Meeting report · Board of Selectmen
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Board of Selectmen — October 28, 2024
The meeting was largely routine and procedural, but the election sign complaint introduced genuine emotional tension when a resident passionately challenged the board over political speech on public property, elevating the tone above a standard administrative session.
Public impact
Issues from this meeting with documented community impact.
01
FY26 Municipal Budget – Potential Tax Rate Increase
Draft budget carries a 3.09% overall spending increase; final tax impact on rate not yet determined, complicated by health insurance estimate uncertainty ranging from 5% to 9.5% Affected: All Amherst property taxpayers
tax increase
02
Cell Tower Warrant Article – Voter Appropriation Request
Potential warrant article requesting ~$100,000 beyond existing CRF funds; total project cost estimated at $225,000–$250,000 with uncertain carrier revenue Affected: All Amherst taxpayers and residents seeking improved cellular coverage
other high impact
03
Fourth of July Fireworks – Potential Funding Warrant Article
Scale undisclosed; a warrant article for the March ballot is under consideration, suggesting existing funding is insufficient to continue the event as currently structured Affected: All Amherst residents who attend the annual Fourth of July celebration
other high impact
Decisions logged
Every recorded vote, with timestamps and dissents.
Accept Nick Strong's resignation from town administration position
Motion made by Peter with 'profound regret' to accept resignation so she can pursue career in Manchester
Approved 5-0
31:03
Accept Perry Dang's resignation from DPW for retirement
Perry served 27 years with the town and will be missed according to DPW supervisor
Approved 5-0
46:50
Motion to enter non-public session for two purposes: hiring of public employee and consideration of pending claims/litigation
Motion made under RSA 91-A:3(II)(b) for hiring and RSA 91-A:3(II) for litigation matters
Approved
1:16:09
Topics discussed
Click a topic to expand quotes and full context.
03:05 FY26 Budget Presentation - Draft #1
Town Administrator presented the first draft of the FY26 budget with a 3.09% increase, including 5% health insurance estimates, 3% COLA, and debt service reductions from bond payoffs. Discussion covered wage comparisons, retirement system adoption, and need for wish list items to be included.
Speakers: Speaker B (Town Administrator), Speaker H (Bill), Speaker E (Peter), Speaker I (Tom from Ways and Means)
31:04 Personnel Resignations
Board formally accepted resignations of Nick Strong (Town Administrator role) who took position in Manchester, and Perry Dang from DPW after 27 years of service for retirement.
Speakers: Speaker G (Dr. Shanko), Speaker E (Peter), Speaker F (Eric)
33:43 Cell Tower Project Update
Police Chief reported on cell tower feasibility, with estimated costs of $225,000-$250,000 for town-owned tower but uncertain carrier interest. Board discussed putting question to voters as warrant article for additional ~$100,000 beyond existing CRF funds.
Speakers: Speaker F (Chief), Speaker H (Bill), Speaker E (Peter), Speaker A (Chair)
47:32 Recreation Director Job Description Review
Board reviewed updated job description for recreation director position, discussing salary competitiveness compared to other towns, additional responsibilities like tree lighting coordination, and need for comparable town analysis.
Speakers: Unidentified speaker, Speaker E (Peter), Speaker H (Bill), Speaker A (Chair)
1:08:24 Election Sign Content Complaint
Resident Lisa Dennis requested removal of Trump campaign sign claiming 'third win' from public property, citing election misinformation concerns. Board explained First Amendment constraints prevent content-based sign removal.
Speakers: Speaker D (Lisa Dennis), Speaker A (Chair), Speaker H (Bill)
1:14:48 Halloween Event Report
Board member reported on a successful Halloween event that was moved from Wilkins School to the high school due to larger capacity needs.
Speakers: Unidentified speaker
1:15:16 Fourth of July Fireworks Discussion
Board members met with Fourth of July committee representatives about fireworks situation and plan to schedule full discussion for November 18th meeting, potentially including a warrant article for March ballot.
Speakers: Unidentified speaker
Controversy & dissent
Where the board, the community, or the agenda diverged.
Potentially controversial issues
01
Election Sign Content Complaint – Trump 'Third Win' Sign on Public Property
A resident asked the board to remove a political sign she characterized as dangerous election-denial misinformation from public property. The board's refusal — while legally sound — left the resident visibly distressed and unsatisfied. This touches on deep community divisions over political speech, election integrity, and the limits of government authority, especially in a presidential election year.
Board position: Board unanimously declined to remove the sign, citing First Amendment protections and Supreme Court precedent prohibiting content-based restrictions on political speech. They noted doing so would expose the town to litigation.
high concern
02
FY26 Budget – Tax Impact and Wage/Benefit Pressures
The first draft budget carries a 3.09% overall increase, driven by a 3% COLA, 5–9.5% health insurance cost uncertainty, and debt service changes. The final tax impact on residents has not yet been determined. Budget discussions often generate community concern, and the wide range on health insurance estimates (5% vs. 9.5%) signals meaningful fiscal uncertainty heading into the March ballot.
