Candia safety committee weighs federal 'congressional directed spending' request for police station, debates adding fire department

Chair Brien Brock opened the Aug. 7 meeting of the Candia Safety Facility Committee and introduced Police Chief Chad Shevlin as the group discussed pursuing federal Congressional Directed Spending to fund a new police station or a combined Police/Fire Safety Complex.

Joe Flanagan told the committee the grant avenue is called Congressional Directed Spending and cited a recent New Boston project that received roughly $2 million for a new fire department. "We would need to present this to their senators as a proposal and indicate we have the property, infrastructure, plans," Flanagan said, adding that award amounts are project-dependent and that senators' offices typically help shepherd project requests.

Tom Severino read disclosure language noting many federal community project funds require a state or local match. "If it is matching funds then this would need to go to the Town," Severino said, noting matching rules could mean the town must authorize local funding to receive an award.

Fire Chief D. Young said voters previously rejected a police-station proposal and warned that large combined projects could be difficult to pass. "If you present a plan for a Safety Complex costing $6-8 million dollars ... it will fail so miserably," D. Young said, urging a cautious approach. Russ Dann agreed voters need education about rising construction costs, noting delays can add large amounts to project estimates.

R. Severino urged a phased strategy: aim first for a smaller police station and treat additional work for the fire department as a later phase. "A win is to get that Police Station built," he said, arguing that a smaller, grant-supported ask would be easier for voters to approve.

Captain Michael Kelley, participating by Zoom, said combining the police and fire stations could increase public support because the town's fire station is roughly 86 years old. Police Chief Chad Shevlin recommended contacting nearby towns — Pelham, Sandown and Raymond — that successfully obtained grants to learn what worked.

Committee members asked whether some federal assistance paths could waive a local match. Josh Reap volunteered to call the offices of U.S. Representative Chris Pappas and U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen to determine whether any mechanisms exist that do not require matching funds; Joe Flanagan agreed to assist.

On facility condition, Chief D. Young described the fire station's well and septic constraints and said a past estimate of about $500,000 for an addition would likely be roughly double now. He also agreed to allow the town's insurance company to perform an inspection to document hazards and liabilities.

Andria Hansen suggested establishing a Police Station Infrastructure Capital Reserve Fund to accumulate local matching dollars if needed. The committee set the next Safety Facility Committee meeting for Sept. 10, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.

Administrative actions at the meeting included a motion by Joe Flanagan, seconded by Tom Severino, to accept the June 18, 2024 SFC minutes as presented; Jake Robie and Josh Reap abstained and the motion passed. At 5:51 p.m. Russ Dann moved to adjourn, seconded by Tom Severino; the motion carried.

Committee members said the next step is to gather concrete answers from federal representatives about eligibility and matching requirements before deciding whether to pursue only a police station or a combined safety complex.