Ossipee Elects Skehan, Freedom Votes for Totem Pole Park Enforcement

Ossipee — March 9, 2005 — Joseph Skehan, Jr. has won the four-way race for the Ossipee Selectman’s position being vacated by Joseph Chromy. In the final tally, Skehan received 262 votes against 133 for Robert Rivera and 121 for Jean Marie Simpson. Kevin Houle received 13 votes.

Tonight, Ossipee residents will debate and vote on a long list of warrant articles, including two authorizing the town to set aside money to construct a town beach on State property in Ossipee Lake Natural Area.

Voters at Freedom’s Town Meeting yesterday approved a number of warrant articles. One of them directs the Selectmen to enforce the prohibition against residency at Totem Pole Park, or else revoke the town’s approval of winter camping at the 459-unit condominium campground.

The issue stems from a controversial Planning Board decision in January of last year that rewrote the town’s 1987 approval for developers to create a seasonal lakefront campground that would be open for six months annually. The new agreement allows the campground to remain open for 11 months, provided that the 1987 prohibition against lot owners claiming residency remains in effect.

In August, five campground lot owners applied to vote in Freedom, then successfully appealed to the State after they were turned down by the town.

In other matters, Freedom residents authorized the town to spend $100,000 toward the purchase of the Trout Pond property as a town forest, and they put $5,000 in the milfoil contingency fund. Finally, incumbent Selectman Les Babb, who was running unopposed for a second term, was re-elected.

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