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Date: 8/25/2021
HOLYOKE – On Sept. 21, seven candidates will appear on the ballot in hopes of being one of two candidates to move forward into the municipal election in November. Polling locations for each ward and precinct within the city can be found online at https://www.holyoke.org/voters-polling-places/.
Reminder Publishing reached out to each of the seven candidates and invited them to answer a series of questions regarding issues impacting the city and Holyoke residents. Candidate responses to the six questions asked by Reminder Publishing will be printed in a series of three separate articles.
Candidates, listed in alphabetical order by last name, are resident Gloria Caballero Roca, Blandford Town Administrator Joshua Garcia, resident William Glidden, resident Christopher Kosinski, City Councilor Rebecca Lisi, School Committee member Devin Sheehan and City Councilor Mike Sullivan.
Reminder Publishing (RP): In recent years the city has made an effort to attract and retain new businesses. As mayor, how would you work to attract new businesses to Holyoke, and subsequently, how would you retain them?
Caballero Roca: I will restructure the property taxes to favor local businesses.
Garcia: Over the years, I have met with many Holyoke business owners and most recently with downtown small businesses and have had multiple discussions of their challenges and needs. The concerns they share with me are consistent. I’m told there is limited advocacy to support small businesses with navigating challenges as needed and there is also a lack of communication between City Hall and the business community, and even between departments. The general feeling is that our business owners have taken a risk to invest in our city but our city is not investing in them therefore making it less desirable to want to stay and grow in Holyoke. Among the many challenges I have heard, some include concerns of deteriorating infrastructure, public safety, trash everywhere, questionable enforcement from city departments, and concerns with excessive panhandling. The lack of coordination of public resources and inefficient support for business owners are barriers for any business to want to invest in our city. A Garcia administration will cultivate greater collaboration and close the communication gap between the city and local businesses by strengthening its partnership with organizations like the Holyoke Chamber of Commerce as well as the Holyoke Taxpayer Association.
Glidden: When it comes to attracting and developing new businesses, Holyoke has a lot to offer: a world-class and inexpensive clean energy supply; our infrastructure; our water reserves; our proximity to great centers of learning; and our access to outdoor recreation. As mayor, I would work with our planning and economic development director to make sure we’re effectively marketing our city’s strategic assets to businesses uniquely suited to take advantage of them. For businesses already in town, it’s important to stay current on basic quality-of-life issues, ensuring that our business owners can take advantage of walkable sidewalks, well-lit streets, reliable trash pickup, and public safety.
Holyoke is also home to a thriving E-for-All program, one of the top entrepreneurial accelerators in the country. This program has already led to the creation of many small businesses in town, and as mayor, I would support its further development through the allocation of Community Development Block Grant funding. I would also fast-track the creation of a user-friendly online portal that walks prospective business owners through the permitting process. Other cities have such a system, and we should, too.
Kosinski: We have lost many small businesses over the years. One that comes to mind is Holyoke Lock, which is now located in Chicopee. They were located on High Street where everyone in town would go for their security needs. I went to their location in Chicopee to have some keys made recently and I asked the owner, “Why did you leave Holyoke?” He explained to me that he contacted city officials to move his business to another location in town, but the city didn’t want to work with him. A small example, but worth noting. We need to be helpful to each and every business. That will start with more attractive tax rates for businesses and other acts of genuine support.
Lisi: In my first term on the City Council, I passed Smart Growth policies to help reorient development toward the downtown in order to stabilize our building stock, stabilize our tax base, and bring new jobs to our city. These policies are responsible for the revitalization that we see taking place today.
I have been a strong supporter of the cannabis industry because it is a strong fit for the manufacturing history of our city and buildings; it brings in new industrial water and electric users; and provides living wage jobs with benefits and advancement opportunities for our residents.
In addition to cannabis, I would like to pursue more tech and computing industries that would want to make use of our green and affordable electric rates; precision machining (e.g.: for medical equipment); and support home-based entrepreneurs finding brick-and-mortar locations on High and Main Streets.
I am interested in pursuing a Business Improvement District (BID) with the Chamber of Commerce to help make our downtown safer, cleaner, and more attractive to pedestrian traffic. A BID would help property owners pool their resources toward marketing and beautification efforts that would have enough scale and scope to make a visual impact on our community.
Sheehan: I plan to make attracting and retaining new businesses a key priority as mayor. To do this, we must start with a marketing plan to attract new business. We must partner with state and federal economic development agencies to create a plan that focuses on Holyoke’s low energy rates, natural resources, and available property. I would also work with marketing professionals and the Chamber of Commerce to develop a campaign to promote Holyoke and to ensure business owners have a voice. I would work with new and existing businesses to create workforce development opportunities for employee training. As a municipal government, we must examine our permitting processes and many of the ordinances that create unnecessary barriers to begin a business. I would work to implement a “One Stop Shop” for the permitting process where an applicant could utilize the city website to apply, upload information and pay for a permit, regardless of the type of permit they are applying for. This system would improve better communication and allow applicants to receive an instant status update on their permit. To retain businesses in Holyoke, I would have regular business roundtables with business owners to discuss their concerns and needs
Sullivan: I have spent over 30 years investing in Holyoke, growing a successful business, supporting our local economy, and building pathways to the middle class for dozens of local families. As mayor, economic development will be my number one priority. I have created a detailed economic plan committed to creating over 2,500 jobs and together we will rebuild Holyoke with consensus, transparency and social equity.
