Alderman Candidates Make Their Pitch For Vacant Seat

Candidates seeking to fill the vacant Melrose alderman at-large seat until this November's biennial election introduced themselves to the Board of Aldermen at Monday night's meeting of the Appropriations Committee.

After former Alderman at-Large Paul Brodeur resigned from the board on Jan. 6 to take on his full-time, the board approved a .

Nine candidate submitted cover letters and resumes by last Friday's deadline (all attached as PDFs), and eight of them attended last night's meeting. Candidate Tom Litrenta of Nowell Road could not attend due to another obligation, Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Monica Medeiros said, and would appear before the board at its next meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 22.

Alderman President Don Conn, Jr. told the candidates that the board originally intended to vote on Feb. 22, but with two aldermen unavailable that day—one due to minor surgery and another due to a scheduled vacation—the vote to fill the seat has been postponed tentatively until March 7.

"Since this is a rather important vote, it's incumbent on us to make sure we have the full board present," Conn said.

The race has attracted almost as many candidates as the last two races for alderman at-large combined, when four seats were open in each election. In 2009, five candidates—four who were incumbents—ran for alderman at-large, and in 2007, six candidates—three who were incumbents, with one incumbent not running for re-election—ran for alderman at-large.

Jackie Lavender Bird went before the board first on Monday night. Currently a consultant for non-profits, working most recently a social media consultant for the Camp Surefire Foundation, Bird previously helped the Melrose Alliance Against Violence launch its mentoring program before working as MAAV's outreach specialist focusing on fundraising efforts. She noted that in October 2008, when the nation faced an economic crisis, MAAV held its most successful Candlelight Vigil to date.

"I think this speaks willingness of Melrose residents to invest in their community, even in hard times," Bird said.

A former director of constituent services in Congressman Ed Markey's Medford office, Bird also served as the PTO President of the Franklin Early Childhood Center for two years and on the coalition for the North Suburban Family Child and Family Resource Network. She cited her work in constituent services, representing parents through the Family Network and PTO, and creative fundraising efforts as fueling her interest in serving as alderman at-large.

"Naturally with my background, I have a strong interest in making sure Melrose continues on the right path," she said.

Spencer DeShields currently works as the executive director of the Mattapan Community Development Corporation, which he said had problems when he first came on board five years ago.

"Since I had this varied experience and background in business development, it seemed like a good mix," DeShields said. "We have brought it out of the dark days of doom to where it is doing very well now."

Originally from Philadelphia, DeShields first came to Boston to attend Boston College before attending Babson for his masters in marketing. He worked for Digital Equipment for 12 years in various managerial roles, then moving on to Telecom Technologies in Dallas, TX, where he worked as vice president of marketing and sales, and then Texas Instruments, where worked as senior director of the company's strategic business development. He also served on Melrose's affordable housing task force.

DeShields said that he watches aldermen's meetings on MMTV—"My son, he can't believe I'm sitting there watching you guys," he said to laughs from the board—and believes that someone with a varied business background who is committed to the non-profit and social sectors "deserves to be still involved in the town in which they live.

"I think what’ve I done in my 30 years or so in the marketplace qualifies me to help in the town in which I live," he said. "We’ve been back about five years now, I live up on Pearl Street. We are Melrosians."

Leo Greene is a lifelong resident of Melrose who currently works as a market research associate for FieldWork Boston, a job he originally landed after trying out various temp jobs after leaving Massachusetts General Hospital after 10 years, where he worked first as a unit assistant in the same day surgical ward and later a resitrar for patients.

Greene graduated from St. Francis College, where he studied business administration and political science, which led him to apply for the open alderman at-large seat.

"That’s why I’m here—to see if any of those old disciplines can apply to today," he said.

In pursuing the open seat on the board, Greene cited his work experience in both the private sector and public sector.

"I now work in the private sector and I know how hard it is to make ends meet in the private sector," he said.

Francis Murphy said that he and his wife settled in Melrose in 1995, after searching for a community that "had the same values" of family, religion and good public schools. Currently working for the state Probation Department, Murphy has spent 22 years in the state's criminal justice system, starting out as a criminal case worker at the Middlesex Sheriff's Office an eventually becoming a probation officer, where he said he developed a "keen understanding" of crime resulting from drug and alcohol abuse.

