Lynn man lands top post with Patrick administration

LYNN – David Morales of Lynn will serve as a senior policy advisor to Gov. Deval Patrick.Morales currently is a senior aide in the office of state Sen. President Robert Travaglini.Meanwhile, a lobbying group, the Massachusetts Council of Community Hospitals, voted Friday to open negotiations with Travaglini, 54, with the goal of offering the Boston Democrat the group’s top job.Michael Sack, president of Hallmark Health System, confirmed the lobbyist group was in discussions with Travaglini, but had not drafted a formal contact. The job would pay a $300,000 salary, more than tripling Travaglini’s $90,000 salary as head of the state Senate, according to Sack.Gov. Patrick said he would be sorry to see Travaglini leave office. “He’s been a wonderful, wonderful partner. But the fact is, if any of us leave at any time, the work of the people has to go on,” the governor said.Although Morales, who lives on Gardner Street, could not be reached for comment, friends and acquaintances said he occasionally plays guitar at the Gulu Gulu Café in Central Square, and recently became the father of a baby boy.