLAIMS WAS LIES!
He also claimed that the car had absolutely no value, he had to demand they pay him something for it, this suggestion is ludicrous on its face, but we'll go with it.
Kelly Blue Book value for a 2000 Ford Crown Victoria, police package, with 170,000 miles is over $3,000.00
Ebay has a number of them;
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Crown-Victoria-Police-Inter-2000-Ford-Crown-Vic-Police-Interceptor-New-Inspection_W0QQitemZ280198237886QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item280198237886
Miles: 131,000 Price: $4,995.00
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Ford-Crown-Victoria-P71-2000-FORD-CROWN-VICTORIA-POLICE-INTERCEPTOR-P71-SILVER_W0QQitemZ170190871129QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item170190871129
Miles: 163,000 Price: $1,725.00 currently
Cars.com has a number of them;
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=243619766&recnum=57&leadExists=true
Miles: 83,000 Price: $6,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=245965742&recnum=71&leadExists=true
Miles: 59,000 Price: $6,950.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=258904518&recnum=74&leadExists=true
Miles: 125,000 Price: $6,724.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=251395748&recnum=83&leadExists=true
Miles: 116,000 Price: $5,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=1&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=253747766&recnum=96&leadExists=true
Miles: 125,758 Price $4,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135541925&recnum=102&leadExists=true
Miles: 165,082 Price $4,995.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135446511&recnum=106&leadExists=true
Miles: 154,128 Price $4,877.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=134864719&recnum=126&leadExists=true
Miles: 213,641 Price $3,800.00
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=22&pageNumber=2&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&criteria=K-%7cE-ALL%7cM-_14_%7cH-%7cD-_169_%7cN-N%7cR-10000%7cI-1%7cP-PRICE+descending%7cQ-descending%7cY-_2001-2000_%7cX-popular%7cZ-03811&aff=national&paId=135541083&recnum=132&leadExists=true
Miles: 183,340 Price $2,990.00
Click the links and check these online listings for yourself! These are all dealer listings, this is what DEALERS are pricing these vehicles with this HIGH MILEAGE for!
AND WHY?
Because as government owned vehicles they have been meticulously maintained!
So, THis blog's question to our police chief would be; Who decided the car had "absolutely no value at all"?
and if it was in such lousy condition why is your son driving it daily?
And if we can get these kind of prices for former cruisers with this much mileage online, is it reasonable to believe you when you tell us that the $500.00- $800.00 we normally get or the $300.00 we got before your son got HIS deal, is the BEST THE TAXPAYERS CAN DO?
The Problem with this entire scenario is that the law prevents officials form using information they acquire through their office for personal gain, or the gain of their families.
This is prohibited in the towns conflict of interest ordinance, as well as state law;
CHAPTER 643
ABUSE OF OFFICE
Section 643:2
643:2 Misuse of Information. – A public servant, as defined in RSA 640:2, II, is guilty of a misdemeanor if, knowing that official action is contemplated or in reliance on information which he has acquired by virtue of his office or from another public servant, he:
I. Acquires or divests himself of a pecuniary interest in any property, transaction or enterprise which may be affected by such action or information; or
II. Speculates or wagers on the basis of such action or information; or
III. Knowingly aids another to do any of the foregoing.
This is what he refuses to acknowledge, that he provided his son information that was not available to the general public, and his son benefitted. Further the taxpayers lost by not getting fair market value for their property.
Saturday, February 2
Candidates
Candidates:
Selectman;
V. Tobin
R O’Leary
W. Friel
Moderator:
F. Polito
Supervisor of Checklist;
M. MacDonald
Cem. Trustee;
D. Murphy
Conflict of Interest;
J. Sapia
J. Hazlett
Lib. Trustee;
J. Goff
Trustee Trustfund;
B. Snicer
Budget;
J. Blakadar
H. Morse
Selectman;
V. Tobin
R O’Leary
W. Friel
Moderator:
F. Polito
Supervisor of Checklist;
M. MacDonald
Cem. Trustee;
D. Murphy
Conflict of Interest;
J. Sapia
J. Hazlett
Lib. Trustee;
J. Goff
Trustee Trustfund;
B. Snicer
Budget;
J. Blakadar
H. Morse
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ATKINSON's Vietnam HONOR ROLL as VOTED and PASSED by 2005 Town Meeting and re-approved at Special Town Meeting Sept. 12
