Bissonnette begins campaign

By G. Michael Dobbs, Managing Editor

CHICOPEE Continuing with his "Team Chicopee" theme, Mayor Michael Bissonnette said the success he has had in his first term is due to the efforts of many.

Bissonnette kicked off his re-election campaign on Thursday night with a rally at the Portuguese-American Club that was attended by over 100 people.

Among the supporters were State Representatives Joseph Wagner, Sean Curran and James Welch, Holyoke Mayor Michael Sullivan, Aldermen Shane Brooks, William Zaskey, Robert Zygarowski, James Tillotson and Dino Brunetti.

Wagner told Reminder Publications that Bissonnette has done a "fine job" and added "people feel good about the state of the city."

The president of the Board of Aldermen, Keith Ratell, introduced Bissonnette and said he had "picked us up and moved us on."

"I'm proud to say we [the Aldermen] haven't fought with the mayor yet," he added.

Ratell had been a vocal opponent of Mayor Richard Goyette, who lost to Bissonnette after the results of a federal bribery investigation were revealed.

Bissonnette acknowledged the difficulty of his fist six months in office and emphasized that governing the city is "not a one man show."

He acknowledged the support of two men who assumed their offices a few months before he did: Elms College President James Mullen, Jr. and Chicopee Superintendent of Schools Richard Rege. He said he could have "no finer partner" than Rege.

"With all of the partners, we're getting it done," Bissonnette said.

He noted that 1,000 new jobs and 1,000 new homes are "in the pipeline" for the city.

He called Chicopee "the best kept secret in the Pioneer Valley," and the city with "the most stable tax base and the most stabile stabilization fund in Western Massachusetts."

Bissonnette said he would be taking out his nomination papers the next day.

Sullivan joked that whenever he comes to Chicopee he feels he's on a "foreign junket." He said he kids Bissonnette that the word "Chicopee" is a Native American word meaning "Holyoke Mall next exit."

Being serious, Sullivan added he was honored to have Bissonnette as a colleague.