LOUDON — The New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association's second annual Restaurant Week in New Hampshire held its official kickoff to the statewide culinary event on Friday at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The Celebrity Chefs and dignitaries revved up for a great kickoff as the green flag was dropped by NHMS General Manager, Jerry Gappens, and NHLRA Chairman Joel Bourassa.
More than 150 restaurants and lodging properties across the state are taking part in the statewide Restaurant Week from May 17-24. The eight-day event features restaurants presenting three-course lunch and/or dinner menus at three price points. A mobile-friendly restaurant finder atRestaurantWeekNH.com makes it easy for diners to find the eateries that best complement their appetites.
Restaurant Week NH is presented by The NH Liquor and Wine Outlets and Great New Hampshire Restaurants (T-BONES, Cactus Jack's and Copper Door). Supporting sponsors are Coca-Cola, Bombay Sapphire East Gin, Woodford Reserve, and Estancia Wines. Contributing sponsors are American Express, Sysco, PSNH, Smuttynose Brewing Company, and the Woodstock Station Inn & Brewery. The kick-off event sponsor is New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
For more information about the event, visit RestaurantWeekNH.com or call the NHLRA at (603) 228-9585. The NHLRA is at 341 Loudon Road, Unit 3, Concord, NH 03302. For updates on Restaurant Week via social media, follow on Twitter at twitter.com/RestaurantsNH or like the Facebook page at  facebook.com/RestaurantWeekNH.
For more information about the New Hampshire Lodging & Restaurant Association, visit NHLRA.com.

LACONIA — The City Council this week scheduled a public hearing for Monday, May 28 at 7 p.m. to address a recommendation by the Finance Committee to increase the sewer rates in each of the next three fiscal years, as recommended by the Finance Committee.
Finance Director Donna Woodaman explained that at the current rates the Sanitary Sewer Fund, which finances the operating expenses and capital outlays of the system, is running an annual deficit as expenses of $3,882,845 exceed revenues of of $3,275,157 by $607,688.
The sewer rate consists of a fixed quarterly fee and a consumption charge, which are currently $30 and $3.30 per hundred cubic feet (HCF), or 748 gallons, respectively.
The Finance Committee recommends raising the quarterly fee to $32.50 in 2014, to $33.25 in 2015 and to $34 in 2016 and the consumption charge to $3.69, $4.19 and $4.75 over the same period. The increases would apply to all 9,894 metered customers in each of the three years while the higher rates would apply to those with only sewer service and seasonal properties beginning in 2015.
For metered properties, the average residential sewer bill, based on annual consumption of 120 HCF, is projected to rise from $516 to $572.80 in 2014, $635.80 in 2015 and $706 in 2016, or by 11 percent each year.
Woodaman projects the proposed rate schedule would shrink the deficit in the Sanitary Sewer Fund to $287,711 in 2014 and to $69,442 in 2015 before returning a positive balance of $180,994 in 2016.
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES) recently projected that the city will need to repair, replace and construct sewers in the foreseeable future at an estimated cost approaching $12 million.
At the same time, the capital improvement program of the Winnipesaukee River Basin Program (WRBP), which represents 63 percent of the annual operating budget of the sanitary sewer fund, projects capital improvements costing $54.6 million to be undertaken in the next 10 years. These include major improvements at the wastewater treatment plant in Franklin as well as to pump stations and sewer mains. As the largest of the 10 member municipalities of the WRBP, the city bears 40 percent of the program's capital budget.
In addition to the treatment plant, the WRBP includes 14 pump stations and 60 miles of sewer lines. built between 1973 and 1993 at a cost of $75 million. Federal grants accounted for three-quarters of the cost and state grants for another fifth while the 10 municipalities contributed 5 percent. Woodaman said that although the federal government offers low-cost financing, the cost of maintaining the system falls entirely to the member municipalities.

SANBORNTON — One of the more controversial topics at Wednesday night's annual Town Meeting was a warrant article that would have provided $7,946 in local taxpayer money to match a state grant for two storm water catchment basins in the Winnisquam watershed. The measure went down to an overwhelming defeat.
The financial grant match would have required a $5,460 in "in kind contributions" from Sanbornton to get a total of $38,886 for the Best Management Practices in the 3,600 acre Black Brook watershed.
Speaking for it was Don Foudriat who spearheaded the study after the completion of the Maple Circle-Black Brook Road-Town Beach project in 2011. He explained that phosphorous contributes to invasive species growth and the decline of the overall health of the lake.
The study recommended 31 "BMPs" for a total of $900,000 but selectmen chose the two least expensive ones, said Selectman Guy Giunta, to see if they could spark interest in the other communities whose water also runs into Lake Winnisquam. He said other communities on the lake don't appear to be doing anything to mitigate the storm water runoff and have declined selectmen requests for meetings.
Speaking against it were a lot of people, including Budget Committee member Jeff Jenkins and Curt McGee who both said the intent of the BMPs was noble and lake quality was key, but there were too many strings attached to the state grant and once the state gets involved they will dictate the terms of maintenance.
When asked, no one could say how much maintenance could cost. Jenkins and Selectboard Chair Dave Nickerson both said they had information that the town would be required to clean the basins twice annually, or after each inch of rain and the residue would be considered hazardous waste.
"They'll take it to Concord, burn it, and send it back to use so we can spread it on our lawns," he said evoking laughter from the crowd.
Scott Taylor of Kaulback Road, who defined himself as a tree-hugger, said it was a rare occasion that he agreed with Jeff Jenkins and Curt McGee, who also spoke against it, but said that he was against spending the money because there isn't enough information.
The two basins would have been a small part in the overall Black Brook Watershed Management Plan that was recommended by in August by the N.H. Department of Environmental Services as a way to ultimately reduce the amount of phosphorous and contaminants that reach Lake Winnisquam via the river.
The final results of the study — that can be found in its entirely on the Sanbornton — recommends $998,000 of BMPs in the 3,600-acre Black Brook watershed.