Beloin agreed to resign her position as part of a $57,000 settlement with the city. The agreement followed a public dustup that began when aldermen on April 2 voted to direct Beloin to work out of the Beech Street homeless shelter, saying operations at the site needed more “oversight.”

Beloin objected that moving her office and department into the shelter at 39 Beech St. would be “stepping on toes of a management structure that already exists.”

The comments angered Alderman Dan O’Neil, who accused Beloin of speaking to board members as if they were “dummies.” Two days later, Beloin went on a Manchester radio station to push back on the vote, accusing board members of political “posturing.”

At Tuesday’s meeting, Wright sat down at the microphone and ripped some on the board for their handling of the situation.

“I live in Manchester and what a difference two weeks can make,” Wright said. “You know, two weeks ago we had a very qualified director of housing stability that we no longer have. And we also have $57,000 of taxpayer money that we no longer have. I do believe that there’s a problem above (emergency shelter manager) Jake King with the management and oversight structure at 39 Beech St. I just don’t think that problem was Adrienne. I think it was you.”

Wright said he believes aldermen “don’t understand how a management structure works.”

“You can’t understand why somebody running a place like that might have 20 hours of work that they don’t have to do on site,” Wright said. “That’s baffling to you, that’s deplorable. Another one of you made a point of how you go by there every day and you still see homeless people in the area, doing homeless stuff, it’s been six whole months and how come this isn’t all fixed.

“Meanwhile, we have comparisons, like it’s the same thing running a shelter and engagement center as it is owning a restaurant or coaching a baseball team. Come on.”

“I gotta say, nobody was talking down to you guys — at that point. Nobody was treating you like dummies. You may have felt dumb — you certainly looked dumb.”

Wright said the city “screwed up,” not only losing $57,000 in taxpayer money but also the “best hope we had in seeing some long-term solutions to the problems of homelessness that are impacting everybody in this city.”

“Here’s my question — you were so sure two weeks ago that there’s a problem at Beech Street and that the solution is that the person who manages that facility needs to have oversight on site,” Wright said. “Well, now that Adrienne’s gone, you are the oversight, (Jake King) reported to her, she reported to you — now he reports directly to you. So which one of you is moving your office over to Beech Street? That was the solution — you said it yourselves.

“Let me know. I’ll get my boys down here to help you pack.”

Signs of change

Members of the aldermanic Committee on Administration and Information Systems are recommending approval of a proposed ban on flags, banners and signs displayed in the aldermanic chambers.

The recommended change to Rule 3 of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen’s Rules was first pitched by board chairman Joe Kelly Levasseur, after pro-Palestinian activists spoke out during the public comment portion of a BMA meeting, demanding aldermen take a vote on a cease-fire resolution.

Toward the end of a meeting last month, Levasseur made a motion that Rule 3 of the board’s rules be amended immediately to “prohibit the use of banners, flags or signs or other items which may create a security concern or obstruct the view of other members of the public or public access to meetings” within the aldermanic chambers.

Levasseur was interrupted while making the motion by at least one protester yelling, with Mayor Jay Ruais asking the person to stop.

“Enough. Stop,” Ruais said. “You had your opportunity to speak earlier. We’ve been inordinately polite.”

Protesters have been observed hanging pro-Palestinian banners over the second-floor railing and holding signs in the audience at recent BMA meetings at City Hall.

The proposed amendment reads as follows:

“Speakers shall be civil in their language and presentation. Profanity, threats, and the use of vulgar language or fighting words are prohibited, in addition to any and all speech or actions which violate any applicable law. During public comment, speakers shall only address the Chair. The audience shall likewise not engage in disorderly conduct interfering with the Public Participation sessions or in any other violation of applicable law.

“The use of banners, flags, signs, or other items which may create a security concern, obstruct the view of other members of the public, or restrict public access within the Aldermanic Chambers is also strictly prohibited.”

Raising bail issues

The mayor recently expressed his support at a bill passed by the House of Representatives that makes changes to New Hampshire’s bail law.

House Bill 318 would create a new judicial magistrate system to hear bail cases more quickly and develop a tracking system to notify police if an offender is out on bail for another crime.

“I am thrilled to see the passage of HB 318 by the House of Representatives,” Ruais said in a statement. “This legislation will be instrumental in addressing the shortcomings of our current bail reform laws and reaffirms our commitment to prioritizing the safety of our community.”

Ruais went on to encourage the state Senate to consider the legislation and work to find common ground.

“It is essential for the city of Manchester that we make progress on this issue to protect our residents, businesses and visitors,” Ruais said.

HB 318 marks the House’s first major attempt in six years to address issues that arose with passage of the 2018 bail law, which made it easier for alleged offenders to avoid jail following arrest.

As of March, Manchester police had made 817 arrests. More than 300 of those arrested were released on bail.

In more than a quarter of the 4,529 arrests made by city police in the past year, those charged were out on bail for a previous arrest.