total time: 9.96 minutes
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total time: 23.85 minutes
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[SPEAKER_02]: Check one two
[Fred Dello Russo]: Good evening, everybody. It's my distinct pleasure on behalf of the government of the city of Medford to welcome you all to Mayor Burke's first State of the City Address. At this time, I call upon Lieutenant Casey and the members of the Medford Police Department Honor Guard to present the colors. We now welcome into the chamber the department heads of the City of Medford. We welcome with us distinguished clergy into the chamber. Stacey Clayton, Reverend Noah, and Reverend Wendy. Joining us now will be members of elected officials of the city of Medford, representing the city of Medford. They will be processing in and seating in the front row to their left. You're welcome to be seated. And we do welcome in particular Senator Patricia Jalen, representative Sean Garbali, representative Christine Barber, Middlesex County district attorney, Marion Ryan, clerk of courts for Middlesex County, Michael Sullivan, Commissioner of the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority, Frederick Lasky, my colleagues on the Medford City Council, John Falco, Adam Knight, George Scarpelli, and our president, Rick Caraviello. We have two special guests with us, both retired presidents of the Medford City Council, Paul Camuso and President Emeritus Robert Mayarco, members of the school committee, Kathy Kreatz, Mia Mastoni, Erin DiBenedetto, Annmarie Cugno, Paulette Vanderkloot, and Robert Skerry, and our former mayor, the Honorable Michael J. McGlynn. At this time, to lead us in the pledge of allegiance. At this time, we welcome with us the mayor of Medford, the Honorable Stephanie Mochini Burke. Yeah! Thank you, Madam Mayor. Wow. Now, to lead us in the Pledge of Allegiance, we welcome four students from our elementary schools to come on up. Sean Sullivan from the McGlynn Elementary, Sophia Hernandez from the McGlynn Elementary, Gina Macedo from the Brooks Elementary, and Sebastian Simeon from the Brooks Elementary.
[SPEAKER_12]: I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
[SPEAKER_11]: Thank you. Thank you, kids.
[Fred Dello Russo]: If we welcome up with us now, please remain standing for the National Anthem to be sung by Stacey Clayton.
[Clayton]: Oh, say can you see by the dawn's early light, what so proudly we at the twilight's last gleaming, whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming? And the rockets' red glare, glare the bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there oh say does that star-spangled banner wave o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
[Fred Dello Russo]: We now invite the Reverend Noah Evans of Grace Episcopal Church.
[2hZdDePQb_Y_SPEAKER_26]: Loving God, in the scriptures you say, seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you, and pray to the Lord on its behalf. For in its welfare you will find your welfare. Behold and visit, we pray, the cities of the earth, especially Medford, this our home. Send your spirit upon our elected officials, our city workers, our police, fire, and school departments, our businesses, and our families. Renew the ties of mutual regard which form our civic life. Send us honest and able leaders. In your scripture, you say you are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. Oh, holy one, you have blessed this city with many, many gifts, including our extraordinary diversity. people of different abilities, nationalities, cultures, ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations and expressions, religious and political beliefs, and of many generations. Help us to see and to know the preciousness of this gift. In this time of division in our nation and in our world, be with us as we celebrate both our unity and our diversity. So we are the city on a hill and a light to the world. Give us strength, give us courage, give us hope to stand up for the birthright of all people to know liberty and freedom. Help us to protect the rights of all people, including those whose rights may feel precarious or threatened at this time. so that this city may thrive and we may live together in unity and peace, building up this community for the good of all, for the good of all of us, and for the sake of the entire world. We ask this in your holy name. Amen.
[Fred Dello Russo]: At this time, please be seated. At this time, we'd like to invite the students who are going to proclaim for us the unity resolution that was passed unanimously by the Medford City Council this past December. So if you would come on up. For part one, Nathan Ville of the Andrews Middle School.
[SPEAKER_00]: The strength of our nation is derived from its history of diversity that has enriched our communities with a variety of cultures, faith, traditions, and viewpoints.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Emma Burke from the Andrews Middle School.
[SPEAKER_01]: The city of Medford is a community that welcomes and values the varied racial and ethnic makeup of our residents and
[Fred Dello Russo]: Matt Moran of the Vocational High School.
[2hZdDePQb_Y_SPEAKER_26]: The City of Medford stands in support of all immigrant groups and newcomers as they pursue the American dream and... Josephine Rizzo of the Roberts Elementary School.
