Chuck Grassie

Video Transcript

"I am Chuck Grassie and I'm running for mayor of the city of Rochester because a number of people have approached me over this last year talking about how the City Council and the city itself doesn't communicate very well with the citizens of its city. And I think what we've gotta do is we've gotta change that.

We've gotta have more open relations with the media, get more out there on social media, and also bring the city councilmen into the process of making decisions for policies in the city of Rochester. What we've had is that the elected officials and a number of them have complained about this, have not been able to really get their points, point of views brought into the process.

I want to challenge every member of the City Council to reach out to their constituents, to get more involved in the community and to bring those ideas and issues to the City Council and we will deal with them.

Secondly, I think we have to deal with housing in the city of Rochester, both the affordability of housing and the homeless problem. There are a number of ideas that are out there, and I've been working with people across the state over the last couple of years dealing with homelessness and the affordability of housing, and there are things that we can do to work together to think outside the box to solve the problem of homelessness and also affordability of housing.

My previous job was a planner. I worked with a number of developers throughout the state, and I think we can bring together people that can help bring down the cost of rentals and new housing in in, in Rochester.

As well as that we need to take a look at the youth problem that we have in the city from 16 to 25. We have a number of things that people need things to do in the city. They need to have more outreach to these people. We need to work with the police department and the school department to solve our problems.

The next four years in the city of Rochester are gonna be very difficult, and we need a mayor who can provide leadership and structure to the City Council to bring the organization together, to set policy for the city, to work with our department heads and our City Manager to come up with new ideas and new solutions for the future of Rochester.

I'm Chuck Grassie, I'm running for mayor, and I wanna thank you."

Notes:

The Public Information and Community Engagement Office for the City of Rochester is pleased to announce that the Meet the Candidates video series is now available for viewing ahead of the upcoming Municipal Election.

The nonpartisan series introduces voters to candidates for Mayor, City Council, School Board, and Police Commission. Each candidate was given up to three minutes to speak directly to voters, share their priorities, and present their personal message.

To ensure fairness and transparency, all videos were recorded live in a single take, without edits, hosts, or predetermined questions.

The views and opinions expressed in the following video are those of the candidate and do not necessarily reflect the views of the City of Rochester, its elected officials or staff. The content is presented as part of a public information effort to provide equal opportunity for all candidates to address the community.

Transcript was taken directly from the GovTV website closed captioning. AI added bold/italic fonts for emphasis and separated paragraphs where appropriate.

In this survey, the candidate answered the following questions:

• "Why are you running?"
  
  

• "Do you support the city’s tax cap and for what, if any, reasons would you support going over it?"
  
  

• "How can Rochester ease the burden on residential property taxpayers?"
  
  

• "How can the city further the affordability and availability of housing? Do you support efforts in the state legislature aimed at reducing local control of zoning rules and regulations?"
  
  

• "What can Rochester do to attract new small businesses and support the small businesses already in the city?"
  
  

• "Rochester purchased the old Care Pharmacy and nearby properties for more than $3.3 million. Do you agree with this purchase and what should Rochester do with the property it now owns?"
  
  

• "Short-term and long-term, what should the mayor/council do about the growing homeless population in Rochester?"
  
  

• "The Legislature has empowered cities to create “social districts” where outdoor drinking of alcoholic beverages is allowed. Do you support bringing social districts to Rochester?"
  
  

• "What else would you like voters to know about you?"

You can view the survey by clicking here.

Pastor Micah invited each of the mayoral candidates to discuss their campaigns on the "Sunday Sermons with Pastor Micah" podcast.

You can listen to the entire podcast with Chuck Grassie by going here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5h4OXEqijL2kMR8imgS9BZ 

Below is an AI generated summary of the podcast:

00:01 – 03:10
Topic: Background & Public Service
Candidate Quote: “I started working in campaigns in 1968… served 10 years in the House… then ran for City Council and served over 25 years.”
Summary of section: Grassie sketches a long local resume: school board run in the 1970s, 10 years as a state representative (with gaps while working and raising a family), and decades on Rochester City Council.

03:06 – 05:24
Topic: Career as Planner & Special-Ed Para
Candidate Quote: “I was a town planner for 20 years… wrote some of the original cell tower regulations and dark-sky rules.”
Summary of section: After planning roles in Alton, Raymond, and Stratham, Grassie moved into education as a paraprofessional—certified to handle higher-risk behavioral situations—while working other jobs.

