BLUE INDIA

Bill Tallmage of Lemington and his brother Norm, who lives just across the road, have taken a liking to peafowls and over the last year purchased several as a new hobby. Bill has a beautiful peacock that he calls Blue, named after his breed, the Blue India. Blue struts his stuff every morning and evening, spreading his plumage out to a span of eight feet to impress potential mates. (Claire Lynch photo)

Sparked by what they term "serious concerns" about Coös County's administration of the unincorporated places, Mills-field residents will meet with county officials on Monday, May 19 to discuss a laundry list of issues.

They include a multimillion-dollar deal with Noble Environmental Power to erect power-generating wind turbines in Millsfield, Odell and Dixville; real estate and timber taxes; and spending the unincorporated places' surplus funds on renovations and an addition at the nursing hospital. Residents will also address the possibility of Millsfield's incorporation.

At their annual meeting on March 12, Millsfield voters unanimously approved hiring legal representation in their bid to either incorporate as a town, or to join the nearby unincorporated towns of Dixville and Odell in incorporating. This move came in response to a feeling that Millsfield residents lack a voice in county government, said selectman Wayne Urso.

"We have seen $450,000 in the surplus of the unincorporated places taken by the county already," he wrote in a March 20 letter to Commissioner Burn-ham Judd of Pittsburg. "It is our position that if the county had no problem in taking $450,000 for county spending, they will have no problem in taking money raised via the wind farms for county spending. In short, the people of Millsfield are repeatedly told that locally raised taxes are not allowed to be controlled in any way by the citizens of Millsfield, and that the county can do whatever the county wants in the spending of those monies."

According to N.H. Represen-tative Eric Stohl, the Millsfield residents have legitimate concerns. There is some confusion, however, over governance of the unincorporated places, which by state law is in the hands of the county commission, he said. The county budget is controlled by its delegation, of which Rep. Stohl is a voting member, and unincorporated places' board of selectmen exist solely to administer its voting procedures.

Mr. Stohl said he agrees with the Millsfield residents concerning the withdrawal of funds for the CCNH project, which he as a delegate had voted against. Rep. Stohl had asked for a study to be conducted first, criticizing county administrator Sue Collins for using $450,000 in surplus funds from the unincorporated places for the project.

He also questioned an additional $75,000 taken specifically from Dixville and Millsfield funds for use by Noble Environmental Power to conduct a study on upgrading the electrical transmission lines of Coös County. The expenditure can not be justified. "You can spend their money if it's for them, but it's not for them," he said. "It's for everybody in Coös County."

Coös County Commissioners have agreed to an assessed value of $84 million for Millsfield's portion of the wind farm, Mr. Urso said, explaining that a valuation on a wind farm is customarily based on the electricity that is generated; the same wind farms in New York have no valuation, he stated in a letter to the commissioners.

cording to Rep. Stohl, each wind turbine will be valued at about $3.1 million, bringing in a half million in county taxes each year. "That will put the unincorporated towns on the top-ten list as the most valuable towns in Coös County," he said.

In an e-mail to this paper, Mr. Urso wrote, "Millsfield, because of the tax deal and the valuation, is on the hook for an additional $84 million in valuation. So if the electricity anticipated is far greater than the electricity generated, or if the county grabs money from the line item, the few residents of Millsfield have to come up with the taxes for the additional $84 million in valuation."

As far as the county spending is concerned, in both cases the money is to be reimbursed, said Ms. Collins: the renovations over the long term by additional Medicaid funding specifically for that purpose, and the transmission line study from the first year's payment in lieu of taxes by Noble Environmental Power.

For more than 20 years, Ms. Collins said, the county administration has been keeping the books for the unincorporated places free of charge, beginning when Rep. Fred King of Colebrook was the superintendent in 1988. "For all these years of service, it is only fair that they pay for the administration," she said. She explained that at the time of the withdrawal, there was $1.4 million in surplus funding.

The unincorporated places are benefiting from the renovations, she said, with office space specifically for their administration. She has given up her position as the nursing hospital administrator, as her retirement is planned for the years ahead, and has officially taken on the position as the unincorporated places' administrator, she said.

The May 19 meeting is set to take place at the Log Haven Restaurant in Millsfield. In addition to county officials, both sides' legal representation will also be there: Jon Frizzell of Waystack Frizzell in Colebrook for the county, and Charles Douglas of Douglas, Leonard & Garvey, P.C., in Concord, on behalf of the residents of Millsfield.

