Author: NH Business Review Staff

Haunted hayride accident spooks students

HUDSON - Alvirne High School students got an unexpected scare on a haunted hayride Thursday evening. A truck that shuttled students through a trail in the dark woods caught fire. The Bronco-styled truck was pulling a cart that carried Halloween…

County seat challenger focuses on taxes

A court officer who works for Hillsborough County is challenging a seven-year incumbent Tuesday for a two-year county commissioner seat. The challenger, Democrat Joseph Hickey, 69, of Merrimack, said he is running because he’s concerned about fiscal waste. Incumbent Republican…

Bridge finally set to settle in Milford

MILFORD - It’s not a bridge too far, but it is a bridge that has come far! Milford’s long-awaited pedestrian bridge over the Souhegan River is finally scheduled to arrive Thursday. In what should be an impressive sight, the 150-foot…

Haunted hayride accident spooks students

HUDSON - Alvirne High School students got an unexpected scare on a haunted hayride Thursday evening. A truck that shuttled students through a trail in the dark woods caught fire. The Bronco-styled truck was pulling a cart that carried Halloween…

Mock election results up in the air

REGION - President Bush has taken over the lead in the National Student/Parent Mock Election in New Hampshire. Results reported Thursday by New Hampshire Public Television, which showed Democrat John Kerry leading by 99 votes, were not the final totals.…

Time of Boys & Girls Club’s groundbreaking makes point

MILFORD - There’s a reason Thursday’s official groundbreaking of the new Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley facility was held at 4 p.m. - and it wasn’t to accommodate high-profile attendees Sen. Judd Gregg and Gov. Craig Benson. “Look…

In win's afterglow, Sox fans begin to adjust

Doomsayers did not have their way. The world did not end. The mother of all baseball endings has in fact made Red Sox Nation a happier, calmer and more reflective place. An inclusive club, long crowded with desolate souls, the…

Second annual Halloween event puts many in mood

NASHUA - It wasn’t officially Halloween, but for those who ventured under a full moon to the downtown streets Thursday night the date hardly mattered. Thousands of children in spooky, kooky and downright cute costumes filled the Main Street sidewalks…

Driver of car injured in accident with bus

MERRIMACK - A local woman was injured late Thursday afternoon when her car crashed into the rear of a stopped school bus, police said. Deborah Booker, 48, was treated and released at St. Joseph Hospital, where she was transported by…

Panel backed againto study doctors’ malpractice cases

NASHUA - The Republican in the District 12 state Senate race says the Legislature should pass a measure to establish an independent panel that would evaluate whether negligence exists in malpractice against physicians. Rep. Harry Haytayan of Hollis said at…

Schilling cancels scheduled appearance with Bush

MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) - Newly minted World Series hero Curt Schilling canceled a scheduled campaign appearance with President Bush on Friday, saying his doctors advised him not to travel because of his injured ankle. An e-mailer identifying himself as the…

NHPTV declares victor in mock vote

REGION - New Hampshire Public Television has announced the final results of the National Student/Parent Mock Election in New Hampshire. The winners of the five races were all the same as in the preliminary results released Wednesday night. Nearly 42,000…

Orchid society gets official

Central New England Orchid Society is now an official affiliated member of the American Orchid Society. With this recognition, CNEOS will be able to take advantage of the AOS educational programs and materials as well as other benefits. Because of…

Fla. case hints at Cabletron ‘round-tripping’ finance

Former Enterasys Networks Chief Executive Henry Fiallo’s guilty plea last month on securities fraud charges was the first time an official of the firm has admitted inflating sales by investing in small start-ups that purchased Enterasys products. But it was…

August exports continue to show solid gains

Foreign sales from New Hampshire companies receded in August as global demand for locally made goods retreated from its high levels in the previous months. Shipments abroad from New Hampshire exporters pulled back by 2.1 percent in August, following an…

New development agency takes shape around Nashua

If you want to move or expand your business near Nashua, and you are looking to put together a financing package, check out the new kid on the block, Gateway Industrial Development Corp. Gateway, actually a revival of the defunct…

