Derry NH Politics

Lets start the blog back up!

2011-01-04T17:08:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone! I'm going to try and see if we still have the followers here on Derry NH politics and hope to hear from you soon. The blog has been inundated with spams the last few months that make it difficult to maintain however I would like to see if we can get the ball rolling again and see if we can get a following.

Let me know your out there and want to see more on this blog!

New Town Administrator for Derry

2010-06-15T15:49:00.003-04:00

With the recent hiring of MRI to begin a search for Derry's new town administrator in the beginning stages, we learn that over 125 applicants have applied. Of the 125 resumes received, it is estimated that 22-25 of those have the skill set and experience for Derry's top job. That is great news for the taxpayers of this town!
The next steps are to get more specifics from the group and to set up committees to begin the vetting process.
Once we get the top 5, the council will have the final decision on who to replace out going administrator Gary Steinhouse.

At its last meeting the council approved extending Gary's contract until October as the process of picking a new TA would take a little longer than originally planned and because of the time frame spent on budgets.

Your thoughts?

Your thoughts on the new council

2010-04-22T16:59:00.002-04:00

I'm back! Sorry everyone, I have been very busy and wanted to get back into the blogging. I would like to know what you think of the new council make-up. The 5-2, The super majority.

How about the job Councilor Benson is doing as chairman?

If you have been watching the budgets, how are we as councilors doing with YOUR tax dollars?

BC

Election Results!

2010-03-10T07:44:00.002-05:00

Its a sweep! The people of Derry have spoken! All three winners are 4A supporters and TIF supporters. Not only does this mean that the town can move forward, having a 5-2 Council gives the majority a "super majority" and that means we can get some things done for the Town of Derry.

I want to thank everyone in Dist #4 who voted for me. Thank you very much! The opposition brought their "A" team to try and stop me, Ms Fairbanks, Mr Coyle, MS Rose, Mr Cooper and even Doug Newell was seen at Hood most of the day.

But I think at the end of the day the good people of Derry were smart enough to be disgusted with their " smear" campaign.

PS Thats all for now on my blog/diary!!!!!!! See you all next Tuesday night!

Want to hear from someone who knows about 4A?

2010-03-04T20:36:00.002-05:00

OK so you want more about 4A Go to the video of the last council meeting. Click on the wording " watch here" and you can fast forward the meeting.. Go to 114:44 to 121:50 and listen to someone who knows whats really going on in this town.

Oh and by the way after viewing the video there...fast forward to 2:27:00 to 2:29:29 to see your councilor at large...you know, the man with the integrity.

Lets get some facts straight on 4A

2010-03-01T07:03:00.002-05:00

Seems that the 4 A subject is one that most want to chime in on. After yesterdays Political Connections show many of the candidates had opinions on the subject and felt that there just is not enough information and that leads to wild rumors. Lets take a look at some of them.

I keep hearing Joe DiChario say that something must be done that papers and documents went missing..

Those documents went missing back in 1992. Why? The new mayor at that time was a opponent of 4 A.. Then Mayor was in favor of a Rte 3A. So those documents went missing right after the new mayor took office. Should an investigation take place???? Why not if its not too costly and makes sense after all this time.. But please don't hang this on any council over the last 10 years.

Another rumor is that I or any other councilor would spend millions more on 4A is just an all out lie.. I have stated that after the money the town is obligated for is done not one more dollar would i spend on the project.

And the last rumor is that it would benefit only Londonderry and not Derry. To that one I say that if 4 A were to come to fruition. Derry will have many benefits in that many jobs will be created and some well paid ones i may add. The Londonderry/Derry area will be well known in a wide geographical area and be a thriving economic engine for both towns.

The alternative???? Well I'll let the naysayers answer that one for you. What are there plans for economic development...Nothing they all said they would stand pat. Nothing ventured nothing gained! enjoy your high taxes with them in office!

Who's actually running?

2010-02-25T16:08:00.003-05:00

Watching the Kevin and Janet show one would think that Kevin and Janet are running for election. Looks like they feel that the candidates they are backing are not that well known and cant carry their own weight on the issues. Tag team by association I believe the term is called. If that wasn't the most obvious forced feed interview and question and answers session from the candidates anyone has ever seen. Geez.

And then the ADT group are backing Joe DiChario and not the guy who is an actual member of the ADT Al Dimmock....What? They're endorsing a non member over a member? Whats up with that? And Joe DiChario has been to how many meetings lately??? Or is it just that Kevin wants Pastor Joe in so that he will do Kevin's bidding. Interesting.

On top of that Kevin comes out and says that I have no integrity and said it twice. It didn't come out of Joe's mouth but Kevins. See who is really running folks.

Well I got news for you Kevin. You are the biggest hypocrite I've ever seen. You have no integrity! E-mailing a taxpayer who was critical of you and telling her to "shove it" and then volunteering to negotiate on a piece of land that Poor Mr Bonner who was frail and needed to get out of his house for health reasons and then you vote "no" after leading him to believe a deal was done. His house still is on the market after 2 1/2 years. And then You have the nerve to sign off on your own abatement as a councilor and you have the nerve to say I have no integrity???? Look in the mirror Kevin!

In the Running

2010-01-25T17:28:00.002-05:00

I just signed up for another run at Dist#4 Councilor. After thinking about this very hard for the last three weeks, I decided to once again run for the Dist 4 seat. I think it will be very important for someone with experience on the budgets to be able to handle a very tough upcoming budget process.
Services will no doubt be effected in the next budget and I plain on using my six years of knowledge to make the least amount of interruptions to core services. We all know the economy is still trying to find its way to some positive news and right now its tough for many. However, people expect certain services in a town our size and I believe I know where we could save some money.

Also, once again, we will need to find a new Town Administrator. I have had the chance to work with 3 Town administrators and 2 acting administrators and so I will be able to help select someone with experience and knowledge in municipal affairs.

I am asking for support of the people who live in District 4. I will need sign locations support so please let me know if I can have your support.

Talking Business

2010-01-12T12:30:00.002-05:00

The latest buzz all around town is once again economic development and last night the town council and Derry's state reps got together to see how we can all communicate better to help bring business to our community! The meeting went well and some actions plans came from the meetings that I think will benefit all of us.

Last night I thought about something that hit me while sitting on the planning board while dealing with the Robert Frost Farm issue. You may of read that the planning board was dealing with land surrounding the Robert Frost where some owners wanting to change zoning to Commercial zoning and then the issues of where and what that does to the historical site!

We had many people making a stand but what I did learn was that people from all over the world will come to Derry to see the famous poets old homestead. We should be promoting this in our town a little bit better and getting to those people who do come to stay and spend money in our town!

These are just some of the little things we can be doing to attract business. Sometimes we over think and think too much about the big picture when in fact its these small things that are right in front of us that we are missing.

I'm sure others have good ideas that they want to share and here is a good forum to see what others are thinking and want to share.

March Elections

2010-01-01T19:15:00.002-05:00

I want to start by saying Happy New Year to everyone! I'm excited about a optimistic 2010. In the Chinese New Year, Its the year of the tiger! Chinese New Year starts around Feb 14th this year.

So to start off my New Year, I received a Google e-mail alert which came in because the Derry News wrote an article which stated that I had already made my decision NOT to run for Dist 4's Council seat. What I do not understand is that NO one from the Derry News called or e-mailed me to ask if I was running for re-election.

I immediately sent an e-mail to Bill Gilman, editor of the Derry News to tell him how irresponsible he and the paper were to print that without first checking with me. No response back from Mr.Gilman as of this posting.

I will say this.. I have not made up my mind as of yet and will be thinking about it over the next few weeks.. I have in the past said that I believe in term limits and that still holds true, however it doesn't have to be two terms, it could be three.

I will also try and become more active in the blog postings as they once were more frequent in the past and I would like to keep things going in a positive direction as much as possible. I do think that this current council has made strides in being more civil lately and I believe we have been able to get better results for the community. Not that everyone always agrees, however we do get to listen to both sides and think things through better without personal attacks for the most part.

I did also read that Mr.Newell will put his hat into the ring for a council seat this year. I will be interested to hear some of his ideas as to where he thinks the budgets direction we should go in for 2011.

Not sure if Councilor Carney has made up his mind yet if he will be running for re-election or Councilor Metts as well.

I would like to hear from you who you would like to see run for council. Anyone??

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

2009-12-24T19:01:00.003-05:00

Wishing all my blog readers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Let me know what topics youd like to discuss!

Open Forum

2009-11-23T09:50:00.001-05:00

Time for a new post. Thought I would open it up. Whats on your minds?

Exit 4 A

2009-10-18T08:28:00.002-04:00

The special meeting has some interesting debate over funding for the final EIS studies that are mandatory before going to the State and Feds for monies to make exit 4A a reality.

As a councilor who has been here for almost 6 years, I can tell you that I thought I knew most of the 4 A history and how it has become the single biggest political issue in Derry for well over 20 years and Just like the delaying of the widening of I93 because of legal stalling tactics, the projects end up costing us more in the long run. But lets stop for a second and really look at the issues and not the same old scare tactics the ADT group applies to grow their own ranks. I realize now that after a meeting with a Boston North representative and all the documents they possess and the town does not ( whole new story there) that I can say with certainty the following statements.

#1) The town has already obligated itself to spending $5 Million Dollars back in the late 80's by two prior Mayors and boards of selectman. There is documentation to prove this.

#2)Just because the total costs which is estimated to be around $30 million to complete the off ramp DOES NOT mean Derry will have to pay any more than its obligations. ( That is, IF no lawsuit comes up on the town for reneging on its obligation. Then in my opinion, we could be on the hook for a whole lot more.)
Lesson learned is Londonderry tries to back out and was sued and lost in a court of law which cost the Londonderry taxpayers an additional 1.5 Million in damages and told they must contribute their $5 million.

#3)The new exit will allow for Rte 102 downtown to escape heavy traffic burdens now and in the future. Projections for future growth in Derry and Auburn/Chester will effect the flow of traffic in our downtown.

#4) Southern NH Planning Commission has exit 4A as a high priority on its list. This is the regional planning board which is important to gaining fed dollars.

So, no matter how you slice it, whether or not you personally support or don't support 4A, it comes down to the fact that we are obligated to pay for this. We have not expended the 5 Million dollars and the last vote was for $600K which comes out of the total we owe to this project.

Lets stop kicking this political football around to scare townspeople and understand its not in our best interest to halt funding until we have reached our obligations because to do so would place a burden on the taxpayers of Derry.

And lastly, why some councilors were quick to criticize others for going to this meeting with Boston North is beyond me. 4 councilors went ( not 3 as the UL reported) Why would any councilor NOT want to go to see the full history, look at all the documents and make a judgement based on knowing the FULL story is beyond me.
Janet said in the meeting on the TIFF that she didn't do her homework when she voted for it and then voted against, why would she make the same mistake by not viewing the whole issue herself and follow Kevins lead by refusing to go? Only they can answer that question.

What are your thoughts on this subject?

Derry Housing Market

2009-09-17T13:45:00.002-04:00

The Derry Housing market is starting to come back! The above chart shows the inventory levels that we presently have today. A 5.8 Months supply is truly amazing from where it was over a year ago. The above chart shows inventory levels from 8/08 to 8/09.

Now, this in no way means that times are not tough but lets look at the facts. The housing market crash of 2006 led the demise of the economy. From there banks started having trouble, credit lines tightened, retail and hospitality services suffered and end results with unemployment being the last of tough times. Now we still need to create jobs in this country, what I would like to point out here is that the end is near for this recession. Housing had 6 months in a row of growth! Retail sales were unexpectedly high in Aug, and the Feds are saying its over in the papers.

This is good news for us! We need to stay positive and just like the new England weather, its bound to change for the better.

What the real data reveals!

2009-09-11T13:05:00.002-04:00

Depending on who you listen to in discussing the local economy, one will get different opinions based on that persons perceived view on the economy of Derry. Last week, I had a few e-mails and phone calls about the recently approved TIF bonding the council unanimously approved and how crazy the council must be to approve such a bond in such a down economy.

I usually start with the fact the if you buy into the national media outlets, one would start to see all the negative aspects of day to day living, such as the unemployment figures, more foreclosed home coming etc etc.. and would leave some to believe that the sky is falling and we must hunker down.

For those that feel this way, I can respect that under some circumstances that is a true reality. Some even go as far as blaming all the foreclosed homes issue on the town council themselves...and in one case a person claims that a bank is telling people not to come to Derry because of the property taxes. Very interesting and I highly doubt that a bank would "red line" a community because that would be illegal!
Yes illegal! So when someone tells you this, consider the source and re-think about it.

Anyway, Lets look at the real data. We all know that New Hampshire fairs much better than the rest of the country as far as the economy goes..not perfect but not gloom and doom as some want you to believe.

Next, many of you know that Real Estate is my profession.

Take a look at these facts about Derry Housing. The facts are based on MLS readings of today. I took Single family homes only. Not Condos, Not commercial or Land listings.

Number of Houses currently on the market in Derry: 132 properties

Number of home Pending: 22 properties

That's a six months supply! Six months supply! Way down from the high of 10-12 month supply.

Now out of those that are pending: 1 is 300K or over, 10 are 200K to 300K and 11 are under 200K.

Now for the people who are complaining about the TIF and commercial development in Town... I see Tractor Supply come in to Hood Plaza, The completion of the Goddard school on Tsienneto Rd as well that Tire Warehouse began building on the same road. The new butcher shop on 28 and the news that the Fire Hall pub has new owners..

