Mayor, Most of the Council Moves New Bedford Forward [OPINION]
New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell has been working on a plan for an Advanced Manufacturing Campus for years. He plans to bring 1,000 jobs and millions of tax dollars to his city.
Tuesday night was the first time the New Bedford City Council had an opportunity to ask questions about Mitchell s plan and to vote on a portion of it. Despite a robust lobbying effort, the city council voted 10-1 in favor of the jobs plan.
When the dust settled, only At-Large City Councilor Linda Morad was a negative vote. It may have been the final defeat in a long-running feud with Mitchell. Even as the veteran councilor voted no, she made a light-hearted joke and said something about always voting no at meetings. As of last week, she appeared to have a serious block of councilors supporting her opposition to the project.
An initial map released by MassDPH showed no coronavirus vaccination sites for the Southeastern region of Massachusetts. New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell and Senator Mark Montigny pushed back.
The Baker administration has unveiled a map identifying locations where Massachusetts residents may roll up their sleeves for the COVID-19 vaccine and not one of them is located anywhere near Fall River, New Bedford, or Cape Cod. It s outrageous, New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell told WBSM s Barry Richard today. I m at a loss. When I first saw the map, I thought they must have made some sort of mistake. But there s no mistake. How on earth do you justify that decision?
Mitchell said New Bedford and Fall River are cash-strapped cities with a high rates of COVID-19. Anyone from the low-income cities who wants to get the shot will have to travel to Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, a site that s about a 50-minute drive from the Whaling City.