New infusion of fed funding re-energizes NH MEP

At the beginning of 2004, the New Hampshire Manufacturing Extension Partnership was on the verge of shutting its doors. Faced with a 60 percent federal budget cut, the program that has helped local manufacturers increase or retain $34.6 million in…

N.H. mission to Canada seen as a success

A team of New Hampshire economic development officials spread the news about the “Granite State business advantage” to 26 Canadian companies at a special reception held last month at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Montreal. The mission targeted expanding Canadian…

Insurance maze, delays try doctor’s patience

More than 11 years after a fire destroyed his million-dollar home in Hampton Falls, along with his collections of paintings, antique cars, motorcycles and other valuables, Dr. Terry Bennett is still battling with the insurance company over coverage. “The average…

Guest Opinion: Cooperatives: putting people first

It’s a business model that’s worked around the world for 150 years, but at its heart the cooperative movement is about more than the bottom line. Since the first cooperative was formed in rural England in 1844, cooperatives have sought…

It’s time to stop super-sizing executive pay

With the presidential election campaign under way lo these many years - at least that’s how long it’s been going on in New Hampshire - a long-dormant, yet unresolved, issue should re-emerge in the coming weeks. The topic is executive…

Guest Opinion: IT keeps on going in New Hampshire

As chairman of the Software Association of NH (SwANH) for the last three years, I have had the privilege of overseeing the tremendous growth of the organization from its humble beginnings in 1994. SwANH was an outgrowth of the New…

Cook on Concord

You will be reading this either shortly before the 2004 election or shortly thereafter. Hopefully, someone will have emerged as the clear victor in the presidential election. Whether a Kerry or Bush proponent, each voter knows the horror of a…

Utilities Watch: FCC ruling clears way for power-line broadband

Two important, but not universally popular, steps to promote access to broadband Internet services and encourage new facilities-based broadband platforms have been taken recently by the Federal Communications Commission. The first step involves rules that will clear the way for…

Off The Clock: Having fun for a good cause

With the giving season under way, charity galas, wine-and-dines and a whole manner of fund-raiser soirees are taking place across the state. Not only do these events make for a great evening out, your admission price, silent auction bid or…

Flotsam & Jetsam

Working the crowd You may have had to see it to believe it, but the audience at the Business & Industry Association of New Hampshire annual meeting Oct. 20 was brought to its feet after one of the speakers proclaimed…

NHBR awards salute business excellence

Thirteen owners and operators of small businesses in a range of industries were honored Oct. 13 at the second annual New Hampshire Business Review Business Excellence Awards. The awards ceremony - held at The Event Center at C.R. Sparks in…

Bridging the generations with the Grappones

The Grappone family has been in the auto business since 1924, when Rocco Grappone opened a gas station at 167 N. State St. in Concord. Today, the Grappone dealerships at the junction of Interstates 93 and 89 are a landmark…

Taking license

An insurance broker who passed on $187,000 in illegal commission payments to a volunteer aide of Gov. Craig Benson agreed Wednesday to a one-year suspension of his license. Dennis French, president of NiBri Benefit Services of Candia, said he gave…

North Country inns reach out to gays, lesbians

When Les Schoof and Ed Butler moved to New Hampshire in 1993, they faced a big change in lifestyle. Schoof and Butler are a gay couple who had lived in Boston and New York City. Their new home would be…

Remembering Reeve

The curtain came down on one of life’s great ironies when actor Christopher Reeve died, observed Mark Lore, president and CEO of Rideaway Handicap Equipment Corp. in Londonderry. Reeve, best known for his starring role in a series of “Superman”…

Is consolidation overdue in the tech marketplace?

