Working Together is Success

Dear Residents,

As we enter the summer season, it is a time to be outside enjoying activities such as walking, biking, running, and swimming. While you are outdoors, I ask that you also take note of your surroundings and inform us of any issues. From graffiti to debris to nuisance properties, your observations and input are a guaranteed way of improving our community. Left unattended, it is also a certain way that our city will never become what we all envision it can be.

We have made much progress and have worked hard with the City Council to provide myriad ways for you to communicate about what’s going on around you. Monthly E-updates, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter are a few of the outlets available to notify us of issues that need to be addressed. Of course, you can always report a concern by just using the good-old fashioned telephone!

One new tool that we currently employ with much success is Commonwealth Connect, a Smartphone App that can be downloaded for free using your Apple, Android, Windows Phone or Blackberry devices. We have resolved hundreds of issues since introducing this request-based system in March. Submitting an issue through your Smartphone may only take seconds, but the positive impact on your neighborhood and city may last for years to come.

Our city will only be as good as what you put into it. By working together, we can achieve success and see results. I am certain that if each one of us takes the time to get involved then the sky will be the limit for Malden.  

Sincerely,

                                                                                 

GARY CHRISTENSON

Mayor, City of Malden

CITY SHOWS PRIDE FOR VETS

Dear Malden Residents:

As I approach my second year in office, the one thing that has become abundantly clear is that Malden cares about Veterans.

From dedicating chairs of honor to Prisoners of War and those Missing in Action in the City Council chamber and the Jenkins Auditorium to the Annual Flag Day Celebration to be held this Friday at Bell Rock Memorial Park to the upcoming rededications of memorials honoring our Korean and Vietnam Veterans and the Tartikoff family from the first World War, the Malden community remains forever grateful to the brave men and women who kept us free.

Malden’s pride and respect for those that served our country was most evident this past weekend when our City hosted The Moving Wall. Not since the dedication of the World War II Memorial at Bell Rock Memorial Park has there been such an outpouring of community spirit. It is estimated that there were nearly 3,000 visitors to Forest Dale Cemetery during the three day event and it was not without a lot of reflection for the 58,000 Patriots whose names adorn the Wall, including 19 from Malden.

This feeling of community gratitude permeates down to the next generation as we are proud of Malden High School graduate Lisa DeLacey who will be attending West Point in the fall. In her heartfelt remarks during the Memorial Day Assembly, she explained how she wants to give back to the country that has given her so much. I am certain that Lisa will continue to make us proud as she prepares for the military academy.

Many of these projects require annual funding and, the one thing the City Council and I always agree on is remembering the sacrifices made by our Veterans. For the second straight year, we will be increasing city funding to our Veterans Services Department by nearly 5 percent.

The backbone of Malden’s ongoing support and dedication to our Veterans’ issues is Kevin Jarvis, Veterans Services Director. Kevin himself fought for his country on more than one occasion and he could have stopped there, but here he is 20 years later working day in and day out to make sure Veterans receive everything they deserve. Thank you, Kevin and thank you to our Veterans for defending our land of the free and home of the brave.

Sincerely,

GARY CHRISTENSON

Mayor, City of Malden 

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CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE REST OF THE MAYOR'S BLOG ON THE VETERANS AND THE MOVING WALL. 

Boston Marathon Day

Dear Malden Residents,

Like the horrific events of 9/11, I will never forget where I was when I first learned about the explosions at the Boston Marathon. I received a text from Police Chief Kevin Molis asking that I call him regarding some disturbing news coming out of Boston. I couldn’t immediately respond as I was with my niece, nephew, and his friend at the movies. The next text from Kevin indicated what had transpired and I stared in utter disbelief.

My first instincts were the same as Chief Molis’s which was to offer whatever resources we had available to help in the response efforts of the City of Boston. We also increased security in and around the T station especially since the MBTA was shorthanded due to the unfolding events on Boylston Street. We also reached out to Imam Hamid Bourote of our local mosque to let him know that we would have a presence in the downtown where his organization is located. The fear was that some may rush to judgment and conclude that the bombings emanated from the Middle East.

