But I do botox when they do that.

Okay, I'd like to call a budget review committee to order.

It's June 2nd, 2026.

We're in the old matic chamber.

It's 7 p.m.

And the meeting has been duly noticed in two places, including the city's website is in accordance with the requirements of RSA 91-A.

The clerk please call the roll.

Here man at large Alicia Greg.

Here.

Yeah.

Hardman Paula Johnson.

Present.

Howderman Tim Senate.

Here.

Present.

We also have an attendant, Charman Raven.

And on Zoom Haldamus Sullivan.

We also have an attendant, Shaliz Hannem, Economic Development Director.

Megan Carroll, Chief of Staff, and Don Enright, CFO for the City of Nashua.

Okay.

Communications.

We have one from Megan Carron, Chief of Staff, Region Department 104, Office of Strategic Communications, and it'll be a presentation.

There being no objection, I'll accept the communication place it on file.

Unfinished business.

There's none.

New business resolutions.

There is none.

New business ordinances?

There are none.

Tabled in committee.

I would like Mr.

Chairman to make the motion to remove from the table a dash 26-028 relative to the adoption of fiscal year 2027 proposed budget for the City of Nashua General Enterprise Special Revenue and Grant Fund.

Motion on the floor is to remove the table the budget, which is our 26028.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Opposed.

Motion carries.

And the appropriations are on page 53.

Someone here to present.

Yeah.

Correct.

Yep.

Okay.

Liz Hanum, Economic Development Director.

I'm here to talk to you today about the economic development budget.

We uh as you'll notice there is a zeroed out number um that will be addressed in the Goldenrod copy, I believe, um, that it which should be level funded from last year or this current year.

Um so uh that is one of the corrections.

But um the the main change this year was in addition to uh the marketing and public relations department or um line item um and that will be uh uh to start beginning um our business recruitment plan.

We are currently in the the process of finishing up a skills gap analysis um which will help us create a business recruitment plan um and in that process we'll also have a marketing strategy um that will uh begin to implement some of those plans um things like um recruitment packets for businesses um things like um ads um uh um kind of website design um that can support um additional uh information um sorry and then um consulting services um is level funded but um i know that's always a hot button issue um so that will be the the business recruitment strategy um so uh i have a couple of quotes so far um and they're all in that 22 to 24 thousand range right now um so that will help me um create the best strategy with only one and a half staff um we have to be very strategic in how we do things um so um that will that will give us a uh target um there's also uh issues with uh downtown right now although there are signs of um positive signs with new businesses coming in from manchester and concord um there also are kind of distress signs as well with uh loss of some of the retail and so um part of that business recruitment strategy will focus on downtown and what types of businesses will bring the most um foot traffic into the downtown um but it will also um target larger businesses um and an entrepreneurship kind of um plan um and then the 129 thousand that will would be restored with the golden rod copy um other contracted services also a hot button topic I'm sure um for many uh departments but that will be um

Um but it will also um target larger businesses um and an entrepreneurship kind of um plan.

Um and then the 129,000 that will would be restored with the golden broad copy, um, other contracted services, also a hot button topic, I'm sure, um, for much many uh departments, but that will be um to support our plan for um business recruitment, but also um activating Nashua um that program.

Um this year we completed the library walk as well as um Martha's Alley, just the lights just went up there.

Um we have five other locations that we're working on right now um in creating uh plans for um including uh Richard LaRose Way Um the connection from the river walk up to the high street garage, um, the heritage rail trail, the Ash Street Skate Park, um, and several other small locations.

Um so that will support that as well.

Um and uh real estate development, so things like appraisals and um uh feasibility studies come out of that line item as well.

Um so we do have a few uh appraisals that I know are coming that we'll put out for RFP um properties there.

Um I guess that those are the big changes, those three line items.

Um I mean there two of them are level funded, um, but just so you're you're aware of what kinds of projects will be coming out of those two line items.

Questions all uh ultimate large Kelly?

Oh thank you.

So I guess I'm not following because you said that you're level funded and that there's a goldenrod copy.

We don't have that.

So are you talking about 55699?

Yes.

You're not asking for 229,000, you're asking for the 129,000.

Right.

Yep.

So that's down a thousand.

Um the I did initially propose that to the mayor, um, but we decided together that um the additional hundred that I was asking for um for the financial empowerment center um would we would fundraise elsewhere.

Um so took that out.

If I could follow up, follow up.

So the mayor's proposed has that line item completely zeroed out.

You're saying there's new information since we got this piece?

Yes, I I believe um it's gonna be described later.

It's gonna be described later, yes.

Okay.

So that um I don't have it on my desk, so yes.

So we we will be proposing that that is restored to the 129, which is what I have this year.

Okay, can I follow up?

Follow up.

So your actuals as of end of March in that you had 129,000 last year.

You only at March time you'd only spent about 70,000.

Yes.

So as of right now, I have spent um a hundred and nineteen thousand.

And can you just describe what you sure?

Um so the barriers were one of those.

That was kind of the largest ticket item, almost 30,000.

Um, and then I've got another appraisal.

I've got um some of the work on the north side of the river bank, um, the the ducks from Make It Labs.

I covered the cost of those.

Um we've got some um uh branded items uh like uh table tent or tablecloth, rather um that is coming, um, some small items.

Um I purchased some office supply type things for the arts commission to be at the riverwalk um to support that um things like that.

Okay.

Um I have just one other question.

Follow up.

Um so I was trying to follow, but it sounded like your overall initiative is business recruitment, and it sounded like the consulting services line, the 25,000 is going towards the strategy, then another 75 for public marketing and public relations is going into that.

Yes, and then and then and then something else from under the contracted services is all going to that.

Yeah, so I I have the what's the cost in totality?

So um there are a few items within the business recruitment that would come out of other contracted services, but the majority of the other contracted services are for the other programs within economic development.

So business recruitment is one program.

I have the economic mobility program, I've got activate Nashua, and then I've got real estate development, um, and then uh other things as they come up, feasibility studies, that kind of stuff.

So I try to keep you know 10 to 15,000 in case we have to do an appraisal last minute or things like that.

But I will be spending all of that money this year, unfortunately.

I'm good for now, thank you.

All set, all the one Senate.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

Um you had mentioned that a lot of this um in terms of the um the business recruitment campaign, things like that are contingent on the results of a um of a skills gap analysis that's been ongoing.

Um my memory's foggy, but I feel like we've had a presentation on that before.

What's the estimated completion date of that?

Because I feel like if in the last term we were in here hearing the results of that, or at least uh a progress update.

No, so we had not I had talked about doing it, um, but we had we just signed a contract with them through two months ago.

Um so it's only a three-month study.

Um, so we are in the process of finalizing it right now, and we will be presenting it hopefully at PEDC shortly.

Um so the skills gap analysis was a part of the economic mobility strategic plan.

Um, so that's why it's been talked about a lot over the last year.

Um, but we are just now getting it completed.

Okay.

Thank you.

Um it's not really a forward budget question, but I have to ask just because it came up and I saw a couple of eyebrows go up.

What was the cost associated with the duck fabrications from make it labs?

Because I feel like that went out to the public and it was it was sold like it was look what make it labs did for us, and now there's a cost item uh associated with it.

Could you talk to that?

Sure.

So they donated their labor um and I paid for the materials, which is about $2,500.

Okay.

So I had I had costed out uh uh you know a regular bronze sculpture, and we were in the hundred thousand range, and so that was obviously not going to be feasible.

Um so I went to make it labs and they donated their labor and all of the um installation and all of that.

Um so that so they they did donate a big portion of the the cost of the ducks, but the materials cost about 2500.

I'm all set for now.

Thank you.

All set?

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

I got a couple questions.

Um I mean, the first comment just so everybody knows, so no reason uh just a reminder.

We got a goldenrod copy a few weeks ago uh in one of the budget meetings that was left on our desk and we went over it.

The issue was we didn't want to go over it until we're going over it later tonight.

