Louisa May Alcott Monodrama – 9/30/16

EVENTS 09/12/2016 Leave a comment

The Walpole Historical Society will present Duty’s Faithful Child: A Visit With Louisa May Alcott , a monodrama written by Peter R. Nadolny and Performed by Jeanne L. Austin at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, September 30, 2016, and the Walpole Town Hall.

Famous as the author of “Little Women” and other books for young people, Louisa May Alcott was raised in the intellectual and philosophical center of Concord, Massachusetts, home of Emerson, Thoreau, and her father Amos Bronson Alcott, the leader of the Transcendental movement. Shaped by early experimental education and an untraditional family life, Alcott became a staunch supporter of abolition, women’s suffrage, and better education and employment for women.

Based on her journals and writings, the life of this remarkable woman, who supported her family from the age of seventeen, has been shaped into an exciting theatrical experience.

jeanne%20l_%20austin%20as%20louisa%20may%20alcottJeanne L. Austin, a member of Actors’ Equity Association, has played in regional, stock, and dinner theaters in roles ranging from Rosalind in As You Like It to Amanda in The Glass Menagerie. Peter R. Nadolny, a retired clinical chemist and quality assurance consultant for the medical products industry, researches and writes the monodramas for HerStory Productions, a creative partnership they formed to present the lives of our foremothers in a dramatic, interesting manner.

 

 

For further information: contact us at

http://www.walpolehistory.com or blackberryslump@gmail.com

CHRISTMAS IN SEPTEMBER AT WALPOLE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Uncategorized 09/12/2016 Leave a comment

Walpole Historical Museum Gift Shop celebrates Christmas in September! Come visit us from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday September 17th and get a head start on your holiday shopping.  Weather permitting we will be on the lawn by our roadside sign with new and sale items to tempt you for your Holiday decorating or gift giving. We have new Christmas cards and napkins from Caspari. Locally crafted note cards , ornaments & framed pictures — candles and votive candles too.

Ray Boas’ book about Walpole, Louisa May Alcott booklets written by Ray Boas – We also have books written by Louisa May Alcott for your reading pleasure- Walpole mugs and wine glasses –Walpole note cards, local honey and little bags of sweet tiny candies! Great stocking stuffers.    This year we have Dellamano painted glassware– and you must see our beautiful new scarves and beaded necklaces from Country on the Common that will give just the perfect touch to any outfit.

Come and browse our Louisa May Alcott exhibit and check out the many “Louisa” items in our gift shop as well. You are sure to find something you will want to bring home or wrap up for the perfect gift! Come to the Museum on Saturday the 17th—10am to 4pm and enjoy a Christmas cookie or two with us!!

Selectboard Meeting Minutes – 9/1/16

SELECTBOARD 09/09/2016 Leave a comment

TOWN OF WALPOLE

MEETING OF THE SELECTBOARD

SEPTEMBER 1, 2016

 

Selectboard Present:     Steven Dalessio (Chair); Peggy Pschirrer; Whitney Aldrich

CALL TO ORDER: Mr. Dalessio called this Selectboard meeting to order at 6:30 PM in the Walpole Town Hall. He advised that this meeting is being recorded and asked anyone wishing to speak to identify themselves for the record. There were three people in attendance.

 

ACCOUNTS PAYABLE:

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the Accounts Payable check register in the amount of $116,971.84 for checks dated September 2, 2016. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

PAYROLL:

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the Payroll voucher for the week ending August 27, 2016, in the amount of $25,118.63 for checks dated September 2, 2016. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the electronic fund transfer for the 941 Employer Taxes for Withholding, MEDI and FICA taxes in the amount of $5,327.17 for the week ending August 27, 2016. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

 

SELECTBOARD MEETING MINUTES:

SELECTBOARD MEETING – August 25, 2016: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the Minutes of the regular Selectboard meeting of August 25, 2016, as submitted. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the Minutes were approved.

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION #1 – August 25, 2016: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session #1 of August 25, 2016, as submitted. These Minutes will remain sealed. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the Minutes were approved.

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION #2 – August 25, 2016: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to accept the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session #2 of August 25, 2016, as submitted. These Minutes will remain sealed. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the Minutes were approved.