Lets start focusing on the positives in our town instead of the negative. Seems the same negative messages come from the same people over and over..

Lets look at the facts when we talk folks.. and make em positive ones for a change please!

Council in Full Agreement!

2009-09-02T11:31:00.002-04:00

The stars have finally aligned! Its a win for the people of the Town of Derry!
Yes its true, In a 7-0 vote at last nights town council meeting, the council voted to move ahead with plans on making improvements to the Manchester Rd area from Tsienneto Rd to the Londonderry line in the councils attempts to attract business and lowering residential taxes.

The 2006 planned project came to a halting stop when Walmart pulled its plan off the table and therefore not contributing the $900,000 it promised if approved. Those plans never stopped completely as the town spent $400,000 to do the pre-lim engineering work that needed to get done.

Almost three years later, after goal setting and identifying economic development as its number one priority ( which has not changed for the six years Ive been sitting)
The council came together as a whole to get the plans moving forward.

I wish to commend my fellow councilors who voted in favor in seeing that this project is a step in the right direction in trying to help offset residential tax burden on the single family home owners of our town.

This was a very satisfying moment for me as a councilor because it shows once the council puts personal attacks behind them and concentrates on goals and shows the town that its elected officials can actual get things done.

What do you think? Will the plan work in attracting business? Let us know how you feel!

Derry has its elected Charter Commissioners

2009-08-06T11:44:00.002-04:00

Another election is almost complete here in Derry and all the buzz that I'm hearing is the big upset of the ADT's slate of major candidates not getting elected. With all that money that this group spent on getting their people in, not to mention all the time and effort that they spent spearheading the cause.

The only members that did get elected were Kevin Coyle and Doug Newell, both whom placed 5th or lower in total vote count out of nine possible slots.

The winners are:

Brenda Willis, Jim Mceachern, John O'Connor,Chris Reisdorf,Paul Dionne,Kim Cyr, Kevin Coyle, Doug Newell

and a tie between Mike Gill and Pam Lynch will be decided on 8/12 after a recount.

Congrats to all the winners and let the meetings begin.

The question here is what do you feel that the new charter commissioners should look at for changes in the town's charter? Should they look into changing our government style..ie town vs city? and what needs to change if anything at all.

Lets discuss!

Replays of the council meetings

2009-07-16T09:01:00.002-04:00

Replays of the council meetings link is again running the very current up to date meetings. I will try and stay on top of refreshing these as they are available. Please check out the link at the right of this post and there you will find these public meetings.

Organized Mobbing?

2009-07-14T08:30:00.002-04:00

It is 8:30 Am on Tues morning 7/14.

Are you all ready to see and hear the organized Mobbing scene for tonights council meeting? I'm sure you will see its stars come out tonight to speak of council members being removed.

We will hear from the same people who have said this over and over again and to make sure their message and political scoring points get the most mileage possible.

I'm sure we will see many members of the ADT group as they are headed up and organized by Doug Newell ready for the cameras tonight. In fact, Doug most likely has his new story line all set and ready to go.

When you get a chance readers, Go to Google.com and look up the word " Mobbing". See if you think that this applies to this group. Let me know what you think.

The sad thing here is that this group has learned that this is how you gain political power in the town of Derry. People in town must wake up to the fact that if this is how you want your town officials to act and operate, instead of focusing on the work that needs to get done, well then, thats what you'll get.

Please don't get me wrong, I understand that the conversation was innapropriate. Mr Benson has apoligized directly to MS Rose and I called to tell her that we never said the word fired or even thought that. It was a tongue and cheek comment that was said in a matter of 30 seconds.

Look I have been a councilor for 6 years and I have seen politics that i believe are above board, which concentrates on the positive, and on the issues at hand. AND I have seen the politics of personalities and dirty politics. I know, what i see. I know the players involved and I know that this town is going backwards.

Well enough said for today... Lets watch to see how tonight goes.. Seriously Folks, the word got out last week at what a circus it's gonna be.

Here a TIF there a TIF

2009-06-22T17:54:00.003-04:00

Q: What is a T.I.F.

A: Tax Incremental Finance

How does it work? Does it cost more money in the long run? What is so special about it? Why don't we just bond instead?

A TIFF bond is similar to a regular bond in that terms are set up such as a time commitment..20 yr or 30 yr bond.

The difference between the two are that a 20 yr bond /30 yr bond is just what it is.. a 20 yr or 30 yr bond.

A TIF bond CAN be paid-off sooner than its intended life... ie can be paid off in lets say 11 years and without penalty. You can think of it like making an extra mortgage payment at the end of the year, which helps bring down interest payments.

A TIF bond usually starts with very low payments in years 1-3 where as a regular bond would be spread out over life of bond.

Yes Doug is correct in that TIF bonds carry a little bit higher interest rate however its initial low payments and the early pay-off clause make it a winner in the long run. It is true that the TIF bond must be successful in bringing in business to realize the savings.

Also, The state of New Hampshire unlike many other states does not have the power to give tax breaks to companies to try and attract them to our state and its usually a "quality of life" issue that brings companies here. The TIF is one tool that we do have to attract businesses.

Where I think many get confused about TIF's are that they think that these businesses that are attracted, some how get a tax break or benefit from these TIF bonds where in fact the benefit they get is in Infrastructure improvements and in our case the widening of Manchester Rd to make it more commuter and business friendly.

Also with a TIF bond, and with permission from schools and state and county, these other government entities can decide to not take their portion of the local property tax, so that their portion can be used to help pay-off the TIF bond. For example in our TIF district, the school portion of their taxes would not go to schools but to help pay-off the bond instead. Makes sense because businesses don't send kids to schools. After the bonds are paid-off- these businesses would then be helping off set our residential/commercial mix and help offset and lower residential tax burdens.

A regular bond would do neither.

Lets remember that we already have water and sewer down Manchester rd and we have available lots that can be built upon. By creating a better roadway system we help attract business and bring those roadways from failure. Our TIF would only go to making the roadway improvements and would not go to private businesses to help them build their own buildings ( which is what the video that Doug provided says that is what that particular town did) This is an important fact that must be known.

Tax payers float the TIF bond for roadway improvements
Businesses that build new or additional buildings in the TIF district only will have portions of their taxes be paid to pay-off the bond. At no time will taxpayer money go to private business to help them build their buildings. ( all TIF are not created equally). The first three years are very low interest payments ( we have intial money in fund balance to get us started without raising any taxes) and in three years we should be in a better economy.

With success, we can pay this bond off quickly and bring commercial business taxes into the town, bring jobs to our community and help lower our taxes.

These are the two differences between the TIF and regular type bonding. Hope this shes some light to some and would love to hear feedback from others.

Happy Fathers Day!

2009-06-21T13:48:00.000-04:00

To all the Fathers out in Blogsville

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!

Time to Focus on the Community.

2009-06-18T06:19:00.003-04:00

Mudslinging, personal attacks, political posturing can all lead to a loss of focus on the needs of our community and in economical challenging times, which we certainly have today. We elected people need to come together for the best interests of Derry.
So too, the towns people must cut through all the distracting political super hype and focus on what your elected officials are doing for the town as a whole.
In this up coming fiscal year, the council has CUT taxes by .18 cents/1000 of your homes value. Hard decisions were made and in the end the council did do its job and showed the taxpayers of this town that we are "plugged in".

Now some will say that a small savings will not get much, however there is no way that cutting town side of government is going to make dramatic changes to our tax structure. Big changes, by "down shifting" in State budget will only add to our tax burden while town services will eventually suffer. In the end, its a cruel game of increasing taxes and cut services where we all end up losing. We shall leave state spending to another post on its own.

Anyway, we at town side are doing our part in helping control escalating taxes.

The second leg to bringing taxes down is to bring economic development to town. By achieving a TOTAL commitment in economic development. Ahh, those two words " economic development" have been hollow "buzz" words for years that make one almost electable just by saying the words. This time, All seven councilors are on record to doing and committing to the TIFF district on Manchester Rd as the best option right now in bringing in business. See what a difference a year makes.

( Notice no Burtis comments yet or Rev Joe making statements that Manchester Rd is not in failure. PS to the town newbies, we all know who these two are aligned with! Funny how the mouthpieces fall of the face of the map when their councilors are NOW in favor with it.)

The only question councilors must decide on now is how will we pay for the infrastructure and widening that must get done. Stay tuned. I'm sure it will be interesting in discussions. At least we are moving forward!

Board appointments should be fair.

2009-06-03T14:37:00.002-04:00

Somewhere within the last 3 years the town council has left fairness out of the process of board appointments and have instead made the Planning Board, Zoning Board and Conservation Commission more of a political show than doing the fair and right thing in my opinion.

Many know how I got started in the volunteering on town boards. I started by running the camera equipment for C17 and televised the council meetings at that time. ( i also ran the cameras for both the "friends of education" and the "derry taxpayers" shows) and I guess that was a learning experience in the political process in Derry. I then chaired the cable committee for two years before moving on to Planning board as alternate..then to chairman of planning board, elected twice to town council and had the honor to be chairman of town council and twice pro-tem.

In that process, I had a chance to participate and move through the boards and gained knowledge on behalf of our town. But what message are we sending today on these boards when good alternates, who give of their time and effort are being told that the council doesn't care and they will pick according to political ties instead.
I mean, It used to be as an alternate, if a regular membership was vacant, it was filled by the senior alternate... Common courtesy and protocol. Especially if you have someone new, who shows for every meeting and is interested in helping the community. These are Derry's future leaders after all. We need new people to step up and be willing and eager to step in.

Last night, Once again as in the last 3 years, Mr Hopfgarten was appointed a regular member of planning over Ms Heard. Ms Heard has been an excellent member and is eager to participate. Instead of doing the right thing, again politics played into the decision.

Don't get me wrong, Paul is knowledgeable and will be a good addition to planning but Paul has done this before. He has sat on Planning and is a nine year ex-councilor who has chosen to plug in again to the scene after a small time away. Ms Heard should of been given this seat as a reg member of the board and Paul just was voted in as an alternate this year. My guess is that Paul is using the planning board as a spring board to run for town council again and will give up his seat in March should he be successful in running for council again.

We should go back to the fair and honorable way of appointing board members, Put new people in Alternate positions to learn and get experience, reward good alternates to regular membership when it happens and to let new blood into the process when the opportunities come.

I have seen 4-5 people who finally said that they were overlooked because of politics and felt nobody cared and not being rewarded by moving up the ladder, left volunteering for the town. What a shame.

What are your thought?

Alliance not talking taxes?

2009-05-23T09:21:00.003-04:00

I thought that the alliance of Derry Taxpayers Assoc was created to talk about taxes and spending in the town of Derry? For years this group will have you believe that they have the taxpayers best interests in mind. Or do they have a hidden agenda???

It seems to me that the positive news coming from the so called majority councilors are not being talked about in the taxpayers association circles because they have their eyes on taking the next election by winning at least 2 of 3 seats in March.

Why are they afraid to let the taxpayers of this town know that the "majority" will come in at .18 cents UNDER the previous years budget which means a savings to the taxpayers of Derry. Where is the praise for this work Mr. Newell? Aha, people will soon catch on that its not about the tax payers but more about Mr Newell and a select few who hide behind their mission statements and really want to control the powers to be. Its so obvious too.

The ADTA is quick to point out that the big bad majority approved union contracts and that will hurt the taxpayers of Derry. Well, not only do they want to "spin" a story but they will not tell you this.

Union Contract are under agreement for three years. And Still! The majority has given the taxpayers a savings over last years budget.

If they had their way, You would have no contracts signed and pro-longed, costly negotiations on going and a very poor working environment for both employees and taxpayers. Also you most likely would have no savings from the previous year because they were set in a 0% budget.

My my has the world turned upside down? Of course they will not tell you that. They have better things to do. Right?

2009-05-20T18:30:00.002-04:00

The more things change. The more they stay the same.

Happy Mothers Day!

2009-05-10T10:41:00.001-04:00

Wishing all those mothers out there a very Happy Mothers Day!

Full Investigation

2009-05-09T07:30:00.002-04:00

This is a copy of an e-mail letter I sent Chairman Rick Metts and all councilors on 5/8/2009.

Rick,
I am asking that you immediately contact the Attorney Generals Office for them to look into this matter. I look forward to sworn testimony from many parties to put this issue in its proper place and to allieviate the many rumors that are being orchastrated by a political faction. I trust you will do this right away.

Had to pass this on.

2009-05-07T12:20:00.001-04:00

What a great way to explain socialism…had to pass this on.
A simple analogy

An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had
never failed a single student before but had once failed an entire
class.

That class had insisted that socialism worked and that no one would be
poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer.

The professor then said, "OK, we will have an experiment in this class
on socialism. All grades would be averaged and everyone would receive
the same grade so no one would fail and no one would receive an A.

After the first test, the grades were averaged and everyone got a B.

The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied
little were happy.

As the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had
studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a
free ride too so they studied little.

The second test average was a D! No one was happy.

When the 3rd test rolled around, the average was an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame and name-calling all
resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of
anyone else.

All failed, to their great surprise, and the professor told them that
socialism would also ultimately fail because when the reward is great,
the effort to succeed is great, but when government takes all the
reward away, no one will try or want to succeed.

Could not be any simpler than that.

Taxpayer Rebate?

2009-05-06T07:25:00.002-04:00

Councilors are winding down on this years 2010 budgets and at this point we await the publics input into the budget this Thursday at Municipal Center 3rd floor meeting room. We as a council as of this writing are .24 cents UNDER last years budget. The big question will be will that number be the final number or will some councilors go on a spending spree?