Oh, we are going over it later tonight.

Okay, but we had get gotten it though a couple weeks back, and there was m things on there that weren't in this budget that were mistakes.

Physical mistakes, not like that was missing, but just typosed or someone didn't put it in.

So um, and I think each department that's come up is kind of mentioned if they've had something that was scrapped.

So I just don't want to make sure people understand that it's not somebody doing something sketchy after the fact.

Um and we just didn't read it into record at the time because we we didn't have time or whatever.

Um so uh my first question is so this hundred and twenty-nine thousand that's being added back in.

Would you say sixty thousand of that is barriers?

Uh no, thank goodness.

So um the uh the the good news is that um DPW has offered to pick up the barriers.

Um so they they can't drop them because of the timing of it, but they can pick them up because it's a it's a larger or a longer time frame.

Um so I am saving about 25,000 on that.

Um, but we were gonna put that towards um some of the activate Nashua programming.

Okay to stay level funded.

All right, so it's it's really 30,000 of that is now out of the 129, 30,000 is the barriers.

Yes.

Okay.

And that was planned for ahead of time that that 25,000 or that 30,000 was not going to be used where it did.

You're saying level funded, but last year 60,000 was fairly yes, yeah.

Okay, so actually it's it's level funded, but it's some of that money is being used in a completely different way from what we would expect because we had the the three-year is so when is the three-year barrier option?

Uh this is the second year, so we still have one more year.

Um, so I am anticipating a $30,000 um drop-off for the next year.

Um so in this um fiscal year 27.

Once we get rid of it, then it'll be yeah.

So um, so I didn't have to budget for the pickup, but I did have to budget for the drop-off.

Um so that was that was really helpful from DPW.

Uh follow-up, please follow up.

Um so the other thing I wanted to look at is so the wage is full-time.

So you would propose 263,000 or 264,000, and the mayor cut that back.

Um you're the only employee, right?

Currently, I have a half a half person.

So what was this?

What was this going to be if that ended up still being on here?

Yeah, a business recruitment specialist.

Um so I had planned to budget for half a year, um, assuming that we would get the skills gap analysis and the business recruitment strategy done in this first six months of the year, and then hire somebody to actually implement it.

Um, since I I have a lot on my plate.

Um, but uh I think at the the pace that we are going, um, we're gonna revisit that in next year's budget or the the fiscal year 28 budget um to propose it again at that point, potentially.

Okay, I'm good for now.

Thank you.

I get all the Greg, then Alden and Sullivan.

Um thank you, Chairman.

So I just had a question, uh I guess more around like logistics of how you're working and stuff, because you mentioned downtown a lot as far as like business development, making sure we're bringing businesses there.

Are you looking at our flanks at all as far as like down Daniel Webster Highway?

Do you do that as well?

And then Amherst, because I I just I wonder where that is because you've only really talked about downtown, so I just wanted to make sure that this is encompassing.

No, so um, I'm sorry, I I guess I I meant that the business recruitment strategy was a uh citywide strategy.

Um, but I wanted to point out that it would also be a part downtown would also be a part of that um because it is a very different type of business that we would be recruiting for the downtown.

So it is citywide recruitment at all levels.

Um but I think uh I I just wanted to point out that people have noticed that that downtown needs a little bit of extra help, so I wanted to make sure that that um that you notice that as well.

Um sorry.

That's it.

Yeah, that's good.

Thank you very much.

Thanks for letting me join tonight.

Uh I'm on Zoom tonight as I'm traveling on on work.

I'm here alone in the room, and um I can hear you all.

Um question I had was around uh 2027 key initiatives, Director Hanum.

And you had mentioned in there targeted recruitment and retention.

Do you since uh we're essentially funding this for the coming fiscal year?

Do you have examples of what it is you'd like to do as far as do you have specific companies that you're going after?

And then as a follow-up, in a year, when we're here a year from now, what does it look like?

What is Nashua look like if you get this money and execute on this task?

Yeah, I um so we we don't have specific businesses yet, but we should have industries based on the skills gap analysis in the next month here.

Um I can kind of tell you based on kind of our initial conversations of the skills gap analysis.

Life sciences are a big um uh a big recruitment.

Uh we have a lot of people that travel outside of Nashua to do those jobs.

Uh so if I can get um businesses that that could satisfy those jobs, we could keep those people here during the day.

Um so that's one of the strategies.

Um I think that uh infill is gonna be one of the biggest strategies around business recruitment.

We don't have big plots of land like Londonderry or Salem or any of those things.

So we're gonna have to uh we won't have the next Tuscan village anytime soon unless we put together a lot of plots of land.

Um so we're looking at uh small industries, probably 25 or less employees.

Um that is kind of the sweet spot, I think, for what what we'll end up with.

Um in the uh consulting line, um I do plan to do a full business strategy.

So um we'll actually get data um for exactly what types of businesses as well as the business names within that that um final report there.

So um I I do anticipate having business names for you in the next six months.

Um does that answer all the questions or did it uh it it does, thank you.

Uh Mr.

Chairman, could I have a follow-up, please?

Follow-up.

Will you be doing that personally or will you be outsourcing that to uh the consultant?

Um I will need to outsource the business or business recruitment strategy.

Um I just I don't have the time to do all of the data work um and then analyze it as well.

Um and that's the 2022 to 24,000 is where I'm getting um kind of the quotes at this point, um, which is why I put kept the 25,000 in the the budget level funded.

Um but I anticipate having um lots of uh conversations uh the skills gap analysis I'm meeting with them every other week.

So I am getting updates along the way.

Um I anticipate that being pretty similar with this uh with the business recruitment strategy as well as the marketing strategy.

Um so I I will be involved heavily, I just won't be doing the analysis work.

Could I have one more follow-up, please?

Follow up good.

Thank you very much.

Also in your 2027 key initiatives, you talked about um fostering small business growth.

How is the city currently fostering small business growth?

So right now we have a um small business revolving loan fund um that has been kind of neglected a little bit um just due to um you know lack of uh outreach programs, but um my my one halftime person um is going to be managing the revolving loan fund and um doing actual uh outreach programming for that.

Um we do have marketing that we're working on currently uh to start building that.

Um we are trying to defederalize that as well so we can have a little bit more flexibility in how we um collateralize loans, things like that that can help us um reach more businesses, small businesses um that would not normally be bankable.

Um so that is one strategy that we're working on.

Um the other is to um the the other was initially the financial empowerment center, which would be for individuals as well as businesses.

Um we put out an RFP and didn't get any responses, so um the uh model that we were looking to use uh through the cities for financial empowerment center might be a little bit too restrictive.

Um so we're gonna reevaluate exactly what that is, but um that uh you know one-on-one business technical assistance um is something that we can either do in-house or um we're gonna try to get either the small business development center or the regional economic development center to start coming to the community a couple of days a month.

Um right now we don't have any technical assistance um type federally funded or state funded programs um in the city.

Um they're all in the region, but um we need to have them on site regularly.

So I'm gonna advocate for them to try to open uh do open business hours um somewhere probably at the library um to to support our small businesses to drop in and get some technical assistance as well.

Well said, Yes, thanks for letting me chime in.

Okay, I've got all of them in Senate Johnson and Kelly now.

Um if if it's all right with the chair, I'll cede my time to Alderman Johnson.

She hasn't had a chance to speak yet.

Okay, Alba Johnson.

I greatly appreciate it, and I've got to run to the conservation commission meeting.

I just wanted to um kind of make a statement or kind of ask a question.

You can um I know that down um by the clock tower, there's a piece, there's a building that used to have industries in there.

I mean, that would probably be a great building to market, not to bring in 25 employees to probably bring in more employees that would they a company would come in and hopefully refurbish that building and make it into something more because that really and we heard from former Alderman Fred Thibu talked about that area was supposed to be the technology center, and we're putting in a lot of homes, a lot of appointments, but if you want more businesses, we have to have appointments, and if we have appointments, we have to have skilled jobs so people can afford it.

