Category: Quality Of Life

New Hampshire is getting in gear

May is National Bike Month and May 7 is National Ride a Bike Day. The Bike-Walk Alliance of New Hampshire has more than 20 bicycle-related events scheduled on its calendar for May (bwanh.org/calendar). There is a Tour de New Hampshire bicycle tour of Manchester rail trails on May 11. The Hooksett Riverwalk Trail will have its grand opening this month. S&W Sports in Concord will host Concord’s annual Bike Swap, and Veterans Count (vetscount.org) will hold its sixth annual multi-route ride in Nashua to honor New Hampshire service members, veterans and their families.

QOL score: +1

Comment: According to the New Hampshire Rail Trails Coalition, there are more than 380 miles of rail trails in the state.

Helping more people enjoy the game

Fisher Cats fans with sensory issues have another tool to help keep them from being overwhelmed at games. According to an April 25 press release, the team has partnered with Home Base Transportation (homebasenh.com), a New Hampshire-based organization that provides reliable transportation to children and adults with special needs, to provide KultureCity Sensory Bags to Delta Dental Stadium for the 2024 season. According to the announcement, “The program began at Delta Dental stadium on April 23 and will run indefinitely. Sensory Bags include items that can help lessen sensory overload for both adults and children such as noise-canceling headphones and fidget tools. Individuals who may feel overwhelmed by the environment can check out Sensory Bags at Guest Services, where weighted lap pads will also be available.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: “It’s important for us to create an environment that is inclusive of everyone,” said Fisher Cats official Stephanie O’Quinn.

New Hampshire house prices way up

New Hampshire Business Review (nhbr.com) reports in its April 26 issue that the prices of houses in the state have outstripped the growth of household income over the past five years. Citing statistics from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors, “The median price for a single-family house in New Hampshire rose from $283,000 in 2018 to $470,000 in 2023, a 66 percent increase in five years,” the article says. “The most recently available data suggests household incomes in New Hampshire grew much more slowly than the price of a house. Between 2018 and 2022, median household income in New Hampshire rose 20 percent.” The Business Review cites the increase of working from home, a limited supply and high demand as possible reasons for the remarkable rate of housing inflation.

QOL score: -1

Comment: According to the same article, Coos County has had the highest rate of growth in house prices, at +103.5%, but Hillsborough County has the highest average sticker price at $490,000.

QOL score last week: 60

Net change: + 1

QOL this week: 61

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].

Pour one (medium popcorn with butter) out

The Regal Cinema in Concord has sadly joined the ranks of closed and closing area movie theaters. According to a Concord Monitor story from April 16, the 7:30 p.m. showing of Kung Fu Panda 4 on April 18 marked the final act of the theater location’s 28 years in Concord. In addition to first-run films, the theater offered a summer series of kid movies, which will be a much missed option for air-conditioned family entertainment.

QOL score: -1

Comment: The theater site and the neighboring Steeplegate Mall are slated to become “a huge retail and housing complex, with some 625 apartments,” the Concord Monitor story said.

Six fewer loons

Last year at least six loons died of lead poisoning in New Hampshire, according to a joint press release from the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (wildnh.com) and the Loon Preservation Committee (loon.org) on April 16. The deaths, which occurred at lakes and ponds across the state, were due to the ingestion of lead fishing tackle and sinkers, according to the press release. Fish and Game and the Loon Preservation Committee remind anglers that lead tackle is no longer legal in New Hampshire and can be turned in at Fish and Game offices and at many transfer stations across the state. Additionally, until the end of the year, anglers can exchange one ounce or more of illegal lead tackle (lead sinkers and lead-headed jigs individually weighing one ounce or less) for a $10 gift certificate redeemable at many New Hampshire tackle shops. According to the Loon Preservation Committee, a loon will die from lead poisoning approximately two to four weeks after ingesting lead fishing tackle.

