Woburn Candidate Profile: Scott Galvin For Mayor

WOBURN, MA — With the Woburn Municipal Election scheduled for Nov. 7, Patch is profiling the candidates.

Here, we learn more about Scott Galvin, who is running for reelection as mayor. Galvin is a seven-term incumbent running against Woburn City Council President Mike Concannon.

In the Sept. 5 preliminary election, Concannon earned the most votes (2,535) ahead of Galvin (1,760 votes) and Omar Mohuddin (993 votes). The top two vote-getters advanced to Tuesday's election.

Galvin previously spent 16 years as a Woburn City Council member.

Candidates were sent questionnaires and filled out the answers.

Name

Scott D. Galvin

Campaign website

mayorscottgalvin.com

What office are you seeking?

Mayor

If you are running in a district, you can specify the district here

City of Woburn

Party affiliation

The position of mayor is non-partisan and I am a registered Democrat.

Education

Woburn High School 1981, Providence College B.S. Business Management 1985, New England School of Law, J.D. 1989, Member of The Massachusetts Bar Association.

Occupation

Mayor City of Woburn 2010 – present

Family

Wife Eileen, R.N. MA General; Daughter Kayla, C.P.A.; Daughter Alexi, R.N.; Son Robert, U.S. Navy; Daughter Mackenzie, Technology Sales.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

I previously served on the Woburn City Council for 16 years and currently serve as mayor.

Why are you seeking this office?

I am running for reelection for mayor because there is still plenty of important, hard work ahead of us, and our city needs continued proven and experienced leadership now more than ever. Over the years, I have consistently demonstrated careful and thoughtful leadership for all, making tough decisions to benefit all stakeholders, from our children to our senior population, homeowners, taxpayers and renters to our municipal workforce and retirees, to our business community, all the while striking a balance that allows everyone to live their best life in our city.

The prosperity and future of our city and its residents has always been and continue to be my number one priority. Under my strong, experienced leadership and in collaboration with the City Council, School Committee, department heads and dedicated municipal employees, Woburn has become an increasingly desirable place to live, work, raise a family, and retire. The city has thrived due to strategic investments in education, public safety, parks and open space, infrastructure, energy efficiency, and economic development.

Please complete this statement: The single most pressing issue facing my constituents is ______ and this is what I intend to do about it.

The single most pressing issue facing the city at this time is the migrant/refugee crisis and the impacts on our schools, city budget and taxpayers. Approximately 1,000 migrant families have been entering the Commonwealth every month, resulting in Gov. Healey’s declaration of a state of emergency. Unless there are changes at the federal and state level, this is an unsustainable crisis that will continue to challenge the Commonwealth, the City of Woburn, and other cities and towns required to share in the challenges of providing housing, education and other basic services for these migrant families.

Federal inaction on immigration reform has created, and worsened, a nationwide immigration crisis at the border, including the approval of asylum applications for migrant refugees to enter the U.S., but with an irrational delay in the approval of their working papers for up to 18 months making migrants ineligible for employment.

The "right to shelter" law, requires the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities to provide emergency housing assistance for families with children and pregnant women who are homeless. This law was well-intentioned when approved in the 1980s to address homelessness. However, the purpose and intent of the right to shelter law when drafted and approved, was clearly not to accommodate the magnitude of homeless housing needs presented by this migrant crisis. The law was designed to protect Massachusetts residents who became homeless — not those who travel to Massachusetts because of the generous benefits offered here. The law must be changed.

The Commonwealth is housing over 7,000 families, in hotels located in over 80 cities and towns across the state, including Woburn. Local approval is not required nor has the Commonwealth requested it. To date, five hotels have contracted directly with the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities for $180.00/day, to provide housing for 145 migrant families, with 77 school-aged children, and 100 children under the age of 5.

School-aged children who are classified as homeless are entitled to an education under McKinney-Vento federal law, which defines homeless students as those lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, and requires that school districts enroll such students immediately. Woburn Public Schools administration, staff and teachers have proactively risen to the challenge of enrolling and accommodating the school-age children of these migrant families.

The State will reimburse the City $104/day for student educational expenses, equaling $18,000.00 for this year for each student and another $1,000 for each enrolled student. Based on the newly enrolled migrant students, the city will be reimbursed $1,463,000 for educational expenses. The impact on City services for Police and Fire is being monitored at this time.

