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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2013
THURSDAY
County officials will take budget case directly to towns
LACONIA — Belknap County Commissioners, citing ‘’a lot of misinformation and misunderstanding’’ about the Belknap County budget, are preparing to go directly to local boards of selectmen and budget committees to explain the $27 million spending plan they are working to finalize over the next few weeks. ‘’We should be going out into the towns see COUNTY page 4
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VOL. 14 NO. 116
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Downtown parking debate raises temps at City Hall BY MICHAEL KITCH THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
LACONIA — “I don’t even want to call it an issue, said Mayor Mike Seymour by way of introducing another discussion of downtown parking when the City Council met Monday evening,”because I think the only issue we have is a lot of empty spaces and we’d like to fill more of them.” As it turned out, the mayor misjudged the temper not only of the council but also
of John Moriarty, president of the Main Street Initiative, an organization of downtown building and business owners. What Seymour preferred to call “a concern” sparked exchanges first between Councilor Brenda Baer (Ward 4) and Chris Santaniello, executive director of Lakes Region Community Services, and then between Councilors Henry Lipman (Ward 3 ) and Bob Hamel (Ward 5) and Moriarty. Afterwards the council directed a Parking
Committee, formed in 2012, to reconvene and prepare a report and recommendations to the council. At Moriarty’s suggestion the committee, which consists of City Manager Scott Myers, Planning Director Shanna Saunders, Baer, Santaniello, Andy Patterson of the Laconia Clinic, Robert Sawyer of Sawyer’s Jewelry and Moriarty, be expanded. Moriarty said he would like for residential, retail, entertainment, see PARKING page 8
Child’s mother on stand at 2nd day of Eric Grant trial
‘A Funny Thing’ . . . happening at Gilford High School
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THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
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Christian Ayer (as Miles Gloriosus) is surrounded by admiring Roman women (Cordelia Penney, Alexa Dembiec, Kayla Zarella, Victoria Brasil and Savannah Plummer) during a Tuesday night rehearsal of Gilford High School’s production of “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”. Performances are Friday and Saturday nights at 7 and again at the same time on November 22 and 23. Tickets are $10 for adults and $7 for students and senior citizens. Advance tickets are available at the Gilford Village Store and Greenlaw’s Music in Laconia. (Karen Bobotas/for The Laconia Daily Sun)
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LACONIA — Eric Grant’s attorney, Emily McLaughlin, continued yesterday to try to discredit the 17-year-old girl who said she was sexually assaulted at the band leader’s home during a New Year’s Eve party that happened when she was 10. After another two hours of cross-examination of the alleged victim, the girl’s mother was called to the stand by Asst. Belknap County Prosecutor Carley Ahern, who tried to elicit testimony from regarding any change in the girl’s demeanor after the 2006 New Years Eve party and if the girl’s relationship with her uncle (Grant) changed. The state’s case against Grant, who is a wellknown local country music performer with some national recognition, is that he digitally assaulted see TRIAL page 8
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