By AARON NICODEMUS, Standard-Times staff writer

NEW BEDFORD -- Mayoral candidate Matthew A. Morrissey says that if he is elected mayor, he will "restore trust between City Hall and New Bedford's citizens." He pledged to create a long-term plan for road repairs "that transcends election-year politics," and said City Hall would be working for city residents, "rather than for a handful of connected power brokers."
Mr. Morrissey, one of eight candidates challenging Mayor Frederick M. Kalisz Jr. in the city's Oct. 4 preliminary election, made the pledges in a position paper he released yesterday.

Mayor Kalisz said Mr. Morrissey's position paper, in which he is critical of the mayor's management of city finances, contains numerous misrepresentations.

"It is clear that Mr. Morrissey does not understand the formula by which real estate taxes are determined each year. Proposition 2½ limits our real estate tax growth to 2½ percent a year plus new growth. Thus, it is impossible that the city's real estate tax levy could increase as Mr. Morrissey suggests," Mayor Kalisz said in a prepared statement. He noted that Moody's Financial Services called the city's financial outlook "positive" and praised the city's "strong fiscal management."
In part because of the Moody's decision to improve the city's credit rating, Mayor Kalisz said, the city has been able to afford to build new schools and start major street reconstruction.

But Mr. Morrissey took Mayor Kalisz to task for not fixing streets and poor trash collection. The bureaucracy to get anything done is oppressive, he wrote.

"The number of hurdles in City Hall that we have to go through in order to accomplish even simple tasks is outrageous and frustrating," he wrote. "Customer service is not a priority of the current administration."

Mayor Kalisz said the city is still providing enhanced municipal services through streamlining and consolidating municipal departments, despite now spending $3 million less on municipal salaries and wages than in 2001.

As part of his position paper, Mr. Morrissey proposed creating a street improvement plan "that transcends election-year politics." He proposed a "community progress report card that measures our collective performance." He said department heads are not receiving performance reviews, and he promised to institute performance reviews every six months. He promised to improve service at City Hall and "Engage citizens and create new partnerships."

Mr. Morrissey wrote, "The current administration's greatest weakness is a 'know-it-all' philosophy. Final results (see Home Depot, Keith School) are almost always predetermined and are frequently intended to serve the desires of a few while ignoring the needs of the many."

This story appeared in The Standard Times on August 24th, 2005