The following are results of Tuesday’s local election, Town Meeting and ballot questions from around the region.
ANTRIM
In the only contested race Tuesday, Planning Board members John Anderson and Mark D. Murdough were re-elected with 212 and 208 votes, respectively. Keith Donington received 96 votes.
Unopposed candidates were Michael Ott for Select Board, Timothy Morehouse for cemetery trustee, Katelyn Goodington for a one-year seat on the Community Board, William Gordon Allen and Lesley Moenter for three-year Community Board seats, Arthur Merrill for moderator, Sarah Edwards for trustee of trust funds, Peter Beblowski for Water and Sewer Commission, William Bryk for supervisor of the checklist and Stephen Ullman and Richard Wood for library trustee.
DUBLIN
Steve Baldwin was unseated from the Budget Committee after fellow incumbent Susanne Vogel received 361 votes and write-in candidate Sturdy Thomas received 239 for the two positions. Baldwin placed third with 212 votes.
Chris Raymond was re-elected to the Select Board, receiving 287 votes to 118 for Allan “Geoff” Pinney and 55 for Robert Sardinskas.
Incumbent Donna Garner led the race for Planning Board with 286 votes, with current alternate Kirsten Colantino receiving 248 to win the other position. Donald Primrose was third with 131 votes, and Allen Hearn finished fourth with 126.
Maureen Hulslander and Elizabeth Haire won the library trustee seats with 278 and 266 votes, respectively. John Sprague finished third with 162 votes.
Unopposed candidates were Sterling Abram for moderator, Kyle Wilcox for supervisor of the checklist, Arthur Sussman as a write-in for water commissioner, Christine Sangermano for cemetery trustee and Thomas Warren for trustee of trust funds.
Both proposed zoning amendments passed. The amendment eliminating grandfathered noncomforming uses if the property owner abandons the use for more than a year passed 245-204. Any subsequent use would have to comply with current zoning rules.
The amendment increasing the allowed size of temporary signs to 32 square feet but limiting the amount of time they could be displayed to a maximum of four weeks at a time passed 286-165.
FRANCESTOWN
Scot Heath won the Select Board race by a count of 276-128 over Gary Schnakenberg in the only contested race.
All other candidates were unopposed: MeagenKerris for treasurer, Pamela Finnell for town clerk/tax collector, Gerri Bernstein and Robert Lindgren for Planning Board, Henry Kunhardt for trustee of trust funds, Madeline Arpin and Susan Kane for library trustee, Ethel MacStubbs for Cemetery Commission, Thomas Anderson Jr. for public assistance administrator, Barbara Carbee for supervisor of the checklist and Lawrence Kullgren and Celeste Lunetta for fire ward.
Residents also voted on nine proposed zoning amendments. An article to replace outdated references with references to the current Conservation Plan and Natural Resource Inventory and replace reference to Pond B with all ponds over 10 acres passed 348-92.
A proposal to identify forestry as a permitted agricultural use passed 335-101.
An amendment allowing home-based businesses on lots greater than an acre to increase the number of commercial vehicles by one, allow for two trailers, remove restrictions on excessive traffic and impose setbacks for storage of commercial equipment and materials was rejected 247-192.
A proposal to allow short-term rentals in single-family dwellings with Planning Board approval passed 244-191.
An amendment to allow low-impact uses to be permitted with a simple approval process from the Planning Board passed 278-157.
An amendment allowing one accessory dwelling unit, attached or detached, per lot on conforming lots with single-family homes was approved 306-131.
A proposal allowing a special exception use for contractors was rejected 224-211.
An amendment to change the definition of “buffers” in order to provide for range in widths and materials passed 288-142.
A petition amendment to repeal paragraphs in the zoning ordinance regarding in-home businesses failed 286-125.