QOL score: -1

Comment: Loons that are on land that are not on nests are likely in distress. the release said. The Loon Preservation Committee asks the public to report loons in distress by calling 476-5666 or visiting loon.org.

Not the basil!

The New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health Services (dhhs.nh.gov) is advising consumers not to eat Infinite Herbs Organic Fresh Basil packed in 2.5-ounce clamshells and sold at Traders Joe’s stores. According to an April 18 press release, there is a multistate outbreak of salmonella infections linked to this brand of basil. The recalled product has been voluntarily removed from stores and should no longer be available for sale. Consumers who have purchased Infinite Herbs Organic Basil should not eat the product and are urged to check their refrigerators and freezers for any stored product. “As salmonella bacteria can cause serious illness, it is best to throw out any potentially contaminated food rather than risk infection,” said Iain Watt, Interim DPHS Director.

QOL score: -1

Comment: The Department of Health and Human Services reports that there are no reported New Hampshire cases associated with the outbreak of aalmonella infections at this time.

Last week’s QOL score: 63

Net change: -3

QOL this week: 60

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].

And the winner is

Ruby Shabazz, a Nashua native, has won best R&B song in the 2024 New England Songwriting Competition. According to its website (newenglandsongwritingcompetition.com) the contest describes its mission as “to nurture, recognize, and elevate the diverse voices and melodies that make up the vibrant music scene of New England.” This is the 15th contest. Ruby Shabazz won the award with “Thank You,” an autobiographical song about the meaning of gratitude. According to an April 6 press release from Shabazz, her style has been described as “an updated version of neo-soul mixed with the throwback sounds of Lauryn Hill.” This year’s New England Songwriting Competition had more than 500 submissions.

QOL score: +1

Comments: See Shabazz on Saturday, April 27, at 9 p.m. at the Smokehouse Tavern in Lowell, Mass., according to her website.

Stepping Stones closes

According to an April 12 broadcast story on WMUR, Stepping Stones, a Nashua shelter that helps homeless young adults who have aged out of foster care or fled situations of abuse, closed its residential facility last Tuesday. According to WMUR’s story, residents were given three weeks to find other living arrangements. On its website (steppingstonesnh.org) Stepping Stones has posted a simple message: “Due to circumstances beyond our control, Stepping Stones will be closing permanently on April 9, 2024.”

QOL score: -1

Comments: According to another WMUR story from Oct. 18 of last year, there are more than 3,000 homeless youth in New Hampshire.

Another kind of eclipse-related phenomenon

According to an April 10 news release from the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (dot.nh.gov), more than 54,000 cars traveled north on New Hampshire highways to view the April 8 eclipse. According to an April 9 story on WMUR.com, southbound traffic was especially harrowing: “Backups on major roadways such as Interstate 93 north of the Notches lasted into the early hours of the morning, and the roads were still crowded by Tuesday morning rush hour.”

QOL score: -1 for the less-fun eclipse gathering

Comments: According to WMUR, some eclipse viewers reported it took them more than 12 hours to get back to the southern part of the state.

Boston Marathon runners

New Hampshire runners did well in Monday’s Boston Marathon. According to WMUR (wmur.com) and the Boston Athletic Association (baa.org) the state’s fastest participants were Sam Fazioli of Derry, who placed 38th among male runners with a time of 2:23:49; Emilee Risteen, also of Derry, who placed 29th among female runners with a time of 2:43:12, and Nashua’s Thomas Cantara, who won the T20 Para division in 2:35:23. As reported by WMUR, Risteen said of the race, “It was a tougher day out there, but still fun.”

QOL score: +1

Comments: Sisay Lemma of Ethiopia was the fastest male runner, with a time of 2:06:17. Hellen Obiri of Kenya won her second consecutive Boston Marathon, with a time of 2:22:37.

Last week’s QOL score: 63

Net change: 0

QOL this week: 63

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].

