Less than a month after the election, Mayor Thomas Menino and former mayoral candidate and City Councilor-At-Large Maura Hennigan are settling into their new routines. Menino is starting his fourth term amid controversy, while Hennigan is taking time to thank her supporters and focus on what the future holds.
Menino has been the subject of debate in recent days when city officials debated whether to call the tree in Boston Common a “Holiday tree” instead of a “Christmas tree.” Then, he found opposition from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese because of his support of same-sex marriages, abortion and condom distribution in school.
Despite these setbacks, Menino is working on plans to battle a startling crime rate, revitalize taxis and improve education and city government.
“Mayor Menino is in the midst of coming up with his exciting plans for the new term,” said Seth Gitell, a spokesman for the mayor.
“These plans include helping to keep Boston safe, choosing the new superintendent of schools, overseeing the Greenway, continuing to bring jobs to our city and helping to foster development and growth, all while keeping in touch with people in the neighborhoods,” he added.
Menino recently called an emergency summit meeting to discuss the issue of rising crime. Last Thursday, top law enforcement officials met with the mayor.
The mayor’s proposal, Operation Home Safe, will require groups of officers to spend several days in neighborhoods with elevated crime levels. They will monitor the crime hotspots to decide what should be done to make the areas safer, Gitell said.
Menino is calling on the churches and the clergy to work within the community to prevent crime. He is also “calling on the reverends to help confront the climates of indifference and intimidation,” Gitell said.
Last weekend, the mayor said everyone has an obligation and a role to play in keeping their neighborhoods safer. Menino is asking members of the community to come forward and fight and report crime, Gitell added.
One unlikely way Menino is battling the rise in crime is by halting T-shirt sales. Since 1999, Antonio Asaldi Clothing has stocked T-shirts bearing the message “Stop Snitchin’.” Menino said the shirts contribute to an atmosphere of fear that prevents witnesses from identifying criminals.
Gitell said the T-shirts undermine the mayor’s efforts to make Boston safer.
“The mayor’s priority is the safety of people in Boston,” Gitell said. “The shirts promote a lack of cooperation with police officers and fuel the climate of fear and intimidation.”
Menino also called for cooperation among other city officials to combat crime. In addition, the mayor will seek assistance from federal agencies, including the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice. He is also asking the state to provide money to fund some of his proposed police programs, Gitell said.
The revitalization of Boston’s taxis began with interactive televisions in the backseats of some cabs. Menino plans to continue with the installation of Fast Lane electronic toll transponders.
The transponders would allow taxis to bypass highway tolls, decreasing wait time and allowing passengers to reach their destination much more quickly, Menino said in a statement issued Friday.
“When tourists, business travelers and residents come to our city through Logan Airport, we need to give them a great welcome, but we don’t need to give them a long one,” Menino wrote.
Menino plans to create a joint committee to respond to the needs and concerns of passengers, taxi drivers and taxi companies. Representatives of the city will join the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, MassPort, the Massachusetts Convention Center Authority and taxicab drivers and owners to discuss the plans, the statement said.
Menino is also restructuring city government, adding new faces and filling positions that have been vacant, Gitell said.
MENINO’S CHALLENGER, DEFEATED, MOVES ON
Former mayoral candidate Maura Hennigan, who mortgaged her home to pay for her failed campaign, will continue to serve as city councilor-at-large until her term expires in January and newcomer Sam Yoon takes her place.
Hennigan told The Daily Free Press she has not decided what she will do in the future.
“I’ve really been taking the opportunity over the past few weeks to transition and decide what I will do in the future,” she said. “I’ve been making calls and thanking people who helped me with my campaign.”
Hennigan added that she will continue to work for the causes she supported during her campaign, especially in opposition to the Level 4 Biolab to be constructed adjacent to the Boston University Medical Center in the South End.
“When you represent people, you will continue to, even after you’re not on the ballot,” she said. “Just because you’re no longer in an elected office doesn’t mean you stop caring about the issues.”
The transition from city councilor to mayoral candidate was exciting and interesting, Hennigan said.
“You really have an opportunity to be able to talk about issues and in a much more intense way, because of the nature of legislative versus executive positions,” she said. “It was a wonderful opportunity.”
During Hennigan’s 24 years on the City Council, she was active in various committees. She is currently the chairwoman of the Hunger and Homelessness Committee and vice chairwoman of the Employment and Workforce Ccommittee.
Hennigan was the first woman to chair the Ways and Means Committee, which she did for seven years. She has also chaired Government Operations, the Committee on Veterans and Veterans Service Organization and the Special Committee on Equity.
In addition to her work on the Council, Hennigan helped create the Patrick J. Lyndon Pilot School in West Roxbury 10 years ago and sponsored Jamaica Plain’s first girls’ youth soccer team.
Before she ran for City Council, Hennigan was a nutrition teacher in the Boston Public School system.