Anne Manning-Martin: Peabody City Council Candidate Profile

PEABODY, MA — Anne Manning-Martin is seeking re-election to the Peabody City Council At-Large after serving on the council since 2008.

The 55-year-old Peabody Veterans Memorial High School alumna earned her bachelor's degree at St. Anselm College and her master's degree at UMass-Lowell.

She has spent 30 years working in law enforcement and is the deputy superintendent at the Department of Correction.

Manning previously served on the Peabody School Committee from 2000 to 2007.

Manning told Patch her focus in her next term would be quality-of-life issues for Peabody residents, traffic congestion and serving as an independent voice on the council.

The citywide election is on Nov. 2.

Campaign website

Councilor-at- Large Anne Manning Martin CTE

Why are you seeking elective office?

I enjoy working for residents and looking out for what is in the best interest of the entire city.

The single most pressing issue facing our city is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Many residents feel their needs and concerns regarding their quality of life have taken a back seat to developers who are able to get a seat at the table while residents are ignored. I will continue to field all calls for help from constituents, be their voice and help them protect their quality of life whenever I can. I have a track record of asking questions, researching all projects and developments with an eye on balancing quality reasonable development with maintaining the character of neighborhoods and the quality of life of the residents affected.What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I am an independent voice on the council, am not afraid to ask questions or take a stand and will continue to keep an eye on the spending of your hard-earned tax dollars. I believe my institutional knowledge is crucial in guiding the future council to make sound decisions and avoid the pitfalls associated with inexperience and/or lack of courage to challenge proposals that are flawed or detrimental to neighborhoods and residents' quality of life.

How do you think local officials performed in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

Praise is due to those in the trenches of the pandemic throughout the past 18 months. Many city departments continued to work in some capacity while others went into overdrive without additional staffing. The professionalism and flexibility of Public Safety (police and fire), the City Clerk's office, Public Services, the Meadow Golf Course and the Health Department, to name a few, were particularly noteworthy given the obstacles and challenges presented with the shutdown. They continued to serve and protect the public without skipping a beat.

City Hall, in general, and the city council, in particular, deserves criticism I believe, for operating in a manner that shut out the public for far longer than necessary. I was a staunch advocate to begin opening City Hall to the public sooner given that CDC precautions were well-established throughout the state in public and private venues, but my effort was met with resistance. The city council, collectively, chose to conduct the people's business to include special permit applications involving massive intrusive projects within neighborhoods, via an untested, flawed remote system that shut the public out, down, and off. This disgrace continued without regard for the public's due process for a painful grotesque year-and-a-half. I fought for this to end, ironically on the remote (Zoom) venue itself, only to be met with hostility from fellow councilors. There is plenty of praise to go around for staff but not for the Council. Let us not forget the infringements of residents' first amendment rights that occurred using the pandemic as an excuse. This will forever be a black eye on our city and criticism is due.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

Construction, development and traffic congestion have taken hold of the city at the expense of the day-to-day lives of many residents. Moving forward, the city of Peabody must articulate the vision behind all future projects while listening to those directly affected; the residents and taxpayers of Peabody. Traffic congestion is also a regional issue requiring better communication and collaboration with surrounding communities to improve flow on its main roads, including using technology to better monitor traffic conditions and tweak the timing of lights throughout the region.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have a strong record of being an informed voice of reason on the council. I am staunchly independent and always do what I think is right and in the best interest of those I represent, the taxpayers and citizens of Peabody. I scrutinize all expenditures throughout the year in an effort to keep our taxes down and Peabody affordable. I have also taken on large corporate entities when they threaten residents' quality of life. I've battled cell towers, billboards and overdevelopment; no issue is too big or too small when it jeopardizes those I represent.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Do what you think is right.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

For the past 14 years, I have put in my full effort to be informed and well prepared for all issues coming before the city council. I have been a strong advocate for open and transparent government in all matters involving peoples' business. I have championed neighborhood issues and fought for quality of life issues throughout the city. As a fifth-generation Peabodyite, it has been an honor to serve my hometown and I humbly ask the voters of Peabody the opportunity to continue to work hard on their behalf.