Page 6 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2021 1. What is your background, and why are running for the 19th Suff olk seat? Winthrop and Revere mean everything to me. After serving in WWII, my grandfather, Joe started Stasio Lumber Yard – serving our community for decades. My Nonni Josephine spoke no English, but Revere welcomed her after her home in Italy was bombed. This community made me who I am and inspired me to pursue degrees in Public Health, so that I could have the knowledge needed to make my home truly healthy. After working in the House of Representatives for several years now, I knew I had to run. There’s simply too much at stake for our next State Representative not being able to deliver for us on day one. 2. What are the biggest issues you see facing Winthrop and Revere today? COVID-19 has exacerbated many of the challenges facing our community, and we need ~ FIVE QUESTIONS WITH THE CANDIDATE ~ ALICIA DELVENTO to utilize an equitable public health approach on our most pressing issues: climate change, healthcare, education, resilient infrastructure, and economy. These issues are personal to me. I grew up here, I was educated in our public schools, and I hope to raise my family here – I can’t do that if the Marsh and Beaches disappear, or if we don’t shore up support for working families. While working on the state budget for the Chair of House Ways and Means, I was able to fi ght for progress on many critical issues, including increasing funding for public schools, grants for our small businesses, and passing the “greenest” budget in Massachusetts history. The pandemic is a moment of reckoning and a call to action – we need to work together to build and fund strong, durable systems. ~FLASHBACK~ 31st in a series of photos 3. How can the state and the legislature help hard-hit communities like Revere rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic? I am proud to say I am the only candidate with a comprehensive COVID-19 plan that ensures an equitable approach going forward, especially for our seniors, frontline workers, and immigrants that COVID-19 has disproportionately hurt. Over the last year I have focused on how we can come back stronger while working for a member of the House COVID-19 Economic Recovery Committee. We have to pass a comprehensive economic relief package that helps those who have lost jobs pay their bills and get back to work, and focus on helping our small businesses T he Democratic Primary for the 19th Suff olk District representative seat, representing Winthrop and a portion of Revere, is on March 2. Following are the answers to questions put to candidate Alicia DelVento. and working people, not large corporations. 4. How can the legislature help balance development in communities like Winthrop and Revere while making sure the communities are still aff ordable for working class families? There is an aff ordability problem in Winthrop and Revere, and our working families are getting pushed out. Our legislature can ensure that a portion of commercial development revenue always goes back into the community to lower the cost of living here, and that we develop in a way that is sustainable and takes into account pressing issues like sea-level rise. It’s critical that we examine the structural issues causing the aff ordable housing crisis for those who call Revere and Winthrop home, and I look forward to building coalitions with experts and advocates. Growth should mean bringing people into our community, not pushing them out. 5. What unique skills and qualifications would you bring to Beacon Hill, and how would those skills benefi t the residents of the 19th Suff olk District? I have spent the last four years gaining extensive experience with the Massachusetts House of Representatives – the most of any candidate in this race. This experience includes work under the Chairs of House Ways and Means (which decides the annual budget), Health Care Financing, and State Administration and Regulatory Oversight, as well as for a member of the Special Committee dealing with the Commonwealth’s economic recovery from COVID-19. I am confi dent in this experience and in my relationships there enabling me to hit the ground running in a way that not every freshman representative can. My background is in public health, and I think that is an important perspective to have in government during a public health emergency. My experience in the House, my work in public health, and my commitment to collaborating in community give me a unique ability to deliver for our district. MSBA board votes Northeast Metro Tech into Schematic Design phase S Scott A. Solombrino (left) Class of 1978, was presented the RHS Distinguished Alumni Award by Supt. of Schools Paul Dakin, now retired, and Asst. Supt. Ann Marie Costa, who is also retired. The award is given in recognition of Revere High graduates and presented to an alumni who brought distinction throughout the year. tate Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg, Chair of the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA), and MSBA Executive Director/Deputy CEO John K. McCarthy announced recently that the MSBA Board of Directors voted to move Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational High School (Northeast Metro Tech) into the Schematic Design phase. In the Schematic Design phase, the MSBA and the District will look at possible options to replace the existing Northeast Metro Tech with a new facility. The next step is for the MSBA to work in collaboration with the District to produce detailed designs for a potential project. “Thanks to our collaborative work with local offi cials, we are working to build a 21st century educational facility that will provide Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational Technical students with a top-notch learning environment,” said Goldberg. The proposed project would replace the existing Northeast Metro Tech with a new facility on the site of the existing school. The District identifi ed in their Statement of Interest numerous deficiencies and structural integrity issues, including mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, as well as envelope issues, including windows and roof defi ciencies. In addition to physical plant issues, the District reported that the existing facility does not support the delivery of its educational program, as well as existing and projected overcrowding. “The new Northeast Metropolitan Regional Vocational Technical High School will mean a better learning and teaching location for students and teachers,” stated McCarthy. The MSBA partners with Massachusetts communities to support the design and construction of educationally appropriate, flexible, sustainable and cost-eff ective public school facilities. Since its 2004 inception, the Authority has made over 1,750 site visits to more than 250 school districts as part of its due diligence process and has made over $14.9 billion in reimbursements for school construction projects.
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