Lifelong Resident, Long-Timer, And Newcomer Run In Concord’s Ward 8

CONCORD, NH — A lifelong Concord resident and farmer, a veteran who has lived in the city for decades, and a newcomer to our shores and city, walk into a bar … well, no, actually, they are running for the open Ward 8 Concord City Council seat.

Jonathan Cate, Ali Sekou, and Dennis Soucy appeared on Concord TV for a forum sponsored by Concord NH Patch, the cable access station, and The New England Take podcast.

Soucy is a veteran and cancer survivor who has lived in the city for 40 years — about as long as he has been married to his wife, Carol, a lifelong resident. He is a father and grandfather and retired after working several jobs after leaving the service. Soucy said he knew “a lot of people in Ward 8, and they know me” and had been around the political game for a long time (he has run for the seat previously).

Sekou is a native of Niger and came to America in 2012. He attended classes at NHTI in tourism, earned his master’s at Plymouth State University, and now works for Hannaford. Sekou is raising two young children with his wife, Fanta, and has attended leadership programs.

Cate, a native of the city, grew up on Josiah Bartlett Road. His family has lived in the city for about 250 years, living off the land at their farm. He never left Concord because of its “nice little quirks,” which is why it is “a wonderful place to live.” However, he said, the city was slipping — crime was increasing, kids were not safe riding their bikes, and the old sense of community was now lost, which was why he entered the race.

One of the three candidates for Ward 8 will be one of at least five new board members on the council. All of the new faces on the council could bring instability.

Sekou said the change to the council was an essential and significant issue. He thought new members would bring good ideas and make the community healthy. Sekou said, “I’m going to continue being that effective leader to make sure that everybody’s voice gets heard, we listen to our constituents, and we apply for what is right for the city of Concord.”

If councilors work together and keep things bipartisan and civil, the city can move forward, Soucy said. He said he liked many of the councilors and had been watching meetings for a while. He did not think it was good that some councilors were fighting with each other. Some people, too, Soucy said, thought, “Well, it’s about time we get rid of the stale air in the city hall chamber and try to get tight together with people agreeing more.”

Cate said the city was run “relatively well,” and keeping it on track was important, but it is like “threading the needle.” He said, “I’m not looking to kick out the good. I’m looking to kick out the bad.” Cate called on fiscal responsibility while also preserving needed services for residents.

On housing, a major problem in the city, Soucy said it would be great to have more people moving into the city. He also made a pitch for more development, like the casino proposal near Interstate 393, even though he did not gamble. Soucy also worried about new housing bringing more kids into the school system without more revenue.

Cate said the problem with housing was pricing. A new house on his street recently sold for $540,000 — not something a person earning $50,000 a year, the average income of a city resident, could afford. At the same time, low-income housing may not bring the type of people who will help businesses generate the revenue needed to repair roads and keep the city moving.

“Quite frankly,” Cate said, “people are staying single longer, so more affordable is nice. But it’s got to be relatively good housing.”

Sekou said many people in the city rented and more housing was needed. He proposed putting together a roundtable of city investors and developers to tackle the problem. Sekou said the shortage needed to be tackled with a plan to meet housing needs.

“And we can do, also, an inventory of empty land or abandoned land,” Sekou said, “to make sure that Concord continues to be as vibrant a city as it has always been.”

Cate, Sekou, and Soucy also discussed the escalation in crime, especially by the homeless, whether city councilors should be paid more instead of having the city pay for their child care or transportation, tax base expansion, solid waste, and property taxes.

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