A standing weekly meeting is held in my office with the superintendent of schools, the Police chief, the Fire chief, the auditor, the building commissioner, the city nurse and state officials to discuss ongoing issues and solutions to the challenges we are dealing with. Be assured that we are monitoring and reviewing all educational and costs incurred by the City on a monthly basis, and will ensure that the Commonwealth reimburses the City for any expenses in excess of the reimbursements discussed above.

As Mayor, I also serve as the elected District 4 representative for the Massachusetts Mayor’s Association, and I am a member of the MA Municipal Association Board of Directors, where I have been a strong advocate of the need for all communities, not only those with hotels, to equitably share in the challenges presented by the recent surge in migrants into the Commonwealth, including the requirement to educate migrant children — notwithstanding McKinney-Vento.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

There is a clear choice in this election. Under my proven leadership, the city has thrived because of strategic investments in education, public safety, parks and open space, infrastructure and energy efficiency, economic development and finances.

I have worked collaboratively with my financial team, increased cash reserves, improved collection rates and have consistently delivered results that continue to strengthen Woburn’s financial status.

Under my experienced leadership, the City received and maintains a AAA bond rating, the highest bond rating available to municipalities. This allows the City to borrow funds for major capital projects, such as the new fire station at lower interest rates, saving taxpayer dollars.

Under my leadership, Woburn has consistently maintained the lowest average tax rate, real estate bill and water/sewer bill compared to surrounding communities, while investing in city infrastructure and providing quality services for our residents.

Over the years, I have fairly negotiated numerous collective bargaining agreements, and ruled on
grievances and disciplinary hearings with our City unions and employees, all in the best interests of taxpayers and seniors living on fixed incomes. Decisions I have made may not always be popular, nor are they easy, but I pride myself that at the end of the day I have acted, fairly, and without bias or ethical constraints.

My opponent does not have such experience. In addition, ethical constraints under the conflict of interest laws, would disqualify him from negotiating and participating in collective bargaining negotiations with the police, fire and public works unions because his immediate family members work there. He is disqualified from participating in one of the most important fiduciary duties of a mayor. Salary and benefits represent a major portion of our City budget. Budgetary spending determines taxes — My opponent cannot be involved in the most important process — collective bargaining — that controls spending on salaries.

More on Concannon ...

My opponent has served on the City Council and has initiated no legislation of his own during the last 8 years as a city councilor. He has voted in favor of approving the last 6 City budgets I submitted without reducing or increasing. He has supported every capital project and initiative I have championed as mayor without hesitation and now, suddenly, criticizes my leadership.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

Despite all that we have accomplished during some of the most difficult times in our history, we will not sit back and rest on our laurels. We must continue to be proactive in addressing the present and future concerns of the city, such as: PFAS removal from our water, immigration issues, substance misuse education and treatment, and public safety. Also, school and infrastructure improvements, which will be addressed with the same fiscal responsibility I have shown for taxpayers and senior citizens on fixed incomes over my past 14 years as your mayor.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have a proven record of working collaboratively with City department heads, state agencies, the City Council and School Committee, to get great results for the city and our residents. As I mentioned earlier, the city has thrived due to strategic investments in education, public safety, parks and open space, infrastructure, energy efficiency and economic development.

From the construction of a new $23 million Fire headquarters and additional manpower — to the
construction of new elementary schools, a new state-of-the-art public library and annual school budget increases that consistently exceed state-mandated levels; from investments in aging water lines and mains and street paving programs, to the construction of new playgrounds and acquisitions of more open space; from becoming a state-certified green community with ever-increasing energy efficiency, to developing and maintaining our strong commercial tax base to benefit all, I am proud and honored to have led the collaboration on this progress.

It also means successfully honoring these commitments by professionally and skillfully managing the City’s finances and aggressively pursuing grants and other funding sources to minimize the burden on Woburn’s taxpayers. It means maintaining our hard-earned AAA bond rating — the highest municipal rating available — and delivering top-notch municipal services while maintaining the lowest tax rate in the area.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

My mentor and friend John McElhiney wrote me a letter and highlighted Theodore Roosevelt's “The Man in The Arena” after a contentious city issue was settled:

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong person stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the person who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who does actually strive to do the deeds, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends him or herself for a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who, at the worst, if he or she fails, at least they fail while daring greatly, so that their place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."

These powerful words continue to provide me inspiration every day.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

To the voters of the City of Woburn, I respectfully request your vote and support for reelection as
your mayor on Tuesday, November 7, 2023.