Newly-formed Citizens’ Committee on Economic Development seeks members

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Editor’s Note: The location of this meeting has been corrected from a previous version of the story. See details below:

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April 16 meeting will be held at Ledgewood Clubhouse in Manchester, off Candia Road.

MANCHESTER, NH – Citizens’ Committee on Economic Development is looking for a place to hold its 27-member monthly meetings in the downtown/millyard area. The next meeting is planned  April 16, 2018 – 6 – 8 p.m. at Ledgewood Clubhouse within the Ledgewood Retirement Community, 18 Ledgewood Way in Manchester, across the street from Goldenrod Restaurant/Drive-in.

The group plans to meet twice monthly, Monday nights from 6 to 8 p.m., and is looking for 10 more volunteer members to round out the 27 target total. An inaugural meeting was held on March 26 at Mint Bistro.

Representatives from Wards 1, 3, 6, and 9 and 11 have come forward. Still needed: two members each to represent Wards 4 and 7. In addition, one more member from each of the following wards is needed: 2, 5, 8, 9, 10  and 12. [Not sure which ward you live in? Click here to enter your address and find out.]

The group is also looking for a location for its April 30 meeting. If anyone has a lead on a meeting space, contact group organizer Glenn RJ. Ouellette at 603-289-6835 or email queencityexaminer@gmail.com

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Ward 6 Alderman Elizabeth Moreau is scheduled to be the guest at the April 16 community meeting.

April 16 meeting agenda

  • Introductions of the committee members in attendance. Guest: Ward 6 Alderman, Elizabeth Moreau.
  • Presently working on three projects for 2018 (see below). Projected cost of Project 1 & 2 will be presented at the meeting:
  1. Celebrating the Queen City’s 172nd Birthday on June 1, 2018 from 6 to 9 p.m. at City Hall Plaza (looking for corporate sponsors.)
  2. Staging two outdoor ticketed Concerts in the Park. One at Veteran’s Park if the bathrooms can be opened, and the other at Arm’s Park.
  3. Planting Easter lilies behind the City Hall Annex Garden come the end of May so that they will bloom again in late July early August. Access for this beautification project has already been approved by the City Clerk’s office.

More information on these ongoing projects will be shared at the next meeting. Also, the group is fielding ideas on how to fix the downtown problems of vagrancy and panhandling, making it easier for people to visit merchants during summer months.

  • Working on an affordable way to paint, without costing $7,000 per downtown crosswalk. (Taking a look at Elm & Hanover street’s red paint.) It’s not changing color at all and much less expensive.
  • Start working on the two separate City “neighborhood” maps, one having 24 and the other has 32 neighborhoods. (As planned “workshop meetings” are set to begin soon, it’s time to realign the old neighborhoods with information about past and present meaning to these areas of the city, so that activities like neighborhood block parties can be held and other fun activities for getting to know each other can be planned, and also to talk about solving problem areas of the city that we call home, (more livable and safety).
  • Vote on applying for a 501 (c)(3) tax-exempt Status.
  • Elections of Committee Officers. Chair – Vice Chair – Secretary and Treasurer
  • Adjourn. Next Meeting will be a workshop meeting on April 30, 2018

Who should consider becoming a member of the Manchester Citizen’s Committee on Economic Development?         

The goal of this group is to move Manchester forward on its economic development plans. This is a grassroots, open-minded meeting of the minds, and a non-political group. No members of the Citizen’s Committee can be serving presently as a city or school official. This is solely a Citizen’s Committee. Ideally, the Citizen’s Committee will consist of a total of 27 members serving all of the Queen City’s 12 Wards: 2 members per ward and the chair, vice chair and secretary.

After all 12 Wards have had a committee ward public hearing, a report will be compiled in order in preparation for meeting with both the Board of Mayor and Aldermen and the Board of School Committee in about a year from now to begin enacting a long-range plan for the city’s economic future.

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