So it all goes in hand in hand.

That's all I want to say.

Thank you very much.

Uh yes, Alliman Johnson has to attend another meeting, so thank you.

Well, in the Senate.

Uh thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

And actually, that worked out really well because I was kind of along the same lines where I was gonna go.

Um considering business recruitment, um, attracting businesses to Nashua.

I'm not an economic developer, I'm not in the business of attracting businesses.

But this may be a little pie in the sky or a little ideological, but I feel that there's at least an element to, you know, if it's there, if you build it, they will come.

Um I know that just setting aside small businesses and setting aside the downtown for a moment.

There are vacancies in Nashua.

Um there's a very big one up in the Northwest uh corridor that unfortunately got bought out by a very unpopular company.

Um when I think of that, I get frustrated because I know along the same time that that transaction was going on sort of underneath our noses, um a company the size of Hasbro was looking to leave Rhode Island and relocate, and they wound up in a facility that's similarly sized in Boston.

I would have been falling over myself to try to get a company like Hasbro to set up their world headquarters in Nashua, New Hampshire.

I know there's other locations like that.

What can we do now, Skills Gip analysis aside, to attract those companies to fill those vacancies to bolster our economy in that sense because there is an element to that that if a company is going to move, they're likely in the interest of expanding, they're likely in the interest of building up their workforce.

And regardless of whether those folks are living in Nashua or commuting to Nashua, they're driving our economy by coming there.

I know because I drive Bedford's economy every day when I drive up there and I fill my tank there, I get lunch there, and I pay the taxes on the building that I work in there.

Yeah.

So what can we do now?

You know, uh like Paul, like Altamont Johnson was saying, you know, 25 employees, cool.

What about 125?

So t typically those businesses uh reach out to us initially.

Um so it's about supporting the people that come.

Um there's not a lot of recruitment that happens.

Uh they usually have site selectors, they have um very stringent um needs.

Um, and so we either fit those needs or we don't.

Um so uh not to say that we shouldn't be recruiting that, but that shouldn't be our target audience.

Um but we certainly support anyone who's coming in and showing interest.

Um I I'm also one person um and so trying to do business recruitment uh full time when I have all these other projects and programs and meetings and things um has been a struggle, but um having collateral to start out with, um, having marketing material, um redoing the website, um which is free, that's not in the budget, but um those kinds of things will go a long way in helping me um be more efficient in reaching out to places like that.

I I do reach out quite a bit when I hear that there are places coming, um, but I don't really have like a pitch.

Um, and that's what the marketing strategy will help me create.

Um so the business recruitment strategy will help me identify industries and specific businesses to start going after, and the marketing strategy will help me identify the type of collateral that I need to be creating to then hand off to them.

Like here's our packet, here's why you should come to Nashua.

Um I have been just talking on the phone to do that recently, but um we really need to create some um some material that is professional looking and um similar to what uh Manchester has created over the last year here.

Um things like that that will help me one when they reach out initially, and two, um there's there's just not a lot of properties that would fit the larger scale, like the Northwest um boulevard area kind of, and so it would take me probably to get an organization like that, it would take me two or three years to get one versus maybe five in a year at the 25 people level.

So um it's it's a different strategy, um, but when the business recruitment strategy comes together, um, we may see more need for larger scale businesses.

Um so we'll we'll adapt the strategy once we kind of understand um exactly what our what our um assets are and what um we can we can sell essentially.

Does that make sense?

Yeah, and you you sort of preemptively answered my follow-up question, which was going to be and not necessarily a director Hannem issue, but more of a um I guess a foresight issue, which is if I'm hearing you correctly, that's how long ago was the Broad Street Parkway completed, and that area was envisioned as the tech center that we've heard so much about that we're here in 2026 and we still don't have a you know for lack of a better term, film Nashua um marketing strategy.

Um again, not not necessarily a you issue, but it seems like over the course of a decade plus we've kind of dropped the ball in that respect.

So that's disappointing to hear, but um more clear.

Thank you.

Yeah.

Did you want to finish?

Oh, just um we do have the the um kind of branding tourism kind of branding um that is is finally ready.

Um so now that we have that, we can use it as part of that packet.

So that's that's my goal for this year is to have all the collateral that I might need.

Um Kelly.

Uh thank you.

So I wanted to uh inquire around, I know you guys just did a great event that I wasn't able to attend.

Um the Renaissance on the riverwalk.

I know you do a lot of work with downtown um Nashua Business Association.

I can't remember their name.

It's got in my head still.

Yeah.

Um so you know, given that you guys are probably going to continue that, what if any of your contracted services would be um potentially flowing to programming that DNA puts out?

Um not any of my operational budget.

Um so I we we have um we had initially given the GAD uh a $50,000 city events um budget separate from my operational budget.

Um and we did pull it from them.

So they do not receive any direct funding from us.

Um however we kept that $50,000 city events line item, um, and some of that pays for some of the uh hard material or um actual we have we had basically just given them the 50,000 to do whatever they wanted with.

Um and so now we're using it to pay for things like um they did an unwrapped um downtown where they um wrapped all the windows in wrapping paper and had Santa pull it off with the kids um one day and I paid for the wraps um so the that was through the city events budget, um not through my operational budget.

So my operational budget is not paying for any downtown event um with downtown national.

Um I think it's the um community activities, I believe.

Could be under the mayor's budget.

Yeah, it's it's under that section.

The um community activities.

Yes, there we go.

So do you know which line item?

Like I see holiday stroll.

Does that not go directly to them?

That goes to directly to our police department.

That's all police, okay.

Um and then um civic and community activities.

Um city events, 56212.

Yes.

So there is 50,000 in that city events or civic and community activities that goes towards um towards city events.

Okay.

Um can I follow up?

I'm trying not to get nerdy about the marketing stuff, but you w mentioned the website twice, so I'm sort of interested in that.

You said that the website's going to be redone.

Is that the whole city website?

It is, however, also the economic development.

So the economic development department has kind of a separate website.

Um, so that is going to be redone as well as the full um city website.

So I'm working on that at the moment.

Are you still working with Civic Plus?

Um yes.

So Civic Plus is the one that does the city's website as well.

Um that that's everybody, every department in the city has to work with Civic Plus.

Oh, I know.

I just fair.

We get a lot of you know, feedback about the website being very hard to navigate and find things, and as someone who works in this industry, Civic Plus does a lot of municipalities, but they do them all the same way, and I don't think that they're great.

That's just my own personal opinion, knowing what I know.

Yeah.

It's not it's not not your call, but it's interested.

So that website, sort of that marketing stuff you're talking about would still live on your economic development website.

It would, yes.

So I'm I'm completely kind of redoing it um to uh attract specifically to attract businesses and to have somewhere to direct people when I am trying to get them to come to Nashua.

Um so I'll have I'll have collateral, like physical collateral, like a folder um similar to what Manchester has created.

Um, but I'll also have that in the digital form that I can um do email back and forth with.

Thank you.

Um that wasn't even very nerdy.

Um so we we talked a little bit about uh it seems to come up every year that we're here that the big tech facility needs to be down off West Pearl there by the end of the world.

How long ago was that planned to have a tech center there?

Way before my time.

Yeah, I believe that was at least 20 years ago.

Okay.

Um so the market has changed a little bit, um, but we uh the location may change, but uh we do still need uh industry.

Um I am working with uh the tech hub, uh which we are a part of the EDA designated tech hub um regen valley, um, which is biomanufacturing mostly.

Um so um the milliard up in Manchester has really focused heavily on the research and development project.

And so we're thinking that Nashua would be a great place, one for housing for a lot of the people that are up there, but two um to eventually um whatever they create for machinery that we would then build the machinery here in town.

So kind of a a symbiotic relationship between here and there.

Um so that's that's the initial thought um right now, um, so that all the research is done in one location and all the development of the machinery is done here.

Um follow-up.

