City of Portsmouth, New Hampshire 2022 - 2024 City Council, 16 May 2022

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From YouTube: 5.16.2022 City Council

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5.16.2022 City Council

A

Which is a lot to prepare for yeah within four days? Our package is over 600.

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Thank you, everyone, and, and welcome to tonight's uh council meeting um before uh we get uh started.

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And call the role I just wanted to take a a few moments to reflect on the the previous meeting.

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um And there was a lot of people reached out and and asked about the civil discourse and the amount.

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Of participation and the tone of participation- and I wanted to take a moment to apologize.

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To the the city manager, um there were a few speakers that called her out uh specifically.

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And I'm a big believer that the nine of us up here you know we sign up for.

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Everything we get, um you run yeah, you, you put your name on a ballot, everything that comes with it.

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You know people are going to disagree and- and they can be disagreeable uh when you're, when you're in.

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Political office but there's a different standard for the staff. uh The staff uh carries out uh the.

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uh The policy that we make and we direct and if there's a problem with the actions of the.

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Staff that really comes down to a problem, the council- I would love everybody to be.

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Civil all the time I think portsmouth deserves it. I think you know we have a.

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Great city full of great people, um and- and I think that we represent that city up here.

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And you represent that city out there uh in the chamber, and I really do hope that as we discuss.

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And contentious items come to the forefront, we think about that um and just treat others.

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uh As as we would want uh to be treated but again, you know this started with apology. No endo apology.

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I want to be a better mayor and I think portsmouth deserves that. If I I fall short, you can let.

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Me, let me know, and you know my dad gave me the greatest gift of all and that's naming me deglan.

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So you know nothing bothers me after I made it through third grade, so um I I just I.

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I love our city and I know everybody does too and sometimes we we get a little hot under the collar.

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But I hope that we can be what port smith deserves and that's a great representative democracy that.

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That comes together to solve issues. So with that uh kelly, can you please call the roll? Yes mayor.

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Mayor mcgregor, here assistant mayor kelly, here counselor chamber here, counselor denton here.

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Councilman ro here, council bagley here, council lombardi here, council blaylock council cook here.

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And tonight portsmouth, I would love for everyone here and watching at home to remember.

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Bill elwell, who, who passed um you know, there's there's not many people that.

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Represent what's uh good and just and committed uh than build it and our thoughts and prayers.

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Go out to his family and I'd ask for a moment of silences. Remember bill.

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Please join me in the pledge of allegiance.

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I pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to.

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The republic for which it stands, one nation, under god, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

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Now we have a proclamation national public works week. This might be cleverly timed to align with.

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Budget season, uh but I believe uh that it is, uh it is definitely deserving uh and the folks.

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Guys and gals of the dpw deserve uh this this week and and I look forward to reading this.

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Whereas the american public works association has declared may 15th through 21st as public.

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Works week nationwide and whereas the portsmouth department of public works through its engineering.

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Facilities, gis parks and greenery parkering recycling, roads and sidewalks storm water.

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Water and wastewater divisions is responsible for providing services to residents and businesses.

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Alike: everything from ensuring safe drinking water, a cleaner environment and safe roads and bridges.

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To keeping our parks and gardens beautiful and our streets, clear, snow, and whereas the hundred and.

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Fifty men and women of the department of public works could adopt the famous post office motto.

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Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of.

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Their appointed rounds and whereas the city of portsmouth is considered the gold standard.

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In terms of public works, professional recognition, our arborist make us an arbor day foundation tree.

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City, our waste water, our water wastewater, stormwater division has won awards for the.

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Pearce island wastewater treatment facility from the water environment federation, the associated.

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Builders and contractors of new hampshire and the american council of engineering companies.

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Of massachusetts and from the new hampshire water works association and whereas members of the dpw.

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Crew were responsible for helping to rescue a man who was trapped in the salt piles last year, but.

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Probably helped prevent accidents and rescue cats, dogs, duckling and children on a weekly basis and.

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Whereas portsmouth dpw is centrally responsible for ensuring that the city fulfills its goals.

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To be an equal municipality and whereas the american public works association has adopted the.

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Theme ready and resilient for public's work week, 2022 to remind the public of the responsibility.

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The department has 24 7, even during a pandemic, to maintain the infrastructure facilities.

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Emergency management systems and services that are vital importance to sustainability.

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And resilient communities and the public health, high quality of life and well-being of the people.

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Now, therefore, I daiglynn mccarron mayor of the city of portsmouth, on behalf of the members of.

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The city council and citizens of portsmouth do hereby proclaim, may 15 through the 21st.

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As portsmouth public works week and urge all portsmouth citizens to take a moment to thank.

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The men and women of the portsmouth department of public works for the services they provide.

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Given with my hand, in the seal of the city of portsmouth on this 16th day of may 2022, thank you.

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There's no minutes to accept.

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There I will give this and peter you can grab that at some point.

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And now um recognition and volunteer uh committee reports, um we have.

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A uh we have somebody tonight that um well I'm proud to to call a friend and and.

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Everybody in portsmouth uh is proud to to serve us uh rush. L jones um police, detective.

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Is there um somebody that's gonna, come up and and speak on behalf of uh rochelle.

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How are you good evening, I'm lieutenant tondro, uh there's something you wanted to say. First well,.

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I'll I'll close it up- and I got a a coin here, but um I can start it off and we can start with.

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This um so we, when we all felt the uh I think everybody in portsmouth knew something was up.

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Well, I knew something uh was up because I drove by and route 1 was backed up and I said that's.

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Interesting, you know the bridge must be a really big tanker. uh That's that's! Coming through and.

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I got into downtown, I started seeing semi trucks everywhere. I started getting calls.

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um What's going on, and I heard uh through news reports that there was there was somebody.

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Experiencing a a mental health crisis and was on the 95 bridge and through road noise, it.

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Needed to be shut down when and it's it's funny thinking about it, because I I thought you know.

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um If there's anybody up there, I honestly thought of rochelle. That's probably because I talked to.

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You uh more than than most cops and- and you have just a way about you, but you popped into my head.

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And I don't know if that was uh divine or not. But when I heard the reports later um that.

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You had used your recent training uh to to meet uh the person uh where they were.

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To be a friend to be accessible and to communicate, none of that surprised.

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Me and I don't think it surprised portsmouth to hear that on that day,.

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With that man's darkest hour, uh you were the best example uh of our city uh of our police department,.

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And I think to a person in portsmouth we were all so very proud uh of you um of the department.

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uh That that that trained you and and focused on these types of of interventions, it made me.

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Incredibly, proud to to be the mayor, I'm sure it made every counselor incredibly proud to be able.

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To sit on this deus and I feel so fortunate to be able to present you uh this coin. This is a coin.

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It states on it uh the city of the open door and then it has our seal on there, and I love telling.

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The story of the the city of the open door, because doors don't stay open on their own. uh They require.

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A lot of effort to open in the first place and we find doors all over the place that we need to open.

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uh This isn't the first door uh that you've opened uh officer jones. It won't be the last.

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And you've kept uh the doors open uh on on your watch and and for that uh we are just.

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uh Incredibly grateful so can the the folks here join me in a round of applause for officer jones.

C

I've only given this out a couple of times, one of them in the united states.

E

Thank you very much. Thank you. The microphone is yours. If you'd want to say anything first, I.

B

Don't want you to answer. Thank you. Thank you very much for all you do. Thank you for your service.

F

I get you for that. One thank.

D

Yeah I just like to from the police department side of the house say a few things and uh I was.

D

Not there that day, but I've certainly heard the facts and how the uh how the call played out.

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Afterwards, through a debrief, so knowing michelle as long as I've known her and to kind of echo.

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What you said mayor certainly not surprised at the outcome. You know critical incidents like these. We.

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Hope they don't happen, but when they do, we have to be prepared to make sure that we can uh peacefully.

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Resolve them, and obviously this resolution on this day is exactly what you know: we train for.

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And we hope for and again I'm not surprised at all, knowing rochelle and knowing her she's a fixture.

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To our community born and raised everyone knows her: she can build rapport with anyone.

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And we often call upon her to help us out in doing that. But again, I'm I'm not surprised and I'm I'm.

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Thankful that she was there to help out, uh as is often the case with policing in our world.

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uh It's a collective team effort and there are a lot of men and women up there on that.

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Day trying to solve that puzzle and try to get that uh that man into a better place.

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And I was happy to hear that you know detective jones was there to help out and and to represent.

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Our agency well and obviously help to to resolve it. It's indicative of or she is.

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Indicative of the quality of police officer that we have here in portsmouth and we're fortunate.

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That, when these things happen, people like detective jones are there and the quality and.

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Of the services that we provide are second to none, so.

D

Again, she's well deserving of these of this recognition. I appreciate you taking the time.

D

To recognize her, it's well deserved, so I'm not surprised. I will give her the mic. Thank you again.

A

That was off the cuff. That was not planned. Thank you very much. um Thank you. You know. Thank you.

A

All of you, I think this is the first time I've been recognized by city council. My.

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Career and I really appreciate it and it's nice to look at you and know all of you.

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From personal interaction, um I want to thank everybody that was on the bridge that day.

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Especially my team leader who showed up and when he showed up and he's the negotiation team leader.

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I just joined the team, I'm thankful to have been brought on it, but also you know, aside from the.

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Police officers that were there that day, I happen to be in the spotlight, but that is something.

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That officers are doing every day all the time multiple times a day. You know for our community.

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um But also I I really was thankful to the citizens that were being patient. That day.

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And knew that there was something wrong and they weren't fighting. You know with.

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With officers about traffic or anything like that, that was really incredible.

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And I'm very thankful to our friend on the bridge that found the strength and courage to trust and.

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To try another day it's been overwhelming, um I did not expect to be called to this. This was not.

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Something we would have considered a call out. You know I was just asked to go and talk to somebody.

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That I knew nothing about and I learned a lot about him and we learned about each other in.

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Those 25 minutes and that really comes from the training from the department. I'm very thankful.

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That I have a department that supports me to be able to be in this position and to give that type.

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Of training to all of us, I'm very thankful for all the citizens that I work with throughout the years.

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You know people in social work, support services, just humans, that remind me how to be a person and.

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Allow me to be a person in the position of an officer. I've never felt like we were separated.

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I've always felt like we're in this together, and those were the words that I used with him.

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And I believed that- and I know that you all believed that so I'm very thankful.

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For all that- and you know, I think, there's so many people that obviously it's mental health awareness.

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Month and there's so many of us that have been touched by that personally, professionally.

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And you know I feel, like everybody is talking somebody off that parochial bridge. You know even.

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If that means ourselves, so if anybody you know is listening other than who's in this room, I just.

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Always want to encourage them to not give up to trust another day. Everybody is a hero to somebody.

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You know and if you decide to live another day and try again, then you certainly have the opportunity.

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To inspire somebody else to do the same, and I also want to thank my mate, who has heard the story. A.

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Million times and acts like he's, heard it for the first time and my best friend as well, that are my.

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Family and support me to be who I am so I can better serve the city. I love you guys. Thank you.

B

Thank you again officer jones. Now I will say we're going to start public comment. um You do.

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Not need to stay for the rest of the meeting if you there's no celtics game to go to tonight,.

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But if there's uh because they're playing tomorrow, um but if, uh if you'd like to to.

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Take off, please feel free to do so, and we will start our public comment with our first speaker.

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Roy housel, the topic of audit committee meeting and remember, if you're planning to speak at.

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Home uh just have your hand raised in the next minute or two, so we can account for the time.

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Roy housel, 777 middle road unit 22., I was out of town and I was planning to go to the audit meeting.

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And I get in and I come to the audit meeting at two wide and get until late at night. And I got.

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To the automation- and I nobody was here so I found out that the meeting already took place.

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But when does this announcement that they keep changing? I thought we were supposed to get a.

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Few days on it, but I understand that the audit committee, which represents the citizens here.

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Recommended somebody else to be audited, be our auditors and it doesn't sound good because.

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We have auditors that have been for 20 some years, the same auditor and it sounds like.

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They're, hiding something maybe and people are suspicious of it, and I think that we should be.

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Have an explanation why they didn't accept the audit that was recommended by the committee.

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That's all I have to say thank you. Thank you. Roy uh next up, uh rich duddy skate park, fundraiser.

B

I think this might have something to do with these. Oh, okay, they're mine, it's a secret all right.

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You told me about it before you, mr mayor city, council. My name is rich duddy.

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56 sweat avenue, portsmouth, I'm going to condense 10 minutes worth of influence to three all right.

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I'm a member of the rec board, I'm also on the skateboard park committee and I'm here to remind.

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The city council, about our upcoming event june 9th from 6 to 10 at 3si on each corner.

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There is a skateboard deck. These are two examples of the decks that we will be auctioning off.

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The one with the three monkeys is actually done by a portsmouth high school student.

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And if you would pass that along, so the others can see, the one on this side is actually done by.

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An auto body shop and here again, if you would like to pass that along.

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We have decks from artists, students, auto body shops and many of the items to be auctioned. The.

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Tickets are at 3s art, space website or at the door we have limited tickets. So I would advise you to.

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Get it on the website, all the proceeds are going for funding the lighting at the skateboard pack.

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And I'm done and any questions feel free well, rich. We can't take uh questions during public.

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Comment but I appreciate you coming up my daughter just bought a skateboard for the first time so.

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Look forward to bringing her to this. This looks really cool. We have about 24 of those.

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We're going to have raffles so that the teenagers can can participate.

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We're going to have raffles also we're going to have uh silent auction and live auction.

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So it's going to be a lot of fun, 6 to 10, 3s and june 9th, so feel free to come, we'll be there and.

C

I'm going to collect two decks so that some of the skateboarders up there don't make them disappear.

B

Next up uh gerald duffy with the topic of civic discourse.

G

My son's a skateboarder, he would just go wild over one of those uh gerald. Duffy 428 pleasant street.

G

um Mr mayor councillors, uh the new mayor has set a different tone in the council chamber. I personally.

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Love it and it's healthy and I'm grateful. The broader public has have noticed and appreciate.

G

It, I imagine so do city staff. The mayor, makes a point of warmly welcoming all speakers, regardless.

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Of their demeanor, his expectation is that elected officials have to develop a thick skin.

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The mayor tries to set a higher bar for civility, for instance, he.

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uh Reasonably asked citizens to dial back the kind of applause that amplifies division.

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In contentious issues, he is as respectful and gracious amer, as we could possibly hope for.

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Given that what happened in this chamber two weeks ago, disturbed me one resident compared.

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The city attorney's actions regarding the mcintyre project of vladimir putin's domestic propaganda.

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Campaign against uh denazifying ukraine, it's that serious. He said a former councillor and planning.

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Board member sitting next to her responded to the mayor's appeal regarding applause by waving their.

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Arms after people they agreed with spoke middle schoolers, would know better than that. A planning.

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Board member applauding himself as he left the podium. Finally, our former mayor complained that he.

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Was bullied from coast to coast then laid into our city manager, whom parliamentary protocol prevents.

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From defending herself, I know the women on the dais can take really good care of themselves.

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But a 21st century man has to know the women are sick of being talked at.

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Talked down to talked over and otherwise diminished by men for generations.

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I'd like to remind the previous council that they lost in spectacular fashion last november, I.

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Know from experience that losing can be a a great teacher. I've lost more fencing bouts than I've won.

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But when I lose a fight, I ask myself how I contributed to my own defeat and I try.

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To figure out how to improve next time, I don't blame my opponent or suspect him of foul play and.

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I certainly don't presume to give him unsolicited advice. I know some people will go to their graves.

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Believing michael caine paid, someone usually me to slip some weird zombie stuff into the portsmouth.

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Water supply and make thousands of residents go bonkers and vote for the wrong candidates.

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But there's a simpler explanation: the former incumbents had their chance at governing.

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Voters preferred an alternative. Former incumbents have insights. The city can benefit from.

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But they know better than anyone that little gets accomplished by grandstanding at the podium.

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They know that working for change requires more than sounding off. It requires.

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Interactive time with elective officials and city staff to their credit, some of them are.

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Doing this in committee sessions, if they hope to be taken seriously in portsmouth civic life,.

G

I urge them to dial back the political theater and respect the spirit and decency.

G

This council brings to the chamber. Thank you very much and have a productive evening.

B

Next up, randy white, uh with the subject of the parking program, that's right right, get that.

