Mayor's Forum Tonight on MCTV

Posted on October 14, 2009 by billmanzi

Just a reminder that MCTV in Methuen will be hosting a Mayoral debate tonight at 7:00 p.m. It will be broadcast live, and will be one hour in length. I hope you all have a chance to tune in tonight!

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Governor Patrick Goes to the Offense

Posted on October 14, 2009 by billmanzi

Governor Deval Patrick, gearing up for a tough re-election campaign,has cut a video that casts himself as the outsider and his opponents as insiders looking to “roll back progress on health care, infrastructure and education.” The Governor also pointedly said that his opponents would return to the ways of the past by ignoring the Big Dig debt, and allow insiders and the “well connected” to make key decisions. The Governor, while taking a swipe at his opponents, also talked up an outline of the positives of his administration.

The Governor also touted the fundraising visit of President Barack Obama, which will occur on October 23. The Governor has lagged on the fundraising front, and the Presidents visit will add as much as $500,000 to the Governor’s coffers. The President’s visit will bring much more than money to the Governor, however. The President remains very popular in Massachusetts, and his visit to help his friend the Governor certainly will have tangibile political benefits for Patrick.

The Governor’s opponents all returned the fire in today’s Globe piece by Matt Viser, with Charlie Baker, Tim Cahill, and Christy Mihos all taking shots back. Read the Matt Viser story here.

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Someone Is Reading the Numbers

Posted on October 11, 2009 by billmanzi

Today’s Washington Post talks about the real problems that state and local pension systems face in light of the massive losses of the last downturn. The story talks about the stark choices facing pension systems throughout the country.

The upheaval on Wall Street has deluged public pension systems with losses that government officials and consultants increasingly say are insurmountable unless pension managers fundamentally rethink how they pay out benefits or make money or both.

Within 15 years, public systems on average will have less half the money they need to pay pension benefits, according to an analysis by Pricewaterhouse Coopers. Other analysts say funding levels could hit that low within a decade.

After losing about $1 trillion in the markets, state and local governments are facing a devil’s choice: Either slash retirement benefits or pursue high-return investments that come with high risk.

The story is a good one that details the severe problems facing cities and towns. With steep pension losses Massachusetts communities will be faced with huge bills that will force them to decimate existing services in order to fund these obligations.

Read the Washington Post story here.

Posted in Methuen, Municipal Finance, National News, State News | Tagged | 1 Comment

President Cites Republican Support for Health Reform

Posted on October 11, 2009 by billmanzi

President Obama continues to push health care reform in his weekly message, citing the support of many prominent Republicans for change. The endgame nears on health reform, with bill consolidation happening now. Does Obama get a bill, and will it be one that moves the health care ball in the right direction???

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Methuen Receives Fire Grant

Posted on October 8, 2009 by billmanzi

I am pleased to announce that Methuen Fire Department has been awarded $204,980.00 in stimulus grant funds to re-hire three firefighters laid off due to budgetary constraints. This amount is almost 100% of what we applied for. Of 84 communities who applied, awards were only given to 13, Methuen being one of them. This finalizes step 1 of the 3-step process. Step 1 involved funding for recalling layed off firefighters. Step two involves grant funding for attritioned positions, and step three involves grant funding for overtime lost to budgetary problems. Methuen will actively seek those funds as well. Congrats to Fire Chief Buote, as well as Alison Gublicki from Planning, who helped with the application.

My thanks to Governor Deval Patrick and Lt. Governor Tim Murray for their committment to helping to restore firefighters throughout the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

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October Artist of the Month

Posted on October 7, 2009 by billmanzi

MAYOR MANZI NAMES PILAR QUINTANA AS OCTOBER’S ARTIST OF THE MONTH
Methuen Artist’s Work on Display in the Mayor’s Office

Mayor William M. Manzi has named Pilar Quintana as October’s Artist of the Month. Pilar Quintana graduated from Bradford College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Arts. In the visual arts, she favors painting, black pastel or charcoal, and photography. She also enjoys songwriting and performed with the alternative band Pride of Wolves in the 1990s. Since then, Pilar has acted in several Harvard University theatre productions and worked in various capacities on independent short films, most notably as an actor and musical score composer. A budding poet, she recently joined the Methuen based Grey Court Poets. She has also recently become a member of the Methuen based Arts Institute Group of the Merrimack Valley.