So I mean that's kind of my point, right?

My point there was we can have that in the city.

It doesn't have to be there anymore.

Right.

Times have changed, and and maybe it's somewhere else.

Maybe that's where the housing is, and it's a couple miles south or you know, somewhere else in the city.

Yeah.

Um, I mean, I look at uh off exit one, we get flatly, right?

They got all that land there.

We could put a ton of stuff there.

Um don't tell my constituents that.

But um, you know, you could put a bunch of stuff there, but they built some small facilities there, and they haven't been able to fill them at all.

They're just sitting there empty.

So we know that they could put tech stuff there.

The problem is they weren't coming.

The stuff wasn't coming there because they've had some empty plots there for a while, not only plots, buildings.

And and they still haven't been able to, they haven't built quickly there.

Right.

Because I think when they do build, the only thing they know what can go there is apartments.

And they know that's all they can make.

So they continue to put apartments there.

Mr.

Flatley, say what you want about him, but he's a businessman.

And if he if he can make money on something, whether it's apartments or it's businesses, he's gonna do whatever makes money for him.

And so I think that's probably the biggest, it's like 400 acres.

That's probably the biggest chunk of land just sitting there to be developed.

Yeah.

Um, and unfortunately, certain things don't come here to to fill that spot.

So I think you know, I think you know, I'm not gonna give it to you, but I uh you could use more money.

I just want to say that before anybody thinks I'm gonna add more money to this budget or not.

Um but generally I think you could use more money because I think that you know, obviously the more money you have, the more you can do.

Yeah, it's also trying to make sure you utilize your money in the in the best way possible based on what you get.

I get that you know, when companies call, you want to be able to provide them something, a portfolio, a packet, something about Nashua that explains why it would be good here.

I also assume, and I don't know if you you must be in tune with Dirk DeSullivan and uh uh manager Durfee.

I'm assuming the new code is it might help us um open up some development for businesses in the city.

Yes, south end, north end, northwest corner, main street, um, just because of some of the ways we're gonna be looking at the coding, some of the overlays, the mixed business.

Um so hopefully that will help you to be able to bring people in in the course of over the next year, six months to a year, I'm hoping.

I don't know if you have any comments on that.

Yeah, I think um you're right.

That the to start out with the tech stuff um with AI tech is having less human jobs, um, and so they're not filling the spaces that they have right now.

Um but manufacturing is always uh a potential there as well.

But um we're we're kind of we've been sending a lot of people flatly's way um just as they come through.

Um but uh I think you you're also right about um kind of building out um the next the next piece.

Sorry, can you repeat what the the ending part that you said there?

I had something in my brain.

I mean it's kind of now and maybe it could open some stuff up.

Yes, yes.

So the the code definitely will will streamline the process quite a bit, um, which will make it much more attractive to work here in Nashua than it is in other locations.

So the the more we can do to streamline that, and the code is is really working hard to do that um to streamline the process as well as to make it um more developer friendly um that we will be able to recruit better and more um if that makes sense.

But um I think there are a lot of places that have reached out um and said, you know, we're really interested in hearing what the code looks like, so um they're kind of waiting to see what it looks like when it when it's finalized, but um we have quite a few places that are interested in learning about the new code.

Okay, yeah.

Yeah, well that's that's great.

I thank you for that.

Um I know it's currently kind of restrictive, and I know Nashua in general, you know, we want it to be attractive for people to come in.

So it's not always about, you know, maybe I mean maybe it is recruiting, maybe it's not recruiting.

It could be us, it could be the code, it could be what benefits New Hampshire Nashville brings as opposed to Massachusetts or somewhere else, right?

Maybe the taxes are better somewhere else, maybe the code's better somewhere else.

So it's not just that, but hopefully that will be one thing that will help, you know, in your tool belt.

So thank you.

Also, yeah.

I will say that there's not a lot of tools in the tool belt for economic development in New Hampshire, um, but we are using all of them that we can.

Um, and I know um Director Sullivan and Manager Durfee have done a really um great job of uh creating a developer-friendly process even within the code that we have.

You know, there's there's pre pre-application meetings that can help them not put a ton of effort into designing something if it's not gonna work for the different departments.

So we have meetings ahead of time with them with all the different departments.

So uh um we've we've created a process that works pretty quickly, even within uh kind of more restrictive code.

Um so I I want to give the community development department uh their due there, but um that's been really helpful as I recruit, I kind of hand off to that department uh as they get into the technical code um and the the land use and all of that.

Um and it's been a really really streamlined process between the two departments.

Um it's been really helpful to have um multiple people to go through there.

Thank you.

Yep.

Aluminum Johnson.

Thank you very much.

And thank you for your patience with me running to the conservation commission meeting.

I guess I want to pick up a little bit where I left off because I'm listening to the conversation here.

So, you know, we've always said Nashua is the best place to live, and it's been kind of like a slogan.

We should probably put a slogan Nashua's the best place to live and work.

And because you're right here in Nashua.

And I think, and again, I'm gonna go back to that uh warehouse that's down on um behind the clock tower.

I mean, if you put out an ad, envision what your business could look like and put out, you know, showing like we do when in houses, you'd stage it.

I mean, you staged a picture of that whole thing being redesigned and having businesses in there because that's a big um industrial building that could hold a lot of businesses because I remember when um a dear friend of mine, Mike Biondo had his um sign business in there.

And the steps are old and it's an old building, but it's got character to it, probably still has good bones to it.

Yeah, and to me that would be and you could design it even on the internet and send out pictures of that.

Unfortunately, we don't own that building.

I got it.

But I know we probably shouldn't be designing anything we don't own, but I mean just showing something like that out there.

Yes, yeah, yeah.

I think I'm sure you could probably find out who the real estate agent is to that.

Yes, yeah.

Um so we we certainly I take I take your point.

Yep.

Yeah, thank you.

Thank you.

All set, any more questions?

Thank you.

I do know that VAE when they were trying to hire people, the young people couldn't find a place to live.

So I think as we improve some of our ability to find places to live, we may be much more successful in getting people to come and move here for business.

Correct.

All right.

Next item on the agenda is the proposed new department, Office of Strategic Communications, uh appropriations on page 57.

Good evening for the record, my name is Megan Karen, uh Chief of Staff.

Uh I am here tonight to uh review the budget for a new proposed department, uh, which is the Department of Strategic Communications.

Um, as part of your packet, I did provide um a communication that included um the presentation I gave at personnel um last month, so I don't want to review that entirely and belabor the point, but I did just want to make a few comments before I jumped into numbers.

Um so I I think as we crafted this budget, this has been an ongoing need, and the objective of this office is to shift the way that we look at communications from a function to um organizational infrastructure, and we feel it needs to be part of the core service delivery.

Um right now our approach is decentralized, so communications are distributed among different departments who do different things and in various capacities, and and each does it um in their own way, and that has led to some inconsistencies, some gaps in communications, things like that.

So the way I have been describing it is if we're looking at communications as a hub and spoke approach, right now we have the spokes, but we don't have the hub.

Um communications is really become a specialty uh discipline in municipal government, and we want to be in line with the best practices in municipal management.

So we'll really the landscape, as you all know, the landscape of public information has shifted drastically, and we need to adapt just like other departments like technology or emergency management, those evolve really over time become specialty practices, and so has communications.

Um this department, just to turn to numbers, um in the proposed budget is 122,211.

Uh my communication noted that the goldenrod copy actually reduces salary by $30,000, so from 85,000 to 50,000, and that brings the total uh budget to 87,211.

Um this office would start with um one position, a strategic communications manager, and the first step um would be to develop and implement a um master communications plan.

Um so this position, it wouldn't take place or take the place of the communication specialists that exists in departments right now, it would just uh support them and also elevate their work so that it's um we're more cohesive and um consistent in our our messaging and delivery.

Um I'd be happy to answer any questions.

Questions um excuse me.

Alan Sullivan.

Thank you.

