News
Monday, October 5, 2009
Lukes formally opens re-election campaign -
Mayor says political independence is an asset
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
WORCESTER - Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes has formally launched her bid for re-election, saying her political independence is an advantage over her opponents because it gives her the freedom to put the taxpayers' interests first.
Mrs. Lukes, who is seeking her second two-year term as mayor and her 11th term as an at-large city councilor, pointed out that unlike some of her opponents, she does not seek or receive donations from public employee unions.
She said she also does not seek support from other politicians and, as a result, is not beholden to any special interest groups.
"Some of my opponents have taken endorsements, large donations and campaign resources from public employee unions, political action groups and from other politicians who have vested interests in maintaining the status quo," Mrs. Lukes said in a statement she released announcing her re-election bid.
"My independence allows me the freedom to propose cuts wherever necessary and to put the taxpayers' interests first," she added. "While my challengers seem to tell people what they want to hear, my independence from political power brokers allows me to tell people what they need to know."
Mrs. Lukes has been mayor since January 2007, when she succeeded Timothy P. Murray, who stepped down after becoming lieutenant governor. She completed the one year remaining in Mr. Murray's term, then won a two-year term when she topped a four-person field in the 2007 mayoral election.
In that election, Mrs. Lukes became the first woman to be popularly elected as Worcester's mayor.
She is being challenged by Joseph C. O'Brien, a former member of the School Committee, City Councilor-at-Large Kathleen M. Toomey and political newcomer Emmanuel Tsitsilianos.
Mr. O'Brien has received the backing of Mr. Murray, while Ms. Toomey has been endorsed by Worcester County Sheriff Guy W. Glodis and State Senator Michael Moore, D-Millbury, whose district includes half of Worcester.
Mrs. Lukes said she is stressing three main criteria for her next term: maintaining fiscal resourcefulness in the face of decreasing city revenue, without raising taxes; pushing for higher educational achievement in the public schools; and moving forward with economic development in small business, and the large projects slated for construction.
She said none of her mayoral challengers possesses the experience, independence or fiscal philosophy that will be necessary to serve as mayor, despite the importance that budget management will hold in the next term.
"A mayor with a tax-and-spend mentality will not be able to lead us anywhere over the next few years," Mrs. Lukes said. "Municipal budgets are expected to get even tighter and this environment will demand a leader with the kind of budgetary restraint I have consistently demonstrated throughout my career."
Under Worcester's charter, the mayor has no administrative powers; the city manager is the city's chief executive. The mayor serves as chairman of the City Council and School Committee, and makes the appointments to the subcommittees of both bodies.
To become mayor, a candidate must win the mayor's race and also win one of the six at-large City Council seats. The municipal election is Nov. 3.
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Mayoral candidates to debate
Sunday, October 4, 2009 Nick Kotsopoulos Politics and the City
With roughly one month to go before the municipal election, Worcester's four mayoral candidates will finally square off tomorrow night in their first debate.
The debate, sponsored by the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, should provide an interesting glimpse into the dynamics of this mayoral campaign.
Tomorrow's event will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Registry of Deeds, 90 Front Street.
Because some view the contest as a two-person race between Konstantina B. Lukes, the incumbent, and Joseph C. O'Brien, Kathleen M. Toomey needs to make a strong showing in tomorrow night's debate - perhaps more so than any other candidate - to prove she is indeed a major player.
The fourth candidate, Emmanuel Tsitsilianos, faces the daunting task as a political newcomer of introducing himself to the public, because so few people know who he is and what he is all about.
Some City Hall observers view Mrs. Lukes as the front-runner because she is, after all, the incumbent. It is a role that Mrs. Lukes is not terribly accustomed too, however, because she has liked to fashion herself as a political outsider who always questions the powers-that-be at City Hall.
Well, it's different for Mrs. Lukes now that she has been mayor for nearly three years and is herself one of the powers-that-be at City Hall. Since it may not be practical for her to play the "outsider" card in this election, it will be interesting to see if she uses the debate to make an issue of Mr. O'Brien's strong connections to the local political establishment, namely U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern and Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray, who preceded her as mayor.
Mrs. Lukes raised questions last week about Mr. Murray's involvement in the municipal election after a Boston Globe columnist observed that he is "devoting considerable energy to unseating his old nemesis" - who happens to be Mrs. Lukes.
"Is Tim Murray running for mayor again or is he intending to control Worcester politics from Beacon Hill?" Mrs. Lukes asked in response to the column.
added that Mr. Murray, who happens to be backing Mr. O'Brien, should be devoting "considerable energy" addressing serious policy and budgetary issues at the state level, rather than getting involved in any lingering personal issues he may have with her.
