All towns · lrpc

Approved 06/10/26

Document

LAKES REGION PLANNING COMMISSION  
103 Main Street, Suite #3 
Meredith, NH 03253 
Tel 603.279.8171 
www.lakesrpc.nh.gov 
 
 
ALEXANDRIA • ALTON • ANDOVER • ASHLAND • BARNSTEAD • BELMONT • BRIDGEWATER • BRISTOL • CENTER HARBOR • DANBURY 
EFFINGHAM • FRANKLIN • FREEDOM • GILFORD • GILMANTON • HEBRON • HILL • HOLDERNESS • LACONIA • MEREDITH • MOULTONBOROUGH 
NEW HAMPTON • NORTHFIELD • OSSIPEE • PLYMOUTH • SANBORNTON • SANDWICH • TAMWORTH • TILTON • TUFTONBORO • WOLFEBORO 
LRPC Executive Board Meeting 
Minutes of May 13, 2026 
Approved June 10, 2026 
 
PRESENT 
Cristina Ashjian, John Ayer (Chair), Rod Cameron, Tyler Carmichael, John Christ, David Katz (Vice 
Chair), David Kerr (Treasurer), Lianne Prentice (Secretary), Phil Villari 
ABSENT 
Jane Alden (E), Bill Bolton (E), Stephanie Maltais [alternate] 
STAFF 
Linda Waldron (Executive Administrative Assistant), Danielle Scadova-Vose (Regional Planner), 
Glenn Trefethen (Transportation Planner) 
LOCATION 
LRPC Office, 1st Floor Conference Room, Meredith 
 
 
1. 
Call to Order 
Chair Ayer welcomed everyone and called the meeting to order at 9:00 AM. A quorum was established. Chair Ayer 
announced at Executive Director Saunders was not well and would not be joining us.  
 
2. 
Minutes 
Minutes of the April 8, 2026 Executive Board meeting was presented for approval. A motion was made by Tyler Carmichael 
to approve the minutes as submitted, seconded by John Christ. A voice vote was taken; David Katz and Phil Villari abstained, 
and all other members present voted in favor. Motion passed. 
 
3. 
Finance/Treasurer Report 
Finance Administrator Carl Carder reported that the organization’s Vanguard investments saw strong gains this month, 
helping to offset the losses of last month. Expenses exceeded income, though both categories remain under budget overall. 
Education and training costs were above budget due to required conference registrations, but 64% of this was covered by 
grant funding. Vehicle maintenance costs were also higher than usual, primarily due to the age of the vehicle; however, this 
expense is fully reimbursable through the UPWP grant. April deficits are typical in the budget cycle, although this year’s 
deficit is smaller than last year’s April deficit. 
 
4. 
Monthly Executive Report 
In Executive Director Saunders’ absence, Vice‑Chair Katz highlighted the substantial progress underway in the Brownfields 
Assessments and noted the successful rollout of the composting program, which recently received positive coverage in the 
Laconia Daily Sun. Chair Ayer also reported that Gilford’s HMP has now received final approval. 
 
5. 
Old Business 
a. 
Executive Board Vacancies. Chair Ayer announced that Mark Hildebrand has resigned from the Center Harbor Planning 
Board as well as from his roles as commissioner and Executive Board member at LRPC. Recruitment strategies to fill the 
three open positions on the Board were discussed. With Chair Ayer not seeking reappointment, Vice-Chair Katz will run 
for Chair and Secretary Prentice will run for Vice-Chair, leaving the Secretary position open. After further discussion, 
Tyler Carmichael agreed to run for Secretary. This leaves the Area 4 Commissioner seat vacant, an At Large seat vacant 
(left by Hildebrand), and an Alternate seat.  
 
Although not on the Agenda, Regional Planner Danielle Scadova-Vose was called upon to provide an update on the Regional 
Master Plan. Danielle reported on the survey progress, stating that the Transportation survey received 190 responses before 
closing, the Housing survey closed with about 80 responses, and the combined Economic Development and Natural 
Resources survey which remains open currently has 49 responses. The plan is to have drafts for the Transportation, Housing, 
Economic Development, and Natural Resources chapters by July, incorporating data from various sources including the 
recent surveys and the 2023 Regional Housing Needs Assessment. 

