Six of the seven candidates competing in the Sept. 12, 2017 preliminary election for mayor of Newton, MA met for a forum on business and economic development issues on 8/10/17 at Wells Park.
Candidates Amy Mah Sangiolo, Al Cecchinelli, Scott Lennon, Geoffrey Woodward, Ruthanne Fuller and Eli Katzoff participated. Rich Saunders was unable to attend. Chamber President Greg Reibman was the moderator. The event took place at Wells Park Office Center Newton.
Thank you Greg, for bringing online this and the League’s debate. There’s a lot to be learned from these. Having started out as completely undecided, I personally have been impressed with Ruthanne Fuller’s command of the issues.
I think the questions about Wells Ave and Washington St were right on. A clear vision is needed for both. Ms. Fuller hinted at that, but I was disappointed that nobody mentioned explicitly the lack of sidewalks or bike lanes on Nahanton Street. It begs for them, and can accommodate them without major work. The city is working on Nahanton Street right now (reconfiguration of the Dedham Street intersection), and to my knowledge this does not include sidewalks or bike lanes. You can’t sell Wells Avenue as a techie and innovative place with such an outdated streetscape.