Mr. O'Brien, meanwhile, has to show in the debate that he is more than just an effective campaign organizer; that he has appeal to voters by articulating why he would be a better mayor than Mrs. Lukes and how he would accomplish that. He has already issued two comprehensive and thoughtful "white papers" (on education and economic development), but will they strike a chord with the voters who don't necessarily get into reading white papers?
"There is a lack of vision and leadership from the mayor's office and that has created a void when it comes to promoting economic development and job growth in the city," Mr. O'Brien said.
As for Ms. Toomey, she realizes the importance of tomorrow night's debate on her mayoral prospects. She said she intends to clearly articulate her priorities and how she intends to achieve them so she can put an end to any talk that she is destined to be this year's version of Gary Rosen - a very strong performance in the at-large City Council race, but a weak finish in the mayor's race.
"It is imperative that I provide the voters with a succinct statement of my priorities as mayor of Worcester," Ms. Toomey said.
Mr. Tsitsilianos, meanwhile, is the only true "outsider" in this race, making his first bid for public office. He doesn't have any political experience or connections; that alone will be appealing to a certain segment of the electorate.
Let the debates begin!
Thursday, October 1, 2009 Worcester Telegram City welcomes Holbrook KEY ROLE
WORCESTER - Actor Hal Holbrook receives a key to the city from Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes today at the Hilton Garden Inn. The mayor is hosting 100 city students at Mr. Holbrook's performance as Mark Twain tomorrow at the Hanover Theatre for the Performing Arts.
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Some find tax appetizing, some don't
August 31, 2009 By Danielle M. Williamson Worcester Telegram
Depending on which side you sit, it's either a small price to pay for municipal services or yet another burden that taxpayers shouldn't have to bear.
For the communities that have approved the "local option taxes," the choice is a no-brainer. With local aid diminishing each year and there being few immediate options to raise more revenue, opting to increase the meals and hotel taxes by 0.75 percent and up to 2 percent, respectively, is a surefire way to save jobs and services. To those who oppose increasing the taxes, even to what may be viewed as a negligible amount, it is a matter of principle. Residents already saw the sales tax jump from 5 percent to 6.25 percent Aug. 1. This year's state and local budgets include a variety of new or increased fees across various levels of government. At what point will the new taxes end, they wonder?
"That's the argument we use every time we raise taxes," Worcester Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes said of the argument that a 0.75 percent meals tax increase will add less than a dollar to a $100 restaurant tab. "It's not the 75 cents; it's what we just finished doing. Where do we go from here? Are we going to tax people even more? We can never take a tax back because we come to rely on it. So, we practice government with the same mistakes of the past. It's a vicious cycle."
Despite Mrs. Lukes' objection to the meals tax (she supported the hotels tax), Worcester is among three municipalities locally, and 21 statewide, that has adopted the so-called local option taxes. A new chapter in state law lets cities and towns impose a sales tax on meals of .75 percent and increase the existing maximum room occupancy excise rate by 2 percentage points, up to 6 percent. Since Worcester, Auburn and Southbridge adopted the change before today's deadline, the taxes will go into effect Oct. 1, at the start of the next quarter. Other area communities, including Shrewsbury and Sturbridge, are expected to take up the issue this fall, and other towns, including West Boylston, have delayed acting on it for now.
Unless the law is repealed, cities and town may vote at any time for the increases. Any increase approved in the fall, however, may only go into effect Jan. 1, the start of the following quarter.
If every city and town adopted the changes for the final eight months of the fiscal year, the state Department of Revenue estimates $58 million would be generated through additional meals taxes and $9 million to $17 million coulcome from room taxes. Worcester is on track to raise nearly $1.5 million from th etaxes.
That's an amount the Massachusetts Municipal Association believes is too significant to dismiss.
"We support what will give cities and towns the tools to give the residents what they want and need," said Patricia Mikes, spokesman for the MMA. "For many towns, it has been difficult to get this passed by Aug. 31 because a lot of them have fall town meetings (the process by which many towns must approve the taxes). Mayors have more of an ability to send it to a city council."
If Gardner City Council endorsed the local option taxes, Mayor Mark P. Hawke would veto them. At present, however, there does not seem to be an appetite in Gardner to increase taxes. "I don't think raising taxes in an economic downturn is an appropriate move," said Mr. Hawke, whose city was estimated to raise $108,743 if it increased the meals tax for eight months. "We want to nurture our fledgling restaurant industry."
Mr. Hawke is already concerned that with the recent hike in the sales tax, more residents are going over the border to virtually tax-free New Hampshire. Even with the local option increases, however, the meals tax in Massachusetts is still less than New Hampshire's 8 percent. "A 0.75 tax increase isn't really going to stop someone, but it's psychological," Mr. Hawke said. "I don't want to throw up any more roadblocks to people spending discretionary money."