 

COMMITTEE REPORTS:

The Selectboard received and reviewed Minutes of the following meeting:

  • Walpole Planning Board Workshop Meeting – August 23, 2016

 

PUBLIC BUSINESS:

Mr. Bill Daher: Mr. Daher inquired about zoning requirements that would apply to his property off Route 12 if he were to consider some remodeling to a portion of his barn. It would not change the foot-print. Mr. Dalessio pointed out that it is a Commercial District so there are no restrictions. Unless the project is more than $10,000 he might not have to go before the Planning Board for Site Plan approval but it would be a neighborly gesture to have an informational consultation with the Planning Board to make them aware of his plans. It would be subject to a Building Permit from the Selectboard when the time comes.

 

SUMMARY INVENTORY OF VALUATION:

MS-1: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to approve and sign the MS-1, 2016 Summary Inventory of Valuation, document for prevue only. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

MS-IV – Walpole Fire Village District and North Walpole Village: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to allow Mrs. Sarah Downing to sign the MS-VI for the Walpole Fire Village District and the MS-IV for the North Walpole Village. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

Mr. Dalessio pointed out that the Selectboard feel the “Walpole Fire Village District” should be clarified as the “South Walpole Fire Village District”.

 

TAX ABATEMENTS:

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE, DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, Church Street / Rt. 12, Map & Lot #027-005-000: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to approve and sign the Abatement for Property Taxes for the State of New Hampshire, Department of Transportation, as they do not pay LUCT bills for property taken out of current use by eminent domain from a prior owner in the amount of $320.00. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

SONYA A. KISSEL, 1 Hogan Lane, Map & Lot #016-005-MH01: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to approve and sign the Abatement for Property Taxes for Sonya A. Kissel in the amount of $72.40 plus any interest accrued. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

 

OLD BUSINESS:

Employee and Volunteer Appreciation Picnic – Sept. 25: Mrs. Pschirrer moved to allow the Open Container Permit for the consumption of alcoholic beverages to be waived at the Employee and Volunteer Appreciation Picnic to be held on September 25, 2016, from Noon to no later than 6:00 PM. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved. .

Abatement Permission to Rescind. Mr. Dalessio advised that during the July 21, 2016, meeting the Selectboard moved that Mrs. Sarah Downing be given permission to sign all Abatements under $100.00. Mrs. Smith pointed out that in accordance with State law the Selectboard cannot allow the Manager of Administration to sign all Abatements under $100.00.

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to withdraw this approval for the Manager of Administration to approve all Abatements under $100.00 but to allow her to sign only the Water and Sewer Abatements under $100.00. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

Town Dental Coverage: Mrs. Downing reported that Ms. Melissa Hopf, Representative from the Health Trust, will be able to visit with the Selectboard to make a presentation. Mrs. Pschirrer would like to see something, in writing, preferably ahead of her visit.

Boston Post Cane: Mrs. Downing was asked to do a follow-up with Ms. Charmian Trundle to see if she is willing to be the participant of the Boston Post Cane. If so, ask her what date she would prefer to attend a Selectboard meeting at 6:15 PM. Mr. Ray Boas will be notified of this date and asked to attend to take a photo.

Building and Demolition Permit; Water and Sewer Rate Posting: Mr. Dalessio had no problems with the rates. The Building and Demolition Permit is still a work-in-progress.

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to approve posting the Water and Sewer rates. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved. .

708 Main Street: The Selectboard agreed to take this off the agenda until there is some activity on the property.  

Thornton and Associates Compensation Survey: There was a consensus of the Selectboard to not participate in this Thornton and Associates Compensation Survey as it is lengthy and a lot of it does not pertain to the Town of Walpole.

Mary McMahon – Abatement Appeal: Mrs. Pschirrer had put together a time line with some facts and figures on this Abatement. The Selectboard would like to make arrangements to set the date for the mediation for October 27, 2016.

Sewer Liens: Mrs. Edkins is working on a note regarding the Sewer Liens for the Selectboard. Mr. Dalessio would still like to schedule a meeting with Mrs. Linda Edkins, Mr. Mark Houghton and Mrs. Sandra Smith.

