A Community Discussion About Our Future

The Community Profile Event
by Ken Lombard

How can I help preserve the rural character of the Town? 

OK, I admit it.  I made the question up.  Maybe it would be better to ask, “What part of the New Boston character is important to me?”  What parts of the essence of New Boston are worth preserving?  What needs to be addressed as we grow?  And how can we do that? 

Think about why you’re here in New Boston.  Many of us came here from “away.”  I’m a flatlander myself, having moved to New Hampshire in ’63 from way down south (Rhode Island) and moved to New Boston in ’89.  Statewide, some 58% of us are non-native, so something drew us here.  Was it the rural scenery that projects a peaceful way of life, or the picturesque “downtown” area?  Perhaps it was a way to get room to spread your elbows and not bump into something.  Whatever it was, I’ll bet it was special to you.  As you look around, is that special something threatened by changes you see around you? 

For those who are natives, what keeps you here?  Why have you elected to stay?  Is it family tradition, or an attachment to the land?  Staying with remaining friends and neighbors?  A desire to add some stability to the Town? 

Regardless of the reasons we’re here, we like the town and want it to continue to prosper.  AND we want it to continue to be the town with which we are familiar!  But New Boston, like most towns in southern New Hampshire faces growth pressure.  Neighboring towns, particularly New Bedford, are filling up making us an even more attractive place to live.  So the real question is, can we plan growth that will preserve the nature of the Town as we would like it to remain?  Just how do we do that? 

One way is for all of us to sit down together and exchange ideas on what is important, what needs to change or improve, what should stay the same.  We know that growth is coming so lets be proactive in planning for it. 

Our opportunity is here.  We’re going to have a Community Profile event early next year.  You may have heard of it already, as planning is well underway.  In my travels to various meetings and discussions with folks from other towns, I have heard nothing but praise for this exercise.  It is intended to get a number of us talking about the needs we see for the town.  It’s a chance to see where we agree and perhaps where we disagree.  If we know we disagree, we can work that issue. 

What is a Community Profile and how does it work?  Its an interactive event held on a Friday evening and most of the day on Saturday.  Friday might start with a potluck supper followed by an overview of the process.  (UNH Cooperative Extension will facilitate the event).  After outlining several key components (e.g., Fostering Healthy Families, Individuals & Youth), we’ll break into small discussion groups and have as free a conversation about those topics as we can. 

Saturday morning will start with a short report of the result of those discussion groups and then we’ll break up into small groups to discuss issues that have been raised.  Saturday afternoon, we’ll select some of the most important issues and start planning a way to resolve them, perhaps setting up some organizations to see that they are carried to completion. 

The whole process works best when we get as diverse participation as possible. We need representatives from those who work in town, those who commute, families with children, high schoolers, and folks old and young.  About 125 people, committed to contribute through the whole event, would be a good starting place.  Certainly, more would be better.  We plan to have childcare arranged for those who will need it so you can stay with us through the event. 

This is it!  Our chance to strengthen and improve our community, to let town leaders know what we would like to see happening so that they can better plan, and perhaps most important, we’ll see what is truly important to the Town of New Boston.  Start watching for more information in the coming months, and plan to join us in an exciting way to approach our future.   

And if you’d like to join the steering committee to help organize the event, give us a call!

Ken Lombard
Steering Committee Member