By Joseph Domelowicz Jr.
New City Clerk Sergio Cornelio thanked councilors on Thursday night, Aug. 3, for appointing him to become the next Clerk and succeed retired Clerk Michael Matarazzo. Cornelio has been the assistant city clerk before the vote, and faced two other finalists in the voting. Here, he thanks Councilor Peter Napolitano.
One-time Common Councilor Sergio Cornelio, who has served for the past two years as assistant city clerk to the recently retired City Clerk Michael Matarazzo, was unanimously appointed to be the city’s fulltime city clerk last Thursday evening, Aug. 3, in a special session of the City Council.
During the meeting, the council accepted the report of the Legislative Affairs Committee to accept three finalists for consideration of the permanent position. Joining Cornelio as finalists were Linda Greeely, a former business and efficiency executive, and Angelo Febbo, who currently works in Mayor Carlo DeMaria’s office at City Hall.
Each of the finalist candidates were given five minutes to make a short statement to the council, expressing their interest in the position of city clerk and explaining why they felt they were the best candidate for the job.
Though both Febbo and Greeley made strong cases for their candidacies, based on their different backgrounds and experiences, in the end it appeared it was Cornelio’s job to lose.
The one-time member of the Everett Common Council, under the city’s former governance structure, had spent the last two years learning under the tutelage of Matarazzo and was well-liked and respected by the members of the council.
“I feel that I am the right candidate for this position, because I can step right into the job,” said Cornelio during his statement to the council.
Indeed, Cornelio has been serving for the past five weeks as interim city clerk since Matarazzo’s departure.
“I am ready to do the job, and I have done the job,” he said.
Cornelio also noted that his career in public service began when he was just 18 and was first elected to serve on the common council.
“I love coming to work, ask anyone who sees me in City Hall,” said Cornelio. “To be named as the next city clerk would be the most humbling and rewarding experience of my career, and I appreciate your consideration of my candidacy.”
Following the vote, Mayor Carlo DeMaria, reached by phone said, “He’s a young guy with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, he will be good for the city…that position really gives people a lot of opportunity to be involved in different aspects of the community. Mike (Matarazzo) was heavily involved in the operations of government and the historical aspect; I am sure Sergio will bring his own strengths to the role as well.”
Like Matarazzo and current Councilor John Hanlon before him, Cornelio is the latest former elected official to rise to the position of city clerk. Hanlon served as common councilor and alderman before becoming city clerk and returned to elected office to become a Mayor and then again as city councilor under the new government.
Matarazzo also had served as an elected member of city government before joining the clerk’s office as assistant clerk under Hanlon and succeeding Hanlon when Hanlon was elected mayor.