Board of Aldermen — 02/13/18 Page 5
Dick lannacone, 35 Swart Terrace
| feel like Tom Brady in the last 25 seconds of the game trying to win a game. | know everyone pretty well has
their mind made up. There were some good points brought up tonight. One of the things we should look at is
a little history. We are not negative on the performing arts center. Our group has been active with the city
since we came to town in 1979. We have probably donated and raised more than $300,000 plus to give to the
performing arts. Last year alone, we probably had another $35,000 to the endowment fund for the Symphony
New Hampshire. We have been part of the group trying for years to get a performing arts center here.
What's difficult about this, though, is that the procedure that we are using to raise this $15.5 million, correct me
if ’m wrong, but | called again today, and this is not the last minute, I’ve been trying to get an answer to a few
questions, which today | think | got an answer to. You are going to vote tonight to authorize a $15.5 million
bond. It is contingent upon raising $4 million. | disagree with the Mayor. If Amazon promises a million dollars
for four years, | still would not accept it. The money should be in the bank. We should not come back in two
years to the people in Nashua and say we think we have the money, let’s proceed. If | understand it correctly,
we take the bond, we have two years for the bond. We buy the building but the renovations don’t start until the
money is collected. Is that correct? The $4 million? However, today | was told that the Mayor can come back
and say within a year or whatever, we have the funds. But the funds don’t have to be in the bank. | think that’s
wrong to the people of Nashua.
| know today we took off the Cap. I’m a big believe that good fences make good neighbors. It is so easy to sit
down and make some choices without having any parameters to go by, to have the discipline. Here we are
going to raise the money, we are going to have the bond, up to two years to do the bond. The building sits
dormant for two years. That’s 2020. Then if we have the $4 million at that point, then we go ahead and start
renovations on the building. This is quite a long spell before you get to have the downtown improvements that
you are talking about. And by the way, | also thought, and | was in error obviously, that the 4 was at6 %. The
information that has been reported in the paper a few times is that the million dollars that the performing arts
would have this $4 million raised to pay a quarter of the revenues to support the ongoing building. That was
incorrect. Apparently it is $150,000 and then each year the performing arts has to raise $100,000 to pay for
those expenses.
If any of you have been to the Symphony New Hampshire, and oh, by the way, Nancy, Eric, Mark. These
three people came, kept together the jewel of Nashua in the performing arts. It was originally known as
Nashua Symphony. We changed it to Symphony New Hampshire. There was a period of time where we
negotiated with New Hampshire Symphony to combine the two groups together because they were in trouble.
We met many days with Manchester and Nashua, but they didn’t want to do a deal with us. Because of the
group we had, Nancy, Eric, Mark, we prevailed. The so-called Symphony for New Hampshire, the state which
came out of Manchester, they are out. They are gone, and Nashua survived because of the discipline they kept
in running an organization. It’s not that easy. If you go to the Symphony, check the magazine and look at it.
Look at the section that says endowments. Look and see when the last money was raised for endowments for
the Symphony. We’re all strong on that. Where have you been for the last number of years? It is a lot more
difficult.
| differ with you, Mayor, about raising the money. We have a lot of people interested in this thing, but you know
what? Talk is cheap. The money has to be there. Yes, | do advise tonight, that if you are going to make this
motion tonight, make it contingent that that money is going to be there in the bank to do it. Why go two years?
If everyone is serious about this, and we have all the support from all these people, let’s get it going. Why not
say one year with the $4 million? The ones that said they could raise it, and everyone wants this to happen,
4500 entities, people, write a check for $1,000. You have $4.5 million. It’s done. Go for it. I'll be the first
person to write a check for $1,000. | will give it to you right away. Do you have a form? A charitable function
so people can take a deduction for it? Why prolong this thing? If you really believe in it, make the motion
tonight. Don’t be afraid to do that. Say the bond, make it contingent that the money is in the bank, and make it
for one year.
This is something that is needed for Nashua, yes. | am not sure it is the right place. I’m not sure it’s the right
avenue, but everyone else seems to think itis. But let’s everyone get up and write the check to do it. Make
