When Boston Mayor Tom Menino gave his post-hospitalization “Heigh-Ho” and State of the City address at Faneuil Hall this January, you’d have needed a pair of those cartoon-sized shears that he cuts grand-opening ribbons with to slice through the tension and uncertainty. Those who wished that his ailments would permanently sideline Menino clenched their...
Monthly Archives: March 2013
Mayoral race could be dominated by JPers
The chance that the next mayor of Boston will be from Jamaica Plain got a lot bigger this week. The mayoral race could be dominated by candidates who live in or represent JP, and some of them are giving stronger signals of making a run in Gazette interviews. Those who have not ruled out...
Menino officially announces he will not run again
Mayor Thomas Menino officially announced yesterday afternoon that he will not run again after a record 20 years in office at a Faneuil Hall event broadcast live by New England Cable News. Menino also said he has no desire to pick his successor. After arriving on stage to the tune of “My Way,” Menino...
JP political expert: Anybody could be next mayor
The race for the open Mayor’s Office will be the most competitive in decades, likely with several Jamaica Plain candidates, and is anyone’s to win, according to local political expert Larry DiCara. “Anybody, and I underline ‘anybody,’ could be the next mayor of Boston,” said DiCara, a JP resident and former Boston City Council...
JP leaders recall Menino’s impact
Leaders of prominent Jamaica Plain institutions are reflecting on the impact Mayor Thomas Menino had on their work as he is expected to announce today that he is not running for reelection. “I doubt there’s been a mayor in the whole country who’s done more to advance a neighborhood development agenda than Tom Menino...
Ex-mayoral challenger Flaherty hints at run
Former City Councilor Michael Flaherty of South Boston, who gave Mayor Thomas Menino his most serious electoral challenge ever in 2009, hinted at making another run for the office in a written statement praising Menino released today to the Gazette. “I of course ran against him in 2009,” Flaherty wrote, referring to the election...
Local officials reflect on Menino, ponder running
Mayor Thomas Menino’s decision not to run for reelection after 20 years has some local officials reflecting on his legacy while considering the possibility of running in election that suddenly looks like a free-for-all. City Councilors Felix Arroyo and Mike Ross, state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz, state Rep. Jeffrey Sánchez and Suffolk County criminal courts clerk Maura...
Connolly: Today a day to respect Menino
Mayoral candidate and At-large City Councilor John Connolly told the Gazette that Mayor Thomas Menino’s reported decision not to run for reelection took him by surprise. “I was floored,” Connolly said, adding he has not yet spoken directly with Menino about the move. “The suddenness of it surprised me.” “I was reflecting on...
Connolly pledges ‘new energy’ as mayor, blasts Menino
City Councilor John Connolly pledged to improve everything from public schools to the arts scene, while blasting incumbent Mayor Thomas Menino’s City Hall as lacking vision and transparency, in Connolly’s first major interview about his mayoral campaign. “While I deeply respect the mayor’s commitment to the city, we need an infusion of new energy...