G

Right will you randy wright? My name is randy wright. I live on sudbury street in portsmouth.

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And seems like the theme today is how great it is to live in portsmouth, and I can't agree more.

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You're here, because you love this city, I'm here for the same reason, why speak to you today not.

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Because I want special treatment or I'm a character that has to have his own private.

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Parking place, I speak from my heart now. I've lived in that neighborhood that I'm talking about.

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Because I heard today I found these notes on my doors and the people knocking on my doors.

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Because I've been a pest about this subject for 30 years, because I see what it did to my neighborhood.

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When I first moved, excuse me moved there wasn't an issue. It was a pretty nasty neighborhood, but.

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As the neighborhood became, what it is, the parking issue became intolerable, and uh you know thanks to.

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People like nancy carmer, who gave us money to do that park over and whatever I I'm sure, you'll all.

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Agree that that area has come quite a ways and we five houses sold in the past few months and.

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Three of them were in uh seven figures, so uh I speak from my heart. I can't say enough: I cannot.

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Express enough to you what your pilot program, which would be the program, uh has done. It has.

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Given us back a neighborhood, kids and people are actually moving in and having babies.

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We have kids learning how to ride their bicycle in the street. We've got that beautiful park.

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The guys came in the last few years and put all new plumbing in a new streets and new sidewalks.

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You've invested in that neighborhood. All of you have the people who sat in your seats.

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Have spent a lot of time- and I can't even fathom any of you accepting the fact that.

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People go by your beautiful garages, they go buy the money you're spending on the old garages, the.

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Renovations you're doing to the parking spaces in this city to go over into my neighborhood to park.

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Because this is not rocket science, this is what they will do and I have proven it. Eight o'clock.

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In the morning no spaces, eight fifteen- you couldn't park a bicycle on my street because.

G

People see the parking place and they park for free for eight hours. Five days a week, minimum.

G

Now I implore you, you have taken care of the retailers you have taken care. Lord knows the.

G

Restaurant tours and, of course, the tourists- I am a resident, we need this program and I know.

G

A lot of you are afraid of this program, because you're going to say well they're going to want it.

G

They're going to want it, it's going to happen because people are not going to put up with it.

G

Out of sheer frustration- and you deserve to utilize the garages that you've spent.

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The money on and these people have them to park in and they should.

G

Not in front of my house, thank you all very much. I appreciate hearing thank you. Randy wright,.

B

Next up sue polladora with the subject of the economy and budget.

H

Hi super lidora 245 middle and um I never thought that I would be speaking about the economy and.

H

Budgets, two is two subjects that I tried to avoid the most throughout my career. I did something.

H

Totally different, but I was very well aware of the national picture and I just wanted to bring this.

H

Point to you, I've already spoken about this last time when I, when I mentioned about the national.

H

Economy and the effects that happen when the national economy numbers don't make sense, so.

H

They go down. The dow was down 5 000 points in four weeks now this didn't even happen on the recession.

H

In 1986 or the recession in 2006, so the recession in 2000 is a big big number and when that happens,.

H

It hits your 401k if you're working and it hits your iras if you're retired, which means.

H

That many of our retirees, depending on their income, being partly subsidized by the iras.

H

Have taken a hit and those are the people that are your comment, your constituents.

H

They're gonna have to be dealing with that evaluations and they.

H

uh They're gonna have to be dealing with an increase in the water and sewage. You cannot.

H

Actually you can, but you should keep these things in mind when you're dealing with.

H

The income of the people that you were elected to governor or over.

H

What private companies usually do during this time? Because their stock is devalued? They either.

H

Buy a bag if they have money, if not, they reduce their force or they have a reduction in force.

H

um Many companies will have to look at this very closely with all the covet and all that it.

H

Will happen at some point so uh to see that the city council is doing the exact opposite rather.

H

Than either keeping it the same or finding ways of making your uh the administration of the city lean.

H

Leaner you're doing the opposite: 27 new positions really um now. My question about the budget is the.

H

Last budget was passed was for 20 123 million, which I'm only going to do the the whole amount.

H

And I have a ques, I have a couple of questions about that. uh Why was that not used as a base.

H

For the calculation for the new budget was 102 million, 23 million dollars the base. That is.

H

Being used for the this budget is 126.. Thank you, sir. That went by fast, but I'll come back.

B

I know you will next up, uh we have esther kennedy on the waste water treatment plant.

I

Good evening, everyone, esther kennedy, 41 pickering ave and um I started my career in fighting the.

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Wastewater treatment plant um and making sure that it was built right after years and years and years.

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I organized with others to sue the city on the wastewater treatment.

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Plant, it was based on the fact that we did not believe it was going to be built right.

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Or was not, the situation was not being handled right. um Ideally, it would have been up at peace.

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With a line back to pierce to pump out to the ocean what was clean water now, we.

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Got another dilemma and you have a public hearing coming up or a public work session.

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Coming up on wednesday night on the wastewater treatment, plant, drinking water and storm water.

I

We have had cso events in dry times, that's against epa folks, so I want to know what's going on and I.

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Figure wednesday night's at a perfect opportunity to give us an update of why we're seeing csos.

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If you know where I live, I live right next to the outflow of south mill pond and I've.

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Noticed a little interesting stuff. Why we're seeing csos in dry events when there's no rain.

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Which, when I say cso for those who don't know it's suicide, actually is being pumped.

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In the south mill pond um and then it goes out into the ocean without being treated.

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And these are recorded, there's five of us that are on the cso link. I believe, because it's.

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They put all our addresses up and for emails and then there's also a tweet for csos.

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This is an opportunity for people coming up this next month to question the epa.

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On our consent, decree on your agreement, so for those people in the public, I would encourage.

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You to research this and let the epa know that we as a city are dumping effluent into our waterways.

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And now again, if I'm wrong on this, because I have received these cso alerts.

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Among the five other people that received them, then please tell us on wednesday night.

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I'm giving you an opportunity to clarify what I believe is a big problem and if it's true.

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It's against the law, so I appreciate that and appreciate your time and I can't wait for.

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Wednesday night, thank you. Thank you. Esther next up, susan page trace topic, portsmouth.

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Mr mayor members of the city council, I'm going to do something.

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That I hate doing, but I'm going to do it anyway, I'm going to read you a letter.

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Because, as the city attorney would know, I would be the most appropriate person.

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To come to the defense of these two people after his help, which is a private situation,.

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Anyway, do you remember your first trip to city hall? I do whether to pay a parking ticket.

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Renew a bicycle: registration pay, real estate taxes, get a wedding license dog license register to vote.

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Go to a meeting or for any one of a hundred other reasons you walked through those doors.

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Not knowing where to go for many, a big imposing unfamiliar building with a new city for others,.

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Born here and some in this very building going to one junkins avenue, is a right of growing up.

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Portsmouth is portsmouth not just any city, usa, the city of portsmouth, new hampshire,.

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So you got through those second doors at the top of the steps you were greeted not by some.

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Ugly, billboard with arrows but a human being a friendly face asking if she could help you.

I

To be exact, one of two, ladies, no matter how bad your day has been, or you think it will be.

I

For one minute life's okay, you realize how lucky you are to live here or wish. You did.

I

A friendly kind face, just as special as portsmouth is special. Those ladies remind.

I

Us why portsmouth is uniquely portsmouth a small town friendliness in a city, a small.

I

Town way of treating people making, residents and taxpayers and visitors alike feel special, helping.

I

People the city actually cares enough and is smart enough to realize how important these ladies, are.

I

Or did they are the face of city hall? They are the face of city staff, they are the face of portsmouth.

I

To visitors, warmth and kindness, they epitomize the soul of this city. So the very next time you go to.

I

City hall, please say hi and consider thanking them for all the years that they've helped you.

I

Sadly, the city of portsmouth, while adding 27 jobs to the new budget, feels no need no longer to have.

I

These two part-time positions equals one job for the life of me. I do not understand the rationale.

I

Behind this, it's sad sad for these. Ladies sad for portsmouth, sad for who we are as a city, someone.

I

Has decided we need to just become another soulless city carrying little for those who.

I

Need help navigating the city likely there will be some billboard or fancy interactive machine.

I

But no nice face to answer your question. Thank you. I guess that's portsmouth. Thank you to those.

I

Two nice women and I say thank you for all your kindness and help you'll be missed and thank.

I

You for allowing me to go over mr mayor. Thank you. Paige next up is jonathan sandberg bikes.

J

Hi good evening my name is arthur sandberg and I live at 160 bartlett street and I'm here to.

J

Tell you that it's time for portsmouth to get serious about bikes because getting serious.

J

About bikes means getting serious about so many other issues. We say we care about.

J

According to the city website, city council voted unanimously to declare portsmouth and.

J

Eco municipality in 2007 and signed a resolution which fully acknowledges portsmouth's commitment.

J

And desire to become more sustainable using the for sustainability principles from the natural.

J

Step by making thoughtful insightful decisions that will benefit the community as a whole.

J

The first of the four steps is reduce dependence upon fossil fuels, extracted underground metals.

J

And minerals that was 15 years ago and we still haven't taken that first step.

J

To say that we're moving toward reduction of dependence on fossil fuels at a glacial rate.

J

Is an insult to glaciers, which sadly, are receding at a much faster pace and we are taking meaningful.

J

Action to prevent them from doing so getting serious about bikes means getting serious about.

J

Fiscal responsibility: we spend tens of millions of taxpayer dollars a year, building, maintaining and.

J

Managing all our roads and parking facilities, bike infrastructure by comparison is cheap.

J

Getting serious about bikes means getting serious about affordability,.

J

According to aaa the average american spends about ten thousand dollars on payments.

J

Gas and maintenance per car in 2021 with gas prices double what they were, then that number.

J

Number is likely much higher now the fact that my family is committed to replacing as many car.

J

Trips as possible with bike trips meant that we could get rid of a car. The financial savings from.

J

Which makes portsmouth affordable for us to live in as a bonus. We're able to use the space in our.

J

Garage for things more exciting than car storage consider all the additional, affordable housing.

J

Units including adus we could have if we didn't prioritize space for cars over space, for people.

J

Getting serious about bikes means getting serious about safety. Cars kill nearly forty.

J

Thousand americans each year and there are about a thousand car crashes in portsmouth every month,.

J

According to the portsmouth police department, narrowing travel lanes to accommodate bicycle.

J

Lanes reduces car speeds, making the road safer for everyone, but the most important safety improvement.

J

Comes from getting people out of their cars, which are inherently safe at any speed, getting.

J

Serious about bikes means getting serious about green space. Consider all the acres of impervious.

J

Surface in the downtown and elsewhere that could fit on the um merely for car storage.

J

Imagine all the pickleball courts that could fit on the parrot or worth lots or the amazing.

J

Rooftop gardens that could exist on the hanover or founded garage if our priorities were different.

J

I understand the political reality that there's a sizable portion of the community that use.

J

Bikes as either exercise equipment or toys for kids and I'm gonna run out of time. But.

J

You guys need to take it by seriously. Thank you, jonathan next up, liza hewitt, the topic of.

B

Representation, my name is liza hewitt. I live at 726 middle road and I am a resident of fort smith.

H

At the city council meeting two weeks ago, I clapped during public comment and.

H

I'd like to explain why, since january 6, when the new city council took office.

H

I have not felt represented as a resident and taxpayer of the city with consistent 9-0 votes.

H

I have not felt that my views and thoughts have been represented in these votes, say.

H

What you will about the previous council- and many of you have had much to say.

H

There was always someone speaking for you and whose vote was representing you when the time.

H

Came if councillor lassenby, for instance, made a motion and as a resident you did not agree. Then.

H

There was always someone else on the council who verbalized another opinion that represented you.

H

If mayor beckstead voiced an opinion, then usually councillor tabor voted the other way.

H

There was no voting bloc and everyone's voice was represented. That has not been the case recently.

H

So, two weeks ago, when you were taking a vote to spend 2.4 million dollars in a payout.

H

To red gate kane the counselors who spoke all spoke in favor during public comment.

H

There were many comments in opposition some made by people. I know some by people. I've never seen.

H

They were voices that represented me represented how I did not want my taxpayer dollars spent.

H

I clapped in agreement with those that spoke in hopes that, as a council, some of you would.

H

Recognize my concerns as a taxpayer and a resident, I will leave you with a california supreme court.

H

Summary from 1970. most of you probably weren't alive, then but 1970. I quote audience activities.

H

Such as heckling interrupting harsh questioning and booing, even though they may be impolite and.

H

Discourteous can nonetheless advance the goals of the first amendment.

H

For many citizens, such participation in public meetings, whether supportive or critical of the.

H

Speaker may constitute the only manner in which they can express their views to a large number.

H

Of people, and quote, I ask you to please be respectful of that. Thank you. Thank you. Liza.

B

Next, up arthur clow on the topic of fiscal responsibility,.

D

Arthur clough 431 pleasant street uh when I saw progress, portsmouth cup come up here and.

D

Talk about civility, I contemplated changing my subject to uh why my 10 haircut looks so.

D

Great or the miracle of uh of weight watchers, and what it's done for my boyish figure. um We have a.

D

A huge problem with civility and following the the last speaker that wrote that spoke.

D

Every one of you when you became a member of this council sword uphold the constitution.

D

Every single one of you and it's long been accepted as constitutionally protected speech.

D

To to clap, because sometimes that's all somebody has, they don't have their words.

D

And it was dismaying to hear the city manager when people resorted to sign language and.

D

Held up their hands and she said: what's with these waving hands, it's embarrassing.

D

Well, we're a little a bit embarrassed about you and we're embarrassed about how much money is.

D

Going into the budget this year and the addition of positions and the lack of consideration of.

D

Positions that ought to be temporary to use temporary funds and to be temporary positions.

D

The city of portsmouth got online and said uh from their web page and said. Ten of the positions are.

D

For covet related school positions, if they're covered related school positions, why wouldn't.

D

They respond to my questions. Are they permanent positions? Because covid is a temporary thing.

D

Every single one of you up here is supposed to be representing primarily the residents, not the city.

D

Manager, but when I I watch uh the things that get posted online, it's like the cheerleading section.

D

For the city manager, what hope do any of us have the working class.

D

People in portsmouth that are a dying breed. What chance do we have here? If none of you.

D

Are going to champion and stand up and question these expenditures and additions of positions.

D

This is your job. Your job is not to align yourself with the city manager. The city manager has a large.

D

Staff they'd be happy to increase the number of positions everybody'd like a break. I remember.

D

The days where you used to be able to go into city hall at four o'clock on a friday and pay.

D

A bill, but that went away during the bohenko era, so I am, I am having a hard time with watching the.

D

Budget hearings because I don't see any champions up there. I I heard maybe one or two questions that.

D

I thought were at least asking, but what are you guys going to cut from the budget? That is your.

D

Job not just to approve it and be cheerleaders thanks. Thank you, arthur next up, brooke stevens.

B

On the islington street parking program.

B

Is brooks here.

B

We'll go to bill downey, who I do see.

B

And if brooks shows up in three minutes, we'll we'll let him speak as well.

B

Topic of civic participation, uh bill, downey, 67, bow street.

D

uh Mayor is glad to hear that you said you were always looking to improve and I appreciate that.

D

I know I continue to learn every day and I love it and I want to speak about.

D

Your position, and hopefully it's evolving, which it sounds like it is.

D

I want to use myself an example, mr sullivan, and I have known each other a long time.

D

I disagree vehemently on his position when it comes to mcintyre. You all know that.

D

We actually shook hands in court. The other day like we might even have a beer.

D

I have never interrupted him and I can say, with great confidence, he's never interrupted me.

D

I'm a passionate guy. My dna requires it being irish, but recently I've heard counselors.

D

Get into with with people in the audience, I know it's tough. It's only reason I didn't run. I think.

D

It requires a great deal of patience, but I think it needs to go in both ways when people are at.

D

This podium, they shouldn't, be interrupted at meetings that happened recently last week and.

D

That you know I'm not asking for the house of commons, you know where they go at it with.

D

Each other, but I think, there's something to be lost if we sanitize the meetings without.

D

Some kind of applause or some kind of reaction- these are passionate issues and if you look.

D

15 people in the audience of 22 000, I think we're doing a disservice by making it all or nothing.

D

So I would hope you would consider allowing the freedom of speech as long as it's not disruptive.

