Lynn councilor hopefuls agree on principles

LYNN – Six candidates for councilor-at-large appeared to agree on what serious problems face the city as they squared off during a public debate Wednesday at the Knights of Columbus Hall.The pronounced crime rate, gang problems, overcrowded school classrooms and broken-down business district all emerged as issues that must be addressed.The candidates included two lawyers, two small business owners, the executive director of a non-profit agency and the head of a program designed to assist troubled youth. Each was given an opportunity to deliver a personal introduction to the audience that thinned out markedly after the two mayoral candidates finished their sparring.George Meimeteas, 30 Kings Beach Road, is a local businessman whose wife works in the Lynn public schools. He is the father of a three-year-old daughter and is concerned about the growing number of gang members in the city.Meimeteas, a newcomer to Lynn politics, said police have identified 125 different gangs in the city, some of which keep law-abiding residents away from parks, playgrounds and other parts of Lynn. “Our downtown has no business,” he said, calling attention to the vibrant commercial activity in nearby Salem.As a Lynn homeowner and business owner with a wife who works in the city and a child in the local school system, Meimeteas said he is invested.Another challenger, Stephen Duffy, 136 Walnut St., is also a small business owner in Lynn, where is family has lived for four generations.Duffy said his issues are similar to those shared by other Lynn residents, from managing aging parents to paying for his son’s college education. A former School Committee member for 10 years and former city councilor, Duffy said he chooses to live in Lynn. Among his accomplishments as a city councilor, Duffy cited negotiations with General Electric that led to parcels of company-owned vacant land being transferred to the city for development.Paul Crowley, 86 Holyoke St., an incumbent, is a lifelong Lynn resident who was recently hired as executive director of Greater Lynn Senior Services. He holds an accounting degree from Northeastern University.Crowley described himself as accessible and willing to listen. “I ran on the promise to work hard every single day,” he said, noting that he has fulfilled that vow.Eugene Schneeberg, 16 Margin St., is also among the challengers. He heads the Straight Ahead Ministry in Lynn, an intervention program for at-risk youth. As he puts it, “We work with young people who burn their bridges.” Most of the youth are involved with gangs, out of school, and under the jurisdiction of the local court.”I love what I do. Every day I get to turn a life around,” he said, explaining that by steering youth away from gangs it reduces the overall amount of violence in the city.Schneeberg said it’s imperative that Lynn change its image and the perception often held by outsiders. “It handicaps us,” he said, opining that the image can be changed but it must start with reducing the violence.Daniel Cahill, 169 Lynn Shore Drive, said Lynn faces tough issues, including a spiraling crime rate, litter and rebuilding its economic base. The incumbent, a prosecutor for the Essex County Assistant District Attorney’s Office in the Lawrence District Court, Cahill contends the city leaders must have a vision of where it wants to go and what it wants to be in the near future, in terms of education and public safety.John Timothy Phelan, 2 Meghan’s Way, an incumbent and current City Council president, is also an attorney in private practice. A lifelong Lynn resident with two children and a schoolteacher wife, Phelan is a former prosecutor for the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office. This is his 14th year as a member of the City Council. He is a former School Committee member, a CYO and soccer coach, and a member of many local organizations.According to Phelan, many former schoolmates moved out of Lynn because of its overcrowded classrooms. Fixing that problem would h