LYNN — On Wednesday, the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce’s Government Affairs Committee held its annual economic development meeting with guests including State Rep. Jenny Armini, State Rep. Dan Cahill, State Rep. Donald Wong, and State Senator Brendan Crighton.
The state officials discussed work and bills being passed in the house and senate that stimulate the growth of the economy and increase jobs in the Lynn area.
The first question posed to the guest speakers was about bills being filed and moved through the process that impact chamber members and businesses in Lynn and surrounding areas.
Armini brought up an economic development bill, which will “hopefully” give cities and towns more money for economic development and growth.
“Now, what we need to do as Lynn, is figure out how we can take advantage of that when we finally see what the package looks like. And, continue to promote the city as a potential site for life sciences and biotech,” Armini said.
Crighton said the main focus he’s been seeing this year is healthcare, economic development, and housing.
“Heavy investment towards workforce and education, I think, has been kind of the theme of our budget this year… trying to make Massachusetts competitive,” Crighton said. “Obviously, we’re seeing folks, particularly working age groups leaving the state. We want to make sure that they can stay here their whole career, start a family, and settle down.”
After Crighton discussed the workforce, the next question posed to the speakers was about revenues going down, and how that impacts workforce and education in the area.
Cahill said the decreasing revenues and change of pace can be compared to the transition of, “the honeymoon to the hangover.”
“The last couple of years we’ve seen a tremendous influx of federal state dollars and tax revenues for a number of reasons. So, when folks say ‘the numbers are down,’ we base it off of rejection. It’s not like we’re not collecting taxes, believe me, we’re collecting the taxes. We’re just not hitting the benchmarks,” Cahill said. “So, are things as great as they used to be? Well no, but of course, we all live in reality where sometimes there’s ebbs and flows.”
Cahill said that the economy still remains quite strong, “in a perverse way,” due to high inflation, which the government is trying to “keep a lid on.”
Cahill also mentioned that Massachusetts is in a good spot when it comes to its ARPA funds, using it for one-time appropriations, rather than building programs.
“We have a tremendous rainy day fund, we’re up to ($9 billion) now, so we’ve saved and saved and saved and we continue to save,” Cahill said.
Wong discussed the work he’s been doing with Taiwan, starting last year when he worked with Ambassador and Vice President-Elect of Taiwan, Hsiao Bi-Khim, on bringing more business to Lynn.
“What I’m trying to do is ask (Taiwan) to bring manufacturing to the commonwealth. I think they’re open to it, but it’s just the beginning stages,” Wong said. “Taiwan produced 85% of all computer chips, South Korea was another 10%. That leaves 5% for the world to produce.”
Wong said the countries were talking about moving some of the manufacturing to California, to which he asked them, “Why don’t you come to Massachusetts? Where we have the hospitals, schools, and a gateway to Europe.”
“So, they’re thinking about it, and I’m trying to stay with them,” Wong said.
A large part of Wednesday’s discussion was transportation. Crighton is the senate chair of the joint committee on transportation.
Crighton vocalized he’s aware of all the construction on the roads, and delays in public transportation, but emphasized that the work has to start somewhere.
“It’s going to be frustrating whether you’re driving or using the T,” Crighton said. “We need to be honest and open and communicate with the public and the business community about what the challenges are.”
Crighton said there is now a transportation finance commission, in which officials will look at all options available, and the challenges that stand in the way.
“The conversation around transportation finance is going to continue over some time, so there’s nothing immediately that will impact you. Obviously trying to put that fair share money to good use and to build trust back with the public that has lost it in the T, and transportation generally because of some major failures. But also, because of poor communication and not being honest and open with everything that’s going on, both the good and the bad,” Crighton said.
The ferry service was brought up during the discussion of transportation, with EDIC Director Jim Cowdell saying that last summer, in July and August, they had over 20,000 riders.
“We’ve got to educate the folks that you can hop on the Lynn Ferry, 30 minutes to Boston, and then literally take a 30 second walk, get on another boat, go to P-Town (Provincetown), go to Martha’s Vineyard, Harbor Island, it opens up everything,” Cowdell said.
Armini said that Lynn is leading the way for the state in water transportation, and contributing to the state’s acceptance of ferry service as a viable option of transportation.
“Lynn is really leading the way on this, and the fact that we now have money in the budget shows that the state is serious about it, and that’s good news for everyone. Because we are the bay state, there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be traveling on water. Get off the highways, get onto the water if you can,” Armini said.
Cowdell jumped in at the end of the meeting saying he’s worked in Lynn for 37 years, and sees a solid relationship between the city and state delegation.
“The relationship between the delegation and the city is critical, and the relationship that the city has with this delegation is certainly one of the best I’ve ever seen, and it’s reflective in the things that are going on,” Cowdell said.
