Hooksett Town Council Meeting — November 19, 2025

The Hooksett Town Council held its regularly scheduled evening meeting on Wednesday, November 19, 2025. The council approved an early Christmas Eve Town Hall closure, supported the 2026 Winter Carnival, re-adopted a commercial/industrial property tax exemption, and debated—but did not advance—a proposed municipal transportation improvement fee. Several appointments, tabling actions, and committee reports were also handled.

Consent Calendar

• The council unanimously approved the consent agenda, referenced as items 11.1 and 11.2. One councilor noted that a family-services-related donation item has historically run just under $10,000 and that any amount over that would be brought back for later acceptance.

Public Comments & Testimony

• No members of the public offered comment during the public input portions of the meeting.

Town Administrator’s Report

• The Town Administrator requested and the council approved closing Town Hall at 4:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve instead of the normal 6:30 p.m. Wednesday closing time. Council discussion noted this request had not come up in recent years because Christmas Eve had not fallen on a Wednesday; Councilor Lapier also asked whether other town departments could leave early, and the administrator said the motion gave latitude to apply it more broadly.
• The Town Administrator reported that both the town engineer and town assessor positions remain unfilled after more than a month of advertising. Two engineering firms were interviewed for interim subdivision and site-plan review, site inspections, and related duties. One response was received to an RFP for assessor services, and any interim assessor arrangement would likely be part-time until a full-time hire is made.
• Councilors discussed the history of the town engineer position. One councilor who championed the position said it was created to avoid expensive outside engineering reviews and to provide local, institutional knowledge. Another councilor asked whether the position was expected to pay for itself; the administrator responded that fees offset a portion of the cost but not the full amount.
• Upcoming meetings were listed: Heritage Commission on November 25 at 5 p.m., Recycling and Transfer Commission on November 25 at 6:30 p.m., Planning Board on December 1 at 6 p.m., and Budget Committee on December 4.
• The Town Administrator said a full town council goals progress update would come at the January meeting.

Winter Carnival 2026

• Bob and Shu Wiley, representing the Hooksett Winter Carnival Committee, requested council support for the winter carnival scheduled for Saturday, January 24, 2026, with a snow date of Sunday, January 25, at Hooksett Memorial School. Participating organizations include Kiwanis, the Chamber, Girl Scouts, Boy Scout Troop 292, HYAA, Rotary, the Fire Department, and private citizens.
• The committee described planned activities including a blood drive, outdoor events, snowshoeing, food trucks, raffle tables, and face painting. Their request was for police awareness and traffic-flow guidance, traffic cones and barricades from public works, and fire-department awareness for emergency purposes.
• The council unanimously approved the event details and authorized the Town Administrator to cooperate with the committee as needed.

Appointments and Personnel Changes

• The council unanimously approved a Conservation Commission position swap: John Pennell moves from full member to alternate member, and John Peroni moves from alternate member to full member, with both terms ending June 30, 2028.
• Library Board of Trustees Chair Sandra Mack and Director Heather Rainier requested appointment of Tammy Hooker as an alternate library trustee for a term ending June 30, 2026, under RSA 202-A:10, citing the need to maintain a quorum. Councilors questioned whether a charter change was required because library alternates are not listed in the town charter. The council voted to table the appointment pending legal review and a possible town attorney opinion.

Commercial and Industrial Tax Exemption Re-adoption

• The council considered re-adopting RSA 72:80–83, the commercial and industrial construction property tax exemption, using a corrected parcel list of 17 parcels. The motion exempted increases in taxable value from new construction, additions, renovations, or improvements of up to 30 percent annually for no more than seven years from application approval. The exemption would remain in effect for five years and would require a future motion to extend.
• A speaker identified as Grant argued the program worked well, was underutilized, and said a company ready to take advantage of it might not locate in Hooksett without the exemption. Councilor Duham expressed concern about worsening traffic and infrastructure, but other councilors noted the council retains case-by-case control and can deny applications or approve less than the maximum. The readoption passed by voice vote with no announced opposition.

Municipal Transportation Improvement Fee

• Staff presented a proposed municipal transportation improvement fee of up to $5 per vehicle registration. With roughly 20,000 registrations, a $5 fee would generate about $100,000 per year. Money would be placed in a capital reserve established by warrant article and could be used for transportation-related purposes, including road improvements, sidewalks, engineering, acquisitions, electric-vehicle charging, and public-transportation operating costs.
• Councilor Sullivan moved to set the fee at $5 and not restrict allowable uses. Councilor Duham suggested limiting the fee to trails and bike paths because registration fees already send about $4.95 million to the general fund. Councilor Smith opposed the proposal, noted the town is in the second year of a default budget, and moved to amend the fee to $2.50; that amendment received no second.
• The main motion failed on a 3–3 tie vote, so the item did not advance to a public hearing.

Minutes, Committee Reports, and Other Business

• The council tabled approval of the November 5, 2025 meeting minutes pending further review.
• Committee reports included: a Planning Board/EDC update noting a planned TIF 101 educational event in January, approval of a car wash for the former auditorium, a delay on a technology-drive project for building clarification, continuation of the Cigna/Cygna property public hearing to January, and four proposed zoning warrant articles including limits on multiple same-type businesses in the performance zone.
• A Parks and Recreation issue will be discussed at a future non-public session. A Zoning Board update noted resident concerns about a Morgan Drive variance and the fact that many town records are not yet digitized; digitizing all records in the building was estimated at over $1 million.
• Councilor Smith asked about employee health insurance increases and was told that employee contribution percentages did not increase last year, meaning the town absorbed the higher premium costs. She also reported heavy trucks using Martins Ferry Road, observed road degradation, and said she would raise the issue with the Highway Commission.
• The council informally agreed to sponsor a $250 tree for Light Up the Village.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the early 4:30 p.m. Town Hall closure for Christmas Eve by voice vote.
• Approved the January 24, 2026 Winter Carnival request and town cooperation by voice vote.
• Approved the Conservation Commission member/alternate swap unanimously.
• Tabled the library alternate trustee appointment pending legal review.
• Re-adopted the commercial/industrial property tax exemption for the corrected parcel list.
• Failed to advance the municipal transportation improvement fee motion on a 3–3 tie.
• Tabled approval of the November 5 meeting minutes.
• The next regular meeting was announced for December 10, 2025.