[SPEAKER_06]: Whereas the City of Medford will work to model our city as a safe and welcoming place that equally encourages all to seek personal advancement and to reside in the peaceful contentment in Medford and...
[Fred Dello Russo]: Vivalin Chavatona of the Roberts Elementary School.
[SPEAKER_12]: Whereas, the city of Medford rejects all words and acts of hate, indifference, and intolerance that undermine our neighborhood's communities of faith in our schools that thwart the promise of equal justice and... Sorry.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Amin Nazi of the McGlynn Middle School.
[SPEAKER_02]: Whereas our nation was founded on the fundamental principle that all persons are entitled to equal protection of law, equal opportunity, and to the enjoyment of civil and human rights.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Jaspreet Kaur of Columbus Elementary.
[SPEAKER_11]: Now therefore, the city of Medford proudly supports the Medford Conversations Project to promote dialogue and collaboration about race and ethnicity in Medford and beyond.
[Fred Dello Russo]: And Gabriel Rossi of the Columbus Elementary.
[SPEAKER_03]: I am Medford. We are Medford.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Thank you. And the students read for us and shared for us quite eloquently the same resolution not only unanimously voted upon by the Medford City Council, but also the Medford School Committee and the Human Rights Commission. It's now an honor for me to introduce to you, to give her first state of the city address, the Honorable Stephanie Muccini-Burke, Mayor of Medford.
[Stephanie Muccini Burke]: Good evening, elected officials, clergy, Ms. Clayton, you who sung so beautifully, city and school employees, and fellow Medford residents. Thank you so very much for being here, and thank you to all of those watching from home. To the youth of our community who just recited the proclamation, you inspire us. You have been raised in a time of tolerance and compassion. You embrace the diversity of our city and our country. Remain vigilant. These are trying times for our nation, no matter our personal views. But as Tip O'Neill always said, all politics is local. We're together this evening as one city because we are strong and believe in writing this chapter together. The current state of the city of Medford is summed up in three words, sound, stable, and sturdy. And as- As your mayor, I stand ready to work with you to chart a new course into an even greater tomorrow. It seems like the inauguration was just yesterday when we, as a community, collectively said, it all starts today. Well, since that day, much time has been spent among our residents, business owners, and staff working in collaboration with one another and elected officials on all levels of government to have a high-level dialogue to renew and improve our city. And I am very proud of the work done thus far, because it continues today. And I'd like to start with a focus on our finances, because a sound financial foundation is the catalyst for continuing our progress. The city's unemployment rate on 12-31 was 2.3 percent, compared to Boston's 2.5. Medford dropped from 3.7 percent this past June. Our bond rating is AA from Standard & Poor's and AA3 from Moody's, high-quality ratings. Average single families' homes are assessed at 476,000, and Medford has a stable housing market. We closed out fiscal 16 with free cash of $9.7 million. This is our city's rainy day fund. And since last February, Treasurer Irwin has aggressively pursued tax title cases, having collected $1.9 million, thus far compared with— Compared with 900,000 the previous year, the treasurer and assessor are implementing the Community Preservation Act, CPA, which was passed by the Medford voters this past November of 15 and went into effect on July 1st of 16. We project fiscal 17 collections to estimate $1.2 million, which will be available for use beginning in July. Its purpose is for affordable housing, open space, and historic preservation initiatives. We are accepting applications until February 12th for the four at-large appointments to the Community Preservation Commission. We have reinvented the senior work-off abatement program, allowing 35 seniors to earn up to $1,500 in abatements during this current fiscal year. This successful program This successful program was a win for us seniors, it was a win for City Hall, and it was a win for the residents as a whole. Thank you so, so much for your dedication to the city. Thank you, Ruth and Vivian. The roles included assisting in early voting, which we got 20,000 people to early vote this year, greeting people at city hall, handling the mail and other tasks. We're looking to open up the program again to new seniors starting April 1st. In addition to this abatement, the city offers many statutory exemptions for seniors and veterans. I will also be forwarding a request to the city council to raise the exemption levels by 50% for veterans and seniors in the coming months. We are also working with the State Division of Local Services to review the owner-occupied exemption calculation. We know there's a fundamental flaw in it, and we're going to work with our partners at the state to try and correct it, at least for Medford, if not for the whole Commonwealth. So the focus on finances continues today. In March, our community signed on to the Governor's Community Compact, which is a commitment to best practices. Through this compact, we are pursuing two major initiatives that directly impact the quality of life in our city. The first is Complete Streets. Complete Streets changes the thought process when performing road projects. It provides equal weight to all modes of transportation, whether