What will a Mary-Jane Foster administration look like if she’s elected mayor? The Democratic candidate on Friday issued a plan for her first 50 days in office:
● The first thing I will do is have an independent audit conducted of the City’s budget
● I will meet with each department in City Hall to discuss their strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities
● I will meet with Bridgeport’s legislative delegation to prioritize the city’s needs and opportunities and partner to outline a clear agenda for next year’s General Assembly
● I will work with Governor Malloy and Lieutenant Governor Wyman to implement a true city-state partnership
● I will actively recruit and hire an experienced and visionary Director of Economic Development
○ I will review all current projects for their return on investment to the city and their commitment to hire Bridgeport residents at a living wage
○ I will meet with every developer currently working in the city to discuss how the city can best address their needs
○ I will immediately commence the planning and execution of an innovation district in every area of the city. We will reclaim and repurpose existing buildings and create entrepreneurial startup opportunities. Bridgeport will once again become the city of invention and opportunity
○ I will work with the developers of Steelpointe Harbor to bring water related uses and attractions to the project. The remaining peninsula should include marinas, restaurants, and offices and housing
○ I will work aggressively to retain and recruit new businesses to Bridgeport
● I will work with the new Director of Finance to align the city’s needs with the budget. We must fully fund our Board of Education budget, and provide the necessary resources to address our public safety issues. We must have a budget that addresses our needs but does not increase taxes
● I will insist financial reporting adhere to city charter requirements. I will provide timely, online reports so there is transparency in the city’s finances
● I will bring the business community together to support a consistent and real marketing initiative in the city which will include promoting the city’s attractions: our theatres, the zoo, the arena, and our sports teams
● I will hold the line on property taxes
○ I will seek legislative approval for a delay of implementation of the impending property revaluation and conduct a new assessment of property in the city
● I will reorganize the City Attorney’s Office to maximize its effectiveness and reduce the amount of outsourced legal work
● I will convene a meeting with congressional aids, our city grant department, and our city’s nonprofit organizations to discuss increased grant opportunities
● I will work with the superintendent of schools and a fully funded Board of Education to maximize equal education opportunity for all of Bridgeport’s children
● I will bring the University of Bridgeport fully into the fabric of the community and utilize the many resources it provides to the city
○ I will appoint and fill the boards and commissions in this city. I will increase the participation of women and minorities. There will be no board members with expired terms
● I will not tolerate unethical behavior in my administration. Under no circumstances will I tolerate discriminatory practices, including hostile work environments and sexual harassment
● I will uphold the City Charter provision that prohibits municipal employees from serving on City Council
I think I love her. 🙂
This is the single best piece of information I have seen put forth by ANY candidate for Mayor of Bridgeport. It’s a thing of beauty.
I agree. MJF is clearly the best candidate.
You had also better check with your employers (the people) to see what they want rather than the politicians to see what they want!
Okay Charlie, let’s hear what you suggest. What MJF outlines is excellent and is about as comprehensive a plan as I’ve read so far. The shitshow that is the corrupt incumbent versus the known felon is already getting tiresome. It is time for a candidate with a real plan to move this city forward. Foster for Mayor!
I can tell you right now Chuck, the people don’t want election-year substations. They want/need a competent and honest mayor. The clear choice is Foster.
Here is a vision for Bridgeport with real leadership and honesty.
Now this is leadership. Obviously Mary-Jane is all for transparency. She is not afraid to lay out her thoughts on the future of the city in a level of detail we have not seen from either Tweedle-Dee or Tweedle-Dum.
Obviously everything starts with Number 1; a complete assessment of the city budget and where we actually stand. That will dictate the priority of everything else on the list.
Reorganize the City Attorney’s office? I assume that means out with the old and in with the new. Right now the CA believes he runs the city and it has been that way since Ganim, Fabrizi and Finch. He tries to micromanage every aspect of city business by attending every committee meeting, board or commission, and reviewing each and every FOI request. He writes legal opinions that are nothing more than his personal opinion in an effort to manage the City Council.
If you want to cut out outside services then simply make the staff in the office start doing real legal work and leave the politics to the politicians.
Bridgeport voters would be wise to adopt this Foster Plan.
Excellent! Clear, comprehensive and inclusive.
Lean, impartial, dependable and dedicated to serving the greater good–just the way I like my government institutions.
We should expect no less from candidates running for the highest office in our city.
Well Steve A, you asked for it and here it is. This is just the beginning.
Reorganize the City Attorney’s office? Would LOVE to see this happen, it’s time for Anastasi to go, that much is sure.
Harvey Weintraub, don’t worry about Hamilton Burger. Tippy will find him and Finch a job, of course out of town.
