Mitchell Highlights New Bedford’s Momentum in State of the City Address

Cites Continued Growth, Looks Ahead to Big Year Before Audience of 500+

(Click Here to Read Mayor Mitchell’s 2025 State of the City Address)

NEW BEDFORD Mayor Jon Mitchell spotlighted New Bedford’s continued growth Wednesday afternoon to an audience of more than 500 business leaders, elected officials, stakeholders and others at the annual State of the City Luncheon at New Bedford High School.

“New Bedford is stronger today than it was a year ago,” he said. “Despite all the sound and fury at the national level, our City forged ahead. In the tumultuous year that just passed, we demonstrated again to ourselves that we can succeed when we keep our eye on the ball.”

Mayor Mitchell highlighted several successes over the past year in his remarks, including:

  • Completion of several key Port projects, including cutting the ribbon on North Terminal, expanding the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal, dredging dozens of berths, and making multi-million dollar renovations of municipal fishing piers.
  • Construction of the City’s first regulation-sized soccer field at Dias Field, extensive stormwater improvements at Buttonwood and Brooklawn parks to prevent flooding, a complete redesign of Ashley Park, and the reconstruction of the West Beach Bath House.
  • Progress on several major transportation projects, including the New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge, the pedestrian bridge over JFK Boulevard, the Route 195 Viaduct, and intercity rail service between New Bedford and Boston.
  • More housing units were completed in 2024 than in any year in recent memory after the City streamlined permitting, overhauled the zoning “use table” and eased planning board review requirements.
  • Investments in public safety continue to make a positive difference in the quality-of-life for New Bedford residents. In 2024, not only did crime continue to plummet, but so did the incidence of structure fires. Overall in the last decade, violent crime has dropped 58%.
  • Nearly every school in the district older than 20 has undergone or will soon undergo a major facility renovation with projects completed in 2024 including a state-of-the-art field hockey and lacrosse field at NBHS, and handicap-accessible playgrounds at three elementary schools.

Mayor Mitchell also made several announcements for 2025, including some new initiatives and proposals on the horizon, including:

  • The New Bedford Economic Development Council will develop a “road map” for growing the City’s manufacturing sector. “With the prospect of an Advanced Manufacturing Campus on Hathway Road, with new training programs at Voc-Tech, the reinstitution of the New Bedford Redevelopment Authority, and improvements in infrastructure across the City, we are in a better position to expand manufacturing than in a long time,” Mayor Mitchell said. “We in New Bedford have a long, rich history of making things, and that we will continue to do.”
  • The Regeneration Committee, led by Tony Sapienza and Maureen Armstrong, is developing a new strategic economic development plan that aims to enhance the City’s opportunities in manufacturing, healthcare, culture and other facets of a regional economy. “This plan will point the way forward for our economy for the next decade,” Mayor Mitchell said.
  • Resubmitting a proposal to the City Council to adopt a state law regarding health insurance negotiations between unions and the City that could save taxpayers millions of dollars. “It is a fair measure to promote accountability, and it has been adopted by nearly every city and town in Southeastern Massachusetts,” Mayor Mitchell said. “The reality is that health care is a $50 million item in our budget and getting bigger fast.”
  • Proposing ordinances that will further spur housing development by reducing the minimum lot size and number of parking spaces required in multi-family neighborhoods, “which will make it easier for developers to build apartments,” Mayor Mitchell said.
  • Also on housing, Mayor Mitchell offered suburbs help to build multifamily housing. “We will continue to maintain a leadership role in the region when it comes to removing barriers to increasing the supply of housing, whether those barriers are outdated policies or financing gaps in proposed projects. And we will work with the towns to help them with technical expertise and other assistance, insofar as they are willing to act on it.”
  • Releasing New Bedford’s first comprehensive Data Strategy. Developed in conjunction with Bloomberg and Johns Hopkins University, the strategy will guide City government’s collection, use, and publication of data to enhance efficiencies and communication. The effort will be led by Christina Cotsoridis, who recently returned to City Hall as the City’s first Director of Data Management. “The better decisions we make based on data, the more efficiently we spend taxpayer dollars,” Mayor Mitchell said. “As residents are able to see more clearly what they’re getting for their money, it will engender trust, which we can’t have enough of these days.”
  • The number of police officers at the NBPD is projected to be 230 this spring, up from a low last year of 199, and it comes as the City is preparing to hire a project manager to move the new headquarters project forward.
  • The City’s new mobile app, NBConnected, will roll out in the weeks ahead. It places City services at residents’ fingertips, allowing them quick and easy access to pay bills, apply for permits, pay for parking, or submit a request for non-emergency services, like a pothole or an overflowing trash can.
  • To support the ongoing work of the School Department to make schools a welcoming place and overcome barriers to school attendance, he called on the parents of chronically absent students to ensure their kids are in school. “When you get right down to it, it’s the parents’ job to ensure their kids are in school. So to the parents of chronically absent students, do your child a favor: don’t accept their excuses to skip school.”
  • A comprehensive maintenance plan is being developed for the City’s street tree program. Publishing soon, it includes an interactive online map that allows users to look at information for any of the 12,000 street trees in the City.

