MANCHESTER, N.H. – If no aldermen apply for a committee, does it make a sound? The answer on Tuesday night was yes.
During the latest Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA) meeting, a move to eliminate saving the BMA Special Committee on Energy Contracts and Related Activities was defeated after it was revealed members of the board wanted to save it.
A motion to kill the committee was recommended by BMA Chairman Joseph Kelly Levasseur after an email to all Aldermen asking for anyone that would like to serve on the committee provided no takers.
Members of the BMA seemed confused, noting that in the past it was common for Aldermen to be placed on committees as needed if there were vacancies.
Levasseur also noted that the Special Committee has not met since 2021.
Ward 5 Alderman Tony Sapienza advocated for the preservation of the Special Committee given the importance of energy contracts in the city’s budget. Levasseur was not opposed to keeping the Special Committee, only forcing Aldermen to serve on committees against their will.
“I know people really don’t believe this, but I’m really nice and I don’t want to put people on committees if they don’t ask for it,” he said.