Mayor Questionnaire: Joe Curtatone

  1. What political or community activism accomplishments are you most proud of during your last term in office (or the last two years if you have not previously served)? What specific things do you want to accomplish during the coming term?

    ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE RECENT PAST

    1. Breaking the Logjam on Assembly Square ' Last October, when Federal Realty and IKEA signed a landmark accord the Mystic View Task Force clearing the way for a mixed use development of Assembly Square, Doug Foy (former Secretary of Commonwealth Development and past President of the Conservation Law Foundation) observed that 'This agreement is the culmination of much hard work from many good and decent people. I want to thank the Mayor for his extraordinary leadership in building the relationships and creating the conditions that made our negotiations possible. And I want to thank and congratulate Mystic View, Federal Realty and IKEA for their good faith, honesty, and integrity throughout our discussions . . . Assembly Square is a world-class transit oriented development opportunity that will serve the interests of the Somerville community and the entire metropolitan Boston region. This is also the rare but critically important situation where a talented and expert community group advocates increased density in its own neighborhood, a master developer and innovative retailer help craft a truly remarkable long term vision for mixed use development, and a mayor leads all of us to a much brighter and more prosperous future. This is a big win for the city as a whole and everyone involved can take real pride in what they have achieved.' I agree with Doug that many people, including his co-negotiator Ann Tate and Congressman Capuano (who helped secure federal funds for a new Orange Line station), deserve credit for the transformation of Assembly Square from a blighted, thwarted stalemate into the most exciting Smart Growth, transit-oriented mixed-use development on the Eastern Seaboard.

      But I also believe that leadership from the Mayor's office has been, and remains, crucial to delivering on the promise of Assembly Square. To get this vital project moving after so many years of wrangling, we needed a new approach to zoning, a new development partner, a willingness to negotiate with all parties and, above all, a commitment to forging a new shared vision of what Assembly Square could be. I made this the central issue of my 2003 campaign, and I have delivered on my promise to get Assembly Square moving again.

      Today, the city is already beginning to reap substantial commercial property tax benefits from Assembly Square, with much more to come. Those revenues will ultimately help ease the burden currently borne disproportionately by our city's residential taxpayers, while the mixed-use approach to development will ensure thousands of new jobs in the office and light-industrial sectors as well as in retail and entertainment. The esplanade to be developed along the Mystic River (greatly enhanced by the relocation of the IKEA to an inland site) will be one of many ways that the city works with regional partners to help restore the Mystic as a cleaner, more accessible regional treasure.

      There is much more work to be done to assure that Assembly Square fulfills its potential to be a showcase for sustainable, transit-oriented, mixed-use development. On the basis of my track record to date, I believe that I have the experience, perseverance, flexibility and inclusive vision to continue to lead in this crucial and complex effort.

    2. Openness, Transparency and Accountability in Municipal Government ' Another issue that I raised in the 2003 campaign, and on which I have focused ever since, is my commitment to making Somerville a leader in best practices in municipal governance, accountability and finance. I began that institutional transformation in 2004 with the establishment of SomerStat, a data-driven performance management system that has become a much-studied model for many communities across the Commonwealth and now, under the leadership of Deval Patrick, of the Commonwealth itself. At the same time, I began development of a 311 Constituent Service Center that would have the capacity to generate work-orders, respond to requests and provide authoritative assistance on behalf of multiple city departments. Over the past two years, we have made significant strides in implementing and expanding on these ideas, and have transformed the way the city does business. At the same time, we have greatly enhanced resident understanding of the city's services, programs and resources, and we have opened new channels for resident input and participation. Although I believe we can and should do even more, Somerville city government has never been more open, accessible and accountable than it is today.

      Since first coming on line in December of 2005, our 311 Center has grown steadily in popularity and effectiveness. Residents can dial 311 from any landline or cell phone in the city and generate work requests for anything from a clogged catch-basin to animal control to health inspection to missed trash pickup. They can obtain answers to questions about city services and policies. They can ask for and receive assistance in Spanish, Portuguese and Haitian Creole as well as in English. When their requests result in work orders requiring follow-up by city departments, residents receive tracking numbers that let them check (either on the Web or on the phone) the status or resolution of each request. 311 also mails welcome kits to new residents, manages queries about traffic and parking programs (including tickets) and generates accurate, quantifiable data about the issues, programs and policies that matter most to the public. Processed and analyzed by SomerStat, this data is available to the public and to the Board of Aldermen as well as to department heads, increasing accountability and giving us new tools to measure success and help us allocate financial and human resources. And 311 has been embraced by the public: over XXXXXXX calls were processed in 2006, with XXXXXX so far this year.