The Mayor’s remarks appear abridged below:

Building a New Bedford for Everyone

The Mayor reflected on his mission and goals for New Bedford and looked at residents’ shared vision of a thriving City.

“My job is to get things done for you. That is my mission. That is my pledge. Our job together, as fellow citizens, is to continue the work of building the City we’ve envisioned,” he said. “A city that is the cultural, economic and political center of a distinct region; A City with a competitive economy that offers opportunity for everyone who seeks it; A City with a highly professional, caring, and efficient municipal government that commands the confidence of taxpayers; A City recognized for its physical beauty, cultural richness and the compassion of its residents, and where everyone feels like they belong.”

High Quality of Life Starts with Public Safety

The Mayor highlighted several gains in public safety, including the implementation of reforms spelled out in an independent, comprehensive review Police Chief Paul Chief Oliveira proactively sought to make the department better.

“Reforming police departments tends to be difficult without a whole lot of external pressure. In the absence of that, and despite the evident success of declining crime rates, Chief Oliveira initiated the review for the sole purpose of making the department better now, and for years to come,” Mayor Mitchell said. “Chief Oliveira is sowing the seeds now to grow an organizational culture in the department that will make it effective in maintaining the public’s safety, and commanding its trust, for years to come.”

Regional Approach to Housing Solutions

Guidance and strategies outlined in the City’s Building New Bedford housing plan have helped eliminate barriers to housing construction, and federal funds have been used to not only help developers make their projects viable, but also to push vacant properties back to the market.

“The efforts are working,” Mayor Mitchell said. “You’ve seen the construction out there, and still more apartments are in the pipeline. In the long run, the increase in supply will help put downward pressure on housing prices.”

Mayor Mitchell also looked at the root causes of the housing trends in Greater New Bedford as people who are priced out of other markets in Bristol County, Cape Cod and other parts of Massachusetts seek lower housing costs in our region.

“Housing policies in the suburbs that exacerbate income segregation are neither in the interest of the city or the region generally, nor is it good for the people who are forced to move from places they cannot afford to live,” Mayor Mitchell said, calling for a regional approach to housing solutions. “It would be irresponsible for us to allow New Bedford to be the default solution to a housing problem that extends far beyond New Bedford.”

Strong Fiscal Foundation

New Bedford has the highest bond rating from global credit agencies in the City’s history, and Mayor Mitchell said the administration is leaning on the same financial management principles and experience used to achieve the high marks to navigate the cuts made during the last two budget seasons.