D

I did a fair amount of research on this, and most attorneys will come down saying this. It has to be.

D

A legitimate disruption that means time frame between speakers where it's unsafe.

D

But, as some of the speakers said previously, a clap is is an expression and as long as it's not.

D

Disruptive, I know I've been interrupted by people in the gallery. Now, that's not going to stop me.

D

But I think most people it puts pressure on their argument. Just like bone needs a little.

D

Bit of pressure, otherwise it disintegrates, so I would hope in the future. You will be open to.

D

The idea of letting some expression as long as it's not disruptive, so thank you for your time.

B

Thank you bill that looks like all the speakers we have um just on the clapping.

B

There is uh nobody, that's going to say: clapping is illegal or that you can't clap but nobody's.

B

Going to tell me that I can't ask you not to clap either. I continue to maintain that when.

B

It's a contentious issue and we are clapping and using that as a force behind of argument.

B

Especially during a public hearing where everybody does have the right to speak,.

B

It's not outside of my ask now everyone in the audience or watching at home if, if you're clapping,.

B

You can choose to listen to me or not, but I will ask that when we are in the thick of thorny issues.

B

Where we disagree and we need to find compromise, I'd- ask that we keep our applause silent so as not.

B

To drown out or show a force, uh because somebody that that might be on the fence about speaking in.

B

Opposition, I want to hear from them as well. That's my preference again, that's just a preference. It's.

B

Not supported by any case law and you're not going to have attorney sullivan up here uh enforcing it.

B

Because it's not a rule, it's just a request and if you choose to ignore that request,.

B

I can't stop you uh from doing that, so that is hopefully well probably won't be the last time I.

B

Talk about clapping, uh but I appreciate everyone that has reached out on that. Next up uh we have.

B

No public hearings tonight and on to the city manager's items which require action, city manager.

B

Con art, thank you, your honor. We have one item before the council this evening. It is a request.

F

To accept bicycle pedestrian path and water services, easements a property located at 3548.

F

Lafayette road recently, at their february meeting, the planning board voted to grant site plan.

F

Approval for a new 75-unit residential development located at that address known to many as the site.

F

Of the former ren's nest motel as part of that planning board, both the planning board recommended.

F

That the city accept a bicycle, pedestrian path, easement along u.s route, 1 or lafayette, road.

F

Which is a exhibit a in your packet, as well as an access easement for water services attached as.

F

Exhibit b the bike and pedestrian path. Easement is part of the broader effort by the city to extend.

F

A bike ped path along the extent of route 1 as properties become developed and the water services.

F

Access agreement simply provides the city access to the water infrastructure to be constructed by.

F

The developer on this property, the location of the easements, are shown on the drawings, both.

F

Planning and legal departments recommend the form of the attached easements and we would look for.

F

Acceptance of the of said easements. Thank you. We have a sample motion moved to authorize the city.

B

Manager to accept a bicycle, pedestrian, easement and a water service access easement from monarch.

B

Village llc in substantially similar form to the attached easements, so moved. Second, any discussion.

B

uh I saw counselor bagley first then the assistant mayor and then counselor denton.

B

Was that you or consumer just a comment? I want to thank the the planning board and the members of.

K

The city staff, who are have the foresight to think of things like this when projects come before them.

B

Assistant mayor I was going to echo, um I would echo the same sentiment that counselor bradley had.

C

I think it is important, as we look at our master plan and our pedestrian and bike overall master.

C

Plan that we, you know as these new developments come online, we make sure that we are honoring.

C

Them, and so I thank those boards and the city manager for this recommendation- councilor moreau.

A

It's my great hope that we'll eventually be able to connect that and one of the.

A

Big parts was to be able to connect that so they could get to the closest bus, stop, which is.

A

Actually across the street, but I think there's going to be eventually a crosswalk from like.

A

Hillcrest across the street, so this allows them to traverse from this new development down to that so.

A

That was, the reasoning was trying to make those connections any other discussion, all in favor.

B

Next up we have the consent agenda. Let's see, is there anything that we want to pull out of.

B

That otherwise, the proper motion for adoption would be to move to adopt the consent agenda.

C

Second, your honor: I need discussion.

B

B

Next up, presentations and written communications, uh first up email.

B

Correspondent sample motion, move to accept and place on file so moved. Second, all in favor.

B

Next up, uh we have a letter from chris rose: portsmouth middle school, eighth grade science.

B

Teacher regarding impactful energy proposals, sample motion move to refer to the sustainable.

B

Practices blue ribbon committee for report back second, any discussion. It looks like.

B

Got a couple uh council, lombardi uh and council monroe, and just before I get into the discussion, I.

B

Wanted to read off the names of the eighth graders. If council will indulge me, uh it is maddie ball.

B

Lucy demeko lilly patterson emilia greco, amelia, emily greco, amelia kimball.

B

Elise, katzenstein turner, leduc, samantha huber, chloe, randell and ginger von saguerra.

B

Your parents and your city are pro or your city is proud. I'm guessing your parents are equally.

B

As proud as we are for reading through, these uh was was quite uh impressive and exhausted in the.

B

Detail uh and it's great to know counselor barney. uh Yes, thank you mayor. I um I want to connect this.

G

To uh these proposals are fantastic and it's really um a credit to the teachers and the.

G

Students, both the teachers and the students who have offered these up. I would also like to.

G

Connect it to the meeting I had with the economic development committee at the high.

G

School, which was hosted by well the the courtney richings and the the wonderful staff of the cte.

G

Program and and the students at that program we have an amazing school system and I think that.

G

um Both of these things have just demonstrated um how creative and how important.

G

These programs are so I just had that comment. Thank you. Thank you. Councilman bardi councilman.

B

Yeah I'd just like to state I've actually had the opportunity to meet the teacher and after reading.

A

Through all of the reports that he submitted to us, I I learned I learned many new things that I.

A

Did not know so I think it's really exciting when someone has spent as many years in school as I.

A

Have that you can still learn something new from an eighth grader, so kudos to the teacher. Thank you.

B

I'm pretty sure there was a show. Are you smarter than an eighth grader.

A

He was a fifth grader. I think that's good really felt uh disappointed in my own mental vacuum.

B

And watching that counselor bagley yeah, thank you, your honor. I just wanted to echo. You know.

K

How great this is that a teacher is proactively involving the students with.

K

Not only challenging scientific issues but involving them in civic government.

K

And I don't know if it was by accident or or extremely savvy, but I did notice that.

K

Counselor blaylock's restaurant was identified as a place for solar power yeah and that as well as.

K

The building that counselor denton lives in so kudos to the kids to really pinpoint the target.

B

Any other discussion. Well, I I'm excited for the report back um and you know if there's.

B

Other committees that could be involved from that report back I'd, hope the sustainable practices.

B

Blueberry committee uh would make those uh recommendations um and again a uh a thank you to.

B

Mr rose, the middle school teacher. I I remember my eighth grade science uh middle school teacher.

B

Mr clayton and uh it's you leave an impression and, and hopefully um these kids will will get.

B

To leave an impression on portsmouth in terms of projects that we take up in the near future,.

B

So all in favor aye next up a letter from uh michael simchek regarding the mcintyre sample.

B

Motion v to move to accept and place on file so moved exactly all in favor.

B

Letter from hannah taylor requesting permission to hold boot camps in prescott park, sample mission.

B

Move to refer to the city manager with authority to act so moved. Second, all in favor, aye, aye.

B

Next up, I knew there was some movement coming from the back they're following along in the agenda.

B

All right: well, we have a presentation regarding middle street bike lanes.

F

Mr mayor, if I can introduce dem finnegan from wsp she's, a pe and she's here to speak on.

F

The work of their group, thank you, deb. You are very welcome. uh I am debbie finnegan.

L

From wsp, I'm a senior project manager for the company and we were assigned this task.

L

Which I was very excited about because I used to work for portsmouth long ago.

L

As a municipal engineer, so this is kind of cool to be back um to say that so this project started out.

L

uh Last year and it started as a we're not going to look at the prison position.

L

She's working on it, oh, I can just wing it. It's all good. Sometimes it's better.

B

That way, yeah I swear it is. I do really good with the wing. You know so next slide, because.

L

It's been great to work with peter eric and tyler. It's nice to see eric back as well um came back in.

L

The middle of when we were doing this project, so this product started out as a director from from.

L

Not this group, but the previous group previous council, to look at modifying the bike lane between.

L

Cabin and lincoln and in the hopes to maintain the state and federal funding for the entire project.

L

Next slide next slide again, uh this is the project background. You asked me on the tip. It was funded.

L

You went through the design process, um it went out to bid, it was constructed, and then there were some.

L

Modifications and the modifications where the bollards were taken removed and then the next.

L

Modifications were on the outbound side blocking out some paper markings, adding a rectangular rapid.

L

Flashing beacon and a crosswalk at aldridge, as well as adding some additional signs um next slide,.

L

These these were also the actions that were taken by sorry city council, just the same rectangular.

L

Rapid flashing beacon with a crosswalk making lincoln avenue lincoln excuse me bike boulevard.

L

And then, last but not least, moving the parking spaces from where they were after the initial.

L

Construction to the curb and then blacking out the spaces like the pavement markings on that side,.

L

Of the street next slide, this will be an easy go through. uh This is just what so people know this.

L

Is what it looked like before the before all the construction? The next slide is what it looked like.

L

Directly after the construction and then the next slide is what it looks like today. The.

L

Next couple slides so the next slide please and then the next one and then the next one.

L

So our role was to take a look at the existing and past conditions. Look at speed, information, parking.

L

Information how many bikes were using the roads? Things like that, so we were looking at all this.

L

Data and then the other thing we were asked to do is do a door-to-door survey for the residents of.

L

Middle street, from cabot down to lincoln residents and businesses, so we did that we had a public.

L

Meeting on may 5th, I want to say and then may 9th and then the next day may 10th is when they went.

L

Out and did the door-to-door survey in that area that also will require like if they nobody was.

L

Home we left a postcard that had a qr code on it, where they could go online and fill out. The.

L

Survey if they so choose um and the survey stayed open until the end of the end of march. Thank you.

L

And so then our next goal was to take the survey and and just document what everybody.

L

Said and then the other part, which was to do the evaluation and provide a memorandum next slide.

L

uh This was the what I just explained about the survey, so we can go to the next slide.

L

This is probably of some interest. There was 290.

L

Responses 158 identified of themselves as living in that section of middle street.

L

158 of them were either business or residents. 97 were residents.

L

um Outside of middle school, that's that quarters middle street, and then there were two of those.

L

290 255 people lived or worked in portsmouth 48 of the people said stated they used the bike.

L

Lane on that section of road and 74 stated that they use the pedestrian facilities next slide.

L

We had some positive uh responses which you can see on the slide.

L

There are more responses than this, but I just picked out some.

L

So you kind of got a gist of what a lot of them said and then the next slide shows some of the.

L

I would say the I called them other responses, they weren't necessarily negative, but they were.

L

Not necessarily positive either they were just statements to them. Of fact, I think.

L

um And then they that, because I would ask at the parking and traffic committee meeting, I was.

L

Asked what they is. They is the actual bike lanes, not they a person so on the bottom one. It says.

L

They are dangerous to vehicular traffic, they was bike lanes just so. We understand that next slide.

L

uh This is my recommendation. My recommendation is to leave the parking as it is.

L

um For the stretch of corridor, uh the the change here will be that the at lincoln it will go the.

L

The bikes will actually go into a designated bike lane so that the signage that is at cabot.

L

Or just a little pass cabot that has them go on to the bike lane we'll take those signs and move.

L

Them down here and then at cabot we will add a new sign with the bike single life bike sing.

L

The symbol and um share the road, I think that's what I reckon next slide.

L

Share the road yep, so the different colors mean the blue is where the parking is. The red is.

L

No parking and then the sort of well the teal color is parking and the red is no parking and.

L

Then the blue is the handicapped spaces. The other recommendation I have is to provide their shared.

L

Pavement markings, which is they're called sharrows um after every intersection and then, if there's.

L

A if they're, if between intersections, is long 250 feet, add one in the middle. That's the requirement.

L

That we're supposed to follow next slide we'll and that's it. I was trying to make this really.

L

Short because I'm sure you guys have heard all of this before or maybe not my part but have.

L

Been discussing this project for a while, so I was trying to do it quick. So if you have any questions.

L

Please ask the middle street bike. Lane project has gone on for a little bit, so I appreciate.

B

The presentation does anyone on the council have any questions for ms finnegan sponsor cook.

M

Thank you, your honor, and thank you so much for your presentation tonight. You're welcome and.

M

For the information that you've provided um it, it actually is very helpful. um I do have a question.

M

I'm not sure if you have the data or if um uh we have it somewhere else in the city, when I.

M

Was going through crash, the crash data um it in particular, we only have the data here from 2020.

M

On on what occurred- and I don't have data from 2021 when the when the bike lanes were removed,.

M

And I'm wondering what the difference is between those two times as far as vehicle.

M

Crash data, not pedestrian car or bicycle car, but car car data, because that's what we have.

M

Here for 2020., that's the 2020 data was all the data we received, okay and and in that data they.

L

Were they were line items in an email that stated what they were and none of them had any? It were.

L

Strictly cars: that's why that data is in there, so it was either um a hit and run. There was a couple.

L

That were a hit and run. There was one that was an angle accident, meaning somebody pulled out of the.

L

Pull out of a side street and hit somebody going on middle street and the other one was.

L

Somebody crashed into a car and did not leave the scene so right right um can I follow up yep.

M

um I guess, then, I would love to see the data data for 2021 after the lanes were removed.

M

Because this 2020 20 data is when we had separated lanes. So it's really hard to to.

M

For this to be useful in any way to me- and I know that that you didn't receive it.

M

So I guess that's really a question for the city is you know, I need the comparison data to.

M

To really understand the differential there as far as vehicle safety goes on the road.

B

Is that a question? It's not a question, not a question, but it's uh for the city.

B

Manager we'd like to respond or sure I'm wondering if um peter rice or eric.

F

Eve had that data or if it's something we need to obtain from the police department,.

N

The data is typically provided, but what is provided by the police department.

N

And based on the data that we received and we get monthly reports from the.

N

The police, so if we did not receive any additional crash data for the last year.

N

It would indicate that there were no vehicular crashes along that section of roadway.

N

I will confirm that though, because we do get, we do get crash data at the park and traffic.

N

And safety committee, so if it was, if there was data it would have been supplied. So I'm you know.

N

You know it, I will confirm that, um but I believe the the anecdotally I haven't. I would have heard.

N

If there was an increase in accidents or if there were accidents along that section, road.

N

Because it is such a highly scrutinized section of roadway- and we have not heard.

N

Any challenges associated with that section of roadways, since we did this modification.

B

Thank you peter councillor, bagley yeah, thank you honor. Thank you. Miss finnegan. um I had.

K

The advantage of seeing this presentation in the parking traffic and safety meeting- and I.

K

Asked you a question there, I'm going to ask it again: um you're recommending the sharos.

K

uh But my understanding is an alternative of unprotected bike lanes would also be.

K

Just as feasible or would meet all the requirements, so we get to keep the money in in any.

M

Questions we might have so it's really. um I want to thank you for putting the presentation together.

K

And it's it's kind of a maybe a preference of the council which way they want to go, but either.

K

Option would be acceptable in your expertise. Yes and I and I back check because I just uh I wasn't.

L

A hundred percent clear to me to be honest to make sure that the date whatever you were.

L

Supposed to like 25 miles an hour, they recommend shared lane markings 35 miles an hour or above.

L

They recommend bike lanes and I looked at it's posted at 25 in that section, the 85th percentile.

L

Speed is somewhere between 29 and 33, so it really falls in the middle, where there's no real guidance.

L

So what I did the decision I made with this was that it's been out there with no behavior markings.

L

Of any kind and that it's there's parking there now and it's not defined, so I think moving forward.

L

You just find define that parking as well as the sharrows, and it's essentially what's out there.

L

Today, just better marked and better signed, and things like that, however, that being said, yes, you.

L

Could put in a put in a bike lane and that bike lane you would put it at the outside edge is about.

L

14 and a half feet off the curb, so you have like eight feet of parking: a foot and a half for the.

L

For the door hits is what they call there's a better word for it, but you know when you open.

L

Your door, you want to make sure you're not going to hit the bicyclists, you know or they you know.