      Beginning in May of 2006, Somerville has also deployed provided Connect CTY mass notification technology that allows the city to deliver time-sensitive information via telephone and email to thousands of Somerville residents and businesses. Connect CTY not only allows for better public notification of snow emergencies, street closures, water and utility problems and other events, but has also been used by Somerville Police to issue urgent public safety notifications and to canvass neighborhoods during criminal investigations. No one is required to participate in Connect CTY ' to be dropped or added to the program, residents need only call 311 or visit the 311 website ' but hundreds of residents have called in to add their cell phone numbers and email addresses to the Connect CTY database.

      But the use of new communications technology is only one of the ways that we have increased openness and accountability in city government. One our most important and profound innovations has also been one of the simplest: For the past two years, our administration has posted the full text of the proposed city budget to the city's website, where it can be downloaded and studied by the public before and during the annual budget review process. At the same time, we have publicly posted programmatic summaries of the goals and accomplishments of each city department so that the public can join with Board of Aldermen in judging progress and performance against our stated goals ' and in judging whether those goals reflect the needs and priorities of the city and its people. In fact, Massachusetts Common Cause announced in December of 2006 that Somerville was one of only 40 cities and towns out of 351 to earn a perfect score in their Campaign for Open Government survey of municipal websites.

    3. Investing in Basic Infrastructure ' When I first took office, much of Somerville's basic infrastructure ' its roads, parks, water and sewer systems ' were neglected and deteriorating. Providing adequate infrastructure is a basic test for any city government, and is a necessary foundation for any serious and effective effort promote a livable community with sustainable economic development. I am, therefore, very proud of the commitment we have been able to make to prudent and appropriate investment in all these fundamental areas. While a substantial component of our overall capital budget has necessarily been committed to the construction of the magnificent new Argenziano School at Lincoln Park, the City has also been able to invest in the paving of over 100 streets across the city. We have also been able to install hundreds of new benches and trash barrels and plant hundreds of new trees to adorn and enhance our city streetscapes. Most notably, we have embarked on one of the most ambitious capital projects in the city's history ' a $20.7 million overhaul of roadway, sewers, water mains, sidewalks, curbs, lights and utilities along Somerville Avenue. It's a vitally important project that will provide the infrastructural underpinnings to support coming changes to Union Square as we work together to increase housing stock of all kinds and support arts-related development in the Square and its immediate environs. In addition, we have made considerable progress on a parks improvement agenda that includes reconstruction at Perkins Park, the creation of the city's first Off Leash Recreational Area (OLRA) at Nunziato Field and the extension of the Community Path. As it happens, construction begins just this week on a new park at the Kemp Nut site, with more parks and playground projects in the pipeline for Perry Park, Stone Place Park, the Community Gardens at Durrell Pocket Park and on Allen Street. And of course, the city has now assumed responsibility for operating and maintaining the beautifully restored Dilboy stadium as a regional public asset, assuring that the stadium will be given the care and upkeep it requires while keeping it under public, non-profit management.

    4. Early, Strong and Continuing Support for Deval Patrick and a Progressive State Agenda ' Because so many aspects of municipal finance, transit policy, health care costs, environmental and recreation policy are either controlled or heavily influenced at the state level, I am very proud of my early support for Governor Deval Patrick. In the winter of 2005-20006, when many Democratic officials were still backing then-Attorney General Reilly or remaining studiously neutral in the governor's race, I became one of the first mayors in the Commonwealth to endorse Deval and sign on to his agenda of fundamental change and progressive policies. Because I recognized that Deval understood the need to establish a new partnership between the state and its local communities, I did everything in my power to ensure his election, campaigning for him here in Somerville and across the state. After his historic and emphatic election, I had the opportunity to co-chair his transition working group on cities and towns, and I have been able to continue to work on behalf of his agenda in my role as President of the Mass. Mayors Association and a member of the Governor's Local Government Advisory Council. I am deeply honored to have received Governor Patrick's endorsement for my 2007 candidacy for reelection as Mayor of Somerville.