Unfortunately, my hunch was right as a few days later an individual physically assaulted a Malden Middle Eastern woman and her child. I was relieved to learn that neither one was seriously injured, but I was also outraged that this happened in our community which is known for its hospitality of different cultures from around the world. Police Chief Kevin Molis and members of his department responded quickly and are continuing with the investigation to find who was responsible for this heinous act.

There is little doubt that these are trying times for all of us. My thoughts and prayers are with the victims and all those affected by the senseless tragedy at the Marathon. But I know our community and our sister city Boston like I think I do, I know that we will rise up and overcome the horrendous actions of a few. 

Sincerely,

GARY CHRISTENSON

City of Malden, Mayor

A New Way to Report City Issues!

Dear Malden Residents:

One of our goals in 2013 has come to fruition. On March 21, we introduced a new way for residents and businesses to submit their service requests to the city. Modeling the City of Boston’s successful Citizens Connect Smartphone application, Malden released its own version and even expanded the use of this initiative.

As an example, if a resident sees graffiti on the street they would normally call or email the Department of Public Works. Now, a resident can simply take a picture using their Smartphone and with one click the request is automatically sent to the Department. Once the graffiti is removed, the resident is notified on their Smartphone that the issue has been resolved.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUaAwjTs7bY

We are already seeing great results from the program. Since its release, we have had 576 requests to the DPW and 543 were resolved with the balance slated for spring repairs. That equates to 94 percent of all issues being resolved via this new application and most were fixed within 24 hours. For the most part, submissions were for potholes with 278 requests followed by trash / recycling issues at 104.

This new initiative is benefiting the city in more ways than one as departments like the DPW are becoming more efficient. For instance, the DPW Director can now map out issues in the morning utilizing geo-mapping as opposed to crews just responding haphazardly as in the past. We can also see where in the city most of our issues are occurring and plan accordingly.

We want to thank Mayor Thomas Menino and the City of Boston for their leadership on this initiative which has led to Governor Patrick and Lt. Governor Murray offering to fund this application so that communities like ours can take advantage of this technology.

If you haven’t already, please download Commonwealth Connect for free from your Apple or Android device. If you do now own an Apple or Android device, you can submit requests online using our online widget.  All this can be accessed here http://www.cityofmalden.org/Resident-Issue-Reporting/. We look forward to utilizing this innovative application to improve the delivery of services for our residents!

Sincerely,

GARY CHRISTENSON

Mayor, City of Malden

It's Snow Wonder

Dear Malden Residents: 

I knew my streak of luck of a winter without a major snow storm would eventually end, but never did I imagine that my first serious storm as Mayor would be the fifth worst in Massachusetts history!

Throughout the forecasts, I continued to perform a “rain dance” in the hope that the impending storm might veer east out to the ocean. But when it didn’t, I knew I was going to be in for a long couple of days.

The first day of the storm didn’t seem too bad. It actually looked serene outside my office on the sixth floor of City Hall around noontime. The afternoon into the evening, however, was a different story.

DPW Director Bob Knox picked me up at 9 pm for a firsthand look at what was happening around the city and by then, the storm was in full force. The snow was rapidly intensifying and visibility was near zero. We made it to Public Works where I took the opportunity to thank the men and women in advance for what I knew was going to be a difficult time for our city.

After that, we were back on the road checking on the plowing operation and even finding a few minutes to help the Fire Department shovel out the ramps at Central so that emergency apparatus could respond to calls. By then, Director Knox predicted that it was going to take days to recover from this storm.

He later dropped me home so I could prepare for the aftermath which would take place on Saturday, Sunday, and into the following week. One comical moment came while Mr. Knox was picking me up on Saturday morning to begin our rounds and he got stuck leaving my house. A tow was required which garnered quite a few chuckles from the staff at Public Works.