I am on record as stating that I would like to give that .24 cents/1000 of assessed value, BACK TO THE TAXPAYERS!

What will this mean for the average home owner in Derry. The home owner with an assessed value of $250,000 would pay $60 less property taxes this year vs. last year. ( yes virginia there is a santa clause! ).

$60 Sixty Dollars is a big savings! But hold on ! I need to get 3 more Councilors on board. Easy you may say? We shall see.

You need to pay close attention to the next few budget meetings to see if this can be accomplished and which councilors may agree with me.

Of course, my regular political opponets will not say one nice thing about my thoughts here because, well because they would have nothing to pick-on would they.
Most want to focus on the Negative and its pure politics and I understand that.

So, what are your thoughts?

Solutions are needed

2009-04-27T13:46:00.003-04:00

Solutions are needed in our Town and we need them right away. Economic Development has come to a grinding halt and we can't be happy with our results in the last two years. I feel that we did not get what we should of when we hired an in house director and it was a costly mistake. Also, we are looking at people who just don't want to give any money to the DEDC to help in this arena, and in the end, the people of Derry are "missing the boat".

Derry once had the medical field niche with Parkland Medical and the doctors who associated with them and that was something Derry could be proud of, however while the powers that be argue about $20,000 to bring business into this town ( a very small amount and one which we are way out spent) Londonderry is now attacking this very niche with Elliot moving in and making their business friendly environment pay-off. Derry will again, come out on the short end of the stick and if we don't turn it around soon, will NEVER recover from higher taxes.

The issue and the question is simple: What does Derry offer for businesses and how can we use our positive attributes to attract business and help lower taxes in our town.
Lets hear some thoughts.

Budget Time

2009-04-19T17:28:00.002-04:00

Councilors just finished up their 2nd round of budgets with a whole Saturday marathon meeting. We started the budgets last Thursday on April 16th with both the Derry Library and the Taylor Library. Right out of the gate, councilors looked to trim back a budget that was presented with both increases in salaries and benefits in some cases and putting money aside for capital projects. Both were either trimmed way down and/or eliminated all together.
For instance, Library staff were looking for a 2.5% salary increase and those were trimmed to a 1% increase instead. To my surprise, Councilor Coyle did not Zero line those increase but instead compromised instead.. This was a fair way to handle it.
However, I tried to take out the legal line which had $200 in it. My questions was what kind of legal advise can one get for $200. Besides, The library if need be could use town's legal council if need be..I doubt that it would get used.. My motion failed though, so $200 stays in for legal. I then made a motion to cut $12,000 for a security camera. I thought it could wait until next year. That item was flagged for now meaning we will bring that back up a little bit later.
The Taylor Library also had their salary increases knock down to 1%. They wanted 3.5% over last year. We also took out $20,000 which was to be used in a capital fund for Taylor Library Expansion.. Looks like that will need to wait until better times.

Yesterday we had the Saturday Marathon day and we took out more that $4 million out of what was in the budget. A bond to build a rec facility was motioned out by me because in this economy, the town must keep its spending in line.

I'll post more about the budgets in upcoming posts. Lets hear some of your thoughts about the budget and what should be done for this year.

Open Forum

2009-04-10T07:51:00.001-04:00

Thought we all could use a new thread. Whats on your mind?

State of Economic Development

2009-03-18T16:46:00.002-04:00

Remember the old saying " are you better off today than you were last year".Well in the town's economic development arena, I will have to say that the answer is a big NO. The town has for the last two fiscal years supported an in house economic development director after a few years of working with the DEDC. The DEDC are a non-governmental, non-profit group of business owners who have looked after attracting businesses into Derry so that we may get some tax relief for the single family homeowners who's tax bills keep increasing and relief is needed.
Last night, former council member and now president of the DEDC came to give the town an update on DEDC status. They are requesting that the DEDC come back in working arm and arm with the town because they can do it at a far better cost, according to Bulkley, and they can do a far better job in bringing business into town.
The DEDC is requesting $20K this year and an appropriation of $60K for FY2010.
Many questions then followed and some public forum questions were addressed.
It seemed to me that all councilors had and continue to have an open mind right now however I'm sure more questions will be asked before any money is put aside.

The Big question becomes this:
1) Is economic development a priority in this town?
2) What have we gotten for the 200K we spent in two years with in house E.D.?
3)Do we bring back DEDC and how will everyone work hand and hand for the good of the town?
4) If we do nothing, what do we get in the form of new businesses to offset taxes?
5)Are there any new ideas outside of both DEDC and in-house E.D.
I want to hear form you.

Who will be the next..Derry Town Council Chair?

2009-03-11T14:14:00.002-04:00

Fresh off yesterdays town elections, the buzz that is all around is all about who will be the next town council chairman?
I would like to hear from you blog readers on who you think will be the next chairman or chairwoman and your reasoning behind your pick..

Also I wanted to congratulate all the winners in yesterdays election and to say thank-you for running and your commitment to the town of Derry for the runners-up.
Please keep engaged into the political scene in town and let your voices be heard.

Polling Places

2009-03-09T19:34:00.002-04:00

Just a reminder.

Districts 1 & 4 Vote at Gilbert H Hood Jr High

Districts 2 & 3 Vote at West Running Brook Middle school.

Please exercise your right to vote tomorrow!!!

Top 10 Least Taxed Cities in America

2009-03-06T10:31:00.001-05:00

This puts things into a little better perspective.
Check Out #2!
http://finance.yahoo.com/taxes/article/106691/Top-10-Tax-Friendly-Cities

Sewer Bonding.

2009-03-05T10:37:00.002-05:00

I was asked in a previous post about how I would work with Kevin and Janet if they so happen to get re-elected. The post said that if that scenario were to happen that they expected that we all work together moving forward and that we should have the best interests of the town at all times. I agree.
I would like to state here and now that if in fact Kevin and Janet do get re-elected that both have mentioned numerous times over the last couple years that they both support extending sewer as a priority for them. They make it both clear that 4A and the TIFF is not something that they could support. Fine, that's their right as an elected official. But you will be the very first to read this here in this blog.
If Kevin and Janet both get re-elected, I will then make a motion to bond between 5-30 million dollars for running sewer and water down Rte 28 towards Ryan's Hill.
After all this is what they have wanted for three years now. Do you think either candidate would vote YES on this issue AFTER they get back in???
Lets remember its very easy to say NO all the time... Where are the solutions? Talk about rubber stamps. I'm willing to bet that they both will vote NO again and for another 3 years Derry stays stagnant. Do you agree?

The Big Bad Blog!

2009-03-01T17:28:00.002-05:00

I'm not running for any position this year however looks like some councilors want to blame this big bad blog as the reason why the councilors all don't get along. Have we not been down this road once before..Some want to stifle others freedom of speech and its this type of censorship that gets me wondering that its fine for some to be critical of others however when someone is critical of them... They don't like it. They want it to be destroyed, and they don't give a damn if others have the right to free speech.

During the political show that is produced every year, A question was asked about what party affiliation a candidate belongs to and Councilor Coyle came out and said he was Independent... Funny he has registered as a Republican and then recently as a Democrat.It depends what best suits him for that particular time.

Then the loaded question about finance contributions..Kevin and Janet stated that they had very limited funds from outside.. Janet stated a friend paid for her signs and she received $100 from someone and a check that she is returning.. Kevin said his campaign will cost $1000. With $400 coming from "friends"..

I don't know which world you live however i believe that is what politicians do. They raise money for their campaigns. What does it say when nobody wants to contribute to their campaigns????

The facts are that in the first election Mr.Coyle picked up lots of money that this time around those friends had none to give. So now its an issue when 3 years ago it was not?? Kevin also stated that since he and Janet were elected no more "back door" arrangements had occurred.. really? What about the Land for bike path deal Kevin?

The question comes to the simple facts.. Do you think the town can get things done with Kevin and Janet coming back or with new fresh faces Maureen and Joel?? Think about it?

Also, Do you think this blog has value in expressing ones thoughts or do you think like Ms. Fairbanks that it is the reason for the towns undoing and ill will towards council members. The facts speak for themselves in this blog. Even people who are critical of me and my positions are posted for all to see.. That's part of the political process. Why someone runs and doesn't want to be criticized is beyond me.
Your thoughts!

Time for a Change!

2009-02-20T10:53:00.003-05:00

Three years ago today, two new faces to town politics came into the political picture seeking a change. The incumbents at the time were two people who had many years experience at that time and were two well known politicians.

Those two new comers were Kevin Coyle and Janet Fairbanks. Both ran on a pro-economic development platform and both said it was important to bring businesses into town to help offset the residential/commercial/industrial mix that was keeping the town side taxes high. Both Coyle and Fairbanks won there seats as "fresh faces" that would bring "fresh ideas" to the town and that they did..
However, Lets examine what either of these councilors have done to bring in the promised economic development into town.

I can't think of one thing that helped bring in business can you?? I can tell you that both fought very hard against Walmart coming in. Both fought hard and waged a battle with the DEDC at that time. Both making it well known they did not like the DEDC at all and was instrumental in pushing them out the door. They both thought the the Ash St Development was a failure, when in fact, just recently our finance director, who's dept has won many awards and regarded as a top notch dept recently said in his financials that in fact the Ash St development was a big success.. Who do you want to believe??? I'll take the experts opinion.

Now lets talk about what the two councilors did approve in their three years.
Mr. Coyle's motion to spend $500,000 on engineering work for Rte 28 near Folsom Rd and the Londonderry line. That's 1/2 a million spent and he will tell you that he is against a TIFF district to attract new business. Ms Fairbanks? Is she for the TIFF? Doubt it.
Then we have the Quid pro qua deal that Kevin has admitted was such a deal, arranged with others beforehand, where they purchased downtown land ( old oil property) in exchange for the council to take $225k of your tax dollars for a 2 mile pavement of bike path. $225k in a bad economy? What were they thinking. The spent 500K in short order.

And then we have the 80K (whoops, I mean 125K) Manning Street extent ion when the engineering firm who did the study said it was a waste of money.. Kevin & Janet still voted in favor. Do we see a pattern here?? They know better than the experts.

Its interesting that both are running this year on a "I'll be the taxpayers protectors" platform when both spent money foolishly. Both have to understand that even if re-elected they can not muster other councilors support and therefore next year would be a continuation of this year. As Kevin stated in a meeting not to long ago " This council has accomplished nothing"

Both Kevin and Janet supported bringing in a economic development director in house at a cost of $100K year for the last two years... What did we get for that money?? In fact Kevin said in public that it was a mistake.

Folks it time for a change. Please look at the backgrounds of Joel Olbricht and Maureen Heard against the two incumbent and after reading them tell me its not time for a fresh change. Tell me its not time to get some "expertise" for the town at the council level.

We need change and a team effort to get things going in the right direction. We don't need stagnation in bad times...Please support Olbricht and Heard as the next councilor at large and Dist #1 councilor.

Open Forum II

2009-02-11T12:06:00.001-05:00

More open forum for all to make some of the post following a little bit easier.

Please leave a message!

Open Forum

2009-01-27T17:30:00.002-05:00

Lets open it up to anything you want to talk about?

Will KC and JF run for their seats on the city council? And who else may run?

How will the 0% upcoming budget effect town services? your thoughts?

Or anything else that is on your mind. Lets hear it.

Real Estate Bubble and more.

2009-01-02T11:43:00.003-05:00

If you have a chance to see this video. It about sums it up on the ecomomy the last few years. Take a look at it and then come back and share your comments.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNmcf4Y3lGM

40,000

2009-01-02T09:14:00.002-05:00

Just wanted to thank the many visitors to Derry NH Politics Blog! It reached its 40,000 visitor mark a couple of days ago and its because of people like you it has found staying power.
There have been other blogs that have started and then have stopped for various reasons and I can tell you first hand that maintaining and keeping a blog going is not a very easy thing to do. I appreciate all the comments that come in and I post 99% of what you send ( the other 1 % I do not dare put in )and again would like to thank you for using these mediums.

If you have any ideas that may make improvements, please pass them along.

Thanks Again!

Take back the money

2008-12-29T16:34:00.002-05:00

This post will make some people very upset and I can fully appreciate that fact because of all their hard work and great effort into getting the Town of Derry a bike path that would connect with the town of Windham's'.
However we are in an economy like no other and with the last couple of town council meetings discussions talking about possible lay-offs, hiring freezes and freezes in overtime as well as a demand of our town administrator to come in with a 0% increase, how can we in good conscience spend $225,000 on a bike path at this time?
It just does not make sense does it???
I would not want the efforts of the bike path committee and the hard work in raising the other money go unnoticed either, however it can wait until the economy is much better don't you agree.

The right thing to do here is for the council to rescind the vote that gave them the $225,000 and use this money to lower the taxpayers tax rate for next year. Could you just imagine that the town administrator comes in at 0% tax increase for next year and then we use the $225,000 to actually LOWER THE TAX RATE.
What are your thoughts on this! agree? disagree? and tell us why!

Derry's major ice storm

2008-12-15T09:25:00.002-05:00

Another unforgettable major storm has made it's impression on all of us here in Derry. This one ranks right up there with the "blizzard of 78".

I would like to thank our Emergency Operations Center for performing an outstanding job and they are still at it as this blog is being written. This storm was devastating with knocking down trees and power lines snapping. Frigid temps and lack of electricity made for rough days and nights as people were scrambling to stay warm and get to the basic necessities such as food and water.

