Auburn News : Candia

Pepsi Punt, Pass & Kick attracts young athletes for various reasons

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 20:05:00 GMT

Last year, Auburn’s Joey Dudek rode his arm and leg to Gillette Stadium – and very nearly the Super Bowl.

Dudek, who won the 10- and 11-year-old division of the local Pepsi Punt, Pass and Kick competition last August, also triumphed at the sectional competition in Bristol, R.I., and then the regional competition at a Patriots home game.

His score just missed qualifying for the national competition, which concluded at the NFL’s championship.

This year, 37 local youngsters showed up at MerchantsAuto. com Stadium in Manchester, home of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, for the chance to follow in Dudek’s footsteps.

“We came here last week for the (Eastern League AA) all-star game, so for them to go out there and compete on that same field, they just love it,” said Bedford’s Sonia Statires, mother of Charlie, 9, and Jacob, 7. “My kids love sports in general, and this is a great way to spend a summer afternoon.”

Like the Statires boys, sporting Riddle Brook Elementary T-shirts, many competitors were from the greater Manchester area.

Others, such as Salem’s Matthew Carney, Brad Ratay, and Kyle Nagri, and Hopkinton’s Abbey and Sam Winslow, traveled many miles to participate in the event.

“It’s about 25 minutes each way, so it’s not to far to get them to an event like this,” said Abbey and Sam’s mother, Katie Winslow. “Three years ago, Sam participated and won at the regional and next level and went to the Patriots game. I guess it’s that opportunity that makes us come back each year.”

“I think it’s a really good event for young promising athletes to show off their talents,” said Ratay. “It’s a pretty good time. I don’t think I’ll win, but I’m proud to be here.”

Many, like Ratay, are just eager to test their skills. New Boston’s Maxx Chambers, for instance, is a member of Goffstown’s 10- and 11-year-old state Little League all-star champions. He proved he doesn’t need a bat and glove to exhibit his athletic prowess.

“I played football last year, and I thought (the competition) would be something good to do because I was good at punting and passing, but needed a little improvement with my kicking,” said Chambers. “I thought it would be fun to see if I could win and if could move on.”

Though he didn’t advance, Chambers said he still enjoyed the event immensely.

District court moves from Auburn to Candia

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 18:35:00 GMT

BY TOBY HENRY

Officials say the days are numbered for the local district court in Auburn, as a plan to move to the new district court takes shape.

For the past few weeks, notices have been going out to residents of Northwood, Raymond, Candia, Nottingham, Deerfield and Auburn that their hearings will now be taking place in Candia. Starting on July 21, all civil and criminal cases will be heard at the new Candia District Court, and all court documents will also be moved to the new courthouse on 110 Raymond Road (Route 27).

Earlier this year, officials from the state Department of Administrative Services agreed to a lease that had them taking over the new court building as of Oct. 1. But an ambitious work schedule from contractor Severino Trucking, a local firm, put the project some three months ahead of schedule, and the court is expected to be open to the public in less than two weeks.

Throughout the project, Candia’s officials have noted that Auburn’s loss will be their gain, and Selectmen Chairman Fred Kelley and others say they’re hoping to see a “spill-over” effect that will bring some income to Candia’s own restaurants and gas stations. Police Chief Michael McGillen said that the closer court building also means less mileage on his department’s vehicles -- and less of a pinch at the gas pump.

McGillen said he also recently toured the building, and he gave it high marks for its ability to better serve the community, law enforcement officials and court officers alike.

Last year, officials formally announced their decision to relocate to Candia from the current building in order to solve problems with a lack of storage and administrative space, and Candia is also more centrally located to the towns served by the district court. Mike Connor, the Department of Administrative Services director of plant and property management, said the rent will remain at the previous rate of about $12,000 per month despite the earlier than expected opening date.

The new courthouse has been assigned the phone number 483-2789 and directions to Candia District Court are available online at www.courts.state.nh.us.

