Finance director: Technology infrastructure investment soon needed

LACONIA — City Finance Director Glenn Smith told councilors that a major project to update city technology would require a bond at a budget hearing last week, noting the cost of providing housing assistance is skyrocketing. 

The $850,000 bond is included in the budget proposal for the finance department but would not have a financial impact until fiscal year 2026. The bond would cover technology improvements including the replacement of the city’s server, upgrades to camera systems, a new finance system, a new audio and video system for the Armand A. Bolduc City Council Chamber and miscellaneous equipment to protect against vulnerabilities.

The need to acquire a new finance system was highlighted during a presentation on June 12 of the results of an audit performed on the city’s bookkeeping process earlier this year. Auditors found the city should consolidate its financial records in line with standard accounting practices.

“The timing is such that it will not impact the budget in FY ‘25,” Smith said. “We’re going to be pursuing the bond within the fall to winter window.” 

Every city department across 15 locations, except for the police department with its own informational technology systems, is connected to the same network. 

“As important as the locations are, are the connections between the locations — the wires that physically run from [City Hall] over to parks, over to [the Department of Public Works], across the public internet to the airport and such,” Smith said. “It is those connections where a lot of the vulnerabilities exist. It’s an ongoing, everyday effort.”

All actions taken by the information technology department are done with a nod to cybersecurity, Smith said. 

“Frankly, everything we do in IT is for cybersecurity these days because it’s that level of vulnerability.”

The IT network serves 600 different devices, 400 software packages on those devices and is serviced by only two employees.

“They’ve served more than 1,200 tickets over the last year, all with two people. Two people who cannot take vacation at the same time, two people that cannot be sick at the same time,” Smith said. “We have a great IT team, we have a great IT function, but we’re getting to the point, and you’ll probably hear this more in FY ‘26 and FY ‘25, where we’ve grown beyond a two-person shop. For right now it’s working well and our team is getting the job done.”

Smith also noted that across all departments the city is experiencing an 11% vacancy rate. In fiscal year 2024, the city has hired 21 full-time employees and three permanent part-time employees. In order to diminish vacancy rates, human resources staff have participated in recruitment efforts including a career fair at the Huot Career and Technical Center, where Smith said he’d like to establish a public works track for high school students in the future. 

“[Vacancy rates have] been pretty stable since winter,” Smith said.

“One of the ways in which we are trying to kind of move things along is perhaps the idea of developing a public works track within the Huot or some similar program to try to get people trained in the type of skill sets that we need to succeed in that area.”

But costs in other areas are increasing, largely due to factors beyond control of city administrators. The city spends more each year to provide housing relief and assistance. In the past year the welfare assistance cost has skyrocketed to an average of $11,000 per month. The prior high over the last 10 years came in 2019 at just over $6,000 per month.

“Welfare does not exist in a vacuum,” Smith said. “A lot of what we do in the welfare office is working with and helping people through our connections with other agencies: Lakes Region Mental Health; Carey House; Belknap House; St. Vincent De Paul, just to name a few.”

That money is spent on myriad items including burial services, electric, propane and oil utilities but primarily on rent and shelter assistance. Rent assistance refers to assisting an individual to remain in housing they’ve already secured — the city spent $62,587 on that line item in fiscal year 2024, an increase from $38,546 the previous year. 

Shelter, as used by the city, refers to providing short-term housing assistance to those in need. Because many area shelters are at capacity, the city must increasingly foot the bill to put people up in motels. The cost of shelter assistance increased from $15,797 in fiscal year 2023, to $64,180 in fiscal year 2024.

“Rent is what we pay so that people can stay where they are, which is a priority as far as helping people through an occasional rough time. And frankly, in today’s environment, a lot of the time that is the most cost-effective way of keeping people housed,” Smith said. “Shelter is finding somebody a different place to live.”

The average cost of a housing voucher increased from $278 in 2019 to $600 in 2024 to date. The city has provided 232 vouchers to date this year. Fiscal year 2022 saw a high of over $600 per voucher as well. 

“A lot of that is related to the fact that these shelters are full,” Smith said. “Everybody is taxed to the same extent as we are now ... We’re having less of an opportunity to find assistance through our partners than we have in the past.”