STEPHEN SHYMANSKY— Staff Writer
After winning a 10th term in office, Mayor John DeStefano quickly got back to work in New Haven City Hall, unveiling new plans for the city. Major topics on the agenda included school reform, and the increase in violence problems and the creation of jobs in the city.
On the agenda for the new school reform is the new Boost! Initiative, which will focus on a parenting initiative and partnership with Gateway Community College surrounding vocational education. The Boost! Initiative partners the city of New Haven, school districts and the United Way of Greater New Haven in offering support and preparation for college to the youth of the city. Ultimately, this could lead to a new vocational-technical school in the district. There was also talk of establishing a new youth center in New Haven that would oversee youth-oriented programs.
Much talk and attention was placed on the ever-increasing violence problem the city has been experiencing. The mayor has assured that there will be a continuance of policing strategies with emphasis placed on “re-entry populations and new initiatives” under the incoming police chief.
More importantly was the talk of job creation and development in the city. There has been talk of the city looking into the idea of creating a medical district, specifically for taxation purposes. This new taxation would use tax revenue from the development of the new district to help pay for improvements to infrastructure, all the while, placing the focus on attracting businesses to New Haven, which, as a result, would increase job creation.
Even after 10 terms in office as mayor, DeStefano is showing his hard-working initiative for getting New Haven to be the leading city that it should be.