In some spots, it looked like a war zone. Warner Hill, English Range road and Windham road. In this blog, I would like to hear from you how this storm effected your life. How did you cope, and what you will do to prepare yourself for future storms.

If you have picture you would like to share, please send them along as well.

Is becoming a city the answer?

2008-12-06T18:44:00.002-05:00

Is becoming a city the answer in Derry? Will property taxes finally start to come down in doing so? Some say "Yes" and others are saying they are not so sure.
For years the discussions around the water bubblier was that maybe if we could become a city, taxes would be kept in line because the schools portion of the tax bill would have to fall under the "tax cap" that the town presently has.

For those of you who may not know how the Town works presently, here is the scoop.

Only the town side of your tax bill has a tax cap, which ties into the national CPI and which has averaged about 3% a year over the last 10 years. Never has a council spent up to the maximum allowed in any year. Last year, We were allowed to add an additional .22 cents/1000 of home value and we spent .18 cents.

The rest of your tax bill includes the following: School, State and County. These four categories make up your total bill. Only the town side portion has the tax cap.

The idea in becoming a city would allow you to include the school portion under the cap. The school portion is the largest of the four in taxes.

Another reason to become a city is that cities have different grant monies from the feds than a town would. We may have more opportunities to get more grant money.

At the last council meeting, Councilor Coyle introduced a motion for the establishment of a charter commission so that the elected commission members could look into the possibilities of becoming a city and to study the idea in more detail.

The council will have a public hearing in Jan to get the public reaction to establishing the committee. What are your thoughts? Is it time to become a City?

Time to Act is now.

2008-11-16T07:39:00.002-05:00

The time to act is now!

Last month at the end of a council meeting during councilor requests, I had brought up the topic of a hiring freeze and a freeze of all overtime budgets at the town level. Not one other councilor joined me in the discussions and nothing more has been said about my proposal which i think is unfortunate. I did get some comments that said it was not a good request and how would that effect town services such as snow plowing etc.. ( no snow yet and lost opportunity to save some money).

My proposal would look at not eliminating any crucial services dealing with overtime but instead by making a complete review of where we are spending money and how to get a better "bang for the dollar".
by prioritizing jobs that are most needed and to put on a back burner, the non-essesial ones for another year.

I bring these issues up so next years budget becomes a little better to handle and to keep future disruptions in services to becoming larger issues and to minimize lay-offs that may need to be considered. I understand that some town employees may not like to hear about overtime freezes, however I'm positive that they will not like to hear that they may get a pink slip next year. I would hope that many can see the benifits of knowing they have a good job.

We must view the fact that what we do today will have effects 6 months from now. Sacrifice a little now to save a job later is what I beleive to be the best way to prepare. I'm sure some would dis-agree however from my own expeirences, find it to be proper planning.

I just read an article with our CFO Frank Childs telling the Union Leader that municipal budgets are tight and the fact that Derry has a tax cap, he believes that most likely "lay-offs" are coming. With that knowledge, would it not make sense to cut overtime now and also a hiring freeze?? It does to me!

Your thoughts?

Light at the end

2008-11-02T10:12:00.002-05:00

Here we go again.
Being accused of being an optimist is not a bad trait to have in these times. We have enough "gloom and doom" neigh sayers through-out Derry and unfortunately their voices are heard more often than one wishes.
Can we dwell on all the negatives we hear and are bombarded with on a daily basis or should we look for AND CONCENTRATE on the positives of each situation. I'll let you answer that question for yourself!

Reading many books written by successful people usually have a common theme. Stay away from the negative energy- its sucks the lifeblood out of everything. Surround yourself with the positive people! Even the medical community will tell you that by doing so, you will be happier, healthier and live longer.
So when being accused of "wearing rose-colored glasses" I say yes! whats wrong with that? Is the world perfect? of course not! Can I find something to complain about on a daily basis? sure but why would I want to make myself sick everyday. I could blame my problems on someone else, would that make me feel any better? Maybe, but we have to look ourselves in the mirror and understand that we control our thoughts, feelings and how we act. That's the power of positive attraction. What comes around, goes around. You think positive thoughts and positive things happen, You think negative thoughts and negative things happen, its a very simple life lesson.

Lets look at today's economy. Is gas going down? $2.39. How about heating oil? yep
These two things are the life blood of the economy..
How about real estate? Well the absorption rate is now at 6.8 months in Derry! Down from over 10 months supply. How about being a good time to buy real estate? Prices are more affordable than ever and who among us think that the housing market will not go back up in value. Stock market? some stocks are considered a steal right now...

Remember that the economy is 2/3 consumer confidence. Once banks and people stop being negative and start being positive, will we get out of this mess. I will go on to say that this spring, we will have so much pent up demand that our economy will be on the fast track to getting back where it should be..

Folks there is a reason why rich people get richer... They buy at the best value, when others are to afraid to let go of any money. I am not one of those rich people, however, should we not be looking at what they are doing? Now, I do understand some people are in worse shape financially than others, however keep the positive thoughts and positive people around you at all times! Forget those everyday negative, energy sapping people that are miserable day in and day out.. You deserve better!

Derry Polling Places

2008-10-27T19:22:00.002-04:00

I have had many phone calls asking me where people are suppose to vote in the Upcoming Nov 4Th Election. Just thought people should be aware of the locations because some district polling places have changed.

Voting Hours are 7Am to 8pm on November 4Th 2008

Districts 1 and Districts 3 will be voting at PINKERTON ACADEMY

District 2 Will be voting at Calvary Christian School on East Derry/Hampstead Rd

District 4 Will be voting at Hood Jr High School.

Please make sure you tell everyone you know about where to vote.!!!

25.53

2008-10-23T19:22:00.002-04:00

$25.53

This is your new tax rate Derry. I just received word that the new tax rate is now official and its time to take a look how this will affect you this December tax bill.

I'm told the Avg home that was valued at $300,000 in 2007 is now $267,000. and that with the new values that just came out a few weeks back you will need to do some simple math to see how much more you will pay.

The Average homeowner will go up in taxes by 3.3% over last year. However if you want to see how it will affect you personally you will need to do a little research.

Here is the breakdown of what makes up that $25.53 amount.

Town side services ONLY! $8.81/1000 of value
School side $13.19/1000 of value
State $2.54/1000 of value
County $0.99/1000 of value

And there you have it!

I'm also told that the town lost 10.8% of value from the previous year.

For those of you that thought when values went down that taxes would go down well...
Not so.

To find your homes value go to www.derry.nh.us (towns website) and below you will see new valuations link. This takes you to Vision Appraisal web page. Click on NH and then Derry. Put in the correct criteria and you will see what your home is worth to the town.

Your thoughts are appreciated!!!

Fire Contracts approved!

2008-10-08T18:44:00.002-04:00

Well last night 3 hour dog and pony show is now history and the firefighters contracts have been approved. After 18 months of negotiations, stall tactics, hard feelings going all around between council members and fire fighters and the long hours and much extra town money being spent frivolously... its now over.

I have been criticized for not speaking much at the meeting and to that I will just say that A) this was a public hearing for concerned citizens and we were there to listen to them.

How do i view this whole process? Well 18 months ago we (as a total group) councilors gave perimeters of what we expected in this up coming contract and as the HR director told us last night, this was accomplished twice in 18 months.
Now I will admit that individual councilors had individual parts of the contract that they were concerned about, including myself, however reading the charter states that no individual councilor shall act alone in creating policy. As a group, we all stated that if we come to the table with a group package under 3.5% we would have a deal. In my business, my word means everything. I don't change negotiations after the fact and try to then leverage an even better deal- That's what lawyers do!
My father who owned a family business taught me one thing.. your only as good as your word. Look someone in the eye, tell them what you expect from them and what they expect from you and keep your word. I did that last night.

Next, let us look at the fact that the first year is a 0% cost of living however they received a lump sum of $860 because this was suppose to be done 18 months ago and there is no retro pay.

Second, this contract dollar wise has been in the budget already passed in March. For anyone who comes up and says gosh, darn now are taxes are going to go through the roof is not being genuine. Remember that we have a tax cap in this town, town side went up .18 cents this year and part of that .18 was this contract. The remainder of the following years will still be UNDER THE TAX CAP. Our charter mandates this!! The ADT and their followers want to scare people, they always have and always will.

Are we going through tough times, yes no doubt.. but to blame the worlds problems on this contract, come on.. Lets be real for once.

At the end of the meeting, I have called for a town wide hiring freeze and that it should take council to break that freeze. I also called for an Overtime freeze town wide as well. These two things could help us in trouble times a hell of alot more than trying to slam our fire dept. And in the end, we must now be ready for the next rounds of future contracts by identifying those areas were we need or feel must be changes, but keep in mind in 2011, with our tax cap, many issues will work themselves out naturally.

Open Forum

2008-09-29T22:19:00.001-04:00

Lets start a new thread with an Open Forum here!

Your comments and questions wanted!

Assesments in the Mail

2008-09-04T14:14:00.003-04:00

New Assessment rates have been released for 08 and most residents by now have received their new numbers via mail this week.
Being a realtor in this town, I have seen home values sliding for two years now and can tell you that Derry is not alone in this situation. Unless you live in a cave and don't see the daily news reports of forecloses, and short sales you know that all across America we see how things have changed over the last few years.
Some are quick to blame elected officials for bad times when the educated people in economics understands that these things happen in cycles.
If you look over time, you will see periods of growth and periods of no growth and tough times. The older we get the more we can look back and see these "cycles".

Getting back to the towns assessments, I have had over a dozen people ask me how this affects them and their property taxes. Its not an easy science to explain, however even though values have gone down does not mean you will be paying less taxes. Its gets re-distributed and what will happen next is the TAX RATE will go up.
The question on how much they go up depends on many different factors such as other categories such as commercial property going up or down in values as well as many other classifications. Derry's problem is again we are 85%-90% RESIDENTIAL and not much commercial/industrial to help take burden off of single family homes.

Stay tuned for the rate as it will need to be set in the fall.
Keep in mind that School and town increases will also play a part in the rate and any exemptions that are given MUST be made up from people who do not get them!!

I would be happy to explain if any questions? Please understand that I am not an expert in the field and you can call the assessors dept at town hall for specific questions. The town's phone number is 603-432-6100.

Fantasy Councilors

2008-08-27T20:25:00.003-04:00

Lets have some fun with this post! You have all heard of Fantasy Football right?
Where you get to choose your own team by selecting players from different positions and assembling your own "customized" team.

Lets play Fantasy Councilors!

OK, time to choose who will be your fantasy town council.

You must pick 7 people, 4 of who must be district councilors ( your choice must live in the district that he/she represents) and 3 at large members who can live anywhere town wide.

Now question # 2

You have just been elected as town councilor. What would you do once you have been elected? What would you do differently than the "real" councilors?
If you were to make any cuts in budgets, What would those be?

Lets have some fun with this, but remember to keep this in good taste otherwise you will not see it posted!

Going Green?

2008-08-20T14:55:00.003-04:00

The Derry News is going green!

A letter was sent to subscribers of the local newspaper a few days ago making the announcement.
The bi-weekly newspaper will only be going out to print one time a week in the future to save paper and ink which in turn helps out our environment.

The DN wants people to know that they will have updates throughout the week on their web page where readers can get up to date information when it becomes available.

It is interesting to see more and more of the traditional news papers that are having rough economic times and readership declines have become a big issue effecting bottom lines of these big newspaper companies. Also more people turn to blogs or on-line newspapers more and more today which does not help the traditional news papers profitability.

Another reason could be the fact that at .75 cents per paper, twice a week ,can become very costly for the average family who also pays extra for gas, heat, food and everyday living items and must make a budget cut somewhere to save money. The newspapers are usually the first thing families look to for savings.

Or it could be the fact that the DN really does want to go green.

What do you think about this issue?

Who's to Pay?

2008-08-16T21:12:00.003-04:00

Who is to pay?, That is the question. The answer? Does anybody know?.
At the last Derry town council meeting under Councilors requests ( which comes at the very end of each meeting) We had three very interesting requests from three town councilors. It seems a little bit ironic that the three councilors should have three requests at the same town meeting.

Councilor Carney requested a "break out" cost analysis of the Ambulance Dept/Fire Dept

Councilor Fairbanks requested that an "outside firm" look into the fire dept to see if the dept is being run efficiently

Councilor Coyle requested that we hire an "outside firm" to look into the police morale claim.

The Carney request seems like it would be pretty much straight forward and could be done in house very easily however the last two requests have "outside firms" in their requests.

The real question becomes- Who's to pay for these studies? Seems to me that the taxpayers will be once again "on the hook" for these costs that have not been budgeted in any budget.

Earlier in the year, at budget time we councilors discussed the facts of next years budgets and what they may mean for next year as far as possible lay-offs or "stream lining depts". At that time, Town Administrator Steinhouse told councilors he would put something together in Oct/Nov for next year to see what the possibilities would be in regards to an upcoming tough budget. So why would we hire an outside group at this point in time? Should we not wait to see what the town may have in store in Oct/Nov's report? Hmmm, very interesting.....

The police Morale issue is also again up for discussion. The police union I would imagine, did not like Dr. Moody's findings and so we keep on hearing about this issue again and again. Now Councilor Coyle wants an "outside firm" to look into the issue.
Who's to pay for this one? If they don't like these findings, will we keep hearing about the same issue over and over. Why are we discussing this and trying to negotiate a contract at the same time? Seems the issue keeps popping up at negotiating time.Why is that?

