Lynn City Council campaign kicks off

LYNN – Wednesday’s Lynn ward councilor candidates’ night brought the state of the city into question when those who took part were asked how they felt they could improve Lynn’s reputation and where they wanted to see the city five years from now.The candidates offered different opinions on what needed to be addressed to improve the city, but most agreed that the city was a better place than for which it gets credit.”Lynn isn’t as bad as people think it is,” said incumbent Ward 4 Councilor Richard Colucci. “I say to these people, ?save it.'”Colucci held this position throughout the debate, later saying, “I believe Lynn is coming up, Lynn is a happening place.””I think it’s pretty good right now,” said Dianna Chakoutis, who is the current Ward 5 councilor. “I’m still here. I think Lynn has come a long way right now, we are working on it.”In five years I’d like to see more restaurants, waterfront build-up, maybe a drug-free city,” she said. “(And) the ability to fund our schools.”Marven-Rhode Hyppolite, Chakoutis’ opponent, who is running for City Council for the first time, took a different approach. In his introduction, he wrote, “The reason I am running for City Council is because I believe our city needs a change.”All over the city, there are people finding it difficult to pay their rent, there are people struggling with heroin addiction, crippling debt, lack of proper health care, little access to fresh fruits and vegetables, and our city government has done very little to address these issues.””We need to invest in our education and our health care,” he said.John “Jay” Walsh, running in Ward 7, who currently serves on the city’s Conservation Commission, agreed, saying, “We have our problems, especially with the heroin epidemic.”Walsh also talked about the possibility of a holding night courses at Lynn Tech.”Maybe they could offer heating and air conditioning classes,” he said. “People need higher-paying jobs.””I know what Lynn used to be like, and I know what it’s like now,” said Brian Field, Walsh’s opponent and a lifelong Lynn resident. He also believes that a lot of the crime in Lynn comes from “out of town.” He attributes some of the problems to budget cuts to the police department.Ariana Murrell-Rosario, running against Colucci in Ward 4, disagreed.”We do have adequate money in our public safety budget,” she said. She believes the problem begins with the town leaders.”You have to have a professional, responsive city hall,” said Murrell-Rosario. “You have to have a working relationship with the citizens. You need to have inclusion, diversity, you need to have an open relationship as well.””We’re building houses on Union Street right now, and there are restaurants opening downtown,” said Colucci. “We’re moving in the right direction.”Candidates were also asked their position on the fight to keep Union Hospital open. All agreed that it was important for the hospital to remain open and that they felt the fight wasn’t over yet.”I don’t think the fight is over, I think it has just begun,” said Murrell-Rosario.”Last night we had a public hearing, and the council voted to send it to the attorney general,” said Colucci.”We do need a full-service hospital in the city of Lynn,” said Chakoutis. “Salem can’t accommodate everyone.”All candidates also agreed that the city needed to receive more funding from the state to go toward education.Wards 1, 2, 3, and 6 are uncontested.The forum was held at the Lynn Museum and sponsored by the Lynn Community Association.