Minutes of the Stratham Heritage Commission
Tuesday, 12 June 2007
EOC room, Municipal Building

APPROVED AT THE JULY MEETING

OPENING BUSINESS

Members present: Becky Mitchell, chair; Bev Connolly, Nancy Hansen, Sara L. Kellner, Pete Wiggin, MJ Werner, members; Kirk Scamman, visitor.

Meeting: The meeting was opened at 6:35 and was adjourned at 8:20 pm

Minutes: The minutes of 8 May were approved as written. Minutes taken by secretary, Nancy L. Hansen.

Next meeting: Tuesday, 10 July, 6:30pm EOC room, Municipal Center

TREASURY REPORT
Town budget: Expenses processed in May were $32.99 for supplies; $.66 for postage; and $515 for engraving in the Veterans’ Garden: Remaining balance--$5759.37.
Heritage Fund: Heritage Commission’s fund balance last month was $2168.22; Stevens’ fund (SF) balance $207.12. There were no expenses, but interest accrued (no report received by HC).

OLD BUSINESS:
Rules of Procedure: Bev Connolly reduced the document to two pages; members reviewed the final changes and voted to approve it with the following changes in the Funding section: #2 shall read: “Reimbursement for expenditures shall require submission of a written request with documentation to the Chair prior to expenditure, receiving approval for the expense from a majority of voting members, and submission of receipts to the Town for payment to the individual.” AND, #3: “A petty cash amount, to be determined annually at the December meeting, shall be held by the Treasurer for general operating expenses.”
Historical Resources Survey: Becky reported that she and Sara will visit the Division of Historical Resources (DHR) in Concord on Wednesday (13 June) and continue to scan files of surveys completed previously in Stratham, and, while there, the chair will visit with the state historic society librarian for possible additional early maps and information about Stratham. The chair also reported speaking with Lynne Emerson Monroe, Preservation Company, re the HC’s next step in the process. Monroe recommended that we hire a database manager to develop one for the survey material gathered. The chair asked for possible names and will contact for referrals Andrea Lewy of the Town Offices, the Division of Historical Resources, Bob Mitchell (Stratham resident and computer specialist), and possibly UNH. Work to be funded from the $3500 available in our Town budget.
Planning Board: MJ Werner reported no relevant news at this time.
Zoning Board Subcommittee: The chair (as representative to this committee looking re-zoning of the commercial zone from the Stratham line to the new police station) asked if members had any ideas for her to bring to the next meeting. The following were suggested:

(see following page)

Suggestions for re-zoning, concluded:
--Increase water and sewer, so that denser commercial development may proceed.
--Increase the depth of the commercial development away from the artery to help buffer the strip.
--Locate landscaping and parking so that one, huge parking lot is not was faces the road as drivers enter the area (make it a more pleasant experience, more aesthetic).
--Insure that a variety of services are included among the retail coverage, so that the area becomes more than just a “shopping” mall/strip.
--Install secondary roads to disperse traffic away from Route 108.
--Put a cap on the area to stop the spread of the commercial zone any further along Rtes 108 and 33.
Master Plan: Members continued to review and make recommendations for change/no change to sections relevant to the HC. It was suggested that the booklet “Preserving Community Character” be the driving force behind any changes. Bev Connolly volunteered to rewrite (p 7-29), with documentation, several sections: section 5.1 Brief History after collaboration with the Historical Society; restructure section 5.2 National Register of Historic Places Designation with a new title, addition of the Demolition Review process, removal of the Union Rd/Winnicut references, and including the survey’s 80 properties; and, utilizing the 2005 revision, move Section 5.3 Archeological Sites to immediately follow the brief history section. The goal is to bring consistency and accuracy to these portions of the Master Plan. The chair asked members, during the next month, to review section 6.6 Historic and Archaeological Resources for discussion at the July meeting. It was briefly discussed that the HC might obtain PR about our work with the Master Plan by inviting residents to our meetings for discussion. Bev Connolly will pursue this possibility.

Other Old Business--Veterans: Nancy Hansen reported that, for the Memorial Day services, seven bricks and 3 monument engravings were completed ($515) in the Veterans’ Garden.

NEW BUSINESS

New Participants: The chair reported two new participants to the Heritage Commission: a third alternate, Flossy Wiggin (2007-10) and volunteer, Pat Thiesen (no term) who will join the team working on the historical survey. She mentioned that Mary Hardeman might join that effort as well in the future.

New Contact List: The secretary handed out an updated list of members, alternates, and volunteers (it is attached).

Minutes’ Additional Public Notice: The chair asked the secretary to discuss with the Wiggin library staff the possibility of posting our minutes on the website and altering the listing on the home page to include the Heritage Commission.

Summer Meetings: Those present decided to meet in July, as usual, but not to meet in August so as to allow those with writing assignments to complete them for presentation at the September meeting.

Other New Business: Pete Wiggin shared an article “Hats Off to the Men Who Tore Down Portsmouth” from the NH Gazette (6-1-07), which relates to Portsmouth’s preservation efforts.

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