MOUNTAIN LAKES—A North Haverhill couple and their three children are homeless after fire ripped through their split-level home at 111 Hilltop View Drive in the Mountain Lakes district on Saturday.
Officials said Anne Foldeak, Robbie Schmead, and three children ages 8 to 15, were not home when the fire was reported at 11 a.m., prompting a large-scale response by local and mutual aid departments.
“There was heavy fire coming from the front half of the house,” said North Haverhill Fire Chief Phil Blanchard when crews arrived. “Things went as good as they possibly could given the logistics and getting water” to the scene.
Initial reports were that all three children were trapped inside the basement of the split-level home, which were unfounded.

ORFORD—Citing a potential “unconscionable” spending increase, Rivendell Interstate School District board members last week asked administrators to prepare a draft 2022 budget that would eliminate as many as five full-time equivalent staff positions.
After approximately two hours of discussion during a regularly scheduled meeting on Jan. 5, board members deferred finalizing a figure to put before community members at a budget hearing later this month. They instead scheduled a special meeting for Jan. 12, after this edition’s press deadline.

NEWBURY—Newbury residents will remain part of Oxbow Unified Union School District, the school district formed with Bradford in 2019.
A special town meeting, with polling held on Dec. 29, concluded with a total of 310 votes cast, according to Newbury Town Clerk Nikki Tomlinson. Residents voted 140-169 on the question “Shall the Newbury School District withdraw from the OUUSD?” There was one blank ballot. There were 152 absentee ballots cast, while 158 people voted in person.
In contrast, 1,172 Newbury residents voted for either Joe Biden or Donald Trump the previous month.
Although Newbury and Bradford have long partnered in a unified school district to operate the 7-12 Oxbow High School, the towns maintained separate school districts to operate elementary schools in each town until Act 46.

NORTH HAVERHILL—A local wood pellet company is mulling a possible manufacturing plant in the town-owned industrial park next to Dean Memorial Airport.
Morton Bailey of Lyme Green Heat told selectboard members on Jan. 4 that his company is still drawing up engineering plans, but that the business has identified the North Haverhill site for a possible $7 million facility that would convert wood chips into wood pellets for heating fuel. Haverhill Town Manager Brigitte Codling said Bailey first approached the town several months ago about the proposal.
The two lots are located on either side of Business Park Drive. Conceived decades ago, the business park was developed by the town, which funded a lengthy sewer system extension from the Grafton County complex to make the lots more marketable.

NEWBURY—Newbury residents have until Dec. 29 to vote on whether they want the town to withdraw from the Oxbow Unified Union School District.
On Dec. 21, nearly 75 people listened to an informational meeting held via Zoom to hear different perspectives on the single question on the ballot. Hosted by the Newbury Selectboard and facilitated by Monique Priestley, speakers presented their cases. A recording of the session can be found at https://youtu.be/pz5csclcifg.