By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

Allenstown voters rejected two controversial money items – a $3.4 million school renovation plan and a $320,000 fire truck – but approved both the school and town operating budgets on Tuesday, March 14.

School results
A multimillion-dollar renovation and expansion plan for Allenstown Elementary School was rejected for the third year straight.

Though a majority of 489 people voted in favor of the plan, it needed 534 “yes” votes to reach the required 60 percent to pass.

“I’m not going to worry about what might have been,” said School Board Chairman Tom Irzyk, who was re-elected on voting day. “We just need to keep plugging on and doing what’s best for the kids.”

Similar incarnations of the plan have come up just seven and nine votes shy in the previous two years.

The $3.4 plan would have added nearly 17,000 square feet to the school and would have allowed fifth-graders – currently at Dupont School – to return to AES, thus freeing up more space for middle school programming.

The plan would have also added 13 new instructional rooms, basement storage, an expanded media center, a new computer room and updates to outdated and undersized special education facilities.

Irzyk suggested voters may have been swayed negatively by materials circulated throughout town by Roger LaFleur, who’s been outspoken against the plan since the school district’s deliberative session.

The only other warrant article on the ballot was the $8.7 million school operating budget, which voters approved 509-369.

Town results
Voters rejected a $320,000 purchase for a new fire truck, one intended to replace the town’s 1976 engine. The request was denied 324-531.

“I’m sad for the voters,” said Fire Chief Everett Chaput III. “It’s only going to get more and more expensive in the next couple years to replace that truck.”

Chaput said new emissions standards and rising truck costs could make a truck purchase about $37,000 to $47,000 more expensive by next year.

Voters did, however, support placing $20,000 into a capital fund for fire equipment, and they approved $5,000 for a police and fire facilities fund.

Voters also approved a request to launch a capital reserve fund designed for purchasing conservation land. Officials had requested $10,000 for the fund, but that number was zeroed out at the deliberative session of Town Meeting last month. Voters approved the proposed $4 million operating budget 445-391.

Elections
With 431 votes, Carol Merrill beat Thomas Gilligan, who got 397 votes, for a three-year spot on the board of selectmen. Incumbents Irzyk and Karen Laplume will fill the two open school board seats, getting 393 and 480 votes respectively. Dennis Carmichael got 291 votes.