CLAREMONT, N.H. – The Claremont City Council met on Wednesday, Sept. 10. All council members were present. Mayor Dale Girard made the announcement that agenda items A and B were removed to allow people to attend that evening’s school board meeting. The council approved the minutes of the Aug. 27 council meeting.
Girard then made a number of announcements as follows. The City Election Filing Period begins Wednesday, Sept. 17. The clerk’s office will be open on Friday, from 3-5 p.m. The school board has a current vacancy. The Kiwanis Club will be hosting its annual Brewfest at the Visitor’s Center on North Street, on Sept. 20. Brewfest tickets can be purchased at www.claremontbrewfest.com. The Claremont Parks and Recreation Department hosts its Fall Festival and Chili Cook-off on Saturday, Oct. 4, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., at the Visitor’s Center Green.
Financial Director Nancy Bates gave the following reports. The Washington Street project is complete. There will be a drive/walkthrough soon. The North and Main Street upgrade is in progress, and is still on track to have the base paving done before winter. Bates signed the purchase and sales agreement with the buyer for 17 Water Street; the first deposit was to be made that week. She is anticipating the closing within a month. The fiscal year 2026 budget book is finished, and will be posted on the city’s website. Bates said paper copies would be forthcoming within a few days after the meeting. There are three solid candidates for the planning and development director. An offer was expected to be made by the end of the following week. The Health Trust is holding a public hearing on Sept. 25, to discuss rate setting for the next plan year and to determine the surplus for all coverage lines. The discussion will be held in Concord. The time will be posted on the website, closer to the date.
Director of human resources Shannon Thibodeau presented the third and final reading of Ordinance 640, the Merit System Amendment to Attachment B, Payroll and Human Resources Specialists, which would add the part-time position of payroll and human resource specialist. This is a nonunion classification. The city council unanimously voted yes to this resolution.
Girard asked if there was a motion to put a town charter amendment on the November ballot regarding whether or not the city manager should be a Claremont resident. The council voted yes.
The council voted yes on accepting the New Hampshire Safety Highway Agency’s grant of $8,500, awarded to the Claremont Police Department, in order to enhance motor vehicle enforcement. The $2,125 matching fund required from the town will be satisfied with in-kind funding.
Assistant Mayor Debora Matteau reported that there was a site plan review of a multibuilding, multiunit project on Central Street. She said, “It’s been cleared out and renovated. It should go a long way to cleaning out that neighborhood.”
Council member Wayne Hemingway reported that there was a meeting and walk-around at 32 Lafayette Street, the old Scrafani building. The plan was to make it into a storage unit, and it was approved.
Council member William Greenrose reported that the Grace River Baptist Church on Main Street requested that their old sign be replaced with a new sign. He said, “It was a much nicer sign. It was an easy approval.”
The Claremont City Council meets on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month, at 6:30 p.m., in the Council Chambers at Claremont City Hall.