By BOB MARTIN
Eagle Times Staff
CHARLESTOWN, N.H. — Charlestown voters chose a pair of familiar faces to the selectboard, with incumbents Charles Baraly and Steven Neil re-elected to their seats at Tuesday’s town election.
Baraly’s race was a tight one decided by only 32 votes, but he was able to fend off Garret Neill 286-254 to retain his seat on the board for a three-year term.
Steven Neil’s race was for a two-year seat, and he received 236 votes, beating out 170 votes for Jeffrey Lessels and 122 votes for Raymond Gosetti. Neil was appointed to the selectboard in November after a seat was vacated by former Chair Jeremy Wood and needed to run for re-election as that term ended in March.
Emily St. Pierre and Karen Haskell had 405 and 271 votes respectively to take the two library trustee seats, beating out James Lupolt’s 148 votes.
All other races were unopposed including William Sullivan with 461 votes for trustee of the trust funds; 454 votes for Roger Goodnow for cemetery trustee; 488 votes for Gabriel St. Pierre; 388 votes for Keith Weed; Meg Lambert and Maureen Joan Spilsbury with 389 and 393 respective votes for library trustee; and Kyle Perham and Weed with 388 and 338 votes for planning board.
All but one warrant article passed, which was Article 9 asking if the town was in favor of decreasing the board of selectmen to three members. This article was done by petition and not recommended by the selectboard. It narrowly failed with 261 “yes” votes” compared to 285 votes against.
The town’s operating budget passed in Article 4, which was a total of 6,656,932. This includes $602,985 for the Water Fund Operating Budget and $467,234 for the Sewer Operating Budget.
Article 2 was a zoning ordinance amendment allowing for one single-family or two-family dwelling structure to be permitted, and multi-family structures permitted after receiving planning board site plan approval for Zone E. It passed 380-126.
Article 3 was to adopt the Historic District Ordinance as proposed by the planning board, and it passed 371-159.
Article 5 passed 416-129 and was to see if the town would vote to raise and appropriate $3,000 to be put into the Emergency Communications Improvements Capital Reserve Fund as established at 2016 Town Meeting, which is for repairs and improvements to equipment.
Article 6 was to add $35,000 to the Transfer Station Equipment Reserve fund for purchase and maintenance of equipment. The article passed 371-175.
Article 7 passed 384-132, which discontinues 400 feet of the northern end of George Moulton Way.
Petition Article 8, which passed 473-77, was to see if the town would support the Charlestown Senior Center with $2,000.