When she’s not working on her art and writing, Pilar can be found at her brothers’ company, Quintana Supply, in Haverhill, and at home in Methuen with her “partner-in-crime,” Isabel, and their three dogs and three cats.

Mayor Manzi stated, “Pilar is one of the many multi-talented artists working and living in our community. It is an honor to display her artwork. I encourage people to come to my office and view her paintings.”

The Methuen Artist of the Month Program was created by Mayor Manzi three years ago in order to give members of the Methuen Arts Community a forum to display their work and to encourage participation in Methuen’s growing creative economy. Methuen artists interested in being considered for Artist of the Month should contact the Mayor’s Office.

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Hampshire Road Closing

Posted on October 6, 2009 by billmanzi

NOTICE
CITY OF METHUEN
PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT THE WEEK OF OCTOBER 13 – 16, 2009 HAMPSHIRE ROAD WILL BE CLOSED FROM CROSS STREET TO GARABEDIAN WAY, DUE TO CULVERT REPAIR. PLEASE SEEK ALTERNATE ROUTES.
THANK YOU.

RAYMOND E. DIFIORE
DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS

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Manzi for Mayor Open House

Posted on October 5, 2009 by billmanzi

We will host an open house tommorow night, Tuesday October 6th, at 6:30 p.m. for anyone that would like to help the campaign. We will be at Manzi for Mayor Headquarters at 46 Hampshire Street, (old home of A Vintage Rose) and we will have some light refreshments. Our campaign is gearing up for the last 30 days of this campaign, and we need your help. Hope to see you there!

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The Unspoken Truth

Posted on October 5, 2009 by billmanzi

Today’s Globe has a column by Sam Allis talking about what no one else seems to want to talk about, the spiraling and unsustainable numbers involved in municipal health care and pensions. Allis centers his discussion on the Mayor’s race in Boston, but his numbers apply to most, if not all, municipalities. Some tidbits from the column.

Fact: From FY 1993 to FY 2010, inflation in Boston rose 70 percent. During that time, pensions for city workers rose 103 percent. Health insurance costs shot up 217 percent.

Not sustainable you say?? It is the same everywhere, and the news is even bleaker on pensions, where cities and towns have yet to feel the real effect of the sizeable losses incurred by municipal and state pension funds. Those bills will be coming due soon, and the resulting impacts will be devastating.

If all of this weren’t enough, consider the 24 percent loss in the city pension fund in 2008, from $4 billion down to about $3 billion. We won’t start to feel the effects of this until FY 2012, a rude intrusion into Tomorrowland. It’s also a good bet that the $243 million in reduced state tax receipts reported last week will mean more cuts in Boston’s operating revenues.

With the severity of the problem you might think that it is a major topic of discussion for Beacon Hill and elected officials everywhere. Think again!

“It’s the 1,000-pound gorilla that no one wants to talk about,’’ says Sam Tyler, head of the Boston Municipal Research Bureau, in a moment of some understatement. The bureau is an independent outfit that keeps tabs on city tax policies, service delivery, and schools.

Major structural changes are coming, either in concert with a well thought out plan, or via a response to a financial collapse. And Allis has certainly correctly cited the political results of attempted change in this area.

Sooner or later, some mayoral candidate will make this a major campaign issue. There will be buckets of blood on the floor.

It is like beating a dead horse, but for municipalities there is nothing more important, and a lack of action just brings the day of reckoning that much closer. Read the Allis article here.

Posted in Municipal Finance, State News | Tagged , | 1 Comment

"Open Mike" in Methuen

Posted on October 4, 2009 by billmanzi

Congressman Mike Capuano will visit Methuen this morning at 10:00 a.m. at Park Garden Apartments at 10 Burnham Road for an “Open Mike” session, giving you an opportunity to hear his ideas and ask him questions. Come on by to meet Mike and talk about his candidacy for United States Senate.

Mike Capuano website

Posted in Methuen, U.S. Senate Race | Tagged | 1 Comment