Use this search box to find articles that have run in our newspapers over the last several years.
Date: 10/24/2023
NORTHAMPTON — Reminder Publishing’s coverage of the upcoming Northampton municipal election continues with four incumbent councilors stating their goals for the upcoming City Council term.
As of press time, none of the ward councilors below feature challengers.
The four incumbents and their goals are listed below and are in alphabetical order.
Ward 5: Alex Jarrett
Jarrett, who started his tenure on City Council back in 2020, told Reminder Publishing he is pursuing his third term because he wants to continue the service and work he started over his past couple terms.
“I really value all of the relationships I’ve built with my constituents and communication is a big part of my values,” Jarrett said, when discussing why he wants to continue his tenure.
Jarrett noted how the council completed a bunch of work around traffic calming including lowering the speed limit to 25 miles per hour in places like side streets or where the speed limit is not posted. He said there is much more work that can be done around that.
“Traffic issues or safety, road safety is one of the top things that I hear from constituents about,” Jarrett said.
Outside of that issue, Jarrett said he also wants to continue his work around housing, public safety and zoning.
“There’s definitely more work I want to do on zoning and supporting the great projects that are finally starting to happen,” Jarrett said.
Jarrett specifically mentioned the recently-launched Division of Community Care as a major development he wants to continue to support. He said he was on the city’s Police Review Commission, which recommended that the division be implemented as an alternative to policing and a way to support the residents and visitors of Northampton who experience houselessness, emotional distress, problematic substance use, as well as other challenges that people may face when it comes to meeting basic needs.
“It’s been really heartening to see that happening,” Jarrett said.
Another major development happening in the city is the advent of the Community Resilience Hub, which will serve as a community space and important resource for those facing chronic stress or some type of emergency, like homelessness. The city found a location for it at the former First Baptist Church, and Jarrett said he wants to see that come to fruition.
“It’s going to be a fabulous space that will provide important resources for folks,” Jarrett said. “It’s about addressing emergency response or what’s happening now, but it’s also about helping people figure out how to get themselves in a better place wherever they need, whether it’s mental health or substance use or a home.”
Jarrett said that the costs of inaction are far more detrimental to the future of the city, which is why many of these projects were important to fund.
“You want to weigh the costs now that you’re spending against the costs of the future or the cost of inaction,” Jarrett said. “Climate, for example; if we don’t build in the resiliency to our water, sewer, stormwater systems, then we’re going to see disasters that will cost us so much more in the future.”
When it comes to budget season, Jarrett said he would love it if the council explored a process known as participatory budgeting, which is where residents and other stakeholders determine how a portion of the budget gets spent.
Outside of serving on council, Jarrett also currently serves on the city’s Committee on Community Resources and chair of the Committee on Legislative Matters. He said part of his goal is continuing to communicate with constituents as much as possible through avenues like the monthly newsletter he releases.
Ward 6: Marianne LaBarge
LaBarge, who is currently the longest-tenured councilor, told Reminder Publishing that she is running again to continue to tackle the issues around the budget, economic development, quality education, human rights and public safety.
“We need to look at how to keep our businesses here in Northampton, and how to promote business development,” LaBarge said. “Our city of Northampton will continue to build a strong local economy by promoting local business development and integrating sustainable business practices.”
When it comes to public safety, LaBarge said she wants to work on solving the speeding and pothole issues found on main and side streets. She mentioned many intersections that could improve including ones at Florence Road and Burts Pit Road. She hopes that there can be better solar signage at intersections that are considered more dangerous.
Aside from those public safety issues, LaBarge also looks to continue support for more available housing to residents. She voiced her support for the specific housing development happening in her ward on Burts Pit Road, which is being spearheaded by Habitat for Humanity.
“Habitat is here and building homes on Burts Pitt Road, which I supported 100%,” LaBarge said. “They look great.”
LaBarge noted how she helped make city government more transparent for residents throughout the city by advocating for the Open Checkbook mechanism, which includes the city’s operating budget from fiscal year 2014 until now.
“This makes our city government more transparent, accessible and accountable to the people it serves,” LaBarge said. “I feel that every citizen has the right to know where and how their hard-earned taxpayer dollars are being spent in this city.”
She also added that she is very proud of her ward for “working tirelessly” to preserve conservation land, which has helped maintain the rural character of the land and reduce the urban sprawl.
“We now have more walking trials in Ward 6 connecting conservation land, and we have made great progress protecting the wildlife,” LaBarge said.
Another goal LaBarge wants to work on is creating a place where there is total communication between councilors and constituents. She said that some rural residents find it difficult to traverse to the City Council chambers for a meeting while others find an inadequate amount of parking around the building, so her goal is to advocate for more accessibility when it comes to the meetings.
Aside from serving as the Ward 6 Councilor, LaBarge also serves on the Disability Commission, the Committee on Finance and the Committee on City Services.
“I am very proud to serve as a City Councilor in Ward 6 and in a community that embraces tolerance and diversity,” LaBarge said. “I will always continue to be a persistent, tireless, and effective worker for my residents’ behalf and in the city.”
