To the Nashua Board of Aldermen:
First, let me welcome and congratulate you on your election to the Board of Alderman in this great City of Nashua, NH.
My name is Colleen Viafora, my husband Tom and | are the owners of Bella Boutique at 71 Main St, next to Darrell’s
Music Hall. We both grew up in this town, attending the original NHS, he played football, and | was a cheerleader. We
loved our city! Before malls were a thing, residents frequently shopped in downtown. Alec’s Shoes, Miller's, & the old
Woolworth’s with the soda fountain! We dined at the Modern & locked in the windows of the beautiful Scontsas
Jewelers....it was a family oriented fun place to be. With time comes progress. The wonderful restaurants, retail stores,
wellness and services that make up the current downtown area add energy and a fun atmosphere. Although our
boutique has only been open a relatively short time, we do reside in Cotton Mill, behind our store location, and
frequently visit downtown for dining and shopping quite often.
In 2019, when COVID was in full swing, we witnessed all businesses in the city suffer from lack of customers because of
fear of spreading the virus and getting sick. The downtown businesses suffered greatly, especially those that weren't
restaurants.
The need to help the suffering restaurants during this time, was apparent. The jersey barriers were installed and served
their purpose. Residents could dine outside without fear, and it solved the issue of not being allowed to dine inside. It
saved the restaurants from going under and it worked.
Forward to 2020 & again in 2021, the jersey barriers supported the needs of the restaurants during the continued COVID
restrictions. Unfortunately, it did not meet the needs of the many other businesses that make up more than 75% of the
downtown area. These jersey barriers impede shoppers from parking to visit other businesses. We feel that this in
unfair, because these businesses were not “bailed out” or accommodated for during the pandemic as the restaurants
were. They suffered tremendous losses and still had to pay rent like the restaurants.
Not only do the barriers clog up through traffic on Main Street, they impede the response time for emergency response
vehicles, not to mention that the city did not change the timing of the red lights to accommodate for traffic backups! It
was literally a parking lot every day. The barriers are also a huge eye sore to the aesthetics of our beautiful downtown
area. They look like graphic graffiti and does not add to the charm of our stores and sidewalks.
We are in favor of outdoor dining, but it needs to be fair to the other businesses. Utilizing the sidewalks in front of their
establishments is a simple way to make it fair across the board. We are NOT in favor of putting up those hideous barriers
that bring down the look, impede traffic, take up value parking spaces for other retail shoppers, and most importantly
slow down our emergency response vehicles. Those precious S minutes could be the difference in life or death of
someone in your family.
| also wonder, if the reason the city is leaning toward installing these barriers has to do with the income that we receive
from the State of NH from the meal taxes. Governor Sununu lowered the state tax from 9% to 8.5% on 10/1/2021, but
the State has increased the amount of revenue from the taxes that it diverts to local governments under revenue
sharing agreements.....the more money the restaurants make in meal taxes, the more money the city receives. By the
end of 2021, the State has provided more than $100 million for meals and rental taxes to cities and towns, roughly a
45% increase from the previous fiscal year. It would be safe to assume that Nashua would stand to receive more this
year as well. This is greed, and not always in the best interests. We are already paying high taxes for a new PAC, revenue
from that will increase the City’s allocations.
We vote NO on installing the jersey barriers. It is time to get back to enjoying ALL that downtown has to offer.
Thank you,
Colleen & Tom Viafora
Bella Boutique