Peabody Councilor-Elect Stephanie Peach Reps 'New Generation'

PEABODY, MA – Stephanie Peach is hoping that her election to the Peabody City Council shows the city is starting to look more toward its future rather than hang on to a fading notion of its past.

With a 61 percent share of the votes in Ward 3, and the election of fellow City Council newcomer Julie Daigle in Ward 4, the 30-year-old told Patch this week she sees Tuesday’s results as part of a shifting tide in Peabody.

"I think this election really does show that the city is ready for a change and that the next generation is starting to move in and be heard," she told Patch the day after she earned 645 votes to 408 for opponent James Moutsoulas. "Most people in my age range aren't really paying attention to what's going on. A lot of people don't pay attention until it affects them. But as a homeowner and a mother to two young kids, even I wasn't paying attention before I would be now."

The 2009 Peabody Veterans Memorial alumna said she ran for the seat because conversations with friends and other residents in Ward 3 revealed that many shared her feelings that people like them felt like they were not being heard or included in city decisions.

With so many of those consequential decisions imminently facing the city on schools, development, infrastructure and other coronavirus health crisis recovery programs, she determined it was important to get involved now to help chart the course for what Peabody will look like as her children grow up in the district.

"The Council was in need of a new perspective," she said. "I went out there and talked to residents and found out they agreed with me. Over the past 10 months, talking to people, they felt like they were not being heard.

"The message resonated. Just looking at the election results citywide, I think residents were ready for something different."

Peach said her focus will be to include residents of Ward 3 in the decision process of the city rather than explain to them a decision that was already made. She that while she hopes to work well with the rest of the City Council, she wants to make sure there is debate rather than simply going with the flow.

"When I don't agree with someone that's OK," she said. "We're never going to agree 100 percent of the time. And always listening first. Maybe what I think is not what other people think and that's OK."

Peach said she will be looking into new ways to reach out to her constituents — referencing Salem Ward 6 City Council Megan Riccardi's weekly newsletter she posts on her Twitter account.

"Especially Ward 3, it's a lot of young people with kids like me — who get their news in other quicker forms," she noted.

She also talked of the possible development of "neighborhood captains" who can ask as point people for her in the ward.

"Most of the time a decision is made and then you receive the backlash," she said. "One of the things I have said over and over again I will make sure people feel involved in the decision process."

Peach said it's important for Peabody officials to work with officials in neighboring communities like Beverly, Danvers and Salem on projects that put pressure on infrastructure, draw traffic and affect the quality of life throughout the region.

"The issues that affect Margin Street in Peabody are the same ones that affect North Street in Salem," she said. "Salem looks completely different than it did 20 years ago. Beverly looks completely different than it did 10 years ago. They came up with a plan. How do we make something like that happen in Peabody?

"What does that look like? We don't have to copy what our neighbors did. But it's about coming up with a plan, with best practices, and how can we execute it?"

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)

More Patch Coverage: Stephanie Peach: Peabody City Council Candidate Profile

Peabody Elects Julie Daigle, Stephanie Peach To City Council