invites the residents of Gloucester to

The State of the City

This is Mayor Kirk’s 4th Annual State of the City presentation in
neighborhoods throughout Gloucester.

Monday, October 17th – Magnolia Library Center – 6:30 pm
Thursday, October 20th – Kyrouz Auditorium, City Hall – 6:30 pm
Tuesday, October 25th – Lanesville Community Center – 6:30 pm
Saturday, November 5th – 6 Wonson Street, Rocky Neck – 9 am
(Proposed Community Center)

Mayor Kirk and members of city staff will be available to answer questions after the presentation.

A Message from Carolyn

Monday, January 3, 2011

Dear Friends,

2011 is upon us, and it is an election year for all local elected offices. This week, I announced in the Gloucester Daily Times that I intend to seek re-election for a 3rd term as Mayor of the City of Gloucester.

You know that decisions made at the local level actually have the greatest impact on your quality of life — the education of our children, the water we drink, the roads we drive on,the emergency services we depend on, our property values, and so much more.

Next fiscal year, the city of Gloucester’s operational revenues and expenses will top $100 million. My management team has proven that we have the professionalism, experience, and judgment necessary for good and responsible government.Gloucester today, is a well-managed city.

Community support is also vitally important. With your help, here are just some of the things we have made happen during the last 12 months alone:

1. Acquired and cleaned-up I4-C2; and included the community in a collaborative effort to create ideas for its future development.

2. Secured $1.2 million from the Seaport Advisory Council for the I4-C2 land acquisition and HarborWalk.

3. Instituted framework of approved Harbor Plan, allowing the Cape Ann Brewery to open on previously vacant property.

4. Completed our Harbor Economic Development Plan which establishes city priorities on jobs and economic development in the areas of:commercial fishing; maritime industry; and visitor-based economy.

5. Closed out all deficits on our city’s financial books and produced surplus monies dedicated to strengthening the solvency and stability of the city (Free Cash of $2 million for FY10), after three years of focused effort during the worst recession in generations.

6. Prevailed in the lawsuit with the Town of Essex over the sewer rate.

7. Completed $9 million in repairs, rehabilitation and updating of our Babson Water Treatment Plant after its catastrophic failure within the mandated time frame and on budget.

8. Commenced $20 million rehabilitation of our Waste Water Treatment Plant which is proceeding on time and on budget.

9. Accelerated pipe replacement along Essex and Western Avenues – Kirk Administration’s total investment in updating our drinking water system in the past two years has been $15 million.

10. Paved more of our Gloucester roads than have been paved in 10 years.

Future Focus – 2011

1. Lawsuit against NOAA

2. Implementation of our Harbor Economic Development Plan

3. Secondary Treatment approach and negotiations — a $40 to $60 million bill for the citizens of Gloucester that has to be handled expertly with EPA

4. HarborWalk design and construction

5. Execution of a successful development plan for I4-C2

6. Improved Emergency Management operations

7. Five-year Capital Plan

8. Raising the dialogue to focus on education improvement throughout the city for all our children

9. Ongoing investment in our drinking water system

10. Continued strong management and teamwork for securing a well-managed city government.

We are going to need all of your help in this upcoming election year. If you are able to make a donation to the campaign, please click here. If you are interested in volunteering for the campaign, click here.

We will keep you posted on upcoming campaign events and opportunities to help so we can continue our effective stewardship of this city and make progress towards financial strength and a better quality of life.

Please check in here at our official website www.KirkforMayor.com to stay updated on the campaign throughout 2011!

Thank you for your past and continued support. Gloucester is stronger today because of it.

I wish you a very Happy and Healthy New Year!

Carolyn

Thu Dec 31, 2009

One-time business consultant Carolyn Kirk begins her second two-year-term as the city’s first publicly elected female mayor tomorrow, the reward for a re-election that was barely contested.

A new City Council and School Committee will also be sworn into office in ceremonies in the City Hall Auditorium that begin at 4 p.m.

Kirk who turned 48 on Dec. 21, will take the oath of office in the presence of her father, Jay Anderson, who is traveling from the family home in Clinton, N.Y. His health did not enable him to see his daughter’s first swearing-in two years ago.

There will be a changing of the guard in the city’s elected bodies.