LAKES REGION PLANNING COMMISSION  
103 Main Street, Suite #3 
Meredith, NH 03253 
Tel 603.279.8171 
www.lakesrpc.nh.gov 
 
 
ALEXANDRIA • ALTON • ANDOVER • ASHLAND • BARNSTEAD • BELMONT • BRIDGEWATER • BRISTOL • CENTER HARBOR • DANBURY 
EFFINGHAM • FRANKLIN • FREEDOM • GILFORD • GILMANTON • HEBRON • HILL • HOLDERNESS • LACONIA • MEREDITH • MOULTONBOROUGH 
NEW HAMPTON • NORTHFIELD • OSSIPEE • PLYMOUTH • SANBORNTON • SANDWICH • TAMWORTH • TILTON • TUFTONBORO • WOLFEBORO 
b. 
Annual Meeting Update. Executive Administrative Assistant Waldron stated that invitations were circulated on May 10th 
via email along with approximately 20 hard copy invitations to select officials. Current sponsorships total only $1,750. 
Board members were encouraged to reach out for additional sponsors. Cristina Ashjian reported that the Awards 
Committee received a total of 8 nominations for the 3 award categories from 5 towns: Franklin, Tamworth, Tuftonboro, 
Tilton, and New Hampton. The Committee will gather after the conclusion of this meeting to determine the winners. 
 
6. 
New Business 
a. 
Draft FY27 Budget Proposal Review. Vice-Chair Katz presented the draft budget, characterizing it as “fragile” due to two 
uncertain (highlighted) revenue sources: the USDA Solid Waste Grant which has a 30% probability of being awarded 
and the Grafton County Brownfields Grant which has an 80% probability of being awarded. If both are awarded, we will 
be near a $1 million total budget. Transportation funding and other non-highlighted items are confirmed. Better clarity 
is expected in July or August regarding grant awards. The Board consensus was approval of the draft budget with a 
formal vote to be taken at a later meeting after grant award decisions and adjustments. 
 
Again, although not on the Agenda, Transportation Planner Glenn Trefethen was called upon to provide Brownfields and 
Transportation updates. He noted that while most Brownfields funds have been allocated (Franklin & Bristol), there remains 
$150,000 available for new projects, with potential work identified in communities such as Ashland. The Tamworth project 
closed out with funds returned. Upcoming transportation projects were reviewed including traffic counting starting in June 
and new contracts with Andover for CCDS and RSMS work. The new Grafton County Brownfields Grant, if received, will focus 
on housing development opportunities and Brownfield remediation connection. Of mention was the Laconia Fixture 
Feasibility Study awaiting NHDOT approval; the Plymouth–Smith Bridge Road project which is being rescoped after 
reinstatement without funding; and Tilton seeking CMAQ support for a proposed Route 3 & 11 multi‑use path. 
 
7. 
Announcements 
Two other Commissioners have stepped down: Wolfeboro Commissioner Roger Murray and Tilton Alternate Commissioner 
Nathan Langione chose not to seek reappointment after their terms expired. Given the growing number of commissioner 
vacancies (currently 7 towns have no representation), a discussion ensued concerning the challenges with commissioner 
attendance and participation. An action item assigned to Executive Administrative Assistant Waldron was to distribute 
current fiscal year attendance records to all Executive Board members. The possibility of engaging county commissioners to 
provide additional representation was suggested. Action items were assigned to Executive Director Saunders to follow up 
on this recommendation and to reach out to towns with vacancies to recruit new commissioners. 
 
The next Commissioner meeting will be this coming Monday, May 17th, which is 1 week earlier due to the Memorial Day 
holiday and will be held in the Gilford Public Library. 
 
8. 
Adjournment 
Chair Ayer adjourned the meeting at 10:08 AM. 
 
 
Respectfully Submitted, 
 
Linda Waldron 
Executive Administrative Assistant 
 
Acronyms: 
CCDS = Culverts & Closed Drainage Systems 
CMAQ = Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality 
DOT = Department of Transportation 
HMP = Hazard Mitigation Plan 
RSMS = Road Surface Management System 
UPWP = Unified Planning Work Program 
USDA = United States Department of Agriculture