Local towns wait to see what Manchester will do with high school budget cuts

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 14 May 2008 21:56:00 GMT

BY JENN McDOWELL

With the Manchester Board of School Committee having announced several times they would not authorize the dissemination of 80 pink slips to teachers in Manchester schools this year, communities holding tuition contracts with Manchester’s school district are breathing a wary sigh of relief as they wonder how the funding will play out.

“I’m guardedly optimistic,” said Elaine Hobbs, chairman of the Auburn School Board. “I think that the Manchester Board of School Committee is working really hard to make sure that the students within the Manchester school district are provided with the best education they could possibly get.”

The deadline for layoff notifications has come and gone, but a few teachers have left for other positions in anticipation of losing their jobs.

Hooksett, Auburn, Candia and Bedford all have tuition contracts with Manchester that stipulate class sizes remain under 30 students and that nothing happens that jeopardizes Manchester schools’ accreditation.

Since the city of Manchester’s public budget meeting on April 28, which about 2,000 people attended, the Manchester Board of School Committee has reiterated three times that they would not issue pink slips to teachers in the district.

The Board of School Committee asked for $153 million to cover the costs for the district in 2008-09, but Mayor Frank Guinta cut that to $140 million.

While school expenses comprise about half of the city’s overall $276 million budget proposal, the school budget number is $7.3 million less than the district’s 2007-08 appropriation.

Manchester’s Board of Aldermen must approve a budget for the city, including the school district’s portion of the budget, by June 10.

Some aldermen have said they would be happy with tax increases of between 2 to 4 percent, or a budget around $145 million, for the school district. A school appropriation of $145 million would still be $2.3 million less than what they’ve been authorized to spend this year.

The sending towns had scheduled a non-public meeting with Guinta on Tuesday, May 13, to discuss the budgetary impacts on students from those towns. While not all board members from the sending towns would be attending the meeting, Hooksett School Board Chairman Maura Ouellette said she would be there.

“I don’t think it’s my place to comment on what dollar amount the Manchester School District budget should be. I think it’s our responsibility as a sending town to be sure that Manchester is adhering to the terms of the tuition agreement,” said Ouellette.

“My concern is with the quality of the educational experience of our students attending Manchester high schools. The sending towns have lived up to their end of the tuition agreement and we fully expect Manchester to do the same,” she added.

All four school districts sent letters from their attorneys to Manchester reminding them of their obligation to maintain class sizes and accreditation status in keeping with the terms of their contracts.

While the boards of the sending towns agreed it is a waiting game for them, they added they are watching the situation closely to see what direction should be taken.

“Passing a budget of any number does not put Manchester in violation of the contract,” said Candia School Board Chairman Ed Caito. “At this point, I think we have to let the budget process play itself out in Manchester.”

Ouellette said part of the problem may lie in Manchester’s timing in developing their budget.

“If it were done earlier in the year, as is done in Hooksett, there wouldn’t be the need to even consider pink slips to the staff. Everyone would know well in advance what the budget would be for the following year,” she said.

Auburn considers its own school

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:48:00 GMT

BY TOBY HENRY

The defeat of a two-town middle school to serve Auburn and Candia has left Auburn to evaluate a possible new school proposal on its own while Candia officials say they’re done making plans for now.

In Candia, the past five years have seen three school proposals shot down, including the recent failure of a tuition contract which could have sent that town’s sixth- through eighthgrade students to a proposed Auburn middle school for 20 years. Although the proposed school had been a topic of discussion in both towns for three years, it garnered only 278 “yes” votes to 766 against in Candia, making an Auburn vote moot.

Following the vote, Candia School Board Chairman Karen Smith said her town will likely not revive a major school improvement proposal for the near future. Officials in both towns said Candia’s lack of representation at the proposed school and the uncertainty that their middle-school teachers would be hired to teach there were likely the biggest voter turn-offs.

“I guess it just goes to show you that people have a hard time spending money in a town where they’re not going to have a say,” said Auburn Budget Committee Chairman Lew Theos. “I think people also didn’t like the fact that there was no guarantee (Candia’s) teachers would get hired.”

