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Date: 1/11/2022
NORTHAMPTON – In a tight 5-4 vote during an organizational meeting on Jan. 3, the Northampton City Council elected former council Vice President Jim Nash as the council president for the next two years.
The two candidates for president that were nominated during this meeting were Nash and Councilor Rachel Maiore. Nash was nominated by Councilor Karen Foster, while Maiore nominated herself for the running.
Nash, who was first elected to the council in 2016, will officially replace Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra as the council president. Sciarra was officially sworn in as the 45th mayor of Northampton during a Jan. 3 inauguration that occurred at the Academy of Music.
“I really appreciate this opportunity … I am deeply committed to all of us working together” said Nash, after officially being elected as the new term president. “I very much appreciate everybody on the council. We’re going to get some great stuff done the next two years.”
Outside of being the vice president of the council, Nash has also chaired the Transportation and Parking Committee, as well as the Community Resources Committee. Prior to serving on the council, Nash, who is part of Ward 3, also served on the Zoning Revisions Committee, the Northampton Public Transit Committee for five years, as well as the Passenger Rail Advisory Committee. He also served on the Committee for Disabilities for over a decade, as well as the Ward 3 Neighborhood Association for over 10 years, including stints as president and vice president.
Beyond those positions, Nash was also involved with the Northampton Democratic City Committee for a decade and has been the Ward 3 chair since 2015. “I enjoy being part of a body that works hard to listen to participants and sometimes have difficult conversations,” said Nash. “I enjoy working to find ways to move forward.” The vote was split 4-4, with both Nash and Maiore voting for themselves. Ward 4 Councilor Garrick Perry was the deciding vote.
Foster explained to the council the reasoning for nominating Nash, much of which had to do with his insistence on assisting her even beyond meetings, as well as when she first began as a councilor. “One of the things that I’ve always appreciated about Councilor Nash is, when there are hard issues or grappling with difficult discussions, he’s been incredibly open to feedback and to looking at things from a different perspective,” said Foster.
Maiore, a Ward 7 councilor, serves as the chair of the City Council Rules Select Committee, and said she spent the last six months dissecting what makes an “equitable” City Council meeting. Maiore said that her experience through that over the past six months lead to the decision of nominating herself for council president.
“I think we’ve been very supportive of each other and have shown a lot of respect,” said Maiore, during the meeting. “I think we really learned a lot … We need to be opening and inviting to our constituents, but we also really need to think about department heads … and how we can make these meetings more precise.”
Jamila Gore, Marissa Elkins, Perry, and Stanley Moulton were officially sworn in as the four new councilors after being elected in November. Maiore, Foster and Alex Jarrett began their second term last week. Gore and Perry are the second and third Black city councilors in Northampton history, with Gore being the first Black woman on the council.
Foster was also elected as the council vice president during the Jan. 3 meeting.