“We’ve made cuts, and City government is smaller and more efficient than it was ten years ago, but it’s not enough to close the gap in the long run,” he said. “The drivers of our budget are the rising cost of pensions, healthcare, and minimum school spending requirements, which are largely driven by state policy mandates.  All of these are projected to rise over the next several years. Meanwhile, the amount of state aid for municipal services and road reconstruction has not rebounded from their inflation-adjusted levels before the 2008 financial crisis. In fact, if the level of general purpose state aid had kept up with inflation since then, it would have had an enormously positive impact on the City’s finances.”

Pathways to Opportunity

Mayor Mitchell highlighted efforts the school department is making to reduce chronic absenteeism, including going directly to homes to help families overcome barriers to school attendance, and urged the parents of chronically absent students to ensure their kids go to school.

“All of the City’s elementary schools are on track this year to return to pre-pandemic rates of attendance,” he said.

He also looked ahead to the ground-breaking on the new Congdon-Devalles Elementary School this year, the opening of the central kitchen and NBHS school-based health center, and the start of feasibility work for a new elementary school in the North End to replace the Ashley and Swift schools.

Bright Future for Cultural Institutions

The Mayor pointed to expansions and growth on the horizon for some of the City’s biggest cultural institutions. The Zeiterion Performing Arts Center’s $35 million expansion will be complete this year, the New Bedford Art Museum is expanding to the second floor of its building, and the Whaling Museum is building a new $30 million facility to expand its art exhibits.

“One of the main reasons why New Bedford is the coolest place in America is our arts and cultural sector. It is a sizeable facet of our economy, generating over $300 million annually.  And it’s an exciting time right now,” he said.

Economic Competitiveness

Mayor Mitchell pointed to New Bedford’s maritime economy for what gives the City its edge in today’s global economy.

“Our work has been to build on this foundation by enhancing the competitive advantages of the port and its businesses so they can continue to innovate, invest and grow.  The results have been considerable,” he said. “In the maritime cluster, over $1.2 billion of new port infrastructure construction and dredging are underway or completed; the port has launched the first major American offshore wind project; new maritime businesses have set up shop while countless others have grown; and the port continues to be America’s leader in fishing and seafood processing.”

He also said that the offshore wind industry will remain strong in New Bedford.

“The continued development of our maritime sector can be facilitated by the progress of the offshore wind industry,” he said. “Despite recent federal policy changes concerning offshore wind, the industry is here to stay in the U.S. It has already invested billions and it employs thousands.  Energy demand in the U.S. is growing, especially in the new A.I. era, and climate change is not going away as a problem.

Visually Appealing Public Spaces and Reliable Infrastructure

Mayor Mitchell emphasized the importance of maintaining and repairing City roadways and other infrastructure, including increasing the City’s local commitment to road maintenance from zero to $3 million, and investing tens of millions in clean, safe drinking water.

Last year, the City published a Standard of Appearance for the Public Realm, which has served as a foundation for efforts to keep the City looking visually appealing.

“A City that looks great is one that proclaims for everyone that it cares about itself. City government has a foundational role to play in maintaining the spaces we all share, but each of us has to do our part.”

Connection to Place

Mayor Mitchell emphasized the cooperation between City government and residents in making New Bedford a thriving place to live, work, and raise families.

“It’s the neighborhood groups that come together to work on the more local of problems. It’s the volunteers for turkey drives at Thanksgiving,” he said. “It’s all the people who are raising their hand to support funding for the Herman Melville statue, and it’s all the festeiros who put on the Feast, the grandest ethnic festival in America. And so many more. Whether it’s out of pride, generosity, duty or love, or all of the above, each of us has ample reason to play a part.”

He closed his remarks by paying tribute to one of New Bedford’s most successful examples of civic initiative. Over the last 20 years, Operation Clean Sweep has logged some 31,000 volunteer hours and removed almost 250,000 pounds of litter from City streets and public spaces.

“One might ask, who in their right mind would decide to squander a beautiful Saturday in the summer to go pick up garbage?” he said. “Well, they do, because they love their City.”

*Published Jan. 29, 2025