Members of the Hooksett Parks and Recreation Committee agreed in an informal consensus to send a committee member to the Heritage Commission meeting to request that the commission and the Lambert family review a proposed informational sign for Lambert Park before it goes to print and is installed. Committee members also discussed a separate Heritage Commission proposal to append a place-name to Lambert Park — options discussed included “at Hooksett Falls” or “at Dundee Landing” — and raised questions about cost, installation responsibilities and community history.

The request to review the proposed sign followed Heritage Commission comments that the signs would be 31 by 25 inches, roughly one-half inch composite material, and would include a QR code linking to additional historical text. Committee members said printing would take about six to seven weeks once finalized; the Heritage Commission plans to brief the Town Council on its efforts at the March 26 meeting. Parks committee members said they have not yet seen a final draft of the sign and want to confirm the text matches earlier research about Fred Lambert and local history.

Committee members pressed for clarity about who will pay for materials and installation. Department of Public Works staff member Rob Hebert told committee members he is busy in April and May and is unsure whether the signs could be installed on the Heritage Commission’s proposed unveiling timeline; he asked specifically whether the Heritage Commission’s pledge of “no cost to the town” covers concrete, bags of cement or other installation materials. Committee members estimated installation might require multiple small bags of cement or a five-gallon pail per sign, but agreed the exact materials and costs were not yet specified.

Several members said they want the Lambert family, specifically Janine Lambert (identified in the meeting as Fred Lambert’s widow and a Hooksett resident), to see the final draft before printing. Committee members recalled that the late Kathy Northrop had previously compiled material about Fred Lambert for an informational sign; they said Northrop’s notes informed the current effort but that the work stalled after her death. The committee asked that the Heritage Commission provide the sign text to the Parks and Recreation Committee and to family members before printing.

Committee members also discussed the Heritage Commission’s proposed name addition for Lambert Park. Some members said the park’s area has traditionally been known locally as “the village” and questioned the value of changing or appending names after decades of established usage. Others said they would be open to adding a historical place-name if the Heritage Commission can demonstrate how the change would better communicate local history. Committee members agreed the Town Council is the ultimate authority on any formal name change.

The committee did not take a formal binding vote on the sign text or on the name-change proposal during this meeting. Members expressed informal agreement that a committee representative should attend the Heritage Commission meeting, ask for a copy of the sign text and confirm whether the family has been consulted. The group also recorded that the Heritage Commission had indicated it would brief the Town Council on its efforts and events on March 26; the committee noted that the council would make any final decision about park names or the acceptance of donated signage.

The meeting ended with a formal motion to adjourn, which was seconded and approved.