Laurie Ortolano

More Nashua Mayoral Malfeasance?

by Laurie Ortolano

Contracted legal fee agreements are approved by the Mayor and require no approval of the Board of Aldermen (BOA). The purchasing policy does not require the Finance Committee or Board of Aldermen to approve legal services above $25,000. The Mayor and Legal Office have unchecked control over the legal fee contracts and the terms and expenses associated with … Read more

Merits Hearing on the Nashua Flag Case & the Abuse of Mootness

by Laurie Ortolano

The Federal Flag Hearing On Tuesday Morning, November 5, 2024, the Concord Federal Court held a merits hearing on the Scaer v City of Nashua First Amendment Flag case. The coincidence of our National Voting Day and this case could not be more fitting. I had the pleasure of attending. The City filed yet another … Read more

Nashua’s Mayor Must Change His Employee Standards To End Discrimination

by Laurie Ortolano

Nashua’s assessing office underwent significant changes between 2019 and 2021. These changes occurred when the Mayor, aware of the problems, failed to keep the lid on a dysfunctional office operating in disarray.  The lack of management oversight created an unregulated environment, which eventually revealed itself and continues to reveal itself. The chief was at the heart … Read more

Scales of justice gavel law court

The Abusive Costs of Right-to-Know Cases In Nashua

by Laurie Ortolano

Why did the City spend $650,000 in attorney’s fees and City Costs in an RTK case? The First RTK Petition – My Costs – $225,000 I started seeking records in Nashua, the Welcoming City, in good faith, believing the City would comply. While New Hampshire’s Right-to-Know (RTK) law does not require employees to answer questions, … Read more

Elderly grandparent old person original Photo by Danie Franco on Unsplash

Nov. 5th Vote NO on the Constitutional Amendment permitting Judges to serve until age 75

by Laurie Ortolano

RebuildNH recently posted an article to their followers encouraging them to Vote NO on the Constitutional amendment to permit judges to serve until the age of 75: The following question will appear on the ballot this year: “Are you in favor of amending article 78 of the second part of the constitution to read as … Read more

Biden and Bolton

by Laurie Ortolano

Washington And Nashua Have A Lot In Common Selecting people for critical leadership roles and monitoring their performance is paramount to an effective government. We all watched a bizarre public outing of our president’s diminished capacity and analysis of his fitness for duty. Those closest to him failed the nation by covering this up and … Read more

How the City of Nashua Treats Women Must Change

by Laurie Ortolano

Ending Gender Discrimination in Public Information Access I have faced unjustified obstacles and outright hostility for four years while attempting to access public information from Nashua under New Hampshire’s 91-A Right to Know law. What I’ve experienced goes beyond bureaucratic inefficiency to include gender-based discrimination. Nashua’s leadership treats women differently—and worse than men. The Disparity: Men … Read more

Nashua Alderman Melbourne Moran

Nashua Alderman Moran’s Character Paradox

by Laurie Ortolano

Alderman Moran’s behavior and comments at Nashua Board of Aldermen (BOA) meetings often seem bewildering and inappropriate. This was again illustrated at the BOA meeting of 24 September 2024 when he opined on taxpayers’ reactions to receiving their “surprise” property assessment mail. Excerpts from Alderman Moran’s comments during RESPONSE TO REMARKS OF THE MAYOR: https://youtu.be/nOf9YDorMgo?si=OvDACDlM_oauB9vo&t=797 … Read more

Nashua performing arts center

NPAC Corp. – The Arts Center Private Shell Corporation Under The Control Of The City Of Nashua

by Laurie Ortolano

I currently have a Supreme Court Appeal (2024-0181) regarding a Right to Know petition to obtain public records from NPAC Corp. The Petition was dismissed as the lower court ruled that NPAC Corp. did not meet the requirements of a public body or public agency required to disclose records. However, NPAC Corp is the shell … Read more

