Friday Updates - July 17, 2026

Friday, July 17, 2026

Durham has settled into its mid-summer rhythm, with campus and downtown noticeably quieter than during the academic year. While there are still UNH summer session students and youth programs on campus and in town, the slowdown makes this a challenging stretch for our local merchants, who depend heavily on the activity of the fall and spring semesters.

It's a particularly good time for residents to head downtown, enjoy a meal or do some local shopping, and support the businesses that help make Durham special. The Farmer's Market is held each Monday afternoon at M&T Bank starting at 2:30 PM. Much of downtown parking is free throughout July, and of course it is always free for residents displaying a valid Durham resident/taxpayer sticker, so popping down to Main Street is at the same time easy and convenient!

There was a groundbreaking for Riverwoods Durham Phase II this week on Stone Quarry Drive.

The removal of the historic, head of tide Mill Pond Dam will likely begin next week. It will be a slow process occurring over many days.

DURHAM WEBSITE REFRESH – SOFT LAUNCH AUGUST 1st!

As part of the Town's 2026 budget goals, a refreshed version of Durham's website will soft launch on Saturday, August 1! Durham staff have been working hard behind the scenes to convert and update the site onto a modern, mobile-friendly platform that will make it easier than ever to find Town information, services, and resources — all while keeping the content residents rely on fully intact.

You can find us at www.durhamnh.gov.

What to expect:

• A cleaner, more intuitive navigation structure;
• Improved search functionality;
• A responsive design that works great on phones and tablets;
• Easier access to popular services like online payments, permits, and forms.

During the soft launch period, both the current site and the refreshed site may be available as staff finalize content and iron out any final details. We appreciate your patience as we make this transition ... and we welcome your feedback — if you spot something that doesn't look right or a broken link, please let us know at webmaster@ci.durham.nh.us.

Thank you for your continued support as Durham refreshes its online presence!

July in Durham means flowers in bloom! Courtesy, Todd Selig

TOWN COUNCIL CONSIDERING PAID PARKING AT WAGON HILL FARM FOR NON-RESIDENTS

Admin. Selig asked Police Captain John Lavoie to prepare a draft ordinance in response to interest from some Councilors and community members in charging non-residents for parking at Wagon Hill Farm. The underlying question is whether non-resident users of this popular regional destination should help offset the costs of maintaining the property, rather than relying solely on Durham taxpayers.

The resulting proposal, Ordinance #2026-06, would amend Chapter 153 “Vehicles and Traffic,” Section 153-29 “Metered Parking Areas” of the Durham Town Code to add Wagon Hill Farm as a metered parking location for vehicles that do not display valid Town stickers from Durham, Lee, or Madbury, while stickered vehicles from these three communities would continue to park without charge.

Under the draft, a new subsection “K” would set specific regulations for Wagon Hill Farm, including the establishment of a ParkMobile zone with proposed fees of $1.00 per 30 minutes and $2.00 per hour.

Implementation costs to the Town are anticipated to be minimal, with signage provided at no cost by ParkMobile and installation handled by the Department of Public Works, and there is no additional vendor cost to create the new zone.

Preliminary hypothetical revenue projections have been shared with the Council to help inform the discussion yet data is very limited and it is hard to project whether/if usage behavior at the property would change if parking fees were implemented.

The Land Stewardship Subcommittee has recommended against charging for parking at Wagon Hill Farm, citing concerns about public access and preserving the open, community character of the property.

The Town Council has scheduled a public hearing proposed for August 3, 2026, and residents are encouraged to share their views on the proposal. Feedback can be emailed to the Council at council@ci.durham.nh.us.

Barred owl juvenile at Longmarsh Preserve Courtesy, Veronique Ludington, Land Stewardship Coordinator

OPPORTUNITY TO REGISTER TO VOTE FOR DURHAM RESIDENTS

The Durham Supervisors of the Checklist will be meeting for the purpose of accepting new voters and making changes and corrections to the checklist:

DATE:  TUESDAY JULY 28, 2026

TIME:   7:00 – 8:00 PM

LOCATION: DURHAM TOWN HALL

Prospective voters must show proofs of identity, age, domicile/residence in Durham, and U.S. Citizenship. A Driver’s License or Non-Driver’s license and a birth certificate or passport are useful, but may not be sufficient. There are other documents that can be used. If you have questions, please call the Town Clerk’s office during business hours. You may register any time if you will turn 18 by September 8.

Party changes cannot be made at this time. June 2 was the final date to make this change before the Primary. If you are registered as Undeclared, you may pick the Democratic or the Republican ballot. You will then be listed in that party until you officially ask to return to Undeclared. You may check https://app.sos.nh.gov/voterinformation to check your status.

The American Red Cross is alerting the public about an emergency blood shortage as the blood supply fell nearly 25% in June. The shortage comes during the height of trauma season, when hospitals frequently see increased demand for blood due to serious injuries and other medical emergencies.