GREENFIELD
For Select Board, Thomas J. Bascom Jr. defeated Jason Duval and Marc “Dave” Thimmel. Katie Marie Cartier won the library trustee seat over Sheila Nichols, and Timothy Schloemer defeated Bow Smith by one vote, 119-118, for a one-year term on the Planning Board.
The races for moderator and cemetery trustee did not have anyone on the ballot, with Andre Wood winning the former and Roger Lessard the latter, both as write-ins over Mike Gasper.
The remaining races were unopposed: Shannon Billodeau for a one-year seat on the Budget Advisory Committee, Kathleen Seigars for a two-year seat on the Budget Advisory Committee, Sean Sylvester for a three-year seat on the Budget Advisory Committee, CatrinaMamczak and Iris Waitt for three-year seats on the Planning Board, Kathleen Seigars for supervisor of the checklist and Kevin Taylor for trustee of trust funds.
All three proposed zoning amendments passed. Amendment 1, to add the Greenfield Inn property to the Business District, passed 243-26
Amendment 2, making the minimum lot size in the business district a quarter-acre, passed 179-90.
Amendment 3, adopting a new construction property tax exemption for commercial or industrial uses within the business and industrial districts, passed 173-96. The exemption will equal 50% of the increase in assessed value attributed to construction of new structures, additions, renovations or improvements to existing structures, and will last five years.
GREENVILLE
Greenville voters adopted a new zoning ordinance amendment to define “accessory dwelling units” and to create a new ordinance for the regulations. The article passed 92-38.
There were no contested races on the ballot this year. Margaret “Maggie” Bickford was re-elected as selectwoman for three years with 134 votes.
Elisa Fitzgerald won treasurer with 138 votes. Marshall Buttrick won moderator with 145 votes, while Lauren Pashayan was elected library trustee with 18 votes. Janice Hartley was elected cemetery trustee with 138 votes.
Courtney Caisse was elected trustee of the trust funds with 137 votes. Mark Winslow won the position of fire ward for three years with 140 votes, with no winner announced for the one-year fire ward position.
HANCOCK
In the only contested race, Eric Bourgoine unseated Joel Chandler by three votes, 173-170, for water commissioner.
Uncontested town candidates were Virginia Smith for Select Board, Richard Haskins for moderator, David Drasba for Common Commission, Jane Eklund for library trustees, Paul Faber for trustee of the trust fund, James Mason for supervisor of the checklist for six years, Alice Welden for supervisor of the checklist for four years and Shelly Merrifield for cemetery trustee.
JAFFREY
Franklin W. Sterling Jr. was re-elected to the Select Board on Tuesday, in an uncontested race.
Jaffrey had no contested races or zoning issues on the town ballot on Tuesday, leading to a slate of current incumbents voted back into their current positions, including Sterling, who is the current Select Board chair. Sterling had 540 votes.
William Raymond was re-elected as trustee of the trust fund with 572 votes. Emily Carr and Deborah Weissman were both re-elected to the two seats for library trustee, with 481 and 495 votes, respectively. Marc Tieger was re-elected as moderator with 624 votes.
LYNDEBOROUGH
Fred Douglas Jr. was re-elected to the Board of Selectmen, receiving 97 votes to 22 for write-in Kevin Boette.
In the only other contested race, Anna Meigs won a cemetery trustee position by a count of 17-13 over Larry Curran. Both were write-ins.
Uncontested candidates were Walter Holland for moderator, Ellen Martin for treasurer, Sally Curran and Nancy Jennifer Howe for library trustee, Richard Herfurth for trustee of trust funds, Curran for supervisor of the checklist, Stanley Greene, Walter Holland and Geoffrey Allen for three year seats on the Budget Committee, Boette for a two-year Budget Committee seat and Richard Roy for Zoning Board of Adjustment.
MASON
Voters gave a resounding “no” vote to a proposed zoning amendment to implement a 50-foot buffer around wetlands, among other changes to the town’s wetlands Conservation District Ordinance.