    GOALS FOR THE COMING TERM

    1. More Improvements in Customer Service. In my Mid-Term address on January 1, 2006, I unveiled the city's ACE Customer Service program, in which 'ACE' stands for Accurate, Courteous, Easy service from every city department. We have already begun implementation of this ambitious initiative, but there is more work to be done and I am eager to do it. We have already increased the call-volume capacity of our 311 center but must expand its hours of fully-staffed operation. We have installed ATMs at City hall and at Traffic and Parking to simplify the bill-paying process, but we intend to add automated kiosks at some city buildings that will allow residents to pay tickets, water and tax bills, obtain information and request services and publications without waiting on line. And, in the coming year, we will set up and staff a Welcome Center at the entrance to City Hall that will provide multilingual information and directions in order to make it even easier for residents to get the assistance they want and find the departments they need.

    2. We will expand and intensify our customer service training for all city employees, and we will implement a city wide review of signage and information displays. We will also expand our 'Mystery Customer' program, which has already begun to provide helpful data about real-time, real-word customer service as experienced by actual customers.

    3. But nowhere will our ACE Customer Service effort be more apparent and direct than on the city's website. By early this fall, our website will have a whole new look, greatly enhanced functionality and much easier informational architecture, organizational flow and search tools. It will even have a new address, as 'www.ci.somerville.ma.us' becomes 'www.somervillema.gov.'

    4. Full Implementation of the Environmental Strategic Plan ' In April of this year, I issued the city's first-ever Environmental Strategic Plan (ESP). It commits Somerville to a series of specific actions designed to reduce energy use and emissions while improving overall quality of life for our residents and helping the private sector as well as local government to embrace best practices that promote sustainable economies and lifestyles. We have already moved ahead on the development of an Energy Services Company (ESCO) agreement with Honeywell Industries to design and install a series of energy savings projects in municipally owned buildings. In the coming year, we will also explore 'single-stream' recycling to increase the amount of residential trash that is recycled; and implement new programs to expand the city's use of renewable energy (biofuel, solar etc.) to at least ten percent by 2010. We will reduce emissions by retrofitting more of the city's diesel vehicles and engines; as a matter of policy, we will purchase low-emission and/or hybrid vehicles wherever possible as we upgrade our aging vehicle fleet and we will work through our Business Development Office to attract new businesses that specialize in 'Cleantech' products and services that promote sustainable practices.

    5. The ESP contains commitments to continue current initiatives, including the cleanup of long-abandoned underground storage tanks, enforcement of our recently upgraded trash ordinance, and stepped up enforcement of our anti-idling ordinance for cars and trucks. And the ESP firmly commits us to the goal of cutting energy demand at city buildings by 20 percent over the next three years.

    6. Rolling Our ResiStat ' This coming week I will be able to announce that the city and the Boston Municipal Research Bureau will receive a $21,000 grant from the Boston Foundation to support Somerville's efforts to increase resident input in evaluating city services and budgets. That grant was awarded in recognition of the promise of our pioneering ResiStat program, which we've already begun to implement on a trial basis in the Ten Hills and Parry Park neighborhoods. ResiStat brings the data we collect through SomerStat and 311 programs down to the neighborhood level so that resident groups can see the priorities, the impacts and the resources of city government as they relate to their immediate community. In turn, ResiStat helps us gain the insights of our residents and directly engage their participation in the city's evaluation and improvement process. In the coming year, we will be launching monthly ResiStat meetings in neighborhoods across the city and sharing data on such topics as 911 calls for service, 311 work orders, parking tickets and more. We will be tracking resident recommendations on how the city should use its resources and leverage community resources, and we will use that expanded public input to manage and monitor relevant city departments. The performance data and the ability to comment on it will also be available via the city's website. The entire project will analyzed and monitored by the Boston Municipal Research Bureau, a non-profit, non-partisan organization that provides independent research and analysis on tax policy, service delivery and public education in the City of Boston. They will provide outside guidance on how to make sure that we get candid and representative public input ' and that we use it wisely.

  2. How will you balance business development with the needs of low-income residents as the Green Line comes to Somerville?

    It should be a cause for genuine rejoicing that ' due to the efforts of a wide range of officials and community groups here in Somerville as well as the leadership of Gov. Patrick and such organizations as the Conservation Law Foundation ' the state is working steadily to fulfill its commitment of bringing the Green Line into Somerville by 2014. Better transit access will bring benefits to Somerville residents in every neighborhood and at every income level ' and better urban transit remains one of the crucial elements in achieving sustainable, environmentally sound development and a better quality of life for all our residents.

