On October 24th, Leominster High School’s S.T.U.M.P. Club held a forum for the upcoming city elections. The forum included candidates Mark Bodanza, Carrie Noseworthy, Eladia Romero Rodriguez, Lisa Contreras, and Peter Haigis.
Six questions were asked to incumbents and to councilors seeking a seat.
The first important question asked was what would be the primary focus of the candidates’ term if elected.
Noseworthy planned to tackle infrastructure issues, citing the 2023 flood as motivation. She also mentioned traffic and housing as major focuses.
Bodanza chose to focus on stimulating growth, mentioning Leominster’s pension fund as a result of our financials and where they are headed.
Haigis brought Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) to the table, a program which allows cities to buy electricity and customers receive reduced rates.
Romero-Rodriguez planned to revitalize the mall and construct a sports complex for youth athletes.
The candidates all mentioned quarterly meetings to discuss goings on with their constituents and discussed their social media presences. They also agreed their terms would focus on engagement and transparency.
When asked about what legislation candidates Romero-Rodriguez would want to pass, she presented a Human Right Commission describing it as “a group dedicated to promoting equity, inclusion, and fairness for everyone.”
Romero-Rodriguez also mentioned that she’d “also like to explore the possibility of creating a city ordinance that bans the use of plastic bags to address the plastic bag pollution situation that we have.”
The moderator then inquired about Haigis’ CCA program.
Haigis said, “It would save money for the city, residents, and businesses.” He said, “225 people already do it. On average, they see a savings for residents’ annual bills of $580. Per business it’s $2,200.”
When asked about municipal engagement specifically in the youth and elderly populations, candidate Bodanza said “And I implore all of you, especially at your young age, to get involved now, because it only will benefit you as time goes on.”
Candidate Noseworthy added, ” I heard a phrase that I really loved recently called Moving at the Speed of Trust, and a lot of people that I talked to knocking (on) those doors were, like, I don’t think you’d come back. I don’t think you’d call me. I didn’t think X, Y and Z. So another thing I’m seeing is a barrier that is really working hard to build trust with constituents, or (to) let them know that I’m here for them. But again, I encourage each of you to think about something you’re really passionate about.”
Another important topic was the devastating flood that took place in 2023, and how candidates were looking to prepare for future natural disasters impacting the city.
Bondanza explained his positive impact on those affected in the flood when he brought up one particular family that suffered large amounts of damage to their house. “They came to me, and I worked hard. I worked long with them, and were able, through some creative things, to get them almost fully compensated for the house.”
Not all candidates eligible for reelection were present at the forum.
The election results were:
Mayor Dean J. Mazzarella, who ran unopposed, was re-elected with 4,401 votes (93%).
(Source Leominster.gov)
For City Councilor at Large (vote for four), the top four finishers were Claire M. Freda (3,276 votes or 21%), Susan Chalifoux-Zephir (3,121 – 20%), Brandon Lee Robbins (2,912 – 19%), and Thomas F. Ardinger (2,464 – 16%), all of whom were elected. Eric Glenn Mabie (1,958 – 13%) and Melissa Bible (1,838 – 12%) were not elected.
(Source Leominster.gov)
The results for individual Ward Councilors were:
- Ward 1: Eladia Jessica Romero-Rodriguez (681 votes or 54%) over Lisa Contreras (567 – 45%)
- Ward 2: Pauline M. Cormier (470 – 78%) over Divine Allah Blackmann (129 – 21%)
- Ward 3: David R. Cormier (890 – 99%) (unopposed)
- Ward 4: Mark C. Bodanza (978 – 68%) over Peter Daniel Haigis Jr. (454 – 32%)
- Ward 5: Carrie B. Noseworthy (490 – 54%) over Suzanne O. Koehler (420 – 46%)
(Source: Leominster.gov)
School Committee:
- Ward 1: Jennifer Lee Alker (623 – 53%) over Marcy Katz Rothenberg (553 – 47%)
- Ward 2: Ronald J. Houle (491 – 98%) (unopposed)
- Ward 3: Sandra Cucchiara Chiavaras (800 – 98%) (unopposed)
- Ward 4: Josh Bowdridge (1,027 – 99%) (unopposed)
- Ward 5: Eileen Griffin (757 – 99%) (unopposed)
School Committee At-Large (vote for three)
Winners were Salvatore Perla (3,595 – 37%), Caleb R. Weldon (3,085 – 32%), and Gregory Thomas (2,863 – 30%).
(Source Leominster.gov)
(Jack Crossman)