Here's an idea! Maybe the Police Union can pay for an "outside firm" to check into morale issues. Lets first find out what the costs are going to be, second, lets decide if the taxpayers should be on the hook for these unexpected costs.

What do you think?

Breaking News

2008-08-11T19:57:00.002-04:00

Today at around 3PM a bicyclist crossing from Manning Street over onto Rollins St was hit and struck by a car. Reports had the bicyclist "knocked out" unconscious for over 10 minutes before Derry's Ambulance arrived at the scene. Between 4-5 Police cruisers were also on site after someone called "911" to report the accident.

An eye witness reported damage to the car with a parking light smashed.

The local news papers should have a report coming in their papers soon.

For many years, Residents in the direct neighborhood have let their town councilors know about the fear of something like this happening when you have a recreation area near-by.

To make matters worse, a double yellow line runs down Rollins and Lenox St that were painted about 3 weeks ago. Both these roads have never had these double yellow lines before and when asked about them, Public Works officials have told residents that the painting company had simply made a mistake and painted these lines on both roads.

Lets hope nobody else gets hurt when and if the new bike path (which will run parallel with the new Manning Street) gets completed. However if you speak to the people in the neighborhood, they say that this is just the start of many bike/car accidents to come.

Open Forum II

2008-08-09T19:45:00.002-04:00

Open Forum again! Since many want to discuss topics that are "off-topic" and The fact that Blogger is having a hard time with people posts.

What do you want to talk about Derry!

Who do you like for President of the United States and why?

Are you tired of all the rain we have had over the last two months or so!

Let us know how you feel on any topic.

The GMO works!

2008-08-03T10:00:00.002-04:00

Today's headlines in the UL today confirms what Derry's planners had planed about 10 years ago. With run away population growth in Derry in the mid 80's and early 90's and tax rates adjusting higher to accommodate this growth, something needed to get done to keep everything in a "manageable" manner.
Derry's population has DECREASED over the last 5 years. Down 455 people or -1.3% from years 2002-2007. ( second in loss only to Nashua )
While surrounding communities such as Hudson, Windham, Auburn and Londonderry ADD more people. Hudson added 1375, Windham added 1262,

It is interesting to note that the largest communities, Manch, Nashua,Portsmouth and Derry all lost population.

The articles go on to say that in some communities like Hudson feel that things could just explode over there, More Housing, More Roads, More Taxes, will be needed to keep up with service demands.

Our GMO has been instrumental in keeping our populations in check and it is finally paying off. Towns exploding, must now spend more in a bad economy. Tough choices ahead for those towns won't make life any easier there.

Another interesting note was that from 2000-2006 New Hampshire's 55-64 age group grew by 41% 65 plus rose 10% and 45-54 grew 18% and the biggest loses were 35-44 -6% and 25-34 was -3%. The article goes on to say Long term trends could have impacts on communities.

So, we have some mixed news in this area. The spenders who spend on roadways for less traffic or spending taxpayers dollars for a private group to build a bike path or to tax shift burden on others while giving breaks to some may looks good. Think of the long term affects that could affect our communities.
I mean I liked Santa when I was young, but there comes a time when reality needs to set in.

Prayers Needed!

2008-07-27T17:17:00.002-04:00

Our thoughts and Prayers for a local hero who was injured in Iraq serving his country's call to duty.

Derry's Joshua Caruso is being treated for burns in a Maryland hospital.

We wish Joshua a speedy recovery and hope he is home soon.

Open Forum!

2008-07-27T11:18:00.002-04:00

Time for an Open Forum. This is where you pick the topic to discuss.
I appreciate the readers who leave comments and want to talk about issues important to all.

Nadeau Settlement

2008-07-18T21:09:00.003-04:00

Anyone reading the NN this last week, looked at the headline article about the settlement of the ex-fire chief of the now defunct East Derry Fire Dist. At the time, The reporter did call me for comments, however I thought that the records were sealed. I was surprised to see comments form Councilors Carney and Coyle and Metts on the subject.
Since they have made their feeling known, I want to let the taxpayers of Derry know that I voted to NOT settle for anything less than 100% of what he owed. At the initial vote, their was one councilor who agreed with me that this more than anything was more of a principle issue and not a monetary one.
Although, some of Nadeaus old allies( on the council) tried to convince other councilors that we should go for less money.
After much talk about the issue and to see what money could be return 6 councilors voted to accept the small amount of money to get it off the table.

One Councilor said No WAY I want ALL the taxpayers money returned. ( give you 1 guess who.)

After all, What message do you want to send out to the outside world!

Too bad the taxpayers got robbed again!

Fresh off the Press!

2008-07-11T19:50:00.002-04:00

Hate to say I told you so, but I told you so.
The Manning Street issue is not over. I know alot of you are sick and tired about hearing the issue over the years however, at the last public hearing we had on the subject, I specifically asked whether or not the $80,000 was enough to do this wasteful road. The reason being it ( the dollar amount $80K) had been placed in the CIP for years.
We all know and have read stories about the escalating gas and oil prices right?
And we all know that Asphalt is made with oil right?
Ok now here is what happened.

The 80K project went out to bid

5 bids came in to pave this new road

Low Bid comes in at $124,400.

Almost 50 K more than budgeted.

You all know how I will vote especially if I thought 80K was a waste of taxpayers money

The question really is lets see what the taxpayers associations heroes on the council do with their votes

And then lets see the same association defend their approval votes to spend an additional 50K for a personal agenda!

Stay tuned! and watch your tax dollars being flushed!

Oh and by the way, on the agenda is the renaming of the Manning St Ext because we alread have another Manning St 50' away.

What name can you come up with for the new road?

I like Waste Rd. or how about Dumb Ass Lane!

You have a good name to Share for this road. I'd like to hear from you!

Report on taxpayer waste

2008-07-04T21:08:00.002-04:00

Is there something going on in town that you feel is a complete waste of taxpayer dollars and that you would like to share with the rest of us? let other blog readers read what you deem to be a big taxpayers waste of money.

In these tough times, we all know how hard it is to make ends meet and it looks like it will become even tougher in the next few months. Lets enjoy the fact that summer is here ( although, the everyday rain and storm thing is getting crazy) and winter will no doubt be challenging for most.

Also reports on a tough 2010 town budget has possible major cutbacks on the horizon. We (the town of Derry) will need to make sure we get the "biggest bang" for every dollar.

Understanding that the town will never be perfect. I want to hear from you, what you feel is the biggest waste of taxpayers dollars and please be specific in detail.

It can be something very small or something very obvious. And lets see what peoples views are on this subject.

Maybe, we can see if we can save us some money in these upcoming rough times.

Big Boost Coming

2008-07-04T09:00:00.002-04:00

By now you may of read in local news that Tupelo Music Hall is moving to Derry. What this means to not only Derry but specifically the Downtown is something most can't fully appreciate.
Tupelo being moved to a 10,000 sq ft music hall will not only bring better music venues it will bring in Out of towners to the area to shop & eat and spend money right here in Derry. I also heard rumors of a possible hotel that may want to come in. This is great news for Derry. Is it the magic pill that so many critics of Derry looking for? No, however it will be a positive contribution no doubt.
Tupelo owners will also be interested in building a retail building as well so I would imagine you may see some additional businesses coming in as well that would compliment Tupelo.
Now we need to get more interested businesses locating in the downtown area by letting them know that more pedestrian traffic will be coming there way.
We should also be hearing back from the Study group who recently did a downtown study for us soon.

Grade your current council

2008-06-27T20:25:00.002-04:00

I have done this in the past and will do it again.
Time to rate the current council. We have had the new council seating as of March and we have come to the first quarter.

Grade this current council!

Entitlements gone wild?

2008-06-26T12:20:00.003-04:00

I hate to say it but I will. I told you so! The derry taxpayers ( most of us anyway) are going to take it in the pocketbook again. This time its the entitlement program which is called the Elderly Tax Exemption. Now before we get started I want to say this:

I am not opposed to this program! When its used in its proper manner it is a help to struggling seniors who because of financial hardship can not pay taxes and would therefore lose their home.
In fact, I have supported this program here and in public radio.

However, the last round of elderly exemptions which I was the ONLY councilor to vote against because I saw this as an attempt by the DTA ( Derry Taxpayers Assoc) led by Doug Newell as simply a rouse to gain members in a time when the DTA is struggling politically.

The DTA sent out "surveys" to the seniors in our town to gauge their opinions. ( which interestingly enough the number one response from that survey coming back from those seniors was that taxes would be lower for ALL residents and not just them.)

Message to Doug! They want taxes lower for all not for a select few.

It is interesting to note that these seniors where also given an envelope and asked to contribute money to join the ADT. How convenient!

Now, you will hear it here first folks. The elderly exemptions exceeded the top range for exemption changes that were provided to the Council and the public. Which means it is costing all the rest of the taxpayers not getting exemptions more than the town had planned.

Remember, that when Doug and I debated each other that I said that the exemptions that some get will be made up by the rest of the taxpayers is true. And some say it's only a small amount and will not make a difference. Well I'm here to say that the time to increase exemptions is not when the rest of us are struggling with food costs, heating costs and the economy struggling.
Only when times are good should this be considered and the council that voted this in certainly did not care enough about this effecting you and I.

Here are numbers to look at:

Increase in 2008 exemptions granted +75 ( planned for a lot less)
Increase in 2008 valuation exempted + 9,130,338 ( that's nine mill that we others have to make up)

Total exempted granted in 2007: 162
Total exempted granted in 2008: 237

Total dollar amount granted in 2007 : $18,247,116
Total dollar amount granted in 2008: $27,377,454

Folks, the even more bad news is that they used the same tax rate of 22.05 to get these numbers because they do not set the rate until fall. We all know that it will be even more bad news for the majority of taxpayers in town and that these numbers are just the tip of the iceberg.

Ah but Doug Newell and ADT said they want to compete for more people so that they can take this exemptions.

I bet he does! Additional members for the ADT will finally get Mr. Newell elected.

1st in the nation

2008-06-01T19:06:00.002-04:00

A well round of applause is in order for the monument committee whom have established Derry as the first in the nation to honor the Iraq and Afghanistan vets with a beautiful monument.
I'm told that it was about a year in the half in the making and the wait was well worth it.

It was a very moving ceremony as we honored all vets and especially our local vets from different era's and different wars. The very first honoree was our very own town treasure Roy Feineuir. Roy fought in WWII and as he was introduced and was there representing all of WWII vets, the crowd had clapped and cheered and there was Roy waving to the crowd. I have had the pleasure to personally know Roy and also Bernie R whom is a vet as well who help put the whole day together. Great job gentlemen.

As the introduction from the Korean war, the Vietnam conflict and the Persian gulf conflicts were in order all the vets stood arm in arm as a band of brothers. This was a moving moment!

We had the Boys scouts lay out the wreaths, we had Pinkerton ROTC help out as well.

We had Senator Sununu, Congresswomen Shea, Senator Letorneau, and Council Chairman Metts.
The Governor gave a brief speech and awarded a proclamation to the town.

What a great day to say thanks to our Vets!!

Tax Cap Mania spreading!

2008-05-18T21:23:00.003-04:00

What do Franklin, Nashua, Dover and Derry have in common? Answer: A tax cap! And now a movement is picking up some steam to bring this tax cap to other communities. Derry has had its cap for awhile now and the debates continue on its effectiveness.

Our tax cap only effects the town side of your tax bill. Presently representing $7.50 of our $22.05 over all tax rate.

The tax rate consists of town side, school side, state, and county taxes. Only the town side is held under a tax cap which is tied into the CPI " consumer price index". Over the years, the average has been around 3% and meaning town side taxes may only increase by that CPI index or roughly 3% year.

Londonderry is now looking at bring one to their town and will look for a ballot question to ask its residents if they would install one in their town. Plenty of discussion to go around on pro's and cons.

Last week, I was asked to speak on New Hampshire Public Radio's Exchange program with Laura Noy on a live radio program on the subject.

If you would like to hear this program and my views on it here is a link to get there

http://www.nhpr.org/node/15988
***note Go to the listen icon on top and hit either window media or mp3 to listen to show*****

After listening to this debate , let me hear what you think about tax caps!!!

Legal Advise not heard costs $$$

2008-05-08T13:13:00.003-04:00

Lets see if we can all follow some logic here for a moment. The Town of Derry has its own legal council who have been with this town for many years and with that comes a working knowledge and history which makes it a little bit easier than if we had to start with a new legal council for legal issues. Would you all agree?

Many times the issue comes up on the amount of dollars spent on legal issues and opinions and many times it comes up at the most political of times. Agree? The last two years especially.

Now when the town council decided to finally put to rest the McKinley/ Lake shore rd issue behind us- We find out that it will cost the taxpayers of this town many dollars. I am going to put behind the argument of whether or not it IS or ISN'T a public or private rd for now. The fact is that until last month, the town had these roads as private roads. No denying this fact.

The residents of this road to their credit came in front of this council for 2 years with their beliefs and opinions in hand and made their case that if they did not get their roads made public that a lawsuit would soon follow.

At last months meeting, when the vote came up to accept these roads as public, a question came up from new councilor Wetherbee. He asked legal council if we were approving the roads "as is" or according to the plot plan that was done long ago. The answer from Legal council? Plot plan according to RSA's. What happened? Four councilors voted to go against the advise of Legal council and voted as is.
The problem? Well I can tell you as the only councilor who has planning experience and as a realtor understand the ramifications of not heeding legal opinion and seeing first hand ( as all the councilors did as well) see the plot plan road was a lot longer than what actually is there. ( Meaning property owners have now officially encroached on town road). BIG BIG PROBLEM!

