2021 Election Ballot and Bylaw Changes

Re: Officer Ballot

Every year the NHPA Membership gets to vote for members of the Executive Committee. This year we have three returning members and one new member on the ballot. If YOU are interested in serving in the future please be in touch with a Executive Committee Member. We have several other ways to volunteer and openings on the executive Committee that come up often! Thanks for your vote!
Their bios are below. (Vote for no more than 4)

Re: Bylaw Changes

Each bylaw change is described and shown below. If you have any questions or comments please email NHPA at nhplanners@gmail.com before submitting the survey.

This survey closes at 5pm on November 30th.

Thank you!

Question Title

* 1. Vote for no more than 4

Angela LaBrecque, AICP is currently the Town Planner in Meredith NH, where she has been for 14 years. She is the staff support person for the Planning Board as well as four volunteer advisory committees. In addition, she works on a variety of special projects from water quality monitoring to the town’s solar initiative. For the past several months, she has served as the secretary for the New Hampshire Planners Association. Previously, she worked in the public and private sector for 5 years as a Regional Planner in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Angela received her BS in Environmental Science from the University of California, Davis.

Kyle Pimental has been a New Hampshire transplant for nearly 20 years. Originally from Rhode Island, Kyle moved to the Granite State to receive his education at the University of New Hampshire, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts with a focus on Communication. Upon graduating, Kyle took a job as an intern at the Strafford Regional Planning Commission. Over the course of the past twelve years he has steadily moved up the ladder to his current position as Principal Regional Planner. During that time, he has worked with communities in the region by providing technical assistance on natural resource management, climate adaptation, hazard mitigation planning, and land use practices. He is a skilled grant writer and project manager having secured funding to support the development of regulatory amendments, master plan updates, and other regional efforts. Kyle has acted as the Director of Planning and Community Development in the Town of Farmington for the past two years.

Kyle served on the NH Coastal Risk and Hazards Commission; is a member of the Coastal Adaptation Workgroup (CAW), NH Flood Risk Summary Steering Committee, Northern New England Chapter of the American Planning Association (NNECAPA), and the Southeast Land Trust Land Stewardship Committee; and currently sits on the Dover Cochecho Waterfront Development Advisory Committee and the Dover Planning Board. He is a graduate of the 2017 Primex Emerging Leaders Program, and was part of a team effort that won the 2015 NNECAPA plan of the year award and the 2016, 2018, and 2020 NH Planners Association plan of the year awards.

Shanna B. Saunders is a graduate of the Resource Administration and Management Master’s Degree program at the University of New Hampshire and has an undergraduate degree in Environmental Conservation from UNH, as well. She started her career path as director of the non-profit watershed group the Parker River Clean Water Association in Newbury, MA. From there she worked several years for the town of Rowley, MA as their Conservation Administrator. After Rowley she moved her talents to the State she lived in and loved, and has worked for the past 15 years in several communities across New Hampshire including Laconia, Somersworth and Rochester – all communities with a strong tie to the water. She continues to strive every day to integrate wise land use principals into New Hampshire land use policies. Shanna has been a NHPA Executive Committee member since 2009 and served for 5 years as President. Shanna has two beautiful and brilliant children, and lives, runs, cooks and gardens in Seacoast New Hampshire.

Shayna Sylvia has 9 years of experience as the communications and outreach planner at Strafford Regional Planning Commission, where she specializes in graphic design, website management, social media, innovative outreach approaches, e-communications with member communities, partners and stakeholders, and travel demand management (TDM) outreach among other tasks. She is also building her skillset in video production, creating short videos to overview projects and highlight other work of the planning commission.

Shayna is proficient in marketing through social media and e-communications applications. She believes these forms of communication are an important way of keeping an organization in constant communication with their current and prospective stakeholders in an increasingly fast-paced and digital world.

Shayna served as the Social Media Coordinator for the Dockside Restaurant in York, Maine during their 2020 season, and also has a Certificate in Digital Design and Animation from Great Bay Community College.