L

Because that's bad and then the five feet for the actual bike right great. Thank you so much.

K

Yep, thank you. Councilor bagley councilman, then I'll go counselor lombardi and then concert tabor.

A

I happen to have the bonus of coming out of cabot street onto middle street to go to my office every.

A

Day and drive it all the way to lafayette road, um so I've gotten the experience. I've been doing that.

A

Since 2018 five days a week in both directions, so I've had a lot of experience on this road.

A

And I have to say moving the parking back over to the curb, I truly do believe is a great idea.

A

Because it's allowed more flexibility when emergency vehicles are coming because there.

A

Was a lot of trouble trying to get out of the way of an emergency vehicle when they had it.

A

The other way around so I do agree with that, but I also agree with councillor bagley that maybe.

A

Adding the defined sort of bike um you know markings in the road as far as where, if somebody's.

A

Going to stay on middle street inside the parked cars, if there's enough room there to do it, that.

A

Actually make because I think it'll keep the cars, some really kind of go this way in this way, all.

A

Over the road, so it'd be nice to give them more definition, though, this is your lane. Let's try.

A

To stay in it unless there's truly a reason to get out of it, so I would definitely be in vote.

A

In to to add sharrow's, and if they had enough room to do the bike lanes, as you were just discussing.

I

Thank you, counselor barty, councillor tabor and councillor blaylock counselor. uh Yes, thank you.

G

Mayor, I um I live on aldrich road, and uh so I use middle all the time. It's one of the issues.

G

That happened when they moved the cars back to the this side of the road. On the parking back to the.

G

Side of the road the traffic lane was um offset, it was not not down the center of the road, um and so.

G

One of the things that I've had happen there and is that people try to pass you on the right.

G

um In that area, um and so I think in the area from I'm going to say from cabot to lincoln lincoln.

G

It might be good to have a designated lane because I think there's room for on the outbound side.

G

Unless you, unless you move the traffic center traffic lane or lines to the center of the road.

G

Again um right, that's what I believe, I think part of the problem that out there anyway, is that the.

L

Lanes aren't my like there's not a fog line, for example like a white edge line. I think you need.

L

It, whether it's to define the parking, whether you define the parking per space or you just define.

L

It this is, this is the fog line and whether you put chairs or a bike lane, that's up to you, but.

L

I definitely agree that it's not defined and it needs to be. I think, that's a huge problem.

L

So, yes, I agree with you, okay, you just said it in a different way, but yeah.

B

So counselor tabor and then counselor cook second bite of the apple and.

B

We'll go to counselor denton, then concert cook. Thank you, your honor, the.

O

I think moving the cars back as your your conclusion stated. It was.

O

The previous configuration with the cars.

O

Creating the protected bike lane was confusing to motorists, and I think that was the experience.

O

If we go with the option of a painted bike lane and we can get a couple of feet for door swing,.

O

To protect the bikers that way, can we also get a foot or two of um of buffer.

O

um You know maybe diagonal striping, something like that. I was going back to the original 2015.

O

Options and one of the options was a buffered bike lane that's different from a protected bike. Lane.

O

Buffered by claim was uh cars, door swing, uh five feet of bike lane and or four feet of bike lane.

O

And then some striping to give that extra two feet between the bikers and the cars on middle street.

O

Would that would be able to fit that, because that originally was the better option of the you know.

O

Of the stripes striped lanes beside the cars- I'm not 100 honest, I think you could.

L

I think there's enough space, I don't know if you could have five feet and then two feet like.

N

Typically, it's a four foot, then a two foot right, yeah, six foot total so that.

N

I mean it's: it's an extra foot, it's just additional paint peter. If you're going to.

F

Speak at the microphone kevin wants you up there. We can accommodate that.

O

Well, I think we just want to make it as as accommodating uh for everybody as possible. You know, and that extra.

O

Buffering on the on the through traffic side gives a little more protection.

L

Like peter said, it's paint I think it boils down to you know. Any of these options will.

L

Work, I think that you need to paint it. I guess that's the bottom line for me.

L

You need to paint it and have some better signs or addition, not better signs, but additional signs.

L

And, however, you decide you want to do that. Any of those three options we just talked about will work.

L

um And they meet the standard and that's really what you want to do in terms of the dot and keeping the federal state funding. So thanks yep.

B

uh Councillor denton, then councilor cook, thank god more just a comment as a.

C

As someone whose bicycle is the primary mode of transportation, I've always felt safest when.

C

They're showers and not bicycle lanes, because if I'm moving as fast as the cars or close to as fast.

C

The safest spot for me is next the yellow line, so no one tries to pass me.

C

But with that in mind, most of people, these bicycle lanes are for are not people like me.

C

They're for families or people who are now riding on sidewalks, so my strong preference would be.

C

As much by school lane as possible, thank you counselor councillor cook. Thank you. Your honor.

M

I really have just a few comments about this as well. um uh First of all, I appreciate all.

M

The work that's gone into this. I know how many years have been invested in this process and.

M

It's been a long one and there's been a lot of debate in the community around it.

M

My preference would be that when this comes up in the cip budget, which hopefully repaving when.

M

Repaving middle street comes up that we don't just look at repaving middle street. We look at a.

M

Complete redesign of middle street that involves a dedicated, protected bike lane that is away.

M

From the curbing so that vehicles can park at the curb, but the bike lane is dedicated and protected.

M

So I would like to see designs around that when we're talking about the cip budget down the road.

M

And I realized that right now, we're not there yet, but we'll be getting there fairly soon.

M

So that would ultimately be my preference um as it is, I feel like we have to accept um what is.

M

The best option for now, because we already have a paved roadway and um light councilor denton, said.

M

He is a fantastic cyclist. I am considered a weekend cyclist. um I would never ever ride on.

M

Middle street because I don't feel safe there, I wouldn't feel safe, letting my 16 year old ride on.

M

Middle street, especially with sharrows, I there's no way I can keep up with the speed of traffic.

M

And I think that that's one of the real challenges that we're dealing with when we talk about having.

M

Sharrows, so I think that we should do what we can to avoid sharrows, because looking at all the the.

M

Data that we were giving you you look at the numbers of cyclists, you see it drops off right.

M

About the time school drops off, I'm thinking about the number of kids that are cycling to high school.

M

On middle street- and I want them to be protected, just like I'd- want my 16 year old to be protected.

M

So I would argue very intensely that we find a way to add a bike lane, not necessarily where they.

M

Were before I do think that was very confusing to residents with the parking in the middle of the.

M

Street, um if you haven't seen that regularly, um I think that if you've traveled a lot in in canada.

M

You see it, but we we don't. We haven't done that a lot in the us yet so people are not accustomed to.

M

That it's reasonable to put a bike lane next to the cars as long as it's somewhat protected and.

M

I think it's important to have that protection or you won't see an increase in riders. I also I.

M

Just wanted to also highlight the fact that all the data that we have is from covid era really.

M

And so it's really hard to estimate what use would be if you know it when we return to normal.

M

And it's it's really hard to tell what our true numbers would be.

M

Especially if we have those protected lanes, because when we did have them before.

M

We just didn't have that many people out on the roads, so um so I'd like to see an increase.

M

In cycling, and I think that dedicated lane would support that, thank you. Counselor cook.

B

Counselor bagley. um Thank you mayor. If you don't have any comments, I'd like to suspend the rules.

K

And bring forward item d under my name number one middle street bike lanes for the sample motion.

B

um I'm happy to do that. I had one question for miss finnegan uh before we broke and I appreciate.

B

The uh the work that you put in uh to this and it's a lot of work, and hopefully this uh work is.

B

Not a stranded cost, as my good friend peter would say, when we look at uh the future of repaving.

B

The streets that some of this work can be dusted off and have a discussion uh use some of the input.

B

That we had from residents on how do we uh make middle street a better street uh for both cars and.

B

Bikes when we want to repave it, my only question uh has to do with the um putting in bike lanes.

B

Outside just painted bike lanes and we're not talking about putting protected bike lanes. But.

B

Simply paint on the outside of that, and this is going into the wayback machine for myself.

B

um In terms of one of the uh you know we had always or not always, but when this started, we.

B

Looked at this as a temporary project that we would learn from because there were uh aspects.

B

Of the road were that were not conducive, not the road undulating itself, but simply like the crown.

B

Of the road is not centered to where would support a bike lane um or the configuration and some of.

B

The comments around whether a bike or some of the comments of where we'd repaint uh the yellow lines.

B

In that did not meet the crown of the road, so cars felt somewhat unease and they couldn't explain why.

B

But it was because the crown of the road was separate from the white or the yellow lines.

B

To accommodate the bike line, so I I want to go forward with and I would agree with council cook.

B

The safest possible that we can do, but I don't want to get into a situation where, where we're.

B

Painting over uh what the natural flow of traffic and and by doing so, build up, maybe more resentment.

B

For what we would then try to accomplish in in the next year or two in terms of a you know, a.

B

Greater look at how do we incorporate bike lanes in there with paving the road so.

B

Is it your professional opinion that the road as as marked now can accommodate.

B

Bike lanes without altering the uh the middle of the road or the the as it aligns to the crown of.

B

The road and that's much more, a technical question than I have any business asking, but hopefully.

B

You understand the gist of this, I would say, based on some of the conversation and to.

L

Just I'm going to make this one point. I I didn't do this alone, um peter eric and and tyler olsen.

L

Helped very much as well as other staff members with the city, so I just want to make sure.

L

Everybody is clear that it wasn't just me and my team. It was also the city who contributed a lot.

L

Of time and effort into this project, um sorry that was my now I will answer your question.

L

um I am not sure to be honest, I know that peter and I have had some conversation about where that.

L

Is and that it that the double yellow is not on the crown of the road, and so what may be happening.

L

Is because people are they're kind of riding on that side, people will probably be uncomfortable.

L

Unless you move the center line to where the crown of the road is, however, that may negate having a.

L

Proper, like a conventional bike lane for lack or a buffered bike lane, for example, um unless.

L

You want to remove the parking in that section and I know that's not something. People really.

L

Want to be doing, it is my understanding and if I'm wrong just please, let me know.

L

So you, if you've, had a problem now it's going to continue in terms of how the cars ride on.

L

The road until you fix the crown okay, um but I don't know how much of a problem it is because.

L

I didn't hear that was an issue until you just said that, so it was something that I think that.

B

It stuck in my mind over the many many hours we had the conversation around this in terms of, if.

B

We were to um if we were to do it right and I'm in the camp of you know, let's, let's you.

B

Know try to make this as good as it is right now before we invest actual dollars, but when we invest.

B

Dollars, let's make you know, let's try to take into account everything that we'd like to occur.

B

On the road, when we, when we're actually putting shovels in the ground and and can afford to change,.

B

Things that we simply can't afford to change right now before we pay for that, and I think you should.

L

Change that, like I mean moving forward and you do this project like at some point in the future and.

L

You and you change, you know you deal with the asphalt and or adding a productive bike lane or.

L

Those things they're going to take those things into consideration when you can actually move.

L

I have no, I mean move curb line like you know, if you move kerbline out, you're gonna have to.

L

Change how the pavement works and your drainage works and all those other kinds of things so.

L

I think in the future, at some future project, that's definitely something that can happen.

L

Right this minute, there's it you it's what it is out there and it's the best that it can be.

L

At the moment is my my thought process moving forward. I think you have to move that you're.

L

Going to have to move where that crown line is, and things like that, so thank you. I hope that answers.

B

Your question: it does okay, all right, uh happy to entertain a motion to suspend the rules and bring.

B

Up what was it? uh The item under your name item under my name item one middle street bike lanes.

K

Motion: do we suspend the rules? We've got to suspend the roles first, to bring up.

B

Item one under councillor, bagley's uh name, I'd, uh await a motion to do so. Your honor I'd move.

O

We suspend the rules to move to counselor bag. Please item. Second, all in favor, aye.

K

Counselor bagley now I'll make a motion to approve the report recommendations with the council. I'm.

K

Just going to go ahead and say to add striped bike lanes with the cars remaining on the curb.

B

Any discussion, counselor morel, I'm just curious, it sort of seems to be in either.

A

Or in your motion so, which which option are we going with here? Oh, I think he picked.

B

Striped unprotected bike lanes. I ad-libbed, based on the previous conversations.

B

So I'll restate the motion is moved to approve report recommendations with the council uh and.

B

Implement striped unprotected bike lanes as the preferred alternative. Thank you. Yes, that helps.

K

um I'll just speak to that. If I might, um I the the mayor, brought up some excellent points and.

K

I think we had a great presentation, one of the things I've learned in parking traffic and safety.

K

Is that, especially with modern cars, the way they are now? You know they have a lot of power, they get.

K

Up to speed they're, you can feel very comfortable driving at a high rate of speed and on middle.

K

Road that happens so to me, uh when I hear that you know people might feel a little bit uncomfortable.

K

Driving down that road, I don't necessarily see that as a bad thing, because if you feel.

K

A little bit uncomfortable you're likely to be a little bit more observant and possibly slow down.

K

As some people may know, I live right behind portsmouth market.

K

Parallel to middle road, so that's the the route I use every day and the route my daughter uses every.

K

Day so obviously I have some bias in this, but I think anything we can do to slow down traffic.

K

I'm sorry I've been saying middle road. When I mean middle street.

K

Would be ideal, and I don't necessarily think that if people feel a little bit uncomfortable.

K

That's a bad thing because it may slow them down a little bit.

B

So just uh declare clarify my um my comment on the the crown versus the the the painted line.

B

Of the road wasn't that uh folks uh necessarily felt uncomfortable in the moment, but they would.

B

Notice that they would they would they would come out of the flow of traffic and then realize.

B

That, because they were kind of just going with the the center of the road and then over correct uh at.

B

The end, um I would agree that when you make roads more narrow, you make people feel that they have to.

B

Drive slower, my concern with uh with the way the lines are now is that people do not feel they.

B

Feel very comfortable, uh but their car is tended to to kind of bank in a certain way. That is not.

B

Does not align with the painted uh yellow wine, so I guess the only qualification.

B

Is that I would want to make sure that the yellow lines as they are.

B

As they are presented, are they? Are they currently on the crown of the road or they.

B

On are they outside of the crown of the road and if we put them on the crown of the road.

B

Would we be able to have the unprotected bike lanes outside of the cars they're currently, when.

N

They put the bike lanes in, they shifted the center line off of the crown of the roadway.

N

The alignment is necessary to to give you the parking plus a bike lane so by sliding it back.

N

You would, you know, likely lose that bike lane for sections of it or lose parking for sections of it.

N

It also would require grinding off another section of paint.

N

Which would then reflect uh because of the the markings and the the etching in the pavement.

N

Or you would paint it over with black paint, which then makes it a little confusing. So one.

N

I would suggest you know, as counselor cook and- and you pointed out, um mr mayor, that.

N

A comprehensive reworking of that roadway, the cross section of the roadway so that the center.

N

The crown of the roadway matches the center line and that we make it a safer roadway as possible.

N

When we do a major construction is what I would recommend at this point. The way the center line is.

N

By putting a bike lane in you're, going to better define that that roadway. So, even though somebody.

N

Would feel as if they they're getting tugged a little bit they're going to have the definition.

N

Of that bicycle lane to give them, you know a perspective on where they should be driving.

N

So at this point I mean if the direction of the council is to slide it back that way, you know.

N

We'd, look at the configuration you'd likely lose that um the space for it and so that you would.

N

Push yourself into a shareholder type position, um so you'd have a share. The share the road type of.

N

Situation instead of a designated bike lane, given the speeds on that section of roadway.

N

I think it's on the upper end of what I would deem as acceptable as counselor cook said.

N

You know you really can't get speed up. I'm an avid cyclist I've ride a pretty decent clip.

N

And I would not consider myself a sheryl rider in that condition: daniel street, pretty quick.

M

Yeah he's a little younger than I am so so I I would I would you know if you do if the decision.

N

Is to readjust that center line, it becomes a bit of a bigger project uh and I think it would add.

N

To confusion relative to the uh markings on the roadway, so I would not recommend it at this time.

B

So but you would recommend and and and both you and miss finnegan would recommend that a.

B

Using a a bike lane to define the travel area, will not it's not your expectation that it will.

B

Cause confusion so long as the cars are on the side of the road and the bike lane is.