Ward 7: Rachel Maiore
Maiore said she believes she can now accomplish things more efficiently as someone who is entering their third term.
“Frankly, it’s a really steep learning curve being on council, and so I felt like this last term, I exponentially gained more insight and experience, and I really want to share that back,” Maiore said, when asked why she decided to run again. “It’s thrilling to be on council to represent my ward.”
One aspect of the last term Maiore is excited about is seeing how much work the city and council did in moving actions around climate change forward. As a member of the city’s Energy & Sustainability Commission, Maiore said it was thrilling to see a Climate Action Department implemented since she was part of the many discussions around creating a climate director for the city.
The Climate Action Department, which was implemented back in the winter, is a centralized place where the city can focus on its climate action goals, like making all city-owned buildings carbon-neutral by 2030. Currently, Carole Collins serves as the department’s first director.
“I’ve been really excited to see us move on climate,” Maiore said. “We’ve also preserved a lot of open land and conservation land, which I’m really proud of.”
Despite these major climate action achievements, Maiore said the council’s focus should now shift toward analyzing how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted residents.
“I think we now need to look a lot at cost and affordable housing because right now, people are hurting,” she said. “It’s a kind of complex time, and it really is going to take a little bit more out-of-the-box thinking to help our residents find ways to be able to stay here and make the city more affordable.”
Maiore prides herself on reaching out to as many residents as possible during major discussions so she can hear different opinions. Her hope is reach and hear as many people as possible in the city.
“Sometimes it can be the same folks chiming in, which is great, but I have to remember that it’s a big enough city that we really need to make sure that we’re hearing from others,” Maiore said.
One major topic discussed at a lot of council meetings is finding ways to make it more accessible for people to serve on boards and committees. The council tasked the city’s Select Committee to Study Barriers to Serving on City Boards and Commissions with finding these roadblocks and a report was presented during a prior council meeting.
“I see that the mayor is actually pretty committed to this, and councilors as well, really trying to find and welcome more nontraditional candidates for boards and committees,” Maiore said. But I think one thing we really need to look at is the culture of serving in Northampton, and what does that feel like, especially for underrepresented folks.”
As for her ward itself, Maiore said she wants to help address the burden of rising costs in the city, especially for seniors so they can stay in place.
“I think it’s important to think of ways to be able to keep seniors in their houses,” Maiore said. “It’s also important to think of creative ways to bring down the expense so that people who want to be here can stay here, and people who want to come here can join us.”
Outside of serving on council, Maiore also serves on the Committee on Community Resources and chairs the Committee on Finance. The latter has helped her understand “what makes a budget tick.”
Ward 1: Stanley Moulton
Moulton said he wants to serve a second term on City Council because there is unfinished business important to the city.
He said there are a number of developments he wants to continue to support including the newly-minted Climate Action Department and the recent introduction of the Division of Community Care.
“[The Climate Action Department] is going to be critical to meet the city’s sustainability goals,” Moulton said. “It’s important to recognize that that’s not just to help guide municipal operations, but that department will play a key role in educating people, businesses and institutions about how to make decisions to work toward the 2050 goal [of carbon neutrality].”
Moulton also mentioned the ongoing Picture Main Street project, which currently calls for more safety and accessibility improvements, among other things, as another development he will continue to monitor.
“I want to make sure that that continues to progress in a way that takes into account the need to support businesses during that reconstruction period,” Moulton said.
On a more micro level, Moulton said he wants to continue advocating on behalf of neighborhood issues and giving constituents an outlet to ask questions.
He said is excited to advocate for two affordable housing projects currently being developed in his ward, including the redevelopment of the former nursing home at 737 Bridge Rd. for 60 units of family housing courtesy of Valley CDC, as well as development of four units at the former Moose Lodge at 196 Cooke Ave.
“There’s a lot of business that I want to continue to see through as well as continuing to do what I feel has been very responsive work on behalf of my constituents,” Moulton said.
When asked about his approach to budget season, Moulton said that he believes education is a top spending priority for the city and he will continue to advocate for additional state aid in that area.
“We’re still dealing with many, many deficiencies in losses in what children were learning during the pandemic because remote learning was not as effective as in school learning,” Moulton said. “And particularly it had an impact on students of color and other underserved communities, lower income, and so forth. So that’s critical.”
Moulton said he will also look at ways to support the recently-formed Division of Community Care through budget discussions and monitoring its effectiveness. For example, right now it is operating weekdays, but Moulton said he would like to see it operate on evenings and weekends at some point.
“It’ll be important to look at how this model works, where it needs tweaking, and how can we get it more integrated into the existing public safety departments, the Police Department and fire rescue,” Moulton said.
Outside of continuing work on these issues, Moulton also noted how he served on the American Rescue Plan Act Advisory Committee under the mayor last year and helped facilitate grants to the most vulnerable members of the community. Out of the $4 million spent, 52% of the money went to affordable housing projects and shelter services that are addressing food insecurity.
Moulton currently serves on the Committee on Finance and Committee on Legislative Matters.