Hard as it is to believe, honeybunch, we are heading to the Memorial Day weekend – the modern edition. Yew and I kin remember when Memorial Day was always on May 30 before the Loooong Weekend became sacred, and even when people still called it Decoration Day. Still, around these parts it still has the pomp and ceremony it should, especially know with what is going on in the world.
The Mystick Maidens of the Marsh are still looking for a new Supreme High Maiden, and some had said that Herronner should be tabbed to take the crown and shovel (instead of a scepter), but many members think she’s got enuff on her plate without adding the stress of our group.
Still, it is Memorial Day weekend and we are going to convene in the area of the Oyster River near the Milford-West Haven line. We ain’t been there in years and it was high time we reused the place. It should be a nice time effen the weather holds out. Cobina’s lumbago has been acting up cuz it’s been March around here since March.
The heat was still kicking on each night over the last several weeks cuz the temps were going below 50, and in some cases, quite a bit below.
The parade seems to be up and ready to step off on Monday. Let’s hope that we don’t have the bad weather that has plagued the march quite a few times over the last couple o’ years. With several parades going on in the area, postponing the march pretty much cancels it cuz bands have signed up for other places.
Effen yew remember, back about 20 years ago, somebody had the bright idea of changing the parade from Monday to Sunday. That altered the plans of bands that had come in from other towns, and the band roster suffered. One year there was quite a stretch betwixt streams of marchers and very little marshal music to go along with them.
Tennyrate, with the Memorial Day weekend on that means warmer climes are supposed to be coming, but it also means that we’re in the last part of the first half of the year. My, how tempus does fugit, and the older you get, the faster it goes. As I’ve told you before, ole Aunt Judy used to say, once you get by May, the rest of the year just seems to slide by.
Around these parts, the biggest thing in the news git back to Herroner. The General Assembly was kind enuff to stick with the schedule, and actually got the state’s two-year budget off the boards with time to spare. That gave the thoid floor a bit of time to craft out the spending plan, and put it before the council in time.
The big thing is the budget is gonna be a skosh under $188 million, and the city mill rate will stay the same. Now, remember in this berg that does not include the fire taxes, which we hear have been finalized, and might include increases.
Sammy Bluejay was perched outside the council meeting and said that the entire thing was perty cut and dried, and that it lacked a lot o’ the drama that previous budget meetings have had – that is probably a good thing, no? We remember some rip-roarin’ confabs over the years.
By the time yew git this missive, the public hearing will have been perty much done and forgotten, and the council will begin the task of reviewing the plan. Everyone is a bit under the gun, cuz with the revised timeline this year – the mayor used a codicil in the law to wait until May rather than March – the council only has until May 31 to git the thing off the boards and passed.
And we’re still under the charter review rules that make any revision subjeck to a two-thirds majority of the 13-member council. That’s nine votes. That might be something the new Charter Revision Commish might wanna look at, but more on that later.
Jest to refresh yore mem’ry, once the council goes through the review process, it can only pass the budget ordinance with a simple majority vote as it is an ordinance. Failure to pass it means the mayor’s budget proposal goes into effeck by default, and any changes are null and void. This has happened to my recollection three times in the history of the city, and all in the last 36 years.
Nobody expecks that to happen. This council seems perty together, and without the rancor of the factionalism that hounded it a dozen or so years ago. We shall see what happens.
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Getting back to the charter revision fol-de-rol, Sammy did tell me that the commish did have its first couple o’ meetings and seems to be on board for some of the proposals that have been made already, including a four-year term, rather than a two-year term for the administration electees. And Iyam told the treasurer position might be made an appernted post rather than elected, which makes sense. As Sammy heard someone say, it’s perty much a ceremonial role anyway. Previous revisions took any authority the post might have had and put it in the professionals’ hands years ago.
There might be some other things coming down the pike, but the commish is under the gun and doesn’t have the time that previous ones had. The goal is to get proposals collected and decided so the entire process can be off the boards in time for the November election. We shall see what transpires.
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The Big Dogs are still perched off of Savin Rock and will be there a few more days at this writing. The whole thing is supposed to help the city’s animal shelter, which ain’t a bad idea. In fack, it seems to me that around this time of year, several schools start offering assistance to the shelter in the way of collections and setch. As we’ve been in this bizz a while, things seem to happen at certain parts of the year, and animal shelter collections are one of them at this time o’ the rolling calendar. We will make sure to take notice.
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Nelly Nuthatch was fluttering about and mentioned that she hasn’t had time to peruse the budget, but hopes something is gonna be in it or the five-year plan concerning the Allingtown Library. Now it’s been several years since the library vacated the former Forest School building, which is now Allingtown Hall and part of the UNH School of Business. The library was evicted cuz the building was part of the total rehab of the center of the borough, which included the demolition of all of the buildings on Cellini Place, as well as the old furniture store and some residences.
It was hoped at the time that something could be secured – building-wise – in short order. That short order has become something like a seven year exile. The books and furniture were stored, and are still stored, and some feeble attempts have been made to re-open the facility, the most recent being the former Blake Building. That fell through a few months ago, when the new owner decided to make the building residential.
Sooooo, here we are seven years later, and nothing has been done. Then people wonder why the residents in Allingtown think they are the red-headed stepchild of the city. Let’s hope the new fiscal year brings a bit of good news to the readers over there.
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The Wag came in t’other afternoon and mentioned with a grin that another little while has gone by and the Haven property, or what was the Haven property, is still without a plan. It’s been almost a year since surveyors were seen along its perimeter, but nothing has been done nor has anything come from the Haven Group, the ostensible owners of the land, regarding a plan, sale or something to turn the place into useable space.
Like I’ve said before, the group seems to think that the people in the provinces don’t have a right to know what is going on, and have even treated our leaders with something less than respeck. One of these days something will be done, but I wouldn’t wanna hang for as long as we will probably have to wait.
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And with Memorial Day weekend, thoughts are moving toward graduation for colleges this weekend and the next, and then high school graduations. Some private schools will graduate this weekend, too. Of course, Iva Lootey noted that this year had several snow days and that tacked on extra days to the schedule. Sooo, graduation, which usually happens in the middle of June is somewhat later than originally planned. I hear-tell some districts aren’t ending school until around June 25. That’s late!
I’ll close this time till next, mitt luff und kizzez,
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