A steep decline in blood donations since the end of May has created a growing gap between supply and patient need. Currently, Red Cross distributions to hospitals are nearly 3,500 units higher per week than expected. The shortage is especially serious for types O positive and B negative blood. Blood donors are urgently needed to give now to help ensure patients receive lifesaving medical care without delay.

The University of New Hampshire held a beam signing ceremony on Monday morning to celebrate the start of construction for the new Center of Excellence for Operational Ocean and Great Lakes Mapping. The new 70,500 square foot building will house the Center of Excellence and the John Olson Advanced Manufacturing Center, which will relocate from 121 Technology Drive. 

The project was funded in large part through federal awards from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Institute for Standards and Technology. The new building is the first to be constructed in the large mixed-use Edge Innovation District, which UNH is now planning in coordination with the Town of Durham.

A beam signing is a traditional ceremony for construction projects where stakeholders write their names and messages on a structural steel beam, usually painted white. Once the building is ready to be topped out the beam is put in place with the signatures sealed inside the fabric of the building symbolizing teamwork and a shared legacy.

Durham resident and veteran Hunt Kerrigan visited Town Hall a week ago to present Assessor Darcy Freer with a special military coin, which he had obtained during his military career. Mr. Kerrigan explained that these coins were given out to military members as recognition of a job well done. Mr. Kerrigan is choosing to give his coins to people he feels have gone above and beyond to help Veterans.

Assessor Darcy Freer had recently noticed that a new state law no longer allowed a veteran to continue to receive the Veteran's Tax Credit as well as the Service Connected Totally Disabled Veteran's Credit. Ms. Freer, therefore, brought an ordinance proposal before the Town Council for consideration, which was ultimately passed in March, to have the Service Connected Totally Disabled Veteran's Credit raised to $4,500 to counter any loss due to the state legislation changes.

Larry Brickner-Wood has had a remarkable career in public service. He is known in town from the various roles he has played and is recognized by many for his generous spirit and commitment to social justice.

Larry grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in the Tidewater area. The 1950s was the beginning of the mall era and Larry observed farmlands and woodlands being destroyed amid an explosion of traffic, subdivisions, and sprawl. He came to realize how fragile the environment is. 

Larry said, “There is a rich history of indigenous people who lived in the Tidewater region but we (our European ancestors) did an efficient job of moving them out and they were rarely discussed in our history classes, even though Pocahontas was from the area. Her father, Powhatan, did get a beach named after him though.” 

To read the full profile, click HERE.

NEW STATE LAW EXPANDS MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT FOR VOLUNTEER FIRST RESPONDERS

On Wednesday, July 29, the Seacoast NH Critical Incident Stress Management and Peer Support Team will be hosting it’s first annual SAFR (Seacoast Annual First Responder) Wellness Symposium on the campus of UNH. 

First responders, municipal administrators, and clinicians will be together for a day focused on first responder wellness and resources. It's expected that the public will see an increase of emergency vehicles – including many agencies from neighboring communities - parked in and around town and on the UNH campus related to this symposium. 

EXPECT SIRENS: UNH TESTING EMERGENCY ALERT SYSTEM JULY 24 AT NOON

Each July, UNH performs the Clery Act required test of the alert / siren notification system for emergency preparedness. This is done by announcing to the community, in advance, that this audible test will be taking place. The purpose of the test is to ensure our systems are working and that any corrective action that is needed can be done before our students return from break.

The time for this event will be Friday, July 24th, at 12pm. This test is brief, usually a few minutes in duration. There will also be a RAVE alert to pre-empt this test. Also, there will be communication with the campus community a number of days before the test is to happen so that they are already aware and prepared.

This is what that RAVE alert will read: The University of New Hampshire is testing the Emergency Alert System. In accordance with the Clery Act this test is conducted annually to ensure all methods of communicating an emergency to our community members are functioning as designed. The University is testing the outdoor Whelen Sirens, the RAVE system, and our social media platforms. The sirens will sound from each tower in sequence, not simultaneously; you may hear the alert up to 4 times.

For more information on the University’s emergency evacuation plan please visit our website at HERE.

If you have any questions on what to do in an emergency don’t hesitate to reach out to the UNH Police Department for guidance at 603-862-1427.

Peaches ripening on a neighbor's tree Courtesy, Carol Birch

“Just because plastic is disposable doesn’t mean it just goes away. After all, where is away? There is no away.’” Jeb Berrier, the ‘Bag It’ documentary

Would you be surprised to know that as of 2015, around 9 per cent of all plastic ever made has been recycled with less than one percent recycled more than once? As we mentioned last week, the majority of plastic ends up in our landfills and our environment. It’s even in the bodies of wildlife, and in our bodies too. 

As part of Plastic Free July (and beyond), consider finding ways to refuse and reuse plastics to help keep them out of our landfill and our environment. 

Here are a few examples of how you can do this.

