Friday, March 8, 2013
Here's a breakdown of the views held by individuals running in contested races for two of Hampton's elected bodies.
Candidates running in contested races for seats on the Hampton School Board and Hampton Budget Committee addressed voters earlier this week as part of the annual Hampton Parent-Teacher Association Candidates Night. The following snippets are highlights from the candidates' speeches, and are listed in order of appearance. Hampton selectmen candidates Rick Griffin and Mary-Louise Woolsey also had three minutes to explain their platforms and goals. All of these and other positions are up for grabs at the polls on Tuesday, March 12. Ginny Bridle (incumbent) Early childhood educator for 35 years Ginny Bridle, a current member of the board and a former selectman and budget committee member, is running for reelection to help Hampton continue to…
Monday, February 4, 2013
Some familiar — and surprising — faces will square off in the March annual elections.
A selectman race between the current chairman and a former selectman highlight a 2013 Hampton elections slate with four total contested races. Hampton Budget Committee Vice Chairwoman Mary-Louise Woolsey, a longtime elected official who has previously served as selectman, will attempt to unseat incumbent Rick Griffin on the Hampton Board of Selectmen. Woolsey didn't file for reelection for her three-year seat on the budget committee, though, possibly opening the door for another former selectman or two former budget committee members to take her place. Four total three-year terms are up for grabs, with incumbent Chairwoman Eileen Latimer and incumbent Mark McFarlin seeking reelection against former Selectman Jerry Znoj, Vic DeMarco and …
Monday, January 28, 2013
A longtime public official will try again to gain a seat on a board she has said has a "lack of leadership."
Mary-Louise Woolsey, the vice chairwoman of the Hampton Budget Committee, will once again run for a seat on the Hampton Board of Selectmen after filing her candidacy paperwork Monday morning. Woolsey, a former selectman, unsuccessfully ran for one of two available selectman seats in the 2012 town meeting elections. Woolsey garnered 1,146 votes, placing third behind eventual winners Ben Moore (1,592 votes) and Phil Bean (1,441 votes), and in front of then-incumbent Selectman Jerry Znoj (1,010 votes) and now-former budget committee member Dustin Marzinzik (847 votes). Woolsey has often said the community needs to "get back on track" and work to restore a sense of "community," and she has also often criticized current and past selectmen for a…
Friday, January 25, 2013
Diandra Sanphy won't seek reelection this March due to family and business "commitments."
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Numerous selectmen and BudCom spots are among the high-ranking positions up for grabs starting Wednesday.
Here's a breakdown of the open town and school positions available in this year's annual elections, as well as information about the filing periods and polling hours, organized by town: HAMPTON The filing period is from Wednesday, Jan. 23, through Friday, Feb. 1., for the town, Hampton School District and Winnacunnet School District elections. Election polling will be conducted for all three entities from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, March 12, in the Winnacunnet High School dining hall. Positions available: NORTH HAMPTON The filing period is from Wednesday, Jan. 23, through Friday, Feb. 1., for the town, North Hampton School District and Winnacunnet School District elections. Election polling will be conducted for all three entities from…
Thursday, January 17, 2013
The Rational Taxpayers of Hampton says it was "immoral," and the budget committee has reached out to the DRA.
Rational Taxpayers of Hampton is appalled that at the January 14th Board of Selectmen meeting Chairman Griffin, Selectman Moore and Selectmen Bean voted to approve an appropriation of $100,000 for sewer repair as an encumbrance to be carried forward to the 2013 Budget Year where there was no legally enforceable agreement. Not only is this illegal it is immoral. Under Department of Revenue Administration Budget Law Section 32:7 Lapse of Appropriations….the amount….becomes encumbered by a legally-enforceable obligation created by contract or otherwise……however in this case there was no contract. When Mike Pierce asked Finance Director Mike Schwotzer if there was a written contract he responded, “You’re right; there is no contract with the …
Friday, January 11, 2013
The 2013 town warrant public hearing went smoothly, although one article did elicit a variety of strong statements.
While a few members of the public came forward to rally support or raise concerns about the Winnacunnet Road-Lafayette Road intersection improvement project, little was disputed Thursday at the official public hearing for the 2013 town meeting warrant. Rick Griffin, chairman of the Hampton Board of Selectmen, was among the individuals who urged the public to support the intersection reconfiguration during Thursday's two-hour hearing, held at Hampton Academy. The project, which is Article 12 on the warrant, calls for a $510,000 appropriation. Only $64,000 in new money must be raised through taxation to complete the town's $112,000 obligation for the work, though, as 80 percent of the project is being funded by the state and federal …
Thursday, January 10, 2013
In time for tonight's public hearing, selectmen and the budget committee have taken stances on the 2013 warrant.
[Editor's note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated, due to incorrect information provided by the town, that all warrant articles are recommended by selectmen and the budget committee.] While not all of the votes were unanimous, the 2013 Hampton town warrant will go before the voters with almost a full recommendation from both the Hampton Board of Selectmen and the Hampton Budget Committee. The budget committee finalized its position on the warrant Tuesday, voting to recommend every article except for the $510,000 reconstruction of the Winnacunnet Road and Lafayette Road intersection (Article 12, which wasn't recommended by a vote of 8-3-1), the purchase of a $190,000 dump truck and plow (Article 8, which wasn't …
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Mary-Louise Woolsey says it's adding a "terrible burden" on Hampton taxpayers, while others feel her article would be "divisive."
One outspoken Hampton Budget Committee member has lobbied to the town's Board of Selectmen to draft a warrant article to altogether stop Hampton's involvement in processing trash and recycling collected at Hampton Beach. Beach trash and recycling collection has been a long-standing issue between the state and town, and Mary-Louise Woolsey, the budget committee vice chair, said she feels the money the state is giving Hampton for their assistance in various sanitation efforts isn't enough to cover a continued comingled, unsorted stream of refuse, recyclables and beach sand coming from the state. "I don't want the town to have a hand in handling or collecting trash and recycling on state property," said Woolsey. "We may not be able to, …
42.909623
-70.810777
Seashell Complex
170 Ocean Blvd, Hampton, NH
/articles/budcom-member-calls-for-warrant-article-to-end-beach-trash-collection
2122990
/locations/8029972
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Selectmen have signed off on their proposed operating and default budgets, and pledge to use funds to stop an 8-cent tax rate increase.
Residents can likely expect to see a flat town tax rate in the upcoming year thanks to a decision by the Hampton Board of Selectmen to use roughly $200,000 of the undesignated fund to offset an anticipated 8 cent or 1.12 percent increase in the rate. The current municipal tax is $7.13 per $1,000 of valuation, and Finance Director Mike Schwotzer said the 2013 rate is projected to rise to $7.21. Selectmen accepted 4-1 Monday a motion by Vice Chairman Dick Nichols to prevent that increase by using an undesignated fund amount "necessary to achieve a $7.13 tax rate" in the upcoming year. That "necessary" amount as it stands is roughly $188,000, according to Nichols, who said it's not a "significant total" in terms of the overall budget. "My …
42.93762
-70.83436
Hampton Town Hall
100 Winnacunnet Rd, Hampton, NH
/articles/selectmen-send-83k-budget-increase-to-budcom
1986243
/locations/8017034
Mark Smith
12:10 am on Saturday, February 9, 2013
Rick Griffin is as corrupt as they come, in my opinion. They just voted to pay $100,000 to a company that DOES NOT EVEN EXIST. There is something there that doesn't pass the smell test, and it's time to put someone in office who knows what they are doing. Mr. Griffin is all business-buddy, not common person. He could care less about any of us. more ›