07:59 – 09:22
Topic: Homelessness—Tri-City Scope
Candidate Quote: “We have 1,500 people who are functionally unhoused in the Tri-City area.”
Summary of section: He describes a Dover/Somersworth/Rochester coalition of welfare directors, nonprofits, and faith communities; the Willand Warming Center helps, but capacity is far short of need.

09:22 – 12:26
Topic: Pallet Shelter Village (Burlington, VT model)
Candidate Quote: “Pallet shelters are… ~100 square feet, heat and cooling, and a door with a key… centralized showers and toilets.”
Summary of section: Grassie argues for a 40-unit, downtown-adjacent pallet-shelter village linked to services (kitchen/laundry; office space for nurse/counselor/barber), emphasizing security, privacy, and a real mailing address. Pull-quote for emphasis: “A door with a key.”

15:41 – 18:28
Topic: Drug Use & Visibility; Harm-Reduction Cleanup
Candidate Quote: “Just having the pallet shelter village would help because those people would be getting out of the woods… and we need to work with drug agencies.”
Summary of section: He ties visible drug use to lack of stable spaces and urges partnerships with groups like SOS—asking them to do daily perimeter cleanups before opening—alongside broader community cleanups.

20:43 – 21:18
Topic: Faith/Nonprofit Coordination—“Four Questions”
Candidate Quote: “How are you doing? What are you doing? What are your plans? How can I help?”
Summary of section: As mayor, he’d meet regularly with an interfaith council and nonprofits to align city help with on-the-ground needs, using those four questions across departments and committees.

24:22 – 27:47
Topic: Roads—Credentials & Triage Strategy
Candidate Quote: “They call that a master road scholar. I know how to build roads… [and] we used a computerized Road Surface Management Program.”
Summary of section: With inspection/drainage experience, he favors data-driven maintenance to keep good roads from falling into costly rebuild territory; acknowledges budget limits in a property-poor city.

29:12 – 31:37
Topic: Schools—Pay, Retention, & Collaboration
Candidate Quote: “Rochester pays less… they used to poach our good teachers… I’d meet monthly with the school board chair.”
Summary of section: He touts Rochester’s dedicated teachers but says pay lags peers. Proposes mayor–school board chair check-ins to align on needs within budget constraints.

31:37 – 34:33
Topic: Student Homelessness & State Advocacy
Candidate Quote: “We have almost a hundred students who are functionally homeless.”
Summary of section: Calls for joint city–school action on youth homelessness and better advocacy in Concord; recounts narrowly losing a House vote to fund a position to find and help at-risk youth engaged in “survival sex.”

34:51 – 37:12
Topic: Statewide Property Tax & EFAs (Principles)
Candidate Quote: “One proposal is to raise the statewide property tax to $5… The state has other resources it could use.”
Summary of section: He warns against shifting more burden onto property taxpayers and says if public education were adequately funded, he’d have “no problem with EFAs” in principle.

41:10 – 43:28
Topic: EFA Oversight → Property Tax Reassessments
Candidate Quote: “There’s really never been any oversight of the program… Maybe reassess every 2–3 years… my taxes went up $900 this year.”
Summary of section: Critiques EFA double-dipping/weak auditing; on city taxes, supports more frequent reassessments to smooth spikes.

45:01 – 47:33
Topic: Broadening the Tax Base & Airport Value
Candidate Quote: “We need to zone for more commercial/industrial land… The airport has economic advantages for the city.”
Summary of section: Favors rebalancing residential vs. commercial/industrial; cites past study backing the city retaining the airport rather than risking speculative development.

48:01 – 50:48
Topic: Fairgrounds Disputes, City Comms, Roundabout
Candidate Quote: “We don’t talk to the press… The roundabout at Washington & Main was 80% funded by the state.”
Summary of section: Says city should communicate plans proactively (press, community voices). Defends the roundabout as largely state-funded and traffic-flow friendly; laments adversarial stance toward fairgrounds.

53:07 – 56:36
Topic: De-Escalating Fairgrounds Conflict
Candidate Quote: “Drop the lawsuits… appoint a committee… draft a zoning ordinance to let the fair be successful.”
Summary of section: Proposes resetting the relationship, codifying uses via ordinance, and re-centering the fairgrounds as a civic hub (even holding a council workshop there).

