Monday Essentials: Story Time and the Fall Festival

Planning board on Tuesday. The Merrimack Planning Board will meet Tuesday, Sept. 24, in the Matthew Thornton Room at 7:30 p.m. Among agenda items is discussion of a site plan application for a proposed 57-unit elderly housing development, community building and related site improvements on D.W. Highway, between Island Drive and Angelo Drive. Get the full agenda on the town website. 

ZBA to meet. The Merrimack Zoning Board will meet on Wednesday, Sept. 25, in the Matthew Thornton Room at 7 p.m. for a regularly scheduled meeting. Among agenda items is a request from a property owner on Seaverns Bridge Road requesting to build a garage and a porch within the required property line set back. Get the full agenda on the town website.

Town Council. The Town Council is scheduled to meet at 7 p.m. in the Matthew Thornton Room on Thursday, Sept. 26. On the agenda are discussions about land clearing at Wasserman Park for the proposed dog park and an update on the second-hand trailer at the Merrimack Transfer Station, among other things. Get the full agenda on the town website.

Fall Storytimes begin. This week is the beginning of the fall storytime sessions at the Merrimack Public Library. Story times include registration-required and open sessions. Learn more about each story time, and where and when it meets on the Merrimack Public Library website. All story times are free and open to Merrimack Library card holders.

Fall Festival and Business Expo. This weekend is the annual Fall Festival and Business Expo held on the grounds of Mastricola Upper and Mastricola Elementary schools. The festival is an opportunity for business owners and local artisans to gather in one location and talk to members of the community about what they do. This year, the festival will be followed by Merrimack Rocks, an evening concert with three local bands who will play at the newly-constructed Roger Duhamel Pavillion in Watson Park. There will also be ceremonies honoring Cpl. Timothy Gibson who was killed in Iraq, the state championship athletic teams over the years at Merrimack High School, and Pete Gagnon as volunteer of the year. Merrimack Rocks will kick off with a visit from the Budweiser Clydesdales and end with a spectacular fireworks display. Saturday will be chocked full of events and family fun. We'll have much more on this event through the week.