Now responsible for assisting and developing policy regarding probation—and working as the designated liaison between the probation staff and the courts—Murphy works on "positive alternatives" for offenders, such as passing the GED test, drug and alcohol counseling and community service.

"I view the alderman at-large as a liaison or conduit between the government and the people," he said.

Murphy has also been negotiator and bargaining member for Local 254 SEIU/National Association of Government Employees, noting that "times are tough," as the union has not had a contract for five years.

"There’s got to be a give and take process and I’ve learned to appreciate that as a member of the union and as taxpayer as well," he said.

Christopher Oatis grew up in Melrose and has worked in the financial industry since graduating from Westfield State College with a degree in business management. Currently working as a portfolio account at State Street Corporation, Oatis said in his letter to the aldermen that he's interested in the position because of the ongoing work in Melrose, from the revitalization of downtown, to the development of new athletic fields and the construction of the Stone Place project on Washington Street.

"I just thought I’d give it a shot," he told the board. "I can work with people in large groups—that’s something that would helpful."

Robert Ruzzo practiced law privately for eight years before going into the public sector, where he currently works as the chief operating officer of MassHousing. He said his experience in the public sector has been focused on implementation of legislation, rather than enactment, adding that he tries to focus on the structure of public and private entities to understand who they are and what they're trying to accomplish. In the case of the Board of Aldermen, he listed the various aldermen's subcommittees.

"I’m hard pressed to find any area that my personal and professional experience have not prepared me for," Ruzzo said. "My experience gives me a general knowledge of these issues and enable me to hit  the ground running."

As an example of working on policy, Ruzzo talked about a presentation he gave on Chapter 40B, the state law that allows developers to obtain one comprehensive permit in return for designating a percentage of a housing development as affordable. He said that a ruling by the state Housing Appeals Commmittee in 1999 caused Chapter 40B projects to become much more widespread.

"We thought that was a mistake and needed more government supervision," he said. "We offered (through MassHousing) to give that oversight on projects where we don’t even have loans. Chapter 40B has tremendous potential for flaws and justice ... (that work was) trying to make that a better statute."

Dr. Gene Yee works as a health care consultant and is also known as a magician with his Jennifer, who together own the Anna Eve Fay house in Melrose, also known as Heathman Manor. Yee said in 18 years in the biotech and pharmalogical tech industries—working for companies such as Adelphi and Mapi Values—he oversaw accounts in the seven figure range. As director of strategic and business development for non-profit The Angiogensis Foundation, he was responsible raising in his first two quarters over half a million dollars.

Beyond his professional experience, Yee emphasized his and his family's ties to Melrose. He has hosted events for the Victorian Melrose Society at Heathman Manor and put on a magic show at Memorial Hall to raise funds for the city's Emergency Fund.

"What I really want the board, the press, and my fellow candidates—which I’m honored to compete against, it shows the level of commitment to fill this spot—to know is this is why we do what we do: to ensure, enrich and make sure the myriad possibilities are available to our young, our old and ourselves," Yee said.

"And—I’m probably the only candidate with a PR shot," he added, holding up a his magician PR photo to chuckles from the board.

Michael Zwirko told the board he wants "to be part of the Melrose Model," citing the city's stable bond rating, savings in its stabilization fund and the "fiscal prudence" of the board and administration. Having previously worked as a district aide to state Rep. Paul Caron, Zwirko moved on to the financial industry, where he currently works as a product manager for Fidelity Investments.

"I bring not only business and financial acumen to the board, but deep understanding of the need for government," he said, "to be collaborative and communicative, while respecting the importance of independent review and divergent opinion."

The foremost of Zwirko's concerns is public safety, as he mentioned Mayor Rob Dolan mentioning in his State of the City address the increase in burglaries in Melrose. Zwirko said Melrose Police Chief Mike Lyle has "done an excellent job" with programs such as the police's anonymous tip line and other efforts, and that the Melrose Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition has worked to prevent the drug abuse that potentially leads to more break-ins.

"Burglaries tend to be very hard to prevent," he said. "It’s incumbent upon us as residents and neighbors. For instance, I have a very good relationship with some of my neighbors. If I go away for three days at a time, they're watching, and neighbors on either side of my home have a key to my house if needed for any reason. That can alleviate many budgetary restraints."