The county commissioners denied a request that Attorney Douglas' estimated $20,000 in fees also be paid by the Mills-field revenue, as the expense was not previously approved during the preparation of the 2008 budget, nor was it part of the public hearing on the budget held on December 8, 2007.

According to Mr. Urso, the services of Attorney Douglas are currently being paid by residents' private funds. They include an investigation into what services the unincorporated towns have received, in addition to charges taken from contingency accounts used in the event of emergencies, property tax abatements, state education taxes, county taxes, regular education taxes, welfare, ambulance coverage, solid waste, bridges and roads, fire protection, dispatch services, N.H. State Police coverage, forest ranger services from the Division of Forest and Lands, planning and zoning, cemeteries and general government.

(Issue of May 7, 2008)

CIRCULAR FUN

Stewartstown Community School students and faculty welcomed science education consultant Everett Frizzell last Wednesday morning, for a presentation on magnetism. Using a variety of hands-on demonstrations, he illustrated the properties and uses of magnets. Michaella Biron is seen here holding a round metal track, inside which a magnetic wheel spins as Mr. Frizzell looks on. (Alan Farnsworth photo)

The public is invited to an evening presentation for North Country families, on how to protect themselves and their kids on-line. The Pittsburg Police Department is hosting the event, at 6 p.m. on Monday, May 12 at the Pittsburg School.

The guest speaker is Roland Cloutier, vice-president and chief security officer for EMC Corporation, the world leader in information infrastructure and security management based in Hopkinton, Mass. He will address topics ranging from cyber fraud and identity theft to protecting children from on-line predators.

A New Hampshire native, Mr. Cloutier brings nearly 20 years of combined federal law enforcement, commercial security, and international cyber-investigation experience to the North Country in an effort to promote on-line safety in one of the fastest Internet growth areas in the state--a direct result of expanding telecommunication infrastructure previously not available in the area. Parents will learn about technologies such as on-line chat, instant-messaging (IM), Web 2.0, and other tools to help them better understand the threats, and how to protect themselves from danger lurking on the Internet.

The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) is a collaborative effort among experts in the security, non-profit, academic and government fields to teach consumers, small businesses and members of the education community about Inter-net security. The NCSA aims to increase awareness about the risks associated with using Internet technologies and how to help protect against them, while also providing free tips, checklists and best practices for remaining safe while on-line.

More information about the May 12 event, which is free and open to all North Country residents, may be obtained by calling Pittsburg police chief Richard Lapoint, at 538-7003.

(Issue of April 30, 2008)

FEATURED ARTIST

Pittsburg senior Nicole Jeralds presented a full art installation at the third annual Regional High School Art Show, held this year at Pittsburg School on Friday, May 2. Nicole presented a large selection of her work using several media including paintings, photos, and living pieces. Nicole won two awards that evening, including highest honors for the art installation. She will attend the New Hampshire Art Institute in Manchester this fall, and her work, along with that of other award recipients from Friday night's show, will be on display at the Interpretive Center in Colebrook throughout the month. (Claire Lynch photo)

The Beecher Falls Clinic, operated by physician's assistant Mary Judd of Colebrook and Dr. Clif Chapin of Columbia, is set to open on May 16 at 141 Main Street in Colebrook. The interior of the former Alzheimer's Health Care Service and Newman Funeral Home has been undergoing renovation as a temporary site to get the clinic going, but it will later move north to an as-yet-undetermined location in Beecher Falls.

An open house for the public, including a tour of the building and refreshments, will be held on Thursday, May 15 from 1 to 4 p.m. The clinic will be a family practice, said PA Judd, with internal medicine as her and Dr. Chapin's specialties. The clinic will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday. Appointments may be made starting on May 16 by calling 237-5007, or at the open house.

(Issue of May 7, 2008)

CAUGHT IN A RUNDOWN

Stratford's Alex Couture got caught in a pickle between third and home against the Eagles on Friday, trying to score on a shot to right field by Brendan Lynch. Couture was halfway to the plate when Canaan catcher Connor Daley got the throw, seen here tossing it to third baseman Jake Smith as Stratford's Robert Sullivan changes direction back to second. (Karen Ladd photo)