B

Not protected at this moment, I cannot speak for every person. uh I would appreciate you know as.

N

A driver, I would like to see that I think it would better define it. I know some people would.

N

Not be happy with it just because it's different, but it is something that it'll it'll be effective.

N

In terms of defining the roadway uh the travel lane uh and make it clear that that's a bicycle.

N

Lane, thank you, uh council or the assistant mayor, just a um a question for clarification um on the.

C

Motion when we say striped lanes is, are we? um Is there a difference that we're outlining between.

C

Regular striped bike lanes and buffered bike lanes with stripes in them. That's an excellent question.

K

I would leave that up to the discretion of the director of public works and just roll another.

C

So if we need to change the motion, we should yeah before we we'll have peter come up and then.

N

So the subtle difference is that you would have an additional line.

N

With with with hash marks on it, that kind of give you the feeling that there's a separation between.

N

The roadway and the and the the bike lane um it's visually, I think it's a it's a better treatment.

N

For the bike lane- and it gives it still gives you the decent space that if a car.

N

Door is coming off, you have the ability to swing over and not be getting into the.

N

Travel lane, so I mean that is something that we could do. Thank you assistant. I would move.

C

Then, to make the friendly amendment to move that to buffered bike lanes accepted if possible, yeah.

B

Just another question uh for counselor bagley on this: um what was the discussion.

B

uh At pts, and is there a reason why there wasn't a recommendation over.

B

uh Sharrows versus uh buffered bike lanes yeah. So um during the pts meeting I was I was.

K

Attending remotely on zoom, uh so there's some discussion about bike lanes and.

K

Kind of that it's a bit of a political hot potato, so I don't think anybody wanted to.

K

Take too strong stand one way or the other, so the decision at pts was to accept the recommendations.

K

As presented, I did ask the question then: if bike lanes would be a preferred alternative.

K

But I didn't feel it was the appropriate um medium for me to explain all the reasonings. Why.

K

In pts, okay and just in the presentation um did we, the recommendation was sharehouse.

B

That's correct and when did the option of buffered uh unprotected bike lane.

B

uh Enter the conversation, uh I was the last person to ask a question during the meeting.

K

And that question I asked was: would sherrows be a acceptable alternative? No sorry would bike.

B

Lanes be perfect. I'm sorry! Yes, would uh bike lanes be an acceptable alternative to sharos.

K

Okay, counselor tabor. um I intend to vote for this motion, um but I just wanted to ask if I.

O

Could we could have a little time after the vote to talk about the next step, which would be the.

O

When we redo the whole street, um certainly but um yep, okay! Well, it's not on the! I guess it's not on.

B

The agenda, so why don't we bring that forth as an agenda item? If we want to talk about that.

B

I'm sure there'd be more people that want to talk about. You know what uh is. uh Is there if it's a.

B

Or we could hit on it in miscellaneous that you'd want to report back on uh on.

B

Okay, I guess I I have some reservations on the buffered bike lane. um It seems as though I.

B

From a safety perspective, it's um it could be more safe. I uh I don't know if it's gonna meet.

B

The standard of of counselor cook or her daughter uh riding on there. um I I don't think that I would.

B

Have uh my five and a half year old learn how to you know bike on middle street, more broadly with.

B

The bike lanes with the protected bike lanes, but I do have some concern that we would be.

B

Taking away from the conversation that we'd be having in 2023.

B

uh And beyond around you know what it is, we're going to be doing and.

B

So I'm I'm conflicted uh on this. um I guess um one question for miss: finnegan.

B

Why was this? Why was this design? I guess I I get a little antsy when design alternatives uh are asked.

B

For and created in a since this wasn't in the report to go outside of sharo's or to do shareros.

B

Why can you go over again why a buffered bike lane was not a part of your recommendation? What is.

L

uh So if we start at the not the beginning, but when the when the.

L

Paver markings went away. You were left with a really wide lane to have parking on the curb.

L

And so when I took a look at that, I said it's been working well for six months. How do we make this.

L

The way it's set up and people are used to it now work better in terms of defining things.

L

More appropriately, so at that point, bikes and cars were sharing that wide lane and.

L

There was parking on the side, so my I said: that's that's what I think we should do, because it's the.

L

To me it was a a good way to define what needed to occur and gave people kind of that. You know.

L

You look at the ground out something's going on, and that is why I picked that it doesn't mean that.

L

You know a bike lane or a buffered bike. Lane isn't an is a is. Those are also good alternatives, but.

L

What I was trying to do was minimize the amount of change and use the tools we had to better define.

L

It that is why I picked cheryl's, because it met the criteria, but also left it similar to what.

L

It is with some minor changes to let people know that there's bikes there, you need to pay attention.

L

Those kinds of things: that's why? Okay and one last question uh cheryl's we if we did not do buffered.

B

Bike lanes or non-buffered bike lane or I'm just gonna call them painted bike lanes fair enough.

L

um If we, if we didn't do paint, did bike lanes, we would have to do share us correct in terms of a.

B

Recommendation, I guess I have feelings that sharers are kind of invisible, um but maybe not.

B

For councillor denton, because he's going so fast but uh but we would have to put those in there.

B

Sharers would have to be there uh in order to keep the the funding, because there's some uh federal.

B

Law around that, yes, there's federal requirements around around those kinds of things so and yeah.

L

So anything else, that's it all right made my decision all right, we'll have a roll call vote.

M

Assistant mayor kelly, yes, counselor tabor, yes, counselor denton, yes, councilman moreau, yes, council.

A

Bagley, yes, council lombardi; yes, council blaylock, yes, council clerk, yes, ma'am, cackling, yes, unanimous.

B

Next up is not counselor bagley, although we might come back to him, don't steal my thunder.

B

The presentation regarding the neighborhood parking program- thank you, your honor kevin. If you.

F

Don't mind promoting ben fletcher to panelist mode, and I will bring up his presentation. Welcome ben.

F

And you can unmute yourself and get going thanks.

E

Thought I was unmuted. That was the first thing I thought I touched.

E

All right, can everybody hear me: okay, we can 98. okay, excellent. Thank you very much. uh So welcome.

E

Everybody, the the city of portsmouth parking division thanks, you all for the opportunity to.

E

Discuss the islington creek neighborhood talking program pilot launched on august 4th 2021.

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We've presented some mid-pilot updates at multiple pts meetings. Tonight's presentation intends to.

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Discuss the life of the program from its concept stage through april 30th 2022, including relevant.

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Statistics and costs to date so factors of success aside from anecdotal data, there are.

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Two primary indicators as to whether the islington creek npp has had the intended effect of reducing.

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Demand measured by parking occupancy percentages in the target neighborhood, which, in layman's terms.

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Manifests itself as additional parking space when I want it, uh the the um to the consumer, as it were,.

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So the the first measure consists of determining whether or not demand figures are indeed reduced.

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As a direct result of the program uh given positive evidence to the first second measure,.

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Is an indication of where the displaced demand ie now ineligible vehicle? You chose.

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Then, to engage in parking, so this is measured by looking at demand in the immediately adjacent.

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Parking alternatives again measured by parking uh occupancy percentages.

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In those areas, whether they're, monetized or not, so this evening's presentation seeks to clarify.

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Any shifts or changes in demand in both the npp designated area and the surrounding.

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Immediate parking alternatives, so, as you see on this tile here, a little bit of history.

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The islington creek neighborhood requested that the city create a pilot program in 2019 to address.

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Its parking concerns, uh the 2019 version of npp, did not achieve its 75 vote threshold.

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That was placed on it. The neighborhood then renewed its request in 2020, but the consideration.

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Was delayed by covet 19 in 2021, uh public meetings were held on april 14 and june 10, where the.

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Current version of the program was developed next tile, please, so the boundaries are set.

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As islington dover, bridge and mcdonough streets uh and then uh hanover as it goes further east three.

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Permits plus one guest permit for npp, household or business and one permit was allowable for any.

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Portsmouth resident outside of the neighborhood non-participants are limited to two hours, free.

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Parking and enforcement hours being from 9am to 7pm. uh Excuse me 8pm uh monday, through sunday.

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The the islington street uh shown here in the map in orange is to indicate that residents.

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On island might participate if they'd like to, but that isn't in street itself was not part.

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Of the mtp map, because it is already governed with the two-hour limit to support business.

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So, as expected, the npp program has seen strong participation again. The current iteration of the.

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Program allows us for up to three permits per household, uh where each must be attributable to.

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A particular vehicle and one transferable gas permit additionally, residents outside.

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Of other areas in portsmouth are eligible for one permit, which must also be attributable to.

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A particular vehicle, so since the launch of the program on august 4 2021, the program has seen.

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430 regular passes issued 377 within the neighborhood and 53 from elsewhere in portsmouth.

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Additionally, there are 220 guest permits in circulation, which totals 650 overall passes.

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So this equates to 259 percent of the overall 251 space inventory available to the neighborhood. So.

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The neighborhood itself, without outside influence, is upside down with regard to demand versus supply.

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uh So of all the issues brought forward this, uh since this discussion began in earnest in 2017, the.

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Most common was the belief that it was employees of downtown businesses that were creating issues.

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By parking in the neighborhood and walking into town to work their shifts in 2017, I personally.

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Observed this to be the case, it was accurate so, but since that time consistent with the 2012.

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Parking principles available public inventory was increased when the construction of the foundry was.

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Completed in october, 2018 by 600 spaces and subsequently, the downtown employee parking.

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Program was introduced, providing for a seventy percent reduction off the one dollar per hour.

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Foundry rate for employees of downtown fortunate businesses, as we came out of covid in 2021, a more.

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Positive outlook had businesses reopening for that 2021 tourism season, which made for a more.

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Normal hiring season uh that year, so between the spring of 2021 and august 3rd. The day before the.

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Program launched the downtown employee program. It was proud to see a 2 202 increase in participation.

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So the graph of in front of you now seems to show uh seeks to show the relationship between.

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Increased sales in the downtown employee program, particularly in the spring and summer of 2021,.

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And any related reduction in occupancy percentages in the npp target neighborhood.

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One citizen opined that employees may have jumped into the program in anticipation of the launch.

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Of the npp, where you would expect a likewise reduction in occupancy percentages, seen in the.

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Target neighborhood during that time, in other words, if the new participants in the downtown.

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Employee program had previously been utilizing the npp neighborhood for their parking needs. We.

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Should have seen a drop in neighborhood occupancy rates as participation in the employee program.

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Increased, however, the neighborhood occupancy rates do not reflect this trend remaining in the 60 to.

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Low 70 percent range shown in the red square at the top of the graph. It's also important to.

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Note that the increased employee participation did coincide with the normal increase in hiring.

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Historically, seen at the inception of the annual tourism season and finally, with the seasonal drop.

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In participation in the downtown employee program shown in blue to the right of the previous graph.

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We have not seen there we go, we have not seen higher occupancies return to the target.

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Neighborhood, all of this suggests that the downtown workforce was no longer a primary.

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Influence on availability of parking inventory in the target neighborhood prior to the launch.

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Of the pilot, nor does it seem to be now outside of downtown workers- it's possible that shoppers and.

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Out of town visitors might also be engaged in using the npp out of habit if it bears.

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True that downtown shoppers and visitors are using the neighborhood for parking.

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And a program like npp is launched to discourage this practice. Another metric to consider would be.

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Any increased use of neighborhood adjacent parking alternatives. The next two graphs highlight pre and.

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Post launch occupancies of both the bridge lot and the foundry garage. So, interestingly,.

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The bridge lot transaction of peak occupancy figures held steady after the mpp pilot launched.

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Then, seeing the typical shoulder season drop off in demand in october, which mirrors what we see in.

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The npp neighborhood and throughout town in terms of occupancy rates and demand next tile, please.

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Meanwhile, the foundry garage peak occupancies also held steady on post launch remaining at 41.

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Even as the downtown employee program continued to enjoy strong participation throughout the summer.

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Additionally, foundry has not seen the same shoulder season, drop-off and occupancy we've.

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Experienced in the npp pilot area and the bridge lot and throughout portsmouth, this data coupled.

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With an average length of stay at foundry of 8.43 hours suggests that the downtown workforce.

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Demographic is making use of the foundry garage in large numbers. It's also noteworthy that we have.

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Not experienced increased usage at the masonic lot located at the intersection of middle and miller.

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Which is leased by the city to provide for additional inventory? Nor have I been made aware.

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That the division is receiving calls or complaints about rising occupancy rates in neighborhoods.

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Immediately adjacent to islington creek, so the division has been keeping regular morning.

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Noon and evening counts of occupancy in the target neighborhood throughout the process, so throughout.

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The summer of 2020 spring of 2021 and pre-launch of summer 2021, those figures were consistently.

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Average in the 60s to low 70s percentage-wise, typically in the parking industry, occupancy rates.

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Of 85 or higher are where we begin to develop strategies to mitigate demand next tile. This.

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Please represents data from the first three months of the program before the shoulder season began.

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Where we looked at occupancy figures as they compared to previously reported time periods to.

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Get an understanding of any changes to occupancy that could be directly attributable to the program.

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Comparing post-launch august against summer 2021, the neighborhood saw a 0.84 reduction in occupancy.

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Equating to 2.11 spaces of inventory gain, which would be represented as space now available.

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That would have been filled previously, as the program settled in september showed an.

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Additional 2.32 reduction when compared to august equating to another 5.83 spaces gained october.

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Versus september showed another 1.979 excuse me: percent reduction equating to another 4.48 spaces.

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So through the first three months of the program prior to the start of the tourism shoulder season,.

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In 2021, where we would typically see reductions and demand city why the neighborhood did enjoy.

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A 4.95 reduction in occupancy equivalent to 12.42 spaces gain that could be directly attributed to.

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The pilot: it's prudent to note, though, that the majority of these spaces were gained at the west.

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End of the neighborhood, where streets on the east end remained very tight, but now had populations.

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Of vehicles that had nbp credentials on them next tile, please.

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So this tile graphically displays pre and post launch occupancy percentages just discussed.

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The biggest takeaways we did not see a precipitous drop in occupancy percentage post-launch, as with.

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All programs of this type, the largest impacts, are generally seen early on as the execution of the.

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Enforcement process encourages eligible users to do the legwork to participate and those not.

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Eligible are encouraged to seek alternatives, so while we do see a fairly significant drop starting.

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In late october and into the winter months, this is consistent with historic demand. Figures recorded.

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In this neighborhood over the last several years, next tile, please, through april 30th a total of 526.

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Citations have been issued, including 45 warning tickets, early on and 481 two-hour violations.

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Collections total 5725 dollars since the program's inception. So it's pretty clear the collections.

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From citation issuance are not anticipated to be a major factor, should this program proceed forward.

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Next tile, please so this tile basically summarizes everything. 259 issuance of passes versus space is.

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Available with a program that allows for three plus one per household, this is indicative of an.

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Inherent demand versus supply issue in the residential population before considering.

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Outside user influence, the city increased its park and inventory by 600 spaces with.

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The construction of the foundry garage and offers greatly discounted parking to the city's downtown.

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Workforce demographic at that location, prior to the pilot launch, the program saw a 202 percent.

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Increase during 2021 to summer tourism hiring rampa. The division is very pleased again to report.

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That the program recently saw its highest sales figures to date during the month of april 2022.

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Which marks the start of this year's summer? Tourism hiring season with an average length of.

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Stay of 8.43 hours at the foundry the division asserts. The program has demonstrated itself to.

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Be a viable solution for downtown portsmouth workforce that might otherwise you choose to.

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Utilize local neighborhoods for parking needs, so the rest of this tile rounds out at 4.95 percent.

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Gained inventory for the first three months, which is 12.42 spaces.

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No change in foundry occupancy or bridge load occupancy and no indication of increased demand in.

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Masonic or surrounding residential neighborhoods at 5 700 in citation collections so far and 91 650.

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Associated costs next tile, please, as mentioned the total costs associated with the program uh through.

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April 30th are 91 650 49.. This includes roughly 47.50 in startup costs for items such as signage.

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And signage supplies and installation, uh roughly nineteen hundred dollars in additional early costs.

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Include uniforms, citation supplies and office supplies. Well, all of those items have a shelf life.

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uh They don't represent costs. We see every month rather once or twice a year.

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The remainder of the costs are operational, however, and do recur at an average at presently. 94 4703.

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Each month program, so, while eventually it was decided that the pilot program would carry no.

