Shall the Town of Hampton vote to discontinue E Street as a Public Way in accordance with the provisions of RSA 231:43, provided that the discontinuance shall be of no force and effect until every property owner abutting E Street signs a waiver, to be prepared by the Town Attorney, of any appeal under RSA 231:48 from such discontinuance and of all damages that could be sought under RSA 231:48 as a result of such discontinuance, or until six months has elapsed after the vote to discontinue without any such appeal having been made, whichever comes first? (Majority vote required).
What it means: “E” Street is a town-owned street that primarily exists on paper, and the Town would be surrendering title to “E” Street to the owners of the Hampton Casino. As background, this section of Hampton Beach is laid out and organized according to the letters of the alphabet “A” Street, “B” Street, etc. In the late 1890’s, the Hampton Beach Casino was constructed in an area that fell between “D” Street and “F” Street. Thus, “E” Street never actually existed as a street but has been maintained as a theoretical street on the books. This Article seeks to discontinue it.
Those in favor say: “E” Street never really existed as an actual street, and we should eliminate it.
Those against say: There is no assurance that the Casino will always be there to bridge the two streets, or even that the two sides of the Casino will always be owned by the same party. Those who spoke against it wondered what benefit derives from the discontinuance, since there might be future need for the differentiation of the individual street names.
One commenter said he wanted the Town to obtain in writing assurances from the Casino owner that the “E Street” entrance to the property will be available for traffic improvements in perpetuity. One more year won’t change a thing after 118 years, and Hampton is not likely to cut a hole in the middle of the Casino if this is not passed this year.
Fiscal Impact: No tax impact.