it be walking, biking, wheelchairs, transit, as well as motor vehicles. We were awarded a $400,000 grant from the state to implement this strategy. This funding will allow us to focus on six projects that will provide the reconfiguration of intersections, pedestrian signals, bike lanes, signage, and crosswalk enhancements. The Complete Streets team, led by our engineer, Cassandra Koudelidis, We'll be holding forums the next two Wednesday nights to review the plan so the construction can begin in the spring. One such project is a major reconfiguration of Tufts Square. The second compact item is the Medford Square revitalization plan. We have received $90,000 from the State Technical Assistance Grant and the Barr Foundation Grant to facilitate the planning process. Director Lauren DiLorenzo has spearheaded public meetings, which provided great input and feedback. In March, we will be ready to move forward and ensure that this planning comes to fruition. In coordination with this process, I am very, very proud to make an announcement tonight that the Rudra Hospitality Group has closed on the property at 101 George B. Hassett Drive, just next door to us. They will be applying to construct a 124-room Premier Brand hotel with a sky bar and a 350-seat rooftop function room. This $25 to $30 million investment will create 200 construction jobs, an estimate 50 permanent jobs, and projected tax revenues just at construction cost, not value, Mr. Assessor, is $600,000 per year to start. I want to thank the team that includes John Veneziano of ERA Andrew, Realtors, and the Rudra Group for working with us to be the first domino to fall in the revitalization of Medford Square and trusting in this city's vision and process. Thank you very much to the group, John and the Rudra. I know you're here. The end. Thank you. The city was also awarded a land and water grant of $250,000 that will match city money to reimagine the Riverside Plaza adjacent to the burial grounds in Medford Square. We envision this multi-purpose space to act as a common of sorts for our community events. As Vince Lombardi said, individual commitment to a group effort, that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work. It is this commitment by my transition teams, citizens, city employees, and elected officials on all levels of government that has fostered this cooperative effort. Economic development and development in general is necessary to maintain a financially strong municipality. Prop two and a half without new growth barely covers contractual obligations, let alone health and pension costs. We rely on new growth to be able to augment services, such as offering a year-round recreation program that is being recommended by our focus group, which Councilor Scott Peli is spearheading with a group of committed residents. Thank you, George. With the housing shortage forecast from the state, we must continue to invite varied housing opportunities in our community. And I applaud Councilman Knight, Chair of the Zoning Subcommittee, for work toward revising some outdated zoning ordinances on our books. To assist in this process, we have applied for a technical assistant grant with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, specifically for the Mystic Avenue Corridor. Thank you, Adam. So economic development continues today. And while we stress economic development, we cannot forget the richness that the creative economy brings to our city. The Chevalier Theater is the gem of our community and adds tremendous value from cultural events, musical performances, and much, much more. And while the first request for proposal, or RFP in our world, for management of the theater was deemed non-responsive, we have formed a new evaluation team. It is comprised of three members of the commission and three members from City Hall to craft a new RFP, which is nearly complete. We learned a great deal from the first round, and we will use this to select a partner that will invest in the infrastructure of this historic gem while managing it with a focus on partnerships with local businesses and organizations. Speaking of organizations, as a community, we are so very blessed to have entities such as Medford Arts Council, Cachet, Mystic Makerspace, Mackey, the Farmer's Market, Chamber of Commerce, Brooks Estate Land Trust, and the Human Rights Commission. You enrich our being every day. And I... I thank you for the selfless work you do each and every day to embrace and promote our creative, historic, and cultural perspectives. We also want to thank those that served on the library building committee led by Barbara Kerr, our library director, and our president, Rick Caraviello. Proud to say we have submitted the grant to the state for library funding, quite an accomplishment in such a short amount of time. And also, I ask you, how do we make you aware of all the things we're doing? First, we have created linguistic capability to have ConnectCTY, better known as hashtag Barry called, to reach out to the community via phone, text, and email in 11 different languages. Thank you, Diane McLeod, for spearheading that. Thank you. We are on Facebook. Twitter, and of course, the web. Second, public access will be back on the airwaves by late spring. The studio is being constructed at the front of Medford High School, where we will get a double bang for our buck. The students will learn media tech during the day, while the public will have access during the evenings. Who better to tell the stories of Medford than you, the citizens of Medford? Thank you, Mayor Mike McGlynn, for leading this. Bringing arts and culture to the forefront continues today. This winter, I signed on to the Metro Mayors Mitigation Compact to become