I had a uh a couple of questions.

The first one is um as you look across the city, how many people currently have the title of uh or have the word communication in their title across the city?

Uh that's a good question.

So and I would I would say we also have a citywide communications um department, so you might see some communications um there, but that's related to emergency radio, and it has nothing to do with uh the communications we're talking about now.

Um if we're talking about formal positions that um it encompass the day-to-day operations of communication for their department, I can think of three off the top of uh my head.

Um DPW, uh public health, and then the mayor's office.

So this would really be an overarching um office that would report to the mayor but would oversee the larger strategy.

I can um uh Alderman Sullivan, I can confirm um that number for you if you'd like.

I'm I just thought of another one too.

Please ahead, follow up.

Well, that she had mentioned uh that she had yes, sorry, I wasn't sure if so.

I didn't want to interrupt.

I wasn't sure if you caught that.

There's a little bit of a delay.

Um transit also has uh communications administrator.

Okay.

Um I follow up is around communication, and I'm sure you've been following what's been happening through the budget meetings, and um currently we're uh the city is faced with the budget and how tight it is, and the school district is looking to cut 56 positions, uh 21 of those are teachers.

How um should we if if this goes forward, how should we communicate to a parent of a child in the school district who might be losing uh a teacher or a coach or something like that that we've decided to fund this as opposed to fund uh the positions that that uh or are not funding the positions that are being cut from the school district.

Thank you.

Uh that's a great question, and I certainly don't want to um pose these as competing priorities because all of these positions have um their place and importance.

I also don't want to speak to the school district's budget um and that process because it is different.

Um but what I will say is that um this position is a fraction of our total budget.

Um communications impacts every department, every resident, everything we do, and so we see that as an investment, um, not to to take the place of a teacher.

So I just want to make that clear, we're not we're not trying to do that.

Um so I don't know if that really answered your question.

Um it's not really an apples to apples, but I understand uh your point.

I think right now we know that we have to do better.

This is our next step.

I would just offer as a comment is when you look at the bigger picture, thank you.

When you look at the bigger picture, and it comes down to priority.

And we look at uh you look at this, and and if and if somebody's watching tonight, you might say we've decided to do this as opposed to doing this.

And I think that um when it comes to situations like this, regardless of how much uh is on the appropriation sheet, I think that it's really important that you know your budget is a reflection of your priorities.

And I think that um, you know, I just want to point that out tonight as as we go through this, and um uh and just kind of put the uh uh uh priorities uh against each whole set you got an answer uh y yeah I actually um uh Alderman Sullivan, I agree with you, and I think that's why we are presenting it now because we view communications as a priority and an area for improvement.

Oliver Johnson.

Thank you very much.

Um you're talking about better communications with the public.

Is this mean that you're gonna still be so strict with the right to no law that everybody's gonna have to go through um hurdles to get information if you're gonna be more open with the public in communications?

Well, this position wouldn't have anything to do with the right to know process.

However, if you I'll give you an example, maybe the way that we present information on our website, and I know that is we're kind of going back to the website, but our website is so convoluted because at one point we were trying to put everything on there, and I think we could probably all agree it's a little difficult uh difficult to navigate sometimes.

So this position would would strategically look at the website, the content that we are um putting on the website, where we're putting it on the website, the language that we're using to direct people to find information on the website.

So could that alleviate some of the right to know process um or or inquiries?

Probably, but this uh I I mean, yeah, I would think probably, yeah.

We can do a better job of making information um available just step first, second click.

Sometimes we receive a right to no request when the information is already on the website, and we just have to direct them.

Um so it it could um minimize this, but it's not um that's not the official objective.

Can I do a follow-up?

Follow-up.

Thank you.

And I get that.

You know, with the communications.

So do we have a job description already uh written up for this position?

Yes, so um, and that would thank you for um that question.

We have uh a draft um job description.

Um and I know we talked about that at uh personnel.

It's just making its way through um human resources to make sure that it's vetted.

We don't want to put any, even if it's a draft, we don't want to put anything out there that isn't you know by the book.

May I do a follow-up?

Follow up.

Thank you.

So this position you're talking about starting off at 55,000 now, around 55?

50?

50,000.

Okay, my butt we would that's a half year higher.

So in January.

Half year higher.

You know, and I'll tell you, I'm having a real problem with all these new positions, and I'm gonna keep going back to the unaffiliate positions that was supposed to get that raise that the board voted on last year, that ordinance that the mayor is asking to take away.

And let me, I guess this is my feeling.

How would you feel if you're working here for the city that you were supposed to get something now it's taken away, and you hear new positions coming in, but yet you aren't good enough to get what you were that you were off it that you were told that you were gonna get the board voted on it.

I mean, whether or not I agree with the amount of money that I think it was way too much money in one year, I would have probably split it up into two years.

But the question is you're add different departments adding new positions, and you have people that work here every day that were told that you were going to get this.

They were gonna divvy up 450,000 dollars, and now they're taking it away, and now they're getting that cola and this the step, whatever, whatever level they were going to be on.

Took me a bit to understand what everybody did.

So this is part of my problem.

Whether it's 50,000 or not, you've reneged the mayor and the well, the board hasn't voted on this yet, but the mayor reneged on something, and I guess Mr.

Cummings also because he was part of this whole thing in your office, on employees that are here all the time.

So thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

I guess I got a lot of open-ended questions to think, but I'm gonna ask another one.

Just because I is this a 122,000 dollar answer to a cultural problem within the organization.

I think this is uh step towards solving a city citywide operational problem.

Yes, I think the the impetus is really to be more effective organizational organizationally right now.

We don't have the capacity to do what we know we should be doing.

Like we can't do more than what we're doing right now.

We or else we would be.

Could we squeeze a little bit more out of employees right now?

Sure, we could, but it's still not gonna meet the need and expectation of the public.

Follow-up?

Follow-up.

Is one person gonna be able to do that?

One person is a start, but if you look across the country, really, I was just speaking um with a colleague, I think she's in Missouri, population of 30,000, and she has a staff of three for comms.

So we're not there yet.

This would be a great stuff uh start, and it would be slow and steady.

But that's really why we're looking to bring this person in, start with a master communications plan and then go from there.

Um what's preceded this organizationally?

Um I won't pretend to know the first thing about the I guess you would say the day-to-day here in City Hall, you know, how the I know how each of the departments runs, but intermingled together as a large organization.

How often are these groups sitting down together and getting on the same page?

Is that happening ever?

Great question.

No, and that's what we envision this person to to do because as I noted, you know, this has kind of been brewing, this has been a thought for a few years, and I've really tried to take some time to understand how different municipalities do it.

Um, when you have larger operations and you have special specialists in each department, they're the subject matter experts, right?

Like I can't replace DPW communications, I wouldn't even know where to begin.

Um but this is a person who would sit down maybe quarterly and go over the um like the larger strategy.

I gave the example in personnel that one of the best practices um in this field is you know, this manager would sit down with each department um by the end of the um calendar year and say, let's plan out your entire um next calendar year together in terms of um communications.

Let's look where we where there's cross development in terms of different departments.

Um but I think what we're missing if we were to just put all these specialists in a room, is we'd have those ideas, but there's no one to execute them.

So they would then just go back rightfully so to doing their day-to-day operations.

Like social media posts and PRs, those are functions, but they're not an overall strategy.

And I was speaking with Director Hanam about this, um, and it actually made me think of when you had asked um, you know, what can we do to bring businesses here?

Part of this person's job, not all of it, but part of it is to manage that message.

Because when you ask why Nashua, we all love Nashua for different le reasons.

We want people to live and work here, but who is managing that message consistently and who's putting it out there so that if I'm an employee or if I'm a business who maybe wants to recruit or uh come to Nashua, I'm Googling Nashua and what am I getting?

And so those are those are the missing pieces.

We're just missing that central that hub.

And I don't know if I made that more confusing or if I answered your question at all.

