Special Board of Aldermen 12-14-2021 Page 3
Nashua doesn't own that. But what are we doing saying to the people who do oversee that site? Look, you're in our city
clean it up.
Next slide. Here's another bone of contention. Many cities - Bedford just did a beautiful remake of their highway like
around Bedford Village Inn - that strip there. Took out the old median strips, like this ugly thing that has weeds all the
time all summer. This is a fall seen and put beautiful native grasses in, something that's nice to look at instead of slabs
of cement. Look at the next slide. This is what's possible. | look at that and I'm like, wow, people really care about this
town. | want to see what else is here. Wow look at the entryway in from their highways. This is what | am hoping for for
us, for more examples of an economic development that is inviting in ways that beckoned us in. Bill Parker who did the
roundabout in front of Nashua High North and the one on Manchester Street. He's ready to go. He wants to do more
things with our city come next year and | say let's invite him.
Next slide. This is Broad Street Parkway going in and going out. | think this is our responsibility. | think this is Nashua’s
responsibility if I'm correct and this is what we're looking at. Beautiful. Our latest roadway in beautiful bridge, beautiful
water to look at, our beautiful historic mill yard, all the lovely... What's intriguing to me is that we in the Planning
Department expect so much from the builders, and the permits that we give, and then we turn around and we are not
upholding the bargain ourselves. It's a shame.
Next slide. This is that island right in front of the Pink Palace right on Court Street. Many of those are invasive species.
It's been looking like this - | worked very hard on this island week in and week out when | work with Public Works. This is
the way it looks recently. People I'm sure all of us drive by it every day and if not, my invitation to you is look around
when you drive around our city. You are our eyes and ears for this community. We look to you to guide us, be a part of
what | have been doing. Sorry Donna that | didn't have this ready for you because | was supposed to get all this
paperwork in. But | was diagnosed with cancer, again, last week and | couldn't get everything together. But this is a list
from 2019 of 20 properties that | personally had spearheaded for change commercial, city, and residential. If | if one
person can do all this, surely we can as a group accomplished much.
Next slide. Now, as an example you know where this mural is right here. Now, it took me about one hour. There's the
before and there's the after. Voila. Next slide. I'm hoping that the changes that we're seeing with the downtown
transportation department, these are islands of greenery. These are islands of weedery behind Fortin Gage, behind the
garage. People come to our city and look for parking and they're going to park in these locks back there and these are
the things they see. Obviously, you know, it's not something that maybe some of us see every day but somebody is
going to see them and they're most likely going to be visitors. This is not what we want them to see. These are
opportunities for beauty. This the City of Newton, which I'll leave with you, they have developed opportunities in the
town. It's called Newton pride and what an incredible beautification aspect they have in Newton. Just look up
beautification on Google and you'll see thousands of towns with very active beautification projects. In fact in Newton,
they have only four places in all of Massachusetts have all American selection display gardens that work in cohort with
their garden clubs. Our garden clubs would jump at the opportunity but we all know why. This is not available at times
or the opportunity. | want us to work in cohort with our unions.
Next slide. Now here we have beautiful sculptures from our sculpture symposium. This is the kind of respect we're
showing to our sculptures. Those are all weeds at the base of them and | do hope that we can have a new and
improved space at the library. But this is what we're looking like typically in the meantime and | hope we can straighten it
out. | really do because that is our cultural hub our library. It was one of the most progressive libraries probably in all of
New England and it's still a great point of pride. | want the outside to be as wonderful as it is inside. Next slide. This
next to the fence was actually someone who had trimmed all of the trees that needed trimming and just took all the
refuge and just thrown it against the fence. Unacceptable.
Next slide. So thank you for your time. There's so much that we can do together and my hero in life is Lady Bird
Johnson. | hope we all remember her and she said, there is much the government can do and should do to improve the
environment but even more important is the individual who plants a tree, or cleans a corner of neglect for it is the
individual who himself benefits and also protects a heritage of beauty for his children and future generations. | thank you
so much for your time and | look forward to working with each and every one of you. If anyone has any questions, |
would be more than happy to answer them.
President Wilshire
Thank you, Carolyn. That was pretty interesting. Does anyone have any questions?