    As the Green Line arrives in Somerville ' initially at Union Square and them moving west along the old Boston and Lowell rail corridor, it will undoubtedly stimulate new residential and commercial development. With appropriately generous set-asides for affordable housing development, and with a firm commitment to stand-alone affordable housing projects as they arise, this new wave of urban development should enhance the city's tax base without reducing our historically large levels of affordable housing.

    Our proposed rezoning plan for Union Square addresses this goal directly by calling for enhanced inclusionary zoning percentages that require a higher percentage of affordable housing units than typically mandated by local and state housing regulations. Similarly, we are working with the developers of Assembly Square to assure that affordable housing remains a significant component of that transit-oriented development project.

    Through these and other related efforts, I will continue to push for the creation and preservation of diverse, affordable housing choices that encourage families to stay in Somerville. In the coming term, I will also continue to support Governor Patrick's call for added residential density with higher affordability set-aside percentages in areas directly adjacent to new T stops.

  3. Would you support instant runoff voting (or similar voting reforms) for city elections? Why or why not?

    There are many potential voter and charter reforms currently under general discussion here in Somerville and across the Commonwealth. One such reform ' and one I strongly favor as a practical way to increase participation, especially among younger and first-time voters ' would be a statewide same-day voter registration plan. I believe that simplified ballot access (especially in communities like Somerville with a substantial proportion of total residents under the age of 35) would improve participation and turnout ' and I believe that the procedural and cost issues raised by such a change can be successfully managed. With appropriate antifraud safeguards, same-day voter registration can be accurate and reliable ' and surely any additional cost is more than justified by the potential for increased participation. Similarly, I would support 'no-excuse' early voting of the type that is now in effect in California, Florida, Tennessee and twelve other states. Such changes would not only encourage turnout but reward candidates who seek broad-based support.

    Instant runoff voting (IRV) is a different matter. Somerville's current system for ward aldermanic/school committee and mayoral elections (with its nonpartisan preliminary followed by a final election contest between the top two preliminary finishers) provides ample access and opportunity for first-time candidates while assuring that the winner of the final round of voting is a consensus candidate with clear majority support. Party affiliation is not a factor and the threshold for qualifying as a candidate is low. Unlike a partisan primary system, the current system does not permit dominant political parties to erect barriers to candidacy by creating restrictive nomination or convention processes.

    It is certainly true that there is an additional expense involved in a two-step electoral process, but such a process offers the advantages of clarity and transparency. Voters know, see and understand intuitively how the system works. The election result is self-explanatory and does not depend on a manipulation or adjustment that emerges gradually from the counting and recounting of ballots. Somerville's recent electoral history suggests that the risk of a contrived 'spoiler' candidacy is low and that the outcome of the preliminary is almost invariably a well-contested final election.

    For alderman at large seats, the issue is somewhat different, since we already have a one-step electoral process in which the top four finishers are designated as winners whether or not they achieve an outright majority. In these elections, however, voters already have the ability to express a preference for multiple candidates, not all of whom may win: there is little incentive for a group of candidates to campaign as a slate (although this is certainly permissible) and the top four finishers therefore usually reflect a diversity of opinion and support.

    Personally, I do not think the virtues of IRV outweigh the advantages of the current system. If we had a restrictive entry process in which candidates could not run unless they had received the nomination of a particular party, and if the final election could only feature the nominees of a two-party process, I might feel differently, but these factors are not at issue in Somerville. Also ' and as a practical matter ' any change in the current system would require a change in the city's charter that would have to be approved by the Board of Aldermen and by the state legislature. I do not foresee either body acting favorably on such a proposal.

  4. Why is the gang ordinance not enforced, and what do you plan to do about it?

    Simply stated, the reason that to date we have not used the 2004 Gang Ordinance (Sec. 9-120. Criminal street gang activity as public nuisance.) is that we have not needed to ' a development for which we should all be profoundly grateful. The Gang Ordinance is the heavy artillery of anti-gang enforcement, and we've been making progress against gangs without having to resort to such a drastic weapon. I appointed the Gang Task Force and they have met as needed, but criminal activity by known gang elements has simply not risen to the level at which the police chief has had to designate a gang activity hotspot under the terms of the ordinance.