Um I think you at least spoke to my concern that um this at this stage with a city this size and an organization this size is more complex than I think we're really gonna be able to chip away with that.

What's proposed here?

Um I I guess personally I think I'd like to see more strategic planning for our strategic communications, and I know you have to start somewhere, but I just I worry that next year, if this were to go through, this is going to be, and I and I hate to throw her under the bus as an example.

This is going to be another director Hannem who's up here presenting a budget saying, I'm only one person.

Yeah, you know, and it's it cascades in snowballs.

Yeah, and if I may respond.

Um it's a great point because by the time we hire this position on board them, they're it's going to be budget season.

So, yeah, they won't have much to show for that for you know um uh results, but it's a start.

Thank you.

Well, it's it'll kill you.

Uh thank you.

I'm not sure that I have any questions.

I didn't ask any because I was at the personnel meeting where you presented this um in depth.

Um, so I had a good sense of what you're trying to do.

I think you do a good job of the articulating what the need is.

I just can speak with authority because this is what I do in my day-to-day.

I agree that I don't think this is gonna solve the problem.

I don't think it's centralized enough.

You don't have people coming up under this person so that we can really get a handle on a citywide communications plan.

I did ask in personnel, and I don't know if you had given any additional thought to it, but um, could you do a communications plan as an consulted service?

And then when we have that, really consider how this could be set up.

Um just to clarify, so basically, the it would almost be like an audit in addition to a plan.

I mean, you could you could bring a consultant in to do a communications plan for the city for sure.

We could.

Um we didn't budget for that, it's but that's a great point.

It would my concern would be then we have another plan, but we're not that and that's it, and then it just stays there.

I don't think you're I think that's a great point, and is a matter of like when when we do it, because it needs to be done.

Um we could yeah, we could outsource the the plan, and I don't think you should rely on one person just to create the plan itself.

Like I I envision that as um someone kind of overseeing that process and not just creating the plan by themselves, if that if that makes sense.

It's it's so um uh point taken.

Um but you know, my fear would be that we we um outsource the plan, we have the plan, and then we we don't have anyone to to really run with it.

So, but that's something that we would have to consider at the time.

I mean, I think I could follow up.

I I think you know, some of this conversation started with some of the things that happened in this community, um, including Sky Meadow, and I think when we look at that, we talk about we need coordination with police, with edu, you know, with the school district, with city hall, and that's not how you've necessarily explained this position.

And I think that was where at least myself when I was talking about it, we need a centralized way.

How do we get the information out to the alderman when things like that happen?

How is emergency management involved in that?

How are we telling a cohesive story in a moment of crisis?

Um, and that I just don't think that the way you've presented this solves that problem.

I kind of agree with my previous colleague that you're setting up another person on an island to try to fix the problem.

Yeah, for $100,000.

That's that's valid.

I I understand.

Um I'm sorry if I may respond.

Um but I I think we just get back to, and then what's next?

Because we can't expect if we want to move forward with you know executing um a communications plan first, sure.

That that's better than where we are now.

Um but we can't expect the folks who are overseeing the day-to-day functions in the department to then implement this like this plan in a in a moment of crisis because that's not it's not gonna work.

So um yeah, I mean, point point taken.

Hold on Johnson.

Thank you very much.

I just want to say I want to agree with my colleague Alderman Kelly.

I think she has she's straight on point.

And I think before you could implement it, you have to have a plan in place.

Because if we don't have this plan in place, this is gonna go nowhere.

We're gonna be in a worse situation than we are now, because when we have nothing as a guideline, and since she does this every day, maybe she can give you some pointers on how to do it an outline form on what to do here.

Because if we're gonna present this to the community and say, we'll put in another position, then we better have a straightforward plan here.

How it's going to be implemented, how we're gonna have the new person work within the other teams and the other departments, because if not, we're gonna fail.

And I'm not gonna spend the money to fail on this.

So I would say come back with a plan and do what Alderman Kelly said because she this is how this is what she does.

So she's the expert on it.

I'm not, but she is.

Thank you for your information.

I appreciate that.

Well, that's it.

Alderman Tebo.

Thank you, uh Mr.

Chair.

Um do you have a plan?

Um do I have a plan?

Yeah.

Did you have a plan for this before coming in here today on the budget for the budget meeting?

Are we talking about uh I'm sorry?

The plan for this position.

Oh, um again, I just want to clarify a communications plan or a plan for what this position would do.

And for this role, yeah.

Uh well, the the first step is to uh let's the first step for this position is we need a communications plan, we want you to oversee this.

That that is the first step, and uh that's kind of why we're like this chicken and chicken or the egg.

Um it could work both ways, and I I think the points um on this side are completely valid.

So um, but follow up.

I was trying to give you an easy one there, because I assume you had a plan going into this.

I assume you just can think of it today and come come in here and say, hey, this is what I want, and me and the mayor have not talked about this, I've not discussed this with anyone, but hey, give me 50,000 to do this.

So uh my goal there for that question was just that I of course you had a some form of plan, whether or not it was getting the somebody that is an expert in communications and then have them formulate a plan on how it would work, that may be the plan, but you have one.

Um so when I look at emergency management, what happened at Sky Meadow, I don't see that this role would be that person.

Um, I expect emergency management to do that role, and I get I've talked to the police about it, that's not their role.

Their role is to solve the situation as fast as they can.

It's not to get messages out, that's not their role.

They have a job, it's the to make sure everybody's safe.

Um emergency manager probably should have found a way to get that out to everybody.

Um I don't I don't like the analogy or the the we have teachers and we have this role, right?

Sorry, parents of of kid A, you're not gonna get a teacher because we need this role.

Well, why don't we cut why don't we cut Director Hanum's consulting fee and keep a couple more teachers, right?

Why are we accusing you of taking uh adding a job and going against the the teachers?

Maybe education budgets over overfilled.

We hear from people here that we should be closing schools, so we should be closing schools.

We probably have too many teachers, but we don't have any communication specialists, right?

So I don't understand that logic of doing that.

I think that's kind of if if if someone doesn't think we should spend the money on this, I don't want to spend the money on this.

We don't have to like pull at the heartstrings of the kids that might not have their teacher this year when the reason you're adding this is not cutting a teacher's job.

They're just not it's not related.

Um and so I just want to make that clear that that's that's not the reason why if we don't vote for this, it's the reason why.

It's the reason why we don't think this role today and this money that's allotted is the right thing at the right time for this.

That's that's all we need to say.

We don't need to come up with things to kind of make us talk us into it, right?

If we don't feel that, we don't feel that.

I think the communication in the city is terrible, and I'm gonna be nice because I don't want to say anything bad.

That's nice, but it's terrible, it's awful, and I don't mean anything against any person working in the city.

I think they have a difficult situation.

I mean, you kind of explained it with you got all these different departments trying to get out communication.

There's nothing branded together, it's just here goes this, this goes that goes that way.

Most of us have probably worked in a whether it's a 200 person company or even a hundred thousand person company or even higher, they have a communications team.

It's not one person, it's communications team for a company.

All the messages that come out to us employees are looked over a million times over.

There's usually a good company will be no, you know, typos, there'll be no wrong grammar, there'll be no uh it'll there'll be one message, you'll see that same similar message over and over again.

It's branded, it looks good.

We don't have that here.

Um does one person fix that?

No.

Does one person start us in the right direction?

Probably.

Is this the right time to do that?

I don't know yet.

I haven't decided for myself if I think it's because I think it's important.

I think a good city that has good communications for the people who are example today, Facebook hit, people are getting their tax bill.

Someone said our taxes went up eight percent today on Facebook.

That's what they said.

Our taxes went up.

I got a notice from the city from the city, a notice, not a tax bill, a notice from the city.

So that's you and the mayor sending out a notice to someone saying they got an 8% increase in their taxes.

So I said to myself, how can that be?

How can the how can the city be communicating that?

We haven't even we haven't even finished the budget yet.