Save it for next year, snow

Just in case we forgot where we lived, April started with a snowstorm. Last week’s nor’easter brought snow, ice, winds, a snow day for many and more than 140,000 New Hampshire customers without electricity, according to an April 4 press release from the New Hampshire Department of Safety.

QOL score: -1

Comments: Knock wood, fingers crossed, no whammies — can it be spring now?

And then, an earthquake

A 4.8 magnitude earthquake on April 5 was centered in Whitehouse Station, New Jersey, but felt in New Hampshire, according to the U.S. Geological Survey in a report at earthquake.usgs.gov. On a map of the event, the government agency reported shocks felt throughout Vermont and New Hampshire. According to an April 5 report by the Washington Post, the geology of the Eastern Seaboard is extremely solid and rocky, which helped shockwaves travel an unusually long distance.

QOL score: -1 because the April 8 solar eclipse already had all of our “weird natural phenomenon” focus

Comments: WMUR reported that people in Concord, Manchester, Nashua and other communities across the state felt the quake. New Hampshire was home to a Gilford-centered 2.2-magnitude quake on March 27, the WMUR story said.

Notable chef

Milford chef and restaurant owner Chris Viaud is one of the finalists for a James Beard Award. In an April 3 press release, the James Beard Foundation announced that Viaud, the chef and owner of Greenleaf and Ansanm in Milford and Pavilion in Wolfeboro, is a finalist in the Outstanding Restaurateur category. The award criteria describe an outstanding restaurateur as one “who uses their establishment(s) as a vehicle for building community, demonstrates creativity in entrepreneurship, integrity in restaurant operations, and is making efforts to create a sustainable work culture, while contributing positively to their broader community.”

QOL score: +1

Comment: The winner of this award will be announced at the James Beard Award ceremony in Chicago in June.

Screens go dark

Chunky’s Cinema Pub’s locations in Nashua and Pelham will close on May 9, according to Facebook posts on those locations’ pages and as reported by multiple media organizations. The Chunky’s at 707 Huse Road in Manchester will thankfully remain open and gift cards can be used at that location (staff from Pelham and Nashua will also be offered positions in Manchester, the posts said). The Nashua location has been open for more than 17 years and the Pelham location has been open for 27 years, the posts said.

QOL score: -2

Comments: Nashua and Pelham locations will plan to go out in style with some screenings of modern classics — Labyrinth on April 29 at 7 p.m.; Dirty Dancing on April 30, at 7 p.m.; The Goonies on May 1 at 7 p.m.; The Big Lebowski on May 2 at 7:45 p.m., and Jaws on May 3 at 7 p.m.

Last week’s QOL score: 66

Net change: -3

QOL score this week: 63

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].

Egg-cellent news

The peregrine falcon couple that lives in the nest box atop the Brady Sullivan Building in Manchester has welcomed this year’s eggs — four, brick-red-colored eggs, with the first egg laid March 20 and the fourth laid during the afternoon on March 28, according to the daily log of the peregrine activity (find a link in the chat on the YouTube live feed of the nest box). According to the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department, peregrine eggs take about a month to hatch, so by May Day, Manchester should have new peregrines to add to its bird count.

QOL score: +1

Comments: A live camera feed of the Brady Sullivan Nest Box can be viewed by searching YouTube for Peregrine Networks Live Peregrine Falcon Feed1.

A cleaner New Hampshire

A recently released report from the Environmental Protection Agency shows that toxic pollutants in New Hampshire have decreased over the past decade. The 2022 Toxics Release Inventory (commonly known as a TRI Report) announced that toxic releases and toxic pollutants to the air, land and water have decreased significantly over the past 10 years, and that toxic emissions have “decreased by 71% over the last 10 years, due to the significant reductions of certain TRI chemicals at several manufacturing facilities and significant reductions from power plants,” the EPA reported last week in a press release.

QOL score: +1

Comments: Nationwide, releases of TRI chemicals have decreased by 21 percent. See awsgispub.epa.gov/trina2022/summary.

