The
Enterprise
Posted Oct 29, 2009 @ 08:41 AM
Last update Oct 29, 2009 @ 09:19 AM
BROCKTON —
Mayoral
candidate Linda Balzotti submitted the
following answers to questions from The
Enterprise on city issues. Her responses
were edited for length.
1) What kind
of businesses does Brockton need and how
would you attract them to the city?
Brockton needs a real collaborative
marketing effort, which would include making
greater use of technology, including
Web-based marketing. In addition, we need to
continue to work with the Legislature to
make Brockton a more advantageous location
for business growth.
2) How do
you plan on addressing neighborhoods marred
by crime?
I believe we need to utilize (federal
community grant) monies to fund additional
code enforcement officers who will focus on
problems in neighborhoods affected by crime,
blight and absentee landlords. We have to
confront and handle small issues as they
arise, like litter and graffiti, before they
morph into larger problems like vagrancy and
break-ins.
3) What does
downtown need to be a vibrant center, and
how would you accomplish this?
We cannot rely solely on retail
establishments or government offices to
revitalize downtown. I will start a new
downtown revitalization campaign by
targeting one or two buildings for
redevelopment; I’ll work with those property
owners to establish a successful
development, and then leverage their success
to attract new investors. Downtown is a
natural location to establish an arts
community and I will work to ensure that
downtown offers live/work space for artists.
And I’ll also focus on encouraging small and
niche businesses to locate downtown.
4) How would
you propose improving Brockton’s image?
In addition to utilizing traditional
media sources, I will make use of newer
technologies to share Brockton’s success
stories. My office will produce an
electronic newsletter, a Facebook page with
regular updates, and create YouTube messages
and videos of events which we will post on a
redesigned and more user-friendly city Web
site. I will meet regularly with the
citizens and utilize the Council on Aging,
Brockton Public Library and community
groups.
5) What
other issue not addressed here do you
consider vital to the city, and how would
you address it?
(The) most pressing neighborhood issue
is certainly the large number of foreclosed
properties in the city. One of my first
actions as mayor will be to assign the city
solicitor to develop an ordinance similar to
New Bedford’s, which calls for the owners of
abandoned properties to register them and
provide contact information. We will impose
fees for neglected properties and we will
work to set up a revolving account to
collect those fees (to help bring back the
properties).