Congratulations to Pittsfield resident, Gretchen Elizabeth Hilton
who has been named to Husson University's President's List for the
Spring 2018 semester.
Hilton
is a junior who is currently enrolled in Husson's Bachelor of
Science in Healthcare Studies/Master of Science in Occupational
Therapy program.
Students who make the President's List must carry at least 12 graded
credit hours during the semester and earn a grade point average of
3.80 to 4.0 during the period.
Applications for Concord Little League Summer Baseball are now being
accepted for kids league age 8 through 12 from Concord and
surrounding communities. Summer baseball is a fun and relaxing
league with the expectations that each player plays when they can
for their team. Play begins the second week of July and finishing
the second week of August and played at Concord fields. Teams will
be comprised of approximately 15 players per team to cover for
players who want to go on vacation, camp, special nights, etc. Games
are only played on weekday evenings, no Fridays. The cost is
$40.00 per player and each player receives a team t-shirt and hat
which they can keep. Forms can be found under the “CLL Resource”
page of our website at
www.concordnhlittleleague.org, by emailing Gary Ford,
Coordinator at [email protected] and also
at the Grappone Park Concession Stand in Concord. Applications are
due on June 27th.
Suncook
Valley
Soccer
Club
Registration is now open for the Fall 2018 Season!
Visit
suncookvalleysoccerclub.com
or our facebook page to sign up.
Registration ends 8/1.
REMINDER
FB
Argue Recreation Area 2018 Opening
On
Friday, June 22, the FB Argue Recreation Area will open for the 2018
summer season at 1:00. We will be open Monday through Friday 12:00-
5:00 and Saturday and Sunday 1:00-5:00.
We will
be offering swimming lessons again this summer. Registration will be
held at the recreation area. The cost for swimming lessons for
Pittsfield residents will be $15 per child per session. The cost for
non-residents will be $30 per child per session.
Session
1 Daytime: Friday, June 29 – Friday, July 13 (no lessons July 4)
Session
2 Nighttime: Monday July 23 – Monday, August 6 (No lessons August 3)
The
daily admission for residents is $1.00 per person. A family season
pass may be bought for $50.00. Daily admission for non-residents
will be $1.50 per person.
Questions may be answered by calling 435-7510 or 435-7457 (during
hours of operation).
Letter
To The Editor
Select
Board meeting 6/12/2018
St.
Jean Auctioneers shared their thoughts on selling three town owned
lots on Rt 107. We voted to use this method for their
disposition.
Chief
Collins updated us on the state of the PD. He seems relaxed
and confident that we are moving in the right direction. We’ll
maintain the status quo for the time being for coverage. We
voted to rescind the overnight parking ban in the downtown and will
revisit the ordinance before snow time.
Deputy
Town Clerk Ammy Ramsey was hired at the Highway Dept. as part-time
temporary truck driver while George is short of help.
Unpermitted storage trailers are being addressed in response to a
complaint. A second extension for another was denied.
Residents need to be aware that storage containers, including
trailers, must be permitted by a 1997 vote at Town Meeting adding
this to the zoning ordinance.
Donna
Keeley was named substitute director of recreation and Ryan Wood was
named to the Website Committee. Intents to cut timber and
excavate gravel were approved. A $2,000 donation to the
Conservation Commission from Chris Hill was accepted with
appreciation.
The
town’s first “solar exemption” was approved. Homeowners who
install solar electricity can apply to have this improvement
exempted from real estate tax.
We are
trying to locate a mason to re-point the library chimney and repair
the flashing- recommendations would be appreciated.
Town
Moderator Dustin asked me to add there is a vacancy on the Budget
Committee that he’d like to appoint someone to that is new to
serving on a town board. There are no specific qualifications
as long as the applicant would be considered an asset to the
committee. The budget committee is critical to town finances
and a very important job. Interested residents can call the
town office or see Cedric at the dentist’s office on Main St.
Carl
Anderson
Pittsfield Old Home Day
SAVE
the date… Saturday July 14… for Pittsfield Old Home Day.
The theme of the day is “Once Upon A Time, Favorite Fairytales.
Please note – MAIN STREET WILL BE CLOSED FROM 8:00 – 3PM
(approximately).
Old
Home Day is a day set aside in the summer for current citizens and
people that used to call Pittsfield “home” to come together and
visit with your neighbors, local businesses and organizations… and
to just have fun for the day. It is one of the times that it
is perfectly acceptable to “hang out”! Please join us and
celebrate what makes Pittsfield great – the people that live here!
Plans
are underway and are being finalized. More information will be
coming. THIS IS WHAT WE KNOW NOW:
***
Visit the Town website at www.pittsfieldnh.gov, Click
on “Boards”, then “Old Home Day committee” for Registration forms
for the Community Fair and Parade.
