City council appoints Bogert to vacant Ward 5 seat

LACONIA — On a split vote, city council chose on Monday night to appoint Steven Bogert, who serves on the Zoning Board of Adjustment and represents the city in the Statehouse as a Republican, to fulfill the term of late Ward 5 Councilor Bob Hamel, who died last month.

The choice for Bogert was over Breanna Neal, who founded and ran a successful barbershop downtown before selling it earlier this year, and who has also served the city on the Downtown Tax Increment Financing Advisory Board, as a ward moderator and ballot clerk.

A third applicant, Michael Denufrio, withdrew his candidacy prior to the meeting.

In response to questions from the council, Bogert said that if appointed, he would resign from the zoning board, and he intends to file his candidacy to run for a full term representing Ward 5. The term he was appointed to fulfill ends on Jan. 1, 2024.

After interviewing both candidates, Councilor Tony Felch (Ward 6) moved to appoint Neal. His motion was seconded by Councilor Mark Haynes (Ward 4), but that motion failed to gather any further supporters.

After that motion failed, Councilor Robert Soucy (Ward 2) moved to appoint Bogert, and Councilor Bruce Cheney (Ward 1) seconded. Councilor Henry Lipman (Ward 3) joined in supporting Bogert, making the motion successful by a vote of 3-2, with Felch and Haynes voting in opposition.

Bogert will have seven days to be sworn in to the position, and can take a seat at the meeting scheduled for Monday, July 24.

After the meeting, Bogert said, “I’m just excited. I look forward to sitting on the board, helping the people and helping them to do their business.” He said it will work to his advantage to understand how things work at the county level, as part of the Belknap legislative delegation, and at the Statehouse, as he gets to work on city issues.

“Knowing a little bit better, with what I’m trying to achieve for the people of Laconia, it’s going to be a big help,” he said.

Neal indicated she plans to file her candidacy to run for the Ward 5 seat. The filing period for municipal elections is Aug. 2-11. If necessary, a primary will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 12, and the general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Interviews

Neal, who was first to submit her application for consideration, was called up first to discuss her candidacy. She is the former owner of Polished & Proper Barbershop, which she sold earlier this year and where she continues to cut hair.

She has attended many council meetings, she said, and understands the work of the city council.

“I don’t think anyone particularly wants to give up several evenings per month,” Neal said. “But there’s a need, a job that needs to be done, and I’m willing to do it.”

Asked by Mayor Andrew Hosmer how she approaches complex decisions, Neal said that, as a creative person, “I identify the boundaries, the positives and the negatives, try to find some cohesion among them. Probably no one will be super happy, but if they can find comfort with the variables, they can move forward.”

Neal held up the recent city budget process as an example of how careful analysis can lead to a satisfactory outcome despite several competing interests.

In response to a question from Lipman, Neal said she’s most proud of the “leaps and bounds” downtown has made in recent years and the “significant investment” made in The Weirs. She said she would like to improve the city’s marketing, including flying the city’s flag in more places than just the council chamber.

Neal mentioned in her application that homelessness was a major problem for the city, and pressed to discuss that by Haynes, she called it a “complex issue” and “it needs to be a multifaceted solution” that involves both government and nonprofit agencies — and that a solution should also recognize that a share of the responsibility should be borne by the people experiencing homelessness.

“It does have to be a balanced approach,” Neal said. “We’re here for you, we want to help and support you to solve your own problems, that’s how people grow, that’s how people develop. Solving someone’s problem for them, what does that do?”

Bogert, who moved from Florida to Laconia 20 years ago, immediately became involved in service to the city, both through the zoning board and through the Laconia Youth Football and Cheer Association.

Bogert described a city that has slowly been developing, moving on from a history of manufacturing toward one that is sparked by the Colonial Theatre, and which could gain another spark through the development of the former State School property.

Hosmer asked Bogert about managing “tribal” party politics at the Statehouse and the local need for pragmatic decision-making. Bogert said he is clear about where his loyalties lie.

“That has already come up” in Concord, Bogert said. “As I told the majority leader, I vote the way my city wishes me to vote. I represent the city of Laconia at the Capitol.”

Bogert was part of the county delegation that handed the city a budget request this winter that was $800,000 more than expected, which created a challenge to stay within the city’s tax cap. Like in Concord, Bogert said his motivation in the county delegation is clear.

“Each delegate represents a city or a town or a village,” Bogert said. “I represent the city as a delegate, I am a delegate for Laconia, my job as a delegate is to represent the best interests of the city.”