Mayoral Candidates Square Off in Debate

By Adam Swift

Development, public safety, and education and the building of a new high school were the big topics covered during last week’s debate among the four mayoral candidates.

The debate was sponsored by the Revere Chamber of Commerce and the Revere Journal in the lead up to the Sept. 19 preliminary election, which will narrow the field to two candidates for the Nov. 7 general municipal election.

Acting Mayor Patrick Keefe and city councillors Steve Morabito, Dan Rizzo, and Gerry Visconti laid out their visions for the city for the next four years.

“I want to be mayor because I want to continue the work I began four months ago,” said Keefe, the former Council President who became acting mayor after Brian Arrigo took a position to lead the DCR. “I want to be an ambassador for our city and champion all that is good in our community, not just disparage it for political gain.”

As the current occupant of the corner office, Keefe often had the biggest target on his back during the 90 minute debate. Several times, Keefe claimed his opponents were exaggerating issues for political gain.

Keefe said he sees Revere as having a bright future, full of opportunity.

“Yes, the city’s progress comes with some challenges, but it does no good to just complain,” said Keefe. “I want to be mayor to continue our progress and tackle the issues that come with it.”

Keefe said he believes he has the experience, common sense, and commitment to continue the job he’s been doing since April.

Councillor-at-Large Morabito noted that he is the son of Italian immigrants and grew up and went to school in Revere.

“For the past 25 years, I’ve worked in the private sector, managing people, budgets, and operations,” said Morabito. “I have served as your councillor-at-large for the last 10 years, and I have a proven track record of getting things done for our residents and standing up for the people of this community who do not have a voice,” said Morabito.

Morabito said he has knocked on over 3,000 doors during the campaign, and that some of the biggest concerns raised by residents have been the unaffordability of the city, public safety, access to education, and the feeling that development without community input is out of control.

“We have a lot of challenges … but I am hopeful because with the right leadership, Revere can thrive,” said Morabito. “Revere voters deserve a candidate who will put them first, not political insiders or campaign funders.”

Councillor-at-Large and former Mayor Rizzo said this year’s municipal election is one of the most consequential local elections the city has ever seen.

“It will map out the future for our community as it pertains to development, schools, and public safety,” said Rizzo. “I’m running because residents are fed up with developers who come to Revere and turn a quick profit and return to their bedroom communities.”

Rizzo returned to the theme of rampant residential development several times during the debate, and said he would work to bring the staffing level of the city’s public safety departments up before allowing one more large-scale development in Revere.

Councillor-at-Large and former School Committee member Visconti said he has been asked many times about why he is running for what can be a thankless job.

“I’m running for mayor because I genuinely want to make the positive change that our community needs,” said Visconti. “The next four years in Revere can’t be the same as the last 12 years. I’m the only choice for change, or nothing will change in this city.”

Visconti said he grew up in a union household as the son of immigrants who preached that success was accomplished through determination, perseverance, and hard work.

“On the School Committee and on the council, I have been a strong advocate for transparency and accountability, fighting on behalf of all of our residents,” said Visconti.

The opening question on the candidates’ economic development plan opened a back and forth about the state of commercial and residential development in the city.

“It’s critically important that Revere has a thriving economic engine and that we are supporting our local businesses and small business owners,” said Morabito. “A strong local economy helps property taxes stay down and provides more services and amenities for our residents.”

Morabito said residential development has been out of control and that Revere residents have been feeling the impact. He also noted that he was the only candidate to sign a pledge to not take campaign donations from developers, and that he is the only candidate who supports an inclusionary zoning ordinance to make Revere more affordable for renters and first-time homebuyers.

Visconti and Rizzo both noted that they also haven’t taken campaign donations from developers in this election.

Later in the debate, Keefe called out his fellow candidates for being disingenuous, noting that they have all taken contributions from developers in the past.

Rizzo pointed out on several occasions that he was the only candidate who has been elected as mayor. During his term, Rizzo said his administration created 600 private sector jobs by working with investors who wanted to come into the city.

“I’m not trying to attract 3,000 residential units we have seen crop up … that bring nothing but traffic and profits to the developer alone,” said Rizzo.

Rizzo said his approach would be to bring in commercial development that the city wants, not what the developer wants.

