Every week, City Manager Tom Aspell digs into his cluttered cupboards for his recipe Rolodex. He flips through it until he finds his old family recipe, passed down from generation to generation. He gathers the ingredients, mixes them up and puts them in the oven at 400 degrees. Twenty minutes later, voila! A city memo. We at the Insider scarf down the memo as fast as we can fill our chubby little cheeks, but we saved the leftovers for you! Enjoy.
taxing announcement
New tax rates are in
The New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration has established the 2011 property tax rates for Concord and Penacook, Aspell writes. The 2011 tax rate for Concord is $24.60 and the tax rate for Penacook is $26.75, broken down as follows:
Concord: city rate, $8.72; local education, $10.39; state education, $2.59; county rate, $2.90.
Penacook: city rate, $8.72; local education, $12.57; state education, $2.56; county rate, $2.90.
Tax bills are anticipated to be mailed no later than Nov. 28. The third installment is due Jan. 2, 2012, and the final installment for the 2011 tax year will be due March 31, 2012.
The check’s in the mail
City nabs grant funds
This week, the EPA formally awarded the city $125,000 in technical assistance through its targeted brownfields program for environmental assessment of property located at 5 and 11 Canal Street in Penacook, Aspell writes. On Sept. 30, the city entered into a purchase and sales agreement for those properties. Pending the results of environmental studies and other due diligence, a closing has been set for early February 2012. Assuming the properties are ultimately acquired, the city plans to redevelop them in conjunction with the nearby tannery site in order to create a riverfront park, as well as to expand the Canal Street municipal parking lot. With this award of technical assistance, the city has secured $1.125 million in grant funds/technical assistance from the EPA for cleanup and revital-ization of property in Penacook since June 2010. The EPA will contract directly with Nobis Engineering of Concord in order to complete the required environmental due diligence.
Walk this way
New signals installed
New countdown pedestrian signals have been installed at the following six intersections, Aspell writes: North Main Street at Boutin/Interstate 393; North Main Street at Washing-ton/Ferry Streets; North Main Street at Loudon Road/Centre Street; North State Street at Centre Street; Clinton Street at Broadway/South Streets (McKee Square); and Pleasant Street at Fruit/Warren streets.
The new signals indicate the initial pedestrian WALK display (which lasts 4-7 seconds to initiate the crossing) followed by the flashing DON’T WALK interval, including a countdown timer which shows the number of seconds left to fully complete the street crossing. Conversion of our older pedestrian signals to the new countdown type began in 2009 in the Exit 14 area of Loudon Road, as well as at new signal locations along North State Street, Fisherville Road, and at the Clinton Street/Langley Parkway intersection. This conversion will be accommodated citywide as other signal intersections are programmed for upgrading over the coming years.
Installation of the countdown displays at these six intersections is fully funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program. This program is also funding the replacement of our older incandescent pedestrian signal displays with new, energy-efficient LED displays at 17 other intersections across the city.
you’re hired
Loureiro gets the job
The city recently completed a request for proposals process and hired Loureiro Engineering Associates of Merrimack to provide environmental consulting services for the cleanup of the tannery site at 27-35 Canal St. in Penacook, Aspell writes. The total cost of the LEA contract is $72,992, of which the EPA is paying 80 percent through the city’s $600,000 grant, which was awarded in June. A kick-off meeting was recently held with the city, LEA, the EPA and the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. Preparation of various EPA documents, as well as bid specifications, will occur over the next few months, Aspell writes. It is anticipated that actual cleanup work at the site will begin in early May 2012. As part of the RFP process, LEA and Nobis Engineering of Concord (runner up to LEA for the tannery work) were awarded on-call environmental engineering contracts with the city, which will be in effect for three years.
moving day
Hospital in new digs
Concord Hospital’s Penacook Family Physicians practice moved into its new building at 4 Crescent St. last week, Aspell writes. The hospital is occupying approximately 9,600-square feet of the 15,000-square foot building. DEW Construction, developer of the project, and the hospital are working to coordinate a formal ribbon cutting, which is anticipated to occur within the next few weeks. Finishing touches for the project, such as dumpster enclosures and establishment of lawn areas, will be completed in the spring. In the meantime, Aspell writes, the developer is continuing to seek tenants for the remaining 5,400-square feet of the project.
ready to roll
Realignment complete
The realignment of Airport Road with Integra Drive is complete and open to traffic, Aspell writes. Traffic signals will be installed in early 2012. Airport Road and Integra Drive will operate under a stop control until that time. Next week, the contractor will install drainage and select material on the new section of Broke Bridge Road. Comcast will be working on Integra Drive most of next week.