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Revere Farmers’ Market Week - See page 6
ADVOCATE Vol. 27, No. 32
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Hello again, RHS Class of 1982
781-286-8500
Friday, August 11, 2017
~Election 2017 Candidate Profile~
Councillor-at-Large Jessica Giannino on future development and passing of Bob Haas By Sara Brown
C
What’s 35 years among friends? Members of the RHS Class of 1982 descended on Breakaway in Danvers recently for their 35 year reunion. Shown at the event, from left to right, are Dan Doherty, Kim Pivnica, Wendy MacDonald, and Kristine Morgan Jones. See more photos inside on pages 12-13. (Advocate photos by Ross Scabin)
Disabilities Commission readying sidewalks for school year City to pursue renewal of Special Olympics program By Sara Brown
T
he Disabilities Commission is making sure sidewalks are ready before the school year begins. The city just placed a curb cut by the Paul Revere School at the cor-
for a Contact usation No Oblig
ner of Revere Street and Roosevelt Avenue to improve accessibility for pedestrians of all abilities. “We’re doing upgrades for pedestrian infrastructure to get ready for school to begin,” said Mayor Brian Arrigo’s aide,
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Joe Gravellese, at the August 8 meeting of the Disabilities Commission. A curb cut is a ramp cut into a street curb at a corner for wheelchair access or at a driveway for vehicular access. Gravellese said that corner sees high foot traffic of students crossing and parents wanted to see that area become a safe crossing. “We wanted to make sure it was a little safer,” he said. The city is also upgrading infrastructure around the Garfield School. The program is known as Safe Routes and is funded by the state. The project includes the reconstruction of the concrete sidewalk on Waverly Avenue from Centennial Avenue to the intersection of North Shore Road and Dana Street; reconstruction of the concrete sidewalk on Dix Street and the reconstruction of concrete sidewalk on the east side of Garfield Avenue from Dix Street to the school driveway. New high-visibility crosswalks will be constructed and existing signage will be upgraded near the school.
SIDEWALKS | SEE PAGE 6
ouncillor-at-Large Jessica Giannino has her eye on her fifth term on the City Council. “I love what I do,” she said. “Revere is a big part of my life. I want to make sure our residents are getting the best this city has to offer.” The lifelong Revere resident believes she has a unique perspective to offer the city as the youngest one on the council. “I lived in Revere my whole life,” she said. “I have seen it change. I am also a millennial and I know what the city needs to do to attract young families and recent college graduates to stay here.” “When our students graduate college, we want them to come back and raise a family here,” she added. Giannino said Revere is going through a time of change with big projects on the horizon like Wonderland and Suffolk Downs. She said Revere still has to stay focused on what the big vision is for the city. “We want people to want to come here and shop and eat,” she said. “We want commercial development that doesn’t drain our city resources. We would also benefit from the taxes of that kind of development.” She said her time recently as the Zoning Subcommittee chair taught her a lot about what makes a proposal good for the city and also what residents want. “They don’t want to see apartments anymore,” she said.
Jessica Giannino Councillor-at-Large
She said when it comes to planning the future of Revere, the city has to keep its residents in mind. “We have to make sure people can still afford to live here and pay their water bills and taxes,” she said. “Our families and our seniors is what keep this city going. We have to have them on our minds.” Giannino said it is important for the city and all its departments to have good morale, including the Police Department. Recently, there has been some controversy over Mayor Brian Arrigo’s decision to not renew former Police Chief Joseph Cafarelli’s contract and choosing longtime Revere Police Officer James Guido as the interim police chief. “Chief Cafarelli was a great chief and people feel like they are losing something important and I understand that,” she said. “The mayor totally has the right to pick his own police chief though.” Giannino said it is time for the city to move forward. “It’s
JESSICA GIANNINO | SEE PAGE 4