I’m writing to let you know that I will not be seeking re-election for the Ward 6 City Council seat.
For the past six years, I have been balancing a full-time job as the executive director of Pathway To Possible with the role of the Ward 6 City Councilor, as well as parenting twin daughters. It has been invigorating, rewarding, and meaningful, but it also has been a lot for me and for my family. It is time for me to make a change.
When I started this journey with you in 2017, I asked for your vote and promised change. I would build on our shared vision, ensuring Newton was a community that was reflective of our values, accessible, and inclusive. While I am stepping away from the Council, I will not be stepping away from my commitment to our shared vision for an accessible and inclusive Newton or from my work for social justice and equity.
Serving my neighbors in Ward 6 has been a privilege and a joy (even on the tough days). Through countless conversations over coffees, meetings, phone calls, emails, and summers of door knocking, you have let me into your lives with your stories, your needs, and your hopes for our community.
Together we tackled issues from needed crosswalks and an injured raccoon to the Northland development, retail cannabis sales, and housing policy. Our shared success has only been possible because of the trust you put in me, and I am forever grateful.
As deeply proud as I am of all that we have accomplished together, there is, of course, more work to be done. True inclusiveness still eludes the Newton community, and will until we make further progress on our housing and zoning policy, our budget priorities regarding education and community policing, and the urgent needs around the climate crisis.
And so, in the remaining nine months of my term, I will be steadfast in my commitment to Ward 6 and the City of Newton. I am optimistic we will pass components of zoning redesign this term, a critical tool in shaping a city that reflects our values.
It has been an honor to serve you and partner with you in this work. The needs of my family and my commitment to Pathway To Possible make this the right – though bittersweet – choice for me at this time. While the nature of our partnership will change come December, I look forward to continuing to stand shoulder to shoulder with you for years to come.
Warmly,
—
I wish Brenda the best. I appreciate her hard work to do the right thing and improve our business climate by increasing the supply of housing. I live in Ward 6 and have always found her accessible and responsive on those occasions I’ve asked for her help.
“ Hopeful of passing components of Zoning reform this term “,..
before the citizenry might vote on it in November?
Or, perhaps, after the city has been voting on it for more than a decade? It was “almost done” and “just around the coroner” when I moved in 12 years ago.
/as always, this is my personal viewpoint.
How long before an election is it ok to make decisions in your opinion? Do you suggest that after a certain point in time the council stops voting?
Her term is until the beginning of January, which as usual, follows November.
We have been so lucky to have Brenda representing Ward 6 for the past 6 years. I am going to miss her as a colleague, as she was always available for advice. She was always the first to reach out when I might need an ear. You have taught me so much. And I could always count on her to know just what to say when we were facing absolute craziness on the Council floor.
Brenda is a nice person and a hard worker. I was glad to support her and contributed to her first campaign. I was tremendously disappointed when she voted in Council to deny the results of the 2016 election and ban cannabis in Newton after her constituents had voted to legalize it. There were 21 other Councilors who also used their elected office to undermine democracy. I look forward to them all being gone.
Mike- thanks for the kind words. I was a proponent of the regulation and over site of Cannabis sales in Newton. Pretty sure I was challenged for my seat in the next election because I felt strongly that the role of government was not to interfere with the state vote on cannabis. Not interested in fighting on v14 for the remainder of my term, but want to try to nip any misinformation in the bud. I was re-elected in 2022 by a decisive vote- the voters asked me to govern through the end of my term which is December 31, 2023. Questioning the legitimacy of any elected officials right to vote on a matter before them during their term is simply noise and nonsense.
I will miss Brenda’s voice on the Council floor. She is great to work with, studies the material, listens to the voters–and her two re-elections show that.
Also, Mike, I know you care about cannabis legalization–but because we voted to allow it, we now have 8 locations (three open) in Newton where you can purchase it. (and I think it’s also available for delivery–at least that’s what Ascend and Rolling ReLeaf are saying).
A few facts about cannabis in Newton for the casual V14 reader. ..