Candia School Board member Ingrid Byrd, who had been staunchly opposed to the project, said its overwhelming defeat surprised even her. She too agreed that Candia’s lack of representation at the new school was probably its proverbial nail in the coffin.

Byrd said the nationwide news of poor economic forecasts which coincided with the final vote may have convinced more people that the proposal was badly timed.

“Gas is over $3 a gallon, and people are just looking at the realities of life right now,” she said.

Although the $25 million proposal was never presented to Auburn’s voters, the project still maintains a life of sorts after voters approved School Board member Kathi Porter’s request for $62,000 to continue work on a new school design. Porter said the plan for a two-town school is definitely out of the question for now, but the additional money leaves the door open for looking at alternative designs for a building that might eventually replace Auburn Village School.

While the scope of the new project has not been determined yet, Porter said that one concept that is definitely out of the question is building an Auburn-only middle school, a venture that she said would be too costly for the town. Porter said that another two-town partnership is also unlikely.

“A lot of people I’ve talked to said we need K-through-eight, Auburn only,” she said. “And there’s also the question of what we’ll do with AVS -- Do we sell it? Do we give it to the town? Will we lose revenue if we give it to the town? These are all things we’ll have to consider.” Porter said she expects discussions on new school options to begin this summer.

Auburn Year in review 2007

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 19:49:00 GMT

BY JENN McDOWELL

Middle school plans
After years of planning, Auburn and Candia school boards are ready to put the funding of a joint middle school in voters’ hands.

In March, Candia voters will weigh in on a tuition agreement with Auburn to fund the new school, a $25 million project.

Auburn will vote on whether to secure a $29 million bond for the total project cost plus interest. Forty percent of that would likely be funded through state aid available to the district, bringing the total project cost for the two towns to $14.8 million.

According to the tuition agreement, Candia would fund 38 percent of the project costs and Auburn 62 percent, based on enrollment figures which could change by the school’s proposed opening in 2010.

The 58 acres of land for the school site off of Old Hooksett Road was purchased by the Auburn School District for a relatively reasonable price in 2006.

Voters in both towns passed warrant articles at the 2007 election to pay for design and planning costs based on the 38-62 enrollment percentage.

The first visual plans were unveiled at a public information session in August. The layout of the 102,000-square-foot building features a high school-sized gym, cafeteria/auditorium, community space, and an expanded library and media center.

The tuition agreement, which stipulates that Candia teachers will have “first consideration” in the hiring process for the new school but makes no employment guarantees, is a point of contention with Candia voters and teachers.

Fire
A fire at 8 Priscilla Lane in Auburn caused about $2 million in damage on June 9, which Fire Department Lt. Linda Wilking called the largest financial loss the town had yet seen from a fire.

Power Up Equipment saw the brunt of the damage. The cause of the fire, which began burning at around 1:45 a.m. and was reported to the fire department about 45 minutes later, is unknown.

Family of eight flooded out The Mother’s Day flood of 2006 and the 2007 flooding wreaked havoc in homes all over the state, but one family in Auburn was really put out in the cold.

Tia and Sean Tobin, who live at 66 Meadow Lane, lived in one room with their six children for weeks, trying to cleanup the water and sludge left in their home.

The mold that grew rapidly after the waters receded made the Tobin family ill, particularly their five-month old twins. One of the twins, Noah, was in the hospital several times.

As they did with many other families plagued by the physical, emotional, and financial strains the rushing waters brought in, There’s No Place Like Home came to the Tobins’ aid.

Paula Young, the ministry’s pastor, organized a group of workers to clean up and restore the home.

All of the Tobins’ clothing, photos and appliances in the house were removed due to the mold. Young even helped the family get into a hotel while crews worked on their home.

Sex sting
An Auburn man was arrested July 19 after he solicited sex from an undercover Kingston police officer during a sting operation.

Steven Lafave, 44, was drawn to a “brothel” the police set up at a home in Kingston with an ad on craigslist.org.

Police had cover for a while and got responses via the site, but posts started showing up exposing the sting, and six men actually went to the house.