Refuse

Plastic beverage bottles were in the top five items collected globally through beach cleanups and other initiatives as recorded in Ocean Conservancy’s 2022 annual report.  Instead of purchasing/choosing a beverage from a single-use plastic bottle, plan ahead and bring your own reusable beverage container.  Choices like this add up to significant change!

Reuse

As you know, Durham is transitioning to an automated curbside waste pickup program. As a result, we have all received new solid waste and recycling carts. The Department of Public Works is accepting any old carts at the transfer station during the month of July (to be dropped off at the old cardboard shed). As an alternative option, some residents have been posting on the local Oyster River - Pass it On - No Sales Facebook social media page that they are looking for bins that are no longer needed. This is an excellent way to pass on your plastic bins and give them a new life.

Check out www.plasticfreejuly.org for many more easy changes you can make to cut back on plastic use.

Sources: Ocean Conservancy, Plastic Free July

Brought to you by the IWMAC Committee 

Questions about recycling or composting? Email us at: DurhamRecycles603@gmail.com

Check us out on Instagram: sustainable.durham.nh

Not sure if an item can be recycled? Check here: www.Recyclesmartma.org

Want to learn more about the Swap Shop? Click HERE

Summer is an active season on Great Bay, when warm waters fuel bursts of biological activity and the estuary becomes a hub for fish, shorebirds, and boaters alike. Eel grass beds, salt marshes, and tidal flats support juvenile fish, horseshoe crabs, and migratory birds feeding along the shoreline, while kayakers and paddlers explore the Bay’s quieter coves.

The estuary is also most vulnerable in the summer: heavy summer rainstorms increase nutrient‑laden runoff, warm water can stress vegetation, and boat traffic can disturb wildlife and sensitive habitats.

Residents can help support the health of the bay by maintaining vegetative buffers on their property along streams and wetlands, reducing the use of fertilizer, and diligently maintaining their septic systems (e.g. pumping their tank every 3 to 5 years). The Great Bay is highly stressed now but we are hopeful that this special regional resource is will recover over time.

Tidal marshes are some of New Hampshire’s most valuable natural features offering priceless views. 

They primarily buffer storm impacts, naturally improve water quality by trapping sediments and filtering pollutants before rivers, streams and stormwater runoff before it reaches the ocean. They also store carbon up to 10 times faster than tropical forests, and provide important fish and wildlife habitat. 

But they are also threatened by coastal development, stormwater pollution and the effects of a changing climate. 

Find out more HERE and explore the ways you can help protect our marshes. 

NH STATE REPS CANDIDATES' FORUM AUGUST 27 AT TOWN HALL

Seven candidates – all Democrats – have filed to run for Durham’s four NH State Representative seats. (No Republicans filed.) Election Day for the primary is September 8.

The Durham Democratic Committee will host a moderated candidates forum on August 27, starting at 7:00 P.M., in the Town Council chambers of the Town Hall. Take this opportunity to hear what the candidates have to say, and if you can attend in person, they would be grateful. The forum will be aired and recorded by DCAT with a Zoom viewing-only option, but the community is invited to submit questions or topics for the forum, with the understanding that those questions may not make it to the finals.

Send questions by August 3 to durhamdemocratsnh@gmail.com with the subject line “Forum questions.”

For a preview of the lineup, download a flyer HERE that shows photos and statements from all seven candidates.

Longmarsh Preserve on a hazy day Courtesy, Veronique Ludington, Land Stewardship Coordinator

WOULD YOUR ELEMENTARY-AGE CHILD LIKE TO LEARN CHINESE OR FRENCH?

OneWorld Language School has been offering after school language classes at Oyster River's Moharimet for more than 20 years. The classes are offered to all area elementary schools. They are offering 4 free scholarships courtesy of Fabulous Finds in Kittery Maine.  

They have openings in Chinese and French. The financial aid application can be found HERE. 

They will be participating in Downtown Durham Day on August 6th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. featuring Chinese activities and games. 

Stop by and meet them!

OYSTER RIVER SCHOOL NEWS

Summer Nutrition Assistance Programs

Oyster River families in need of nutritional assistance during the summer months can contact End 68 Hours of Hunger HERE and Community Action Partnership of Strafford County HERE.

Summer Hours Between June 22 and August 21

The SAU office summer hours are Monday to Thursday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. The SAU and schools will be closed on July 3, in observance of Independence Day.

The schools' summer hours are:

• Mast Way School: Tuesday to Thursday, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
• Moharimet School: Tuesday to Thursday, 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
• Oyster River Middle School: Monday to Thursday, 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. 
• Oyster River High School: Monday to Thursday, 8:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

2026-2027 Calendars

ORCSD's printable 2026-2027 school calendar is available HERE. This document is subject to change. It is recommend that you check for online updates on the district calendar page regularly.

The School Board's 2026-2027 meeting schedule is available on the district's Meeting Schedule page HERE.