And so I went and I opened my tax bill because I got it, and I said, Oh, it says right here, interest eight percent.

Somebody thought that that interest meant that their taxes went up eight percent.

And I looked on the back to see if it said what interest was.

I know what interest was.

You don't pay it, you got 8% interest, I understand, but it wasn't on the tax bill.

So people are just making stuff up out there that their taxes went up eight percent when that wasn't the tax, that wasn't the the increase last year for this tax bill that's current now.

So that's just an example of a communication going out that maybe doesn't explain stuff well, even though we did put something on the website that explained the new bill, it didn't explain that piece of it.

Anybody can take anything the wrong way if they don't, and then they spread the stuff out, and how do we react to that, right?

Well, we don't have a communications team to send something out saying, hey, by the way, you know, whatever.

So I think we need a communications team.

I just don't know if it's right now.

Um but I want to make sure that we're we're not trying, if we if we don't feel that we should we should fund this this year, we just say that.

It's pretty simple.

Oh, Lou and Kelly.

I'm just gonna make one final point, and I appreciate all the conversation around this.

Um what I see in my business is oftentimes when you bring in someone to consult, they have an outside perspective, and that's why I'm pushing for the idea of having someone to come in and look at an audit instead of bringing someone in, making them part of the culture, and then having them try to fix it.

Because sometimes when someone comes in as a consultant, they can see things you can't see.

And so that's why if we want to talk about potentially putting some aside for that kind of thing, then you have an at a perspective from someone who doesn't sit at a desk under the mayor or whoever it is saying, here's what I see as a communication specialist, here's how you guys can potentially fix it, and then you use that plan to build your communications program andor department.

Because it's very clear, we all agree you need one, right?

But where do you start?

And that's what I see.

Thank you.

Well said.

Um I've uh been on boards for a lot of years, is we're hiring a person who's coming in here that doesn't know the problem.

And the first part of the job would be trying to figure out what the problem is.

And once you hire somebody, you know, unless you fire them, which is not good, you know, you've got a position that's that's going to be there.

I think the first thing we need, and we all agree the communication is lacking.

But I think the people we need to ask are the taxpayers.

What information do you want to see and what aren't you getting?

And what would be the best way to get it?

So I think if we had that kind of information built, and now you can bring a new person in and say, here's the identified problem, and come up with you know, and these that person would have to have some experience in coming up with solutions, or yeah, that wouldn't be a good hire.

And I'm yeah, you know, how many people are out there that are communication specialists that you can hire that for that kind of money.

Um so I I I I think we we we've identified there's a problem, but we haven't identified specifically what the problem is.

We know the communications is bad, but we don't know what the people in the city want to see.

Um we have aldermen that put out um their own personal weekly newsletters, some of them you couldn't possibly miss anything in the city from reading.

There are others that are somewhere in between.

Um, and there are others that don't put them out.

Uh you can't put them out unless your your residents give them give you their email.

So it's a there's that issue.

And once we have the idea of what communications the public wants to see, what's the best way to implement it?

And how much is that gonna cost?

Um I can tell you that uh from everybody I've talked to, nobody likes the website because it's too hard to find things.

And the search engine in there is terrible.

You know, if you want to go in and ask it a question, you know, like where is this?

It'll take you on stuff that's goes back to the 1902 era, you know.

You mean it's crazy.

Um I think we need to know what the people want.

We've got to identify in more detail what the problem is before we hire somebody to solve it.

Just my opinion.

May I respond?

Yes.

Um completely valid.

I think I'm hearing from the committee that it's probably we're looking at maybe not this year, but we really need a plan.

And so if that is the flavor of the committee, um, we're a little pressed for time, but what I can do is um perhaps present um kind of go back, do some digging on what a communications audit or a plan would cost, um, and then propose an alternate for possibly an amendment.

Um because currently that you know, uh an audit, a plan takes money, and we didn't budget for that uh in this proposed budget.

Um so I'm certainly willing to do that if that's um what the the board would or the committee would prefer, and we can definitely um make it a you know a stipulation of when an RFP goes out that some public engagement um take place to really understand what the public wants to know and what they feel is lacking and how they like to be communicated with things like that.

So it can be you know a fairly comprehensive audit and plan, but um I I would say in conjunction with that, see if we can find a way that we can ask the public, you know, what kind of information are you not getting?

You know, I mean um you get some in the union leader because I've told Dean Schloop he's writing more stories now than when he worked full time for the telegraph.

So the union leader covers a lot of things in the national, unfortunately it's usually a day late.

Um and and the other the other piece is um, you know, again, find out what the problem is, but in the interim, if we could have a thing on the website where you could just click in and it would bring you up to the latest minutes of the various departments, whether it's the fire commission, the police commission or or whatever, without having to go in and search for where the heck the meeting was and click on you know, agenda or and if you click on minutes uh like of our meetings, we're way backlogged because this board has decided that we need verbatim minutes, which is you know, we'd have to hire a few more people to catch up on that, and we don't have the money to do that.

But it's got to be an interim solution because people have the desire for this information now, not a year from now, not two years from now.

So, how do we solve the intermediate problem?

And so that we could present if we do decide to do a new hire at some point.

They have a problem to solve and they know all the background.

And so you just bring a person in blind, it'll take them six months to figure out what they're supposed to be doing.

Just my opinion.

All right.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Now, before we table the uh budget, um, you would get that goldenrod copy amendment and uh uh Ms.

Enright had given out an explanation, but I want her to go over that.

So if there are any questions relative to the first item we're gonna take up on the uh on the summary meeting that we have later in the month will be this uh goldenrod copy of the mayor's budget.

So I'd like her to explain what's in there, and then if you have any questions you can ask before we table the budget again.

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Don Enright uh CFO.

So the Goldenrod amendment that was uh passed out and the memo that was corresponding with it from um Director Cummings and myself um lays out the issues that we found uh early on in the budget process.

It is comprised of three different components, uh two of which um affect the general fund.

Um these changes that um we are proposing have to do with corrections uh from the information that was was presented by the departments, um keying errors, um, process oversights, and um some softway software uploading um errors.

Um this process um we had four um four retirements in the financial department this year, and this process was pulled together with um all new staff, and um so some of these things were were oversights during it and were recognized um very quickly after the printing of the budget, so we came forward.

So um the initial adjustments um total 111,000 dollars for the general fund, and then when we were talking about these adjustments, and and that's a decrease to the proposed budget, um, it came to light that um 14 Mulberry Street was not going to be purchased for a resource center for the city, and in the budget uh were some um appropriations to um to care for that building for the maintenance and the upkeep of that building, and that was a total of 177,500.

So that is also an additional decrease uh to the budget to the general fund budget, which is a total of 288,000 decrease to the general fund budget.

On top of that, there was an oversight in the um wastewater fund of a um special revenue uh loan um bond payment that was was missed in the initial creation of this budget, so that has been added to the wastewater fund at the same time.

The was there was an adjustment to the revenue side to balance their budget.

So there are two adjustments on the wastewater.

That those adjustments do not affect the uh tax rate in any way.

It is a self-supporting fund.

I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have about these adjustments.

Any questions on Woman Kelly?

So thank you for that, and thank you for your copy that you handed me.

I was like very lost about the Goldenrod copy too.

Um I guess I'm just trying to square going into wrap-up next week.

There's been some like, oh, the mayor adjusted this.

Is that included in that?

Like what we were just talking about with the 229 now to 129 in economics.

Is that included in your goldenrod?

Are those additional things that need to be addressed when we go to do our wrap-up?

Is that right?

Thank you, Mr.

Chair.

Thank you for the question.

The um adjustment of the 129,000, that was um that was an oversight at the time of between the proposed and in the mayor's budget.

It was a keying error when that happened.

So but it's in your goldenrod.

It is in the goldenrod copy.

Yes, it is.

So from a standpoint of what needs to happen for wrap-up, can we just approve the goldenrod copy or do we need to do line by line edits to these errors, clerical errors?