Police charged Lafave, along with the other five arrested, with solicitation of prostitution, a misdemeanor carrying a $1,000 fine.

Of the other five, one was a Boys Club executive director from Haverhill, Mass., and another the husband of state Rep. Jessie Osbourne, D-Merrimack, Richard Osbourne.

Auburn School Board ratifies tuition agreement for middle school

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 19:54:00 GMT

BY JENN McDOWELL

Auburn School Board members ratified the tuition agreement in a unanimous vote for the proposed Candia-Auburn middle school on Tuesday, Nov. 13. Candia School Board members voted 4–1 in favor of ratifying the agreement at a recent meeting.

Tax impact numbers recently produced for both towns show year two of the 20-year agreement being the most expensive for taxpayers.

Candia residents owning homes assessed at $300,000 would see a $240 increase in their property taxes in year one, then it jumps to $639 in year two. Auburn residents owning homes of the same value would pay $213 in year one and $573 in year two. After year two, the tax impact declines by about 7 cents per $1,000 of assessed value each year.

Auburn pays less per household, said Auburn School Board Chairman Kathleen Porter, because of its larger tax base.

The two boards have been working on plans with Team Design, Inc., a Manchesterbased architectural firm that has extensive experience building schools.

Engineer Dan Bisson has made several presentations to residents in both towns. The proposed 102,000-square-foot regional school would include a high school-sized gymnasium, outdoor classroom, energy saving efficiencies, and more comprehensive programming than what is currently offered at the Moore and Village schools.

Bisson said Team Design has worked with other towns on plans for regional schools, citing the example of Pittsfield and Barnstead, which have not succeeded due to conflicts over control.

Both Candia and Auburn have conducted facilities studies in the past to determine the needs for the Village and Moore schools, which Candia and Auburn school board members said pointed to the need for more class space and better educational programs.

A committee charged with researching and analyzing the programming and space needs in the Village School went before the school board members in March 2003 with 13 pages of recommendations, said Auburn School Board member Elaine Hobbs.

Hobbs said the town would not qualify for state aid to expand the Village School at its current location because there is no room for such an undertaking.

“We do not meet the land requirements for a school that size,” she said. The Village School sits in 15 acres of land and is surrounded by wetlands, a cemetery and forest.

In March 2005, Moore School Facilities Committee members presented a facility analysis at the school district meeting which called for upgrades to the building’s infrastructure as well as expanding the gymnasium, building a new media center and adding science labs.

The New Hampshire School Administrators Association assessed both schools, Candia in 2002 and Auburn in 2003.

Some of the recommendations for the schools were to adopt year-round school calendars, which would require expansion; to add portable classrooms, which the Village School has done; and to provide new facilities for grades 6 to 8.

The first portable was added to the Village School grounds in 1995, the second in 2002 and the third in 2004, for a total of six classrooms. According to the New Hampshire School Administrators Association, portables are a short-term solution in dealing with enrollment increases and loss of space.

“It is generally not seen as a wise investment of public resources to solve a long-term problem,” the study states.

SAU 15 Superintendant Phil Littlefield said both towns would benefit from a regional middle school in the long run.

“You have two districts whose middle school program is not well supported by the facility, so it becomes very efficient to join the two,” said Littlefield.

“By combining the two student populations, we’re much more efficient in delivering teaching and learning.”

Operating costs from the two current schools would increase anyway in the future, he said.

Littlefield said inflation over the next few years will increase operating costs at both schools, and that the potential operating costs of the proposed joint school, projected at $3.6 million per year, would not differ much from the operating costs both towns will see individually.

“I think we’ve seen a recognition in both communities that school facilities need to be addressed,” Littlefield said.

$15 M to build school

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 24 Oct 2007 20:39:00 GMT

BY JENN McDOWELL

Auburn and Candia school boards say a new joint joint middle school will cost taxpayers $14.8 million, a figure residents in both towns have been waiting for as School District Meetings approach.