“Our city has come too far, too fast, and it has been a free-for-all for residential developers for the past eight years,” said Visconti.

Visconti said his vision is to bring a balance of live, work, play to the city, so that residents work in the city and stay in the city for recreational activities. He said the city also has to listen to and work with neighborhood associations  and listen to the needs of residents and not the developers.

“There are many different approaches to development, and to come up here and for anyone to say they stood in the way of residential development would be false,” said Keefe. “Everyone plays a part in it, everyone elected to the City Council, especially members of the City Council who have been elected for over 20 years.”

Keefe noted that Revere has been a growing city for many years, and that the city has to look at each plan and parcel that comes before it on its own merit and not take a broad brush approach.

“Revere has been very popular for many people, and it’s not just residential development,” said Keefe. “This year alone, we will receive over $3 million on hotel revenue and $1 million in restaurant revenue. That is more than double than we have ever seen in our history.”

Keefe also pointed to the Suffolk Downs development, which is a fifty-fifty split between residential and commercial development in Revere, compared to the larger percentage of residential development on the Boston portion of the parcel.

The candidates were next asked how they would support local law enforcement and combat crime in Revere.

Rizzo said crime has risen in the community, and that there needs to be a reorganization of law enforcement in the city if there is going to be an improved level of service to the neighborhoods. He said the city needs more walking and bike patrols, as well as neighborhood substations.

“We need to increase the drug unit, the drug problem has only gotten worse, and we need to get drugs and drug dealers off the streets,” said Rizzo.

Visconti went after Keefe regarding the shootings on Revere Beach on Memorial Day weekend, stating that the acting mayor did not have a plan in place to address violence and crowds on the beach.

Visconti also said there needs to be a task force where the local police work with the state and MBTA police departments, as well as the DCR and local businesses to address the issues and keep residents safe.

Keefe said that statistics show that crime is actually down in the city, and that police staffing has hit its highest levels in the history of the city.

“We don’t want our residents to live in fear, and one crime is too many,” said Keefe. “We want to make sure they see our team out in full force protecting the neighborhoods and the roadways.”

Morabito said the conversations shouldn’t be just about crime, but also about public health and safety.

“As a city councillor, I invested in programs and services to combat substance use abuse,” said Morabito. “I understand the troubles in the police department and the low morale, and as mayor, my first act would be to do a top-down assessment and do whatever I can to boost morale, not just in the police department, but in every department in the city.”

Much of the debate on the education question revolved around the future of a new high school building, with Keefe arguing that the council made a mistake by not moving forward with a plan to build on the Wonderland site.

“It’s pay now or pay later; the Wonderland site was the best school, it was the best building, and it was going to be the best investment,” said Keefe. “By not acting on that site, we showed no vision for 10 years down the road when we need a central middle school as our district continues to expand.”

Keefe was also adamant that building a new high school on the current site would be a dangerous distraction for students over the next five years.

“We’re going to kill those kids, and you’re going to do it and that’s what you want to do,” said Keefe. “I’ll gladly invest in our children, and you can’t quantify that number any day of the week.”

Rizzo noted that a number of other districts have successfully built additions onto existing schools while the students were still in the original buildings.

“It’s the scare tactics that you hear all the time,” said Rizzo, adding that the commercial development of the Wonderland site could bring in revenues to help pay for a new high school.

Morabito said he voted in favor of building on both sites for a new high school because he said the top priority should be getting a new school built.

“I know we need a new high school,” said Morabito. “Because who is going to suffer? Our students and our teachers. We have an issue retaining educators, because who wants to work in a high school that won’t be accredited, how are we going to retain and maintain our teachers?”

Visconti said the reason the Wonderland site didn’t pass muster is because the previous administration came back with budget numbers that were $120 million over initial estimates. He also noted that an ongoing lawsuit with the previous owners of the Wonderland property could cost the city additional tens of millions of dollars.

“The construction of the new high school is probably the biggest investment this city will make,” said Visconti. “We can’t afford to make a mistake, and we must be transparent with risks, finances, and timelines for this project.”

In discussing the state of education in the city, Rizzo also pointed to past successes during his administration, and said there has to be a renewed focus on discipline and attendance in the Revere schools.