Kennedy rebuts Lynn councilor, defends record

LYNN – Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy contends she is not out of touch with the city?s crime problem – as a city councilor recently suggested – and insists she has worked to address the city?s long-standing battle with gangs and drugs.?Although I do live in a quiet little neighborhood, I can also hear the gunshots from Eastern Avenue,” Kennedy said during an interview in her office late Tuesday afternoon.Kennedy stressed she was not seeking to bash Ward 3 City Councilor Darren Cyr for comments he made about her in Monday?s edition of The Daily Item, but suggested his comments were unfair because he never approached her about the issue.?Darren has not once come through this door and asked to talk about anything,” Kennedy said during the interview. “This door is always open to him and any other city councilor.”Her comments come after Cyr told The Daily Item that Kennedy was “out-of-touch” with the crime problem in the city and suggested because she lived in one of the city?s quiet neighborhoods, she didn?t have to hear gunshots from nearby Eastern Avenue.Asked how she feels when she hears gunshots in the city, Kennedy said, “It?s not something I want to be happening.”Cyr and several other city councilors have called for city officials to work with the state?s Congressional delegation to get money to reinstate bike patrols, a popular and effective program in the 1990s.Kennedy agreed Tuesday that the program worked, but said she doesn?t know if Congress has the money to pay for the program.?Congressman (John) Tierney?s office knows that we would like to see money for bike patrols or foot patrols,” Kennedy said.Kennedy listed a number of things she?s done to address the crime problem, including hiring four new police officers, finding community development money to implement foot patrols in the summer and working with other community leaders to reach out to gang members.She believes Lynn should have 200 patrol officers – the city has 173 now – but acknowledged the city does not have the money now to make that happen.?I don?t think it?s something I?m going to be able to do in my first term,” she said.Despite the hiring of the four new officers on Oct. 7, there?s actually one less officer on the streets now than there was at the beginning of the calendar year.Police Lt. William Sharpe said two officers have retired this year and one resigned.Plus, an officer is in the process of retiring and another officer is on unpaid leave, because of an off-duty criminal case.But Sharpe said the department is in the process of hiring four new officers, who they anticipate will be sworn in next summer.Kennedy also plans to add one or two more officers in her new fiscal year budget, which starts July 1.Cyr said Wednesday he stands by his comments, and noted he made them after the mayor said Lynn?s crime problem wasn?t any better or worse than any other similarly sized city.He also insisted he has tried to reach out to the mayor, but has not gotten a response.?I have gone on in there and I have left my card. I?m not looking to continue this petty nonsense back and forth,” Cyr said. “She knows my phone number and she never ever calls back.”But Cyr stressed several times he wants to meet with the mayor to settle their differences and work together for the good of the city.Kennedy said Wednesday she doesn?t have any record of Cyr calling the office, but looks forward to meeting with him any time he wants.Cyr said city officials need to work together to find the money for bike patrols.?The thing is, everybody, whether it?s the mayor, the congressman, we all want more police on the streets. We just have to find a way to do it,” Cyr said.But he believes the city can?t wait for the federal government to come through with the money.Noting the proposal wouldn?t “be popular with firefighters,” Cyr also called for the elimination of the city-run ambulance service in the fire department to save money which could be used to pay part of the $1 million cost to put