“No matter where I am in the city, I hear first-hand from people in the community that they hope I will continue to run for council. We have made much progress in Worcester, and I want to continue the work to keep Worcester moving in the right direction, working with like minded colleagues.”
WORCESTER – As the Worcester municipal election day gets closer, the Worcester Guardian reached out to candidates in contested races. Asking each a set of questions, the Guardian will publish these responses as voting day (Nov. 7) approaches.
Incumbent Kathleen “Kate” Toomey is running for city councilor-at-large as a democrat.
The following are Toomey’s responses to the Guardian’s questionnaire:
What inspired you to run again and what makes you the right person for the job?
A wife, mother to three Worcester Public School graduates, and grandmother to two, I am running for reelection to the Worcester City Council because I am committed to continuing the work I have been a part of to make positive change in Worcester. I bring a depth and breadth of experience to the city council that many do not have. In my private life I have been an educator, involved in the senior care field, the addiction treatment field and now in Reentry for the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office. I have also had a small business.
I served on the school committee for three terms and am currently completing my ninth term on the city council. In my role on the city council, I have been chair of traffic and parking, education, public works, and public safety.
My work in the community includes being a founding member of the Worcester Working Coalition for Latino Youth, president of Park Spirit, and SOFA, Save Our Fine Arts and other organizations. I have helped raise tens of thousands of dollars for parks, youth sports, the arts, and robotics programs.
No matter where I am in the city, I hear first-hand from people in the community that they hope I will continue to run for council. We have made much progress in Worcester, and I want to continue the work to keep Worcester moving in the right direction, working with like minded colleagues.
I want to continue my work on the Public Safety Committee to continue to expand upon the positive changes we have made in emergency communications, inspectional services, fire and police departments.
My experience on the council, my involvement in the community, common sense, and understanding of the issues affecting all our residents enables me to be ready to work on day one.
What are, or should be, the city council’s top priorities?
Economic development by expanding the tax base and providing jobs, public safety, housing, and infrastructure improvements are all critical areas that need to be prioritized. Overall, there is an investment of $2.6 billion dollars in new construction between housing, life sciences, advanced manufacturing and more. Right now, more than 5,000 units of market rate and affordable multifamily housing is being built, but more is needed, including entry level options for home ownership. We need to be aggressive in recruiting a diversity of business to locate here, and also ensure there are training programs for those new jobs. We need to be more aggressive in recruiting candidates for police and fire classes to maintain the levels of safety we currently have and for improvements. With more than 500 miles of streets, continued improvements both above and underground need to continue, as well as working with utilities to ensure we have the power needed for our growing city.
What have your priorities been, and have you been successful in making progress on these priorities?
Public safety, housing, clean streets, good schools, and jobs. Worcester has been ranked as one of the safest cities of our size in the country. I attribute that to the excellent training of our police department, community policing, the precinct model and utilization of technologies such as Shot Spotter and Shot Spotter Connect. Our fire department continues the work on the comprehensive plan to improve the department, and will be starting four on a truck, we will be putting into commission more than $6 million in equipment as part of our long term replacement plan. Inspectional services will be rolling out the rental registry. Emergency communications has geared up its staffing, and new technology.
Housing continues to be built, but we need more types, including accessory dwelling units and entry level homeownership.
We are almost finished with building the new Doherty High School and must make efforts to obtain funding for Burncoat and East Middle. We have brought in life sciences and advanced manufacturing, but we need more jobs that do not require a college degree, and training for those jobs. These are all works in progress.
What’s the most negative impression of Worcester (whether real or imagined), and how do you think this can be remedied?
The image of the City of Worcester has improved greatly. In times of yore, we were the butt of many jokes, but now people are talking about the palpable energy and excitement that surrounds us as we continue to build and grow.
Do you think the city is responding appropriately to immigration to Worcester? Is the city meeting the needs of the influx of refugees?
Considering the fact that there was no notice, and no funding, I think we are doing what we can. I know the city manager is working with the nonprofits and businesses to help in the way of establishing a Welcome Center to assist in identifying people’s needs, and then triage them to appropriate agencies. Several local nonprofits have been reaching out to provide services this past week. Homeland security needs to fast track the work authorization process for work visas so folks can support themselves and their families. In the meantime, I would hope that folks who will be able to work will be given basic knowledge acquisition and training for the potential jobs they will get.
Now that we are several seasons in, what are your thoughts on the city’s investment in Polar Park? Good or bad for the city?
I believe that Polar Park is one of the best investments the city has ever made. There has been so much spin-off, and it is partly responsible for the $2.6 billion in building in the city, and much more in the pipeline. Given the fact that Polar Park opened during Covid, we have seen continued progress each year. It is great going to the games and seeing so many friends and neighbors working there. There have been hiccups with parking and businesses, but these issues are being addressed and will be revisited if needed. I am continually impressed with the commitment the Woo Sox/Red Sox Organization has shown Worcester. As any new business, it takes several years to fully achieve all their goals. I look forward to continuing to work with them and the other surrounding businesses and residents in the community.
What’s the best place for breakfast or lunch in the city?
Lou Roc’s Diner
What’s the last concert you attended?
Central Mass Symphony Christmas concert at Mechanics Hall
Charlene Arsenault can be reached at carsenault@theworcesterguardian.org