Once freed, we continued to assist with the plowing operation as the storm did not stop until 4 pm on Saturday afternoon. The good news at that point was no one lost power and only one small tree had come down. Once the storm was officially deemed over, we switched over to the cleanup phase of the operation.

Every available piece of apparatus was redirected to this aspect of the operation. One problem was that by this time several pieces of equipment were down for the count after fighting the ferocity of the storm the night before and during the day Saturday. Thankfully, the City Council has indicated a willingness to support my proposal to replace many of the outdated pieces of equipment at Public Works which should help rectify this problem in the future.

Mr. Knox and I worked through the afternoon and evening except for a moment when he stopped by his home to clean the steps and wave to his two young children through the door. By then, Bobby along with many of his staff had worked 40 hours straight but to my amazement, they remained undaunted by the lack of sleep as they wanted to do the best job they could for the city.

We finally wrapped up around midnight feeling confident that for the most part, the main roads and secondary streets were passable for emergency apparatus to respond if needed. On Sunday morning, Mr. Knox picked me up at 9 am and we focused on the continued cleanup with a focus on the city’s courts, terraces, and parkways. We assisted the staff at the yard with the never-ending phone calls coming in as evidenced by my call sheet.

We were pretty beaten up after leaving the yard around midnight but were confident that with a little bit more time, our city would return to normal. Monday and Tuesday were practically spent 24/7 widening streets and removing snow. We decided that we could remove the Snow Emergency on Monday morning which is always a good sign that things would get better and Tuesday night we made the determination that students could return to school on Wednesday. The reason we waited two days before giving the all clear was that close to 75 percent of our kids walk to school and their safety was absolutely paramount.

A few more calls came in between Wednesday and Friday but for the most part, the worst of the Blizzard of 2013 was over. We spent those days working with property owners to remove snow in front of their homes and businesses, or otherwise, they would be issued fines. This was a concerted effort led by Director of Public Health Chris Webb and the early results prove that this undertaking was successful.

By Friday, one week removed from the storm, we were back to focusing on issues not having to do with snow and believe me, it was a great relief! 

Sincerely,

GARY CHRISTENSON
Mayor, City of Malden

Dear Malden Residents,

I want to reiterate my gratitude to my colleagues on how they responded to Hurricane Sandy. I was on the ground to see firsthand the hard work and dedication of our first responders. From our Emergency Management team fielding calls and keeping our community updated to our Department of Public Works staff along with our Police and Fire Departments responding without hesitation to the dangerous conditions, I could not be prouder as Mayor and as a resident of Malden on their efforts.

The only real negative from that day was that there was another shooting near the corner of Henry and Cross Streets. The Police responded quickly and are actively investigating the incident. It appears that the parties involved knew one another although that doesn’t justify the shooting but fortunately there were no life sustaining injuries. There was some good news on the crime front as the Police Department made an arrest of two individuals for an armed robbery near the T station, an arrest of a person notorious for housebreaks, and finally, a person suspected of using a gun on someone near the Elmwood Pharmacy was tracked down to Chelsea and arrested.

While we continue to focus on ways to address crime, we are also continuing to look at ways of addressing the difficult conditions our employees are faced with on a daily basis working in City Hall and the Department of Public Works. Both facilities are in dire need of work and the time has come to develop a plan to address this problem. We are working on a plan that not only makes sense physically but also financially and I hope to update the community prior to the end of 2012 with an update.

Speaking of 2012, it’s that time of the year again. I hope you will get involved with some of the great community activities on the horizon. I have always been impressed with the number of organizations making a difference in our community. From a comedy show to benefit the Malden Public Schools to the 125^th Thanksgiving Day game between Malden and Medford to the Parade of Holiday Traditions on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, there are plenty of things to do in Malden. I hope you will get involved and thank the organizers of these events for their dedication to Malden.

One way to get be aware and get involved is to let your friends and neighbors know to follow us by submitting their email address to us or by following us on Facebook and / or Twitter. Thank you!

 

Sincerely,

GARY CHRISTENSON

Mayor, City of Malden