And now legal council ( knowing what a nightmare this could create) renders an opinion that the vote should be rescinded, then a survey should be done, then vote the right way to accept.
Did the councilors listen to legal council? Only three did. The other four voted to keep the things the way they are and NOT LISTEN TO LEGAL COUNCIL.

SO, today we paid for the legal councils first opinion, then because of a mistake of voting the first time ( Admitted by one of the councilors in public meeting) a second legal opinion to rescind cost the taxpayers and to add insult to injury, do not listen again and the topper of it all
Now the taxpayers will need to foot the $9000 bill to straighten out the survey.

The problem I brought up. It sets a bad precedent which will ultimately cost the taxpayers more money. The right way to do it you ask?

Wait until a survey was done on the road ( at a cost to the residents on that road. They were going to sue anyway remember. use that money to do the right thing) then come to vote on acceptance. It would of cost the taxpayers a hell of lot less money doing things the right way.
Cu dos to Councilor Wetherbee for catching on to the real issue early on. To bad the rest of the councilors did not listen.

Open Forum

2008-05-01T07:37:00.002-04:00

What issue(s) are on your mind? With the budgets all finished for this year. What are those issues that need to be addressed or brought up for discussion?

We want to hear from you. SO look for the response box below and tell us your thoughts.

Small town side increase

2008-04-27T10:31:00.002-04:00

Another budget year mostly completed and it looks like town side taxes will be increased by .16 cents begining in July 09 budget.
Councilors spent the last two weeks reviewing the 09 budget line by line and came out with a budget that did not spend up to the tax cap. The allowed tax increase via town tax cap which is deterimed by the prevuious years CPI index would of allowed a .21 cents increase ( my previous post made .23 cents was incorrect) however the sitting councilors found savings of about $153,000 from the Administrators recommendations.

Items cut were: a vacant librarian position (Derry public Library)

$8000 in Health Dept's personnel line

A part time custodian position from Public works ( Funding of position)

And we had savings from insurance that helped lower the numbers.

Most important is that the majority of councilors allowed the police chief to hire two officers ( which were previuosly flagged for elimination or/ combo 1/2 elim with funding) However we recognized the fact that these are not 2 new positions but replaced postions with retiring officers.

Another good job by this council on a good budget process.
What do you think about budget process??? Share your thoughts!

Here's your chance!

2008-04-19T08:22:00.002-04:00

Next Tuesday night at 7pm is your chance to come to the public hearing on the towns budget. Its usually not that well attended in prior years and we always hear of complaints during the year about our taxes.

Keep in mind that we councilors only control the towns side of taxes which at this time represents $7.50 of your $22.05 per 1000 tax bills.

1 out of every 3 dollars you send in for property taxes goes to town side services such as police protection, fire protection, snow plowing and grounds maintenance, capital projects, recreation.
library's ( and I'm sure I'm leaving something off this list)
Now is the time to come to Tues nights meeting 4/22 at town hall to speak your mind!
Hope to see many faces at this meeting!!!

Twenty three cents

2008-04-13T08:37:00.002-04:00

Twenty three cents is the amount allowable under our tax cap here in Derry on town side budget items. The tax cap which is determined by the previous years CPI index this year came in at 2.8%. Meaning that town side spending this year has a maximum allowed increase of .23 cents.
What this tax cap does is to keep town side taxes from run away spending and forces the councilors, dept heads and administrator to prioritize projects. We cannot do everything all at once.
Over the last few years, with health care increases in the double digits percentage wise, cost of living increases, step raises and retirement costs going up every year- the town is put into a corner eventually by pitting employee costs vs infrastructure improvements and this is where councilors jobs get tougher each year. However, because at some point the allowable increases on future budgets will "force" the hand of the town to make serious employee cuts ( if we don't bring in more tax revenues from our depts and from economic development the matter can be worse). It is thought that next years "2010" budget we will begin to see these issues.
Some people are not worried about possible lay-off or reduction in staff and some believe it will benefit the community. I look at it this way. You will still see increases in the town side budget however you will be getting "less bang for your dollar". What do I mean by this? Less workers will have to do more work for the same coverage. You say whats wrong with that? Overtime budgets! Don't they get trimmed back too. Eventually yes! and then what? Services will begin to be effected in a negative way.
Some are pointing the finger at this council to not spend an additional penny of the 23 allowed. You do the math. 23 Million dollar budget with no increase this year however we pay the increases in health care, COLA's gasoline, oil and all other costs that have gone up in price and then next year the CPI will more than likely be under 3%. You can see this would create an even more dramatic cutting of personnel and services.
The tax cap was created to be a fixed budget to work with each year. It forces us to make priority decisions. hard decisions which is a good thing
However, we can't be irresponsible. Not this does not mean we need to increase right up to the cap however the folks that think not spending an additional penny should look at the facts a little bit harder.

Back to the budget drawing boards

2008-04-09T19:20:00.002-04:00

Budget time started as I returned from my vacation ( 90's all week and sunny) returning to Boston weather at 38 degrees was a shock to old system.

I decided to get an update as to the council meeting I missed and the first budget meeting. I spoke to only a few people so far and they tell me it has been quite an interesting meeting. The N.N. reported that there were a few eyebrows raised when council choose board members this time around. You remember that I tried to re-shedule that meeting so that I as a sitting councilor would have a say, however the rest of the council choose to keep it that day without me being present.
In the days when I was first elected, it was protocol to give full membership to an alternate member who showed that they "paid their dues" and came to each meeting, participated, and went to educational classes to learn the process. Sadly, today we have a political way of picking regular members with no or little expertise and knowledge and this sets a very bad message to the very businesses that will come to town and get "cherry picked" when certain groups either like a business or not.
Very very dangerous for the town of Derry! Mark my words here and now. The taxpayers will pay dearly. I hope someone will prove me wrong, but time will tell. And what message does this send to the very people who sacrifice time and their own money learning these new laws to learn that they could be gone the next time around because councilors consider them "friendly" or "unfriendly"- sad but true!

Now budgets- My understanding right now is that KC wants $75,000 cut from the personnel line of the police budget. He says that next year they will have to lay-off anyways. If this is true and I'll have to verify, Then I want to make this statement. Cutting Police officers when we have not hired any new additional officers in 4 years and when the City of Manchester is hiring 25-30 police officers is wrong! These police officers in my book are far to important for our safety and well being and quite frankly, I would cut from other parts of a budget and my safety personnel are the very last people to get cut.
Remember, we must ask ourselves these questions. Is it a need or a want.
we have far to many "wants" in this town and not a lot of "needs" or must haves- policeman and women are definite needs, especially in the 4Th largest community in New Hampshire.
What are your thoughts

Budget times 09

2008-03-28T11:29:00.004-04:00

Getting ready to kick-off our marathon budget meetings in April. This is where the 7 councilors will collectively shape an already tough budget for 09 which takes effect on July 1. With big numbers to balance, I'm sure the council will be up to the challenge to balance the books in a fiscally responsible way.

For people who are newly interested in town budget, The town MUST live with-in a tax cap.
The tax cap is determined by the CPI index from the previous year. This is mandated by the town's charter. This prevents run away spending and forces the 7 town councilors to prioritize budget items year in and year out.

The town's budget is about 80% personnel driven. and so one can see the challenge councilors have when health care costs increase yearly, raises and COLA's typically increase yearly as well.
Items such as fuel, heating costs are rising at such a high percentage increase that one can appreciate that a budget held at a 2.5-3.3% overall increase allowed per tax cap- the budget gets tougher and tougher to make ends meet.

This year, I made a motion to have a full, comprehensive budget book ( the same as a councilor would get) made public and at town hall for taxpayers to see ALL THE DETAILS. and not a condensed version. This is an opportunity for the taxpayers of Derry to see where your money is going and to ask questions of your councilors about spending priorities. So with that said...

Let the budgets begin..
Update: The budget book will be at the Town Clerks office for public viewing. Starting 3/31, It will be there for public viewing.

Time to Unite!

2008-03-26T12:46:00.002-04:00

We all have read about the new school proposal at the state house and how Derry stands to lose over 7.5 Million in state aid next year. This would have to be made up from local taxes if this were to stand. Its time Derry residents get together as the 4th largest community in New Hampshire and say to the state legislators that This IS UNACCEPTABLE!

a kind blog reader has started a petition- take a minute to get on and sign this today!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/petition/596081181

Don't wait- It could cost you if you do!

20,000

2008-03-19T18:31:00.003-04:00

Wanted to thank the visitors that read this blog and for your comments.

We reached a small milestone with our 20,000th visit today.

Averaging over 110 hits a day and from all over New Hampshire.

Thanks again for making Derry NH Politics blog a success!

Benson, Wetherbee Elected!

2008-03-12T11:04:00.003-04:00

Congrats to Brad Benson and Neil Wetherbee for their wins for town councilors!
Congrats to Mark Grabowski and Wendy Smith for their wins on the School Board!

This was a telling election and I wish to thank all those that participated in the process.
I will post numbers as I get them.

The 4A question was basically a wash. With 2516 people voting. The No vote beat the Yes vote by 100 votes. This tells me it was very close. Not a mandate at all. ( keep in mind this was also a non-binding initiative). More discussion will follow I'm sure.

To the 2516 out of 19,000 registered voters who turned out-- A BIG THANK YOU FOR CARING!!!

Time to Vote!

2008-03-10T15:58:00.003-04:00

Derry, Now is the time when you have the power of the ballot to make sure your voice is heard.
You have had a chance to see what the future politicians of our town want for the future. Who will best represent YOUR views on the council?

Remember this: It is a privilege given all of us. Many sacrifices have come for our right to vote and we must never forget those who sacrificed for us.

Voting will take less than 5 minutes of your time.

Lets surprise everyone and have a record turn-out.

Voting will be from 7am-8pm Tues March 11th

Dist 1 & 4 Vote at Hood Memorial School

Dist 2 & 3 Vote at West Running Brook school.

Update: As of 1pm we have very light turn-out. 700 votes combined. *** If you have not voted yet. Please make sure you vote before 8pm.

Ballot Question 4A

2008-03-07T12:45:00.002-05:00

Readers of this blog take notice! Do NOT let Tom Cardon and Doug Newell bombard you with "snippets" of sound bites that try to scare you into thinking that the upcoming 4A question on this years ballot has ANYTHING to do with the town having to spend more money on 4A. Over the last few months we hear from these two gentlemen that by voting Yes on this question, it will mean we will have to spend 10,20,30 Million dollars more and it will come from Derry. The facts are here. In this blog.

#1) The present council have all agreed by vote that the town of Derry will not spend any more money and in fact the money that was spent on the EIS study will be deducted from the 5Mil that is allotted ( in paper only) Period!

#2) Read the question carefully please and separate these two facts. If no more money is being spent and we get state and federal funds to complete this project, would you vote YES?
Taking out the money issue, Do you support economic development, Less traffic impacts, Lower taxes? This is how you should approach this question. Don't let the ADT, Doug Newell and Tom Cardon use scare tactics to confuse you.

#3) I will not use this persons name however if you get to see a re-run of the last council meeting you will see someone with immense knowledge of the subject. Her work has been done for many years up in concord and throughout the state IN FAVOR OF 4A. I'll call her R.R for this blog. Many of the taxpayers of Derry know her well. She is honest in the fact that some on the other side may get mad however she knows of their distortions and has come to speak on those.
R.R is a supporter of the project with NO more money being spent from Derry taxpayers.
Listen to someone who tells it without distortion.

And then today the Union Leader has this editorial in today's paper on the subject:

Exit 4A gets an OK
A challenging task endorsed

It is no surprise that a special panel of the executive council this week unanimously endorsed the creation of 4A in Derry. The exit's positives outweigh its negatives by a significant margin. The question is, how too fund it? It speaks well of the Derry and Londonderry officials that they did not throw up their hands and say "oh well" when the exit was removed from the 10year highway plan last year. They deserve credit for fighting for this project,which would be a significant accelerate for growth in both towns. Seeing this project through will take a great deal of toil and creativity. Completing the exit without turning to the state for money and eminent domain acquisitions is an immense challenge, but one worth taking on. If enough private and federal resource are secured, not only will a big setback be turned into a success, but it could be a model for other communities to follow. Of course, it makes sense to try to get the exit included in the I-93 expansion instead of tacking it on afterward. So in addition to dealing with the existing challenges, town officials have to race against the clock as well.
Exit 4A would bring industry, commerce, jobs, and an expanded tax base to Derry and Londonderry. It also would relieve some existing traffic congestion. Its a shame the project was cut from the highway plan. But it is encouraging that the towns are pursuing it anyway, despite the enormous challenges. That spirit is too often lacking in local government.

***reprinted with permission from the Union Leader************************

There you have it. Separate the facts from the rhetoric and Vote YES for economic development. Vote Yes for Lower Taxes. Vote Yes for less traffic impacts in the downtown
Please Vote Yes on 4A

Derry NH Politics Endorsements

2008-03-05T20:56:00.002-05:00

Hope everyone has had a chance to see the debates on C17 on Mon Evening.

We have two councilor seats to be filled

An At Large Councilor and Dist #3 councilor

For At Large Councilor my choice is Brad Benson. Brad has lived his whole life in Derry and runs his family business of 97 years in Derry. He is very active and has contributed to many organizations in the community. His business savy will be a major plus come budget time. Brad truly wants Derry to be the best it can be and it shows. Please vote with me for Brad Benson

Dist # 3 My choice is Neil Wetherbee. I have only known Neil for a few years but I can tell you Neil is a person who will get the job done. He has taken on co-chairing Community for a better Derry who were instrumental in saving the MET. He also was a member of the Conservation Commission and is very active in his community. Neil not only lives in Derry but works here as well.

