It couldn’t get any worse. Or could it?

Nashua property owners, already irritated by the over-spending practices of the city’s Democrat mayor and board of aldermen, are now even more frustrated at the convoluted explanation by Donchess (Union Leader, November 22, 2020) for the next property tax hike coming on July 1, 2021.

Claiming that Nashua was handed a “huge levy” from the New Hampshire state house for the increase in city workers’ healthcare costs the mayor explained his “high deductible” option plan. The way it works for a typical family of two or four the city pays that employee $3,000 to elect a $4,000 high deductible plan each year as an incentive to keep their healthcare costs down., The maximum they would pay then is $1,000. If they don’t use the $3K, they can carry it forward. And, the next year they get another $3K. And for subsequent years. There are many city employees on this plan and they have significant balances in their accounts. Those workers could go for years without having to pay out of pocket – at taxpayers’ expense. According to the mayor, this plan will save the employee and the city considerably. Uh…..am I missing something? No wonder healthcare costs are rising when you have Cadillac plans like this.

But it doesn’t stop there.

The mayor and his fellow alderbunch continue their spending while our property taxes increase. Residents have questioned how the Performing Arts Center (PAC) plays into the city budget and tax increases. Donchess doesn’t believe they equate. He claims the project has been in development for 30 years. What? He further claims that the PAC will ultimately pay for itself and will create enough downtown development and additional taxes to offset the cost. But where is the parking to handle all this new development, Mr. Mayor?

Finally, the pièce de résistance of the mayor’s and aldermen’s spending spree is the purchase of land to be used as the gateway to the city’s new middle school.

Let me get this straight. Our property taxes in Nashua are being raised to also pay for a new school, and for the upgrading of existing schools, while Nashua is going to lose $6 million in state aid because of a decrease in enrollment in their schools?

According to the Board of Education Nashua School District recent figures, over 860 students have pulled out of Nashua public schools in part due to Covid-19. Coupled with BOE edicts that our schools are still in lockdown and remote learning is the order of the day, our liberal city government leaders still expect Nashua property owners to finance their budget shortfalls. When does this madness stop?

It stops when the people of Nashua realize that the Mayor and Board of Aldermen don’t care about our hardships during this pandemic and beyond. We need to reduce government spending and bring back economically conservative values.

The time for that starts now.

Di Lothrop is a longtime Nashua resident.

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