Chichester lightning rod Jason Weir has sparked controversy over residency and mask-wearing
Selectman Jason Weir and girlfriend Allie McIntosh GEOFF FORESTER / Monitor staff
Published: 5/13/2021 4:36:10 PM
On Election Day in Chichester on Tuesday, Town Moderator Ewen MacKinnon had a question for Select Board member Jason Weir.
Before Weir even got close to a voting booth a prickly relationship between an outspoken board member and several in town who say they’re tired of his grandstanding had already been laid bare. Last month, Weir’s refusal to wear a mask forced the postponement of a Select Board meeting.
This week, after Weir entered Chichester Central School to vote, MacKinnon wanted to know where Weir lived. Really lived. His pending divorce and subsequent move to Loudon were well known in town. Did Weir realize a Loudon home address would nullify his vote in Chichester? And disqualify him from the Select Board?
Pittsfield weighing options to fill two seats on School Board
Published: 5/5/2021 2:15:46 PM
Eight days after announcing the sudden retirement of two of its members, both of whom had another year left on their terms, the Pittsfield School Board will meet Thursday to begin searching for their replacements.
Interim Superintendent John Graziano said this week that he’ll submit his list of 10 candidates to fill the slots left by Bea Douglas and Ted Mitchell. Neither board member gave any indication last month about retiring before completing their three-year terms.
The School Board will ultimately decide on its two new members, after Graziano gives them the letters of interest that he preferred. He was unsure how long the decision would take.
In Pittsfield, two school board members abruptly resign
Seventh and eighth graders listen to English teacher Chris Davitt (center) during an interdisciplinary humanities block at Pittsfield Middle High School on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. (ELIZABETH FRANTZ / Monitor staff) Elizabeth Frantz
Published: 4/29/2021 4:05:56 PM
Two of the five members of the Pittsfield School Board have abruptly resigned, blindsiding many in town and creating a rush to fill the spots.
School Board Chairman Adam Gauthier confirmed the departure of Bea Douglas and Ted Mitchell, two long-time officials in town. Both had one year left on their terms.
“Bea Douglas and Ted Mitchell have resigned due to health and personal reasons,” Gauthier said in an email. “It is unfortunate to lose them and the amount of experience that they brought to the table.”
Through fluctuating times, town halls stand tall
Epsom and Chichester are neighbors, less than four miles apart in the Suncook Valley.
Their schools both funnel students to Pembroke Academy. Their residents share parks and conversation, and many outsiders consider the two towns to be synonymous with Pembroke, the big-boy on the Suncook Valley’s six-town roster.
When it comes to rules in town offices, however, Epsom and Chichester reflect the pattern and national single-mindedness that has emerged since COVID hit the state 13 months ago. That is to say there is no pattern or single-mindedness and there never has been, and that has made mask wearing more complex than calculus.
In Chichester, the town meeting show goes on – this time in May
Published: 2/15/2021 3:18:29 PM
Voters in Chichester won’t have to worry about a snowstorm mucking around with annual meetings and voting this year.
Town and school officials met remotely last Friday to change their meeting and voting schedules, part of an effort to smooth COVID-related problems that have become a normal way of life.
With no reason to believe the pandemic will drastically improve in the coming weeks and even months, the Chichester Select Board and School Board, with a blessing from the governor, chose to postpone their annual meetings form March until May.