Author: NH Business Review Staff

Sneezing fit causes accident

MERRIMACK - A sneezing fit is to blame for a Thursday afternoon car crash in which one woman was injured, police said. Mary Higginson, 55, of 18 Sandpiper Lane in Merrimack told police she was hit by a round of…

Call to arms

CONCORD - They instruct ballet, build houses, sell real estate and drive trucks. They collectively have 102 spouses, 228 children, 24 grandchildren and numerous relatives and friends. But 148 members of a New Hampshire Army National Guard unit will leave…

Town puts freeze on cable hike

MERRIMACK - If you subscribe to Adelphia and your bill for basic cable service goes up on Jan. 1, pay it, selectmen advised Thursday night. But pay it knowing that town officials will work to get you a rebate for…

Wright Brothers event tickets on auction block

History-of-aviation fans who are missing out on the 100th anniversary celebration of the Wright Brothers flight in North Carolina have an extra opportunity, thanks to a Daniel Webster College donor. The college is auctioning a pair of five-day tickets to…

Merrimack holiday home tour makes a new town tradition

MERRIMACK - The Mastricola Middle School parent-teacher group will begin a new holiday tradition, by presenting “Homes for the Holidays,” a tour of decorated homes in Merrimack on Sunday, Dec. 14, from noon to 4 p.m. Visitors can tour five…

Reader Advisory Network Message Board

“Last night’s debate did not change my view on whom I’m supporting. . . . I did find Howard Dean’s statement that the other candidates should not criticize Al Gore for the endorsement, and he’s willing to take the heat…

Selectmen working to trim proposed budget

HOLLIS - While people are out tackling holiday wish lists for their loved ones, the Board of Selectmen is trying to trim back its wish list for next year’s budget. After a 2½-hour presentation to the Budget Committee Tuesday night,…

Former Hudson dairy farm could be site of homes

HUDSON - The former Nadeau Farm could become the site of single-family homes and housing for elderly. The Planning Board reviewed conceptual plans Wednesday for the former dairy farm, which was sold more than a year ago. The property was…

Judge rules Disney suit should be tried in Fla.

CONCORD - A Merrimack woman’s lawsuit against Walt Disney World should be tried in Florida, a U.S. District Court judge has ruled. Megan Slattery filed suit against the company this summer on behalf of her late husband, Sean Slattery, who…

Town proves it’s got games

MILFORD - If you like to jump your opponent and get kinged, or roll doubles to complete a backgammon, or think Miss Scarlet did it with the lead pipe in the conservatory, then Milford has something for you. It’s Family…

Central School needs outlined

LYNDEBOROUGH - The Central School is out of space, essentially because the building doesn’t meet current state standards for classroom size - two of them date to 1949 - and services have expanded over the years. Those services include a…

City firefighters hopeto raise $10k for needy

NASHUA - Snow may have stopped bells from ringing last Saturday, but it hasn’t stopped some firefighters in their mission to raise money for local needy families. Nashua Fire Rescue personnel will be giving their all this weekend to get…

Residents debate water district charter

NASHUA - The different perspectives between the city’s overwhelming numbers of customers connected to the Pennichuck water system and the surrounding towns’ control of the water supply played out clearly Wednesday. City residents told the Regional Water District Charter Committee…

Group’s plan to help homeless on track

Homeless families should have more places to sleep soon, thanks to ongoing efforts of a local group that has been working several years on the issue. The Greater Nashua Interfaith Hospitality Network now has the minimum eight congregations it needs…

Falling for Christmas

Call it “The Nightmare Before the Christmas Home Tour,” a horror that would do even film director Tim Burton’s fiendish mind proud. On Monday night, a fully decorated 12-foot tree toppled in Linda Moore’s living room. The tree was to…

Hollis/Brookline school survey results to be released

HOLLIS - The raw data from a survey to generate solutions to the Hollis/Brookline Middle School space crunch - commissioned with taxpayer money - won’t be available until after the final analysis is presented. With the exception of Betty Hall,…

