Former Manchester Ward 10 Alderman Phil Greazzo has reentered the public fray, filing a citizen’s complaint against Alderman at-Large Joe Kelly Levasseur under the city’s charter. In a letter sent to City Clerk Matthew Normand on Friday, which we published on Saturday as a breaking news story, Greazzo noted the Conduct Board would be required to meet and investigate the complaint. Greazzo hinted at action when he spoke during the Board of Mayor and Aldermen‘s public participation hearing just before Police Chief David Mara‘s request that the board address the Attorney General’s report finding that the accusations leveled by Levasseur against his department and several of its members were false. Greazzo’s letter not only cites specific charter violations, it also provides various state laws that, on their face, seem to provide the board with statutory authority to remove one of its members, something City Solicitor Tom Clark said could not be done. Specifically, Greazzo cites RSA forty nine C colon thirteen entitled Removal of Mayor, Aldermen and Councilors, which reads: “The elected body may, on specific charges and after due notice and hearing, at any time remove the mayor or one of its own members for cause, including but not limited to prolonged absence from or other inattention to duties, crime or misconduct in office or as specified in the charter.” (emphasis added) In section two, it goes on to say that “(A)ny vacancy occasioned by removal under this section shall be filled in the manner provided in the charter.” I’m no lawyer, but it seems to me the city solicitor has some explaining to do. It also seems, as we’ve said all along, this issue isn’t over and won’t be until Levasseur’s gone either by action of the board or of his own accord.
Hooksett Town Councilor and School Board Candidate Todd Lizotte denies he planted any pro-Pinkerton signs on the Manchester side of the municipal border. In an email sent after he listened to the show on Friday, Lizotte asked where the sign was so he could go and remove it. We reported that neighbors in the North End thought it was bad enough that signs for Hooksett School Board candidates were showing up in their neighborhood, but they were pretty insulted by Lizotte’s pro-Pinkerton sign given all that’s been said up there about Manchester and its schools by those folks North of the border. Candidate Phil Denbow, who as a school board member has publicly cooked the books to skew the costs of educating kids in Manchester to make the more expensive Pinkerton contract look like a bargain by comparison and candidate Mike Berry, who also supports the Pinkerton option that will require ninety percent of all public high school students from Hooksett to attend the Derry high school, have signs in the neighborhood. If he’s telling the truth, perhaps Lizotte should give his fellow candidates a lesson in geography and in manners so they don’t needlessly continue to insult folks in their neighboring community. They’ve done enough of that already. Here are the photos: 
News from our own backyard continues after this.
Want to know which of the elected officials in Manchester are taking taxpayer provided health and dental benefits? Well, we’ve got the info. While the city promptly responded to our request, the school district took its time and sent incomplete information. Seems they think HIPPA laws preclude them identifying which plan the elected official has chosen. While we agree the law prevents us from knowing who, outside of the elected official or other public employee is covered by the plan and what the claims history has been, the law does not disallow our knowing whether or not they take a family, two person or individual plan. We’ve sent a follow up request noting their error with a request they correct it and provide the information as the city has.
In any event, according to the district’s memo, only Ward 3 Committeeman Christopher Stewart directed the release of his plan information, so we give props to him for his willingness to be transparent. We’ll just have to guess that those joining Stewart in taking the family plan from the schools are Ward 11’s Katie DesRochers, Ward 10’s John Avard, and Ward 8’s Erika Connors. We’ll also guess that Ward 12’s Connie Van Houten‘s taking the two person plan and Ward 5’s Teddy Rokas is taking the single person plan. Avard, Connors, Rokas and Board Vice-Chair David Wihby are on the district’s dental plan. Total cost to the taxpayers, on a premium basis, is over eighty five thousand dollars a year.
From the Board of Aldermen, Ward 1’s Joyce Craig, Ward 8’s Tommy Katsiantonis, Ward 10’s Bill Barry and at-Large members Dan O’Neil and Joe Kelly Levasseur are tapping the city for a family plan. Ward 5’s Ed Osborne, Ward 6’s Garth Corriveau, and Ward 7’s Bill Shea take the two person plan. Ward 9’s Barbara Shaw is on the single plan. All those mentioned except Barry and O’Neil also take the dental plan. Total cost to the taxpayers on a premium basis is over one hundred forty six thousand dollars. We’ve posted the disclosure documents from the city and the peek a boo papers from the school district for your convenience.
Common Core will be on the ballot next week in the Hollis Brookline Cooperative School District thanks to a citizen’s petition. Warrant Article Fourteen asks quote “(S)hall we reject the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the implementation of CCSS, in favor of our own higher Hollis Brookline COOP Academic Standards, and recommend that the school board form a committee (consisting of representatives from the school board, budget committee, school administrators, teachers, students, and community members) to develop the Hollis Brookline COOP Academic Standards? (Submitted by petition)”. The vote is March 3rd and comes on the heels of controversy generated with district budget committee member Diane Pauer called out School Board Chair Tom Solon for saying there’d been no purchases made to implement Common Core in the district when, clearly, there had been many. It goes to the district’s annual meeting at 7 P M on March 3rd at the high school.
That’s news from our own backyard, Girard at Large hour ___ is straight ahead!
Rich while I usually agree with you the city solicitor may have been more right than wrong. The Constitution becomes the law when an elected official is to be removed and so far the only case I know of is a Judge who was mentally unstable and for embezzlement. Lying or cheating hasn’t yet been a cause I have seen removal for.