After voters approved medical marijuana in 2012, the [then] Board of Alderman voted to ban it. It was eventually approved by the Board, and 11 years later there is only one medical dispensary in all of Newton.
After voters legalized adult-use cannabis in 2016, the City Council voted to ban it and put two new competing initiatives on the ballot. One of those initiatives was essentially a revote of the law already passed by voters, and the other was an effort to cut the statutory number of adult-use shops in half. Voters handed the City Council their comeuppance by voting a second and third time to legalize 8 adult-use cannabis in Newton. Now, seven years after the law was originally passed, only 3 adult-use shops are open in Newton.
Why does this matter? Well, for one reason the City Council’s actions cost Newton millions of dollars in lost cannabis tax revenue at a time when we could sure use the money. More importantly though, voters have a right to expect elected officials will respect the voting process, whether in a presidential election or a statewide ballot initiative.
I’ve never used marijuana although I’m a big fan of CBD oil for the many aches and pains that come with old age. I also identified with many of the frustrations that Mike so eloquently noted in his many posts and comments about this issue on Village 14 and elsewhere. But I don’t believe that Brenda or any other individual is the source of the problem. I place responsibility squarely on the fear based tendency of too many people to grossly overreact when some perceived threat to the community appears on the scene.
I remember when the first marijuana shop was being proposed in Ward 2 on Washington Street. People reacted with fears about drug addicts, drug dealers, muggers, home invaders and other assorted undesirables descending in droves on Newton to rob and terrorize our citizens. I don’t think I could have reacted as dispassionately to this nonsense as our city councilors did, not because I was incensed at these vocal opponents personally, but because a whole cascading blather of falsities they were uttering was first uttered as far back as the 1930’s, culminating in “Reefer Madness” and various government produced publications that demonized any use of marijuana. Thousands and thousands of people were demonized and incarcerated because of this nonsense and vast majorities believed in the horrible nature of marijuana and the need for incarcerating those who consumed it. It frustrated me that old lies and distortions seem too often to be the most enduring ones.
As a member of the Newton Highlands Area Council, I got involved in some later efforts to establish additional marijuana stores in this village. I did have some issues, but almost all involved parking and traffic problems involved with the two proposed sites in this village.
Brenda’s direct, honest, passionate, (and not to mention FUNNY) voice will be sorely missed. She’s been a fearless firebrand, and an advocate for her Ward 6 constituents as well as having a community-wide perspective. As this is a thread about Brenda not cannabis, let me say how much I’ll miss her on the City Council!
Good luck to Brenda and thanks to her for her service to the community. As for marijuana, I supported legalization though I have no personal intention of going down that road again fifty years later- reality is hard enough.
I do agree that NIMBYism had much to do with the resistance in several Newton villages to licensing marijuana stores. A conversation with a physician the other day, however, gives me pause. He declared that there is a growing problem with marijuana abuse, which gets addressed so quietly that the general public takes no note. We have to accept, I guess, that many things that people enjoy doing come with a risk, e.g. consuming alcohol.
I heard through the grapevine that there is something called video game abuse, and cellphone overuse abuse too. Good luck to the next generation of therapists.
Looking forward to V14’s all pot issue on 4/20.
As a former colleague on the City Council and as a resident during Brenda’s 3 terms I congratulate both her commitment and successes on the Council. Brenda came on as a fighter and one that was able to advocate successfully for her ward despite in 2017 being a new member to the Council. We certainly had different views along the way, but she works hard to achieve the best outcome for the residents. Brenda proved her loyalty to the process of law, in the November 2021 election, when in the few days before the election, it became obvious that several sitting Councilors, along with their supporters, broke voting laws, and likely altered the outcome of the Ward 3 Council race. Brenda was one of the first people to call me and express both support and outrage on election night. We may have had different political leanings but when it came time to support a friend, and legal election outcomes she took the lead. I’m sure her family, and Pathway to Possible are excited to get more time with her. Thank you Brenda, I applaud your service to the city, and value your friendship.
Brenda was a big zero for our neighborhood.