Cabela’s
A sporting goods giant had to wait longer than expected to build in Hooksett, as negotiations continued through 2007 for Cabela’s.

Hooksett voters had passed an $18 million general obligation bond to bring Cabela’s, national hunting and sporting chain, into town off Exit 11 in 2006.

The bond was for a tax increment financing (TIF) district of 300 acres. In September, after the project’s developer New England Expedition – Hooksett LLC struck proposed a new TIF for the town, the bond was reduced to $2 million, backed by a letter of credit from hotel developer Miami and Pierce, which is also part of the TIF.

The remaining $16 million would come from private investors and be paid back from the development’s tax revenue capped at a certain amount. One million dollars was the figure used in projections for the 20-year bond and excess tax revenue would go straight to the town, amounts that increased yearly in projections.

About 1,400 voters turned out for the special election on Sept. 23, hundreds more than officials and the town’s moderator thought would show.

About 90 percent of the voters approved the bond reduction.

Prior to the special election, the Town Council gave the developer a $500,000 tax cut in road impact fees because of the a millions in road improvements included in the project plans which the state’s Department of Transportation cannot completely fund.

The Nebraska-based sporting giant is expected to bring tax revenue into the town, along with satellite businesses within the TIF.

A project to beautify the Village area and restore it to its traditional charm, using Cabela’s as a launching pad, is already in the works. Alden Beauchemin of Keyland Enterprises, a town planning company, has a huge hand in that along with other community groups.

Former police chief dies
On March 19, former Hooksett Police Chief James Oliver, whom the current Safety Center was subsequently named after, passed away from complications in his recovery from lung surgery.

Oliver, 69, retired from the department in 1999 after being diagnosed with lung cancer and heart problems.

During his 21-year tenure as chief, Oliver had a big hand in the Safety Center construction and greatly expanding the department.

The ‘Hooksett fired four’
Four town employees were fired in April for allegedly gossiping about the relationship of Town Administrator David Jodoin and another town employee.

The Hooksett Town Council voted in nonpublic session on April 11 to remove Sandy Piper, Joanne Drewniak, Michelle Bonsteel and Jessica Skorupski from their positions in the building and assessing departments.

Jodoin said he was not present at the nonpublic session in question.

All four appealed their dismissals, and the firing resulted in a months-long legal battle that is still going on today. It also drew press coverage from all over the world and incited outcry both for and against the firing.

B.J. Branch, attorney for the four women, argued in court that the women were not able to address the Town Council or Jodoin about the alleged comments prior to their firings.

In May, about 500 Hooksett voters signed a petition to reverse the firings and reinstate the four women in their old jobs.

Skorupski and Drewniak were notified in early May that the council denied their appeals.

The town did offer to reinstate Piper and Bonsteel, but both declined the offer because it still carried disciplinary action. The Town Council withdrew the offers, offering 27-year employee Piper early retirement, which she refused.

The first public statement from the Town Council in June acknowledged that keeping mum on the issue for so long worked against them in what was called “a media circus,” but stuck to their guns and reiterated their “no comment” policy on personnel matters.

The petition was officiated at the end of May, and the Town Council had 30 days by law to respond. Town Councilor George Longfellow reportedly conducted a phone poll of selectmen to determine what they would do about the petition, which may have constituted a Right to Know law violation. By July, the town had spent more than $22,000 in legal fees, according to invoices from Devine Millimet and Branch of North Hampton.

Bonsteel returned to work on Aug. 6 with a reprimand letter in her personnel file. Town Councilor Jason Hyde was the only dissenting vote in the decision, calling Bonsteel’s behavior “unprofessional, uncalled for and a dereliction of duty.”

Sylvestre found
The body of a Hooksett man was discovered in Lake Winnepesaukee nearly a year after he fell off the M/S Mount Washington.

A local fisherman found the body in one of his nets and immediately called Laconia authorities.

James Sylvestre, 45, was on a Halloween cruise with his wife, Karen Sylvestre, when he apparently fell overboard. An immediate search and subsequent ones could not locate any sign of Sylvestre, whom many of the other patrons on board said was drinking at the time.

Karen Sylvestre filed a lawsuit in Merrimack County Superior Court earlier this month against the Mount Washington cruise line, alleging the crew served him too much alcohol and also did not search zealously enough following Sylvestre’s disappearance.

Robie’s turns 100
The existing Robie’s Country Store building celebrated its 100th year standing with a time capsule.

The capsule sits on a rafter inside the store rather than underground to ensure that nobody forgets to open it in 2057.

Inside the capsule are the 2007 Town Report, several issues of The Hooksett Banner and The Union Leader, a flier announcing the time capsule event, photos of the store and visitors, and various other items.

SAU withdrawal
In 2007, voters gave the Hooksett Withdrawal Committee an extension on their studies on the impact the withdrawal would have on the other School Administrative Unit 15 towns, Auburn and Candia.

Prior to that vote, the state Department of Education told the committee their findings were not conclusive enough to warrant a withdrawal.

School Board member and committee Chairman Dana Argo said findings show that the switch would not require a significant increase in funding, but would free up the at times stretched staff at SAU 15 to focus their efforts on the two remaining towns.

Argo pointed to a 2002 growth study which shows that Hooksett would need another school in five years. With growth leveling off in more recent years, he said the school district likely has a few more years until the need for that comes up.

The School Board is currently looking for a future school site, the one of interest being a parcel Manchester Sand and Gravel would donate.

If the state gives its approval to the report submitted recently, voters will likely see a related warrant article this March.

Young man beaten to death Police found a 20-year-old Hooksett man apparently beaten to death and unconscious in an alley in Manchester on June 14. He died the next day.

Ryan Carlson was on his way to the Manchester Central graduation in June when he was assaulted. The medical examiner indicated at the time that homicide had not been ruled out. The Massachusetts Medical Examiner Office in Boston conducted a neurological autopsy, but results were not made public.

Cawley bomb threats
Two bomb threats were reported at Cawley Middle School within a week of each other in September. The first threat, written on a bathroom wall, led to an evacuation of the school. The second threat seemed to be a copycat issue, and students were not evacuated.