Amy Sangiolo Could Be Newton's First Asian-American Mayor

NEWTON, MA — If you happened to get a business card back in the day when Amy Sangiolo first ran for office you might have noticed that there was a little paper crane on it, a nod to her background as a Japanese, Chinese American.

"I’m proud of the fact I’ve been able to serve not just the residents of Newton but the Asian American community," said Sangiolo.

If she were elected as the next mayor of Newton, she'd not only be the first woman mayor in this city, she'd be the first Asian mayor. In case you missed it Sangiolo, likely the longest serving Asian-American woman to serve in a political office in the state with two decades under her belt on the City Council is running for mayor.

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"I think it's historic," said Paul Wantabe, director of the Institute for Asian American Studies at UMass Boston who noted the number of Asian Americans in politics is still relatively low in the state compared with the population. Still, he says, the numbers are growing and Sangiolo's tenure represents a significant change in society.

"This is important to Newton, but beyond Newton it is important. There are not a lot of political role models — there is a paucity of Asian Americans [in public office], not only in Newton but statewide even nationwide and she is that role model," he said.

The importance of voice

Sangiolo might be the shortest of stature of the seven candidates running for the tallest seat in the city, but she gets her points across.

During a city council meeting the City Councilor-at-Large from Ward 4, took the floor and spoke sternly and passionately, defending the vote on a resolution calling for the city to ask the House to look into the possibility of impeaching President Donald Trump. When some on the city council questioned whether it was the council's role to take a position on such resolutions at a national level, a handful of councilors stood in the chamber to speak, some listing off well prepared statements others talking with measure.

Sangiolo shot up to say her piece. Her point? The residents aren't asking the council to take their foot off the gas when it comes to extremely local issues.

"What residents are asking us to do, is help them have a voice in this city with our federal elected officials," she said referencing Newton's constitution. "The avenue is contained in our city charter - the right for citizen petition... They're just asking for us to give them a voice," she said.

First elected 20 years ago

Sangiolo was first elected in 1997. She came to what was then called the Board of Aldermen as an attorney and focused on Programs and Services and Zoning and Planning issues. She speaks about the need for affordable housing, while maintaining historic preservation and environmental conservation.

Amy was born and raised in Weehawken, New Jersey. Her father was an American-born Chinese Air Force veteran and her mother, a Japanese immigrant. While she was going to public high school in New Jersey she was a piano major at the Juilliard School of Music Pre-College Division and studied ballet at the New York School of Ballet.

Sangiolo said she had a talent for music and the plan was to take a year and practice so she could go to Julliard for college, but when she got into Barnard all bets were off the table.

And while she was at Rutgers working on a law degree, she had an internship out in California working with the Sierra Club. It was there she realized she had a passion for environmental law and her experience working on water law there influenced her to head to George Washington for a Masters in Environmental Law.

She married John Sangiolo and his family were in the Boston area, so near the end of her coursework in Washington they moved to be closer to them. They chose to live Newton for the school system. Sangiolo convinced her parents to move to Newton, too. But after a winter, they upped and moved to Hawaii, and her husband's family moved to the cape.

Sangiolo and her husband and children stayed. Plus, it wasn't so bad having family to visit on the cape and in Hawaii.

But the distance has also been difficult. Sangiolo's father had some health difficulty in recent years and passed away. Her mother just moved back from Hawaii, and Sangiolo has been working to help settle her.

She would have jumped into the race sooner, had it not been for that, she says.

Wanted to run for a while

When Setti announced he was going to be stepping down, Sangiolo said she called Ruth Balzer and asked her if she were going to run. She wasn't. Sangiolo had considered running when Mayor David Cohen stepped down, but her three children were still young. This time she was all set to run, but her mother had just had a stroke and she went out to help her recuperate. When she got back home she learned her dad's liver cancer had progressed and turned around and went back out to Hawaii just in time before he passed away. Her attention turned back to her mom, and was able to get her settled back on the mainland in March. She announced her run next month.

"I was waiting and listening to my colleagues, and didn't feel the passion. I didn't feel the connection that I want in there [the mayor's office]."

So she officially threw her hat in the ring.

She's been on the council for some two decades and sees the move from city councilor to mayor as a natural one.

"I don't think it as a big leap at all," she said. "Having served the longest, I bring a lot of experience. I served under two different administrators, I've seen two different styles."

She learned from both Mayor David Cohen and Mayor Setti Warren to be open and transparent, she says. "About everything. All your decisions. And most important of the finances. People need to see the real picture if you want them to believe in you and trust in you and continue to invest."

'Go back and respond'

She said listening sessions are good, but what's been missing, is a return.

"There's no point in having a listening session if you don't go back and respond. You have to let people know you're listening to them and you have to make sure they understand you understand what they mean. That's what's missing here in this city," she said

Sangiolo said she's most proud of the work she did to save branch libraries in 2008 when the override failed. The library trustees were set to let go of the branches, if there had to be a cut they’d cut there.

"But I saw the value and need to have community space," she said and worked with fellow aldermen and mayor Cohen and community members to keep them around when the community expressed interest in adopting them.

In 20 years of work on the council she says she doesn't have many regrets, though she wished back in 2001 when working out the Community Preservation Act, she would have asked for more than 1 percent surcharge. "I think that’s maybe a regret," she said when pressed.

Her strongest sell, she said, was how involved she is in the community.

"I’m a progressive person with core values that resonate with citizens of Newton. I’ve been part of the PTO part of little league, youth soccer," she says. She rattles off a list of other projects and groups around the city she's been involved, including everything from the Urban Tree Commission to sitting on the board of the Walker Center in Auburndale.

She sees herself as somebody relate-able to a large group of residents. She's gone through the types of issues that a number of residents have gone through, from the time her son had lead poisoning to having to navigate the waters when her husband lost his job, she said. "And I’m caring for an elderly parent. I imagine there are many in this community who have an understanding of what it’s like to be a caregiver."

Sangiolo said she thinks the biggest issue facing Newton today is what it's going to look like in the next 10 to 20 years. "So that encompasses how we deal with development, transportation, environment — how we deal with our schools. The next four years are going to be critical terms of planning," she said.

Check out the NewTV video of the July 10 city council meeting, Sangiolo stands at 33:00 after Councilor Lenny Gentile.

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Photo up top of Amy Sangiolo by Jenna Fisher/Patch

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EDITORS NOTE: The previous version of this article mixed up the illnesses of Sangiolo's parents. And the substance of her conversation with Ruth Balzer. The writer regrets these errors.