The council will have a new president. Outgoing president Bruce Tobey confirmed yesterday he will not seek the gavel for a second term. Tobey was re-elected to one of the four at-large seats.

The School Committee will also have a new leader. Outgoing chairman Greg Verga was elected to the Ward 5 seat on the council.

In all, there will be six new members of the elected government — including at-large councilor Bob Whynott, ward councilors Paul McGeary (Ward 1), Ann Frontiero Mulcahey (Ward 2), and School Committee members Roger Garberg and Kathleen Clancy.

Kirk said the theme of her inaugural address will be “what our generation of leadership is being called upon to face — to answer the call, we need good government, a well-managed city and citizen participation.”

Gloucester Poet Laureate John Ronan will deliver a newly written poem and Iain Kerr, CEO of the Ocean Alliance, which acquired the Paint Factory via a grant from the Annenberg Foundation, will opine about the stewardship of the harbor and the ocean, duties that weigh heavily on Gloucester’s shoulders, Kirk said.

David Bergeron, executive director of the Massachusetts Fisherman’s Partnership will also speak.

Anne Dineen, pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church, will deliver the invocation and benediction.

Kirk had no serious challenge to her second term. A preliminary campaign was forced by the presence of three mayoral candidates — Dan Ruberti, who runs for the post almost every two years, and Councilor Sharon George.

After Ruberti was eliminated, George decided against the uphill challenge that awaited her, leaving Kirk with a walkover November victory.

Saturday, October 17, 6pm - 8pm. Donation at door.

Fri Oct 02, 2009, 12:15 PM EDT

Incumbent Mayor Carolyn Kirk topped the ballot by a large margin in Gloucester’s mayoral preliminary election Tuesday, with challenger Sharon George coming in second. Dan Ruberti came in third and was eliminated.

Kirk received 1,558 votes; George got 576, and Ruberti got 242.

Kirk and George were at City Hall to hear the results and congratulated each other when the results were posted.

“It gives me some good momentum going into the election for November,” said Kirk. “I think the vote was a real validation citywide and support for my performance and the administration.”

When asked how she felt about the numbers, George said “I’m feeling good about them. I think that all the people who voted for Ruberti aren’t Kirk supporters. If you add those votes, then I didn’t do so bad.”

Both candidates did best in the wards where they live.

George’s largest turnout was in Ward 5, the area including West Gloucester and Magnolia, where 171 people voted for her.

Ward 1, encompassing East Gloucester, gave the largest support to Kirk with 463 votes compared to George, who received 111.

Turnout was low for the preliminary election, with around 2,400 voters heading to the polls, just over 10 percent of the city’s registered voters.

“We had to work hard to remind people to get out to vote,” said Kirk on Tuesday night of the low turnout. “Some people said this wasn’t a meaningful election.”

There was some criticism leading up to the preliminary election of Ruberti, whose presence on the ballot cost the city $15,000 but whose chances of receiving the votes required to move on to Nov. 3 were seen as extremely low.

Ruberti has run for mayor nearly every election cycle since 1975. He has never won.

“It’s unfortunate that the city’s going to have to pay for this,” said Peggy Perrin, 65, after she voted on Tuesday. “But it’s the democratic process and it has to be this way.”

Many voters cited education, taxes, and water security as the most important issues on their minds when voting in the preliminary election.

“Education wise there doesn’t seem to have been a lot that’s happened,” said Joanne Moore, 41, who sends her 6-year-old son to private school. “Right now, the system is unbalanced.”

William Haberland, chief of staff to state Sen. Robert O’Leary, said that water issues, fishing, and tax issues influenced his vote on Tuesday. “I’m concerned about where the city is headed,” said Haberland. “And if it’s in the right direction.”

Some voters expressed their dissatisfaction with the field of candidates. “One I don’t know anything about, the other I don’t like, and the other runs all the time,” said one woman, a certified public accountant who did not want to be named.

At least one voter was happy with his choice, however. Councilor John “Gus” Foote cast his ballot at Our Lady of Good Voyage Youth Center in Ward 2 on Tuesday evening and said Kirk has got both guts and integrity.

“In all my 34 years here, I think she’s one of the best,” said Foote.

