Mayor, Most of the Council Moves New Bedford Forward [OPINION]
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell has been working on a plan for an Advanced Manufacturing Campus for years. He plans to bring 1,000 jobs and millions of tax dollars to his city.
Tuesday night was the first time the New Bedford City Council had an opportunity to ask questions about Mitchell s plan and to vote on a portion of it. Despite a robust lobbying effort, the city council voted 10-1 in favor of the jobs plan.
When the dust settled, only At-Large City Councilor Linda Morad was a negative vote. It may have been the final defeat in a long-running feud with Mitchell. Even as the veteran councilor voted no, she made a light-hearted joke and said something about always voting no at meetings. As of last week, she appeared to have a serious block of councilors supporting her opposition to the project.
During my time in politics – as a campaign manager, a public official, and speaking in public hearings – I’ve come to learn that there are essentially two types of people that work in local government.
The overwhelming majority answer the call to public service and govern with a genuine desire to improve the lives of their constituents and protect our most vulnerable populations.
Then there are the few that govern as if they carved out their own corner of the universe to lord over and are only interested in their own power and ability to use that power spitefully.
Earlier this week, in a New Bedford Traffic Commission hearing, I spoke on behalf of a friend who was petitioning for a handicapped parking space to be designated on the street in front of the walkway to their home. I explained to the commission that the petitioner has had several surgeries in the past two years which resulted in metal screws being installed in their extremities, a rod in their midsection as well a
Money is the mother s milk of politics is an old phrase that is still true today. In fact, money might be more important in the age of COVID-19.
The pandemic has put an end to many forms of traditional campaigning. Most people wouldn t appreciate a candidate knocking on their door these days. Large events are not currently allowed. Even a small gathering of a campaign s key volunteers would be a risky endeavor. Candidates are going to have to buy the time to communicate with the voters this cycle.
Here are the amounts in some of the political campaign accounts of officials elected in the city of New Bedford:
Mitchell sent a letter to City Council vetoing the council’s ordinance and stating his reasoning behind the veto on Nov. 24, which included that the residency requirement creates a preference for qualified city residents and cultivates a city workforce committed to the city.
Before the ordinance was enacted city employees were required to live in New Bedford unless they obtained a residency waiver, which the mayor had to put before City Council and the council then had to approve.
City Councilors have questioned the fairness of residency waivers with Coelho saying the process seemed to lack equality as some higher-level workers are granted permission to live outside of the city, while lower-level workers seemed to have a different set of rules.
The political scene in New Bedford continues to change and the number of candidates continues to expand. This is going to be an exciting election year.
The retirement of longtime city councilor Deb Coelho has created an opportunity for change. There will be a new councilor after the 2021 election is decided. Anyone who has ever considered running for office in the Whaling City is looking at this opportunity because it is so rare.
Jason Mello has recently established a campaign with the Office of Campaign and Political Finance to run for an at-large seat on the council. He has also become active on social media promoting his campaign and now he is in a position to raise important financial resources for his citywide effort. Mello is well known and well-liked in the city he wants to help govern.