WELLS RIVER—In a vote of 26 to 13, Wells River Village voters passed Article 6 to privatize highway maintenance during the annual village meeting on April 19.
The change will eliminate the in-house position that was occupied by John Paye in favor of subcontracting the work.
Prior to the discussion and vote, trustee Brian Emerson, who became board chair a year ago, described the reasoning behind the proposal.
NORTH HAVERHILL—A state prosecutor told a Grafton County judge last week that he expects to seek a Grand Jury indictment against Lance Goodrich, 36, of Lyme in June.
Lance Goodrich has been accused of killing his 25-year-old cousin, Brooke Goodrich, who was found dead at her Route 10 home in Orford on Nov. 20, 2021. He allegedly shot her in the head. He was arrested later that day in Newport, New Hampshire.
WOODSVILLE—The April 25 Haverhill Selectboard meeting, like much of the town’s recent political discussion, was marked by conflict over the reach of Haverhill fire departments.
Firefighter Tony Smith criticized Haverhill’s handling of the merger of Haverhill’s fire departments for over 10 minutes during the section of the meeting where members of the public were invited to address the board.
THETFORD—Some local teens are about to take their talents to Texas.
Each year, students from all over the world are tasked with designing and building a robot in a game-based engineering challenge in VEX Robotics.
In February, a team from Thetford Academy earned regional qualification to compete in the VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas on May 3-7.
ST. JOHNSBURY—A trial could start next month for a man accused of attempting to murder his late ex-wife with an ax.
Dereck Hamel, formerly of Lisbon, was in court last week as his defense attorneys seek to dismiss the case ahead of the trial which is set to start on May 3. Hamel faces numerous charges related to an incident at the home of Mary Ellen Corbett on Welton Road in Groton on July 1, 2020 when he allegedly used an ax to attack Mary Ellen.
According to the Caledonian-Record, Hamel has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, aggravated domestic assault with a weapon, unlawful restraint, burglary, and interference with emergency services.
BRADFORD—Traffic ordinance revisions and a potential Parks and Recreation trails system were the main topics at the April 14 selectboard meeting attended by chair Daniel Perry III, vice chair Meroa Benjamin, Carole Taylor, Ryan Lockwood, and Jennifer Whitney, and members of the public.
BRADFORD—According to the National Center for Drug Abuse, drug overdoses in this country are up 30% nationwide. Vermont had 158 deaths attributed to drug overdoses in 2020. This past year, 210 Vermont residents died from drug overdoses, an increase of 33% from the prior year.
The number of young Vermonters dying of drug overdoses has risen as well. In 2010, just 8% of the overdose deaths were Vermonters under the age of 30, according to Vermont Department of Health data. By 2017, 27% of the state’s overdose deaths were people under 30. In 2021, the figure fell to 19%, or 39 of the 210 total overdose deaths.
BURLINGTON—A North Haverhill man is set to appear in federal court next week to plead guilty to his role in the 2018 murder of Michael Pimental, 37, of Waterford.
John Welch, now 36, has been charged with weapons possession and obstruction. He has previously been identified in court documents as the man who fatally shot Pimental in a wide-ranging drug conspiracy.
WELLS RIVER—Wells River residents will gather next week for the village’s annual meeting.
The in-person meeting will be held on April 19 at 7 p.m. at the village garage on Creamery Street. The meeting was delayed a month so it could held in person.
It has been a period of transition over the last 12 months. A little over one year ago, the resignation of one trustee and the sudden death of another paralyzed village government leading up to the annual meeting when election law violations prompted a lawsuit and the resignation of the longtime village clerk.
WOODSVILLE—Could Haverhill ditch its traditional town meeting format in favor of a ballot vote on its annual meeting warrant?
It is not an imminent likelihood, but selectboard members are exploring the scenario after fielding a request from a resident.
Under SB2, towns can adopt a hybrid approach that divides the annual meeting into two sessions held over two days. The initial meeting is a deliberative session where discussion, debate, and amendments to the warrant articles are made. The second meeting features an up-or-down ballot vote on the warrant articles.