Voting for the mayoral election will take place on Nov. 3. As to her campaign plans for the next month, Kirk said “I’m going to be the same person that I’ve always been as mayor. I’m just going to be straight-talking and head out to the neighborhoods.”

George, an at-large city councilor, said that during the upcoming month, “I’m going to increase my visibility and I think I’ll do very well in the debates. I hope people decide to come to them, it will be a good learning experience.”

Mayor Carolyn Kirk and City Councilor Sharon George will be facing off in the November general election after voters in today’s mayoral primary chose them over third candidate Daniel Ruberti.

Kirk, seeking her second term, led the way with 1,508 votes over the city’s 10 precincts, more than 600 votes more than the combined total for George and Ruberti. George finished with 596 votes to Ruberti’s 247.

While Ruberti failed to advance in his 19th consecutive run for the mayor’s seat, the city’s perennial candidate fared much better than the last time out. He drew just 103 votes in the seven-candidate primary race in 2007.

George and others had indicated they viewed the primary as something of a referendum on Kirk’s performance over her first term, which she won by rallying from a second-place primary finish past then-City Council President James Destino in 2007.

Kirk’s total today, however, represented 63.7 percent of the overall vote, besting her combined opposition by a margin of 1,508 to 843.

“The results show overwhmeling support for my performance,” Kirk said after tonight’s totals rolled in.

George, however, was optimistic about going forward.

“It was a very, very low turnout,” she said. “If you add Ruberti’s support to my support, I didn’t do all that bad for the amount of time and visibility this campaign has had.”

For full coverage of today’s election, look to tomorrow’s print and online editions of the Gloucester Daily Times and gloucestertimes.com.

The votes by precincts are:

Ward 1-1 — Kirk 306, George 84, Ruberti 13

Ward 1-2 — Kirk 157, George 47, Ruberti 19

Ward 2-1 — Kirk 77, George 22, Ruberti 19

Ward 2-2 — Kirk 93, George 54, Ruberti 16

Ward 3-1 — Kirk 93, George 34, Ruberti 33

Ward 3-2 — Kirk 98, George 45, Ruberti 25

Ward 4-1 — Kirk 135, George 73, Ruberti 21

Ward 4-2 — Kirk 285, George 66, Ruberti 19

Ward 5-1 — Kirk 124, George 80, Ruberti 45

Ward 5-2 — Kirk 141, George 91, Ruberti 37

Mayor Carolyn Kirk easily bested two challengers last night in a preliminary election in which voters largely stayed away from the polls, and perennial candidate Daniel Ruberti was eliminated.

In search of a mandate after her first term in office, Kirk took 63 percent of the vote, besting second-place finisher and City Councilor Sharon George, who had 25 percent, by 912 votes.

Ruberti, the biennial also-ran who has been defeated in 19 straight mayoral campaigns, picked up 247 votes, or just over 10 percent.

“The results show overwhelming support for my performance,” Kirk said at City Hall after the results came in. She said she was satisfied with all aspects of the ballot.

While disappointed with the results, George said she would campaign with renewed vigor during the general election campaign, which leads to Election Day on Nov. 3.

“It was a very, very low turnout,” George said. “If you add Ruberti’s support to my support, I didn’t do all that bad for the amount of time and visibility this campaign has had.”

A call to Ruberti’s house for comment was not returned last night.

From the start, the primary was the election no one wanted, and it showed. Only 2,351 people showed up at the polls, the lowest preliminary in recent campaigns.

The total was nearly one-third of the more than 7,000 who showed up for the 2007 primary, which featured a seven-way mayoral race.

When it became clear that no other races would require preliminary votes and the race would mean only the elimination of one candidate, the City Council, with the support of all three candidates, petitioned to the state Legislature to have it canceled.

Lawmakers denied that request, but interest in the primary never recovered.

In addition to the low number of candidates involved, the primary featured virtually no campaigning and George, the candidate considered the biggest threat to the incumbent, was limited in the amount she could campaign because of her job as town clerk in Wilmington.

Kirk said last Friday, aside from a few passing exchanges at City Council meetings, she had not been engaged in any debate on the issues or had any face-to-face contact with her challengers.

That will certainly change in the general election, in which several debates are already scheduled.

Looking ahead to the general election, George targeted the debates as a way to increase her visibility and make her case against two more years of Kirk’s leadership

Kirk said she also welcomed the contest as a platform to engage the city and explain her agenda.

