Portsmouth tea party

Horns honked vociferously as motorists wheeled past hundreds of demonstrators in downtown Portsmouth on April 15. The Tax Day rally brought a thick crowd to Market Square, fueled by anger over government spending at the state and federal level. The demonstrators, many carrying signs denouncing the Federal Reserve, sang and chanted in unison beneath the North Church steeple.

The New Hampshire Advantage Coalition and a number of cosponsoring groups organized the N.H. Taxpayer Tea Party, with protesters gathering simultaneously in Portsmouth, Dover and Manchester. Other Tax Day demonstrations were held in more than 200 locations around the nation in an attempt to grab the attention of legislators in Washington D.C.

“I’m angry. I’m mad as hell,” said Mike Jones, of Portsmouth. He said he was disappointed with excessive government spending, “but I think the real problem is the Federal Reserve.”

Jones said the Federal Reserve “prints money out of thin air” and gives it to the U.S. Treasury, with the resulting debt landing in the laps of taxpayers. He carried a sign that said “End the Fed!”

The crowd gathered shortly after 5 p.m. and remained until around 6:30. Speakers addressed the enthusiastic group through a microphone and led a group singing of “God Bless America” while police monitored the activities. Dozens of multicolored signs and banners filled the square, with a large image of Uncle Sam gracing the corner of Congress and Pleasant streets over the words, “I want you to stop this nonsense & get back to the Constitution.”

Matthew Murphy, director of the N.H. Advantage Coalition, called the rally a “citizens’ revolt against the out of control spending occurring in Washington and Concord.”
“The message of these ‘Tea Parties’ is simple, low spending equals low taxes. Our government taxes too much and spends too much; it is time for a real change of attitude in our state house and in our capitol,” Murphy said in a press release.

construction underway on new Portsmouth fire station

Construction began last week on a new fire station on Lafayette Road in Portsmouth. When completed in 14 months, the facility will replace Fire Station 2, which covers the southern portion of the city. Fire Chief Christopher LeClaire said the department has outgrown its current facility at 2700 Lafayette Road, which was built in 1967.

With an increased population, additional housing and more retail development in that part of the city, new accommodations are sorely needed, he said. The current facility has only two bays for fire apparatus, has no gender separation for the crew and no longer meets fire safety codes.

The new station will be about 14,000 square feet—about four times the size of the current facility—and will have three drive-through bays for vehicles. It will feature a training room and emergency operation center with backup power in case of a major ice storm or other disasters. It will also allow the Fire Department to move some of its training functions and other operations out of the downtown headquarters on Court Street.

The new fire station, located at 3000 Lafayette Road, is seeking LEED certification (leadership in energy and environmental design), which would make it the state’s first “green” fire station and the second city building to become LEED-certified. Portsmouth Public Library was the first building in the city to get LEED certification.
LeClaire said the building will be heavily insulated and will maximize natural lighting with glass doors and numerous windows. He said the building will have low flow light fixtures and will minimize paved areas with plenty of green lawn and plants.

Construction of the new station is budgeted at $4.5 million. “We’re hoping to come in under that,” LeClaire said. “Certainly, updating our facilities is very, very important, and we’ll continue to do so.”

He said the department is currently making upgrades to other stations and is seeking federal stimulus grant money to replace Fire Station 3 at Pease Tradeport in a few years.