Revised Town Hall Rental Information and Rental Agreements: Mrs. Pschirrer had provided a list of all the not-for-profit groups. Mr. Dalessio noted that they should have the flexibility to add and subtract groups/people on the list. Scheduling of Town facilities goes through this office. Preference should be given to regular and appointed Boards. All renters must complete and sign a Rental Agreement.   The Selectboard reviewed the document for Definitions of User and Renter; Scheduling of Town Facilities; Rental Agreement and Insurance. Under Insurance, number 2, it was agreed to change “request” to “waive” insurance.

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to approve the policy on Rental Agreements for the Town of Walpole with the condition that under Insurance, number 2, that “request” be changed to “waive” insurance. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

Leases and Contracts: One more contract has been submitted to the Selectboard office. Mr. Dalessio recommended that this now be turned over to Mr. Kreissle as it is a finance function. Mrs. Pschirrer would like someone to find a copy of the Parking Lot Agreement as it comes up for renewal in 2017.

Primex Renewal – January 2017: Mr. Rich Kreissle is working on this Primex renewal.

Town Hall Handyman: This will now be taken off the Agenda as a Handyman has been hired. Quotes for various projects are being worked on.

Ramp Repair Update: This will now be taken off the agenda as a contractor has been awarded the project. Mrs. Downing will do a follow-up with Keene Construction on Friday as it needs to be repaired prior to Primary Election Day. The ramp is a handicapped requirement.

Employee Policy Handbook Update: Mrs. Pschirrer reported that the committee is meeting on September 20th to continue work on the Handbook Update.

Draft Warrant Article – Elderly Tax Exemption: The Selectboard will work on drafting a Warrant Article for the Elderly Tax Exemptions to be voted on at the next Annual Town Meeting.

Town Seal: This will be removed from the agenda until more research can be done.

 

NEW BUSINESS:

Walpole Old Home Day Funding Request: The Walpole Old Home Days activities will be held in 2017. Mr. Dalessio moved to approve the Walpole Old Home Days Committee request for $2,500.00 subject to Mr. Kreissle, Manager of Finance, reviewing his budget and making a recommendation on which budget line it will be taken from. Seconded by Mrs. Pschirrer. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

Court Appointed Special Advocates Funding Request: This request from CASA will be given to Mr. Kreissle to be put in the file for the next budget.

 

NON-PUBLIC SELECTBOARD SESSION:

Mrs. Pschirrer moved to enter into a Non-Public Selectboard Session pursuant to RSA 91-A:3 II to discuss (c) Reputations. Mr. Aldrich seconded the motion and, on a roll call vote with all in favor, the motion was approved at 7:44 PM.

The regular Selectboard meeting resumed at 7:59 PM.

Mrs. Pschirrer moved that the Minutes of the Non-Public Selectboard Session of September 1, 2016, be sealed. Seconded by Mr. Aldrich. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

RECESS SELECTBOARD MEETING:

Mr. Aldrich moved to recess this Selectboard meeting. The Selectboard will enter into a meeting as the Hooper Trustees. Seconded by Mr. Dalessio. With all in favor, the motion was approved.

The regular Selectboard meeting resumed at 8:15 PM

ADJOURNMENT:

Mr. Aldrich moved to adjourn this Selectboard meeting. Seconded by Mrs. Pschirrer. With all in favor, the meeting was adjourned at 8:16 PM.

 

Respectfully submitted,

Regina Borden, Recording Secretary

New Library Cards

Uncategorized 09/08/2016 Leave a comment

Justine Rogers wants you to know that:  “New library cards are available at the Walpole Library! Next time you’re in you’ll be able to pick one of three new card designs. Your library card number will change from a 4 digit number to a 14 digit number (as requried now by the New Hampshire State Library). If you use New Hampshire Downloadables for free e-books and audio books we’ll be able to sync your old card number with your new card number so you won’t lose any of your check outs, wish list, or holds!”

