Rebeca Oliveira
Colleen Keller, formerly of the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Services (ONS), has left her position as Jamaica Plain Coordinator. Her last day was Jan 7.
Jay Walsh, ONS director, told the Gazette that he is currently interviewing possible replacements, and hopes to have the position filled “as soon as possible.”
“There’s a lot of interest in the job,” he said. “There’s a lot of interest in serving the public.”
Keller left her job after three years for a position at Harvard’s School of Public Health, she said in a statement provided to the Gazette. She is a life-long resident of JP.
“I am lucky to have been afforded this opportunity to serve in the neighborhood where I grew up,” she said in the statement. “[The neighbors’] dedication to this community has made Jamaica Plain the greatest place to live and work…Many of you started out as constituents and I am thankful now to call you friends.”
“I love Colleen. She’s very knowledgeable and a terrific help to me. I wish her the best,” Andrea Howley, chair of the Jamaica Plain Neighborhood Council, told the Gazette.
The JP Business and Professional Association threw a party in the fall to thank Keller for her service.
The JP coordinator for ONS serves as the mayor’s eyes and ears for the neighborhood, as well as helping guide residents through city processes.