    My policy on gangs has been based on prevention and rehabilitation as well as enforcement. With Chelsea City Manager Jay Ash, the Metro Mayors Coalition and with the assistance of Senator Jarrett Barrios and other members of our legislative delegation, I played a leading role in the creation of the Shannon Grants program that provides state support for coordinated regional anti-gang activity at the local level. Here is Somerville, we've used those grants effectively to build up our enforcement capabilities, but we and our fellow communities have also used the money to support youth outreach and mentoring, after-school programs, tutoring, drug treatment, job training and placement, GED programs and community-wide anti-gang meetings.

    Fighting gang activity and keeping our young people out of gangs are challenges that require responses on a number of fronts. My substantial increase in the city's summer jobs program is in part an anti-gang measure. Our 'zero tolerance' anti-graffiti policy, which requires young offenders to help clean up the mess they've made, is also an effective anti-gang measure. Keeping the High School gym open during school vacations is, in part, an effective anti-gang measure.

    And, taken together, these efforts are working. In Somerville, youth arrests decreased 34 percent last year. The number of students reporting involvement in extra curricular activities increased from 58 percent in 2004 to 63 percent last year, and the number who did volunteer work increased from 25 percent in 2004 to 31 percent in 2006.

    The Gang Ordinance is there if we need it but, if we continue to succeed with a dynamic approach to gangs that includes both prevention and enforcement, then we may never have to use it.

  5. What specific steps will you take to strengthen the community policing program?

    One of the most significant reforms I have undertaken as mayor has been the reorganization, retraining and re-equipping of the Police Department ' and from the beginning, that reorganization has been based on the adoption of a community policing model in which every officer is a community police officer working with all stakeholders to prevent problems before they occur. Because this effort had so much potential to become a political football, I began in 2004 by seeking recommendations from an independent panel of outside experts and community representatives. That panel, which included then Lowell Police chief and now Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis, was chaired by former Attorney General Scott Harshbarger, and has become known as the Harshbarger Commission. (Its real name, by the way, is the Somerville Police Advisory Group.)

    According to that advisory group's own progress report, which came out last fall, the City has done a good job living up to those recommendations. Over the last two years, we've provided the police with nearly $1.5 million in new equipment, and over $370 thousand in training on such topics as legal updates, civil rights, racial profiling, racial sensitivity and domestic violence. We've reinstated the Domestic Violence unit that was lost to earlier budget cuts. We've budgeted for 11 new patrol officers, and gotten more cops onto the street by replacing officers doing deskbound clerical work with civilian employees. The majority of the new officers we've hired in the past year are either bilingual or trilingual ' and all of the officers we'll be hiring next year will be also be at least bilingual. We've engaged local youth groups in dialogue with the police to improve mutual trust and communication.

    At the recommendation of the advisory group, we have also moved the job of police chief out of civil service: the person we choose to lead the department as a result of the current selection process will be the first chief in Somerville history to face public review and questioning before being hired ' and the first chief to be fully accountable to the public for his performance in office. We've also made great strides in the implementation of a new command structure by promoting captains, lieutenants and sergeants into key leadership positions ready to execute a community police structure.

    In fact, everything is place to move our Police Department into a new community-based policing model except for one thing: the city's longstanding agreement with the patrolmen's union (representing all officers below the rank of sergeant) allows patrol officers to select their shift each day by seniority. There is no structure in place that returns a particular patrol officer to a particular beat. For modern, effective community policing to work in Somerville, officers must have the institutional knowledge of an area, and the trust of its residents. This can be best achieved by having the same team of officers in the same area over time. We can only change this rule through collective bargaining ' and negotiations continue.

    We are, however, continuing to develop options for the siting of two sub-stations in the eastern and western neighborhoods of the city and ' since it would require a capital commitment of at least $40 million '' we are looking for creative means to finance or cost-share on the development of a new central station. Development of a facility to replace the current Public Safety Building remains an important element in our overall planning for the long-term redevelopment of Union Square.

  6. What specific steps will you take to increase the civic involvement of immigrants?

    Representatives of the immigrant community have been intimately engaged such reform efforts in the Harshbarger Commission and in the Police Chief selection process. As we go forward with the next round of community policing policies, we will continue to assure that new recruits to the force are bi-lingual or, where possible and appropriate, tri-lingual. Above all, we will make sure that the immigrant community understands that they can turn to our police, our health workers and our safety inspectors for protection from gangs and other criminals and from the unscrupulous businesspeople that exploit and prey upon immigrants.

