Alderman Kate Lipper-Garabedian Running For Reelection

The following was submitted by Alderman Kate Lipper-Garabedian:

All are welcome to a campaign kickoff event for Melrose Alderman-at-Large Kate Lipper-Garabedian on Sunday, June 2, 1-3 p.m., at Cloud 9 Coffee & Ice Cream, 40 West Wyoming Ave., in Melrose. Lipper-Garabedian formally announced her reelection bid May 1.

Lipper-Garabedian was elected to the Board in 2017 when she received the second-highest number of votes for the role and highest among non-incumbents. In her first term, she focused on four issues she had identified as priorities in her initial campaign:

Economic development: This spring, Lipper-Garabedian filed a vacant commercial property ordinance aimed at creating a line of communication between the City and owners, a centralized inventory of available properties, and improved streetscapes with public art displays. She also ensured responsible zoning for marijuana-related businesses.

Schools: Early in her term, she spearheaded and filled the role of the Board Liaison to the School Committee, ensuring enhanced communication between Melrose’s two elected bodies. She also endorsed the April 2 override after analyzing all publicly available data and requesting additional information from City Hall and the Melrose Public Schools.

Fiscal oversight: During the Fiscal Year 2019 budget review process, Lipper-Garabedian pressed City department heads for information to justify their requests and encouraged the elimination of City health benefits for Aldermen. This year, she was elevated to the role of Chair of the Appropriations Committee.

Street Safety: A member of the Complete Streets Working Group, she supported the effort that led to a successful $400K state grant to improve conditions in several locations in the City and successfully advocated for McCarthy Apartments and Lebanon Street crosswalks and improved placement and visibility of downtown traffic signs.

“It has been my honor to represent the Melrose residents on the Board. I have been proud to focus on policy areas that make my neighbors’ lives better,” Lipper-Garabedian said. “And as someone who believes that – when it comes to policymaking – the process is as important as the outcome, I have been committed to accessibility, aiming to respond personally to each and every initial outreach from constituents, providing updates on Board business on social media, and writing newsletters that offer comprehensive synopses of City developments.”

Lipper-Garabedian presently serves as the Chief Legal Counsel to the Commonwealth’s Secretary of Education and has a distinguished record of public service including two years as a public middle school teacher. After graduating from Harvard Law School, she served as a judicial clerk on the First Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals, and spent more than five years as a senior policy and legal advisor supporting states, school districts, postsecondary institutions, and nonprofits focused on improving the U.S. education system.

Lipper-Garabedian’s first term included notable changes at home – the birth of the family’s second son Oscar in April 2018 (joining father Mark, brother Harrison, and dog Baryn) – and at City Hall.

“Our City has been through a lot over the last eighteen months, and I have never taken for granted the responsibility that Melrose voters entrusted in me as we navigated these changes together. As we prepare for even more changes, it would be my honor to continue to represent Melrose and to build on the work we have achieved together to date.

“Two years ago, in 2017, over the course of a summer, a fall, and a first trimester, I ran for the Board of Aldermen to represent the City in which my family had planted our roots. This year, let’s ensure that Melrose continues to have the steady, responsive, and accessible local government it deserves.”

For more information about Kate Lipper-Garabedian, please visit kateformelrose.com.