carbon neutral region-wide by 2050. This raises This raises environmental consciousness with every decision the City makes going forward. To this end, we initiated the process last fall to purchase the streetlights that are owned and managed by National Grid, with the goal to convert to LED over the summer. We anticipate savings in electricity usage, thus reducing environmental emittances. And based on direct maintenance by us of the lights, there will be a less than 5-year payback from converting to LED. In addition, In collaboration with the City Council, we are experimenting with increased lighting in Medford Square for our decorative lights. Once finalized, we will fully install for a safer streetscape in our square. Our Office of Environment has been hard at work to receive the following grants for additional projects. $250,000 grant from the Stanton Foundation to build a dog park at Riverbend Park, which will be built this spring. And thank you, PAWS4. A grant from the Mass Coastal Zone Management for $125,000 to build the city's first green infrastructure to naturally clean stormwater before it flows into the Mystic. This is a partnership with the Mystic River Watershed Association, or MIRA as we refer to it. a partnership grant for the Clippership Connector from DCR to design and engineer the half-mile multi-use path between Medford Square and Riverbend Park. This is in partnership with Block Medford and Myra and a generous donation from Wegmans for $23,000. Thank you, Wegmans. They're not even in our city and they're already contributing to these wonderful things. So we're very lucky to have them coming and they expect construction to end by next October, November timeframe. We received a green community grant, another green community grant for 250,000. That's for LED lighting in our schools, which will be installed over the next few weeks. These grants would not be possible without the hard work of the team in the energy and environment under the leadership of Alicia Hunt. Alicia recently received the Mystic Municipal Leadership Award from the Mystic River Watershed Association. Thank you very much, Alicia, for all your hard work. And I also want to thank Eagle Scout candidate Calvin Lambert. I believe he's in the audience. Calvin. He's working with our environmental office and our Department of Public Works to build bridges around Wright's Pond for sensitive areas. So thank you very much, Calvin, for your efforts. Lastly, we have created the Go Green Medford Coalition, which will be an umbrella entity for all sustainability-minded groups in Medford to coordinate activities and track outcomes. Environmental focus continues today. As chairperson of the Medford School Committee, working with committee members, administration, and faculty, our public schools continue to make great achievements. Examples include. increased access to career and technical education for Medford students. The integration of Medford High and Medford Voc Tech has enabled our students to simultaneously participate in both rigorous academics and occupational exploration skill development. Nine new Chapter 74 technical programs are now available. Thank you, Heidi, Riccio, and the superintendent. Enrollment of ninth grade students in career tech education has doubled under her leadership. We've also secured over $1 million in new grants to revitalize our vocational technical learning environment, and we've also captured out-of-district tuitions and generated new sources of regionalized revenue to support expansion of educational opportunities for our youth. We have maintained a comprehensive curriculum that provides a full range of core academic subjects and specialized electives. Medford offers 16 advanced placement courses, among the most in the area, as well as a full complement of art, music, technology, foreign language, and health education programs. Thank you, Mr. Superintendent. and members of the school committee. We have two standout Medford students with us tonight, Joseph Farah and Ketty Toussaint. Joseph, a Medford High School senior, took first place at the Massachusetts State Science and Engineering Fair in developing scientific models, while Ketty graduated last spring from Medford Tech and is currently enrolled at Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Services. As an immigrant from Haiti, she left her homeland at the age of 11 with her dad. She worked hard to learn the English language and excelled in her technical program. Ketty also earned college credit through a dual enrollment program at Bunker Hill Community College. Both of these young adults demonstrate the Medford Public Schools advantage, MPS advantage, in our commitment to you. We have introduced before school programs at our elementary schools, while after school programs are growing exponentially. They provide substantial coverage and constructive activities for students after regular hours. We are enhancing our programs and activities to provide inclusive opportunities for all students. In order to accomplish this, substantial professional development with an emphasis on social and emotional learning in our schools has been made. We have added counseling and behavior support staff to our teams. Lastly, we're recognized by the National School Board's Journal for School Security Practices. We have tightened security at all schools by adding staff and the Raptor ID system. Investments in our school children continue today. Augmented security measures at our schools would not be possible without collaboration with our public safety professionals. Safety is a core component to an individual's comfort in and desire to be in a community. We have invested in state-of-the-art self-contained breathing apparatus