Add one:
Work with Sikorsky’s to keep the South Ave. facility open.
I really think she would be a competent mayor. This primary will be really telling about the primary voters. I’ve got a bad feeling Ganim is going to have a strong showing.
Partner with the Legislative Delegation. Now that would be different. From Ganim to Fabrizi to Finch, each and every one of them believed the Delegation reports to them.
There was no partnership and no cooperation. And the mayor would dictate to the city’s lobbyist his agenda and ignore the wishes of the members.
So much more can be accomplished with a partnership versus a dictatorship.
I was hoping Mary-Jane mentioned a new charter revision commission, to eliminate the redundancy of the city council and the New Mayor’s office, by creation of a new elective Board of Finance every four years and a new elective Zoning Commission as well as a new elective ZBA.
But most important is a comprehensive audit of the Tax Assessor’s Office and especially the Board of Assessment Appeals, which is run like someone’s personal candy store!
I’m sure sometime in the near future Joe Ganim will bring these items up!
Good points, Jim.
Thanks, Pete.
Jim,
Mary-Jane has already called for a complete operational and financial audit of the Tax Collectors office.
Not only do we know of issues with the auto tax and the lack of any revenues generated from the boot finder program but we also know the poor collection efforts on person property tax is a multimillion dollar problem.
But if Joe wants to echo her call I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.
Obviously Mary-Jane did not repeat this in what she will do in her first 50 days since she believes actions will already be taking place to record this mismanagement problem.
But thanks for the offer.
Just heard Gaudett got his marching orders from the Mayor and has put Ganim’s substation off-limits to cops as there is a policy on getting involved in politics. I wonder if that policy applies to Gaudett who just involved himself. If a cop can be disciplined for using Ganim’s toilet because it’s allegedly “political,” how about the chief making it off-limits? Is that not political? As usual, the neighborhood gets screwed by the bum Mayor and his puppet when they are all that is supposed to matter.
While other candidates for mayor are trying to see who’s on first with police substations, Mary-Jane Foster has given the residents of Bridgeport a true vision, direction and honest leadership, no games or tricks but a road map to turn Bridgeport around.
Jeff Kohut, what say you now after your post below about Mary-Jane Foster?
Jeff Kohut // Jul 10, 2015 at 12:02 am
Good policy Mary-Jane, but you’re only about 2% of the way toward a comprehensive plan to resuscitate Bridgeport.
We need to hear a lot more.
Ron: I am truly not trying to be negative or antagonistic here, but all the points of the above “plan” are really just basic-level standard operating procedure for a new mayor taking hold of the reigns of a struggling city.
I see nothing that is particularly innovative that hasn’t been included in preliminary plans of other candidates in other Bridgeport mayoral elections. The “plan,” and all of the points, look quite familiar.
I see no indication she has a clue about the scale of the city’s needs in regard to jobs or development, much less any clue about the possible nature and source of the needed jobs and development.
Mary-Jane’s 50-day plan is just a Scarsdale Diet cookbook type of plan–available from any mayoral website.
Sorry; that is my perception.
Maybe she, or one of the other candidates, will come up with something that is really new, exciting, and complete. That would be really nice. (And please forget about any real partnership with Dan Malloy, unless you’re talking about a mafia-style “partnership.” Let’s get real about dealing with our “friends” in Hartford and Washington.)
(In the meantime, mayor Finch is claiming city salvation from the creation of 200 low-end, and part-time jobs, and about $100 million in new tax base–when we need at least 30,000 living-wage jobs and about $12 Billion in new tax base. We lost several big businesses under his tenure that were associated with more jobs and tax base than he is even taking credit for–Direktor Shipyards, Modern Plastics fabrication plant, and the Sikorsky South End operation, just to name three.)
Jeff, what are the plans for the other two candidates for mayor that can compare to MJF’S plan?
The boys have one plan: getting a job.
Good job, Mary-Jane. You have identified many issues that bear on how distant local governance has gotten from the people of the City. Those in office have a belief they have a right to be there and will use all their resources to maintain their position. We’ll see what all that cash will do at this point.
Jeff, the City got this way slowly, and likely, if it finds new leadership will climb out of the mess in what seems a slow manner to many. However, it is the trend that will matter. And to look at trends you require accurate, regular and timely data and indicators. The City had such a system, but like much else, it did not serve the incumbent so it was castrated.
Return to Bill’s early candidate and State of the City words. What was said and what happened? Historians, have a field day. Time will tell.
If JML liked MJ’s plan, then I like MJ’s plan. I trust his judgment.
Jeff Kohut, once again Jeff, what are the plans for the other two candidates for mayor that can compare to MJF’s plan?