If cities and towns maintain safe communities and have signature events such as Worcester's Restaurant Week, consumers will patronize them, regardless of the higher tax, Michael S. Lanava believes. Mr. Lanava, business resource manager for the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, said any reduction in services would directly hurt Worcester's image.
"The restaurant and hotel owners we've spoken to would rather have a safer city than what they could face if this didn't pass," he said. "To them, it would hit them one way or the other." Mrs. Lukes, whose parents owned a restaurant, noted that 10 percent of the work force in Worcester is in the restaurant industry and is concerned the tax will have a trickle-down effect. "We're passing along an additional cost," she said. "We're acting in a way that I think is going to be causing unemployment in a successful part of our economy."
Sturbridge selectmen will decide whether to endorse the local option taxes at a special town meeting in October. "If townspeople want the services that we have, we need money to pay for them," said Mary Blanchard, chairwoman of the Sturbridge Board of Selectmen. "It really is the only thing, besides property taxes, that the state has given us to raise revenue. As much as people don't like taxes, it's the only option we have."
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Barren Burncoat landscape toured
August 6, 2009
By Priyanka Dayal
Worcester Telegram WORCESTER - Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes and other city officials walked through the Burncoat neighborhood yesterday to survey damage from the Asian Long Horned Beetle infestation. Since the destructive beetle has been identified in the area, thousands of trees have been removed, changing the landscape of the dense northern Worcester neighborhood.
"It's desolated," Mrs. Lukes said during the official mayor's walk. "The whole character of the neighborhood has changed." The mayor chose the Burncoat area and surrounding streets for the walk so she could view "the aftermath" of the beetle invasion.
She and past mayors have held walks in different parts of the city as a way to talk to residents and business owners where they live and work. However, there were few people on the street for Mrs. Lukes to talk to yesterday. "You have your chance to yell at City Hall," she told a few neighbors. Most said they didn't have complaints.
Sean and Elizabeth Murphy talked with the mayor outside the Brighton Road house they bought two years ago. "We definitely need a new tree," Mr. Murphy said, pointing to a bare patch where a tall maple once stood. "One new tree and I'll be happy."
Several people accompanied the mayor on her walk, including Councilor-ar-Large Gary Rosen, who is running for mayor against Mrs. Lukes. District 1 City Councilor Joffrey A. Smith was there, and so was Joseph A. Casello, who is challenging Mr. Smith for his council seat. Councilor-at-Large Kathleen M. Toomey, who also plans to run for mayor, did not attend, but her children - Ruth, 21, and Rich, 19 - were there wearing Kate Toomey T-shirts.
Robert L. Moylan Jr., commissioner of Public Works and Parks, also accompanied the mayor. Federal officials said last month that host trees at risk of being infested with Asian Long Horned Beetles could be treated chemically. But Mr. Moylan told the mayor yesterday that he doesn't think homeowners will be able to do the treatment
themselves. "It's dubious," he said. Homeowners could hire a tree treatment company to apply the chemicals, but Mr. Moylan said to be wary of what for-profit companies claim they can do.
State Rep. James J. O'Day, whose district includes the Burncoat area, said residents continue to complain to his office about a construction project at Quinsigamond Community College. Work has been starting earlier than 7 a.m., annoying neighbors, he said.
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Mayor Lukes fair, even magnanimous in appointments 
January 6, 2008
By Nick Kotsopoulos
COLUMN: POLITICS AND THE CITY
Worcester Telegram
The Worcester City Council isn't even one week into its term and some interesting dynamics are already taking shape. Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes set things into motion last week when she finally unveiled her much-anticipated appointments to the council's 10 standing committees for the 2008-2009 term. That there has been comparatively little grumbling or grousing so far from city councilors about their assignments could be a sign that the mayor has somehow been able to strike a balance and please 10 people - relatively speaking, that is.
Heck, Mrs. Lukes has even treated her chief mayoral rival, Councilor-at-Large Frederick C. Rushton, fairly decently. Past mayors have been known to banish their opponents to political purgatory by assigning them to those committees that have little influence or rarely meet. Mrs. Lukes knows that all too well, having ended up on more than her share of such committees during her political career. But instead of burying Mr. Rushton somewhere where he would not be heard from, Mrs. Lukes has made him chairman of the Municipal Operations Committee. It is considered one of the more important committees because it deals with all facets of the city government's operations and procedures, including human resources, employee health care, the retirement system, taxation, fees, charges and other revenues. If he plays his cards right, Mr. Rushton can become a significant player on the council as its vice chairman and chairman of the Municipal Operations Committee.
Some big winners have also emerged from the mayor's appointments, and those councilors will now have the opportunity to play key roles in shaping the city's agenda for the next two years. While most people are familiar with the City Council's "Big Show" on Tuesday nights when it holds its regular meetings, much of the council's work is actually done at the committee level. The committees are responsible for holding public hearings on items and then making reports and recommendations to the entire council for its consideration. As a result, the committees, and especially the committee chairmen, can exercise quite a bit of influence on when public hearings are held and when they will be put before the entire council.
