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Windham Select Board approves multiple tax exemptions, hires seasonal staff and updates finance procedure
Summary
The Select Board approved a series of property tax exemptions, authorized conditional summer hires for recreation, accepted donations for recreation programs, and amended the Recreation Revolving Fund procedure to route revenues to the town treasurer unless delegated. A full diocesan exemption failed while a partial exemption passed.
The Town of Windham Select Board on June 15 approved a package of motions that included multiple tax exemptions, conditional summer hiring for recreation positions, several financial consent items and an amendment to the Recreation Revolving Fund standard operating procedure.
The board unanimously authorized the Town Administrator to extend conditional offers of temporary beach-attendant employment to Abbey Rokel at $15.00 per hour and Owen Brodeur at $12.50 per hour following nonpublic consideration of hiring. The appointments were moved by Mr. Roger Hohenberger and seconded by Ms. Michelle Stith; the board voted 5-0 to approve the offers.
On property-tax matters, contract assessor Scott Marsh presented recommended exemptions and the board approved a string of motions. The board granted an educational exemption for Windham Academy (Map Lot 13A/198), approved charitable and religious exemptions for Shepard’s Pantry at the Windham Presbyterian Church (Map Lot 11C1120), approved an educational exemption for Windham Cooperative Kindergarten (Map Lot 13/196A), and granted a religious exemption for Heritage Baptist Church (Map Lots 8B1000 and 8B1000D). The American Legion parcel (Map Lot 20D/900) received a statutory exemption.
A request from the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester prompted extended discussion about the proper scope of exempt land. A motion to grant a full religious exemption for Map Lots 13A/300 and 12A/501 failed on a 2-2-1 vote (Chairman Ross McLeod and Vice Chair Heath Partington opposed; Ms. Stith abstained). The board then approved the contract assessor’s recommended partial exemption excluding roughly six acres of wooded excess land (motion passed 4-1).
The board accepted with gratitude recreation donations presented by Recreation Director Cheryl Haas, including $1,000 from the Windham Lions Club, $375 from DiPietro Real Estate Group, sunflower seed packets valued at about $200 from Delahunty’s, and donated photography services. Mr. Hohenberger moved to accept the donations; the motion passed 5-0.
Finance items on the consent agenda were approved, including payroll and accounts payable manifests dated June 15, 2026, and the Financial Report of Budget MS-535. Vice Chair Heath Partington moved to amend the Recreation Revolving Fund SOP to require that revenue go to the town treasurer unless that authority is delegated to Finance Office staff; the motion and the amended SOP were both approved 5-0.
Several appointments and procedural items were approved: the board appointed DJ Withee as a regular member and Jacob Cross as an alternate to the Southern New Hampshire Planning Commission, both to terms ending Sept. 30, 2027; and the board approved the June 1 draft meeting minutes. The board entered a separate nonpublic session later in the evening to receive legal advice regarding the Angelene Meadows project and requested additional information; no public action was taken on that item before adjournment at 8:30 p.m.
Why it matters: The votes adjust tax status for multiple nonprofit and institutional properties in Windham, affect how small recreation revenues are handled administratively, and set staffing for seasonal recreation operations ahead of summer events.