“The city has so many challenges, the magnitude of which are just becoming known,” Kirk said last night. “I am looking forward to the debates to discuss the issues facing the city.”

For Ruberti, who two years ago only pulled in 103 votes, the results represent one of his better showings and may be some indication of the discontent within the electorate.

Still, even if George collects all of Ruberti’s support, she would still be 665 votes behind Kirk and would need to draw significant numbers of voters who did not turn out yesterday to unseat the incumbent.

The city worked with the Governor’s office, and Mass. Development to secure a $2.5 million MORE jobs grant. Gov. Patrick personally made the announcement over a year ago on the steps of city hall, and at the time, no one could foresee how important the jobs that Gloucester Crossing provides would become.

Also, members of the city council rolled up their sleeves along with city staff and spent hours crafting a fair and innovative TIF* agreement for the project that we could all live with.

This project was kept on track despite the collapse of the credit markets last year, and the mothballing of similar projects throughout the east coast because of the support the city was able to garner in the form of the MORE** Jobs grant, and the TIF agreement.

Three reasons why this project is important to Gloucester and Gloucester’s future can be summed up as follows:

1. As the cost of living rises in Gloucester and actually throughout the Commonwealth, this project first and foremost offers competition that will benefit the residents of the city. For too long Gloucester residents have paid the high price of living on the end of the line where it costs more to get goods and services in and out of the city. With Marshall’s and Market Basket, we will see competitive pricing and that will save Gloucester residents money. The jobs created with Gloucester Crossing also help people manage the cost of living here, offering opportunities to supplement household incomes.
2. One of the reasons the bond rating held steady recently was because of this project. When Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s were in the city to evaluate the financial strength of the city during the height of the Boil Water order, that is what they wanted to know about. After we went through a grueling financial presentation that included an explanation and plan for dealing with the water system, I said, “let’s go for a ride.” I piled the rating agents into the car, and we toured Gloucester Crossing along with other sites in the city. The fact that this project survived while many others like have been mothballed is a testament to the resiliency and strength of the Gloucester economy.
3. Gloucester Crossing will force us all to re-imagine our downtown. Already, we are bending over backwards to make sure Main Street also thrives. Paving, snow removal, parking enforcement, BLOCK Parties, the recently completed Harbor Plan which emphasizes a connection between the working waterfront and our downtown area, all are factors that will allow a renaissance to our Main St., downtown, and waterfront areas.

Sam Park and Co. saw what maybe we couldn’t (or wouldn’t see for ourselves). He’s been a trustworthy development partner, and has contributed generously to many local charitable causes. On behalf of the city I extend my sincerest congratulations on the occasion of the opening of Gloucester Crossing.

* Tax Increment Financing (TIF)

** Massachusetts Opportunity Relocation Jobs Capital Program (MORE)

The country’s two leading bond rating agencies have maintained their rating of Gloucester’s finances this year — a vote of confidence, officials say, for a city that has just gone through budget cuts and a drinking water emergency.

Moody’s kept the city’s bonds at its A2 rating with a “negative” outlook and Standard & Poor’s at A with a “stable” outlook, both investment grade.

The higher the city’s bond ratings, the lower the risk it is considered — and the lower the interest rate it is charged to borrow money.

In its analysis of Gloucester’s financial position, Moody’s said the city’s increasing use of enterprise funds has helped stabilize city government despite the loss of revenue this year.

Although it predicts another contraction in the tax base for the upcoming year, Moody’s says the city’s “long-term growth potential remains positive.”

Standard & Poor’s cited “strong median household income levels” and “management efforts in making the budgetary adjustments needed to yield balanced operating results,” for the A rating.

Like Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s found low reserves a cause for concern.

“The city’s credit profile, however, remains weak due to its adequate-to-low reserve position heading into fiscal 2010,” S&P wrote, “compounded by the city’s limited revenue raising capability due to Proposition 2 1âÑ2 tax levy constraints.”

The city has recently received bids for a $21.5 million bond with the winning bid producing a 3.3 percent interest rate, according to a memo from Gloucester Chief Financial Officer Jeffrey Towne announcing the bond ratings.

