The two city councilor finalists in New Bedford may be new to politics, but they’ve learned the game very quickly. They’ve both taken cautious, middle-of-the-road positions on nearly everything.
Author Archives: Jack Spillane
Posted inJack Spillane column
When is a City Council gathering public, and who should be able to see and hear it?
“It would be very hard to argue that this is not a public meeting when they are giving public notice of the meeting … It seems like an effort to skirt the open meeting law.” — Justin Silverman, the NEFAC executive director of the New England First Amendment Coalition
Posted inJack Spillane column
Ward 3 councilor finalists are fresh faces for voters to choose between
Shawn Oliver and Carmen Amaral will now face off in a Feb. 28 special final election that looks like it could bring as much attention to Ward 3 as has anything in years.
Posted inJack Spillane column
City Council rejects one of New Bedford’s finest for Voc-Tech School Committee
It was not her good qualifications that defeated Carol Pimentel. Rather it was the determination of the City Council not to follow the state’s 2021 directive to vocational technical schools to change their admission policies so that more English learners and disabled students can attend. Pimentel and the mayor support the reforms.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Walking the walk and talking the talk with Ward 3 candidates
In the past month or so, I’ve had a chance to walk with all of these candidates in their home neighborhoods within the ward. I’ve learned a whole lot about both them and the different enclaves — some of them quite out of the way — that they call home.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Jacob Ventura: Ward 3 newcomer brings legal acumen, listening skills to the race
Ventura is running perhaps the most traditional of the campaigns. He has issued a spate of press releases outlining his positions on issues, even criticizing certain actions of the current council.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Bob Bromley: Budget analyst for R.I. state Senate says he’ll bring his financial acumen to the Ward 3 job
“I’m just mad about what’s going on. I want to get in and basically right the ship, get it in place, and then be able to move on and pass it on to somebody else.”
Posted inJack Spillane column
Carmen Amaral: As a lifelong advocate, ‘I have the skills’ to represent Ward 3
Her advocacy is hard-won and emblematic of an immigrant’s success story. Amaral came to the U.S. when she was 4 years old, with parents who spoke no English. She grew up in the Portuguese enclave of triple-deckers around Madeira Field.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Bob Cabral: He sees his local government, sees its problems, and wants to fix it
He’s taking a chance to see if he can knock on enough doors, leaflet enough cars, to possibly win this seat and perhaps shake this city government up a bit.
Posted inJack Spillane column
Kathy Dehner: People of Ward 3 need somebody to listen, and to do something about their problems
“No one person is going to solve all the problems in the city. You have to listen to other voices. I know we do that in my own family. There’s people out there that probably have the greatest ideas that I never thought of.”
