NH city has post-recession AAA bond rating since 2010 Nashua could be a model city, with low debt, a AAA bond rating and an expanding economy. Share Shares Copy Link Copy

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WEBVTT >> WELCOME TO NEW HAMPSHIRE'S BUSINESS, I'M FRED KOCHER. LET ME PUT UP INFORMATION ON THE SCREEN AND YOU TELL ME WHICH CITY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE THIS IS. HERE IT IS. TRIPLE-A GENERAL OBLIGATION BOND RATING AND A STABLE OUTLOOK, A LOW DEBT AND STRONG FINANCI MANAGEMENT. MANAGEABLE RETIREE COSTS AND DIVERSE AND SPENDING AND ECONOMY. WHAT CITY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE IS THAT? WELL, IT'S NASHUA. WITH ME TO TALK ABOUT THIS IS THE FORMER MAYOR OF NASHUA WHO LED THAT CITY FOR THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS, WELCOME. >> THANK YOU. >> NICE TO HAVE YOU HERE AND THE CEO OF THE GREATER NASHUA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE. >> NICE TO HAVE YOU HERE. BEFORE WE GET INTO PARTICULARS, HOW DID YOU DO THIS POST RECESSION, YOU'VE HAD TRIPLE BOND RATING SINCE THE RECESSION ENDED AND YOU'VE GOT IT. >> WELL, IT STARTS WITH A GOOD TEAM. WE HAVE A GREAT CFO, A GREAT TREASURER. TOGETHER, WE REALLY PAID ATTENTION AND YOU KNOW, IT'S A THREE-WAY RESPONSIBILITY, THE CITIZENS HAVE SOME RESPONSIBILITY, THE DEPARTMENTS, AND THE EMPLOYEES. SO, FOR THE THINGS THAT WE COULD MANAGE, WE DID, AND FOR THE THINGS THAT WE COULDN'T. >> AND ONE OF THE THINGS IN THAT FITCH BOND RATING REPORT, TRACY, IS A DIVERSE AND EXPANDING ECONOMY, THAT'S THE CHAMBER. >> ABSOLUTELY. AND YOU LOOK AT WHAT WE HAVE SUCCEEDED IN BUSINESS IN NASHUA AND YOU LOOK AT BECOMING A CENTER MEDICALLY FOR THE HOSPITALS AND THE MEDICAL ASSOCIATIONS, T SOFTWARE AND ENGINEERING DEFENSE SPENDING. ONE OF THE THINGS THEY REFER TO IN THE FITCH REPORT IS THE DIVERSITY OF OUR ECONOMIC BASE AND THAT SPEAKS WELL TO THE JOB, THE CITY, CHAMBER AND OTHER ECONOMIC DRIVERS HAVE DONE TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE A DIVERSE BUSINESS BACKGROUND. >> SPEAKING OF DRIVERS, FORMER MAYOR, LET ME PUT ANOTHER GRAPHI UP. FISCAL '08 TO FISCAL 16 AND WAGES, BENEFITS, PENSIONS AND OPERATING. DESCRIBE WHAT'S IMPORTANT ON THAT GRAPHIC FOR US. >> WHAT'S IMPORTANT, IF YOU LOOK AT WAGES, BENEFITS AND PENSIONS, THOSE A THE COSTS THAT WE REALLY CAN'T CONTROL. TO SOME DEGRE WE CAN CONTROL WAGES AS WE NEGOTIATE WITH OUR UNIONS. WE HAVE 16 UNITS AND PLUS THE MERIT EMPLOYEES. BENEFITS, TOUGH TO CONTROL, BUT WE MADE SOME REAL HEADWAY THERE AND PENSIONS TOTALLY OUT OF OUR CONTROL. IF YOU LOOK AT THE OPERATING BUDGET ON THE BOTTOM WHERE IT SHOWS YOUR EIGHT-YEAR AVERAGE AT .6, WHAT THAT TELLS YOU, THOSE ARE THE COSTS THAT WE CAN CONTROL AND SO WE DID. TH ONES WE CAN'T CONTROL-- >> YOU HAVE A SPENDING CAP IN NASHUA. >> WE DO, AN ADDITIONAL CHALLENGE THAT WE HAVE