Friday, december 2, 2011
VOL. 12 NO. 130
LacONia, N.H.
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High lights Laconia firefighters JP Hobby (left) and Jason Griffin repair broken electrical lines and bulbs on the city’s Christmas tree at Veterans Square on Thursday. Their vantage point when this picture was taken was about 60 feet off the ground. Chief Ken Erickson said making the tree presentable for the holidays was a joint venture between his department, Public Works and Parks & Recreation. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Adam Drapcho)
Political rock star Ron Paul doesn’t disappoint during stop at Belknap Mill By Michael Kitch THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
LACONIA — The capacity crowd rose as one to applaud last night when Ron Paul, the Texas physician turned politician, brought his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination to the Belknap Mill last night. While his rivals’ fortunes rise and fall amid a cacophony of gaffes and exposes as voters scramble for an alternative to Mitt Romney, Paul enjoys the most committed and enthusiastic following of any candidate in the field. A staffer offered an array of buttons bearing the congressman’s likeness to everyone stepping through the door. And, after fielding questions for the better part of an hour, Paul took to a corner of the room as supporters were invited to file past and have their picture taken with him. Fuel Oil OIL & PROPANE CO., INC. Consistency is the hallmark 10 day cash price* Laconia 524-1421 subject to change see PaUL page 9
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Gilford BudCom finds little to dislike about flat $23M school budget plan By Gail OBer
THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
GILFORD — The full Budget Committee got its first look at the proposed 2012-13 school budget, which is down from current level by nearly $300,000, or about 1.1-percent. Superintendent Kent Hemingway said his initial request to the Gilford School Board was about $30,000 less that this year’s budget and he was told to go back to the drawing table and reduce it even further. In his presentation, he said the School Board reviewed the final proposal of $23, 039,181 “with considerable scrutiny” and generally, Budget Committee members seemed happy with the first look. That the School Board was able to reduce the dollar amount of the budget despite $680,748 worth of non-negotiable expense increases — including health
insurance increases, reduced state contributions to technical student tuition’s and fuel increases — was not lost on the Budget Committee. The proposed budget eliminates 6.5 positions and, according to Hemingway, will invovle at least two part-time people losing their jobs. The rest of the staff reductions were reached through attrition. Hemingway also noted that with the retirement of three long-time top administrators — the former superintendent and the old high and elementary school principals — and replacing them with less experienced and lower paid people, the district was able to realize considerable salary savings. The School Board also chose to delay the needed boiler replacements at the high school but both Business Adminissee GiLfOrd page 9