Michael O'Brien Sr., Nashua Alderman At Large Candidate

Michael O'Brien Sr.

Age (as of Election Day)

68

Position sought (including district number if applicable)

Alderman-at-Large

Party Affiliation

Democrat

Family

Diane O'Brien (wife) Michael O'Brien Jr. (son) Kayla O'Brien Dionne (Daughter) Haley O'Brien (daughter) Four grandchildren.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

Michael O'Brien Jr. (Lt. Nashua Fire Rescue) Kayla O'Brien Dionne (nurse Nashua High School North

Education

Don Bosco Technical High School Boston Ma. Massachusetts Maritime Academy 3 years.

Occupation

Firefighter Nashua Fire Rescue retired at the rank as Deputy Fire Chief 35 years

Previous or Current Elected or Appointed Office

Current member of the Nashua Board of Alderman for 8 years. Current New Hampshire House of Representative 16 years.

Campaign website

None

Why are you seeking elective office?

After retiring from Nashua Fire Rescue I still felt a need to serve the City that I protected and love. My decision to run for Alderman-at -Large seemed like a great fit to fill this need. My children were educated in Nashua schools and now my four grandchildren are current students in Nashua schools. During my time as a firefighter I seen what works best for our city and unfortunately born witness to failed attempts that have affected our taxpayers and lowered our quality of life. I seen the increase of drugs and homelessness in our city and have personally administered Narcan in an overdose situations and seen the burnout and frustrations from our first responders. Homelessness needs to be addressed as best we can and within our power as the board.
Nashua like all great cities we have built great schools or parking structures as just some of the examples. However there is no funding for repairs or preventative maintenance. Instead we vote to repair these structures in an emergency appropriations and at at a higher price for repairs because we responded too late. I would like to eliminate the kicking the can down the road mentality of past boards and I can happily say the majority of the board have adopted these suggestions.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

As a homeowner in Nashua like yourselves, I have seen the rise in the housing market and the increase value to our homes. This is normally a good thing until tax time when we are all pay higher taxes due to the increased values to our homes. On the State level New Hampshire looks to Nashua as a donor community because 35% of the state revenue is generated here in the Nashua / Manchester metro area. These two examples are out of the sphere of control for the Board of Alderman. As a State Representative I am proud of my record of seeking fair and equitable financial treatment from the state. So what's the solution? I personally do not agree with a spending cap especially since my time on the board we have remained under the cap and provided frugal spending while at the same time keeping Nashua a quality place to live. If managed appropriately, both can be done. I promise to continue to do so.
Affordable housing is another challenge. First time homebuyers have paid over the asking price due to lack of market property. Some potential buyers can not meet the financial requirements from lenders to purchase a home. Nashua needs affordable housing to fill this need. If elected, I will use what leverage allowed to the board to fill this need.
Another issue is our current infrastructure and years of neglect from past boards. I am proud to say the current members of the board have agreed with me to repair the neglect piled on over the years. Lack of investment in our current infrastructure for timely repairs is truly a waste of the taxpayers monies.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I believe the key to the future for every child lies in the education provided by the school system. If we educate, then we assure a brighter future for Nashua with an educated work force. Since we have this educated workforce it is my hope businesses will relocate and invest in Nashua. Its time to stem the tide of educating a child for 12 years only to have the student leave Nashua after college and contributing to another community.
I believe in providing the best in public service in our Fire and Police departments. This also includes our Board of Public Works who plow our snow, fix the roads, and provide recreational venues for our citizens.
Reinvest in our current infrastructure in repairs and upgrades. we need to to repair. After years of neglect of our parking garages as one example, we need to improve security so our citizens have a safe environment as they park their vehicles to enjoy our downtown. Also repairs to the building itself where structural supports are exposed to the weather conditions causing structural concerns.
This includes our parks that were neglected and need to have modern safe equipment for the children to enjoy.
Addressing the question of overnight parking in selected neighborhoods and arriving to a solution. A complex problem where more cars are registered in Nashua than the current volume of parking spaces. A public -private solution needs to be reached with landlords to assist us when they renovate what was a two family home to multiple occupancies with no assistance to the city to come up with a plan to rectify parking for their tenants.
To seek a wise and conservative approach in City spending while maintaining a quality of life in our city that attracts investment. a great place to live and making sure our largest investment, our homes, retain their value.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

I am incumbent. My actions on the board are public information as well as my votes representing Nashua residents in Concord. I have always voted to what I felt was the best solutions for our taxpayers.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I am very concerned about the infestation of opioids infiltrating our community robbing our youth of their most precious gift, their life. Lets face it, we are loosing the drug war therefor we need to have better solutions to work on this issue. We may be limited as a City to fight a national problem on our own but there are other ways that we as a community can respond. We need an outreach program in our schools presenting the cold hard facts of addiction. Through the schools, assist parents with talking points about the hazards of drug usage. We also need to support our private partners like churches and other parties in dealing with this problem.
I will continue to work on the homeless problem in our city. We have all seen them walking Main St. and sleeping under a portico or encampments along some of our walking trails. We need to seek State assistance for this issue for the cost is much to much for the city to solve the problem alone. Discussions need to occur and perhaps a public-private partnership to come up with solutions.
I will continue to work to sustain affordable housing for our residents where our citizens with lower paying jobs can live comfortably and not worry about keeping a roof over their heads as they work in our city.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Prior to my retirement I was a firefighter for the City of Nashua with 35 years of service and had worked at all six station houses. This exposure had made me aware of the common and induvial needs of that community. I worked fire, floods and whatever else was thrown at us and I have more than a casual care and interest in our City.
For 16 years I have represented the residents of Ward 9 in the State House. I worked on many projects that allected the well being of our city. This duel membership as a State Representative and City Alderman is extremely important for one hand need to know what the other is doing. I will continue to be an advocate in Concord on the needs of our City.
My time on the Board of Alderman have exposed to me to the nuts and bolts of our city and how it all works. I am Chair of the Committee on Infrastructure, Vice Chair of the Budget Committee, and Vice Chair of the Planning and Economic Development Committee. These assignments have given me a wealth of knowledge that I bring to the Chamber. One may ask how do you find the time> Well first, I have a wonderful understanding Wife and Family who support me. Second, I am retired so I have the time that I prefer to contribute to the betterment of our City, a City I protected and love.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

The best advice I ever received is a lifestyle I try to live every day. Its "Play it forward". In other words if your kids are in sports, coach or volunteer. If you can step up and become positively active in your community our city will be a much better place to live and thrive. There is far to many sitting in the cheap seats throwing barbs to those who try to make things better by standing in the arena. I would like to offer them to positively use their talents for the betterment of our City and work with us.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I promise to continue working for the citizens of Nashua and with every decision I make make it with the best result for all of Nashua. I promise to be honest and truthful and transparent to the citizens. I want you to know that I too am a taxpayer and have grandchildren attending Nashua public schools. I want to leave a city that is financially healthy and thriving so they too can share in the Nashua dream.