In March, voters in Candia will be asked to approve a tuition agreement for the school, which will include their contributions to building and operating costs. Just a few days later, Auburn voters will weigh in on obtaining a general obligation bond for their portion of the costs.

If the tuition agreement fails in Candia, the warrant article calling for a general obligation bond will be removed from Auburn’s school district warrant.

The two towns have hosted several public forums to get input on the site and building plans for the proposed 102,000- square-foot school as well as the tuition agreement. The latest forum will focus on the financial projections on Thursday, Oct. 18, at Auburn Village School.

Dan Bisson, president of Team Design Inc., said there are great engineers behind the building construction, which will include cost-saving efficiencies, a high school-sized gymnasium and sports fields and various common spaces for community use.

Construction costs

The total cost estimate comes to a little over $25.7 million, which includes all the building and site costs, water and sewer installation, and fire protection.

Improvements to the 58-acre site are estimated at about $5.4 million. Building cost projections were calculated using the state’s average figure of $145 per square foot, and came out to just under $14.8 million.

“Soft costs,” which include things such as consultant’s fees, the school’s furnishings and other additional fees, come to just over $4 million.

An additional $745,000 was calculated into the estimates to account for the upfront costs of sustainablity construction aid, which would be rebated, minus $120,000 in administration costs, back to the district.

State construction aid, another rebate factored into the bottom line, amounts to almost $10.3 million.

When all is said and done, the total cost to taxpayers of building the school is estimated at a little over $14.8 million.

According to the proposed tuition agreement with Candia, which states the cost percentages for the two towns, based on this year’s average daily membership in both schools, Candia will pay 38 percent of that figure and Auburn will pay 62 percent.

This brings Candia’s contribution to just over $5.8 million to be paid out over the course of the 20-year tuition agreement and Auburn’s portion to about $8.9 million.

Operating costs

SAU 15 Superintendant Phil Littlefield and Business Administrator Karen Lessard calculated the projected operating costs, totaling just over $3.6 million per year.

Using the 38-62 percent cost division used for the construction costs, Candia will spend an estimated $1.4 million per year and Auburn $2.2 million to run the school.

Lessard pointed out that these figures are only estimations, and that some of the costs would change by 2010. She also pointed out that the average daily membership of both schools would likely fluctuate between now and then.

Some of the factors that went into the operating costs include estimated salaries, student population and class size, additional educational opportunities, and energy-saving measures built into the plans.

“There are a lot of unknowns. This does not represent a budget for the new school,” said Littlefield. “If this school becomes a reality, we’re going to have to recode some of our line items.”

He pointed out that the costs were calculated using the current square foot figure for Auburn Village School and multiplying it to account for the larger facility in the works. Costs associated with educational materials were also based on Auburn Village per student expenditures.

Enrollment for the new school was calculated using current combined number of students in the schools and moving the students up to the grade levels they will be in for the 2010–11 school year.

He added that they expect private schoolers to move to the “state of the art educational facility.”
Projected class sizes for the middle school and the remaining grades at both Auburn Village and Henry Moore were included in the study. For sixth grade, the teacher-student ratio is estimated at 1:21.5; for seventh, 1:21.3; and for eighth grade, 1:23.8.

School Board members who attended, including Auburn member Bob Hayes, were pleased to see these estimates produced.

Hayes said the school district had done its “due diligence” in calculating the costs. “It isn’t a budget, but it’s the best predictor we’ve got,” he said, adding that tax impact studies still needed to be presented to the public.

The next steps

In November, both school boards will vote on the tuition agreement, and it will then go to the state Department of Education for approval.

With both boards working so closely on the plans, said Auburn School Board member Elaine Hobbs, there is no reason to assume that the agreement would not pass. Candia’s board will vote first.

“If there’s not agreement, this whole thing is dead in the water,” said Hobbs. “I would hope that at a point, all the things within the contract have been gone over with the board and they’re comfortable with it. I don’t have any indication that this would not pass by both boards.”