Residents voted 461-127 on the article, which was the only zoning amendment on the ballot. The amendment would have added a 50-foot buffer for the majority of building around wetlands, where currently no standard exists.
John Suiter is the new Mason selectman, winning over C. Christopher Guiry in a 330-235 vote. Suiter will replace Chair Pete McGinnity, who did not run for re-election this year.
Kate Batcheller, who has been holding an appointed seat on the Select Board, was chosen to fill out the remainder of the term, and will fill the seat for another year. Batcheller ran for the seat unopposed and had 473 votes.
In the town’s other contested race, DotsieMillbrandt defeated longtime Moderator Catherine Schwenk in a 333-187 vote.
Dane Rota was elected as supervisor of the checklist, Robin Smith as library trustee and Martha Ward as trustee of the trust funds in uncontested races. For a trustee of the cemeteries position, which no one filed for, Wally Brown received 26 write-in votes, and Ken Spacht received 13 votes.
SHARON
In uncontested races, Chester Bowles was elected to Sharon’s open Select Board seat with 101 votes, and Susan Bowles was elected as treasurer with 107 votes. Bill Joyner was elected as moderator with 101 votes, and Barrett Golay was elected to the town audit committee with 92 votes, both also running unopposed.
In a write-in race for trustee of the trust funds, John Ladue won with 14 votes.
Sharon had no zoning issues on the ballot, and the rest of the town’s warrant will be decided Wednesday, March 9 at 7 p.m. in the ConVal High School gymnasium.
TEMPLE
Murray Collette and Brian Kullgren won the Planning Board seats with 265 and 224 votes, respectively, edging out incumbent Nicole Concordia, who received 221 votes.
George Willard was re-elected to the Select Board by a 240-211 margin over Christine Robidoux.
Philip Lauriat was elected moderator with 228 write-in votes, while Wendy Drouin won the race for town clerk with 312 votes, compared to Lynessa Huntley’s 117 write-in votes.
The following candidates were uncontested: Elizabeth Maxcy-Humphrey for tax collector, Peter Allen for treasurer, Sherry Fiske for trustee of trust funds (three years), William Letendre for trustee of trust funds (one year), Timothy Fiske for cemetery trustee for three years, Gretchen Whitcomb for library trustee (three years), Carter Sartell for library trustee (two years), Brandy Urbon for library trustee (one year), Will Wildes (write-in) for fire engineer trustee, Gail Cromwell and Rob Kenney (write-in) for Budget Advisory Committee (three years), Paul Clifton-Waite for Budget Advisory Committee (one year) and Mary Amsden for supervisor of the checklist.
There were no candidates on the ballot for the one- or two-year cemetery trustee positions, and Ann Lunt received write-in votes for both.
WILTON
Wilton businessman D.J. Garcia handily beat out two competitors, including incumbent Kellie-Sue Boissonnault, for the three-year Select Board seat in Wilton.
Garcia had more than double the votes of either former Selectman William F. Condra or Boissonnault at the polls Tuesday, with 252 votes to Boissnnault’s 83 and Condra’s 78.
Garcia owns the Wilton House of Pizza and last year served on the town’s Budget Committee and as town treasurer. Gail Agans was elected in an uncontested race to replace Garcia as treasurer, with 361 votes.
Only one other race this year was contested, that for a six-year term for supervisor of the checklist. Patricia A. Anderson beat out Cynthia Diane Foss in a 194-150 vote for the seat.
In uncontested races, William J. Keefe was re-elected as moderator, Jane Farrell as town clerk and tax collector, Shannen L. Coffey and Bart Hunter to the Planning Board for three years, Randy King to a one-year Planning Board seat, Christopher Carter to a three-year seat on the Sewer Commission, Joanna Eckstrom to a one-year term on the Sewer Commission and Kermit Williams to the Water Commission.
Voters also agreed to two proposed zoning amendments, soundly passing both. Both articles are housekeeping items which correct grammar and clarify references without making any changes to the intent of the ordinance.