Concord City Council Approves Short-Term Garage Repair Funds

CONCORD, NH — At its meeting on March 14, the Concord City Council did the following:

Held a public hearing about the annual authorization of the appraisal of real estate at market value in the city. There was no comment on the matter. The council will vote on the resolution at its April meeting.

The city council approved, via voice vote, amending the demolition review code to add 11 days to the review process for properties older than 50 years to see if 1) there was historic significance to the building being proposed to be demolished and 2) if so, find other alternatives to demolition. J. Richard Jacques of the Heritage Commission spoke in favor of the proposal and answered questions. He said most contractors build in extra time with demo projects just in case there are historical issues. According to Ward 3 Concord City Councilor Jennifer Kretovic, a new website was being created to catalog some of the historic buildings in the city.

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The city council approved the addition of a full-time assistant golf professional at the Beaver Meadow Golf Course by a roll call vote of 14-1. The city had been using a temporary position and that person left, leaving a hole to fill that officials have been unable to fill with a part-time position. The cost of the position would be $24.13 to $34.94 per hour with another $23,000 in benefits. Ward 5 Concord City Councilor Stacey Brown asked for examples of where other golf courses had a certified golf pro on staff. Deputy City Manager, Finance Brian Lebrun could not answer but said there were many. He said the golf course was very busy and the staffing was needed. Without the position, it would be a severe burden on the director. There would also be a lack of customer service and a drop in revenue, Lebrun said. Both Mark Coen, the former at-large city councilor, as well as Bob Whatmough, who both serve on the city’s Golf Course Advisory Committee, spoke in favor of the position. Coen said he thought the position would help to bring in more revenue. During the action phase, Brown spoke against the proposal and said, instead, more money should be put into paying lifeguards more and keeping the pools open. Ward 10 Concord City Councilor Zandra Rice Hawkins agreed with Brown about the need for more money for lifeguards and making sure the pools were opened longer this summer. Ward 7 Concord City Councilor Keith Nyhan said he would vote for the position but would like to revisit it if revenue did not increase at the course. Lebrun explained to the council why revenue from the golf course could not be used for pools and lifeguards. The funds and orgs were separate; funds from each were used to self-support each. User fees for course, he said, were used to sustain the course and could not be transferred to other funds. Rice Hawkins asked how many councilors were members of the Beaver Meadow Golf Course. Kretovic said she had been a member for 25 years. At-large City Councilor Fred Keach called the request inappropriate. After more discussion of the financials and Brown asking how much it cost to play a round of golf, the proposal was approved with Brown voting against it.

The council approved, by voice vote, using nearly $4.57 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds last year and this year, and will use the standard to shift federal funds to be used mostly in the general fund but also other funding. City Manager Tom Aspell said the decision would allow the city to use the funds with as much flexibility as possible to keep the tax rate down.

The council approved $3.8 million, including $760,000 in ARPA funds from the state, to replace three secondary clarifiers for the Hall Street Wastewater Treatment Facility. Originally, the city was going to replace one across three fiscal years. However, the state wanted them done all at once.

By voice vote, the council approved nearly $89,000 in highway reserve funds to be used for bump out construction and drainage on streets that are going to be reclaimed at a number of intersections on South State and South streets.

The council approved, by voice vote, $26,000 for overtime and fringe benefit expenses for the Concord Police Department for the Adverse Childhood Experience Response Team via a Granite United Way grant project.

A proposal to change the elderly exemption for the city was also approved by voice vote.

The council approved $200,000 for immediate repairs on the State Street Parking Garage. The repairs include joint replacement and ceiling repairs and were found during a comprehensive needs report about the garage. The money will come from the parking fund. During questions and testimony, it was noted that some sections of the garage may need to be closed without the repairs. Nyhan called it a “short-term spend for a long-term problem.”

The council also approved new procedures for spaces used for outdoor dining as well as food trucks in the city. Ward 2 City Councilor Erle Pierce led the effort to make the changes.

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