Page 5 - Mitchell Administration News Today

Businesses in downtown New Bedford are being asked to consider a fee that would be used to make improvements to the downtown area. Councilor-at-Large Ian Abreu says the non-profit New City America, Incorporated, based in San Deigo, California, would like to establish what it calls Community Benefit Districts in New Bedford with downtown being the first such district. Abreu says Community Benefit Districts exist in cities all across the nation. It is similar to the Community Preservation Act tha...

Hey Mayor, Tell Markey New Bedford Needs Sewer Aid [OPINION] The Environmental Protection Agency is apparently ready to lower the boom on the City of New Bedford for not completing eight federally-mandated infrastructure projects under the Clean Water Act, but the Mitchell Administration doesnt appear to be too concerned about it. City Council Finance Committee Chair Linda Morad said city residents can expect higher sewer and water rates to pay for the projects. Morad said the city faces a pote...

New Bedford Mayor Dancing With the Devil Over Engine 8 [OPINION] Another large fire sent New Bedford firefighters scrambling on Thursday. All city fire apparatus, including Engine 8, were sent to battle the two-alarm blaze at the Harborview Towers at 60 South Second Street. The six-story building has 72 apartment units, many of which are occupied by elderly or challenged residents. Three surrounding towns responded to a request for assistance, placing additional stress on already strained relat...

If Child and Family Services moves into the Church Street property, which is assessed at more than $830,000, major revenue will be removed from the tax rolls.

The Mitchell Administration should give careful consideration to a motion filed by New Bedford City Councilor-at-Large Brian Gomes that could be a game-changer in the war against COVID-19 locally. Gomes, who chairs the City Council Committee on Public Safety and Neighborhoods, wants Mayor Jon Mitchell and the New Bedford Health Department to establish a mobile unit to bring COVID-19 vaccines, tests, and information about the virus to otherwise hard-to-reach neighborhoods of the city. The unit w...

New Bedford Police Need to Step It Up at Pocket Parks [OPINION] New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell is opposed to closing two so-called pocket parks on Acushnet Avenue despite calls from several members of the city council to shut them down. The parks, one at Nye Street and the other at Phillips Avenue, are hot spots for crime, prompting Ward 2 Councilor Maria Giesta to seek out alternative uses for the property. Giesta and At-Large Councilor Deb Coelho, who lives near the Nye Street park, said drug...

New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell still plans to remove Engine 8 from service, even after a series of large fires that rocked the city since Thanksgiving when three multi-family houses burned on Washburn Street. Mitchell said on my program Wednesday that he plans to replace Engine 8 with a hybrid vehicle known as a "quint" that is both an engine and a ladder truck. His critics say there is no comparison between the two pieces of apparatus. Veteran City Councilor Brian Gomes, who chairs the council...

New Bedford needs to keep Engine 8 in service. Applying for the grant is a wise idea, and I am glad the administration has chosen to pursue it.

The New Bedford City Council plans to vote on Thursday night on the first phase of a proposal that would convert a portion of the Whaling City Golf Course into an Advanced Manufacturing Campus. A unanimous vote in the affirmative could make a big difference. A "yes" vote asks the Massachusetts Legislature to approve a "home rule petition" that permits the Mitchell Administration to use protected parkland at the golf course while converting city-owned land in Dartmouth to recreational use. It re...

New Bedford Gun Violence Must Be Confronted [OPINION] Two shooting incidents in New Bedford broke the early morning still on Saturday, further shattering the myth that violent crime is under control here. The shootings occurred as the ongoing feud between the news media and the secretive Mitchell Administration has reached a fever pitch over the administrations refusal to make information about crime available to the public in a timely manner. Police Chief Joseph Cordeiro defended his decision...