DURHAM — Voters will choose municipal officers Friday and act on a 43-article warrant Saturday during the annual Town Meeting.
Joseph Roy and Heather Roy are running for two seats on the Board of Selectmen for three years.
Allan Purinton and Milton Simon are candidates for three three-year Budget Committee seats and Phyllis Brannon is seeking a one-year seat.
Danielle George and Carrisa Stone are competing for a three-year seat on the Regional School Unit 5 board of directors.
For the municipal budget, selectmen recommend $4.48 million, a 6.24% increase from last year. The Budget Committee recommends $4.43 million, or a 5.05% increase.
For the public works capital reserve account, selectmen recommend $100,000, which is more than double the $49,000 appropriated last year. The committee recommends raising an even $50,000.
Voters will be asked to:
• Transfer $50,000 from the public works capital reserve for replacing culverts.
• Appropriate $105,000 from the town’s allotment of the American Rescue Plan for a new plow truck.
• Appropriate $50,000 in federal pandemic relief money for exhaust removal equipment at the Fire Station.
• Raise and appropriate $60,000 for property assessing/revaluation reserves.
• Transfer $60,000 from fire department capital reserves for the rapid response vehicle and $32,800 for a generator.
• Transfer $125,000 from federal funds for the Quint firetruck refurbishing project.
Voters will decide on two amendments to the Land Use Ordinance. One change would revise the resource protection district criteria and boundary to align with the 2018 comprehensive plan recommendations and correct mapping based on inaccurate floodplain data. The other would clarify public road maintenance responsibilities and require voter approval to accept any road for maintenance.
Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday at the Eureka Center at 606 Hollowell Road. The town meeting will be held 9 a.m. Saturday at the Durham Community School.
Send questions/comments to the editors.