Letters to the Editor

Let’s put our differences aside

Dear Editor,

At Monday’s Council meeting, I sat and listened as Mayor DeMaria’s attorneys answered questions and offered information regarding the Mayor’s campaign expenditures. The Mayor’s campaign expenditures are  permissible under Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 55 – “Disclosure and Regulation of Campaign Expenditures and Contributions.

We, as a body were elected to represent our constituency, deliver city services to the front doors of our residents and protect the taxpayers of this community – not examine campaign finance reports. The Commonwealth’s Office of Campaign and Political Finance is the office tasked with overseeing these types of political finance reports, not the Everett City Council. 

I appreciate the Mayor’s attorney answering questions associated with the subject matter and providing more detail, putting an end to nasty rumors and libelous allegations. Such rumors have implications that tarnish the subject and the city as a whole and it’s high time they end.

I’m not going to sit idle and allow the City Council to open itself up to lawsuits due to questions or comments made against individuals that are outside of our purview. And I will not continue to sit here and allow a self proclaimed “local newspaper” dictate the agenda of the Everett Council and control the business we conduct in that chamber.

There are plenty of other individuals that currently have or have had issues with the Office of Campaign and Political Finance. These matters are outside of our legislative duties. The City Council Chambers are not a place to air dirty laundry. Let the oversight mechanisms that are in place run their course and let’s conduct the business the people have elected us to do. 

At times I look around the City and see individuals at odds – sometimes confusing campaigning with governing. Do that on people’s door steps, not in the council chambers. I implore my colleagues to look around this city, recognize the progress we’ve made and come up with ways to aggressively continue this record level of growth. We can’t do it unless we work together.

We have become a city that so many of our neighbors envy. Our financial stability is unmatched and yet we continue to aggressively move forward and strive for excellence.  Our city is seeing unprecedented levels of private investment and employment. With such growth comes challenges. But there is no challenge that can’t be overcome when we work together. When I first ran for office in 2015, I ran with a goal of uniting municipal government. Let’s work together to achieve that. 

Let’s put our differences aside and make Everett an even better place to work, live and raise a family.

Anthony DiPierro

Councilor Ward 3

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