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By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Despite some pushback from the teacher’s union, the Concord School Board stayed the course on plans it made Monday to reduce the number of teaching positions in elementary schools to keep pace with a shrinking student population. The board voted 8-1...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

As heavy machinery makes way for a new parking garage for lawmakers, some Concord residents and officials have wondered whether the new structure will help ease the pressure on downtown parking.The answer, according to state and city leaders, has yet...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Eliminating elementary teaching positions and a proposed middle school resource officer, while including a new math interventionist and world language teachers at Rundlett, the Concord School Board made a balance of cuts and additions to its draft...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Everyone inside a three-family apartment building that caught fire Saturday evening in Hillsborough was able to safely evacuate.With waves of rain and snow bearing down, firefighters from eight area towns battled the blaze for nearly four hours before...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

As the number of school-aged children in Concord drops and more families choose educational options outside public school, the Concord School District has seen a long pattern of declining enrollment.On the backdrop of shrinking elementary school class...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Concord is unique in its commitment to the neighborhood pool with seven for its less than 50,000 residents.  “Seven pools are a lot for a community of this size,” Parks and Recreation Director David Gill said. “Each pool has a different character,...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

After serving as the deputy for more than a decade, Danielle Pacik, is now Concord’s new city solicitor.Pacik landed the permanent position after she was appointed to the role on an interim basis following the February departure of longtime city...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

A proposal from Rundlett Principal Jay Richard to add a school resource officer at the middle school — costing roughly $100,000 — has met resistance from school board members and parent.Richard and other administrators argued that adding the position...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

When former Concord firefighter Chris Andrews introduced himself to city councilors, he described himself as “a cancer survivor — at least for now.”At the outset of his career, new types of protective gear, including the addition of breathing...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

The Concord School Board will hold public hearings on Monday and Wednesday next week to gather community input on its proposed budget. In the preliminary budget, the general fund — 95% of school spending — would increase about $1.78 million, or 1.67%,...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

NOTE TO READERS: Scroll below to access the searchable Concord salary database. If you’re using a smartphone, hold your phone in landscape mode to get the best results. As the number of city employees earning six figures continued to climb in 2023,...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Canterbury voters will weigh a 2.9% increase to the town operating budget at their meeting Friday.Wage increases and adding one new town position are largely behind the $94,224 increase, bringing the operating budget up to $3,323,453.In addition to...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Boscawen voters approved a 1.1% increase to the town operating budget, a plan to join the Community Power Coalition, the creation of a town forest along Walker Pond and the sale of two historic town buildings at their town meeting Tuesday night. With...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Led by former mayoral candidate Kate West, a motivated group of activists attended the Concord City Council meeting Monday night seeking a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the Middle East. Since this issue wasn’t scheduled for discussion – a...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

In every other class they attended, they were known to their teachers and fellow students as Adyson, Ruth, Ava, Olivia, Lillian, and Addison. But to each other — inside a maze mimicking a burning house, blindfolded as they navigated a narrow passage...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

After the moderator read the results of the Merrimack Valley School Board elections Friday night, Julia Jones dabbed away a few tears.Though she is the president of the Salisbury parent-teacher group, she relied only on word of mouth to promote her...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

A major Main Street project, unsuccessful in getting a variance from the Concord Zoning Board, is asking the city to consider softening its rules on height requirements.Mark Ciborowski owns Phenix Hall and is in the process of restoring the historic...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Merrimack Valley School District voters will weigh a 5.9% budget increase and decide two contested school board races on Friday. The proposed operating budget for the five-community district is $48,298,106, up almost $2.7 million from last year. The...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

After pushback from teachers, Concord Superintendent Kathleen Murphy withdrew a plan to combine the principal positions at Mill Brook and Broken Ground elementary schools next year.“I received a lot of feedback from staff and other folks, and upon...

By CATHERINE McLAUGHLIN

Deerfield voters said they wanted more choices for the town’s high-school-aged students. A year later, with tuition agreements finalized and approved for three area schools, they’ll get it – at a steep price. “What we were saying last year is that...