Movie Night

Uncategorized 09/08/2016 Leave a comment

movie-night

Planning Board Agenda – 9/13/16

PLANNING BOARD, Uncategorized 09/08/2016 Leave a comment

Very important note included with the agenda from Marilou Blaine: “According to Gus the lobster in Maine, we are going to have six more weeks of summer.”  Sounds good to me! – Lil

WALPOLE PLANNING BOARD AGENDA

TOWN HALL

(Downstairs because of voting)

Tuesday, September 13, 2016

                       7 pm                           

 

Roll Call – Appointment of alternates if needed

Minutes – Review minutes of the August meeting and workshop meeting.

 

Old Business:                      

Voluntary Merger – Sidney Craven, Map 22, Lots 16, 100 North Road LLC transferred.

 

New Business:

 Attached is a preliminary draft of a boundary line adjustment Lewis Jeffrey wants to do with his father’s property on Old Keene Road and Hooper Road.  The deed describes two tracts and it is believed the two homes shown on the plan were supposed to be on the tracts.  One home on each tract.  The smaller tract is described incorrectly which puts both homes on the larger tract.  Lewis is trying to settle his father’s estate and wants to sell both tracts but needs to clean up the deeds before he can do so.  Does this need PB approval in your opinions?  And since the smaller tract is non-conforming will we need a zoning variance?  My opinion is no because it is pre-existing.

 

Next meeting Tuesday, October 11, 2016.

 

The Great Story

Uncategorized 09/08/2016 1 Comment

My apologies to Virginia Carter.  When I did the first post, I neglected to include the time of the movie.  The program is Friday, September 9 from 7:00 – 9:00.  So sorry for the confusion.  I appreciate those who showed me the “error of my ways”! – Lil

CYNTHIA REEVES Exhibits

Uncategorized 09/07/2016 Leave a comment

mulhern-1
Michael Mulhern, OV2 – 45th Road, 2002, oil on canvas, 78 x 80 inches

MICHAEL MULHERN
RENDERING THE UNTHINKABLE: ARTISTS RESPOND TO 9/11
9/11 Memorial & Museum, New York City

(New York, New York) The National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center in New York City opens a new exhibition entitled Rendering the Unthinkable: Artists Respond to 9/11, on September 12, featuring seminal, mural-sized works from the estate of New York artist Michael Mulhern (1940 – 2012). Each provides a very personal narrative around the national tragedy and its aftermath, both for viewers and for members of our national community, as we all continue to process its reverberative effects.

Jan Ramirez, the Museum’s Chief Curator, met recently with gallerist Cynthia Reeves, who represents Michael Mulhern‘s estate. Ramirez and Reeves reflected on the artist, the genesis of his work, and the curatorial narrative now, more than a decade after the attack. They especially addressed the life and times of the late Michael Mulhern in vivid detail, as the narrative around his seminal Ash Road Paintings series is a living tribute to the victims.

On the morning of September 11, Mulhern was in his studio on the 9th floor of a Cedar Street building, directly across from the Towers. When they came down, the windows along the façade of his building shattered. The tremendous onrush of air brought with it a tidal wave of ash and detritus. Feet upon feet of gray ash enveloped him and his workspace. With tremendous presence of mind, he grabbed the respirator he used in the studio, and felt his way along the walls until he reached the bath where he was able to shut himself in and wait. He had no idea if the City was under attack, and if so, how much more was to come. Hours passed. He finally felt his way out to the stairwell, and got out on to the street and, like all other New Yorkers that day, began walking through the thick, swirling air.

mulhern-2Michael Mulhern, Ash Road 6/45, 2003, black and aluminum painton gessoed paper, 106 x 111 inches

For several years prior, Mulhern’s work had been centered on a strict monochromatic palette of black, white and gray, often incorporating aluminum paint. He found a tremendous range in this stark spectrum, often referencing them as “color paintings” in spite of their lack of color. Highly influenced by the New York Abstract Expressionist movement in the 1960’s, Mulhern’s surfaces were heavily marked by pooling paint, drips and curves, paintings of tremendous vibrancy and depth and nuance. In the years immediately following September 11, Mulhern decamped to a temporary studio in Long Island City, where he began experimenting with paints from his Cedar Street studio – paints mixed and infused with the ash from the lost Trade Towers. In his words, the paintings became more “severe”, and Reeves agrees: “They have a power and force that distinguish them from prior works. Many have a roiling dynamism that one cannot help but equate with the events of that day”.