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Fee for participation, a subject of great debate prior to the pilot's approval centered around.

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What the cost of an npp parking pass might be if the program will move forward permanently.

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Next tile, please using the current figures and projecting the average.

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Excuse me, monthly costs going forward each year of the npp is estimated to cost the city roughly 120.

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000. citations are estimated to bring in roughly 6 000, so this equates to 114 000 in anticipated net.

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Costs annualized there are presently 650 passes at the current price point at zero. Dividing the.

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Projected cost of 120 000 by 650 renders an annual break-even figure of 176 dollars per pass per year.

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uh Just as by by way of supposition, if 15 reduction in participation could be assumed.

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As a result of the city moving beyond the price point of zero, that calculation would.

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Equate to 553 passes remaining in the program, which would suggest an annual price point of.

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Dollars which would break even the program for the year next tile, please so throughout.

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The process the division is championships, public feedback through survey data, a link.

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On the parport website that provides a venue for thoughts on the program, I'll refrain from.

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Reading through each of these next two tiles one by one, but they do represent a general sampling.

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And one is roughly split down the middle in terms of positive versus negative feedback and opinion.

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I can add that my staff reports to me that anecdotally, at least the commentary offered in.

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Person is generally not in favor. So at this point I'm happy to take any questions you you might have.

B

Thank you, mr fletcher. Any questions.

B

uh Counselor denton and councillor tabor, uh councillor baglet and cancer cook. Thank you. Honor.

C

Ben one of the things in public feedback said it was hard for renters, so I'm curious how a renter.

C

Applied for the program versus the building or property owner, so I I think, maybe that.

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Comment was taken early on where you know we had a building, or maybe two that had multiple multiple.

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Renters in the same building as opposed because there was a there, was uh initially a limit to.

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Three permits per household one, what becomes a household? What becomes a rental property and so on.

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And so on, uh to answer your question quickly, the the procedure was the same. The person would have.

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To come down and prove that they were resident of that area and and in their case uh generally, a a.

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Fully executed lease would be a part of that process, along with identification and other.

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Things so I'm not certain that that that comment still applies you you would have to. I have not.

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Heard it recently that was a very uh early on comment. I think we've addressed the issue there.

B

uh Counselor tabor, uh thank you running ben. Did we ask an overall.

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Approve or disapprove question in the survey I recall we we did ask that.

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No, it was more nuanced to you know. What do you like about the program? What don't you like about.

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The program, the idea, I guess, was to give um people an open forum so where they weren't.

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Kind of uh I guess you know selecting you know, answers that were predetermined for them.

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I know some of that opinion exists that some of the answers were predetermined. I think we.

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Addressed one question early on where somebody couldn't check off a certain box, because it.

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Didn't exist and we added that box or what have you but the the long-term answer, while.

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More difficult to categorize on a one-off and one basis, a one-by-one basis does provide people a.

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Venue to speak their mind so to speak as opposed to you know, punching a yes or no button or a.

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Percentage button or something like that, so I think that's what was behind uh the idea there.

B

Counselor bagley and councillor cook. uh Thank you. Thank you, director, fletcher, for the presentation.

K

uh Question if we ended up with the neighborhood parking pass of around two hundred dollars, let's.

K

Say just looking at the data that you have do you have uh data on other musicalities in the area.

K

That might have a neighborhood parking program and roughly how much they might charge uh either on.

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Their yearly basis, so uh I'm sorry, go ahead finish. Please, oh on a yearly or per or monthly basis,.

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Right so I spoke with bill simons up in dover. uh You know we speak frequently on a number.

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Of items that cross that across cities uh he's got a number of programs that he.

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That they've been running neighborhood by neighborhood so street by street, even in some.

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Cases: half a street halfway up the street only on the right side. That kind of thing.

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And in a lot of cases, they've monetized the area to try and mitigate.

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The demand uh as they as they did in an earlier example I gave a year or so ago, but to quickly.

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Answer your question: they are they're in the in the process of phasing out a lot of these programs.

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But his new pricing this coming year is, is looking to be 35 a month which was roughly uh 420 a year.

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For for a permit to park on for particular streets, whatever neighborhood they might be in.

C

Thank you, council cook, thank you mayor and thank you ben, so much for your presentation.

M

I I had a few questions about. You said that it didn't, as far as we could tell, we didn't displace.

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um Parking to other neighborhoods.

M

Do you know, did you look at hancock street and gates street in the south end to see if.

M

There was increased parking in those areas, and I know this is a tough question to answer, because.

M

During covet anyway, there's reduced need for parking because there were reduced numbers, but.

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Well, I would suggest that hancock and those streets are pretty far away.

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From this particular target neighborhood, so I wouldn't suggest that anybody that would be.

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Going to visit somebody on on cabot north of islington or mcdonough street would be.

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Parking in that area and walking across town to visit the area you'd, I would suggest you'd see.

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More an indication of swelling a population south of islington. You know in any of those.

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Number of streets along the border, but we have not seen that to be the case.

M

um Thank you, um and I should say the reason I ask is because we see people parking on gate.

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Street in the south end and walking all the way to downtown for work, um because it's free parking.

M

So um so that's why I ask it's: they'll they're willing to walk a long ways for free parking.

M

But my other question, I guess is: have you ever looked at dividing this neighbor up neighborhood.

M

Up, like you just said, was kind of done in dover street by street basis and looking at.

M

A more limited program, just on the like, say the first few blocks that are closest to downtown.

M

First, four blocks and also adding some of the other neighborhood streets that are closest to.

M

Downtown not necessarily full neighborhoods, but individual street by street bases.

M

To reduce parking on immediate streets around the downtown.

E

So there's two things: two answers to that parts of that answer. One is anytime, you do.

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A single street or a couple of streets you have to consider what the impact will be.

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On the surrounding streets, which makes them become npp streets because now they're overcrowded with.

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Cars that are no longer able to park where they normally would on the streets in question, so the.

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Npp program has been a neighborhood initiative from day one: it's, not a city staff initiative, so.

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We've let the neighborhood drive what they want to see and how they want to be governed, and we.

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Started that process in 2018 with a survey an online survey that asked a number of questions.

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That were garnered from you know: national surveys, uh other cities. I spoke with my visit to baltimore.

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And all the time they graciously spent with me about their extensive set of programs and.

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The the the size of the neighborhood went back and forth, and back and forth, and back and forth until.

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It became what it is now the the issue I would have, or I would at least point out that might.

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Occur if um if you say it said everything from rock street east was part of this neighborhood.

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Situation and then everything west of that wasn't you'd start seeing you know an influx of parking.

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On the immediate streets to the west of rock street, which would then initiate a call for.

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Inclusion of in the neighborhood of those streets so that they could be part of it.

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And push the parking further out and so on and so on, which is how we ended up at the size of.

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The neighborhood we have now uh the the division will enforce whatever the council decides in its.

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Infinite wisdom: that is a good idea to do here. I'm I'm happy to provide the the data anecdotal.

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And otherwise, the data from people that are experiencing the program, uh positive and negative.

E

I'm not in a position to levy an opinion on this, uh because it is a it's it's precarious. When a.

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City official levies, an opinion on a public policy, the uh the what we've done is in the past is just.

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To to allow the neighborhood to tell us what they'd like to see happen, execute that and and.

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This is the results of that current version of the program, I'm happy to get professional uh advice or.

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What I think is going to happen if we do like a minimal type of situation, as you suggested, like.

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And I just have that I think you're going to see spill over into surrounding streets. That will then.

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Call for inclusion in the program, which is how we got to the size of the map as it stands. Thank you.

B

Councilman, um as probably most of the people here know, I've been living in this specific.

A

Neighborhood for the last 20 years, so I've had a lot of experience parking in our previous house to.

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The one we lived in now we did not have enough off street parking for where, um at the house, we lived.

A

In I have noticed a huge difference since this parking program was put in place- and I know it.

A

Seems like we didn't gain a lot of extra parking, but I think what you're finding is now that the.

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People that live there get to park in there more so it's some of it, I think, is a one-to-one swap.

A

That isn't really being able to show in the numbers. I also believe that it has made it a.

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Neighborhood that now people don't circle looking for parking, so it's made it safer because people.

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Aren't speeding down the street nearly as much as they once did? um Circling I mean you could watch.

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The same car without a state plates go past your house several times trying to figure out where.

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They could park so this has really directed people to you know park in the public places that they're.

A

Supposed to park, um I understand, there's a cost to it, but at the same time I do think.

A

That most of the residents might be willing to pay something for a parking permit. I just don't know.

A

If they are going to be willing to pay sort of the full amount, but I certainly support this project.

A

Moving forward, and maybe we could look at hours of enforcement, maybe we could look at how often.

A

Enforcement happens, I think there's ways that we could probably reduce the cost, and I don't know.

A

Ben, if you actually had taken a look at any of the uh any options, if we either reduced.

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Hours or reduced how often enforcement or maybe we have different hours in different.

A

Parts of the neighborhood right, if you're farther out from downtown, you might have shorter hours.

A

Versus being slightly closer to downtown, I think there's some options to be explored and I would.

A

Really like to see us dig into those explorations before we just get rid of the program all together.

E

Thank you, we're happy to execute whatever is put before us. The um the hours were set forth.

E

You know by the citizens who uh designed the program in in mass and what I thought was a.

E

Pretty good collaborative effort there, um the the the issue of frequency of enforcement- if you have.

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A two hour limit, if you don't enforce every two hours, you're not going to get much done.

E

So we don't have a choice there. If we're gonna have a two hour limit, we've got to run through.

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Whatever the size of the neighborhood in a span of two hours, so that we can check the cars.

E

Once again, on the next run, through now uh enforcing later hours in the in the in the.

E

Streets further west, you know eventually that will get learned, but it will probably have a.

E

Positive early impact, um you know, as would just leaving the signs up and not doing the program.

E

At all, the signage alone would take a lot of massachusetts. Folks that aren't aware that the.

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Program is or isn't being enforced. You know out of the mix, but I wouldn't suggest that leaving.

E

Just signage up, that's toothless would would do much good beyond a few short days anyway. So.

E

um We're happy to address this in any way and I'll give you my thoughts on what I think.

E

um You know certain time slots might or might not do I mean shoot if you're, if you're down there by.

E

Dover street, it seems like the evening hours would be more. uh You know, apropos, because you've got.

E

The liars bench down there, so I mean uh again this was done as a block neighborhood. This is.

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This is the was the area that was designated as as what we wanted to do this with and- and this is.

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The data that's presented by this particular footprint and this particular time frame so.

E

And uh but I'm we're happy to you know, address and I'm happy to give advice on anything. You think you.

E

Might see as positive uh counselor bagley! um Thank you your honor, if, if I may, it may inform.

K

The discussion, if we asked director fletcher to stay on and suspend the rules and move up an item.

B

Sure um I just have one question for councillor fletcher. If we're done with this part of the.

B

Question answer: I understand you'll pull up a motion.

B

Mr fletcher, I guess I had a couple of uh questions. Is there data uh from an occupant standpoint.

B

Occupancy standpoint um in the in on a street by street or or uh broken out smaller than uh the I.

B

Guess the the larger neighborhood or is the larger neighborhood, the only uh numbers that we have.

B

Does that question make sense street data morning noon and night.

E

So uh what I can tell you anecdotally and pretty quickly to the point you know the easternmost.

E

Streets are showing full and the mid streets are showing medium full and the western streets are.

E

Showing less gold, as you might expect, being closer to downtown? Also it's more heavily populated per.

E

Space available in the east end. So, if you think about say you know, tanner court has three spaces.

E

And there's there's got to be half a dozen two dozen apartments down there. You know.

E

Between hill and hanover there that all buy for that space, so um the creation of inventory is.

E

The hardest thing you can do- and you know the city built the boundary garage, a block away less than a.

E

Block away from that exact spot, so there there is places for folks to go. Yes, it does cost money. So.

E

It may be interesting to find out uh whatever, if there's a price point that gets picked or.

E

Chosen upon for a a monthly or yearly cost of a pass, if that's, if it's less expensive,.

E

To park in the foundry, then that's where you'll see the traffic go, so that would be. You know one.

E

Way to look at things, okay and then just a just a follow-up question to maybe the conversation that.

B

uh Counselor barrow had on the ongoing costs associated with the the program. um Is there and.

B

This is, uh this is a question on from a uh from your professional um experience. uh Is there a.

B

Like a startup learning curve, where people learn that it's enforced and then you can reduce.

B

The enforcement, if you randomize, where it's being enforced or do people catch on.

B

Immediately to uh it not being uh enforced on the two-hour limit, does that question make sense.

B

And that's a profession yeah, it does and the honest answer. Is they catch on pretty darn fast.

E

And the word of mouth travels amazingly fast, especially in a small town, so you can do that.

E

But if you, if you're, going to have a two-hour limit, if you're not enforcing on two hours, then.

E

You open up a whole can of worms as to whether or not a citation is legitimate and this, and that.

E

And all kinds of things, so uh the one of the few things I would hold very fast too, is: if we have a.

E

Two-Hour limit: we need to be running through there, every two hours, okay and then I guess the the last.

B

Question um I have is regards to counselor cooks. um You made the point that we didn't see. We didn't.

B

See the spillover to um to other streets. um But uh if, if word of mouth is as as you say, and people.

B

Know, okay, maybe this neighborhood is, is no longer the neighborhood to even look around in here.

B

Do we have did we, we didn't track the data for any other. We didn't track the data for any other.

B

I guess neighborhood, but if proximity to the downtown is what people are looking for, would.

B

It stand to reason that other neighborhoods that are closer to the downtown, but on the opposite.

B

Side of town could see uh an increase of traffic or parking, rather, it's it's possible. So when you.

E

Know, for example, when we close the bridge lot for the pop-up uh that traffic did not spill.

E

Into the neighborhood, it's spilled into other paid parking at the foundry and other areas.

E

So somebody looking for for cheaper free parking- it's not it's not probably you know unless direct.

E

Unless driven in that direction for convenience or other other sake to go to the founder, you would.

E

Think that they would head south of islington and into those neighborhoods. So no we did not.

E

Perform, I don't have the manpower to perform counts in all of those areas. Three times a day.

E

At the same time, I'm doing the others, but I would I would rely on a a fairly vocal constituency.

E

To have spoken up at this point and saying hey we're seeing a lot of cars in our neighborhood can.

E

You do something about this, so I I would I would have anticipated if a large exodus had occurred.

E

Which we did not see uh from the npp neighborhood upon you know, enforcement of the program uh in.

E

The first several months, then you you would have seen uh that those neighborhoods say hey. You know.

E

Something's going on over here, I can't get a space anymore. This isn't the same neighborhood a lot of.

E

A lot of other uh constituents would have in, in my opinion, spoken up, and so that didn't occur.

E

And we also have some uh some data from the uh the lot at miller and middle at the masonic lot and.

E

Did not see increased demand or use usership there so and that's a free lot as well. So it's just.

E

Interesting that we did not see a reduction in traffic, nor did we see an increase in traffic.

E

In the surrounding neighborhoods, which suggests that the traffic that's using the neighborhood.

E

Is the traffic that belongs in the neighborhood and not necessarily outside influence from workers.

E

Any longer or or people coming in from boston and visiting and parking there and going in for a day.

E

Of of uh enjoying the town, so uh it's uh some of that's anecdotal much of it is, is pure data.

E

um But the uh you know everything seems to point to the fact that we did not chase a whole heck.

E

Of a lot of folks out of the neighborhood, as as I anticipated seeing, we just didn't see it.

B

Okay, thank you ben all right. uh Well, you know motion to pull up counselor uh bagley's uh item.

B

Under neighborhood parking program uh is that what we're pulling up, I can make a motion.

A

To suspend the rules yeah yeah, let's motion that yeah second to pull up, which one is it.

K

um Item two items: sub item: two: okay: two with some item: two: okay.

A

We need a vote on the suspension. Do we have a second okay, uh all in favor, all right.

K

And I'll make a motion and then, if I get a second I'll speak to it, and I motion that we.

K

Continue the neighborhood parking program pilot until uh the conclusion of labor day weekend.

K

As uh it is currently configured second, uh so I think there's uh I hear a lot about the.

K

Neighborhood parking program, um certainly from from friends I have that live in the neighborhood.

K

And uh people are very passionate one way or the other. It seems more people prefer it than don't.