for our firefighters and a second set of turnout gear. Thank you, Medford City Council for voting that last night, for supporting this initiative. These are to provide the most current apparatus for firefighters' safety and ultimately for your safety. Nine new firefighters graduated the academy last month and one entered this past Monday. We are working hard to keep up with retirements by accelerating the civil service process. Kudos to our Board of Health for receipt of a seven-year, $100,000 per year grant from the Mass. Department of Public Health Bureau of Substance Abuse to provide opiate abuse prevention services for six cities and towns in our area. We all understand the impact this drug has on our society, and we are making every effort to raise awareness, erase the stigma, and provide assistance for those suffering from addiction, as well as support for their families. We have formed a team approach under Mary Ann O'Connor, who recently came to us in the last several months, for our prevention and outreach. We have an outreach manager, a recovery coach. We work with Lawrence Memorial Hospital and the Police Department. Every life matters, and we thank our police and firefighters for volunteering to administer Narcan in this cause. And while we are not declared a trust act city, be assured that our police department protocols do not allow for profiling. Witnesses and victims are not asked about their immigration status. So be sure, and that's the way it is. If you would ask me what the question posed to me most often, I would have to say it's when are we getting a new police station? I hear it day in and day out. And today, just this morning, I announced that we will be submitting a loan order to the city council next week on February 14th, requesting funds to commission an architect to begin the plans for a new station. We have turned this city upside down looking for a new location. We've toured commercial spaces. We've contacted property owners. Property owners have contacted us. And in the end, the right location, with no land costs and no relocation during construction, is the current site of the training facility on Main Street. The current facility will be demolished, and the proposed 35,000-square-foot, three-story new construction will house all amenities of the state-of-the-art resilient headquarters, including deserved equal space for our female and male officers, technology upgrades, and, most importantly, safe interior space for our offices' well-being. Public safety investments continue today. In conclusion, this city of ours, this great city of ours, continues to move forward on a foundation built on dialogue. A dialogue that echoes in this building, allowing the voices of all residents to be heard with an attitude of inclusion and fairness. A dialogue of renewal, where creative and imaginative ideas are brought forward to better the quality of life in our city. A dialogue that resonates with the message that Medford is on the move, embracing a future of possibilities, embracing a future of hope. On this night, in our beautiful city hall, and I say that the state of our city is sound, it is stable, and it is sturdy. And as your mayor, I stand as committed as ever to foster this dialogue with you as we continue to cultivate a city on which we can be partners in progress. God bless Medford, the Commonwealth, and the United States of America. Thank you all very much for being here this evening, and good night, and be safe tomorrow with the upcoming blizzard. Thank you all very much.
[Fred Dello Russo]: Wow. Please remain standing. And for the final invocation and benediction, we invite Reverend Wendy.
[7G1mRGUN6Dk_SPEAKER_09]: Wow. Are you inspired? I'm inspired. I was thinking, I don't like sound stable and sturdy, because that sounds so sound, stable and sturdy. And I was thinking that it felt pretty spectacular and scintillating and safe for all and Stephanie. So I'm inspired to invite you to do something for me, citizens of Medford. I wonder if, for just a minute, we could have all of our elected and staff, city staff, sit down for a second. Elected and city staff. And everybody else, I'm gonna ask you to help me bless these people. would you just extend a hand towards the people who are serving you today? For it continues today. And join me in the spirit of blessing. Great, loving, forgiving spirit of the universe. God of all that is. God of this city. God of these people. God of goodness and change and sturdiness and future and yesterday and today. It continues. And so we ask your blessing on these good people who we have elected and we have given the responsibility to serve us. We thank you for their wisdom, for their courage, for the day-to-day doing it all to make us sturdy and stable and sound. Help them to be courageous as we go from this night. Help them to be that which we need in this city to make us scintillating and exciting and future oriented at the same time that we are grounded in all that we have been. God, we thank you and we ask your blessing on all of these people. And now if you all stand back up, I will bless us all. May God continue today to bless us and keep us. May God continue today to show us the way and to be gracious to us, to shine upon us. May God continue today to look upon Medford with kindness and grace and love. And we pray all of this in the name of love. Let the people say amen.
[Fred Dello Russo]: My, my, can she pray. Lieutenant Casey, retire the colors. Thank you all, and the mayor kindly invites you to gather for some refreshments, some pastries and some coffee out in the rotunda if the munchkins out there haven't eaten them all up by now. Thank you all.
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