Mulhern had a very personal connection to the towers and felt he could “reach out and touch the south tower” and he got to know the office workers across the way in Four World Trade Center, who would watch him at work in the studio. “It was like having an audience”, he recalled, “but we got used to each other.”

Chief Curator Jan Ramirez is responsible for archiving the personal stories of courage, loss and resilience from the events of 9/11, and this exhibition is a next step in bringing those stories alive in new ways, through the lens of thirteen select artists with firsthand experience of these events. This exhibition is a departure from the tasks that have absorbed much of her time thus far as Curator at the Museum — the artifacts, images and recorded sounds that defined that transformative day. The Museum is open daily 9:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. For more information, please visit online at: http://www.911memorial.org
Michael Mulhern was born in Paisley, Scotland in 1940. He attended the Newark School of Fine and Industrial Arts in Newark, NJ and then continued his fine art education at the Brooklyn Museum Art School in Brooklyn, NY. He began exhibiting in the early 1960s, and continued showing work consistently over forty years, through the mid- 2000’s, before he retired in Maine to be near his family. Notably, Mulhern had exhibitions in New York City at CYNTHIA-REEVES, The Drawing Center, The Painting Center, Stephen Haller Gallery, and at Exit Art. The upcoming book by Exit Art acknowledges his contribution to their exhibition history. Mulhern was the recipient of two Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grants, a National Endowment for the Arts painting fellowship, and a Gottlieb Foundation Grant.

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

UPCOMING/ ONGOING EXHIBITIONS

SHEN CHEN, CYNTHIA-REEVES, The Barn at 28 Main Street, Walpole, NH – On view through October 22

LIONEL SMIT, ECHO, CYNTHIA-REEVES, 1315 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA – On view through September 25

LIONEL SMIT, MORPHOUS, (2014), Union Square, New York City – On view through April 2017

BETH GALSTON, 1315 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA – October 1 – November 13

 
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CYNTHIA-REEVES represents an international roster of established artists who share a process-apparent sensibility in their art. We are committed to artwork that demonstrates an authentic voice, an innovative use of materials and an appreciation of the mark in diverse media: site-based installation, video, sculpture, painting and works on paper.

A sub-text to the gallery’s program is artwork that celebrates the convergence of art and science, as well as our relationship to the natural world – a discourse essential to the examination of contemporary art and culture within the context of these broader challenges.

Please refer to the gallery’s News and Events tab on our website for the latest information concerning our exhibitions, public art initiatives, and art fair schedule. You can find additional information and images on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. As always, we look forward to connecting with you at our galleries, public art events, and at the art fairs, and continuing in the conversation around the artists we so respect and admire.

cynthia-reeves.com call: 212.714.0044 email: info@cynthia-reeves.com

 

 

The Great Story Showing – 9/7/16 – 7-9PM

Uncategorized 09/07/2016 Comments: 2

“The Great Story,” a 49-minute film on the sacred story of the universe as a “cosmic liturgy,” in the words of the late Thomas Berry, a pioneer in the field of spirituality and ecology. He reminds us that “the entire natural world: mountains, rivers, birds, fish, and all living beings are not a collection of objects, but a communion of subjects.”

There will be time for a discussion following the film lead by Rev. Kitsy Winthrop.

No charge. All are welcome, of all ages.

Note: Hastings is NOT handicapped accessible, but there are two handicapped off-street parking spaces directly in front of the building if you arrive early.

Hastings House is on Union St., Walpole, behind the Walpole Unitarian Church on Main St. (the church with the clock in the steeple tower).

Uncategorized 09/06/2016 Leave a comment

 

TOWN OF WALPOLE

CONSERVATION COMMISSION

 

NOTICE

 

 

Due to the Labor Day holiday, the next meeting of the Walpole

 

Conservation Commission is scheduled for Monday, September

 

12, 2016, at 7:30 PM in the Town Hall Downstairs Office.