Here’s a look at last Friday’s city newsletter:
Upcoming meetings
City meetings are held in person in Council Chambers at 37 Green St (unless otherwise specified on the City’s calendar). Upcoming meetings include:
City Council: Feb. 13 at 7 p.m.
Planning Board: Feb. 15 at 7 p.m.
Zoning Board of Adjustment meetings now begin at 6 p.m.
Visit concordnh.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx for City Council and Planning Board agendas, which are posted prior to the meetings. View the City calendar for more meetings and events.
City Sells Tax-Exempt General Obligation Bonds
The City of Concord is very pleased to report that it received competitive bids on Jan. 25 for a $13.560 million 20-year general obligation bond issue. The City received 11 bids in connection with the sale, and Fidelity Capital Markets purchased the bonds at an average interest rate of 2.938%. Bond proceeds will be used to fund various capital improvement projects approved by the City Council. Prior to the sale, Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings, a municipal bond credit rating agency, affirmed the City’s bond rating of AA+. The agency cited the City’s strong economy, very strong management, strong financial policies and practices, very strong budgetary flexibility, very strong liquidity and very strong institutional framework as positive credit factors.
Winter Weather Safety Tip
With all of the recent snowfall, it is important to ensure your heating vents are not impeded by snow and ice. Please remove the snow around the fresh air and exhaust pipes. Carbon monoxide poisoning is entirely preventable. The CDC reports that every year, at least 430 people die in the U.S. from accidental CO poisoning. Approximately 50,000 people in the U.S. visit the emergency department each year due to accidental CO poisoning. Please stay safe during this winter weather!
Beaver Meadow winter activities
Mother Nature has finally given us the snow we’ve been waiting for. Come check out the cross-country ski trails being created with the new groomer. Many thanks to everyone involved in helping make this purchase possible, especially the Ski the Beav group. Just a reminder that the trails at Beaver Meadow are free of charge and a great way to enjoy the outdoors. For more information about winter activities in Concord, and to access a cross-country trails map and trail rules, visit this web page: concordnh.gov/1410/Winter-Activities.
Winter operations
Concord General Services crews have been very busy this past week working around the clock to battle snowstorm after snowstorm. Crews have been doing their best to work as quickly and efficiently as possible to clear streets and sidewalks. Please be aware that streets take first priority and that sidewalks are taking longer to clear than usual because of how much snow we are getting. For this much snow, crews have to use snow blowers for sidewalks instead of plows, which takes longer, but is more efficient.
The City of Concord has issued five winter parking bans so far this season – all within this last week (three city-wide storm event bans and two downtown maintenance bans). Trash and recycling collection also got postponed on Monday due to the snowstorm, delaying collection by one day through the week. Sign up for winter parking ban and trash delay alerts at http://www.concordnh.gov/notifyme or by downloading the MyConcordNH app. Alerts are also shared on the City website, social media, and to subscribers of our General Gazette newsletter.
Winter parking bans help crews more efficiently clear snow from streets. Cars parked on the street can impede snow removal and block plows on narrow streets. We appreciate if people can avoid parking on the street during snowstorms, even if a parking ban is not issued. Violators of parking bans are subject to receiving a ticket and being towed by Concord Police.
Winter parking bans require all vehicles to be removed from indicated streets between midnight and 7 a.m. for snow removal operations. Free parking is available in the City garages on weekends, observed holidays, and Monday through Friday from 7 p.m. to 8 a.m. for permit/lease spaces (marked with signage) and until 9 a.m. for metered spaces. Penacook residents may park at the Canal Street Municipal Parking Lot at the corner of Village Street and Canal Street near Chief’s Restaurant. Although this lot is posted for no overnight parking, the City’s Parking Division will suspend this regulation during city-wide winter parking bans to accommodate Penacook residents.
Watch our winter operations video for details on how road crews perform snow removal for Concord. Crews work as quickly and efficiently as possible to plow the 220 center line miles (440 lane miles) of streets and 90 miles of sidewalks throughout the city on a priority level basis.
Thank you to all of our snowplow operators and winter laborers for working hard to provide safe conditions of streets, sidewalks, and public spaces. We appreciate all of the support from the community and thank everyone for their patience as crews continue snow removal throughout the city.
Visit http://www.concordnh.gov/winteroperations to learn more about the City’s winter operations and plowing priorities.
Kiwanis Park Open Space Corridor Meeting
On Jan. 19, the City held a public meeting to help create a Master Plan for Kiwanis Riverfront Park and Merrimack River Recreation and Open Space Corridor. In this year’s budget we have funds approved to undertake a Community Visioning Charrette to establish a master plan for Kiwanis Park, the Everett Arena, and City owned agricultural land between Terrill Park and Loudon Road (collectively referred to as the Merrimack River Recreation and Open Space Corridor). The goal of the process is to develop a comprehensive vision and strategy for these assets. From this process, a definitive Master Plan shall be developed and implemented for these properties. More information at concordnh.gov/1920/Kiwanis-Park. Thank you Concord TV for capturing this footage, which can be view at youtube.com/watch? v=k1x7rAUdjLk&feature=youtu.be.
Check Out The Library of Things
Try a musical instrument, borrow a helpful tool or gadget, or find a new hobby or past-time! The Library of Things is designed to help you save money by allowing you to borrow an item to try before you decide whether to buy it. View the different items in the collection and learn more by visiting our Library of Things webpage at concordnh.gov/1365/Library-of-Things.
