Nine people—Angelica Addivinola, Thomas Dooley III, Richard Giordano, Garrett Hauck, Gloria Murray, Michael Nichols, Julianna Strout, Gregory Timilty and Josh Zakim—have pulled nominations papers for the District 8 City Councilor race. Mike Ross, who currently holds that seat, which covers Mission Hill, is running for mayor.
Murray, who is the founding member of the Mission Main Concerned Residents Committee, Hauck and Giordano are Mission Hill residents.
One Mission Hill resident—Ramon Soto—has taken out nominations papers for the At-Large City Councilor race.
“I decided to enter the race because I felt the district needs an experienced person to represent the diverse interests that stretch from Mission Hill to Beacon Hill and the Back Bay,” Nichols said in an email to the Gazette.
Nichols is an attorney and real estate broker and has worked at the state Legislature as a chief of staff and legal counsel. He is currently the research director to the City Council. Nichols, who lives near Kenmore Square, said it would take someone with “a mastery of the most pressing issues to truly represent the whole district.”
Nichols said he has done much research at City Hall on the Mission Hill housing situation, and that there is perhaps no one more knowledgeable on the issue other than Ross.
“I’ve closely watched the progress of the Problem Properties Task Force and am fully up-to-date on the issue,” said Nichols. The task force monitors quality-of-life issues and absentee landlords.
He said he has worked with educational experts developing policy proposals surrounding quality and school location and has made job training and supporting women- and minority-owned businesses a centerpiece of his platform.
Addivinola, who lives near Beacon Hill, said she entered the race because she is confident that she can do good job on the City Council advocating for the people of the district.
“I want to be their voice to communicate their concerns and issues and work on their behalf to protect their interests,” Addivinola said in an email to the Gazette.
She said the most pressing issue for Mission Hill “is preserving and improving quality of living for the residents.” Addivinola said that is important in light of the Northeastern University expansion.
“People are concerned about noise, cleanliness and safety in the area,” she said. “We need a comprehensive, multi-pronged approach to this issue where all stakeholders participate and bring forth the solutions where the host community’s interests are the primary concern.”
Addivinola said that education and public safety are also “very important to local families.”
Other candidates were not able to be reached for comment, except for Giordano. The Gazette has a profile of that candidate in this issue.
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