tuition hikes at UNH

Students hoping to attend the University of New Hampshire this fall will face a significant hike in tuition costs, but they will also be eligible for more financial aid.

The University System of New Hampshire Board of Trustees recently approved its fiscal year 2007-08 operating budget and set tuition rates for UNH, Plymouth State University, Keene State College and Granite State College. In-state students face a 6.9 percent rise in tuition, while out-of-staters face a 5.2 percent increase. The board also approved an 11.3 percent increase in financial aid support.

The $384 million operating budget represents an increase of 5.1 percent over the current level, and state appropriations rose 4.1 percent to $96 million. Various grants and programs boost USNH’s total operating budget to $670 million for the coming fiscal year. Including room and board, tuition and fees, the total cost of attending UNH in Durham increases to $19,238 for in-state students and $32,198 for out-of-state students.

“We continue to direct as much support as we can to assist lower income state residents with the cost of a higher education,” USNH Board of Trustees chairman Andrew Lietz said in a statement. “However, we are very concerned that the financial barrier may become too formidable for more citizens in the foreseeable future, which will have a negative effect on our citizenry and our economy,” he added.

The board pointed to major increases in the costs of energy, medical benefits, repairs and renovations as reasons for the tuition hikes. Such costs have risen well over inflation rates during the last several years, while state appropriations have increased at a much lower rate, according to the statement.

Wentworth-Douglass hospital plans new development in Lee

Construction will begin soon on a new Wentworth-Douglass medical office complex and pharmacy on the east side of Route 125 in Lee, just north of the Lee traffic circle. The development, which has been in the planning stages for slightly over a year, will take place on a 30-acre parcel of land already owned by the hospital. 

The 57,000-square-foot structure will be almost arch-shaped, with two buildings connected by a second floor that will cover a drive-though pharmacy window. The medical complex will include space for physician offices and non-surgical treatment facilities, as well as lab and X-ray capabilities.

Wentworth-Douglass Hospital, located on Route 108 in Dover, is constructing the new facility in response to growing demand for medical care in the area. “It’s answering a need for more primary care physicians and medical assistants that we have seen in the past few years,” said Noreen Biehl, vice president of community relations for the hospital. “Research was conducted and we found that location could serve a wide area of people.”

This isn’t the first time Wentworth-Douglass has decided to expand its health care radius in the Seacoast. “We also recently opened a physician office in Newmarket a month ago,” Biehl said. “We’re trying to serve people in the communities where they live.”

Arguably the most interesting aspect of the new development in Lee has very little to do with medicine. The parking lot design features an environmentally friendly porous pavement technology that absorbs rainwater and snow melt at a rapid rate. This kind of pavement eliminates surface runoff and erosion, making it better for the surrounding land and longer lasting.
The entire project is expected to cost somewhere between $8 and $9 million and should be completed in late 2007 or early 2008.

record tourism expected in N.H. this summer

For business owners, it’s a time to rejoice. For territorial locals, it’s a time to beware. Each summer, tourists swarm the Granite State looking for respite from their congested home states. A new forecast predicts that this summer will see more out-of-staters than ever. 

More than 13 million visitors are expected to descend on New Hampshire this summer, an increase of 2 percent over 2006, according to a forecast created by the Institute for New Hampshire Studies and circulated by the N.H. Division of Travel and Tourism Development. That increase is not unusual, says Victoria Cimino, marketing director for the DTTD. “We tend to see, in general, a 2 to 4 percent increase year over year,” Cimino said. “Growth, whether it is vis à vis visitor spending or the number of visitors, is something New Hampshire tends to experience.” 

The Institute of New Hampshire Studies, located at Plymouth State University, took into consideration the spending patterns of tourists, gas prices, unemployment levels, travel activities, weather predictions and tourism data from previous years to create this year’s forecast.

The DTTD recently launched a new Web site, which allows people to tailor vacation packages to their individual interests, sort of like a “choose your own adventure” book. Every ad campaign on the radio or in print ends with a reminder to visit the site at www.visitnh.gov.

Most visitors will likely be from New England, mid-Atlantic coastal states and eastern Canada, with Massachusetts topping the list. “Massachusetts is our number one target market, but we’re also reaching out to new markets in New York and Philadelphia,” Cimino said. These “flatlanders,” as some New Hampshire residents call them, come for tax-free shopping, outdoor recreation and to visit friends and family. 

“Fourth of July weekend kicks off the busiest months of the summer season,” Cimino said. The forecast predicts that more than 1.2 million people will come to New Hampshire for the July 4 holiday and spend more than $165 million. It also predicts that resorts, hotels, motels and campgrounds will see a 1 percent increase in their average occupancy rates for the long weekend. Over the course of the summer, visitors are expected to spend more than $1.6 billion, a 4 percent increase from last year and a new spending record.