“Needless to say the rates are excellent,” Towne said. “We need to next discuss how the city will plan to increase reserves and strengthen further the overall financial condition of the city.”

North Shore Chamber of Commerce Annual State of the Region Address,
given Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Good Morning. My name is Carolyn Kirk, and I am the Mayor of the city of Gloucester. I would like you all to know that I have only been the Mayor for 20 months, and 9 days. I am the rookie of the group but I have some lessons from the battlefield that I would like to share with you today.

Gloucester is going on Day 20 of a Boil Water order. Every single business operator in this room should take stock of the status of your city’s infrastructure, and take stock of your contingency plans should it fail. You should also consider business interruption insurance.

A Boil Water order suddenly makes infrastructure challenges very real, and you don’t want to be scrambling. For example:

The DEP issued the order retroactively so rather than going into effect on the day the order was issued, it was backdated 6 days. As a result, some of our businesses had to issue product recalls.

Some businesses who are hard wired into the city water system could not adapt fast enough and shut their doors for many days. Five Dunkin’ Donuts were closed for almost a week.

Other businesses were able to maintain operations but at a much greater cost. Gorton’s of Gloucester trucked in water to the tune of $7,000 per day. Some restaurants went to paper plates to avoid dishwashing, and many had to use the more expensive bottled water and soda.

There are also many examples of ingenuity and generosity from the business community as well. A local beer brewer boiled water in their vats for the community to draw from. Shaw’s and Stop and Shop delivered 17,000 bottles of water=2 0to our school children. Comcast delivered water to our food pantry and senior center.

Over the Labor Day weekend, we had record crowds in the city for the 25th Annual Schooner Festival. Reports are that every room was booked. I attribute the fact that the crowds still came to the aggressive communication effort the city made.

We instituted incident command a few days in to the crisis, and immediately assigned a trained Public Information Officer (or PIO) to the event for its duration. Communication about this event was a full-time job. We updated the city website twice a day, and used the Chamber of Commerce e-mail database to blast out the daily messages. The PIO carefully monitored news coverage, and when Fox news incorrectly r eported that the city had e-coli, the PIO immediately called for a correction.

The Chamber of Commerce leadership under the direction of Bob Hastings also got way out front of the story, and emphasized the resilience of the business community, and that Gloucester was still open for business despite the Boil Order. They are now mobilizing to advocate at the state and federal level for relief on infrastructure costs and business impacts.

Regarding contingency planning, I held an information meeting with our largest commercial water users, but could not tell them with any certainty whatsoever when the system would return to normal. I used the example of how we were 11 days away from the start of school and none of us ever thought the order would still be in place, but we devised a contingency plan, and ended up executing it. ; And school started on time. I them all to make sure they had their contingency plans in place.

I had the great misfortune of having a bond rating review of the city during this time, and I expressed to the rating agencies, that it is not so much that it happened – it will happen in these old cities and towns – but rather how we dealt with it, how we managed the risk, and how we prevented it from being even worse. I’ll find out today if that strategy worked.

Speaking of Gloucester’s bond rating, we were able to report some terrific news to them as well. Next week we will cut the ribbon at Gloucester Crossing which will be home to Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Marshall’s, and Market Basket.

Projects up and down the east coast are being delayed or canceled outright. Gloucester Crossing is one of the few that has gone on despite the credit collapse and economic recession. It is a testament to the resilience of the Gloucester economy.

Our Municipal Harbor Plan has been submitted to the State for approval after 5 contentious years of local debate. Gloucester’s future is bright, and will only become more attractive for development.

A 2-acre waterfront property that was in foreclosure was just bought by a local developer, and is primed for a mixed use development.

Dr. Burton, you and the North Shore Chamber of Commerce have provided everyone in this room with an extraordinary chance to really listen and learn about the challenges and opportunities facing the cities and towns on the North Shore. I thank you for the opportunity to share my perspective from Gloucester, I’ve learned more than I ever imagined in these 20 months as Mayor of Gloucester. Hopefully, the hardest lessons are behind me.

Thank you.

Co-panelists at the Address were:
Mayor Driscoll – Salem
Mayor Scanlon – Beverly
Mayor Keezer – Amesbury
Mayor Clancy – Lynn
Mayor Moak – Newburyport
Town Manager Wayne Marquis – Danvers

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