City Manager's Report 10/20/2008
Tax Rate
Our tax rate has been set by DRA at $29.82 per thousand. This is $.25 lower than last year's rate of $30.07. The drop was due to some higher actual final state revenue figures as well as a lower county tax.
New Hampshire Fire Service and Emergency Medical Services Committee of Merit
On Wednesday, October 8, 2008, at the Capitol Center for t he Arts in Concord, Captain Rob Jewett, Lts. Roland Cloutier and Steven Vien and FF's Mark Dube and Ray Dube received a Unit Citation for their performance in the January 2007 Main Street Fire. Captain Jewett also received the Paul W. Sypek Medal of Valor which is the highest award given by the Committee of Merit for conspicuous bravery and extreme risk of life above and beyond the call of duty in an effort to protect and save a human life. In addition, Lt. Brad Supry and Cpls. Don Gendron and Kerry Theriault of the Berlin Police Department were given Certificates of Meritorious Service for their actions at that same fire. This ceremony was attended by the Governor as well as Mayor Bertrand and Councilors Donovan, McCue and Lafleur.
Public Works Facility Stair Award
The Public Works stair project to provide a second means of egress to the PWD facility has been recently bid twice. The first time two bids were received, and the low bid was around $45,000. Because there were only two bids and the low bid provided their own set of terms, it was decided to rebid. This time the low bid was Cross Machine at $42,300. The other bidders were from southern NH and out of state. Cross Machine has been awarded the contract. These stairs will be made of galvanized steel. The high bid of the four bids received this time was $75,800.
Route 110 Phase II Schedule
The latest on the Route 110 Phase II project is that Federal Highways is no longer requiring the community impact study which they were asking for before. It sounds as though the clear position of the public with respect to that project at the recent public hearing is having a positive effect on the project. The NHDOT will be working with City staff on the schedule for the environmental impact study. I have attached a copy of the latest schedule for the project provided by the NHDOT. No one should rely on this schedule as there have been many such schedules in the past. However, at least this one is moving in the right direction and there may be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Roger Brooks Branding Presentation
The Coos County Branding presentation which occurred last week at the White Mountain Regional High School in Whitefield was very interesting and contained a lot of good ideas which if followed should help greatly to improve the attractiveness of the region to a much broader population base. The approach suggested is to capitalize on the fact that our region is probably the only region in the country with three major grand resorts - the Mt. Washington, the Mountain View and the Balsams. Using those three major attractions as the draw which makes us a reason for wanting to take a day or couple of days to come to Coos County, and then using all the attractions as diversions from those three main draws is the basic idea behind the brand of "New Hampshire Grand".
StayWARM NH Initiative
Attached is a memo from Amy Ignatius, the Director of the NH Office of Energy and Planning which describes the Governor's StayWarm NH initiative for anticipating this winter's energy needs and problems. Because of the run up in energy prices this year, the City has also been working on an emergency plan for dealing with situations where there is no heat. Hopefully, the recent decline in energy prices will attenuate the situation so that we don't have to use these plans.
North Country Regional Coordinated Transit Plan
The North Country Council will be hosting five public meetings throughout the North Country to take input regarding the updating of the Regional Coordinated Transit Plan. Descriptive material regarding these meetings is attached. The meeting in the Berlin area will be held at AVH on Tuesday, November 11, 2008 from 4-6pm.
North Woods Animal Rescue, Inc.
Attached is a flier which indicates that a new non-profit has been formed in Berlin for the purpose of dealing with the problem of pets which are not properly cared for. The Council may recall that a few years ago there was an effort led by a local citizen and the Animal Shelter people in Conway to establish an animal shelter in Berlin. That effort did not result in adequate funding to establish such a shelter. The effort did however point out the fact that there are many dogs and particularly cats which are not properly cared for in the City and which end up being a problem for other citizens and the Police Department. Hopefully, this effort will have more success in dealing with the problem.
Police Donut Headlines
The donuts which the Berlin Police were selling at the RiverFire event were apparently so delicious (according to my grandchildren) that they made national news. The story was picked up by the wire services and reported throughout the country. Roger Brooks may have to change the brand to "New Hampshire Heart Attack."