One of the biggest winners has to be District 2 Councilor Philip P. Palmieri, who has been named chairman of the council's Economic Development Committee, and a member of the Public Works and Public Safety committees - three of the busier and most sought-after committees. As chairman of the Economic Development Committee, Mr. Palmieri will be a key player on all issues related to economic development, neighborhood development, housing development, zoning and planning. Needless to say, that encompasses a lot.
So, how did Mr. Palmieri end up with such desirable committee assignments? Interestingly, he has been somewhat of an ally of Mrs. Lukes since she succeeded Timothy P. Murray as mayor last January. One would never have envisioned such an alliance a couple of years ago, because they appear to be such polar political opposites. But they actually have more in common than many realize: Both are fiscal conservatives who are not afraid to speak their minds, no matter whose feathers they ruffle.
The fact that Mr. Palmieri pretty much stayed on the sidelines and did not choose sides when it came to the mayor's race also didn't hurt him with Mrs. Lukes. Another big winner in the committee sweepstakes is District 3 Councilor Paul P. Clancy Jr., the dean of the council. Mrs. Lukes has kept Mr. Clancy on as chairman of the powerful Public Works Committee - a committee he has chaired since 2000. In that capacity, Mr. Clancy will continue to have a major say on issues related to streets, water, sewers, sanitation, recycling, snow removal and the construction of public buildings.
The mayor has also put Mr. Clancy on the Economic Development and Municipal Operations committees. Not too shabby, when you consider the two were political sparring partners for so many years. Given their past history, many City Hall watchers anticipated that Mrs. Lukes would yank Mr. Clancy off the Public Works Committee and put him on a less active committee. But it appears the mayor and Mr. Clancy have, at least for now, buried the hatchet - and it wasn't in the back of their heads, either. Mrs. Lukes may have realized it is important to have someone of Mr. Clancy's stature on the council working with her, rather than working against her.
Even Councilor-at-Large Michael C. Germain, a newcomer to the council, has to be pleased with his assignments. In the last election, Mr. Germain made the city's parks and recreation programs a major issue in his campaign. He wants to see them become self-supporting operations that make money for the city rather than drain the budget. Mrs. Lukes has now given Mr. Germain the ball to run with in that regard by making him chairman of the Youth, Parks and Recreation Committee. She has also put him on the Public Works and Municipal Operations committee - most impressive assignments for a freshman councilor and a good way for a mayor to win over a newcomer.
The mayor also retained Councilor-at-Large Joseph M. Petty as chairman of the Public Service and Transportation Committee, Councilor-at-Large Kathleen M. Toomey as chairman of the Education, Arts and Culture Committee, and District 1 Councilor Joffrey A. Smith as chairman of the Traffic and Parking Committee.
Committee assignments can sometimes start a term off on the wrong foot for a mayor. But Mrs. Lukes appears to have tapped into the strengths and interests of her council colleagues and placed them on those committees where they can make the greatest contributions for the city. Now it's up to them to be the key players Mrs. Lukes has envisioned.
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Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA) July 25, 2007
Cool-hand Lukes - Mayor, councilor show grit on retiree health insurance
IN OUR OPINION Worcester Telegram
In one of the most politically charged issues of this municipal election year, Worcester Mayor Konstantina B. Lukes has demonstrated that she has what it takes to lead by calling a special meeting tomorrow to address the retiree-insurance issue - while some of her colleagues extemporized, played for time or ran for cover.
At issue is the city administration's proposal to adopt a local-option law, Chapter 32B, Section 18, which stipulates coverage by the federal Medicare program for all eligible municipal retirees. About 80 percent of city retirees already have opted for Medicare. Adopting Section 18 would require the remaining retirees, roughly 350 to 450, to do the same.
Because the federal government pays the lion's share of the Medicare insurance cost, the savings for Worcester taxpayers would be substantial. In the first full fiscal year of the change, beginning July 2008, projected savings are $3.6 million, rising to $4.1 million, $4.7 million and, in fiscal 2012, $5.3 million.
So vital are those savings that the city administration and council already have calculated them in the current fiscal 2008 budget. Rejecting the Section 18 plan in order to appease a vocal minority of retirees would mean layoffs and cuts in core services, property tax increases or both.
Also displaying true political grit is Councilor Paul P. Clancy Jr., who offered a most cogent rationale for the necessity of the change - and was subjected to a verbal assault by retirees in the City Hall corridor for his pains.
Leadership is not about stump speeches or promises. It certainly is not about sidestepping and delay, nor about kowtowing to vocal minorities. It is about having the mettle forthrightly to confront hard issues, a test the whole council will have the opportunity to take tomorrow evening.
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