Please join me in voting for Benson & Wetherbee Town Council.

Walmart Decides to back out!

2008-03-03T15:29:00.002-05:00

Just received word that Walmart's Super Center plans have just been withdrawn. In a press release today, Walmart said the costs were more than they anticipated and they made the decision to withdraw their plans.
This leaves us with more bad news on the economic development front. The anticipated other businesses that would of come had the super center been built would of help us out in our residential/commercial mix of real estate we now have.
Where this leaves the Manchester Road improvements and the bonding that was approved for this roadway will be the next discussion councilors will be talking about.
Seems like the news keeps getting worse in the town of Derry
Unless of course, you were one of the opponents of the project. Then you should be happy I guess.
Question is now. How are we creating an environment that is positive for economic development?

Weaker Dollar brings in less town revenue.

2008-02-28T22:39:00.004-05:00

For the last 6 mos or so we have all read the stories of a possible upcoming recession. In fact, the fed reserve has drop interest rates the last two times they had met. A lower interest rate for what banks are charged does not necessarily mean lower mortgage rates. Those rates are tied into our 10 year bond markets. A weaker dollar means the cost of everyday items such as food, gas, oil are all increasing in price. ( not a good thing). The flip side is more exports are being sold overseas and are opening up new markets for countries that can now afford US products.
But how does this effect the town of Derry?
Well, our investments that the town has are tied into "low risk" investments. These investments are such as a bank CD rate gets lower and lower each time the feds cut the rates.
The interest these investments make are used as "revenues" for upcoming budgets and well as you can probably figure out by now is the fact that there will be a short fall of revenue coming up in this years 09 budget.
From what I'm hearing now, it could be as much as $200k shortfall.
This is a far cry from the estimated $4k shortfall that has been anticipated.
The big question will be- What gets cut this year? Stay tuned and ask the candidates running for Council what they would cut to make up this $200k difference and lets see if they give you an answer you like.
I also understand that the 2010 budget will have an even bigger impact. And this information, coupled with the tax cap basically spells some trouble upcoming.
Without new revenues coming into town in the form of businesses. It looks like a very tough road for the town of Derry. Problem is.. we have two short years to find a solution.
Not an easy task for new councilors I may add.... Heck, not easy for experienced councilors either.
Update: Just found out that it will be $700K short after next year! Yet be prepared for higher taxes and less services! Will be interesting to see how things progress from here!

Highest Foreclouser Rate

2008-02-25T21:51:00.003-05:00

It has been reported that Derry has the highest foreclosed rate in New Hampshire. Londonderry and Merrimack are not that far back in comparison.
As the real estate market begins to correct itself, it is no happy news to some as they are looking at possible foreclosure on their homes in the next 3-6 mos. There is help for many however most just don't know where to begin to look for help. Some banks are working with people in trying to keep their homes. People that need some assistance should call their mortgage lenders and ask if they could skip a couple of monthly payments and/or tack those extra payments onto the end of their loans. ( it has helped some people stay in their homes)
On the flip side of things, there are many good deals for buyers who may want to purchase a " bank Owned home today. With over 190 homes on the market as of this post, which reflect a 10 months supply, there are good deals to be found!
Short Sales are homes that have not been foreclosed on yet however the banks give the homeowners who must sell a chance to sell at a reduced price and will waive the difference in what is owed and what the new buyer will pay.
Another great way to buy a new home for a great price.
It looks like the next 6 mos should bring the most foreclousers into the market. After that lets hope for a quick real estate recovery.

Where there is smoke- there is Fire!

2008-02-22T15:59:00.003-05:00

Be careful what you read. You may interpret it the wrong way. Many authors want to "steer" you into thinking one way or another and when small snippets of information are left for someone not knowing the issues in depth as others do then sometimes people tend to jump to conclusions.

The Fire fighters contract that was recently turned down by a 4-3 vote last week has made top news in local papers. Some councilors are giving their reasons in more detail to the papers than others.
Lets look at some information from my standpoint.
#1) The council in the beginning of last year met with town administration to set some target perimeters for all the contracts including Fire. Understanding that the tax cap is very tight, we set some goals that the council could live with in a new contract and then charged the administration to negotiate with the Unions
#2) After many many months with Town and Fire Union talking, they come to agreement with the perimeters that we had requested. It was at that time that Administration came back to council to say that they had met our council targets and that Fire was looking into a 2 year contract.
#3) For some councilors to voice "new concerns" after the fact is "unfair at best" and disingenuous at the worst. The concerns that a certain councilor who ran to the Derry News in today's paper gave his reasons and he thinks the fireman in Derry have to many "perks" such as 10 weeks vacation time. Also that they only contribute 15% to health care when Londonderry pays 20% and that fireman hired before 2005 have a "lifetime" guarantee.
However, Councilors should of spelled this out at the very beginning of the talks,If this was a big issue now, why was it not then? We should not wait until the two sides have come to terms and then say they are not satisfied.
Now, please understand a couple of things here. This councilor wants all to think that these issues he doesn't like are issues that have never been discussed in prior contracts and that he is unsatisfied with the contract as presently offered. The fact of the matter is that these issues have already been in previous contracts many years ago. ( Don't get me wrong here, I think our Firemen and Women make a great wage and have great benefits) No doubt.
But lets look at this for a minute, because the issue Councilor Coyle brings up have been in older contracts, with or without a new contract, they still get their 10 weeks vacation, they still pay less in health care contributions than Londonderry.( actually the new contract makes them contribute more than without a contract).
The fact of the matter is moving forward into the future, contracts will have to be different then they are today. The tax cap will make these issues that way. But as we move forward, its the progress we make toward that day matters. You just can't change every aspect of a contract overnight. There has to be compromise and understanding. But to change the terms AFTER you set the guidelines and come to agreement is not the way to handle town matters. To make it sound different in the media is mis-leading.
I want to hear from you. What are your thoughts.

Life in the Downtown

2008-02-17T16:20:00.002-05:00

Is it me or am I seeing some hustle bustle in the downtown lately. The streets seemed to be filled with business friendly patrons and thats a good sign! I have also gotten some of the old complaints about parking spaces in the downtown again.
Our new business development director stated it well when Beth said "this is a good problem to have" and implying that lots of cars are better than no cars and I would have to agree.
On Valentines day, my wife and I were looking for a place to dine and driving downtown we found that the resteraunts were packed. Steak house...packed Sabitino's packed and there was something going on at the Adams Opera House because cars were in every spot there was. None to be found. And then last night.. I wanted to take my wife out to eat and then to a 8 oclock movie. Again everything in the downtown was packed. Ahh but I found a spot when someone just left and into the steak house we went.
"Dinner for two" the host asked
"yes" we replied
"whats the wait time" we asked
"about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours" she said.
Just my luck, we would never make the movies and so off we went
Twice now I have tried to eat in the downtown and twice turned away. A little upset but then I stopped to look at people walking, shopping and using the downtown.
At this pace, we should see more businesses wanting to come in and thats a wonderful thing!
This folks is how the downtown will cahnge for the better.
Let the market do its thing! And its nice to see some positive economic vibes don't you agree.
After all I'm sick and tired about reading all the negative news!

Fresh Start

2008-02-06T16:44:00.000-05:00

I would like to take this blog in a more information sharing and educational direction. I will also be including some video bloging of topics and views of the important issues that we all talk about at home at the dinner tables or out at the coffee shops each day. I would like to keep it from attacking other positions as much as possible and use it as a tool to get more information out to people at their lesiure.

I am asking for topics that people are interested in most. Any ideas?

I have also added a link to the Derry Rail Trails website. There you will find timely information about their plans to bring this exciting project to Derry. And please consider a donation as they are trying to use the least amount of taxpayers money as possible.

If anyone else has a link they want displayed-Just let me know.

Is the local press bias?

2008-01-27T19:56:00.000-05:00

How does one know when election time is near? Simple, read your local newspapers and look to see the issues being created or they come back from the dead all in time for elections.
Lets see, First we have an elderly exemption issue coming up ( never before budget season until this year) and now the 4A issue sprouts up again. Of course, I understand that groups want to align themselves with either supporting or not supporting these issues and I also understand the timing of getting these issues to the media.
The question is, are these media outlets being bias? Some would believe so. Why would one think so? Some have said just pick up any paper today and we see Councilor Coyle working his spin camp almost on a daily basis. Doug Newel has his own DN column and the Vegas odds have him running for Dist #3 Council seat ( he won't declare until the last minute so he can keep his column as long as possible)
What did I see that could persuade me to think some bias is taking place?
Lets start here. 1) Councilor Coyle, Fairbanks & Carney along with the ADT promote their elderly exemptions via a town ordinance.2) Then they ask for a public hearing which was granted and asked for the town to" crunch the numbers" to see how this exemption would affect the budgets.
3) I then went on this blog as well as a guest editorial in a local paper to say that this would devastate the town and its budget and exposed it for what it was" a political ploy"4) At the public hearing the experts in a letter said that the proposal would in fact be devastating and could do some tax shifting onto others. 5) because councilors had this report the Friday before the Tues meeting, Councilor Coyle had already a printed new "water down" version of the elderly exemptions.
Question: What was reported by the Press? Just the facts that Coyle had a newer version of the proposal and Not the bigger story of
Why didn't the ADT, Coyle Carney and Fairbanks get the numbers BEFORE they proposed this???? Why was not the fact that Coyle now knew it would kill the town and so he hurried to water it down and hoped nobody would see this as I did.
All three papers were told of this and all were there that evening and NOBODY question Coyle on this. Why?
Also the facts remain the same- he proposes the watered down version and Still doesn't see how the new numbers will affect the budget ( however we get closer to election time and no body's caught on yet.)
The media needs to do a better job in their journalistic writings.
That's the beauty of the blog. Nobody can slant your words or edit content about the issue from another viewpoint.
What are your thoughts? Is the local media bias to certain parties?

Where's the Beef?

2008-01-16T11:29:00.000-05:00

First meeting in January for the town council and we had a scheduled short meeting on the agenda. First I would like to extend a congratulations to Battalion Chief Mike Gagnon of the Derry Fire Dept for receiving his CFOD designation.
The CFOD Program was created to recognize fire officers who demonstrate a consistent level of excellence and achievement during their careers.
Great Job Mike!!
Also I would welcome two new members of our fire dept. These positions are not additional but replace retired members.
Welcome to our two new fire dept members.

Lets now jump into the main topic from last night- The elderly exemption proposal that the ADT and Coyle, Fairbanks and Carney had proposed and the one that I have written about in this blog and in editorial pages and newspaper reports. Most know where I stand on this issue and on their proposal.
After a report from our CFO Frank Childs and Tax Assessor David Gomez on the ramification of ADT & Coyle Fairbanks Carney proposal, we all learn that this plan would be a disaster for the town. In fact, Councilors received this report last Friday and interestedly enough, Councilor Coyle had a revised copy ready to go at our meeting last night. Scaling down the numbers in all three categories, income, assets and exemption value.
In the report we find that I was correct in that a tax shift and/or budget cuts would be needed to fund their exemption proposal and that neither ADT nor the three councilors were interested in showing us HOW they were going to pay for their new exemptions. Instead we get a watered down version and STILL NO word as to how they will get the budget to reflex these "benefits"
With the newest version of their proposal it still needs to be said "WHERES THE BEEF".

Lets look at the ADT's PowerPoint assumptions and then ask some questions.

ADT assumes that every senior 65+ or over own a 3 bedroom $300k home in Derry

Fact: Not every senior has a 300K 3 bedroom home in Derry! Many have 2 bedroom condos! or live in smaller/older homes. Older homes are generally 1000-1400 Sq ft. These house are not all suited for larger families.

ADT assumes that $500 million dollars in new commercial development is needed.

Where does this number come from? It simply tries to compare which large NH communities?
Are they trying to compare us with CITIES??? Manchester? Nashua? or border towns such as SALEM?
and what is their stated tax rate goal? Is it $20/1000, 18, 16, 12? Lets remember that the town side tax rate is $7.50/1000 so how much of this do they want to reduce? They don't say do they!

ADT assumes that seniors sell their homes to families with children and the children use the schools system and are a tax negative to the town.

While some of their statements may be true. Lets look at the facts: ADT says its a problem and that we need to keep seniors in their homes and ATTRACT other seniors to move into Derry.
Does the school enrollment figures show an influx of children coming into the schools system? NO in fact it is less children coming in. Does the census tell us Derry's population growth is growing? NO in fact it is shrinking, we lost population since 2000. SO where is the problem the ADT says we have?????

It was again interesting to know that Councilor Coyle, after seeing the true damage that could be done- quickly revised down the numbers proposed. And that the newspapers have not reported this fact but choose to say it is simply a revision.

Problem is that even with the revision that I see, they will still need to either tax shift to others or cut around 100-125K from this upcoming budget. The problem still remains only the numbers changed to protect this bad campaign.

Even Mr. Dimmock while trying to justify the campain and actually brought out a potential problem with it by saying that what if you get their proposed exemptions and then brought grandchildren to live in the house while collecting this exemption. Well there you go, not only are you tax shifting to others, you would be subsidizing the childerens education costs.