Fri,
July 13 at 8:30pm, the Rotary Club will sponsor a FREE Outdoor
movie, “Beauty & the Beast” at Drake Field. Bring your own
chairs and blankets. Refreshments will be available for
purchase.
Sat,
July 14 – Dustin Park and Main Street will be where the activity is:
7-10am,
the Park St. Baptist Church will serve a delicious breakfast in the
basement of the church – The cost of the breakfast is by Donation.
9am –
St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church will hold a Silent Auction and offer
all of their delicious baked goods, hot dogs and lots of other
items.
9am
Community Fair – KIDS ACTIVITIES & CRAFT TABLE, CRAFTERS, LOCAL
ORGANIZATION BOOTHS, MUSIC and more. ** To sign up for a spot
at the Community Fair at Dustin Park, visit the town website or
contact Leslie Vogt at 435-7993 or
[email protected].
9am –
CAR SHOW – any antique, vintage, classic, hot rod car or truck are
invited to come to Main Street – no entry fee – Music provided by
Jackie Lee.
Annual
Cook-Off – “Bread of any Kind” – Contact Andi Riel – 435-6346 to
register- bake your best bread – cash prizes are awarded to the top
3 winners.
Pittsfield Historical Society will be open for you to stop in and
visit
Throughout the morning – Jujubee the Clown – Balloon artist and
Tricky Dick – strolling magician
Meet
and Greet with TULA THE UNICORN
11am –
LITTLE RED WAGON – theatre troupe from UNH will present “Through the
Door”, Fairytales by the Brothers Grimm
KIDS
BIKE PARADE – decorate your bike in your favorite Fairytale theme
and come to Main Street at 12pm
1pm –
PARADE – Floats and other entries are needed for the parade.
It’s a Fairytale theme – everyone loves at least one of the
Fairytales. Groups, Clubs, Businesses, Classes and Sports
teams (ahem….Boys Basketball team maybe!) are all encouraged
to get together and enter a float or something and participate in
the parade. The parade is only as good as the entries in it!
****
NOTE – Registration forms are required for the parade – they are
available on the town website along with the parade rules checklist.
***** Please contact MARK RIEL at 435-6346 for more information.
****
Cookout
and swimming at the F.B. Argue Rec Area (aka – Town Pool) after the
parade
Fireworks at Dusk
We will
need help with traffic control before/during/after the parade.
If anyone would like to help please contact us.
For
more information, please contact Andi Riel at 435-6346 or Louie
Houle at 435-6938 or email at
[email protected].
Pittsfield Middle High School students recently presented Eleanor
Joyce of the Pittsfield Food Pantry with a check for $830.00.
Students raised the money by hosting an Empty Bowls Dinner. Students
made ceramic bowls, soups and breads for the fundraising dinner.
Empty Bowls mission is to raise awareness of the hunger issues in
our communities.
From
The Farm: Model T Automobiles Visit The Farm
Submitted By Carole Soule
Before
1915, these classic automobiles had brass radiator shells, ; a
feature discontinued during WWI when brass became scarce.
Nancy
Clark and her 4 door blue & black 1929 Model A.
John
Hanson in is 2 door 1926 Tudor with “after market” vases mounted on
the interior.
1917
“Woody” 1917 Model T and a 1926 2 door Tudor.
Warren
Henderson shows the controls of his 1917 “Woody” Model T.
A
storage cylinder, mounted on the running board, stored acetylene gas
used to fuel headlights that were started with a match.
We
surged down the gravel lane from the farm, wind rushing over my cap,
in an automobile that had neither gas pedal nor gear shift. I
could feel each bump as we swerved to miss potholes in a green &
black 1921 Model T Touring car driven by Brad Marble.
This
was my baptismal ride in a Model T which was produced - with very
few changes - by Henry Ford between 1908 & 1927. I had hosted eight
Model T’s and one Model A, along with their fifteen drivers and
passengers, at Miles Smith Farm in Loudon. As the automobiles lined
up, it was a homecoming for my 1830's farm and Inn which I'm sure
had accommodated its share of Model T's and Model A's over the
years.
The
Model T was a compelling upgrade from horse and buggy. To make it
more drivable, the automobile had three pedals and no gear shift
lever. One pedal was reverse which was often used as a brake to
distribute wear over the “bands”; one pedal was the brake and the
third controlled two gears - high & low. When the third pedal was
pushed to the floor, the gear switched to “low” producing explosive
acceleration …which we needed that day to climb up the hill to the
farm. When this pedal was released, it put the automobile in “high”
when speed, not power, was needed. This mechanism is similar to
“hydrostatic” shifting (where no stick shift is involved) which many
modern tractors have today. The old has become new …again.
The
Model T had no gas pedal and, like today's tractors, a lever on the
steering wheel was used to control the fuel supply to the engine.