Few residents turn out for SAU budget session

AMHERST - The only thing missing from a public hearing on a proposed $1.4 million budget for fiscal 2005 for School Administrative Unit 39 was the public. A couple of residents were in the audience, but the multipurpose room at…

Developer discusses plans for retail complex with board

MERRIMACK - Thomas Monahan owns 170 acres near Exit 10 of the F.E. Everett Turnpike. The land is zoned for industrial use, but he wants to build a mall or some sort ofretail complex. Some residents of the nearby Spruce…

State seeks to reimport drugs

CONCORD - Gov. Craig Benson announced plans Tuesday for the state government to purchase cheaper-priced drugs from Canada and allow any adult to use a state Web site to buy their own prescriptions. “Pharmaceutical companies should charge one price for…

Presidential hopeful speaks at city school

NASHUA - Nashua High School junior Dylan Luers wanted to know what Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich thinks of the American criminal justice system. Then he asked the four-term U.S. congressman about his daily diet. Kucinich gladly answered both questions,…

School budget may cost city $10m more

NASHUA - Educating students in Nashua during the next school year could cost taxpayers nearly $10 million or more than it did this year. Next year’s school budget will have to cover the opening of two high schools for the…

Hudson appoints fire chief

HUDSON - Acting Fire Chief Shawn Murray is now heading up the department permanently. Murray, who was assistant chief, was appointed by the Board of Selectmen in a nonpublic meeting last Wednesday. His appointment is now in effect, selectmen said…

Split decision delayed

NASHUA - A subcommittee of the school board made no decision regarding the high school boundaries in the Sunset Heights neighborhood on Tuesday night. The matter will be on the agenda of the next Board of Education meeting on Monday,…

Auto repair shop plan shot down

Nashua ZBA unanimously rejects proposal for 14 Broad St., raises concerns about property’s use. NASHUA - Saying it would impair the integrity of the surrounding neighborhood, the Zoning Board of Adjustment voted 5-0 Tuesday night to deny a request for…

Town named Hooker is waiting for the punch line

The residents of Hooker, Okla., have one message for all you wiseguys out there who would never be able to resist cracking a joke about their town’s bawdy name: Bring it on. Hooker is, after all, the town whose official…

Sewing service

Arlene Magoon brags that she knows a good idea when she hears one. As a former volunteer coordinator and now operations director for the Greater Nashua and Souhegan Valley chapter of the American Red Cross, Magoon has helped put many…

Board OKs veterans’ tax break article

HOLLIS - Approximately 360 veterans might get a bigger property tax break if voters approve an article at next year’s Town Meeting. After some debate, the Board of Selectmen voted Monday night to present voters with a warrant article that…

Selectmen support article for open space

AMHERST - The Board of Selectmen voted unanimously Monday to support a warrant article intended to simultaneously preserve open space in town while providing more land for active recreation. The article, drafted by the Amherst Conservation Commission, would ask voters…

Manchester doctor to pay $285k for false claims

CONCORD - A Manchester physician has agreed to pay $285,000 in civil damages and penalties to settle allegations that he violated federal laws and regulations by filing false claims to Medicare for patient services in the late 1990s while practicing…

Grant could help fix sewage problem

MERRIMACK - Eight of 51 septic systems at the Camp Sargent Road Cooperative Park have failed in the last six months, creating a health and safety problem for the manufactured housing park deemed one of the few sites for affordable…

Old school site recommended for new station

MILFORD - As expected, a planning committee has recommended that Milford tear down the Garden Street School and build a new police station there - and as expected, the main concerns appear to be the cost and the loss of…

Claremont finds itself on the cusp of revival

Three empty mill buildings sit in downtown Claremont like historical memorials to manufacturing eras long past, with links of community identity and economic vitality stretching back to the 1830s. Forget Lawrence and Lowell, says Mark Aldrich, Claremont’s economic development director…

