N.H. House moves along notable bills

Last week, there was a flurry of activity among New Hampshire lawmakers, with the Senate and House sending along several bills to each other. Global warming, marijuana, text messaging and negligent hiking were among the issues addressed by the House and that will now be taken up by the New Hampshire Senate.

House Bill 1434 commits New Hampshire to a 10-state regional effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions. Approved 214-107, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative would allow New Hampshire to adopt its own laws and regulations to reduce carbon emissions from power plants. The bill would also establish an energy conservation and efficiency board.

Another bill passing from the House to the Senate is a 10-year, $2.3 billion highway plan, which would shift focus from new construction to projects that would improve existing roads and fix troubled bridges. Under the bill, 89 red-list bridges would be replaced or fixed over 10 years. Also, sections of Interstate 93 would be given priority. Memorial Bridge in Portsmouth and the widening of the Spaulding Turnpike would also be given priority.

The house voted 193-141 in favor of reducing the penalty on possession of small amounts of pot. Residents found with one-quarter ounce or less of marijuana would no longer face jail time, though they would still be subject to a $200 fine. Under the current law, possessing any amount of marijuana could mean spending a year in jail and paying a $2,000 fine. Although Governor Lynch has already promised to veto the bill if it reaches him, supporters argue that the current law penalizes youthful mistakes in an unjust way.

Texting, however, may soon become a crime. New Hampshire lawmakers have taken a step toward outlawing text messaging while driving by passing House Bill 1222. The bill against such texting covers typing on cell phones, laptop computers and any other electronic device. If the bill passes the Senate and becomes law, violators could be fined $100.

Negligent hikers also could be subject to strict penalties under another bill headed to the Senate. Hikers, who get lost in the woods and have to be rescued, could lose their driver’s, fishing and hunting licenses, if they don’t pay the cost of their own rescue. The House Fish and Game Committee says that negligence led to a number of search-and-rescue missions last year, which cost the state nearly $42,000.

The House also voted to adjust the EZ Pass system. Users will have more time to pay fines, which should reduce the number of people at risk of arrest or license suspension. And charter schools in New Hampshire will receive more aid, if a bill passed by the House passes the Senate as well.

Finally, the House passed a pair of bills to pay for major dock repairs and improvements at the Rye and Portsmouth harbors, and to bring the New Hampshire Port Authority under full control of the Pease Development Center.

town and trust hope to preserve land

The Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire is in a race to raise funds toward the purchase of two significant parcels of land in Rye. Owners of the property have given the trust until March 28 to make its bid. “Right now, we have about $94,000 left to raise,” said Brian Hart, executive director of SLTNH. An anonymous donor has promised to match up to $47,000, if the trust can raise the rest.  

The two properties include 72 acres of the Awcomin Marsh and 12 acres of Massacre Marsh, representing important wildlife habitat. Awcomin Marsh has been recognized as a reference marsh because of its relatively undisturbed nature.

“It has been impacted, but not to the level of others,” Hart said. When considering marsh restoration projects, state agencies and conservation organizations look at Awcomin as an example of a properly functioning marsh. 

Right now, five-sixths of the Awcomin Marsh property is in private hands, with the remaining one-sixth owned by the town of Rye. If SLTNH is able to purchase the land, they will own the five-sixths, while the town will retain ownership of its portion. The trust would be in charge of managing the parcel, and public access would be a priority. Three hundred feet of frontage along Route 1A would be used as a public viewing area and educational center.

Massacre Marsh is also a high priority area for conservation because of the quality of its wildlife habitat, Hart said. He explained that Rye has done a good job of protecting most of the marsh, but a small section has been left exposed to development. The trust hopes to purchase a 12-acre parcel, six acres of which would be located upland from the actual marsh. According to Hart, upland areas are critical to the overall health of a marsh. “Plus, it’s just a beautiful piece of property,” Hart said, describing the parcel’s interesting topography, red oak trees and stone walls.

The Massacre Marsh property is adjacent to land owned by the town on Brackett Road. If the deal goes through, SLTNH will hold an easement, but Rye will own the property. The town’s conservation commission has supported the use of $40,000 of town funds to go toward the purchase.

