Board of Aldermen 02-16-2021 Page 4
2020 was a year of trials, but it brought out the best in Nashuans. Our nurses and doctors
have cared for the stricken and provided comfort to families. People across the City — from
first responders to grocery workers — have responded to the crisis. Nashuans have answered
the callin many ways.
Our Public Health Department and public health nurses, under the leadership of Director Bobbie
Bagley and Chief Public Health Nurse Kim Bernard, have worked non-stop to contain the spread
of Covid-19 and to keep us safe. Seven days a week our nurses have helped patients who have
tested positive to regain their health and recover. Through our weekly clinics, our Public Health
Department has tested thousands of people. Now our nurses are vaccinating hundreds of our
City’s residents, those who are most vulnerable.
Emergency Management Director Justin Kates and his staff has been helping to direct the City’s
response from the beginning. Volunteers like School Nurse Robin Abodeely and Federal Judge
Joe LaPlante have worked to trace the contacts of patients with Covid-19, that’s an effective
tool in limiting the spread of the virus. Mike Apfelberg and United Way, Camille Pattison and
Nashua Transit, our School Department and food service workers, and many other volunteers,
have delivered 90,000 meals to kids in need.
We all want to protect our family, our friends, and our community. We all want to open our
economy and return to normal. But the medical researchers have been clear, and if we fail to
follow their lead, there will be even worse consequences for our families and for our economy.
We all have a personal responsibility to slow the spread of the virus and eliminate the pandemic
as quickly as possible. Therefore, we need to keep wearing our masks, practicing social
distancing, and avoiding large gatherings. That’s how we can reopen our economy sooner rather
than later.
Thank you to our 2,800 City employees who have been working hard despite the virus —
teachers, police officers, firefighters, DPW workers, City Hall staff. And a personal thank you to
Cheryl Lindner and the staff in the Mayor's Office for helping across the board during the
pandemic.
Saving Small Business
Very early on, we acted to help our small businesses, the lifeblood of our community. We
assembled a $1.2 million Covid-19 Impact Fund, which enabled us to extend loans and grants
and to help save over 50 small businesses and non-profits in our City — restaurants, cafes,
retailers, barber shops, yoga studios, and others. We will soon be able to assemble another
$1.2 million in federal dollars add to the Covid-19 Impact Fund so that we can help more small
businesses still being hurt by the pandemic.
We also acted to quickly to save our restaurants and the jobs of waitpersons, bartenders, and
chefs in their time of crisis. Despite concerns about traffic, we expanded outdoor dining on Main
Street by closing one north bound and one south bound travel lane. Restaurants had been
closed by the Governor’s emergency orders on March 15. To capture most of the season for
our restaurants, we needed to do a lot of things quickly. Everybody pitched in. Economic
Development Director Tim Cummings worked with Public Works Director Lisa Fauteux, City
Engineer Dan Hudson, and small businesses to develop a plan. Community Development
Director Sarah Marchant and the Board of Aldermen worked to pass the necessary legislation.
By early May we were ready to go.
