LYNN ― Jose Encarnacion would like to be the first Latino councilor at large working for all the city’s residents.
“I want to be a bridge between the local government and the constituents and represent everyone, not just a group,” he said. “We need to show our children that we are a community and everything that happens in the city affects us in the same way.”
This is the second time Encarnacion is running for office. He first ran for a councilor at large position in 2019, but said he was always involved in the community. He was encouraged by friends and community members to run because they felt that they needed representation, Encarnacion said.
“We need to see local officials reflect what the city is like,” he said, mentioning that Hispanic and Latino residents constitute 44 percent of Lynn’s population, according to the 2020 census.
Some Latino residents don’t speak English and have trouble communicating their needs to the City Hall. Encarnacion would like the city to translate information into multiple languages and produce more materials, for example, about the elections and the local government in Spanish, he said.
During his campaign, Encarnacion has been doing a lot of door knocking, meet-and-greet events, sign holding, radio show appearances, ad shooting, and registering people to vote in order to reach and inform more voters.
“I feel very good because we reached a lot of people who were not registered to vote and (also) a little worried because there are still a lot of people and little time to reach them,” he said.
Among the issues that concern Encarnacion and his constituents is affordable housing.
“People are very nervous because affordable housing has been unreachable for them,” he said; Encarnacion had encountered a family of constituents who were moving out of Lynn due to the housing cost.
Encarnacion said that the city needs to advocate for more affordable housing if it wants to maintain its residents. The Lynn residents need to benefit from the development going on in the city, he said.
“I am not against it but it should be in a way that it benefits the whole population,” said Encarnacion, adding that he supports inclusionary zoning and would like to see developments that allocate 20 percent of units for low-income Lynn residents.
He also would like to advocate for city-sponsored training programs for adults to teach them different trades like plumbing or electrical work to help people get better paying jobs and lift their families out of poverty.
“It worries me to see the condition of the downtown,” said Encarnacion. “Our city is a very historic city. We need to have a clean city. We need to make the city beautiful.”
Encarnacion thinks that would help local businesses and attract tourism.
Some people don’t feel safe walking around downtown, said Encarnacion. He would like to advocate for more police patrolling and crime prevention.
The condition of the city’s roads and sidewalks concerns Encarnacion as well, especially in Wards 4, 5, and 6.
As a member of the North Shore Latino Business Association since its inception, and a member of its board of directors, Encarnacion is proud the association was able to guide many small businesses through the process of applying for grants during the COVID-19 pandemic and help them stay open.
There are over 500 Latino-owned small businesses in Lynn that contribute to the city’s economy, Encarnacion said. His two brothers and a sister own three businesses within the city: restaurant Rincon Macorisano, auto-accessories shop Palace Auto Music, and beauty supply store Oasis Beauty Supply.
Encarnacion would like to advocate on the City Council for small businesses to get tax breaks and incentives that would allow them to hire more employees and improve labor compensation.
He also thinks that constituents want to see more transparency. He wants to advocate for dissemination of more information about how the city’s budget is used and regular meetings across all city wards.
Encarnacion said that he is worried about the condition of Lynn schools, adding that he will support the School Committee to build new, better-equipped schools, decrease class sizes, and diversify staff, as about 85 percent of students are people of color.
Encarnacion is 58 years old. He was born in the Dominican Republic, the seventh of 13 siblings. In 1983, at the age of 19, he reunited with his mother, who had been working in Lynn at a shoe factory and eventually brought all her children to the U.S.
Since it was late for him to attend an American high school, Encarnacion completed a GED program. He worked at a Lynn shoe factory at first, until he enrolled into the English-as-a-second language program at the North Shore Community College.
In 2002, Encarnacion graduated from the University of Massachusetts – Boston with a degree in economics. He worked at the consulate general of Dominican Republic in Boston for 16 years, serving the North Shore area. He currently works as a customer-service agent for JetBlue Airways.
Encarnacion is married and has six children. All four of his older children graduated from or currently attend college.
Encarnacion described himself as a family man with strong Christian values. He used to be a youth coordinator at St. Joseph’s Church.
Encarnacion presides over a committee for Dominican Independence Day to educate youth about their heritage. He is also a member of a community group that helps countries that were affected by disasters in Puerto Rico or Haiti and collects items for people in need in those counties.
“The reason I am running is because I am committed to the city and we need an inclusive government that every citizen feels a part of,” said Encarnacion.
The city of Lynn has a thirst for change, Encarnacion said, and the people need to get out to polls in order to make that change.
Alena Kuzub can be reached at [email protected].
