Finance Committee - 09/16/2020 Page 18
Lori Ortolano That’s because I’m going through my phone. Lori Ortolano, 41 Berkeley Street and | am aware
that it is a 5-minute public comment. Just quickly | tuned in a few minutes late, so | don’t know if this was
discussed. But, | am concerned at the amount of money being spent for the COVID renovations is really more
about a City Hall renovation. | don’t know if you talked about it, but | would be interested in knowing how many
other City Halls are closing down for such an extended period of time to deal with COVID renovations, like
Manchester. Some of these towns that have older City Halls. One of the concerns | have is | know and you all
know that | have been actively involved in gathering information out of the Assessing Office, but also other
offices as well. And | know that the Director told the Board of Assessors a couple of meetings ago that City
Hall would be closing around September, | mean excuse me, the Assessing Office would be closing for
renovations around September 10". And that was the end of the discussion.
You know, for people like me and other members of the public, we want to know when City Hall is going to be
open and not just a little open, actually open like other towns around us. And | want to know when the
Assessing Office is going to be open and more importantly, while it’s closed, does that mean we don’t have
access to any records anymore at all? What is available to the Public while City Hall is closed? Are property
record files available? | would like your Administrators to think about us when they speak about these issues.
Because for somebody like me to have to write letters in and send e-mails asking what information is available
now and when it will be open. For me, it is particularly painful because it becomes a numbered
correspondence that goes up to the Legal Office, it's addressed by the Legal Office. It is put in a file and used
in litigation against me. And | don’t want to be in that situation. | want my City Officials to just give complete
information when you are out there talking.
Now for the last three weeks, I’ve had to drive to Hudson to get documents notarized because City Hall is so
closed up in Nashua that we don’t have a Notary or a place that | can walk in and use a Notary in City Hall.
And | don’t know why | can go to Londonderry, Litchfield and Hudson and walk in with a mask on and get my
documents notarized but | can’t do it in Nashua.
| just went up north to north country and walked into a Town Hall to get a document addressed. | mean | really
want to know when City Hall is going to be open and mostly | want to know that our ability to obtain information
isn’t shut down for the next three months because we are doing such an extensive renovation. Thank you.
Mayor Donchess
Thank you very much.
REMARKS BY THE ALDERMEN
Alderman O’Brien
Thank you Mr. Mayor. | would just like to say that in my years with the City and dealing a lot with City Hall. |
remember when the last major project was started in City Hall and that was the addition, in | think about 1982,
that’s the back section and that’s where some of the building permits and everything. But | am glad that we are
doing these renovations. | think if the citizens when City Hall does become opened up maybe we should have
a tour to get to see some of the offices that we ask our City Employees to work in. Some of them are almost
like a closet, you know what | mean? Yet these people do their diligence and do their job and they do it
commendably.
You’ve got to remember the building was built, our City Hall was built, | think part of the WPA Project that was
going on during the Great Depression. A lot of modernized things didn’t exist, nobody really knew some of the
things that the future would lend itself into. So maybe in the future it’s time to talk maybe a new City hall or
something like that, but | like the old building, | think it has character, it adds to the Main Street. It is identifiable
and it works right now. But like everything else, you don’t paint the house, it don’t look as good. So | support
these projects that go on. | would also like to thank the men and women of our City who do work in cramped
spaces. | think they’re doing a fine job. Thank you.