RP: Are you in favor of building a new school in the city? Why or why not?
Caballero Roca: Not in favor because of the literal cost of doing that, and the cost to the environment for doing that. I am in favor of using money to improve and upgrade the physical plant of the schools that we have.
Garcia: Yes, in particular I favor construction of a new middle school and I am committed to work with our community to develop a funding plan that will be far more palatable for those voters who say, “We can’t afford it.” The reality is that we can’t afford not to build a new middle school. Our middle school age children currently lack the middle school educational experience therefore limiting their preparation for transitioning to high school. Additionally, the Holyoke Public Schools have developed excellent new programs, such as the STEM Academy and Dual Language Program. But our aging and, in some cases, unsafe buildings are poor venues for fresh, stimulating schooling. Also, overcrowding has meant limiting enrollment to programs that can help us break free from state receivership. Therefore, yes, I am for building a new middle school but in a way that is well within the parameters of what our city can afford without placing additional financial burden to the public.
Glidden: Whenever I’m out knocking on doors and I happen to meet a young family, the question I get is always the same: What about the schools?
I am in favor of a building a new middle school in the city. Holyoke has not built a new public school since the 1980s, and the structural problems with our existing school buildings are well understood. Building a new, state-of-the-art middle school would strengthen our whole school district, save money in the long term through increased efficiency, and improve the prospects of our students.
Then there’s the question of the state receivership, which is on the forefront of many Holyokers’ minds. In my view, we will greatly increase the likelihood of reclaiming local control if we can demonstrate that our whole community is invested in the success of our schools. Making the investment to build a new middle school, within our current budgetary constraints, would send a clear signal that we care about all of our kids here in the city of Holyoke.
Kosinski: Of course we need a new state-of-the-art school. The bigger questions are will this facility provide a better education for our students and can the city afford it? A new building is not necessarily the solution. The solution is to invest in our teachers. We need to give them all the tools and support we possibly can, so they can inspire and educate their students to the best of their ability.
Lisi: Yes! I am absolutely in favor of building a new school in the city. Education is tied to every single metric of individual and community success. If we want our young people to live successful, productive lives, then we need to invest in education. If we want to attract new employers to our area, we need to develop an educated workforce. For our community to succeed, our school buildings need to become sites for 21st century learning.
In 2019, we learned through the widely circulated School Facilities Survey that we have many buildings that are in significant disrepair and score “poor” on several measured facets. Not only are several buildings beginning to exceed their useful lives, they also do not have the technology, science or computer labs, or experiential and independent learning spaces that would make middle school education engaging and enriching.
The city has the bonding capacity to build one middle school at a time without going to the voters for a tax override. The Departments of Revenue and of Local Services have already reviewed our city finances and have confidence that we can successfully take on one project at a time within the city’s budget.
Sheehan: I am supportive of building one new school so long as it can be funded within Holyoke’s budget. Holyoke residents and business owners pay some of the highest tax rates in the commonwealth and we cannot raise these further without causing people and businesses to leave the city. Working within our current budget and debt service, I would use my experience and relationships with state and local leaders to build this new school. Holyoke was granted by the Massachusetts School Building Authority the opportunity to construct one new middle school building. More importantly, this new building will help the Holyoke Public Schools in its overall goal to create a developmentally appropriate experience for middle school aged students. The school district would be able to create academic and co-curricular educational space. A new middle school building will allow the district to expand on customized learning, such as dual language and STEAM education. Constructing a new middle school will continue the city’s commitment to providing high quality education for all its residents.
Sullivan: Yes – I am in favor of building a new school and getting back to a true middle school model. We have the ability right now to build a new middle school with our existing revenue stream and no additional taxes.
However, there is no sugar coating what has happened to our schools. Falling into receivership has been an absolute travesty and our kids are paying the price for having a mayor who was the chairman of the School Committee but never attended meetings. I believe that our children are our most important asset, and I have spent decades supporting our school system, our local sports programs, and training programs for kids coming out of Dean Tech who deserve to have a future.
One of the most important jobs of a mayor is creating connections between diverse constituencies and capturing the imagination of the young adults graduating from our schools. Our children are our future – and will be the bridge to the new Holyoke we will rebuild together under my administration.
Part two of this article can be found online at http://archives.thereminder.com/localnews/holyoke/meet-the-holyoke-mayoral-candidates-part-two