BRADFORD—There could be at least one local item on the ballot this fall in Bradford. The selectboard voted on June 9 to ask voters whether they want retail pot sales in town.
Under state law, retail cannabis sales will legally begin in October. Before retail sales can begin in a community, a municipality must first opt in to host a retail cannabis establishment by majority vote. The vote must be by Australian ballot.
COOKEVILLE—The selectboard meeting drew a full house on a rainy June 7 evening with discussion of concerns ranging from road maintenance and access, to a problem with a septic leak.
It was also an evening for office term appointments, with a new town clerk appointed to fill the vacancy of Nancy Ertle, who resigned after town meeting.
NORTH HAVERHILL—“This is way bigger than I ever thought it would be,” a smiling Kristen May, manager and part owner of the family-owned Hatchland Farms exclaimed.
She described the move from the original, small ice cream shop on Route 10 to the spacious new retail store at 15 Petticoat Lane in North Haverhill as a dream come true.
BRADFORD—Bliss Village Store and Deli changed hands this week with Chris Petrossian-Rainville and his mother Marilyn Rainville taking over from Mark Johnson.
The Rainvilles have moved to Bradford from Lodi, California. Lodi is a long way from here. How did the Rainvilles choose this area?
A move to the eastern part of the United States was something Chris had considered for a long time and he was looking for income opportunities with an eye to the future when he would one day retire from the National Guard.
WOODSVILLE—The Town of Haverhill will pay $490,000 to the Woodsville precinct in order to settle a lawsuit between the two entities.
Haverhill Selectboard Chair Fred Garofalo explained the decision during a board meeting on Monday night, saying that as part of the mediation, all claims and counterclaims would be dismissed and the town and the precinct would release each other from most claims.
WAITS RIVER—Waits River Valley School officials have reported claims of guns being on school grounds are false.
The unconfirmed incidents about guns have circulated in the area and prompted Orange East Supervisory Union Superintendent Emilie B. Knisley to write a letter to parents on Friday after being interviewed by the Journal Opinion about two reports of guns on the campus.
“There have been no incidents involving guns at WRVS,” she wrote.
WARREN—For visitors to Warren, three things stand out: the Redstone Missile conspicuously aimed at the sky from its village common launchpad is one. The second is the historical marker commemorating U.S. Senator Norris Cotton (1900–1989), who was born in Warren and for whom Dartmouth-Hitchcock’s cancer center is named.
The town’s other claim to fame is little Sarah Whitcher, the subject of a folktale. Sometime in the early 1780s, this young daughter of early settler John Whitcher got lost in the woods and was protected, it is said, by a bear.
WELLS RIVER—Maintenance of the Dr. Harry and Mary Rowe Tennis Courts was one of the items discussed at the June 1 Blue Mountain Union School District board meeting with chair Angeline Alley, Sara Dennis, Paul Hazel, Allison Ingerson, Judy Murray, Kristen Murray, Allana Page, Kelsey Root-Winchester, and student representatives Coco Huang attending.
Also attending were Orange East Supervisory Union Superintendent Emilie Knisely, preK-6 Principal Scott Blood, 7-12 Principal John Barone, and faculty member Jennifer Lund with three of her students.
PIERMONT—Piermonters may soon have less choice in the list of high school options to send local students.
Piermont has officially designated Woodsville, Oxbow, and Rivendell as receiving high schools. Those schools are located in towns bordering Piermont, which maintains the k-8 Piermont Village School.
NEWBURY—Martha Griswold, formerly of Newbury, has presented the town with two barns.
According to the chair of the listers, Amanda Beaulieu, the 38.2 acre property entered the tax roll in 1920 and is currently valued at $57,500.