TO MEET. >> YOU HAVE COME UNDER IT? >> WE'VE COME UNDER IT EVERY YEAR WITH STILL MONEY ON THE TABLE AND A STABLE TAX RATE, WHICH WAS IMPORTANT. >> AND THE TAX INCREASES HAVE BEEN LOW? >> LO YOU KNOW, STABILITY IS IMPORTANT. PARTICULARLY THE RATING AGENCIES WHEN THEY LOOK AT THAT, THEY WANT TO SEE THAT YOU HAVE A PLAN YOU'RE ABLE TO EXECUTE IT AND IN DIFFICULT TIMES, IT'S HARD TO PROVIDE THAT STABILITY AND NASHUA WAS ABLE TO DO THAT AND SHOWED THAT WE FOLLOWED THROUGH. >> ALL OF THIS IS DONE POST RECESSION SINCE 2008. WHAT ABOUT THE ECONOMIC STRENGTH OF THE CITY, WHICH IS CLEAR? WHAT DO YOU SEE IN TERMS OF KEEPING THIS BOND RATING, IN TERMS. ECONOMIC VITALITY OF NASHUA, WHAT HAS TO BE DONE? >> I THINK A COUPLE OF THINGS, WE NEED TO MAINTAIN THAT STABILITY FOR BUSINESSES LOOKING TO COME INTO THE AREA OR EXPAND IN THE AREA, HAVING THAT STABILITY, KNOWING THAT THEIR TAX RATE ISN'T GOING TO JUMP UP AND DOWN, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME AND KUDOS TO DONNA LEE AND HER ADMINISTRATION, THE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT NEEDS TO BE INVESTED IN TO CONTINUE TO BE A GOOD CITY. MORE THAN THAT, AS EMPLOYERS LOOK F EMPLOYEES, HAVING THAT STABLE TAX BASE IS ALSO A REAL POSITIVE THING FOR PEOPLE LOOKING TO MOVE IN AND WORK IN NASHUA. >>GOOD. LET ME PUT UP ANOTHER GRAPHIC. HERE IS ONE OF THE CHALLENGES YOU FACE, ALL OF NEW HAMPSHIRE FACES, THE SIZE OF THE LABOR FORCE, ASSUMING NO MIGRATION, THE WORKING AGE O NASHUA WILL DECLINE 10% IN THE STATE BETWEEN NOW AND 20 AND LOOK AT HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY ON THE SECOND COUNTY DOWN, MINUS 5.5% IN THE SIZE OF LABOR FORCE. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH THAT? >> YOU HAVE TO WORK WITH PEOPLE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY KNOW WHAT WE HAVE TO OFFER HERE. WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT THE WORKERS THAT WE DO HAVE ARE A SKILLED WORK FORCE SO BUSINESSES KNOW TO COME. WE HAVE DEVELOPED SOME PARTNERSHIPS OVER THE YEARS WITH THE COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND OTHERS TO INVEST IN THAT SKILLED WORK FORCE, TO WORK WITH COMPANIES TO SHOW THEM WHAT WE CAN OFFER. I MEAN, THINK ABOUT IT, IT'S NEW HAMPSHIRE. WHEN A COMPANY COMES HERE AND WANT TO COME HERE, YOU CAN'T OFFER THEM TAX BREAKS OR A BREAK ON ELECTRICITY, WHAT CAN YOU OFFER THEM? YOU CAN OFFER THEM THE INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE, THE STABILITY AND THE PARTNERSHIP TO GET A SKILLED WORK FORCE. AND SAME FOR YOU AT THE CHAMBER, REAL QUICK? >> ONE OF THE WE NEED TO LOOK AT. WE NEED TO BE A WELCOMING ECONOMY IN NASHUA. WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO IT FROM OUR OWN POPULATION, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WELCOME OTH PEOPLE KNOW THE AREA.

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