I believe we can just uh approve the goldenrod copy.

And then we can go from there.

Yes.

Okay.

Thank you.

Anything anyone else?

Altman Sennon.

Thanks.

I'm just gonna gripe a little bit.

Um I I understand that the non-city buildings component of this is I think it was 11,000.

It's 15 or 16 different line items, though.

It's a lot of stuff, and it to me it just feeds more of some of what we've been saying about the budget, in that it's this has been a really confusing budget season.

In so much now that we can't even look at the document in front of us as the budget that we're considering because the budget that we're considering, it's actually that less these 15 line items across various departments and sublines throughout the city.

Um and some of them, you know, come with their own sets of questions.

There's um there's cuts to salaries but not the corresponding um benefit lines uh within them.

There's cuts to benefit lines, but not the salaries that would supersede those.

And I feel like there's a lot more going on here than the memo really clarifies.

And I I know that this will come to a vote at the um at the wrap-up sessions, and this is something, even with it in front of me, just like this, because of the principle of the matter, I I would struggle to say yes to Win Kelly and then all of Thibault.

Uh, just to respond to that, I I think that the wrap-up, I I will agree with the budget book.

I've got different leaflets, and the one that has the you know up to date year to date, and I'm trying to put that in, so I agree with there's definitely some confusion.

So I guess my request would be for the wrap-up sessions.

I don't believe we're gonna do it in one night this year.

Um can we have um some of the directors here so that we have specific questions on all of these changes that have kind of come in?

We can get clarification as we're making changes.

I've got it.

We've got them, they're all common.

Okay.

No, I said we have to like we have to.

Yeah, I just I don't I want to be able to make the decisions, and I don't want to have to wait.

Um I hate to drag out directors uh two nights in a row, but I think there's gonna be a lot of questions.

Thank you.

Debo?

Yeah, I mean I I'd hope they would come just because we could be cutting or adding to their budgets.

Um we're only gonna have one night, by the way.

Um question on the so on the goldenrod one.

There's salaries are I guess I don't I don't know if they're cut or if it was a mistake.

And so if it was a typo, like a typo or a download, it wouldn't necessarily affect the benefits unless there was also a a typo or something on that, right?

So the salaries could have been wrong by whatever per dollar amount, but because the uh the line for the benefits was typed correctly, that could be why that it's not corresponding.

Is that accurate or thank you, Mr.

Chair?

Thank you for the question.

Yes, you are quite correct.

Um a lot of these errors were were manually entered and they were keyed in incorrectly.

So if you see an adjustment to a salary, it is because it was keyed in correctly or uploaded incorrectly and didn't correspond directly with the salaries.

The Excel spreadsheet that they started from had all the calculations of salaries and benefits and how they correspond, how the information got into the document was keyed in incorrectly.

Follow up follow-up.

So I guess my question here is now going forward.

I guess it's two questions in one.

So how can we in the future make sure?

I guess how do we prevent like simple mistakes from typing coming to us at the point, right?

So everybody's gonna make mistakes, but then how do we catch that before it now goes into a book and comes out live to the constituents and ourselves, and then have to go through it like that?

Because I I mean I would hate to have to go through another situation where people are keying wrong information again, or the the the copier is not copying one line or something's going on.

I I just I mean there's a lot of issues, and I I think that should be the one that we should catch prior to to hitting hitting the books here, I guess.

Thank you very much for that question, and I couldn't agree with you anymore.

Um I have to tell you the day this was after this was printed, we've started meeting internally to talk about our process for creating the budget and how to improve it, because it was obvious that there is a lot of improvement that can happen, and we have new players involved, and we're putting everyone's ideas together on how to make it better.

It was in the process is something that can significantly improve, and I recognize that.

And follow-up to that, please.

Okay, but we are also going to have a meeting after budget is approved to talk about what we want to see next year.

So let's not go there yet.

So Alman Tebo.

Yeah, just a comment.

I think again, I'm not blaming you, I'm not blaming anybody.

Um we were already kind of in it at the time, but I would suggest if we get something like this again, we automatically first thing send it back.

And I hate to say that, I really do, because we got to get on talking to departments and all that, but send it back, and we'll take it up when we get a copy that has the corrected stuff.

I hate to say that, but it's it's kind of rough, like having to add stuff in and circle stuff in.

I mean, I get the whole salary part and all that.

We eventually got that, so okay, whatever.

We we can fix that next year.

But the the typos and the goldenrod, this and that, it's just it's a lot.

So I would think the first step is a budget committee, would be to send it back and wait until it comes in correctly, I guess.

Hold on, send it.

Thank you, Mr.

Chairman.

So I actually I actually had a specific question on this on the back of the response uh regarding some of the detail I had asked about.

Um Miss Karen's still here, so that's good.

Um so if I understood correctly, it sounds like the decision to half fund the proposed uh strategic communication salary was uh a strategic decision, understanding that we're not going to be um uh funding that or filling that role until July with the or January, sorry, would this pass?

Um are the numbers in here for um benefits, FICA, Medicare, what have you, are those in here contemplated at the partial funding?

Is that right?

Um yes, they are in there as the partial funding because that was the plan.

All right.

Those those are the sort of just I understand typographical errors, and I understand that these things happen, but those are the inconsistencies that make this really hard to track.

Because we're we're basically talking about the four elements that make up a single salary, and three of them are right, but one of them's not, and I'd say probably the bulk of it is the one that's not.

You know, it's even for somebody finance-minded, that can be really scattering the focus.

Thank you.

Ms.

Johnson?

Thank you very much.

How are we going to address?

I keep coming back to this, the um unaffiliated employees from ordinance 25-063 that we're just taking it out of the budget because it was put in here that they're and we had to remove it.

Are we going to take this up separately?

Are we going to just vote and pass it with the goldenrod copy?

I don't think the unaffiliated situation is in the goldenrod copy at all.

Further resolved.

Am I correct here?

Director.

Join in right, uh CFO.

The um unaffiliated was addressed in the proposed budget, and there if there were any.

I don't think there were any corrections, but there was nothing directly related to the unaffiliated adjustment in the golden rod.

The only way to address the unaffiliated is if somebody in the budget committee makes a motion to reinstore that, and it would have to be approved by a majority vote of the budget committee.

Follow-up.

And that's that 450,000 dollars, right?

That was approved last year, I believe.

Was that the amount that was in that ordinance?

Something to that?

I don't have the exact amount.

It was four percent.

I know that I can get you the exact amount that would be great.

Send it out to the budget committee.

Thank you, actually, send it out to the entire board.

Yes, certainly.

Thank you.

I'm sorry, now I do have to needle a little.

Um Ms.

Enray.

Is FICA Medicare still 7.65% of the salary?

Yes.

FICA Medicare for this um contemplated position is listed at the full funding.

Okay.

So there are additional changes that would need to be made on this goldenrod copy.

Okay.

Thank you.

Okay.

There's nothing else.

Uh Mr.

Chairman, I would like to make a motion that we table uh 26028.

Motion on the floor is the table of the budget 026028 to the next meeting.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Opposed.

Motion carries.

Next item in the agenda is public comment.

Is there anybody here that wishes to testify in public comment?

Seeing no one.

General discussion.

Alderman Thibault.

Thank you.

Um back to Alderman Sennett's point.

So if the FICA is wrong on that particular salary, if there's other salaries that are wrong on that goldenrod sheet, is the FICA wrong on those two?

Like, do we have to start looking at all the affiliate not affiliate I don't mean to use that term?

The anything that's connected to a salary to see if the benefits are correctly in there too.

Because I assume based on what you had said that all the benefits and stuff were correct.

It was just the salaries that were wrong, but now it sounds like that's not true.

I've made a note and I will come back with um with a report.

Okay of the store.

Mr.

Chairman, I'd like to make the motion to adjourn.

Motion on the floor is to adjourn.

All in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Opposed?

Motion carries.

We're adjourned at 8 36 p.m.