If the Massacre Marsh deal is approved, it would be “helping to protect the integrity of existing conservation land and enhancing the effects of that through buffering against development. Also, it will allow the town and conservation community to better protect against invasive species. For the town of Rye and its residents, it would add to the existing recreational opportunities there,” Hart said.

More information about SLTNH properties and donations is online at www.seltnh.org.

pay and dismay for Portsmouth parking

The level of animosity may vary, but public opinion is definitively tilting against aspects of Portsmouth’s new pay and display parking meter system. But for the city, the extra revenue the system is generating may be well worth the headache.
The transportation department’s online survey reflected 119 negative and 24 positive responses to the new system as of March 21, and interviews  of hurried customers of the Worth lot on Tuesday, March 18, mirrored the frustration expressed to the city over the past few months.

“It’s the worst idea ever, it’s freezing cold. I’m not sure what good will come of it,” said Karen McCarthy.

“I don’t like it, and here’s my main beef. It wouldn’t be a bad idea if you are parking for a long period of time. But if you just want to run into a store...,” said Jim Diroma.

“This doesn’t seem to fit the bill... They need to consider the effect this has on older folks, or larger families,” said David Ludd, co-owner of Somnia.

In September 2007, the city replaced 110 traditional parking meters with seven pay-and-display parking kiosks. The meter exchange took place in the Worth parking lot, and alongside Bow and Pleasant Street, for a one-year trial period.

Drivers pay at the kiosk with either coins or a credit/debit card, then return to their cars and place a receipt showing time paid on the dashboard.

Frustrated shoppers have pointed out that the meters don’t take dollar bills, that the system is difficult to maneuver with children in tow, and that it’s just unpleasant to be walking back and forth across the parking lot and standing in line to pay during freezing or foul weather.

Jon Frederick, Portsmouth’s parking manager, said the switch was made because the city must explore parking options for the future.

“The issue is the meters we have now are very old,” said Frederick. Many of the city’s meters have been around for more than 10 years, and are beginning to wear down, he said.

The city has allocated $600,000 toward parking meter replacement. Frederick said the new meters address several needs. Among their attributes, he cites the choice to pay by credit card or coins, the replacement of battery-powered meters with solar powered kiosks, and the fact that fewer machines are both aesthetically pleasing and make snow removal easier.

Frederick said he was well aware that complaints would surface, and he notes that he has made attempts to make this process as convenient as possible. The city’s pay and display meters are only 60 feet apart on average, compared to most cities’ 100 feet. And he is currently mulling over adding shelters, similar to bus stop shelters, to the kiosks.

Over time, however, the machines have also proved to provide added misery: no dollar slots have led to impromptu searches for coinage; lack of coins means purchasing a minimum of one hour on a debit card; time can’t be simply added to the machine’s meters if a shopper needs an extra 20 minutes; and the days of finding an already paid-for spot are over.

With the latter three disadvantages in mind, many local residents have referred to the new machines as “cash cows.”

According to Frederick, the city’s transportation department has collected an extra $33,000 from parking meters over the last six months, which has gone into the general fund.

The most notorious feature, however, seems to be the lack of cash slots and Frederick attributes this problem to our weather pattern. The city was planning on purchasing pay and display meters with cash slots, but the manufacturer urged against it due to the area’s damp environment. In the end, it was deemed the cash slots would be more problematic than advantageous.

Another concern is the machine’s environmental impact. Frederick said the city has not done a comparison of the machines. Using the old meters, the city typically replaces 17,000 9-volt batteries each year. On the other hand, each interaction with the new machines includes a printed slip of paper. Frederick says the kiosks have run through 31 rolls of paper so far. Each roll has 3,300 tickets. The paper is recyclable and is made with recycled paper.

For now the city’s trial period continues, but Frederick and the rest of the city’s transportation department would be interested in hearing everyone’s opinion. A survey is available on the city’s web site,

www.cityofportsmouth.com/transportation/paydisplay.htm. You can also reach the transportation department at 603-766-1440 or This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it