This year’s mayoral race in Springfield is between incumbent Domenic Sarno, 52, who took office in 2008 and is currently in his third term, and Salvatore “Sal” Circosta, 30, the former owner of Sal’s Bakery and Cafe, who ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2013.
Mayor Sarno’s office has declined several times to participate in this interview series. When and if Sarno has a change of heart and speaks directly to these questions, we’ll put it online. But in the meantime, please feel free to write in his responses in the spaces provided.
You have $100,000 free in the budget and you get to decide how it is spent. What department — or departments — would you give this money to?
Circosta: The City of Springfield is facing three main areas that need major improvements: public safety, education, and jobs. The common thread here is usually ignored: the youth. Our young people need both investment and attention — opportunities for better education, good mentorship, larger sports programs, and increases in arts, sciences, music, and extracurricular activities. If we invest more in our youth it will prevent violent crimes in the future, create a more engaged education system where students are the focus rather than testing, and it will create a better market of future entrepreneurs, skilled laborers, artists, and professionals.
Sarno:
What is your opinion of a flat tax rate, in which businesses would pay the same property taxes as residents?
Circosta: As a candidate for mayor, my main concerns are twofold: attract new businesses and jobs to Springfield, and sustain and build our current businesses. In order to make Springfield an attractive city for business to move to Springfield, the business tax rate needs to be lowered. The current situation is that both commercial and residential parties are being unfairly taxed at high rates and are not provided with the basic amenities: safe streets, good schools, and an economic future not based on a casino.
The city needs to focus on lowering the crime rate and improving schools, branding the city of Springfield better and building our marketing team and lowering our tax rate. What this will do is attract new businesses and jobs, which will build our economy and eventually allow the city to lower the tax rate on residential property.
Sarno:
How would you address problems in the school system?
Circosta: The Springfield Public School System is struggling. Currently, all of our middle schools are Level Four, along with a majority of our high schools and a good number of our elementary schools. Springfield’s dropout rate is 38.4%. Our city has a colorful history of promoting incompetent educators within our system, driving away new teachers, not properly compensating our veteran teachers and paraprofessionals, and not holding the system’s leadership accountable for a failing school system.
The mayor and school committee need to start holding administrators accountable, and the mayor needs to know what is really going on in our schools. I would go to our schools unannounced to see the true working conditions our teachers and paraprofessionals have to teach in, as well as what our students have to learn in. We need to focus less on testing, more on students. We need to increase the availability of arts, music, and sports in our elementary and middle schools so our students are better prepared for high school and adulthood. And we need to develop a strong mentorship program in our schools to help our students mature emotionally and intellectually.
Sarno:
What area or areas in town are in need of environmental improvements?
Circosta: The most significant threat right now in Springfield is the projected building of the Biomass Plant in East Springfield. Our current mayor has been in favor of building the biomass plant, which will significantly contribute to pollution and decrease air quality in a residential neighborhood. Since the concept arose, Sarno has received thousands of dollars from the Palmer Paving Corp.’s David Callahan family in political contributions. These projects are bad for Springfield and bad for the environment. Springfield’s Arise for Social Justice has an Environmental Justice Committee, which as mayor I would humbly ask to be my executive advisors on environmental issues facing our city.
Sarno:
Check out “Four Questions” for West Springfield, Chicopee, Holyoke, and Greenfield mayoral candidates at www.valleyadvocate.com.