K

But right now the program is free, so when we start charging for passes, if we do in fact.

K

Start charging for passes it's hard to say: will it be 50 50 or will it remain around 60 40.

K

We don't know, but the the bigger challenge that I'm concerned with.

K

Is because of the pandemic because of the bridge street lot paving.

K

We just don't have enough data yet to make a firm conclusion as a as a numbers person.

K

When I look at the data, it's hard for me to support a neighborhood parking program.

K

That's going to cost the city roughly ten thousand dollars per space when our downtown a zone parking.

K

Is only worth 6 500 for a space, but as a neighbor, I understand the the concerns that the people in.

K

The neighborhood have and and their desire to have a neighborhood parking program, so I think it would.

K

Be incumbent upon for us as a council to give what should be record numbers and why. There aren't the.

K

New buildings, like the stadium michael apartments built, yet we have lost uh 300 spaces in the high.

K

Hanover garage, so it should be, as there should be as much pressure as there ever is going to be.

K

In the foreseeable future, on this neighborhood over the course of the summer, so I think if we.

K

Continue the program until the conclusion of labor day we'll have some really good data to make a decision on in the fall.

B

Any other question or comments: counselor taber yeah, your honor. I I what I'm hearing.

O

From our parking division is there's some relief. People are anecdotally, feeling some relief.

O

And but what is the cause of that relief? Is it the npp or is it the foundry employee program.

O

Or is it perhaps that heinemann, you know, is no longer employing people right in that neighborhood.

O

So if we don't fully know what what's happening, what the cause of people like councilman honestly.

O

Saying this is a better parking situation. I I I like the idea: let's get some more data through.

O

The summer and and see if we can more precisely determine if the npp is producing all the benefits.

B

Counselor cook then counselor blah. Thank you, your honor. I was hoping to get a clarification from the.

M

City on um cost and whether or not we have this in the budget to continue the pilot for three.

M

More months ben, do you want to speak to that? I do not believe we have budgeted for this. I think we.

E

Have uh gosh cut me off guard with that one? uh I think we have a hundred thousand set aside in.

E

And uh um contingency for this, uh hopefully, if director rice is there, he can certainly.

E

Apply pioneers to that or if you give me a moment, I'll call up the budget real, quick and look at it.

E

But I don't think it's unfunded.

B

Can we circle back to that question and then counselor? Certainly I I'm gonna, I'm I'm pulling.

E

It up now, so we can circle back and I'll look for it as we hear the additional questions.

E

Sorry for not having that answer, thank you. um That's also conservative might as well um in.

C

Hearing from councilor moreau who actually lives in this neighborhood, I can't think of a better.

E

Person to give us honest opinion, the first first-hand view I'm sure, she's friendly with.

C

Her neighbors, I'm sure she talks to her neighbors and I do understand seeing the numbers here from.

C

The parking department, but like council members, said maybe we are doing a one-for-one here and.

C

It's not showing up on these graphs on these numbers. I do understand the cost as well, and that.

C

Is important so, um but I do think it might be a good idea to look at this for a little bit longer.

E

It is in the 23 budget in contingency, it is a hundred thousand dollars.

F

My apologies thanks ben. Thank you, mr fletcher. uh Any other questions. I guess I had one.

B

I'm I'm interested to see you know what the you know. A whole calendar year would show us.

B

On this in the summer included the summer, but I feel as though we're not going to get.

B

The data at least one big kind of elephant, looking piece of data that.

B

We won't know unless we actually do charge uh for it like how many people are gonna pay.

B

For this, um I think that has to influence our decision uh somewhat. So I'd be curious.

B

To figure out a way that in the following six months, if the last three months could be a monthly.

B

Charge at the rate that we set or something along the lines of what it would cost, because I think.

B

We're of the mind that, or at least I am of the mind that uh this would be a charge back for the.

B

Enforcement of this from a neighborhood standpoint uh for uh the streets. What amount that is.

B

Is certainly up for debate, but I'd want to be able to know if we charge one dollar a month. Does that.

B

Fall off versus charging ten dollars a month, or um so I guess I'd be looking for uh and we occurred.

B

In some of the emails that were supportive to understand that a charge would be.

B

Associated uh with that, but I'd wanna be able to to kind of put the rubber where the road is like.

B

You know how many people are actually going to pay, so I I don't know if we have the skill set to.

B

Figure out that program or that aspect of the the program tonight in the council. But I would turn to.

B

Counselor bagley and he's a representative of the pts. If, if there is something in the works on that.

K

So, thank you mayor. I had the exact same idea. um Let's start charging and see what the drop-off is.

K

uh But then, upon further reflection and discussion with director fletcher.

K

It kind of skews the data, so if you do a 12 month trial, but three of those months.

K

There's a totally different variable: it's not really a good representation, so.

K

What I might propose uh after labor day, is now that we have a year's worth of data.

K

One we should uh survey the neighborhood and give them options. Would you participate at 100 a year.

K

Would you participate at 200 a year or whatever the case may be get some of that initial feedback.

K

But that feedback is, you know not as good as people actually taking out their their wallet.

K

And paying for it, so what we could potentially do if we decide to continue on with the program.

K

Is to tack on in that fall and see how many subscribers we get to it.

K

But I think it would be from an engineering standpoint to to look at a year's worth of.

K

Data, if you make changes to the program, it kind of invalidates the data a little bit.

B

Okay councilman, I sort of like that idea of get the data through the end of the first.

A

Year of running it and then run it through the end of the calendar year with some sort of fee.

A

And maybe it's a small fee, maybe it's the fee. You want, I don't know just a fee to sort of.

A

See how many people want to continue the program when they actually have to pay.

A

Ten dollars a month or whatever per car, whatever that case might be: okay,.

B

All right, uh so what uh can we restate? The motion on the floor.

B

uh Or kelly, do you want to restate the motion that you have.

B

On the floor, do we have we have a motion? Yes, we do. Yes, um let me just find it here.

B

I think counselor uh he made it up repeatedly.

K

It wasn't a very long one moved to continue the neighborhood parking program until labor day.

C

Weekend as currently configured, okay.

B

uh No all in favor, aye, aye aye.

K

Your honor, if, if I might try I'll, try not to bring up as many contentious issues.

C

In the same meeting again in the future, all right well we'll see.

C

I don't know you're on your bts nothing's easy on pts.

B

Thank you ben. I appreciate it. Y'all have a good night. Okay next uh is.

B

Is my name, let me just pull up the.

B

So under my name, we have a.

B

Verbal update on the demolition committee, I'm going to read the uh the legal apartment memo.

B

That encapsulates where we are on this uh march, 15 of 2021, the city council, voted to request a.

B

Report back regarding the demolition ordinance from the demolition review committee, the hdc and.

B

The planning board, specifically the city council, requested a report back from the planning board.

B

Hdc and demolition committee on how to improve the demolition committee. This will include, but.

B

Not limited to deterrence for the demolition of portsmouth buildings, fines for misconduct.

B

And public comments at meetings also incentives present for preservation of historical buildings.

B

On april 12 uh 2021 that the drc discussed proposed revisions, the demolition ordinance.

B

Which I memorialized in a memorandum, the htc and the planning board, never discussed the.

B

Proposed revisions to the demolition ordinance and the item expired at the end of the last.

B

Council term, I would simply ask that we we, we asked the planning board.

B

And uh or that we re-refer this to the both the planning board uh and uh the hdc um and.

B

If I get a motion, I'll discuss it somewhere in a second, a second okay for discussion,.

A

Maya, um so I was the chair of the demolition review committee and I went back and actually.

A

Re-Listened to our last meeting, which was february 10 2021, uh that was when we had had the first time.

A

Someone who had demolished an entire building without actually uh which didn't have a permit.

A

To do so, so we had a lot of things that were discussed. I forgot how contentious it was till.

A

I re-listened to it all over again, um but we did get to the end and we had um sort of three.

A

Suggestions or two or three areas that we wanted the legal department to get us some language.

A

Around and it was um you know, to make people who demo without permission to base, they have.

A

To go through the whole process again there was questions about whether or not you would charge.

A

A penalty, if uh penalty, if you didn't follow, we wanted better definitions of what was a partial.

A

Demolition to a full just to make sure it was very clear for the code enforcement side of things.

A

uh We also talked about whether or not we wanted to do longer time frames, because really demolition.

A

Review has no teeth other than to delay a project. We can't make them not demolish it.

A

um We asked to have those uh changes sent back to us to review and I don't remember us ever.

A

Actually getting those so I'm thinking they must have gone to the city council to review and then.

A

I did not know about the um split then out to the other boards, because obviously I was on flooding.

A

Board but we never actually saw any of those changes, so um I can wait until other business.

A

But I was going to make a motion that um those requirements, as originally requested actually.

A

Get sent yeah to the planning board to be reviewed. I think the planning board really should see.

A

It first and review it and get their feedback. um Other committees can look at it if they want to it.

A

Sounds like the htc already has: isn't that the one they had, so uh I don't believe so, but I think that.

B

Sounds like a good idea um and I'll um if you want to. I will uh rescind my motion kelly so strike.

B

Okay, that motion and if councilor monroe, would like to make that uh motion of uh the language.

B

Which was memorialized in a memorandum that bob has already written so no more work for bob.

B

uh On on this, um if we could just a motion similar to that to send that to the planning board yep, I.

A

Would make the motion that we send to the planning board the requested changes that were outlined in.

A

The demolition review committee meeting of february 10th 2021. second, all in favor, oh.

K

Counselor bagley counselor. I just have a comment on this, and and this it was probably back a.

K

Couple years ago, came up a bunch of times and uh there's a member of the community who have.

K

A great deal of respect for and, as we all know, we're at dillon's rural state, and I would ask.

K

That we identify the enabling legislation and the rsa that allows for a demolition committee.

K

Okay, as part of that report, back counseling yeah, there's another form of demolition. It's.

G

It's termed demolition by neglect, and um I think that the committee should look at that. I don't.

G

Know what the rsas say about that, but it is we're. Just we've seen a beautiful house on.

G

Woodbury avenue uh just sitting there.

B

I think that there's uh there's there's plenty of desire to preserve by by many.

B

I would uh I would caution against uh you know, as counselor uh uh moreau stated, that there's very.

B

uh Little when it comes to private property uh rights and and what we can ask for good reason.

B

That's your private property and you can do so, which you see fit, but if there can be a review.

B

And process of that and potential incentives, especially incentives that uh would would help.

B

Preserve some of the historic character of some of these buildings, I think that would go a long way.

B

So understanding all of you know that we're not a home rule state uh that uh we are a subdivision.

B

Of the state of new hampshire is around it. Often when I think of what revenue we could get um it.

B

Is uh it would be a good conversation, but one that the expectation uh has to has to be? I believe that.

B

Private property rights throughout the country, and especially in new hampshire, are preserved.

B

And valued- and this would know you know not change that, but maybe find a win-win for people.

B

That are looking to do that in neighborhoods. That would like to preserve the character so.

B

Any other comments all right, uh all in favor, aye aye and the next uh appointments to be considered.

B

uh Herb lloyd to the sustainable practices, blue urban committee uh and then uh margot doring.

B

Regan rudig and jonathan wyckoff to the hdc again those will come up uh at next council meeting and.

B

You have the applications uh in the packet this evening happy to hear and discuss any of those.

B

um Before next tuesday or next a week next tuesday a week two weeks from uh tonight, and then I will.

B

um I will pass the gavel to the assistant mayor, something to slam on um and the oh. You have the.

B

Gamble so you can call on the next item first time for everything, um city, council members.

C

Maya mckurkin, I always I'll get it someday your honor and counselor tabor and counselor dutton.

C

Item for review city manager, evaluation committee, a sample motion would be to move in accordance.

C

With the city manager, employment agreement, it is the intent of the city council to negotiate a new.

C

Agreement with the city manager, so I would await a sample motion, uh so moved your honor second.

A

Open any discussion I could speak to that. I would very much love to negotiate a new.

B

Agreement with the city manager and as you'll find in your emails today, a request to fill.

B

Out an evaluation: we've also asked for this evaluation to become part of the contract.

B

To better align uh what we base the the work on as well as making sure that the public is.

B

Aware of that, and that the goals are being met and look forward to to that discussion.

B

And hopefully everybody fills out uh their survey as quickly as possible.

C

Counselor crackly, um I don't know if this is the right time to to talk about it or not, but.

K

I think it should go in the public record. uh You know the way I look at the council is we're kind.

K

Of akin to a board of directors and and the city manager is maybe the captain of the ship and.

K

You know sometimes in public comment. We hear that there's there's too much trust in the city manager.

K

We're letting the city manager do things, and uh you know, from my personal perspective,.

K

The captain, the ship should be doing things, and I certainly would want to have a very high.

K

Level of trust in the captain of the ship, and if I didn't, I would see that as a big problem.

K

So I'm not going to give away my evaluation, but I think very highly of our our city manager. I think.

K

She was dealt as we all were pretty unfair hand with covid, just as she came on the job.

K

And in my travels around the country I think portsmouth has come through covid a lot better.

K

Than other municipalities, so for me the proof is in the pudding, but I just wanted to put out there.

K

In the public record that I trust the city manager greatly and I think she's doing a fantastic job.

A

Any more discussion.

C

All in favor aye the spotlight.

B

Thank you assistant mayor uh next up. We have counselor tabor and councilor denton on the item of the city, manager's.

G

O

uh Thanks your honor: well, we decided the direction we want to go, and this next motion is how we would.

O

Go about it um and our subcommittee of the mayor and counselor denton and myself discussed it with.

O

Kelly harper and we thought that probably the most efficient way to do this is to have our.

O

Labor attorney begin the negotiations and that's so I'll read the motion. Authorize the city's.

O

Labor attorney to negotiate the city manager's upcoming employment contract, communicating with.

O

The city council, as needed and subject to the council's performance evaluation and approval.

B

Any discussion.

B

All in favor aye.

C

B

Next up, we have going back to counselor tabor on the subject of community engagement with a.

B

Sample of motion move to receive a report back from staff on best practices and new.

B

Technology for citizen engagement and schedule, council work session.

O

I would make that motion your honor and if I get a second second, um I enclosed a slide deck for you.

O

All to take a look at um maybe I'm too theoretical at times- maybe a little lost in the clouds, but.

O

One of our goals that I really thought came out strongly in our retreat was how to invite.

O

And honor input from the community and encourage increased participation so.

O

There's a number of tools out there now that could benefit us at this. um I think we learn over time.

O

Or at least I have being on the council there's two types of public engagement. The first is when.

O

The city rolls out a project after many hours of council, discussion and staff time, and it gets to.

O

Public hearings and people say: oh no, don't do it this way. Do it that way or we disagree with this.

O

And the second is when the citizens are involved at the conception of a project and their advice.

O

Is sought early in and factored in and then the project has buy-in and momentum and and that's not.

O

To say everybody likes it, but many of the people who are very passionate about it have been engaged.

O

So I think a great example of that is back in 2007 we had to build a new middle school and.

O

There was a choice between renovating a historic building or building something new on green space.

O

Up at jones avenue, on top of a landfill and the city was ready to roll out the let's build a new.

O

One and relocate, but there was a joint building committee with the school board and council.

O

They were split, the council was split, the parents of the kids were split and there'd been dialogue.

O

For hours at public hearings and public comment, so the city decided to invite everyone into.

O

A different kind of dialogue where we had study circles, eleven study circles, 160 people.

O

And they deliberated and people talked with one another and they engaged with one another.

O

And it was the the city reaching out saying we're going to ask you and the majority of.

O

The study circles decided to renovate the original school and I think it was done.

O

Based on portsmouth values, you know respect for our historic buildings, preserving green space.

O

Keeping the city walkable unbikable for kids, keeping the downtown active so there's we have.

O

To have public hearings, we use public comment, it has its institutional place, but I think.

O

It's not necessarily good for generating real dialogue or considering a variety of options.

O

And it's not necessarily good for comparing what are the best ways to go. So this motion that I'm.

O

Offering is to help us begin to expand our public engagement beyond the traditional one-way process.

O

And it's: how can we go out and get input from residents to us as well as we can discuss.

O

What they have to say in return, um there's some interesting, really interesting things happening.

O

I put in the packet flash vote, which is a way of uh impaneling 500-600 people for instant feedback.

