Why Marlborough Mayor Vigeant Is Seeking 6th Term: Questionnaire

MARLBOROUGH, MA — One of the few contested races in Marlborough this year is for the mayor's seat, and it's a very similar race to the last one.

In fact, exactly the same: five-term incumbent Mayor Arthur Vigeant is running against Marlborough police officer David Garceau in a repeat of the 2019 race.

Marlborough Patch asked both Garceau and Vigeant to answer a few questions about key issues in the city and about their plans for the upcoming term. Here's what Vigeant had to say:

You'll be aiming for a sixth term in 2021. Why aspects of the job keep you coming back, and do you foresee a time when you won't want to run again?

I was born and raised in Marlborough, met and married my wife, Sue, and raised our family here. I am proud that our children have also decided that Marlborough is a great place to raise their children. Prior to being voted in as Mayor, I spent 18 years on the City Council. What keeps me coming back is my love for this City. It is simply a wonderful community to raise a family or retire.

Maintaining services and keeping our tax rate affordable has been a main priority each year, and I have a committed team in place to assist me. I also recognized our employers’ needs in retaining their workforce and attracting new staff, and there were favorable improvements expressed that the city could make to help them. It’s important to continue to maintain our corporate partnerships.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought new challenges, and I felt compelled to continue my steady leadership through this difficult time. Our dedicated City and school staff worked closely with Marlborough Hospital setting up testing locations and vaccination clinics. We set up a community hotline for questions and kept the public informed. We pivoted to remote learning in the school department, remote city meetings and kept our local government running throughout COVID in the safest manner possible. Our cafeteria staff worked throughout the pandemic and prepared 400,000 meals for Marlborough families.

If re-elected this year, what would be your top priorities for the new term?

Continue my commitment in the public schools and integrating curriculum into the classroom that is applicable with our major life science companies in the city. Upgrading our public housing facilities is also a top priority. Currently, we are renovating the Pleasant Street housing facility and will be replacing the roof at 240 Main St. I really want to commit to finishing the Lincoln Street project and see the redevelopment of that area begin. It’s been a long time coming and will be an improvement for French Hill residents.

We continue to make a large investment in our infrastructure, and we will begin the last phase of our lead service replacement project shortly. We just kicked off the groundbreaking ceremony for the Marlborough Public Library expansion project, and we have identified a location for the long-awaited west side fire station.

Marlborough's moratorium on multifamily developments is set to expire before Election Day. Would you like to see it extended, why or why not?

Yes, as stated in my letter to the City Council in early October I recommended to extend to Dec. 31. We need to briefly extend it so we can be sure to adapt and potentially capitalize on state grant funding that is relevant to housing and transportation. The executive office of housing and economic development is issuing guidelines to assist local officials in determining the voting thresholds for various zoning amendments as well as distance from public transit locations. We have been told recently by [Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito] that the information should be available in the coming weeks.

What would be a transportation priority for you in the next term?

We have a MassWorks grant in motion that includes new parking, public restrooms for trail users and bike lanes connecting Lincoln Street to Main Street. This is part of the French Hill renovation project. We just resumed our commuter shuttle service to the MBTA in Southboro from 200 Forest St. and at the Apex Center. We will continue to publicize this program and expand if demand warrants it. We are also looking at another bike-share program.

The Marlborough EDC has put forward the Wayside District Vision Plan to renovate Route 20 to be more friendly to pedestrians and other non-motorized uses. What's your opinion about this plan, and how can it be put into action?

The plan was several years in the making — MEDC worked with the [Metropolitan Area Planning Council] and the City Council who approved a new zoning that spans from Wilson Street/Farm Road to the Sudbury line. We tried to "brand" the east side as the Wayside District to give it some identity — the zoning encourages smart growth and pedestrian-friendly uses. We started with a small portion of Route 20 — the Council can decide whether to expand it at a later date if they'd like. It encourages development of more compact and pedestrian-friendly commercial mixed-use development to promoting livability and quality of life. It also allows for commercial mixed-use development that may include residential uses. It promotes high-quality and walkable places similar to the Apex Center where traffic is contained inside the development versus on Route 20. It will also leverage Route 20 East street improvements. The state has plans to resurface Route 20 East from Peters Avenue to just east of Wayside Inn Road with traffic signal upgrades, reconstruction of existing sidewalks as well as construction of a new sidewalk. The City will be replacing water and sewer lines in the spring when the gas utilities are completed.

What do you like most about living in Marlborough?

Although we are a city, we have a small-town sense and there are many families who have been around for generations in Marlborough. We are so fortunate to have dedicated teachers in our public schools, the outdoor spaces for families to enjoy like the renovated Memorial Beach, Ward Park, Ghiloni and Stevens Parks now both include popular splash pads for summer fun. We have plenty of gathering spots and continue the longstanding tradition of summer concerts at Union Common, periodic downtown street festivals and Friday night football games. Marlborough is still affordable in comparison to the neighboring communities and it’s my priority to keep it that way by balancing development and bringing in additional commercial revenue.