Local mayors gather for economic policy forum

DANVERS – Eight mayors and town managers from across the North Shore gathered Wednesday for the 10th annual Economic and Public Policy Forum sponsored by the North Shore Chamber of Commerce.For some, the venue at the Sheraton Ferncroft Resort was an opportunity to boast about recent municipal accomplishments before a captive audience. For others, it was a chance to rail against a variety of issues, from the foibles of regionalization to the news media’s appetite for sex over substance to a November ballot question that would abolish income tax in Massachusetts.Lynn Mayor Edward Clancy Jr. used the bulk of his allotted six minutes to oppose the income-tax ballot question, arguing its passage would eliminate $13 billion in state revenue, resulting in slashed police, fire and public school services.The nation’s soured economy is evident when collective bargaining collides with the spending restraints imposed by Proposition 2 1/2, a situation he compared to tectonic plates beneath Earth’s crust constantly pushing against each other.”These tectonic plates are crashing now,” he said.Clancy cited as positive change Lynn’s recent completion of the Manning Field athletic facility, the roll back of licensing hours from 2 a.m. to 1 a.m., the $8 million invested in downtown condominium investments, and progress made toward relocating electrical transmission lines that impede waterfront development.Peabody Mayor Michael Bonfanti said mayors need more revenue-generating tools and more authority from the Legislature. He also described regionalization as a fairy tale that some municipal leaders chant as a mantra and view as a magic elixir to their fiscal woes.Salem Mayor Kimberley Driscoll said the Salem Ferry from the House of Seven Gables to Boston’s New England Aquarium carried 81,000 passengers last year and is growing. The planned International Port on Blaney Street, property leased for $1 from Dominion Resources – owners of the Salem Harbor Power Station – will ultimately host cruise ships, ferries and commercial fishing boats, making Salem Harbor as vibrant as it was a century ago, she said.Driscoll added to the list the new by-pass road that is open at the Salem-Beverly Bridge, smoothing the traffic flow; work on the Salem Harborwalk near Pickering Wharf and the $106-million Salem Court project; and plans for a commuter parking garage at the train station.Driscoll said more residents are living downtown, supporting stores that sell traditional goods instead of merely postcards and trinkets to tourists. “Having people living downtown has made a difference,” she said, noting that Salem State College has begun building dormitories.Amesbury Mayor Thatcher Kezer III said the city upgraded its bond rating from A- to A, resulting in lower borrowing costs. He emphasized that the city’s municipal reserve fund has grown from $300,000 to nearly $1 million.Kezer said school employees settled their labor contract, agreeing to pay 25 rather than 20 percent of their health care costs. The Fire Department has implemented cost-saving procedures by purchasing an ambulance and using an SUV instead of a fire engine to chase medical calls, he explained.”This reduces the number of call backs and leaves more firefighters at the station to fight fires,” Kezer said.Kezer urged his colleagues to focus on big problems rather than dwell on relatively minor issues. For instance, he said paying police for private details costs Amesbury $15,000 to $20,000 annually, while last year his special education costs increased to $1.5 million when new residents eligible for those services moved into the community.Gloucester Mayor Carolyn Kirk described her encounters with the international media following news that more than a dozen local girls had become pregnant as part of a pact.”The discourse has been dishonest,” she said, explaining that once it became clear there was no pact, she called a press conference that was covered live by CNN. Kirk said she was astonished that