Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $110,000 (One hundred and ten thousand dollars), $55,000 (fifty-five thousand dollars) from taxation and $55,000 (fifty-five thousand dollars) from the Conservation Fund for the fee simple purchase and permanent protection of a+/- 70 acres parcel (Map 63 Lot 1) located off of Timber Swamp Rd in Hampton for the purpose of conserving open space, protecting wildlife and aquatic habitat, and preserving wetlands and flood control areas in the best interest of the Town for the appraisal value of $108,000 (one hundred and eight thousand dollars) plus $2,000 (two thousand dollars) for legal and closing costs, of which the overall sum may be reduced if land conservation grant funding can be secured, said premises to be held in perpetuity by the Town of Hampton and placed under the care of the Conservation Commission, this parcel shares a common boundary line with both the Hurd Farm (120 acres) and Batchelder Farm (110 acres) Conservation Easements and will be the first parcel to connect these two easements, creating greaterprotection for the Taylor River Watershed, this funding will be non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and will not lapse until the acquisition of the land or by December 31, 2021, whichever is sooner? (Majority vote required)
What it means: The Conservation Commission has worked with the owner of a parcel of land off Timber Swamp Road, and the two parties have agreed on a price. The Commission finds this land to be a particularly attractive acquisition for the Town because it would join together two other protected parcels, making for greater contiguous conservation space and helping to further protect the Taylor River Watershed. Of the $110,00 that will be needed, half will come from existing funds currently in the Conservation Fund.
Those in favor say: This will join together several contiguous pieces of land for better flood protection, water quality protection and wildlife passage & habitat.
Those against say: No one spoke against this article at theDeliberativeSession.
Fiscal impact: The $55,000 additional cost in 2019 will create a tax cost for the average Hampton home valued at $405,000 of $3.27. (Take your property value divided by 1000 and multiply by .008 to get your specific tax impact.) This decision affects the current year only.