Double Whammy ! or how about this scenrio. Senior gets ADT exemptions with no assets in bank. Sells the 3 bedroom home for 300K- buys a condo and puts down 100K and finaces the rest/ banks the 200K profit and still gets the generous exemption BUT guess what that 3 bedroom house may sell to a family with three kids and then where is the savings under their plan.
Assuming certain scenerios to get certain results is dangerous planning and this is what is being proposed. There are many scenrios that don't work for the taxpayer here and who's to say they know different. Pleeeeaaasssee!

Proposal will be costly!

2008-01-11T17:18:00.000-05:00

This just in.... The proposed elderly exemption increases that the ADT and Councilors Coyle, Fairbanks and Carney have put their names on will cost the town dearly. Estimates that are being provided are in the range of upwards of over $425,000. And with the projected budget for FY 09 coming in with "level funding" for a third straight year, budgets projections have come in with a negative -$4000 without the proposal.
To make up another 1/2 million dollars? Where do they think that will be coming from? Either they ( Coyle, Fairbanks and Carney) come up with "cutting other parts of the budget" to offset this amount or maybe they want the rest of the town to pay an additional .20/.25 cents per 1000 of value of ones home IN ADDITION to what ever increase would of been approved without the proposal.
Like I said earlier folks, hold on to your wallets or be prepared to go without such services as road maintenance, recreation could be cut, maybe police and fire positions will get eliminated OR...
as stated in the findings, they opt for both tax shifting and eliminating funds from a level funded budget.
The report also states that with home values possibly going down. ( which i can tell you they have being in the business)- That the Coyle Fairbanks and Carney AND ADT proposal may have a very bad effect on the town.
Don't fall for it folks-It will not be pretty- And I don't want to be the one who says I told you so a few years down the road. Its to get seats on the council and its obvious to see.
Alas, maybe we can ride bikes down the paved path for another 400K?
Oh my! please please focus in on what they are proposing and the damage that will come with it.

What a day for Election Day

2008-01-08T13:33:00.000-05:00

The weather couldn't be any better for today's presidential primary election! 50-55 degrees and lots of voters turning out.
Derry voters have had a history of bring out the most registered voters out on presidential primary days and it will be interesting to see if we can keep the streak going.
At 7am this morning there were cars trying to find parking spaces at Hood school ( the voting place for Districts #1 and #4. People were coming up to vote all morning long.
At about 11 am, there were so many news media people from all over waiting to catch a glimpse of Mitt Romney. Mitt and wife Ann came up to greet voters at Hood and he shook hands and took pictures with many well wishers.
Hillary Clinton, I was told was in town earlier in the morning as many got caught in some traffic with her entourage on the Derry roadways.
All and all we shall learn who New Hampshire winners and non-winners will be but let it be known that the real winners will be the new Hampshire residents.
If you have not seen one candidate in person yet, then you don't get out often. And if you were not bombarded with phone calls from the campaigns or mailed literature on a daily basis then you must be living somewhere else.
It will be good getting back to normal soon as well. However it's a shame we can't get more turnout for local elections come March.
Maybe we will have nice weather then as well. We will see!
Anyone with any interesting primary stories, please share your story right here!

Who's right and Who's wrong.

2008-01-01T12:52:00.000-05:00

It's been the position of the Derry Patrolman's Union that there is a serious issue with police moral and that the administration is "uncaring" about its officers so much so that they attribute 8 officers of leaving the department because of the horrific working situation that they must endure in the department. We see the articles in the newspapers of the campaign to get someones attention to their issues. On their website http://www.derrypoliceunion.com
you will see the plea for an independent study of moral in the dept. They do not accept the findings of previous town administrator John Moody when he did a study of police morale last year.
Union president Micheal Houle has even come up to the town council and stated that he feels there is a dis-connect from the police administration and has said in his examples that nobody came to see the officer that was hit by a car and was in a Boston hospital. No one came to the retirement party for some of the officers that recently retired and that current officers never get a positive compliment from their supervisors and that he feels that this is something lacking in the department.
And then we read an article in the UL today that states that there is a huge shake-up in the Manchester Fire Dept. upsetting many of the fire fighters there who are accustomed to some working with others for as long as 22 years in same firehouse, same shifts and same working hours. The reason for the shake-up? Complacency! And the mayor is agreeing with the new fire chief. It's too friendly with the administration and with the firefighters on many levels and a "shake-up" was long overdue is what has been stated.
So we see two different but similar situations. Who's right and Who is wrong? That's for the reading public to make that call. What are your thoughts? I'm interested in hearing from you!

Who's Running for Council Seats?

2007-12-30T09:20:00.000-05:00

When we think of January, we automatically think of the new year.
Some of us are in football play-off mode. With the Patriots playing perfect so far. it is quite the change of football team I watched as a young kid back in the seventies. ( I'm sure many can relate.)
This January is New Hampshire's month to pick a Presidential Candidate. With all the TV ads and the phone calls and attention from nationally recognized politicians, it will be a welcome and strange feeling to see them move on to other states.
and then.... Hopefully we can understand the importance of electing our local government body.
January is the time for anyone willing to commit to helping the town and the taxpayers with governing of our town. This is time of year when citizens come up and say they are willing to spend time helping our town "get it right."
We have two council seats and two school board seats that are up for election in March.
Lets talk about the council seats right now.
The two councilors whom their terms expire are: Councilor Craig Bulkley and Councilor Bev Ferrante. Bulkley is a councilor at large and Ferrante is District #3 councilor.
At this time, I can tell you that Councilor Bulkley has decided not to run. After 14 years in local politics and being a town administrator, Councilor Bulkley has given of his time, knowledge and expertise for many years and I wish to thank him and his family for the sacrifice of many years for the benefit of the town. This speaks volumes of the kind of person Mr Bulkley is and I am glad I had a chance to serve with him as town councilor.
Running for his seat of Councilor at Large will be someone who has just as much passion and knowledge of this town.
Mr.Brad Benson owner of Benson's Hardware.
And in District 3 at this point only one name as surfaced and the rumor has it that Doug Newell will run in this district. ( this rumor has been known as soon as the ADT proposal for Elderly Exemptions came out.)
Stay tuned for more on the candidates emerging to take a run at local politics.
Should be a good one!

Perfect Storm II

2007-12-16T11:43:00.000-05:00

This topic has so many posts comments that it will be easier to continue on this new thread. Lots of good discussion is posted here and would like your comments.

Another Tight Budget Upcoming!

2007-12-12T18:29:00.000-05:00

New preliminary numbers are getting noticed for Derry's upcoming 09 budget. As most are aware of the Town's tax cap, which is tied into the CPI ( consumer price index ) and are allowed to be raised up to that determined number.

It looks like that number will be 2.7%. meaning on town side only, Councilors will be only allowed to raise town side taxes by 2.7% maximum.

Last year it was 3.3% however the council choose to raise only by 1.9%.

My understanding is that in dollar terms, we are allowed to increase by $765,000 or so however with the town being 80-85% personal driven and with Cost of living increases, health insurance costs and everything else for projects, we have a bill of about $800,000 coming. Meaning....

Another tight tight budget and as it stands right now....

a shortfall of about $35,000.

It will be interesting to see how things get played out this year in budget time.

Some Questions like how will the largest Elderly exemption be paid for? How much will others have to pay for this potential give away? How much money will the bike path people want? $80,000? $100,000?

When will we have contracts with our seven unions?

How much will we be billed for the retirement funds this year?

How much will our taxes go up if we don't get the state ed money we got last year

( rumor has it we will have to make up $2Mil locally. That's .80Cent to $1.00 increase)

How does kindergarten affect our tax rate- How does Pinkertons new freshman wing effect us?

Stayed tuned everyone. Stay informed and enjoy the tax decrease you got this year ( as small as that was)

Things are going to get interesting in the town of Derry!

Yes Derry, There is a Santa!

2007-12-07T16:15:00.000-05:00

Yes Derry, There is a Santa!

...and her name is Ms Hanna Rutter Martin and boy oh boy did she leave a special gift under the tree for all of Derry!

Ms. Martin has given the town an easement on 44 acres of some of the finest land in all of Derry. That's right she GAVE this gift to all of us and we thank her very much.

In a time where the all mighty dollar is king and people are buying and selling as is the American way. Every once in a great while you read stories about people who do these types of things for the benefit, for the love of community.

And to know we have those type of special people living right with us in our own town means even more about who we are as a community.

Thank-You Thank-you Thank-you! -Santa!

Perfect Storm Brewing

2007-12-06T11:30:00.000-05:00

Nobody has a crystal ball and can fortell the future. However from what I see, we have a perfect storm brewing and it ain't pretty.
Taxpayers-Hold on! you are about to go on the ride of your life!- No I'm not talking about some new ride a your favorite amusement park either.
Taxes are about to skyrocket for the next few years.
Lets take a look into the crystal ball and see what is going on right now to foretell of this horrible situation.
The ADT ( alliance of Derry taxpayers group), and three councilors who are heavily aligned with this group- Councilors Coyle, Fairbanks, and Carney are proposing an increase in Elderly Tax exemptions. Introduced at the last council meeting , a public hearing will be scheduled in January for this very topic.
First, I want to say that this is a political ploy and pandering to the elderly voters. Why do I say this? Simple, The group of councilors know that this discussion is taken up during budget time ( March) of every year. In fact this year it was mentioned by this councilor and fell on deaf ears. Where was the voice from these councilors then- No where! so now that election time is coming they are making their pandering obvious.
Now their proposal increases every single number in the elderly exemptions making it much easier for many more people to qualify. Take a look: On allowed income we go from $28k single and 35K married to 35K single and 45K married.
The allowed income assets now are 100K ( not counting primary home) and they propose to raise it to $200k
And the amount of value in their plans increases dramatically topping out at allowing a deduction of $200K if 80 or older.
Now, allow me to make a bold statement here:
I AM IN FAVOR OF ELDERLY EXEMPTIONS AND HAVE PUBLICLY SUPPORTED THEM.
however, the program is set up for people on fixed incomes and are in need! Say it again. ARE IN NEED.
Do you think that a couple making 44K a year income and have almost a quarter of a million dollars in the bank should get a tax break? Do you have 199K in the bank?
Now make sure you understand this statement because it is very important. When you give tax breaks to some groups- others pay the difference. That's called a tax shift. Overall taxes did not go down so the savings this group proposes will be borne to the others- Called a tax increase!
Now hear me out, I don't mind paying a little extra for someone who can't make it financially but I am opposed to paying lots extra for some who may have 200K in the bank.
I say keep the exemptions that we just increased 2 years ago- it works to help the truly needy elderly. The ADT and Coyle Fairbanks, Carney proposal is a pandering tax break that raises taxes on everyone else- families, low income people that are not elderly and 94% of the rest of us taxpayers.
Also- Coyle Fairbanks and Carney are spearheading a bike path proposal which we learn the taxpayers will be asked for between 80K-100K in the next upcoming budget.
Well I'm here to tell you that may be one of every three dollars allowed for next years increase of town side taxes. What happen to needs before wants. And on top of all of these shenanigans we can anticipate that we will have to make up for shortfall of state ed dollars to the tune of at least .80 cent tax increase before we even talk kindergarten, or Pinkerton academy's new freshman experiment.
Hold on! the perfect storm is coming. Please take notice! And let me be the first one to tell you to be prepared for very rough times coming unless we get back to being frugal and spending on our true needs and not "luxury items" and/or pandering for votes.

Can you live tax free in New Hampshire?

2007-12-02T17:58:00.000-05:00

Is it really possible to live tax free in New Hampshire? In the state that touts third overall lowest tax burden in the country, you would have to have no phone service, can not purchase gasoline, can't smoke or drink or eat out at restaurants for that matter. However most of us granite staters are not overly concerned about those taxes as much as we are about the "biggie" tax bills- our property taxes!
Now it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that we need to pay for services such as education, police/fire, public works because money doesn't just fall off of the trees you know.
But, can anyone live in this state without paying a huge amount in taxes!
The answer is YES!
Now before you get all excited about saving loads of money, there are requirements that need to be met. After all, This little secret should be for some one on limited income right!
How about someone who has paid into the tax system for many years and now may need help- Of course.
Look lets be real for a minute. Most of us at any given times in our lives don't get all the services that our taxes pay for. It will never happen. In fact, many of us that move into the towns that we inhabit don't shop the tax rate and see what services we could use and which ones we won't need. ( neat concept though)
OK, lets see how someone could live property tax free in Derry!
1) Must be at least 65 years old
2) Must be a NH resident for at least 3 years
3) Can Not make more than 28K as a single person or 35K married in SALARY
4) NOT including your home- you may not have more than 100K in funds
If you meet these above requirements- you are allowed a tax exemption.
That exemption will depend on your actual age.
65-74 yrs of age- you get to deduct $82,300 of value off of your assessed value on your home
74-79 yrs of age- you get to deduct $122,000
80 or older- you get to deduct $163,300 off of assessed value.
Not bad.
In todays market there are plenty of 2 bedroom, single floor condos that one could purchase for under $163300. And therefore! You can live tax free in the Granite State!

Bring on Big Box Stores!

2007-12-01T19:12:00.000-05:00

The results of our on-line polling revealed that readers want the town to bring in Big Box stores into town. The poll results were up for 3 weeks and here's how the readers responded.

Q: Does Derry want Big Box Stores?

Yes votes=23

No Votes=15

Unsure=3

I believe we should bring some into town. We will never compete with the Salems, Nashuas, Manchesters in the retail business, however we should have some good cross mix of big box right here at home. Thanks to all the participated!