'Healing The Many Wounds': Newton Mayor Gives State Of The City After Teachers' Strike

NEWTON, MA — Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller talked about "healing the many wounds" created during the recent 15-day teachers' strike in a State of the City address Tuesday night that proclaimed education as the city's top priority at the same time she cautioned of "finite resources" in moving forward from the history work stoppage.

"I am conscious that our civic body is still recovering from some bruising trials," she said.

(Also on Patch: Newton Teachers To Pay $625K In Fines, Class-Action Lawsuit Dismissed)

Fuller also targeted planned infrastructure improvements, building projects, and a building at the city's senior center to be named after one of its most long-standing school employees and community volunteers — the late Audrey Cooper.

Speaking less than three weeks after the end of one of the longest teachers' strikes in the state over the past three decades, Fuller said the resolution of the work stoppage with a new four-year contract for teachers and reconciliation to follow "challenges all of us to have empathy for those with whom we disagree and to build consensus as we chart the path forward."

"In the aftermath of the strike, I've heard from so many a deep and heartfelt commitment to healing the many wounds it created and to doubling down on the work of making our schools everything our children need and deserve," she said.

She said next year's budget will include a 5 percent increase in school spending of $14 million for an overall school budget of $282 million. She said the increase is due, in part, to the property tax settlement with Eversource reached last summer in the face of Proposition 2 1/2 limitations.

"The rapid progress we yearn to make on one front is often tempered by the responsibilities we must meet on many others, as well as the stubborn truth that our resources are finite and our budget must balance," she said. "Education is our top priority. We will need to keep investing in education, ensuring that the future of our public schools in Newton is bright."

Fuller also cited recently updated village center zoning as a means to bring market-rate housing and mixed retail to the district, and what she called "steady improvements to our infrastructure — roads, school and municipal buildings, parks and fields."

"If it feels like that progress is taking a long time, it's because of how deep a hole we started in. But our momentum is accelerating," she said. "I can tell you the next few years are going to be really exciting here in Newton as the thousands of hours of planning and preparation by residents, councilors, school committee members, and staff bear fruit all across the city."

She said more than 50 roads were paved last year and "a similar number are in the pipeline."

She also announced that the center formally referred to as the Newton Center for Active Living will officially be renamed the (Audrey) Cooper Center for Active Living in the City of Newton in memory of Cooper, who worked as the secretary of the Underwood Elementary School for 27 years, committed to the Family Access nonprofit, volunteered and acted as a trustee at the Newton Free Library and was an advocate for seniors in the community before her death in 2021 at age 97.

"This building will be a forever reminder of how a person with a very big heart, a deep commitment to community, a readiness to collaborate, and a dedication to the joy of volunteering can make a permanent, positive difference," she said. "I'm grateful to the leadership of Newton's Council on Aging for suggesting that I consider this name"

She said a ground-breaking for the Cooper Center in Newtonville will occur at 10 a.m. on March 7.

"This will first and foremost be a place where older residents can explore their interests, share their insights, obtain critical services, and connect with others, as well as be a welcoming place for Newton residents of all ages where we can learn, grow and have fun," she said.

Fuller concluded by saying that "while we all have different opinions" what is shared across the city is a commitment to the community.

"By working collectively and collaboratively, we can address the issues that divide us with solutions that unite us," she said.