Opinion: The Rotten Core of Claremont

How a City Government Lost Its Mind, Its Grip, and Your Trust

Let’s not sugar-coat it, folks: the Claremont city government couldn’t manage a lemonade stand, let alone a tax incentive program like RSA 79-E. What’s happening in this city is beyond negligence—it’s bureaucratic malpractice wrapped in cluelessness and tied with a bow of smug, small-town arrogance.

Case in point? The disaster at **31 Myrtle Street**. If you haven’t heard, a man named Jonathan Nelson applied for a property tax freeze under RSA 79-E back in 2020. The project was approved. Covenants were signed. Promises were made. And then? Nothing. Crickets. Four years later, City Hall woke up from its stupor and realized: “Oops, we never followed up on that thing, did we?”

When DIY Ethics Meet Government DOA

See, for the average homeowner or small business owner, projects get done the old-fashioned way—with grit, sweat, time, and budgeting. You make a plan, you pull permits, you build. And if a storm rolls in or COVID slows down your lumber delivery, you adapt.

But when *government* gets involved? Suddenly the entire operation is run by people who couldn’t hang a picture frame straight if you gave them a level and two hours. These people write policy without understanding it, enforce law without reading it, and make decisions with less foresight than a blindfolded man playing darts on a trampoline.

And somehow, in the middle of all this confusion, we’re supposed to believe they’re “doing the best they can”? Don’t insult our intelligence.

What the Hell is RSA 79-E Anyway?

RSA 79-E is a state law designed to **revitalize downtowns and historic districts** by freezing property taxes on buildings undergoing substantial rehabilitation. Basically, if you commit to upgrading a building, you get a temporary break on increased taxes from that improvement. It’s a fair deal—when it’s run by competent adults.

Claremont, unfortunately, has proven it can’t handle the responsibility.

Let’s walk through the City’s epic failure in just one case:

31 Myrtle Street: The Cautionary Tale

October 2020: Nelson gets his 79-E application approved.
Covenant signed: He’s told the project must be completed by **April 1, 2021**. (Six months. During COVID. With a crippled supply chain. Genius.)
Reality hits: COVID delays, material shortages, and general chaos slow the project.
City response**: Nothing. No follow-up, no oversight, no assistance. For FOUR YEARS.
2024: The City suddenly realizes they’ve got a loose end and pretends they just discovered sliced bread.
City Council verdict: “Well, he didn’t technically finish, so we’re revoking the tax break—even though he never really received it.”

Folks, this is what passes for *leadership* in Claremont. A man tries to improve his property under a law you passed, navigates a global pandemic, and you leave him twisting in the wind. Then you revoke the benefit on a technicality, like you’re Judge Judy.

This isn’t just bureaucratic incompetence. It’s **municipal cowardice**.

Incompetence Is Policy Now

Let’s dig deeper.

What’s really terrifying isn’t just the bumbling in one case. It’s that **no one in City Hall even understands how the program they approved actually works.**

The tax assessor didn’t communicate with the planning department. The planning department didn’t follow up with the applicant. The City Council didn’t ask the right questions. And when it all hit the fan, they just shrugged and said, “Well, it fell through the cracks.”

Fell through the cracks? Are you kidding me? That’s government-speak for *we’re too lazy and distracted to give a damn.

Let me ask this: Why are we paying full salaries and benefits to city staffers who don’t know what deadlines they set, what statutes they enforce, or what projects they’re managing?

You’d get fired in the private sector for a tenth of this incompetence. But here in Claremont? You get a pension.

Who’s to Blame? Everyone.

Let’s name the culprits:

The City Planner at the time: Signed a covenant with a six-month deadline and never checked back.
The Tax Assessor: Didn’t confirm whether the property was receiving a benefit or just floating in bureaucratic limbo.
The City Council: Rubber-stamped the whole process without demanding quarterly updates or a public accountability tracker.
The Mayor and City Manager: Supposed to be executive oversight. Instead, they’re sleeping at the wheel.

Don’t give me excuses about COVID. COVID didn’t delete your inbox. It didn’t prevent you from scheduling follow-ups. What it *did* was expose just how **unprepared, unserious, and unqualified** this city leadership really is.

#This Is Not the Only One

Let’s not kid ourselves—31 Myrtle is just the tip of the iceberg.

In the very same meeting where they voted to revoke Nelson’s application, they discussed *another* 79-E case at 44–50 Central Street. You think they learned anything from the first trainwreck? Doubtful. There are probably **dozens of tax incentive projects** floating around town like ghosts—unmonitored, undocumented, and forgotten.

How many tax deals are active right now?
How many properties are receiving frozen assessments?
When were the last audits done?

No one seems to know because no one is in charge. Because the system is broken.

City Hall: A Place Where Common Sense Goes to Die

Here’s a radical idea: maybe you shouldn’t hand out tax breaks unless you have a system in place to track them.

Want to use RSA 79-E? Fine.

Want to give someone 7 years of frozen taxes? Fine.

But how about assigning a project manager? Creating a timeline? Publishing a public progress report? Asking questions before four years pass?

Instead, what we get is a clown car of finger-pointing, hand-waving, and “golly gee, we didn’t know!” Like this is Mayberry and no one’s in a rush.

The Conservative Case for Burning It Down (Metaphorically)

This is not just a local nuisance. It’s a warning sign. This is what big government looks like at the smallest level.

It’s incompetent, unaccountable, and smug.
It writes laws it doesn’t understand.
It punishes citizens who act in good faith.
It wastes your money.
And when it fails, it blames “the process.”

If Claremont can’t get its act together on one property and one tax incentive, what else is slipping through the cracks?

Zoning enforcement?
Code violations?
Budget misallocations?
Sweetheart deals for well-connected insiders?

Where there’s this much smoke, there’s usually a fire—and it’s not in a rehabbed fireplace on Myrtle Street.

What We Need to Do Now

It’s time for real reform. Not another committee. Not another “review of best practices.” We need a shake-up:

Audit every single RSA 79-E project in the city.
Publicly. Name names. Show progress. Show dollars.
Require biannual updates from the planning department.
If they can’t track it, they don’t approve it.
Publish a digital dashboard of every tax-incentivized property.
Transparency cures corruption.
Fire the non-performers.

Yes, I said it. If someone can’t do their job, show them the door. You work for the taxpayers, not the other way around.

Replace career politicians with working-class watchdogs.

Claremont doesn’t need another Ivy League spreadsheet jockey. It needs welders, shopkeepers, and homeowners at the table.

Conclusion: Drain the Local Swamp

The 31 Myrtle Street fiasco isn’t a one-off. It’s a symbol. A symptom. A siren screaming that your city is run by people who wouldn’t last a week running a Dollar General.

You want a better Claremont? Then you better get involved. Show up. Speak out. And when the time comes, vote like your property rights, your taxes, and your city’s soul depend on it.

Because they do.

And to the folks at City Hall reading this?

You better start doing your damn jobs.

The people are watching now.