Board position: Board received the draft as a starting point, directed the Town Administrator to update health insurance figures and return with a second draft on November 18th. Members signaled support for including departmental 'wish list' items for transparency.
medium concern
03
Cell Tower Project – $100,000+ Potential Warrant Article
The town is considering asking voters to approve approximately $100,000 in additional funding beyond existing Capital Reserve Funds for a town-owned cell tower estimated at $225,000–$250,000, with uncertain carrier interest. Spending a quarter-million dollars on infrastructure with no guaranteed revenue is a significant fiscal risk that voters would need to evaluate.
Board position: Board is considering a warrant article for the March ballot. No decision was made; the Police Chief was directed to obtain firmer cost estimates before proceeding.
medium concern
04
Recreation Director Salary Competitiveness
Board member Bill explicitly noted that a vacant position is the only opportunity to 'get it right' on salary, signaling concern that the proposed compensation may be too low to attract qualified candidates. If the town underpays and fails to fill or retain the role, recreational programming and services available to residents could suffer.
Board position: Board directed staff to conduct a comparable-town salary analysis before finalizing the job description, indicating openness to adjusting compensation upward.
low concern
05
Fourth of July Fireworks – Potential Warrant Article
The board met informally with the Fourth of July committee but has not yet disclosed the nature of the 'fireworks situation.' If fireworks are at risk of cancellation or require significant new public funding via a warrant article, this would affect a highly visible community tradition and could generate broad public interest.
Board position: Board deferred substantive discussion to the November 18th meeting, where a warrant article for the March ballot may be considered. No details on the underlying issue were disclosed publicly.
medium concern
Community vs. board tension
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Action items
Who owes what, by when.
Check health insurance rates and prepare second budget draft with updated figures, including 9.5% health insurance estimate
Assigned: Town Administrator (a speaker) · Due: November 18th meeting
Add function labels to budget line items for easier review
Assigned: Town Administrator (a speaker) · Due: November 18th meeting
Prepare warrant articles for November 18th budget discussion
Assigned: Town Administrator (a speaker) · Due: November 18th meeting
Research recreation director salaries at comparable towns with similar services and get Craig's input on additional responsibilities
Assigned: Jennifer (a speaker) · Due: Next week's meeting
Obtain firmer cost estimates for cell tower project for potential warrant article
Assigned: Police Chief (a speaker) · Due: Before warrant article discussions
Schedule Fourth of July fireworks discussion with committee representatives
Assigned: Board · Due: November 18th meeting
Notable statements
This is very tight budget... bottom line of this is still 3.09% now — Town Administrator · Presenting FY26 budget draft with minimal increases despite wage and benefit adjustments 07:01
There's only one time when you can adjust something down and that's when the position is vacant... this is the only opportunity we have to get it right — Bill · Discussing recreation director salary competitiveness during job description review 1:01:20
We have a constitutional obligation to allow words... We don't censor — Chair · Explaining First Amendment constraints regarding election sign content complaint 1:07:40
We are not allowed to interfere with protected speech... if you have sign regulations, those sign regulations cannot tell people to do things or not to do things based on what the sign says. You can control how big the sign is, you can control how long it stays out, but you can't control the content. — Unidentified speaker · Explaining legal constraints on municipal authority over political sign content based on Supreme Court precedent 1:10:07
It feels so dangerous. It feels way more dangerous than pornography... the fact that we say it's okay for our village green to support an election denying lie is just, it feels so dangerous. — Unidentified speaker · Resident expressing frustration with inability to remove political signs they consider harmful misinformation 1:13:58
Public comment
What residents said — verbatim, with timestamps.
1
Total speakers
0
Addressed
0
Partial
1
Not addressed
Lisa Dennis
1:04:45
Not addressed
Lisa Dennis requested removal of a political sign on public property in the center of Amherst that says "Trump 2024. We will win for the third time." She argued the sign spreads false claims about the 2020 election and is dangerous election denial rhetoric that should not be allowed on public property.
Key concern
Removal of what she considers a misleading political sign containing election denial claims from public property
Board responseThe board explained they cannot legally remove the sign due to First Amendment protections and recent Supreme Court decisions that prohibit content-based restrictions on political speech. They noted this would expose the town to lawsuits.
While the board provided a thorough legal explanation for why they cannot act, they did not and cannot address her actual request to remove the sign due to constitutional constraints on government censorship of political speech.
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Report composed by
claude-sonnet-4-20250514, claude-opus-4-6 · analyzed 2026-06-01.