Patricia Morsillo Elected New Salem City Council President

SALEM, MA — Salem Ward 3 City Councilor Patricia Morsillo will guide the Council for the next year after she was unanimously elected as council president during Monday's virtual city inauguration and city government organizing ceremony.

Morsillo, who was first elected to the City Council in 2019 and was re-elected in November, succeeds Christine Madore, who did not seek re-election this fall.

The inauguration, which also included the swearing-in of Mayor Kim Driscoll for a fifth term and the election of Manny Cruz as School Committee vice-chair, was switched from an in=person event at the Community Life Center to a fully remote event for the first in city history last week because of the recent coronavirus case spike.

"We're here because we love living in Salem," Morsillo said. "And we want to ensure that Salem's future is healthy and strong. The worst thing that can happen to a city is for its residents to become complacent and resistant to change. 'Because that's the way it's always been done' is not an appropriate answer when it comes to planning for the future.

"A healthy city is one that continues to respond to the changing times — changes to how people live, and work and play."

Morsillo advised her fellow councilors not to be afraid to take a "victory lap" when they secure a project or benefit for their constituents and said one of her priorities for the council will be to remain focused on affordable housing.

"To support the heroes of the pandemic," she said. "The front-line service workers, health care workers and small business owners in our community. Those who work in Salem and support us every day —even when the health risks are high — should be able to afford to live here. We can't in one breath sing their praises and in the next ignore their needs."

Morsillo said she will work to make council meetings more efficient — if not necessarily shorter — and asked the councilors to be willing to work with each other to find solutions to collective issues facing the city.

"We will have many discussions in council and committee and we won't always agree," she said. "Please bring your passion, knowledge and arguments to the table with an open mind. Work toward consensus and be ready to compromise. Make the best decision you can based on research, data, discussions with constituents, colleagues and city staff. And leave any disagreements in the room — whether that room be virtual or real.

"There will always be those who try to heighten differences between us for their own benefit. But we're here because our constituents trusted us to do the job."

(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.)