O

And it's very transparent, everybody gets the same results within 48 hours, so you you can.

O

Think of some of the issues we've wrestled with tonight and it might be very applicable.

O

And so in a nutshell, the goal is to work with staff and hear back.

O

If they can research, some of these best practices out there and best technologies.

O

So that really we can really make some progress over the next eight 12 10 16 months on.

O

How do we invite community engagement? How do we encourage it? How do we increase the participation.

O

With these sort of non-traditional methods- and I added the possibility of a work session.

O

um In the motion- um and I think it would be a good discussion- we could.

O

Hear back from staff about that, so that's councillor, tabor, any other questions or comments.

B

Council rombardi and councillor cook, yes, the safe water committee used that.

G

That system for immediate feedback on a very small scale and found it to be very useful and so.

G

I I could imagine that being expanded quite a bit.

G

I mean we had about 30 participants um in that, and it was basically serving water quality.

G

And things like that, it was not a contentious or controversial subject at all, but it was a useful.

G

Exercise in experimenting with this process, so I support that counselor cook. Thank you. Your honor.

M

um And thank you counselor tabor, for introducing this subject to us. I think it's a wonderful.

M

Initiative um I particularly like the idea of being able to gather additional data that is.

M

Not influenced, I guess, by public by certain sides of opinion on particular actions of the council.

M

I think that's one of the things I really struggle with the most.

M

In the role as a city, councilor is that whenever we we take part or look at a new initiative,.

M

The feedback that we receive is usually from individuals that are either unhappy with.

M

The program or individuals that are immediate abutters to whatever program we're initiating.

M

And so they feel a need to respond, but we don't get general feedback from the wider populace and.

M

So it's very hard to make a decision based upon what you think public opinion is.

M

On that particular initiative, you think about the way we gather data like, for example, fleet street.

M

We gathered quite a bit of data on fleet street and design of fleet street, but that's an opt-in.

M

Program but who wants to respond, and so you get a certain subset of the population responding.

M

And that skews the data, so it would be great if we had a way like flash vote is a great example.

M

Of collecting unbiased data, and so I think this is a really important initiative to look at.

M

Thank you, councillor, baylock, thank you, arnold and thank you council tabler for bringing this up. I.

C

Really appreciate you looked at other weather towns did really thought outside the box here.

C

And I think what better way to bring more members of our community.

C

Into engagement with us, but I think this is wonderful, even if we're just looking at new ways.

C

To communicate with community members- and I also like the idea of the survey you know- we've.

C

Talked about shorter ways of communicating with people now their attention spans are a little.

C

Shorter than they might have been in the in the history um but yeah, thank you very much.

C

Well, uh I always loved learning um and I love that I got to learn about the uh claritarian.

B

Which is uh the the little file cabinet that you pulled out by law?.

B

It is interesting that um you know the athenians had representative uh democracy there, um so you.

B

Know I don't think what you're proposing is to put everything out to a vote, because people elect us.

B

Or those that sit in these seats for our judgment, but I do feel very strongly that.

B

In order to have good judgment, we need as much information as possible and while it might not.

B

Be hard uh for any one of us uh to get up at public comment and and speak reminder.

B

Or for anybody uh who's used to doing that, I I speak to a number of people that get drawn in.

B

By an issue good or bad and and speak up here and the first thing that almost inevitably they say.

B

Man, I was so scared, but I really felt passionate about this um and that's their first. uh It's.

B

Their first kind of inkling into into into government- and they realize it's not that bad.

B

It's just us up here and it can. You know it gets easier and when you talk it gets easier.

B

To do it again, so I view this, as you know, in its in its best form, I view it as an on-ramp to.

B

Participating in portsmouth and if we can figure out ways to to make it easier to do so on a level.

B

That you know, isn't life or death to somebody or even you know in a budding issue that they feel.

B

Passionate about maybe it's just a judgment, I'd love to figure out ways and I'd love. This work.

B

Session- and I hope that the um you know the the work session- you know there's some takeaways- that.

B

We we give to the governance uh committee as a as a pathway uh forward to how do we implement.

B

Them but I'd love to learn more about this, and how do we take advantage of technology.

B

Or just other best practices around the around the nation in terms of how do we get more people.

B

uh To vote so I am in favor of this and I uh have the vote all in favor, aye aye, all right.

A

Any chance we could get a short break absolutely, but we gotta finish up by 10 30.. I just need two.

B

Minutes to go yeah yeah, all right, so we'll take a five minute recess and uh the rest of the packet.

K

B

B

All right welcome back and we find ourselves back to counselor bagley, unfinished business.

B

So we've gotten through bike lanes uh the first okay, so we're on to uh just section two uh under.

B

Your name um number one, I believe, request for renewal, three yep. uh Thank you, your honor, uh so.

K

Parking traffic safety committee action items needing approval by the council.

K

um I would move that we approve items one three um under section two in section two, as we've already.

K

Discussed section item two, so one and three from section two so moved. Second, all in favor, aye, aye.

K

And then uh item three parking traffic safety committee, action seats and minutes of may 5th, 2022.

K

A move to accept and approve the action sheet in minutes of the may 5th 2022 parking traffic.

K

Safety committee meeting so moved second and just a question: um does this? Would.

B

Does this approve what we've just approved or in addition to that yeah it's? It was done a little.

K

Cumbersome this week, because I tried to pull some stuff out: uh okay got it okay, so uh we're kind of.

B

Reapproving, what we just approved, we approved the second time all right, all in favor, aye.

K

And then item four uh so requesting a report back from city on the maple haven.

K

And panaway manor sidewalk projects and if you want, I can speak to how we ended up here.

B

uh Do we have, is this a verbal update? Do we have a motion.

B

It's a verbal update. Okay, um so uh would you just for the record? Could you make it so you're.

B

Requesting a report back from the city, so that would be the motion right. That's correct! Okay! So.

B

Could you make that motion yeah, so I moved that uh the city report back on the maple.

K

Haven and panaway manor sidewalk projects; second, all right, so.

K

These projects have have been in the cip for for close to a decade, um and some of who requested.

K

Them why they requested them has gotten lost. Over the years uh we sent out some surveys in panaway.

K

There is overwhelming support for sidewalks from the third residents who responded in maple haven.

K

There was a little bit less, but it was. It was pretty substantial support for sidewalks.

K

But there's been some: some residents have raised concerns that their support may have.

K

Changed based on once we went out there and did the field surveys and looked at the number.

K

Of trees that would have to be cut down to put the sidewalks in what the sidewalks would look.

K

Like they're five and a half feet wide concrete so that the five foot snow plow can get down them.

K

What I want to make sure we're we're not going to cut down trees.

K

And then find out that, oh actually most people didn't want us to cut down these.

K

Trees, so it's just a kind of a safety valve on the project. Let's make sure that.

K

Now that we have finalized plans, everybody's still on board, with these finalized plans.

K

And I would expect the city we might do a survey and and talk to the neighborhoods and.

K

Maybe possibly have uh one more meeting each for those neighborhoods before we move forward to.

K

Kind of past the point of no return, mr sameer thank you and to continue on um what councilor.

C

Bradley was saying, we've also discussed within the city and hopefully get a report.

C

Back of potentially breaking up these projects, I know that they were in the cip, as one group.

C

um Item, but maybe breaking them up to see if we can get some traction on them, while appeasing.

A

All the neighborhoods, I will add that the state street project is moving forward so.

K

There are three sidewalk projects total. I will say my inherent bias as a counselor is. I am.

K

On the pro sidewalk camp, which I guess I didn't even know, there was a pro and anti-sidewalk camp.

K

Until recently, um but once we cut down these trees, we can't put them back up so.

K

I think it's prudent to to take a good hard look at this before we move forward.

B

It's just america, yes, I would know, because I just want to make it very clear to the public that.

C

The city has a as a great uh greenery and tree committee, and and we do replant trees in areas.

C

When they are removed- and I just know that sometimes there's this notion- that you know.

C

I think it just happened on um over on pierce island and for tree that we had to cut down some.

C

Diseased trees and and um people just thought we were removing trees.

C

To remove trees, so I like to make it very clear that we have an amazing arborist. Dpw does a great job, and so does the green marine tree committee to make sure that.

C

When trees are removed for projects like this, that new trees are planted, um and so that the you know.

C

The environment that neighborhood feel the sound protection. The heat protection is still there.

B

Any other questions I just had one question: when you said split out on state street still occurring.

B

When do we expect to get the we've bid, those out at least two different ways? Maybe three.

B

When do we expect to get those bids back, and when can the public expect to have.

B

This on the council agenda for us to discuss right, I'm happy to take that your honor we recently as.

F

In last week put out the bid for the state street project and we expect bids in back in the three to.

F

Four week, time frame, which would make it too late for that first june council meeting, but.

F

Certainly in time for the second june council meeting and definitely that the option, the city.

F

Council preferred would take place this summer. What we need to do is in in reference to what the.

F

Council has discussed, and in deference to the trees and greenery conversation that that brought.

F

Up the the notion that perhaps there is not the consensus, we may have thought prior to treason.

F

Greenery meeting and discussing the tree removal that city staff would hold one more as council.

F

Bagley suggested one more neighborhood meeting for each area, both maple haven and panoy, and make sure.

F

That both sides of the conversation understand all the ramifications of undertaking the project.

B

And would that push any discussion or any? I guess the project into the next year because of we.

B

Wouldn't be bidding these for this, or could we bid them later and still hit the construction window.

F

What we would do is once we take into account the different opinions of the different neighborhoods.

F

It would, from a timing perspective, be something where we would put out bids in the fall.

F

For work next spring for those two neighborhoods in whole or in part and then just from a.

B

Budget standpoint would this then be reflected in this year's budget or.

B

Next year's budget, it would stay within the 23 budget because it would be work.

F

Within the fy23, so it's still standing around. Okay, all right, uh counselor, bagley.

K

uh Maybe this is a question for director rice. I don't want to spill the beans on what might be the.

K

Worst kept secret in town these days, but since the assistant mayor mentioned it uh we do have.

K

Some big plans uh with planting trees upcoming next year- I don't know if anybody from the city.

K

Wants to speak to that or if we're gonna wait for a bigger announcement about that.

F

Well, we're a tree city and we like to plant lots of trees. So.

F

um I'm looking at peter and I think we'll make a more comprehensive announcement, but.

F

um I think, without um speaking out of term, we try to plan at least 100 trees a year.

F

We would look to quadruple that for the 400th, so we would look to plant with the assistance of.

F

Groups like the rotary club and others, a total of 400 trees next year birthday all right. Thank you.

B

um So uh with that, the the motion on the floor uh is to report back.

B

From the city manager on the maple haven and panaway sidewalk projects is that, did I read that.

B

I remember that correctly: yes, are there abouts? Okay, any other discussion, all in favor, aye, aye, aye,.

B

All right, sponsor bagley you're done all right, uh no approvals of grants or donations um and then.

B

We are left with the city, manager's informational items, your honor, similar to conversation at last.

F

Council meeting about the status of the demolition committee and their findings, we heard requests for.

F

Information and updates on where we stand with pfas sampling at the new athletic fields, we've.

F

Provided a short update and the update really says you'll get, we will be able to provide you.

F

With a more thorough and comprehensive update for another two to three weeks for the work that our.

F

Independent third party tester trc, can to um can undertake to get the information to us in a manner.

F

That we can share with you, so it is anticipated that at one of the june meetings we will come back.

F

With a more thorough pfas update, so that is number one we've, um the other one is, as mentioned at our.

F

Budget presentation last week, our chief building inspector has brought the inspection department to.

F

A status in just six short months where he and his staff are caught up with the backlog, they're proud.

F

To be able to go back to offering office hours to allow residents, contractors and developers.

F

To have in-person meetings with the inspection team without having to schedule an appointment.

F

People will remember that in the pre-covered days the additional benefit of office hours is that our.

F

Inspectors can have an improved opportunity to field calls meet with folks return emails and be.

F

Available for really critical cross-departmental collaboration, which shaunty wolf, has really done.

F

A wonderful job in spearheading so starting today we are offering office hours every monday from 8.

F

To 10 a.m and 5 to 6 p.m, and every tuesday, through friday, from 8 to 10 a.m. No appointments feel free.

F

To walk in someone from the inspection team will be glad to to work with you excellent anything.

B

Under miscellaneous, I have one thing I made your honor with uh memorial day coming up. I just wanted.

C

To give a quick overview of what people could expect, they won't participate in memorial day.

C

Events so on friday may 27th at 10 30 is going to be the burial at sea. That's in prescott park.

C

It's the smaller ceremony of the ones that we're doing, but we are planning on bringing back the.

C

Portsmouth memorial day parade it steps off at one o'clock on monday, the 30th of may the.

C

Parade follows the same route it's filed in the past, essentially starting at the intersection of.

C

Junkens, ave and parrot going through downtown, then out to intersection middle street, continue down.

C

Middle street make a left down to richards, then go up into the south street cemetery.

C

uh The actual ceremony portion is set to begin at two o'clock where they'll be speaking and then.

C

The only changes afterwards, instead of having a small cookout in the city hall's lower lot, the vfw.

C

Met with actually deputy chief howe this morning to do a cookout in prescott park instead, which.

C

I've been working with telstra on so everyone's welcome to all events. Obviously the council.

C

And the public, thank you, councilor denton, council bagley. uh Thank you, your honor. I just.

K

Want to thank everybody, so my dad passed away a couple weeks ago and the mayor said some very nice.

K

Things at the start of the meeting, but he also gave me some some excellent advice on the phone.

K

And a huge number of people reached out to me uh through text or flowers or cards and.

K

It was greatly appreciated, it's a lot more challenging than I thought it would be, and and.

K

The support of the community has been fantastic, so I just want to say thank you to everyone.

B

Thank you, councillor bagley, it's a uh maya's memory, be a blessing and certainly is having.

B

Talked to you uh on that councilor ombardi. I would just like to remind people that the.

G

State of the city is being presented tomorrow morning. Our city manager will be presenting at.

G

The chamber and it's at the pease golf course: grill 20 grill 28.

K

I just invited the apple. This is actually one of the hottest tickets in town. So it's.

K

It's sold out and they're, not allowing walk-ups, so I think there might be a way to get there on.

K

Zoom, um but if you show up you, you may be turned away at the door. Unfortunately we're at the tent.

F

I believe it's outside it's outside. Yes, okay, uh counselor, tabor wow. This is, uh I know your record.

B

For miscellaneous here, you're wagging that gavel I just going back to the bike lanes. I wanted to ask.

O

Director rice, how long we might be in the temporary situation with the stripes.

O

um Would it be more appropriate to provide a written report at our next? That's fine.

F

I'm not looking to shush peter. I would never do that. That's a motion.

F

Second, all in favor for a written report back on the uh the the middle street.

B

Repaving planning effort, okay, hi hi hi, mr man, I haven't. I just said I had one thing.

B

It was just uh to remind fort smith or to let portsmouth know that the family dance due to.

B

Low ticket sales um has been canceled for friday evening, which I'm incredibly bummed about, and.

B

Tiernan is uh is equally sad um about so uh we're going to work to find another date and we will.

B

Endeavor, I will I will try to uh do my bit and ask everybody else to as well to to promote that.

B

More aggressively, so we have a a great family dance at the community center and we're sorry that.

B

uh That we have to cancel it, you know the people that did sign up, I'm sure were really energetic.

B

And enthused dancers, like myself and my daughter, but it's always fun to dance with more people, so.

B

Look for a date uh to come and I believe this city manager has an item at the risk of.

F

Piling on, I would like to inform the council that, pursuant to section 1.303 of the ordinance uh and.

F

As I am a member of one of two ex officio members to serve on the planning board,.

F

I am looking to inform you that I will appoint joe almeida our.

F

Facilities manager, who is an architect by training, has spent a lot of time.

F

As as a helpful member of the htc, that joe will replace ray, pizzulo has who has retired.

F

From employ with the city of portsmouth and therefore joe will serve with me as ex-official.

F

Members on the planning board, starting this thursday. Thank you he'll, be a great addition and.

B

Thank you to uh ray for your many years of service uh to the city and on the planning board and good.

B

Luck, joe uh on the uh the planning board, with no other uh comments or questions under miscellaneous.

B

uh I'm gonna close the meeting, uh uh stay safe, portsmouth and enjoy uh the rest this week.