Faster fire rescue responses

Last week Nashua Fire Rescue announced the launch of a new emergency vehicle traffic preemption system, replacing the outdated Opticom system that has served for nearly 35 years. As reported by Nashua Ink Link on Thursday, March 28, Nashua’s new Glance Traffic Preemption system uses GPS, cellular and 900 MHz signaling technology to alert traffic signals at more than 90 intersections across the city of the approach of a fire apparatus, and changes the lights to allow emergency vehicles through, for a faster response time. In a phone interview, Fire Dispatch confirmed that the new system went online this week.

QOL score: +1

Comments: The $600,000 project was made possible through funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and was approved by the Nashua Board of Aldermen in 2022.

A cold night out

More than 165 people signed up to raise funds for Waypoint’s 10th Annual SleepOut on Friday, March 29, according to a story in the Boston Globe. Participants spent a night sleeping outside to earn money for programs at Waypoint, a statewide nonprofit that provides services for homeless young adults across New Hampshire’s programs, the story said. According to Cindy Stewart, Development Director at Waypoint, money is still coming in from the event, but so far, this SleepOut has raised more than $420,000.

QOL score: +1 for the fundraising and fundraisers

Comments: According to Waypoint, up to 15,000 New Hampshire youth experience homelessness each year.

QOL score: 62

Net change: +4

QOL this week: 66

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].

Not so fast, spring

Winter wasn’t done with New Hampshire. According to WMUR, the Saturday, March 23, storm dropped snow across the state, ranging from a coating to a few inches (often mixed with rain) to more than a foot for some parts of the Granite State. The fallout from the storm: power outages. More than 75,000 customers lost power during the peak of storm outages. On the morning of March 25, more than 20,000 customers were still powerless; by the afternoon WMUR reported that most customers would have their power restored by the end of the day.

QOL score: -2, because we were all set with winter

Comments: OK, who put away all their winter boots and coats and jinxed us? Nobody pull up their driveway stakes until at least mid-April.

Meanwhile…

Ski NH reported Sunday, March 24, that the storm brought more than 2 feet to some ski areas in the state. Wildcat Mountain in Jackson received 30 inches while Cannon Mountain in Franconia and Waterville Valley Resort each reported 27 to 30 inches, according to Ski NH’s press release. Cranmore Mountain Resort in North Conway received 2 feet and may reopen this coming weekend, the release said.

QOL score: +1

Comments: “23 inches over the last 24 hours, bluebird skies and patrol dropping rope as we speak. Get ready for the best day of the season!” read a Sunday post on the Cranmore Facebook page.

On the other hand…

At 8:03 a.m. on Sunday, March 24, Gilmanton and Alton firefighters responded to a rescue call on Crystal Lake to save a deer that had fallen through the ice about 200 yards from shore, according to the Gilmanton Firefighter’s Association Facebook page. From the pictures the Association posted, it appears that there was only a thin crust of icy snow on the surface of the lake after last Saturday’s snow storm. Rescuers responded in rescue watercraft and pulled the deer from the water.

QOL score: +1 for the assist

Comments: “The deer was rescued, tired, exhausted and shivering but it was last seen up and walking around,” according to the Association’s Facebook page.

Preserving history

Canterbury Shaker Village and the American Independence Museum in Exeter each received grants from Americana Corner, an online resource for education about America in the 1700s and 1800s, according to press releases from the sites. The American Independence Museum was awarded a 2024 “Preserving America” grant for $10,000, which it will use to “fund essential preservation work at Folsom Tavern such as repairs to — and restaining of — various sections of clapboard siding,” the press release said. Canterbury Shaker Village in Canterbury will use its $7,500 award “to preserve ten windows in its historic Meeting House,” its release said.

QOL score: +1

Comments: See shakers.org and independencemuseum.org for more on the two sites.

QOL score: 61

Net change: +1

QOL this week: 62

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at [email protected].