Week of Feb. 21-27, 2009 [02/28/2009]

Saturday, February 21 The long-delayed, $65.2 million southern leg of the Route 16 bypass is included in the state Department of Transportation's list of projects eligible for funding in the $167 billion economic stimulus bill signed into law by President Obama as part of his plan to help restart the nation's economy. Just one month after placing in the top 10 in all four events at the Junior 2 Alpine Nationals in Aspen, Colo., 18-year-old Devin Delaney, of North Conway, has been selected to represent the United States on an even bigger stage. On Wednesday, she was one of 14 athletes named by the U.S. Ski Team to compete in the Alpine World Junior Championships in Germany beginning Feb. 28. The county nursing home is gearing up to put more seniors into beds next year, a marketing drive being hailed by lawmakers for elevating 2009 revenue forecasts. Former mental patient Michael Cheney was hit with a 13-count indictment over an alleged December rampage that began with the rape a Wakefield woman and ended in Tamworth after a police pursuit. Thirteen Kennett High seniors were recently recognized in Concord at the 22nd annual N.H. High School Women's Athletic/Academic Awards. A special ceremony was held at the Capitol Center for the Arts, with N.H. Gov. John Lynch attending. A man police say donned a ski mask this fall to steal $48,000 worth of prescription narcotics from Rite Aid in North Conway has been indicted on four felonies. An inmate tried to hang himself with a sheet but untied the bedding from his neck as officers arrived, a top jail officer said.Monday, February 23 Men are rallying together to educate other men in Mount Washington Valley on the issue of domestic violence. A committee has been formed in affiliation with Starting Point, a local non-profit organization that serves victims of domestic and sexual abuse, and as part of the the national Men's White Ribbon Campaign starting up in April. The budget committee is recommending a school budget that is somewhere in between the school board's proposal and the default budget. The committee voted last Monday to trim the school board's proposed 2009-10 budget of $32,896,609 by roughly $134,000, to $32,762,609. Both numbers will appear on the school warrant. The default budget, which will kick in if the higher numbers are rejected, $32,562,169. The idea of user fees for students who participate in co-curricular sports, clubs and other groups at the Kennett High School and Kennett Middle School has been put on hold for the time being. The county wants to feel the flow of federal stimulus dollars, even if if means knocking on doors in Concord. Tuesday, February 24 A big turnout is expected at Conway selectmen's meeting Tuesday following last week's vote by selectmen to not recommend town funding for Starting Point, a local non-profit organization that serves victims of domestic and sexual violence. In the aftermath of the selectmen's vote not to recommend town funding for Starting Point: Services for Victims of Domestic and Sexual Violence, concerned residents have formed a group on social networking site Facebook.com to help spread awareness about domestic violence and hopefully generate voter support for the organization's funding request. Bill Denley's third drunk driving arrest may earn the former state senator a mandatory stint in jail after police busted him Friday night on Route 109 in his hometown of Wakefield with a high blood alcohol level. An effort to streamline nursing home funding across New Hampshire has degenerated in Carroll County into a half-million dollar mess.Wednesday, February 25 The possibility of implementing a student pay-to-park program at the Kennett High School now rests in the hands of the Conway School Board's transportation and maintenance committees, which will also be looking at the possibility of expanding parking on the Redstone campus. Students, however, may have found a creative and quick solution to the parking woes. The trial of former punk rocker Dale Bozzio on animal cruelty charges begins in Ossipee. Many Republicans are waiting on failed gubernatorial contender Joe Kenney to declare whether he'll run for a crucial state Senate vacated by his neighbor, fallen Wakefield lawyer Bill Denley. Filing period for town and school offices begins in Conway Wednesday morning, and at least two incumbents school board member Justin Frechette and selectman Mark Hounsell are not planning to seek reelection.Thursday, February 26 Despite an outpouring of resident support for Starting Point: Services for Victims of Domestic and Sexual Violence, the Conway Board of Selectmen stands by its decision not to recommend funding for the non-profit organization. Former U.S. Congressman Jeb Bradley is "heavily weighing" a high-stakes run at the state Senate seat left vacant this weekend after the arrest of Republican William Denley on drunk-driving charges, GOP sources said Wednesday. Larry Martin signed up for another three-year term as Conway selectman on the opening day of candidate filing for town and school offices. After 30 years of public service, selectman and former N.H. State Senator Mark Hounsell says he's stepping aside. Two North Conway men apparently had a falling out after allegedly conspiring to defraud an insurance company. Prosecutors say Luke Sullivan, 21, was in cahoots with Burton Tainter, 40, when Sullivan falsely reported to USAA Insurance on June 29 that his 2003 Subaru Impreza was stolen. A renewed recycling effort at the county-government level is already resulting in taxpayer savings.Friday, February 27 Selectman Crow Dickinson offered an apology Thursday for his controversial comment about domestic abuse, but two members of Starting Point, the local agency that provides services for victims of domestic violence, don't think Dickinson was contrite enough at a selectmen's meeting on Tuesday. They also feel that selectmen as a whole failed to recognize or acknowledge the damaging consequences of Dickinson's comments. Droves of men are too ashamed to admit abuse at the hands of women they love. Many fear that reporting it means losing wives, kids and homes, or getting carted off to jail by a system geared toward women, men's advocates say. A Conway selectman's crowing about domestic violence has sounded alarms around the country. The Conway School District is the proud owner of a ski jump. The school board voted unanimously (7-0) to accept the Kennett Company's offer of 5.14 acres of land on the Kancamagus Highway, where the jump has resided since 1960.