Brooks' bid for mayor kicks off at Castle of Knights

Date: 5/5/2009

By Courtney Llewellyn

Reminder Assistant Editor



CHICOPEE -- The speech that Shane Brooks gave at his campaign kick off was a brief one, because he doesn't just want to talk about what he would do as mayor -- he wants to listen to what the city's residents need.

Brooks, who is currently serving as the vice-president of the City Council, officially announced his bid for mayor at a rally on April 29 at the Fairview Castle of Knights. He outlined his goals to the approximately 300 citizens who turned out to support him.

"We need to keep Chicopee an affordable community," Brooks stated. "You need a leader who will stretch your tax dollars ... [and] find viable solutions to problems.

"As your mayor, I will not ask you to do more. I will ask City Hall to do more," he added.

Brooks outlined some of his goals in his speech. These included stabilizing city spending, doing more for senior citizens and veterans, focusing on job creation and job retention and seeing projects seen through to the end.

He is a lifelong resident of Chicopee and has served the city as an elected official for more than a decade. He served as the Ward 1 representative on the School Committee for one term, starting in 1996, and returned to the School Committee in 2002 at the Ward 2 representative. Four years later, in his first bid for office, Brooks was sworn in as an At-Large member of the City Council.

Brooks also serves as a member of the Board of Directors at the Chicopee Boys & Girls Club and works as the Assistant Director of Adult Services at the May Institute in West Springfield.

"He carries himself with an air of professionalism," Ward 9 Councilor Ron Belair said. "He always does his homework before he speaks." He added that Brooks is a great friend with great values and someone who listens to and works with people.

"His biggest strength is his open mindedness," Belair stated. "He is really willing to listen to people."

Ward 1 Councilor Dino Brunetti agreed. "[Brooks] has a great background," he said. "He's very active, he's smart and he's conscientious of what he does.

"I've only worked under [Mayors] Goyette and Bissonnette -- I think we gotta go to some fresh blood, and most of my constituents in Ward 1 feel the same way," Brunetti continued.

Brooks told Reminder Publications that he realizes the position of mayor requires a big commitment, but that is what the taxpayers expect of him.

"I'm going to do what the job requires," he said. "I know it's not just 9 to 5."

Brooks added that he was "amazed and humbled" by the number of people who came out to his campaign announcement.

A spaghetti dinner in support of Brooks' bid for mayor will take place May 27 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Castle of Knights. Tickets are $5 per person.