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News from everywhere *but* Central New Hampshire.

Hampton Files Lawsuit Against State Over Beach Costs

Jason Moon for NHPR

The town of Hampton has made good on its threat to sue the state of New Hampshire over services provided at the state-owned Hampton Beach.

The lawsuit filed Wednesday in Rockingham County Superior Court reads like a laundry list of all the complaints some town officials in Hampton have been raising for years.

They range from the maintenance of the sidewalks on Ocean Boulevard, to the revenue generated by parking spaces, to fire and ambulance services provided at the beach.

The basic argument behind each complaint is that the state makes a lot of money off of the beach at the expense of the town.

The suit also claims the state is violating the 1933 agreement under which the town transferred ownership of the beach to the state.

The legal dispute comes despite a visit by Governor Chris Sununu to Hampton a few weeks ago. He has called a lawsuit between the parties unnecessary.

Jason Moon is a senior reporter and producer on the Document team. He has created longform narrative podcast series on topics ranging from unsolved murders, to presidential elections, to secret lists of police officers.
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