    In fact, this issue must be viewed in a much large context than simply that of community policing. After all, Somerville is a city of immigrants. No one knows that better than I do: my parents emigrated here from Italy, and English was not my first language. So here are the ways I think we should protect and include Somerville's immigrant residents:

    1. Publicly and Proudly Recognize Our Role as an Immigrant City ' While our nation continues to debate its confusing and counter-productive immigration policies, the City of Somerville must, as a matter of public health, public safety and social justice, provide services to all of its residents, no matter their nationality or U.S. residency status. While we will continue to cooperate with federal authorities whenever called upon to do so in the framework of an actual investigation, we have a responsibility to lead our community towards acceptance of all its members, and to serve all our residents equally and fairly.

    2. Encourage Interaction with City Hall and the Schools ' We've truly made City Hall and our School Department the most accessible in history in recent years. Residents may call 311 and access virtually any city service in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and Haitian Creole. Our schools and our Parent Information Center have actively worked to engage immigrant parents in the education of their children. We have implemented an aggressive outreach program to foreign language media serving Somerville ' including television, radio, and print media ' and we are in the process of reconfiguring our city website to make it easier to get on-demand translations of all of our web pages into Spanish, Portuguese, Creole and other languages.

    3. Foster an Appreciation for the Role that Diversity Plays in Enriching and Strengthening our City ' I established our city's Multicultural Commission and created and filled the full-time position of Multicultural Director. I have begun the implementation of a wide-ranging Sister Cities effort to establish permanent programs of social, cultural and economic ties with communities in other nations that have contributed to Somerville's remarkably diverse population. This past September, we formalized our relationship with our first sister city, Gaeta, Italy. We will complete agreements this year with Yucuaquin, El Salvador, and Nordeste San Miguel in the Portuguese Azores. In my next term, the city will pursue similar agreements in Brazil and Nepal. Each of these relationships is valuable not only to Somerville residents with personal ties to those cities, but to every resident who appreciates the benefits of a diverse local culture and who recognizes that we live on a small planet whose citizens share many common aspirations, concerns and responsibilities.

  7. What specific steps will you take to promote pay equity in Somerville? (see http://www.mass.gov/women/payequity/payequity.htm#legislation)

    I fully support the efforts of the Massachusetts Coalition for Women's Wage Equality, and I applaud Senator Jehlen's amendment calling for a better, clearer definition of comparable work.

    As the chief executive of a city with nearly 1,000 (non-school) employees, and as a strong backer of the Somerville Commission for Women, I have been able to intervene in this issue directly by appointing more women as senior managers than any previous mayor.

    In the past year, the city took an important across-the-board step for pay equity and fairness by adopting my proposal to establish new, professionally-developed wage classification standards for all non-union city positions. For the first time in its history, the City of Somerville has a standardized position description framework that assures full ADA and gender equity compliance for every non-union worker.

    Under my administration, the city will continue to improve and professionalize all of its human resource programs, policies and procedures ' and I will strongly support any steps to promote pay equity for men and women with equivalent qualifications doing comparable work (exactly as Senator Jehlen has defined that term).

  8. What will you do about Somerville's budget crunch?

    Somerville, like cities and towns across the Commonwealth, has been fiscally strapped since the damaging cuts instituted by Governor Romney upon taking office. Even now, five years later, Somerville is still receiving $6 million dollars less in local aid (in actual dollars) than before these cuts.

    I am delighted that we now have a real partner in the Governor's Office who understands this crisis. As President of the Massachusetts Mayors Association, I've led efforts to pass the Governor's proposed Municipal Partnership Act ' a key legislation package that will close corporate tax loopholes and provide local options for new recurring revenue streams.

    In the meantime, Somerville has become a model community for 'doing more with less.' Here in Somerville, we spend the least per capita of any Massachusetts community over 50,000 residents ' and I'd submit that the quality of our city services is one of the highest. Whether it is Governing Magazine, the MMA Beacon, the Boston Globe, or the Globe Magazine, Somerville's city management is lauded for employing cutting-edge performance management systems ' like SomerStat ' and for increased accountability through SomerStat, the creation of a program budget, and our customer service initiatives. SomerStat offices have hosted countless local, national, and international guests, including dozens of municipalities including Amesbury, Waltham, & New Bedford (Amesbury, MA has now created their own model, called AmeStat), Boston City Councilors, state officials from the Governor's Office, the Department of Revenue, and Administration & Finance, and delegations from Ireland and China.