“We need to improve communication with the public about city actions and address the strained relationship between the mayor and the press. I will work to build a better relationship with the media and ensure people have accurate information about city actions. I will challenge the city council to be more involved in decision-making and encourage greater citizen input through their councilors. Every comment and concern should be reviewed by a council committee and responded to.

With the challenges in maintaining city services, we need innovation and community involvement to not only maintain but improve services. I will collaborate with City Councilors, the School Board, Police Commission, Planning Board, and others to address issues like homelessness, high housing costs, property crime, drugs, and job creation.”

"The city should work to create truly affordable housing for young families looking to stay in Rochester. Current market prices are unaffordable for our children and grandchildren who have been raised here and would like to stay in our community.

As your Mayor I will work to find state and federal resources to assist our community in developing the infrastructure necessary to reduce the overall cost of new housing and apartments. We need to look at locations near the downtown area first, as many young individuals and couples prefer to live near services.

Also, we need to address the issue of homelessness. We need to “think outside the box” to increase the number of spaces either in shelters or micro units so we can eliminate homeless encampments on public and private properties. I have been working with county and regional groups to find solutions to our homelessness issues."

"I have been working with community leaders in the tri-city area, our county commissioners, and statewide housing advocates on this issue for several years. Homelessness is a regional issue which Rochester cannot solve on its own.

Many of our homeless have full-time jobs but cannot afford rising rents. Many are children who are homeless through no fault of their own.

We need to look at what other communities around the country have done with this issue. I have been a proponent of “pallet shelter” communities as just one possible interim solution.

As mayor I would be an advocate of county solutions for transitional housing and low barrier housing so that no one must live in their car, or in the woods. We need to speak out in support of mental health services for those that need help. I would work with our faith community, local non-profits, the mayors and selectmen of surrounding communities, and state and federal representatives to find funding and support services for our homeless population."

"I do not support legislative actions to override our local planning board and zoning which one of my opponents has lobbied in favor of. I do support a comprehensive relook at our zoning to find ways to reduce the cost of development.

If we are truly going to find ways to reduce housing cost, we need to think outside the box when it comes to housing. We have a business right here in Rochester who is developing new construction methods for the construction of homes.

I have met with them many times and they are working with communities outside of Rochester due to the city’s seeming lack of interest. Tiny homes such as those developed in Dover are a good source of starter homes for young working families.

We need to investigate what other communities are doing, work on public/private partnerships, and work with our planners to find and support better ways to meet our future housing needs. "

"I've spent many hours talking with Teachers and School Administrator's. Our educational system has struggled for many years due to reduced funding at the state level.

Efforts to increase funding for education have been met with opposition from anti-public education forces. I feel it is important for the City Council to work in conjunction with our School Board to advocate for greater funding for our schools within the state and federal budgets.

Rochester taxpayers have always supported funding for our local schools, but we have been stymied by cutbacks at the state level. Good local schools are the driving force behind every great community."

"As a lifelong resident of Rochester, my wife Anne and I have raised five children in our community. We have both been active in our schools, after school sports, school music programs, and many non-profit organizations.

I have been personally involved in the creation and development of programs for both our senior citizens and our children. I’ve served as Deputy Mayor of our city serving for over 25 years on the council, over 10 years on our planning board, and 18 years as a state legislator.

I worked professionally as a community panner for many communities in our state and have been an advocate for environmental and childcare issues in NH. I am not a Concord lobbyist, or a good old boy. I have struggled to make ends meet like many Rochester families have.

I know what it’s like to see our taxes go up over 30% on our modest home. I’m now mostly retired and will be a fulltime Mayor for our city. I will be available for any citizen who needs to connect with their government. I will hold regular office hours.

I will challenge the city council members to be more involved with their wards and bring their concerns to the council for debate. I will be an advocate for Rochester. I will work closely with all our boards, commissions, state, and federal agencies to achieve a more responsive, and affordable government for all our people. My experience and lifelong commitment to our community give me a perspective no other candidate for Mayor has.

Personal Information

Rochester City Council 25+ years

Rochester Planning Board 10+ years

NH State Legislator 18 years

Rochester Childcare Center

Strafford County Homemakers

Youth Sports Coach

Spaulding Music Boosters Board

School Street School P.T.O. Board President

Founder and Director of the New Hampshire Youth Leadership Foundation

Retired Municipal Planner

Retired Elementary Special Education Paraprofessional"

Chuck Grassie for Mayor Campaign Site

Ballotpedia Candidate Page

X (Formerly Known as Twitter) Page

NH House of Representatives Page