Additional Info:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/shayna-sylvia-751b6548/

Question Title

* 2. Bylaw Amendment Section 4-1: With NNECAPA's Bylaw changes to have a Section Rep and Conference Rep from each state, NHPA needs to update its bylaws. So the underlined would be added to Article 4-1 OFFICERS:

Do you agree with changing Section 4-1 of the Bylaws as follows?

§ 4-1 OFFICERS The officers shall consist of: President/Section Rep Alternate, Vice President/Section Rep, Treasurer, Secretary, Professional Development Officer/Conference Coordinator, Professional Development Officer/Workshop Coordinator, Public Information Officer, Social Media Coordinator, New Hampshire Legislative Liaison, NNECAPA Legislative Liaison, and Membership Coordinator. The Section Representative shall represent the Section as a voting member of the NNECAPA Executive Committee. The NNECAPA Legislative Liaison shall also serve as a voting member of the NNECAPA Executive Committee. There shall also be a NNECAPA Conference Representative. The Conference Representative shall be designated by the Section President and typically selected from one of the Professional Development Officers, with the other serving as the alternate Representative. All officers shall be members of the Association.

Yes

Question Title

* 3. Bylaw Amendment Section 4-5 TERM OF OFFICE
Similar to above, the term of office for the NNECAPA Conference Representative is recommended to be 3 year to align with NNECAPA's bylaws and to allow this position to help Maine and Vermont when they host the NNE Conference and vice versa when NH hosts.

Do you agree with changing Section 4-5 of the Bylaws as follows:

§ 4-5 TERM OF OFFICE The term of office for Executive Committee members shall be for three years from their election at an annual meeting. Executive Committee members shall serve until their successors are elected. The President/Section Representative’s three year term shall be on a rotating basis with the terms from Vermont and Maine, so as to ensure only one Section Representatives term expires each year. Starting in 2020 the Vermont term shall be three years, in 2021 the New Hampshire term shall be three years, and in 2022 the Maine term shall be three years. The NNECAPA Conference Representative Term shall be three years.

Yes

Question Title

* 4. Bylaw Amendment Section 4-7 & (DUTIES OF OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBERS) Sections (e) & (f)

Same theme as above but adding those specific responsibilities of the NNECAPA Conference Chair and Conference Chair Alternate to the Descriptions of Professional Development Officer-Conference Coordinator and Professional Development Officer-Workshop Coordinator.

Do you agree with changing Section 4-7 as follows:

(e) Professional Development Officer – Conference Coordinator
·         Responsible for organizing the Spring Conference and Fall Annual Meeting. Each of this is required to have AICP credits which improve member's knowledge of current planning techniques and which foster the improvement of ethical and professional conduct of association members.
·         Coordinating the Spring Conference awards dinner including, coordination with NNECAPA for nomination and publicity.
·         Oversees and recruits for an annual Spring Conference Organizing Committee (COG) (please note that each Executive Committee Member must serve on a COG once in their 3 year term)
·         Represent the Section on the Chapter’s Professional Development Committee.
·         Ensure that all events, activities and operations of the organization embody the objectives of the APA Sustainability Policy Guide to the greatest degree possible;
·         Represent the Section as the NNECAPA Conference Representative or Conference Representative Alternate.

(f) Professional Development Officer – workshop coordinator
·         Responsible for organizing small workshops all year long to help accentuate the spring Conference and Fall Annual Meeting.
·         Works in partnership with the Conference Coordinator.
·         Ensure that all events, activities and operations of the organization embody the objectives of the APA Sustainability Policy Guide to the greatest degree possible;
•         Represent the Section as the NNECAPA Conference Representative or Conference Representative Alternate.

Yes

Question Title

* 5. Bylaw Amendment Article 9 DUES
As part of becoming a Section of NNECAPA. 2021 was the last year Organizational Dues Structure would be an option so this amendment would strike that option from our Bylaws.

Do you agree Article 9 reading as follows:
ARTICLE 9: DUES

§ 9-1 DATE PAYABLE Dues shall be payable during January, the first month of the membership year.

§ 9-2 NOTICE OF DUES PAYABLE Notice of dues payable shall be sent at least thirty (30) days prior to the beginning of the next membership year.

§ 9-3 AMOUNT The amount of annual dues shall be [$80 per year. Dues for student and retired members shall be $25 per year. ]

Yes