| January 5th, 2010 Inaugural Address of Theodore L. Gatsas: Imagine the Possibilities Thank you Coach Wade for a warm and heartfelt introduction. It means a lot to me and my family - to have you and your wife here with us today. And a special thanks to Governor Lynch for doing me the honor of swearing me in. First, I want to thank the five former mayors that are here with us today, Guinta, Baines, Wieczorek, Beaulieu, Dupuis, I am honored to have you here today. And now, I want to welcome our distinguished guests, fellow city officials, former city officials, my former colleagues in the State Legislature, friends, family and fellow residents of the great City of Manchester to today’s inauguration. I also want to take a moment to recognize my wife Cassandra who is on stage with me today. She has stood by my side, and loyally supported me, as I worked hard to succeed in business and in public service. Thank you Cassandra. I look forward to the residents of Manchester getting to know her better. She is a passionate, energetic, and caring person who has a lot to offer this city. And I would be remiss if I did not also recognize my mother, Pauline, who is also on stage with me today. As Mr. Wade mentioned, she has been my number one cheerleader. Thank you mom for being so supportive throughout my life, regardless of what I have been involved in. To the newly sworn in members of the Board of Aldermen and School Committee - today is as much about celebrating your swearing in, as it is mine. You have all worked very hard to be here, and are deserving of recognition and celebration. I look forward to the work we will do together on behalf of the Queen City residents, over the next two years. Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to make this celebration possible. From Matt Normand and his team in the City Clerk’s office, the good folks at the Palace Theater for once again opening their doors to us, Charlie Sherman for acting as our Emcee, and of course special thanks to Bill Skouteris who led and managed this ceremony on behalf of our team. Thank you to the Central High School Jazz Band for providing us with such wonderful music, the West High School ROTC Color Guard, the Fire and Police Departments for your important participation, His Eminence Metropolitan Methodios for the invocation, and Father Andrew who will deliver our benediction, and to Noah, Emin and Caitlin who did a great job with the Pledge of Allegiance– these three children are symbols of the future of our city, all successful students with bright futures. I am so proud to have you here today. Finally I would like to recognize Frank Guinta for his service to the city for the better part of the last decade. Frank, your impact has undoubtedly been felt, and your dedication was evidenced throughout your time in the Mayor’s Office and as Alderman. My team and I thank you for helping us ensure a smooth transition leading up to today. And to Morgan Guinta, we also thank you for your commitment to the city and for the value that you have added during Frank’s service. Imagine the possibilities…… Forty years ago, I never could have imagined that a Greek kid from Belmont Street, would become the mayor of this city. While today it becomes a reality, you only need to ask my brother Michael or even my mother Pauline, as supportive as she is, and they will tell you, that at times no one would have thought this was possible. Beyond hard work, support from family, and blessings from God, what helped make it possible was that no one told me it wasn’t possible, and I was surrounded by people who believed in me. As we gather here today, there are plenty of people inside and outside of Manchester, who think we are destined - to under perform, destined - to have schools in need of improvement, destined - to have high crime, destined - to have aldermen and school committee members who cannot work together. Simply put, they aren’t willing to imagine the possibilities, because they stopped believing in this city a long time ago. Well, let’s be clear. I’m not one of those people, and as long as I am able to do something about it, I never will be. Today, I ask you to imagine the possibilities with me. Those who knew me when I was young, and focused on things other than public service, could tell you that me becoming mayor was certainly more far fetched than Manchester overcoming the challenges it faces and realizing its full potential. If we allow ourselves to imagine the possibilities, and dedicate ourselves to making it happen, anything is possible. Let’s take a moment to imagine the possibilities, together… Imagine - what we can accomplish, if we work together as one community with the same objective? Imagine - having a school system that successfully prepares our students for their future, and becomes a shining example of how to deliver education? Imagine - having taxpayers feel like they’re getting good value for their money? Imagine - city services that are more efficient and effective? Imagine - being able to go anywhere in Manchester, at any time, and feel safe? Imagine - business and industry wanting to come to Manchester and stay in Manchester? Imagine - others saying we have the most effective public employees in the state? And imagine - Manchester leading the green revolution in New Hampshire? If possibilities are to become reality, we need to collectively stop saying we can’t, and start thinking about how we will. And, starting right here and now, we need to believe in our community again. Now comes the obvious question, what will it take to turn these possibilities into reality? If possibilities are to become reality, we will need elected officials, myself included, to put aside partisan politics, to forget about majorities and minorities, and to consistently work together for the betterment of our city. This will also require us to solve problems as one city rather than taking positions that work best for the east side, the west side, the north end or the south end. If possibilities are to become reality, we must get our fiscal house in order. Our budget process is antiquated, inefficient and fosters bitterness and resentment. We need to start the process earlier, use our time wisely, engage all school committee members and aldermen in the budget process, and conduct more joint meetings in order to increase the dialogue and understanding. If possibilities are to become reality, we need to make more informed decisions and take swift and decisive action. Failure to do so puts people at risk and almost always costs the taxpayers more in the long run. Debate is good and should be encouraged, but delay is not acceptable. If possibilities are to become reality, we need a city government that is customer-focused, responsive and accessible. We need to increase productivity, streamline our operations, consolidate where it makes sense, and generate significant cost savings. We will need to offer more services online, and make our local government more user friendly. We will need to routinely seek feedback from those we are entrusted to serve. And, we will need to continually ask ourselves, “How can we do it better?” If possibilities are to become reality, we will need a safe city where our families can live, work and prosper without fear. Safety on our streets, in our schools, and in our neighborhoods is tantamount to realizing our full potential. We will need to leverage the resources at our disposal at the local, state and federal level. We will need to update and maintain equipment, crack down on gangs and drug traffic and the