New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell emphasized points of local growth in the midst of the nation’s uncertain political climate during his annual State of the City Address at the recently renovated Zeiterion Performing Arts Center on Wednesday.
“The pervasive anxiety about the future of our country has pushed the discussion of national issues all too often to the local level,” Mitchell said. “After decades of post-industrial decline, New Bedford has come too far recently to be distracted from the hard work of the building itself.”
Mitchell pointed to several key examples of the city’s growth: the $37 million dollar renovation of the Zeiteron Theater; what he cited as a 66% reduction in crime since 2011; a decrease of absenteeism within the school district; the Star Store building getting on path to redevelopment; and the Port of New Bedford supporting the opening of major offshore wind project.
Mitchell called for a 33% increase in local investments to road reconstruction and paving, which he says would boost the current level of funding from $3 million to $4 million annually. Additionally, he aims to invest more in early childhood education by creating a new role in partnership with the School Department to increase services for the city’s youngest children.
Mitchell explained his strategy for capitalizing on New Bedford’s growth was structured around three key pillars: city government nurturing a higher quality of life; the city and business community working together to strengthen the region’s economic competitiveness; and a reinforcement of what he called “our collective sense of place.”
“Block by block, we’re building the foundation of a thriving city at the center of a vibrant region,” Mitchell said. “A city in which everyone not only feels welcomed, but recognizes they have a role to play in a city that all will be proud to call home.”
New Bedford’s uphill battle isn’t solely due to decades of post-industrial decline, but, as Mitchell explained, the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy and public school attendance. And the Trump administration’s ongoing radical reforms and aggressive enforcement of immigration policy have left the city’s large immigrant population on edge, which Mitchell did not expressly mention. Mitchell also did not directly address the closure of the New Bedford State Pier and its effects on summer ferry services.
And although Mitchell lauded the New Bedford Port’s support in the opening of America’s first large-scale offshore wind project, he made it clear that he did not immediately foresee new offshore wind projects launching at the Port of New Bedford for the remainder of the Trump Administration. That would likely be a significant blow to the port and its workers.
In his speech, Mitchell also highlighted that the Environmental Protection Agency is nearing completion of its 40-year, $1 billion cleanup of the Acushnet River. The coinciding RiverWalk project in the Near North End is also nearing its construction date.
“For a part of the city that has borne the burden of shuttered factories, highway construction and environmental contamination, it’s a long-time coming,” Mitchell said.
According to Mitchell, the city was also able to garner around $1.3 million in new or upgraded piers, harbor dredging and environmental remediation – with more to come.
“That’s why you’ve seen so many cranes across the waterfront,” Mitchell said.