Few sectors of the economy have escaped consolidation. Indeed, a quick look at recent merger and acquisition activity (M&A) in banking, energy, health care and manufacturing reveals abundant examples of consolidation. What is noteworthy, however, with the exception of the…

Group efforts

Entrepreneurs from Colebrook, Harrisville, New London, Dover and Portsmouth have been honored for their efforts in helping some of the state’s smallest businesses. They were singled out during a ceremony held in conjunction with MicroCredit-NH’s fourth annual MicroEnterprise Day, Oct.…

Tyco rulings

A U.S. District Court judge in Concord has allowed a shareholder class-action lawsuit against Tyco International Ltd. to continue, but he has struck down a related shareholder derivative suit that sought damages on behalf of Tyco. Judge Paul Barbadoro’s rulings…

RE/CON Briefs

Cummings is named Realtor of Year Ann Cummings of RE/MAX Coast-to-Coast in Portsmouth has been named the 2004 New Hampshire Realtor of the Year. Cummings was honored by the New Hampshire Association of Realtors, which cited her exceptional service as…

State office park named after Thomson

The all-star roster of current and former officeholders who showed up at State Office Park East on Hazen Drive in Concord included a former congressman, two speakers of the house, two governors and one all-purpose potentate. “Governor Flynn, it’s always…

Benson proposes sweeping Medicaid reforms

The Benson administration has proposed slashing New Hampshire’s nursing home population by 30 percent in the next five years with an eye toward saving $337 million that it says would go toward developing adult day-care centers and hospices. The proposals…

Ex-HHS chief launches health insurance firm

Patriot Healthcare, a newly formed insurance company headed by the state’s former health and human services commissioner, is seeking regulatory approval to do business in the state. Patriot, founded by Nicholas Vailas, is asking the state Insurance Department for permission…

Banks can help businesses offer affordable health care

A recently enacted law allows community banks, which have long demonstrated their commitment to meeting the financial needs of the small-business community, to offer their business customers, as well as their employees and their families, a new health-care option that…

Hospital offers new employees temporary housing

Low unemployment and low housing vacancies mean newcomers to southern New Hampshire often find work before they find a place to live. The housing shortage in the popular Seacoast area is so acute that Wentworth-Douglass Hospital in Dover leases a…

Rochester businesses unite to protest SB 110

Between 15 and 20 Rochester area business owners have banded together to protest Senate Bill 110 and what they see as its accompanying increases in health insurance premiums. The business owners formed a group they call “STUNG,” which seeks to…

St. Joseph takes big step toward future as expansion begins

St. Joseph Hospital has officially stepped into the future with a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the start of work on a $25 million expansion project. The expansion is expected to improve patient access to innovative and clinically comprehensive health care…

UNH named a top entrepreneurial school

The University of New Hampshire has been named one of the Top 25 Most Entrepreneurial Colleges by The Princeton Review and Forbes.com, ranking 10th in the nation. The two organizations released their Top 25 picks this morning. According to The…

Fans around area celebrate Red Sox’s historic win

Christine Haskell put $25 on the Red Sox winning the World Series when she went to Las Vegas in February. She immediately called her dad to tell him the good news. “I broke the curse!” Haskell told him. “Eighty-six years…

Nashua students cast ballots in N.H. mock election

NASHUA - Nine-year-old Erica Rosher thinks Ralph Nader should be the next president of the United States. The fourth-grader at Ledge Street Elementary School cast her ballot for Nader during the school’s mock election Wednesday because she doesn’t agree with…

Tax rate for Milford rises just 1.8%

MILFORD - A sharp drop in the state portion of the school tax rate means local taxpayers will see a tax-rate hike of less than 2 percent this year. Mike Trojano, business manager for the Milford School District, likes what…

Hearings over for concrete business plan

WILTON - The Planning Board has closed the public portion of a hearing on a proposal by Granite State Concrete to expand its existing operation onto an adjoining 120 acres about two years after the plan was first presented. The…

Pickup of oversized trash ends for year

NASHUA - The appointment-based collections are part of the revamped solid waste collection system. Regular trash must be contained in blue automated carts, and no trash left outside the carts will be picked up. Residents may continue to bring oversized…