Proposal may save money on road work

AMHERST - The town’s Public Works director thinks he can fix the traffic problem near the high school for about $178,000 less than previously anticipated - a 42 percent discount. The proposed solution - widening a portion of Boston Post…

Milford makes final preparations for ice-skating rink

MILFORD - There are lots of odd perks to being a town recreation director, but this winter Kevin Tyska may encounter a new one: pushing a hand-held Zamboni. “Since I can’t skate, it might be interesting,” he joked. Tyska’s frozen…

Land conservation panel begins work

NASHUA - Keeping its eye on the public’s pristine sanctuary, a newly formed Land Conservation Committee is getting to work. The committee’s immediate task is developing a stewardship plan for the Northwest Conservation Land, the city’s only designated conservation land.…

Town may cancel tree lighting

BROOKLINE - The 20th annual Tree Lighting Ceremony scheduled for 4:30 p.m. today will be cancelled if more than a foot of snow has accumulated, organizer Michelle Hakala said. If the show, not the snow, goes on, the Church of…

Take-home meals popular at Wilton fair

WILTON - It could have been the stormy weather forecast for Saturday. It might have just been a good idea whose time had come. Whatever the reason on Friday evening, an offer from the Sacred Heart Church Fair Committee for…

Developer pushes ahead with mall plan

MERRIMACK - For the second year, the Planning Board will hear a request for a zone change that would clear the way for “a regional mall” to be constructed off Exit 10 of the F.E. Everett Turnpike. Developer Thomas Monahan…

Libraries stick with low-tech book sales

People can do a lot of things on the Internet these days, but not quite everything - which partly explains why libraries haven’t given up one of their cherished traditions, the used-book sale. “People like to come in and touch…

Fireworks to ring in new year in Nashua

Strong winds canceled the fireworks that had been planned to kick off the Holiday Stroll, but a pyrotechnics show still will go on before year’s end. Weather permitting, of course. Discussions are under way to tie the show in with…

NASHUA EVENT CANCELED

The Pearl Harbor remembrance ceremony originally scheduled for 10 a.m. today has been canceled. The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 483 decided, because of snow forecasts, to cancel the ceremony for the military personnel who died at Pearl Harbor on…

Merrimack may ponder hiring freeze

MERRIMACK - Selectmen have worked to hold the line on spending in next year’s budget, first asking department heads to trim their requests by 5 percent and then pruning an additional $1.4 million. Still, something kept nagging Dick Hinch, the…

Cell company seeks waiver for tower

BROOKLINE - If US Cellular had its way, all town residents would abandon their “landlines,” and switch strictly to cellular service. This is one goal of many in the company’s proposal for a new 180-foot tall cell tower on Ball…

Mayor outspent Bolton, Davidson

NASHUA - Mayor Bernie Streeter spent nearly $17.64 for every vote he earned on Election Day. Streeter won a second four-year term in last month’s election, beating Alderman-at-Large Steve Bolton and write-in candidate Don Davidson. The final campaign finance reports…

Downtown guru to leave city job

NASHUA - Will anyone be there to answer the phone in the economic development office? With City Hall reopening its search for a director, the assistant economic development director, Alan Manoian, said he will leave his position Dec. 17. Manoian…

Flu shots in great demand in area

NASHUA - Claire Thomas, receptionist at the Health Stop clinic, is happy to talk about how many people are suddenly looking for flu shots - if only they would stop calling long enough to give her a chance. “We’ve had,…

Region to get a winter blast

Blizzard-like conditions are expected in the region’s first major winter storm of the season. Meteorologists predicted heavy snowfall, strong winds and a resulting low visibility during the weekend-long storm, which began making its way into the region late Friday night.…

Amherst

The following are school lunch menus for the week of Dec. 8. ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS MONDAY: Papa Gino’s pizza, green beans, fruit salad or fruit juice. TUESDAY: Chicken drummies with seasoned pasta, garden salad, juicy peaches or fruit juice. WEDNESDAY: Cheeseburger…