CLAREMONT, N.H. – Claremont Police Chief Brent Wilmot spoke before the Claremont City Council, on Oct. 28, about a new dispatch service agreement with the Charlestown Police Department. The Charlestown chief of police has had difficulty staffing Charlestown’s dispatch center, and looked to the Claremont Police Department for help. Chief Wilmot drew up a four-phase tentative contract to assist Charlestown. He then had his dispatchers take on 32 hours of coverage for Charlestown for two weekends in a row as an experiment to find out what the workload placed on Claremont’s dispatchers was. Across these two weekends, there were 17 calls for service over each 32-hour period. This was deemed manageable by the dispatch center. Legal counsel reviewed the contract and sent it to the state’s attorney general for review. The attorney general approved the contract, but required that the contract be signed by both the Charlestown Selectboard and Claremont City Councils. Claremont’s city council approved this contract.
City Assessor Steve Hamilton addressed property taxes for the elderly and the disabled. The proposed exemption qualification standard for the elderly takes into account the 3.7% inflationary increase, their income, and asset holdings not including their home. Income of $29,500 or less for a single person and $38,900 or less for a married couple makes the elderly eligible for this type of property tax relief. Forty-five properties fall into this category.
Likewise, eligibility for the disabled takes into account the 3.7% inflationary increase, their income, and asset holdings not including their home. Single people with incomes of $26,400 or less and couples with incomes of $35,600 or less are eligible for this type of property tax relief. Seven individuals fall into this category. There will be a last reading of this ordinance at the next city council meeting, when the public is invited to comment, and the council will put it to a decisive vote.
Human Resource Director Shannon Thibodeau reviewed Merit System Attachment B, which was comprised of job descriptions and job titles for nonunion employees and addressed the 5% pay increase for employees who worked under the merit system. There will be a last reading of this ordinance at the next city council meeting, with an opportunity for public comment prior to the council’s vote.
Director of Public Works Alex Gleason requested the expenditure of $15,076.40 for a new compressor, and related parts and labor to replace the old compressor which had completely failed on the HVAC unit on the roof of the police station. The council voted to approve request.
City council member Andrew O’Hearne reported that the chairperson of the Tolles Home Board has resigned her seat but remains on the board. The former vice chair is now acting chair. In addition, the maintenance supervisor and the site manager have given their notices.
Interim City Manager Rick Bergeron had a number of procedural announcements: Comcast has completed work on the broadband matching grant, which has extended service to 97 addresses and also added connections to 41 additional addresses that weren’t included in the grant at no cost. The cast iron fountain in Opera House Square will be removed before winter, sandblasted, repaired, and painted before its reinstallation in the spring. The city lost its part-time payroll technician recently, along with a staff member in Central Connections. Human resources is working on filling both these positions. The finance department has completed its bookkeeping for fiscal year 2026, which shows an increase of $145,430 in the fund balance. Figures have not yet been validated by the auditor. And finally, Wilmot is looking into converting the position of part-time parking enforcement officer into a part-time officer who can enforce city ordinances in the Pleasant Street area.
The Claremont City Council meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month, at 6:30 p.m., in the Claremont City Hall Council Chambers.