Dear District A Neighbors,
I’m running to serve as Watertown’s next District A Town Councilor because I love this town and the East End.
When my husband David and I moved here five years ago to be closer to our kids, we really had no idea that the East End would offer so much: a close-knit community, a vibrant mix of cultural institutions, businesses, and restaurants, as well as beautiful public spaces like the river walk, Filippello Park, and Mount Auburn Cemetery. What a dream!
Watertown is now at a pivotal moment. As you know so well, the incredible pace of development is bringing significant challenges as well as benefits to our community.
The benefits are important: good-paying jobs and increasing tax revenues benefit us all. The jobs let us support our families, and the taxes fund our schools, library, public works, social services, arts and cultural institutions, and so on.
However, the cost of housing (both buying and renting) continues to rise, traffic congestion is getting worse, and there are significant new pressures on the local businesses that make our East End so wonderful.
We need practical, creative leadership to be sure that the new development serves our entire community.
We need to ease the soaring cost of living by adding more affordable housing and expanding programs that help our neighbors so that people in our community aren’t priced out, away from their friends, family, and jobs.
We need to make sure that all this new development enriches the quality of life in our neighborhoods by taking residents’ needs into account early in the planning phases.
We need to encourage these new companies to be good neighbors who will help make Watertown a stronger and more vibrant, inclusive community.
Good decisions taken now—taken with the long term in mind—will lead to excellent schools, good jobs, a safe community, affordable housing, as well as a sustainable and inclusive community for generations to come. I want to be sure we are taking the best decisions we can in the coming years.
I’m a doer and a collaborator. It’s in my DNA. After graduating from Harvard Business School, I spent 35 years in business management and human resources.
In my career, I learned first-hand the importance of taking the long view on issues while remaining pragmatic, working collaboratively, and keeping an open mind as situations evolve. I learned the value of people, and the incredible things we can do when everyone can contribute their ideas and energy.
I want to apply my experience to the issues of development, democratic transparency, and much-needed government modernization. Watertown is about to select a new Town Manager for the first time in three decades. This is an incredible opportunity to bring our government into the 21st Century, and I want to bring my human resources and business expertise to the work.
As a member of the steering committee of Watertown Forward, I learned two important things that I will bring to this role.
First, I had the great privilege to hear firsthand from so many engaged citizens, who have brilliant and exciting ideas to improve this town’s government. Too often the voices of our residents are overlooked, but I am excited to hear from many, many more of you, and bring your ideas and priorities to the Town Council.
Second, I heard over and over again that our residents want greater transparency, communication, and accountability from the people in their government. I will do my best to be that person for you, responding to your needs quickly and efficiently.
I pledge to be your champion, to be a fierce advocate for the East End, and to address the issues that you, your family, and your neighbors care most deeply about. To all of my work, I bring my lifelong commitment to the values of community, equity, and sustainability.
I’m asking for your vote when Watertown heads to the polls on Tuesday, November 2, 2021. Find out more about me, our campaign, and how to get involved at nicoleforwatertown.com.
Sincerely,
Nicole Gardner
Good luck Nicole. Nice to have two good candidates running in Districts A and D!
You sound like a fantastic candidate.
For me, I want to see new faces in elected positions and want to see more newcomers to Watertown running in positions. I get very turned off by candidates that talk about their long residency in town and all their connections. To me that just means more of the same.
New faces, fresh ideas, and people with a experiences beyond the borders of Watertown are the ones that will get my vote.
I’m quite the opposite and know there are many others who value lifelong residents as candidates and appreciate their unwavering commitment to Watertown. The numbers in recent elections prove I’m not alone, but to each their own and good luck to everyone in the upcoming races!
I agree with Ann. As a lifelong Watertown resident and east end business owner, I support all who run but would rather have someone who has been in town for longer than 5 years. I very much support new faces and fresh ideas, we always need those things. However for me, I want to see a candidate who has a history in town and understands the town. I personally don’t want to see newcomers from outside of Watertown come in and overtake the town council.
Agreed. I would like to see a candidate who has lived here for a bit longer, actually knows a variety of the town’s people and hasn’t been involved in divisive online groups.
I think it takes time to really understand the community you live in before you try to change it. Someone who has been involved in groups that disparaged the Watertown Police and harassed other town councilors doesn’t sound like a candidate who truly has the town’s best interests on her agenda.
absolutely SteveD. I’ve heard from people about the nastiness with messages left on their machines, sad that she did more for the town as a whole in one day in all her years than some have done leading up to this election. I think some of their thoughts may come from “rules for radicals” by Saul A.. It is stated in the book, for every action there is a reaction. I know we’re pretty peaceful people growing up here but, when pushed……..it’s good to see the involvement
These two comments appear to be fact-free and use vague rumors to cast aspersion on someone who is well intentioned. If you have got a legitimate concern, then present your facts. Present verified incidents. Otherwise you are engaging in political slander, which is reprehensible.
