The Official Amherst Voter Recap

Town of Amherst

 (Find amendments here)

The big issue this year is the decision to purchase available land to use as future recreation fields. The town will on Cemetery Fields in 2014, and the Board of Selectmen are asking voters to support buying a 6.5 acre plot of land near Route 101 for $180,000. Amherst Recreation is supporting the purchase, but some residents

Road maintenance continues to be a factor in town with the continuing road bond to reconstruct town roads. A warrant article is  to help the town catch up on road maintenance to prevent future spending.

The proposed operating budget for the next fiscal year is $11,095.396, with the default budget set at $10,853,361 if voters vote down this budget. The Amherst Citizens Association said in their voter's guide that they oppose the operating budget because the board did not do enough to cut spending/

The race for two seats on the Board of Selectmen has gotten interesting this year with the addition of former WMUR personality . Incumbents and are seeking re-election this year and say that they will continue to balance the needs of the town with taxpayer burden. Sherman is running as a "tax fighter," and has accused his rivals of being part of a "good old boy" network of town politicians and employees that are spending too much. He ran into trouble recently after during a candidate's forum.

There are also for library and cemetery trustees.

Souhegan Cooperative School District

Warrant

Souhegan High School is looking for $2,930,701 in bonds for renovation, repair and replacement of the roof, HVAC system, paving and interior locking. This is in response to the  presented by Gale Associates, Inc.

The interest cost for FY13 would be $50,066, with the total interest of the bond totalling $487,777.

The total proposed budget for the school district is $18,550,794, and the default budget has been set to $18,378,827.

Three candidates, , and , are all eyeing seats on the Souhegan Cooperative School Board.

Amherst School District

Warrant

Voters will decide on a between the Amherst School Board and the Amherst Support Staff Association. The three-year agreement would increase salaries and benefits by $14,173 in the next fiscal year. There would be an increase of $41,729 in the next fiscal year, and $45,770 the following year.

In their operating budget, the Amherst School Board addressed over $900,000 in  with cuts and higher revenues, specifically from the  at Clark Elementary School.

Their proposed budget is  $24,493,507, with the default budget calculated at $24,245,571.

(Voters can fill out their ballots at Souhegan Cooperative High School from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m.)

Opinions and additional information can be found in our