NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Five entered the mayoral race but only two will survive Tuesday's preliminary to face off in November's general election.
Polls open for voters in North Adams at 7 a.m. on Tuesday, and close at 7 p.m. All five wards will be voting at St. Elizabeth's Parish Center this year. The City Council voted earlier this year to move the Ward 4 polling location to the parish center, where the other four wards have been for a number of years.
No incumbent is on the ballot for the first time in 34 years. Vying for the corner office are Thomas Bernard, Rachel Branch, Robert M. Martelle, Robert R. Moulton Jr. and Peter Oleskiewicz.
Bernard has never held elected office but has served in a number of administrative capacities at academic and nonprofit institutions. A North Adams native and the son of school teachers, he is currently director of special projects at Smith College in Northampton. Prior to that, he worked at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.
Bernard has focused in campaign on education, public health and infrastructure as the avenues for economic growth. He has put forward the idea of hiring a business manager/developer to help attract businesses to the city and work with those already here. He points to his background working with local and state officials, financial management and oversight, and development.
"I'm hoping for different ideas different ways of doing things," he said at last week's forum. "I don't see things in either/or terms. We often get stuck in us versus them arguments and this is a community that is us and us."
Branch has deep roots in the city as a descendant of the Gallup family and whose father served on the City Council. Most of her long experience in community and public service, however, has occurred in the wider world: working for the city of Denver in developing job training programs for the disadvantaged, fighting the siting of a cement plant in a Bridgeport, Conn., neighborhood, and working with diplomats and intelligence officials in the Middle East.
After she returned home to North Adams to care for her mother, Branch became a foster parent for sexually abused and traumatized children. She was elected as a write-in to the McCann School Committee and is a member of the North County Cares coalition. She's presented herself as a scrappy, low-income community street fighter for the marginalized, and promises a collaborative approach to problem-solving.
"What are you doing for a child today?" she said, speaks to all the needs of every community.
This is Martelle's second run for mayor; in 2011, he didn't make it past the preliminary. The longtime resident is originally from Clarksburg and worked at the former Aluminum Anodizing before its closure. He now works at Walmart.
Martelle said the city and the state have to do more to bring in jobs. The loss of manufacturing and a dismissive attitude from Boston, he said, have resulted in a mass exiting of businesses and people and that he would personally be out working to bring jobs back. He believes that Mass MoCA should be required to offer something in lieu of taxes to help lift the tax burden on homeowners. Martelle also has issues with the actions of the Department of Children and Families, which he believes is too quick to remove children from homes and too slow in returning them. It's all about how much money the department gets, he said.
"Because I just had enough," he said when asked why he was running. "The others are going to give us the same song and dance they have for years. If you ask them to do something, they won't do it."
This is also Moulton's second run for mayor. The lifelong resident has been involved in the community for many years, serving five terms as city councilor, chairing several of its committees and as president of North Adams Ambulance service. He points to his background of elective service as well as the operations of his business, Moulton's Spectacle Shoppe on Main Street, as examples of his knowledge of government operations and of budgeting, managing employees and handling day-to-day operations.
He's said he would only do a couple terms, if elected, and pointed to the cable access show he's had for years to hear his opinions and solutions to issues facing the city.
"You know what I'm going to do for you, you know I've always, in my heart, wanted to do the best for the community," he said at the forum. "I would love the opportunity to lead."
Oleskiewicz's campaign has essentially been at standstill though his name is still on the ballot. While it seemed he was withdrawing, late last week he stated he was still in.
A truck driver, his work schedule had made it all but impossible to participate in forums or outwardly campaign. He said he was interested in understanding every facet of how the city operated and look for better ways of doing things. Oleskiewicz had called for a cracking down on heroin dealers, increasing the number of police officers, and pursuing grants at all levels to provide them with resources. He also supported raising compensation packages for police and public works employees.
A frequent Facebook commenter, he had reached out to citizens to hear their complaints and help solve their issues, Oleskiewicz said. "I am not running on anyone two or even three platforms, there are an entire wealth of issues plaguing the city."
The two top vote-getters will move on to the general election on Nov. 7. Voting is from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. for all wards at the parish center.
