'In these four walls we work' - Manchester mayor reflects on first 100 days in office

Apr. 5—The first thing one notices when entering Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais's office is the clock.

Counting down the days, hours, minutes and seconds left in his term, it's a symbol of the need for urgency when attending to the daily machinations of New Hampshire's largest city.

"This is a constant reminder that in these four walls we work. There is no room for fakery," Ruais said.

"There is no room for partisanship. There's no room for politics. The effort needs to be made to bring people together and get things done.

"There's zero reason why Manchester shouldn't be the best midsize city in the United States," he said. "We've got a lot to accomplish, and we have a finite amount of time to get it done."

April 11 will mark a milestone for Ruais — 100 days in office as Manchester's 49th mayor. A onetime staffer for former mayor and Republican U.S. Rep. Frank Guinta, Ruais defeated former state senator and current Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh in November to become the first Republican mayor in Manchester since 2017.

He already has several accomplishments to his credit — including progress on the topics of housing, public safety and homelessness — but today the first topic on the agenda is the mixed planter on his office conference table.

"The most impressive accomplishment thus far is that these plants are still alive," Ruais jokes.

Ruais had never sought political office before running for mayor of the state's largest city. Despite a lack of experience, Ruais said he never once thought "What have I got myself into?" since being sworn in Jan. 2.

"This is the best job in the world," Ruais said. "The daily interaction with the people that live in the city of Manchester and how much they love it, that fuels me. When I go to Webster Street School and read a book to the kids, and speak Spanish with a kid who just moved here from Colombia six weeks ago, that moves me to want to do this job.

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"We have the chance to make a difference in a person's life every single day, and I just, I love that," said Ruais, who has spoken publicly about being a recovering alcoholic. "I mean the reason why I ran for office was because I got sober 14 years ago, and I just wanted to help people. That's all I care about, and in this job I have the opportunity to do it every day."

"Is it a tough job? Yeah — but I love every single second of it."

Getting to know them

Ruais took office with an evenly split Board of Mayor and Aldermen — seven Republicans and seven Democrats. He represents a conservative tie-breaking vote, giving Republicans a majority on the board for the first time since 1998 (assuming block voting). The Board of School Committee leans heavily Democratic.

Does he find it difficult to navigate the sometimes larger-than-life personalities on both boards?

He says no.

"This is, I think, the problem with politics at large — I don't think we talk enough," Ruais said. "I think if you sit down with somebody for 15, 20 minutes and just have a conversation, you're going to find something that you can relate to that person on — and now all of a sudden that person is a human being. It's not just somebody who shares a different ideology than you.

"I firmly believe that everybody on the BMA and everybody on the school board is here because they love this city and they want to push the city forward in a good direction," he said. "I think if you start with that basic level of trust in a person, and you can find some things that you can agree on, you can find consensus on an issue."

Early highlights

Ruais cites several highlights so far on the twin issues of homelessness and housing, including expanding the lead agency for the continuum of care for the homeless, proposing two ordinance changes to address the housing shortage, and a rewrite of the city's zoning ordinances, which is expected to wrap up soon.

He is finalizing proposals that would strengthen local ordinances involving camping and quality-of-life issues. Ruais doesn't believe cities should be in the "shelter business," or that Manchester has the resources as a city to fund a shelter long-term.

"I don't want short-term patchwork solutions, and I want a long-term fix, so through the budget process we are looking at creating a transitional bridge from the city running the Engagement Center to that of a nonprofit entity," Ruais said. "This is an important strategy allowing us to address these real challenges without having the taxpayer bear the full burden."

The city has hired six additional police officers since January, and Ruais's proposed budget of $437 million included money to preserve 10 police officers currently paid through an expiring federal grant.

"The safety of our citizens is non-negotiable, which is the reason my budget fully funds the Manchester Police Department's usage of cutting-edge technologies ... and why I have continued to fight for bail reform to get violent and repeat offenders off of our streets," Ruais said.

A plug for bipartisanship

He cites the bipartisan behind-the-scenes work he put in with aldermen Joe Kelly Levasseur and Pat Long as an example of the importance of working together.

"I think this is where that trust factor comes in," Ruais said. "I think that process could be a contentious process if there's a lack of trust on the part of any of the parties involved, but because we've worked so closely together since I was sworn in and even during the transition, I've made a real effort to build relationships with members of the board.

"Alderman Long has been great. We've sat at this table together 15 or 20 times, we've talked on the phone a few times a week, same exact thing with Chairman Levasseur and other members of the board as well," he said.

"I really can't do it without a dance partner."

Ruais makes it a point to be accessible to city residents and business owners. He has held town-hall meetings in three wards thus far, giving out his cellphone number to those attending and encouraging them to use it.

"I don't know how you can do this job if you're not connected with people every single day," Ruais said. "I'm not special. I work for the city of Manchester. People should feel like they can come and talk to their mayor and have a conversation and not just like a rote memorization talking point, a kind of regurgitation.

"If the only voices you hear are the ones sitting in there in the boardroom with you — if the only thing you're doing is in your own echo chamber — it just doesn't work. It doesn't work at the national level and it sure as hell doesn't work at the local level," he said.

'He's cool'

As Ruais and a reporter walk along Hanover Street, Everlee Giuliano, 6, wants to high-five the mayor. It's hard to tell who's more excited by the exchange.

"He's cool," Everlee says.

As they wait for the light to change at Hanover and Elm, a car pulls up and the occupants yell hello at Ruais. A man walking by City Hall Pub tells him he's doing "good work."

Just another night among the first 100 of the Queen City's new mayor. According to the clock, only 639 are left this term.

"Getting out and about downtown, mixing and meeting, it really is one of the best parts of my job, and it informs everything I do (at BMA meetings) on Tuesday nights," Ruais said. "How am I going to know what do the individuals that live in the city want going forward and how can I be reflective of that as mayor if I'm not talking to people?

"I'm not gonna know that if I'm just in my own head in my office."

pfeely@unionleader.com