Board of Aldermen 04-12-2022 Page 5
Now the Board of Aldermen want to make a Nashua arts and cultural plan. However as a taxpayer, I'm saying no. With
the current Performing Arts Center being shoved down the taxpayers’ throat, | do not think any more money should be
going to the arts. Last night the Budget Committee voted to make a trust for the Court Street. Bottom line is that the
taxpayers will continue to foot all the expenses on this building plus and all the while getting in very little funds from the
two tenants in return.
Alderman Kelly stated last night that right now we, the Board of Aldermen, are putting our money where our values are.
Well Alderman maybe you should start thinking about the values of the Nashua taxpayers, which is to put food on their
tables, pay their mortgages, and pay their property taxes. This Board of Aldermen better start thinking about the
taxpayers instead of special projects for downtown. Thank you.
Karen Bill
Karen Bill, 95 Parnell Place. Please reject the recommendations made by the Joint Task Force in downtown
Infrastructure Committee for the following reasons. It is unfair to have taxpayers bear the burden for a third year for
barriers that benefit a minority of businesses on Main Street. Residents have made it abundantly clear - they want outside
dining but not at the expense of safety and reducing Main Street to two lanes. Keep four lanes open.
Another committee has been formed to study the cost of the barriers. How ridiculous that this did not happen before
making recommendation of not charging anybody for the barriers. The barrier costs should have been tracked from day
one and shared publicly with all citizens certainly as a part of this process but it was never divulged. Via a Right to Know
request, | have ascertained the costs, and costs per barrier, and e-mail them to everybody - all the Aldermen earlier
tonight. By the way, the cost of a barrier in 2020 was $617.57. One barrier. The cost per barrier in 2021 went up and
that was $688.45. The second year, it doesn't include the cost of the barriers which was in the first year. So together,
costs for the barriers for the past two years - 218 barriers; 1) now it's up to having cost us $1,374.46. | have the
spreadsheet. You have this spreadsheet. If anybody in the public wants a spreadsheet, you can e-mail me.
Outside dining has existed for the past 20 years and there was never a call to arms from any restaurants indicating with
the sidewalk amount that they had was inadequate. As many things go in life, it's a first come first serve basis. If for any
reason there are any barriers installed in the downtown area for any business, they should pay per barrier and the return
on investment in anywhere in the city. Say you need 15 barriers at $700 per barrier, parking spots 20 by 8 - that would
encompass six parking spots, 12 barriers. Your cost as a restaurant $10,500. Not bad when your return is $500,000 or
$750,000. | did the math and you have the numbers from the restaurants.
Donna Graham, Legislative Affairs Manager
30 seconds
Karen Bill
These are all provided by John Griffin by the way. Let's solve it right now and say no to the barriers but yes to outside
dining on the sidewalks at no additional cost to the restaurants. Have the moral courage to listen to the constituents to
vote no. It's not a done deal and if you have so many concerns, send it back to committee because the costs should have
been discussed and analyzed. I'm happy to provide them to all of you. Thank you.
Tim Sennott
Thank you. Tim Sennott, 62 Underhill Street, Nashua. It feels strange to be not speaking about downtown first, but I'm
actually here to speak in support of the teachers’ contract. |, like many people in this room, have what | believe to be the
ultimate stake in our public schools. | have a son in the public school system. |, myself, was also educated in Nashua
schools at least since the fourth grade. Since that time because | was the cool nine year old who read the newspaper, |
have seen contract season after contract season come up and play out very similarly to how we've seen this contract
season play out, and the one before it, and the one before it. We need to start treating teachers like they're smart, like
they're members of any other industry. People in any other industry whether you're a teacher, or you work in accounting
like me you look for a job where you're going to get the best bang for your buck. Nashua can't continue to kick it down the
road in regard to teachers’ contracts and expect to retain the best teachers that we can offer our students. | personally
want the best teachers that we can offer my students. | hope that anybody here with a student in the public schools would
want the same for their kid as well.
And since I'm at this lectern and it would be remiss to not mention downtown, here we are. We have the proposal before
us. We have spent many long nights in this chamber. Many of you longer nights than I've spent in this chamber because