Auburn School Board Vice Chairman Kathleen Porter agreed, but said the plans still need to pass with voters in March. Porter said she is not yet sure whether the two boards would consider coming up with a new plan to submit to voters again next year if Candia does not pass the tuition agreement. “We have not discussed that as a board yet,” she said.

The two school boards will host more public forums in the next couple weeks, the next one at the Moore School on Thursday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m., to go through the updated construction plans, tuition agreement, and the building and operating costs.

Kimberly Smith of Auburn’s State of Our School Committee said they are trying to inform residents in both towns of the importance of voting on the issue.

“People are skeptical. People always want to get as much information as they can,” Smith said. “We want you to vote yes or no because you have information.”

On paper – Candia, Auburn get first look at plans for proposed joint middle school

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 20:10:00 GMT

BY GINGER KOZLOWSKI

The vision of a common middle school for Candia and Auburn began to come to life as the first drawing of the proposed school’s floor plan was presented to the public on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

The plan shows a school with two floors. The main floor encompasses a high school-sized gymnasium, a separate cafeteria, music and art rooms, industrial arts and computer rooms, a foreign language classroom, administrative offices and special-use rooms, as well as classrooms.

The second floor contains classrooms, the media center, teacher rooms and special education classrooms.

Each of the three grades to be housed in the school are grouped together, so the sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders have their own space in the school with a central locker area and meeting space.

“Auburn’s design team presented the plans and explainedwhat the thought processes were and answered questions sabout the design itself,” said Candia School Board member Ingrid Byrd. “But there are still a lot of unanswered querstions in my mind.”

One of those questions is about cost, which was not discussed at the meeting. Dan Bisson, the architect for the project, presented the 100,000-square-foot plan after listening to parents, teachers, students and other concerned about the project, said Elaine Hobbs, Auburn School Board chairman. He came up with draft.

“I like the drawing,” said Hobbs. “I think it meets the needs of both communities, allows for growth. I’m impressed with it.”

Byrd agreed that there were some well-thought-out ideas for how the school was laid out, including security concerns and the ability to expand if necessary. She did, however question the number of classrooms and teacher areas.

“People seem to be pleased with the plan,” said Hobbs. “It’s now a matter of taking information from public, boards, teachers.”

The design firm is now doing test borings of the land and traffic studies, said Hobbs. Such information will contribute to the final cost estimate of building the joint middle school.

Both the Candia and Auburn school boards would like to hear from the public on the plan. On Sept. 6, at 6 p.m., at the Candia Moore School, the tuition agreement will be discussed, but not the building plan. Hobbs said they plan to present their thinking on both the building design and the tuition agreement to the ublic twice, on Sept. 11 and 25. They will take input from the public at both of those meetings.

Crusader softball edges Central in its last at-bat

Hooksett Editor — Wed, 09 May 2007 20:26:00 GMT

BY SAPNA PATHAK

Kelsey Isham really is a good sport. But after driving in the game-winning run and earning her team a victory over a favorite rival, the Auburn native couldn’t resist going over to remind her opponents of the play.

It’s not something you’d usually see Isham do, but this opposing lineup was different.

“Well, I know most of them. We’re all friends,” said Isham after leading the Crusaders’ 2-1 win over Queen City foe Central.

“It’s different when we’re playing against each other, but once the game’s over, we’re all friends again. If it were the other way around, a Central player would come here, and we’d be happy for her, too.”

With two outs and pinch runner Heather Ryan of Auburn on second base, Isham stroked a single to score Ryan in the bottom of the seventh inning, sending the Crusaders into celebration and Central head coach Trish Ellis to face a frustrated lineup.

“We’re still making the mental mistakes that are costing us games,” said Ellis. “This was a great game. Both pitchers were on par, and it looked good until the end where we made a mistake on a play we shouldn’t have. I know if (we) just play the way (we) can, those mistakes won’t happen.”

Hosting the Little Green on Friday, May 4, Memorial, last year’s Class L runner up, posted nine hits in Central starter Ashley Kitchell’s complete-game performance.

Trailing, 1-0, entering the bottom of the fifth, Memorial tied things when catcher Sam Hebert singled and later scored on third baseman Rachel Hedge’s groundout.