A Pathetic Mea Culpa

by Laurie Ortolano

On September 24, 2024, the Board of Alderman meeting opened a conversation regarding the new “surprise” assessments received by property owners that weekend. The Mayor explained that properties throughout the City had increased but had no hard data to support his numbers. Congratulating homeowners on their average 20% increases in their assessed values to highlight … Read more

Another Nashua Sandbagging

by Laurie Ortolano

This past Saturday, property owners were taken aback by the unexpected arrival of letters announcing new 2024 statistical citywide assessments. The suddenness of this news, even catching our elected Alderman off guard, sparked a wave of surprise and concern that reverberated across social media for two days, with nearly 1000 posts. Why is this so … Read more

Mr. Mayor, Return our Stolen Property

by Laurie Ortolano

We had property stolen from us in Nashua. It was a property we paid for with our tax dollars, which belonged to us. It was public property, where the money going in and out of it was to be accountable to citizens.  We purchased the property in 2018 for just over $2 million. The Mayor … Read more

Cash money bills

Nashua’s Misuse of Bond Money

by Laurie Ortolano

Many Nashua citizens have lost confidence in our city officials’ ability to handle FUNDING complex municipal projects transparently.  One recent project even questioned whether the city has complied with NH State laws.  This project was the Performing Arts Center (PAC). The result has been a loss of confidence in City Hall and a more costly new Arts … Read more

Nashua performing arts center

Nashua’s Performing Arts Center and the New Market Tax Credit Scheme

by Laurie Ortolano

New Hampshire’s Mascoma Bank is the hub for distributing the Federal Government’s New Market Tax Credit money, designed to provide investor tax credits for projects developed in low-income neighborhoods that improve the economic conditions of those living in hardship. Typical project developments include food, health, and education businesses. Mascoma Bank allocated NMTC funding for Nashua’s … Read more

The Secrecy of Nashua’s Economic Development Office

by Laurie Ortolano

In 2022, I filed the Right to Know Lawsuit in Nashua Superior Court with claims against Nashua’s Economic Development office. The lawsuit primarily concerned the lack of notice of public meetings and posting minutes and records involving economic development projects.  Citizens (including myself) were frustrated by the inability to locate, access, and obtain records and … Read more

Nashua City Hall

Aldermen Moran’s Motion to Kill Free Speech at Our Annual Budget Hearing

by Laurie Ortolano

On June 17th, 2024, the Board of Alderman held its annual FY24-25 budget hearing. The hearing permits citizens to question spending in any City division or department on a $320,000,000 budget. Alderman Dowd has established ground rules but often changes them during the hearing. If he doesn’t like how citizens question the spending of taxpayer … Read more

Main Street

Nashua’s Disregard for the Law

by Laurie Ortolano

Nashua Attorneys take orders from the Mayor, but when those orders violate the constitution, state statutes, or City laws, shouldn’t the Attorneys make a hard stop and comply with the law? Not in Nashua. The Budget Review Committee (BRC) holds public meetings starting in May to review each department’s budget. In June, the Board of … Read more

City of Nashua seth-dewey-EOlo15oy8Ks-unsplash

Hampton Officials Acknowledge Wrongdoing; Nashua Officials Play The Blame Game

by Laurie Ortolano

A news story ran recently about the Hampton Town Clerk being forced to resign after the AG’s office determined she mishandled election ballots, breaking the law. Town officials were quoted acknowledging the woman who identified the mishandling and the wrongdoing positively and vowed to take action to restore their citizens’ trust in fair and free … Read more

Struggling for Access: The City of Nashua’s Impenetrable Wall of Redactions

by Laurie Ortolano

On Monday, April 22, 2024, I attended a status conference at the Nashua Superior Court for citizens petitioning the Court to review the City’s redactions on emails associated with the construction of the Art Center.

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Taxpayers Left in the Dark on Performing Arts Funds

by Laurie Ortolano

The urgency for transparency in using Nashua taxpayers’ hard-earned money is not just important; it’s paramount. As a state that prides itself on transparency, New Hampshire citizens should demand openness and accountability, particularly for publicly funded discretionary projects.

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