The stuff about Saul Alinsky is hogwash right out of the Fox playbook.
ha ha ha Joe! wouldn’t expect anything less from you, made my day!
You can ha ha all you want, but you still haven’t presented actual facts. Now you are trying to slander me too. Junior High School level debate.
So the smears and the fears have begun. Sad. Someone seeks to serve after 5 years in Watertown and they are trashed out of the gate. The Council needs a mix of people and experiences. Hopefully the voters will continue to see past some of this nonsense and choose the candidates who have a vision of where the community is going and how to get it there!
District A appears to have two good candidates: support and work for the one you like. What a novel idea!
Paul, you don’t live here anymore and probably aren’t aware of the divisiveness and disrespect that’s occurring with the groups this candidate has been involved with. She’s now attempting to distance herself from those groups but the damage is done. Maybe you need to do a bit of research before you come to her defense.
I’m fully aware of the divisiveness and its REAL cause. It’s nothing new. So, again, support the candidate you like, if you know why you do. And don’t worry that I don’t live there anymore – you just don’t like what I have to say.
So, you are aware of the hateful and harassing emails and voice messages to town councilors, and the defunding of the police hopes by members of these groups? I’m sure that’s part of the reason we lost 2 dedicated councilors. I don’t think you have the full story. Maybe you should talk to some of your friends still living here.
Mary I deal in facts, not conjecture. And again, your sad attempt to minimize my opinion because I don’t live in town anymore is very transparent, so please stop. You can make up things all you want, including people’s motives for their decisions. I don’t support this candidate or her opponent. They are two good people seeking to serve the community. The voters will decide. Or do you not trust them?
Mary please tell us the details about these so called “hateful and harassing emails voice messages”. You are making accusations without presenting any valid facts. Nothing but innuendo and opinion, which are different, mind you, than facts.
Joe – watch the videos on cable for the evidence. I watched Councilor Kounelis mention abusive emails and voicemails because of being on the Safety Committee. She’s done this several times in the past and it’s probably part of the reason why she decided not to run. Mary doesn’t need to provide facts, you need to do your own research.
Mary,
Are you aware of the lawsuit against the town that involves our police chief and several other officers on the force? If not you should take the time to read the lawsuit details. As a resident in town I find the allegations very disturbing and if true then changes need to be made at WPD starting with replacing the chief and those named in the suit. If the detective suing the town wins this lawsuit, which I think she will, then some changes absolutely need to be made at WPD. It’s the taxpayers that really lose in all of this. The Town Council and Manager also need to answer to this as well because it sounds like all of these allegations were well known prior to picking the chief.
Your claim of harassing emails and voicemails is news to me. Please provide more specific details on those allegations.
salt & pepper please, thank you!
What? Someone making accusations doesn’t need to provide facts?
This sounds like a lot of hearsay and innuendo to me. I expect much more than that from someone trying to make an argument. Talk about hateful and nasty, this seems to be a pretty low level of debate.
well Joe if you reread my post I didn’t slander Nicole as you stated, I was stating a fact about Angie’s dedication to the town, also as Cheryl stated the fact it’s on the video not once but twice, so as you run it as always, would you like salt & pepper for the words you are about to eat!
No sir. I stand by what I said.
You are trying to present as fact materials that are reasonably subject to interpretation. Sorry. . .not fact.
And just because someone alleges that there are e-mails that are hateful, etc. doesn’t mean that they either exist or that they actually meet those criteria. You have to produce the e-mails and let other people decide for themselves.
Many folks here have reached a different interpretation of the videos mentioned.
It’s a shame that some are dragging political debate in this town down to the level of a schoolyard squabble.
o k joe last time got it ! pay attention! 2 prominent elected people stated they received e-mails & calls which they did not appreciate. being the well respected people they are, didn’t feel the need to divide the town further apart due to what was directed towards them in those messages. their right to do so. I applaud them for taking the high road.
Thanks for the debate. Sounds like the same group is being covered. There will be plenty of opportunities to comment during the election campaign.
Sorry Dennis, but it is you who truly don’t get it. Sorry that you can’t distinguish between your viewpoint and facts. They are indeed different.
well Paul in your own words “please stop” try to focus on Amesbury & your job with the Mayor. I for one wish you would, we don’t need anyone gassing up the election here there’s enough already.
No I’ll keep exercising my right to free speech. My day job has zero to do with my interest in my hometown. Sorry I’ve triggered you.
Its interesting that Amesbury has a mayor and has only half the population as Watertown.
Both are cities. Watertown has a council-manager form and Amesbury has a mayor-council form.