    The results of increased transparency and accountability in our departmental performance are undeniable. While many neighboring cities and towns are slashing services, making personnel cuts, or raising tax rates through Proposition 2 ' override votes, Somerville has been able to maintain ' and in some cases expand ' offerings, while lowering many residential property tax rates. Despite a rise in property values, the average single family homeowner saw their tax bill virtually unchanged (or even reduced) from last year.

    Additionally, we continue to plan for the future. This year, we used a portion of our year-end free cash to create a debt stabilization fund as well as a capital improvement fund. I believe municipalities simply cannot cut their way to success. We understand that to establish a period of sustainable growth decisions, investment must be made with long-term perspective.

    To this end, we have linked our city's aggressive Environmental Strategic Plan to our capital improvement needs through the proposed partnership with Honeywell (ESCO) to pay for improvements through guaranteed savings associated with reduced energy consumption. Similarly, we have sought to create a more sustainable and healthy environment by improving our parks and open spaces, moving our city fleet to biodiesel, planting trees, and strongly advocating for an additional Orange Line stop, extended Green Line, and creation of the Urban Ring.

  9. How will you create a town-gown relationship with Tufts comparable to that of Cambridge and Boston with their universities?

    I value and appreciate my friendship and working professional relationship with President Bacow and the entire Tufts community, including the Student Senate. Upon taking office in 2004, I set to work negotiating the city's first-ever Town Gown Agreement with Tufts University. This agreement was an important benchmark in formalizing financial and community partnerships with Tufts. The city receives $1.25 million in payments from Tufts over ten years as part of the agreement, along with a series of community benefits. Today, every single Somerville resident may audit classes for free at Tufts University, and Somerville High School students are given preference and financial aid in undergraduate admissions.

    This agreement will expire in 2014, and will need to be renegotiated. In the interim, we will continue to find ways to partner for the betterment of our community, especially our youth. We've made great strides in recent years ' including real working partnerships between the Somerville Police Department and Tufts safety officials. We have also worked closely Tufts' Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service to provide students and fellows with service opportunities in city government and throughout the community.

    Perhaps our best-known collaboration ' and one that recently received international recognition for its success ' is the ongoing Shape Up Somerville partnership to reduce childhood obesity and promote healthier lifestyles for all our residents.

    I plan to build on the success of these and other joint efforts to continue the strong beginning we have made in establishing a rich, varied and successful town gown relationship between Somerville and Tufts. I am especially excited about the possibility of working with my friend Larry Bacow to explore ways that Somerville and Tufts can collaborate on environmental policies and projects over the next two years.

  10. What else should we know about your candidacy?

    School Excellence '' With the Somerville Public Schools continuing to win recognition as one of the best urban public school systems in Massachusetts (from Standard and Poor's School Matters education rating system), with programs like free full-day preschool and kindergarten and high-school classes that average no more than 20 students, it should come as no surprise that our scientifically designed Citizen Survey found that ninety-two percent of the parents with children in Somerville public schools rated their child's education as good or excellent. Last year, our schools won an award from the Massachusetts Biotechnology Education Foundation for Somerville High's pioneering program designed to encourage more students to pursue careers in the life sciences ' and Somerville was also the only school district in Massachusetts to win a 2006 Victory Against Hunger Award from the Congressional Hunger Center. We were also recognized by the Massachusetts Department of Education with a $65,000 grant for our schools' innovative approach to delivering comprehensive support services to English Language Learners and their families.

    Marriage Equality ' As someone who has fought directly for the right to same sex marriage, who defied then-Attorney General Reilly when he tried to stop Somerville from certifying same-sex marriages for out-of-state couples, and who has led the city in ongoing litigation to preserve marriage equality in Massachusetts, I am delighted that the proposal to place a discriminatory marriage ban on the state ballot was rejected by this year's constitutional convention. Massachusetts has come too far to turn back the tide of history and I remain proud of our city's leadership role on this crucial civil rights issue.

    Also: Somerville Rocks!