The early models had headlights powered by acetylene gas from a
device mounted on the running board and were started with matches.
These
autos were simple, but owners could enhance them with “Apps.” Sears
Roebuck catalog had many pages of “add-ons.” For nine cents owners
could buy a fan-belt guide to keep the belt from slipping off the
pulley. Some bought special oil to prevent chattering, a clamp-on
dash light, or a toolbox which could be bolted to the running board.
Others bought flower vases, like the ones John Hanson mounted inside
his closed-top Model T.
Ford
spent his childhood on a Michigan farm and may have wanted to help
struggling farmers find new markets by promoting agricultural
products as fuel sources. In a NY TIMES article in 1925 he predicted
that fuel could come from vegetation. Because the Model T engine was
low-compression it could be powered by ethanol (AKA grain alcohol,
or “moonshine”) and some owners may have distilled their own
home-made fuel. This ended in 1920 when Prohibition was enacted, and
back-yard stills were outlawed.
These
automobiles were built to last - the 1921 Model T that I rode in was
98 years old and functioned flawlessly. My guess is the 1921 Model T
will still be functional in 2100. Easy to maintain, easy to drive in
mud (the roads in the early 1900's were mostly mud tracks), and
faster than a horse and buggy; the Model T was a tireless
workhorse….with tires! These first sustainable vehicles were more
like tractors than today’s cars. Unlike today's cars, it's possible
the elderly autos that gathered in my barnyard will be around for
another 100 years. They sure don't make 'em like they used to…
Learn
more about the Central NH Model T Club at
http://www.cnhmtc.org/home.html.
To join, you need a keen interest in the Model T Ford as built (no
hot rods). As a member, you will enjoy monthly meetings and tour in
your Model T to destinations like the Miles Smith Farm.
Carole
Soule is co-owner of Miles Smith Farm, in Loudon, NH. She can be
reached at [email protected].
In the
month of May, high school leaders of Pittsfield Youth Voice in it
Together (PYViiT) of Pittsfield Listens (PL) facilitated ‘School
Build’ with 30 stakeholder groups in the Pittsfield Community-
including students, Pittsfield School District Teachers and Staff,
and a community session with members of the Pittsfield School Board,
the Family and Community Engagement (FACE) committee, and other
community members- as pictured here.
School
Build is a participatory activity which raises awareness and builds
relationships as part of PYViiT’s work to address issues of
inequities of school funding. The overarching goals of
PYViiT’s project on this are to : (1) Raise awareness about how
schools are funded and inequities of school funding, including the
exploration of equity vs. equality- as it plays out in school
funding; (2) Include Student Voice on school budgets; (3) Have
student representatives on School Board. (4) Build equitable funding
for NH’s schools, with increased funding for schools in working
class and poor communities (longer term goal). Pittsfield
Youth Voice in it Together (PYViiT) of Pittsfield Listens encourages
the power of youth voice on issues and policies that directly affect
their education and their life in the town of Pittsfield, NH. To
stay in the loop of this important work , contact
[email protected] to join the email list, and
follow along on facebook.com/pittsfieldlistens
and instagram @pittsfieldlistens.
Letter
To The Editor
Should
Pittsfield Storage Expand??
Last
week I attended the Planning Board Meeting. I was surprised to hear
that after severalmonths of analysis an abbuttor was never notified
of the expansion plans at Pittsfield SelfStorage.
We own
No Worry Storage, located at 1 Fayette Street….the former Pittsfield
Weaving Company. We purchased the property after more than 10 years
of vacancy in order to bring life back into the downtown area. We
believe we’ve done our part to improve Pittsfield, by bringing jobs
and spending into Town. While we are pleased that the Town
administration encouraged our business endeavors, we are concerned
about the expansion of Pittsfield Self Storage.
Pittsfield Self Storage currently has 40,450 sf of storage, No Worry
Storage has 22,506 sf. Additionally, St. George Storage (4600 sf),
Webster Mills Storage (2772 sf) and Trailer Tom’s, offer significant
amounts of storage space. So, Pittsfield has more than 70,000 square
feet of self storage available. Pittsfield Self Storage plans to
expand by an additional 32,300 SF!
A
Google search for “storage rate per person” indicates that the
appropriate rate is 7.06 sf per person. Pittsfield has 4091 people x
7.06 SF= 28,882 SF. Pittsfield currently has THREE TIMES the
required rate of storage.
Increasing the capacity of storage in Pittsfield is not prudent. We
already have three times our need. Adding additional self storage is
NOT in the best interest of Pittsfield’s growth and is NOT the
highest and best use of very visible “RT 28” property. Please
contact your selectmen, zoning board, planning board and Town
Administrator to let them know what you think! This is NOT what’s
best for Pittsfield.
Lee
Carver
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