Crusaders head coach Dave Hedge said intra-city match-ups aren’t played often enough. “This is like a playoff atmosphere,” said Hedge after the game. “I wish they’d let us play each Manchester team more than once. I’m not sure about the other Manchester coaches, but I certainly would love to do that. The rivalry is special, one pride vs. another. This time it was red, white and blue over green and white pride.”

Familiarity amongst players on Manchester teams, said Hedge, enhances long-standing rivalries. “Throw out the records,” said Hedge. “They don’t matter when it’s an intra-city rival. The idea they Isham said the idea of seeing her summer-league teammates in different uniforms “makes things more exciting.”

know each other adds to the game. It doesn’t make one team have an advantage or disadvantage over another. It just adds to the game.” On Friday, May 11, Central hosts Alvirne. Memorial visits Nashua North.

Inside job - Memorial takes second at indoor track meet

Hooksett Editor — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 15:50:00 GMT

BY MATT STOUT

HANOVER – Richard Provencher said his Memorial boys track team had to be perfect if it hoped to contend with Merrimack at the Class L indoor track and field championships on Saturday, Feb. 3. Instead, the Crusaders were near perfect.

Despite strong finishes in the relay races at Leverone Field House, Memorial couldn’t catch the powerhouse Merrimack squad, which totaled 87 points to the Crusaders’ 68 to earn the Class L title.

Memorial enjoyed strong performances from Auburn’s Wes Cotnoir, who finished second in the 55-meter dash and ran the third leg of the state champion 4 X 200 team; Auburn’s Thomas Piccioli, who took third in the 55-meter dash with a personal-best time of 8.20 seconds; and David Irving, the day’s shot put champion with a throw of 52-feet, 5 inches. But it wasn’t enough to overcome the Tomahawks or their star, Gabe Dano, who edged Cotnoir for the 55-meter title, took the 300-meter dash crown and anchored the 4 X 400-meter relay team that nipped Memorial for first place.

“We needed to win high jump and place high in long jump to win it,” Cotnoir said, adding the team was down as many as 29 points entering the relay events, which close the meet. “Our guy didn’t beat their Merrimack guy in the long jump, and our high jump guy didn’t do as well as we thought he would.”

Though they couldn’t quite match Merrimack, Memorial still saw solid finishes in those events and more. Freshman Domingo Cruz took fifth in the long jump with a leap of 20-05.25 – about three and half inches short of Merrimack’s Corey Schueler, who placed second – while topseeded Chris Lemieux took third in the high jump at 6-02.00.

Cotnoir was Dano’s only competition in the 55 dash, and had beaten him a week prior at a meet, but the senior said he got off to a delayed start out of the blocks and couldn’t quite catch the defending state champion.

“Flip the coin,” Provencher said of the two competitors. “Gabe’s the best and Wes tried to beat him. Gabe is no doubt the best sprinter in the state.”

Memorial results

Bobby Johnsen also placed in the 55 dash at fourth with a time of 6.69, while Craig Berube took fifth in the 300 at 37.10 seconds. Corey Duchemin placed fourth in the 600 at 1-minute, 24.68 seconds, two spots ahead of teammate Scott Morin, who ran it in 1:28.19, while Ben Coutu finished fourth in the 3,000 at 9:12.99.

The boys 4 X 800-meter relay team of Jack Bauer, James Covey, Joseph Baroody and Nate Grant took fifth at 8:33.79. William Wrobel rounded out the placefinishers at sixth in the shot put.

For the girls, Tahisha Nelson ran to a fifth-place time of 7.61 seconds in the 55 dash, Holly Banaian finished in fourth in the 1,500 at 4:58.41, and Jacquelyn Dussault took seventh in the 3,000.

Central results

Matt Paulson held off topseeded Brendan Hyland of Concord for the 1,500 title with a time of 4:05.26 for the sixth-place Central boys, who earned the rest of their points with strong relay finishes. The defendingchampion 4 X 800 crew – Paulson, Corey Sinotte, Craig Brown and Dante Vitagliano – successfully retained its title, finishing in 8:18.27.