violence that follows. And we will need to continue to expand community policing. If possibilities are to become reality, we will need a robust education system. By preparing our students for their futures, providing them opportunities, engaging their parents, creating a more disciplined and respectful school environment, holding leadership accountable for results, and lobbying for fair testing standards, we can and will get the Manchester School District back on track.vIf possibilities are to become reality, we will need a financially sound and diverse government - and that starts with our tax base. We will need to create an environment for businesses to come to Manchester and stay in Manchester. To continue as the economic heart of New Hampshire, we need to expand our tax base, attract business and investment opportunities, and diversify our economy. We will need to foster our economic engines such as the airport, reduce and eliminate the unnecessary bureaucracies involved with starting or growing a business, rebuild our manufacturing base and aggressively pursue opportunities that can deliver value to the taxpayers while reducing the burden they currently face. If possibilities are to become reality, as your Mayor, I will need to be the cities biggest cheerleader. To ask the tough questions. To put solutions before politics. To engage the community. To foster a positive and productive environment at City Hall. To put examples of progress on display which inspire everyone. To help create a school system we can all be proud of and a community that is safe by all standards. To provide you with the type of first class leadership and constituent service that you are so deserving of. And to continually challenge our city to imagine the possibilities. I am confident what I have outlined will lead us to a better place, but I won’t stand here today, and pretend I have all the answers - or that the task at hand will be easy. While I have never shied away from sharing my opinion, sometimes quite forcefully….I know that alone, I cannot make these possibilities a reality. Having been in government for the last decade, I know firsthand that change doesn’t come easy, and it certainly doesn’t come overnight. While I don’t have all the answers, I do have a plan, that I believe with all my heart will get us there. The people of Manchester are the foundation of that plan, and the journey begins today. I fundamentally believe the best answers to our biggest challenges don’t always come from government, which is why my administration will create new opportunities to engage residents in the process. We have come a long way with public hearings and television broadcasts of our city meetings, but that’s simply not enough to get us where we need to be. Starting today, we will initiate two new outreach programs. The first is a Mayor’s Night Out, which I will host and all the alderman and school board members will be invited to participate. Three times a year, once at each of the three high schools residents will have an opportunity to ask questions of their elected officials, in an informal setting. I will encourage them to share their ideas and be part of the process. We will also begin a “Mayor’s Night In” at City Hall nine times a year, where we will have all department heads and select staff on hand from 6-8PM for residents who have questions or issues that need to be addressed and cannot come to City Hall during work hours. They will have the opportunity to speak directly with those who can help, face to face. And of course it will also provide residents with an opportunity to share their ideas and potential solutions directly with city leaders. In an effort to jump start community engagement, and to quickly begin generating ideas that can lead to solutions, today, I announce the formation of two Community Task Force groups. Each task force will consist of seven members with individual membership to be announced at the organizational meeting today at City Hall. The First group is the Task Force on Efficiencies and Consolidations. This team of community members will be asked to review city departments and school district operations, and offer recommendations on areas where consolidation and efficiencies can add value to the bottom line and streamline our government. The second group is the Task Force on Student Alignment. This team will conduct a non-political and thorough review of how we are currently aligning our students across our school facilities, how school district lines are drawn, and what busing routes are in effect. Recommendations will include how to more efficiently align our student population, where the greatest opportunities to reduce overcrowding are, and whether the current facilities usage is optimal based on the adopted K-5, Middle School and High School model. Each of these groups will seek input from the public at large – so all Manchester residents will have a voice. Beyond each group hosting a public meeting, we will create an online survey within the city website where residents can offer their ideas. And for those who may not be web users, we will also activate a separate telephone line where residents can participate. The Task Force on Efficiencies and Consolidation will provide a full report including specific recommendations to the Board of Mayor and Alderman and the Board of School Committee by March 15th in line with this year’s expedited budget process. The Task Force on Schools will provide their report and recommendations by April 15th. Once submitted, we will host joint meetings of both boards to review the reports and discuss the findings. I believe we can generate great value from such groups while empowering citizen activism, and hopefully inspiring our next generation of leaders. My expectation is that the ideas and recommendations generated will be welcomed with open arms by both boards and followed by a spirited discussion around how we can make some of these things happen, rather than why we cannot. Community input will spark debate, help us imagine the possibilities, and inform our decisions. This will not be another group whose hard work is left on a shelf to collect dust. And, let me be clear about my intentions. I am not establishing these citizen task force groups because I lack confidence in our city and school officials, or because I am abdicating our shared responsibility. I’m announcing this today, because we must successfully address our biggest challenges, and that will require the engagement and leadership of the community, as well as the officials elected to represent them. Another initiative beginning today is all departments including the enterprise funds will be placing on the city’s website all vendors, contracts and consults and payments to each - for every citizen to see and understand. Transparency is a must in city government. I am convinced that by bringing people together, fostering a higher level of community engagement, establishing a non-partisan spirit at City Hall, and committing to imagining the possibilities, we can, and we will address the challenges before us. We will do it together, and we will do it with our heads held high. Let’s be bold enough to imagine the possibilities….and let’s commit ourselves to building a better Manchester together. God bless you and God bless the City of Manchester. Thank you Back To News |
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Paid for by Ted Gatsas for Mayor. B. Rivard, Fiscal Agent PO Box 6655, Manchester, NH 03108 603.623.0220
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