The 4 X 200 team of Mitch Albro, Chris Mitchell, Muzafer Aku and Paulson also fared well, finishing third in 1:36.25. The Central girls compiled 22 points en route to finishing seventh, thanks to Michaela Levasseur’s sixth-place time of 7.62 seconds in the 55 dash, her fourth-place finish in the 300 and two sixth-place finishes from Sarah Brooks – one in the 1,500 at 5:13.09 and another in the 3,000 at 11:11.87. Lucia Capano also took sixth in the 55- meter hurdles at 9.04 seconds.

The relay teams cleaned up the rest of the points. The 4 X 200 team of Lindsey Johnson, Capano, Levasseur and her sister, Aria, took second; the 4 X 400 team of Whitney Fremeau, Christen Carrier, Courtney Carrier and Arianna Vailas took fifth; and the 4 X 800 team of Lauren Ashby, the Carriers and Hannah Dow took fourth.

For complete meet results, visit lancertiming.com.

Auburn, Candia mull school partnerships

Hooksett Editor — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 15:36:00 GMT

By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

School officials from Auburn said they don’t want a new middle school partnership with Candia to hinder the recent momentum perpetuated by the purchase of 58 undeveloped acres after this year’s annual School District Meeting.

At a joint meeting between the Auburn and Candia school boards on Wednesday, Oct. 4, officials from both towns said they liked the idea of a partnership because it could add educational programming currently lacking for middle school students in each of the districts.

“The advantages for the kids makes it a no-brainer,” said Candia School Board member Bill Zarges. “Together we can give a true middle school experience to these kids.”

Auburn School Board members, however, said they plan to ask voters for planning and design money at the 2007 School District Meeting, and board members questioned whether the two sides could reach a partnership before the planning process.

“We’ve got some momentum and we really want to keep the ball rolling,” said Auburn School Board Chairman Elaine Hobbs. “We’re looking at a pretty tight timeline.”

The Auburn board members said if planning and design money were approved next year, they hope to offer a new school proposal for the site near Route 101’s Exit 2 at the 2008 annual School District Meeting.

With the aid of their mutual attorney, Gordon Graham, the two boards mulled over different types of joint arrangements available to New Hampshire school districts.

The four types discussed were an AREA agreement, a cooperative agreement, a tuition-based agreement and a joint maintenance agreement.

Auburn School Board members have said a cooperative agreement which takes multiple years of School District Meeting approvals could take too long.

Candia School Board members have said they don’t wish to enter into a tuition agreement as Auburn and Candia have with Manchester for high school students because they seek more autonomy in a partnership.

Graham cautioned against a joint maintenance agreement which gives shared governance to participating towns largely because so few New Hampshire towns have had experience with them. Alton and Barnstead have the only joint maintenance agreement in the state.

“I look at them and say to myself ‘It’s a scary process in the event things don’t go smoothly,’” Graham told the boards.

The two school boards didn’t decide on what type of agreement, if any, to shoot for, but rather urged one another to consider what they would require in a partnership.

The Candia School Board has held firm in its desire for certain conditions like input into governance and a long-term agreement since talks of a partnership between the two districts began months ago.

“We’ve got to say, ‘Why are we here, and what’s the best arrangement to meet that?’” said Candia School Board member Ed Caito.

With student enrollment in each of the towns anticipated to be steady, or even on a slight decline, in recent years, officials from both sides said the advantage of an educational partnership would be additional educational programming.

Caito said he sends his own children to private school, instead of Candia’s Henry Moore School, because there are more programs.

“Having a larger environment does provide those opportunities,” he said.

Candia board members now plan to get community input on the partnership subject through a series of October events.

There will be a PTO forum on Monday, Oct. 16, and a community forum specifically on the joint middle school topic on Thursday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m., at Moore School.

The Candia board also plans to mail surveys to all Candia households within the next few weeks. An online survey may also be available.