The Lynn City Council unanimously elected Ward 7 Councillor John “Jay” Walsh as president of the Council at an organizational meeting Monday.
Councillor-at-Large Buzzy Barton was elected vice president of the Council. Ward 4 Councillor Richard Colucci was elected as the Council’s representative to the Lynn Water and Sewer Commission.
Walsh, 41, is beginning his fourth, two-year term in office. Members of his family in attendance at the inauguration ceremony Monday included his wife, Jill Walsh, his daughter, Jayla Walsh, a sixth-grade student and soccer player at St. Mary’s, his parents, John Walsh and Laura Walsh, his brother, Josh Walsh and his wife, Katie Walsh, and his uncle, Jim Walsh.
Jay Walsh is a 1999 graduate of Lynn Tech where he first met his wife, Jill, who graduated from Tech in 2000.
He is a licensed plumber and oil delivery driver for the Lynn-based family business, John’s Oil Co.
“Doing this job, driving from house to house, you can get to see a little bit of everything in the city,” said Walsh. “Being out here, I get a good feel for what’s going on. So, my job is kind of neat, like that.”
Parks Will be a Priority
A former player in the West Lynn National Little League at Barry Park, Walsh said he will set a high priority on the funding of improvements to Lynn playgrounds and parks.
“The parks in our city are in rough shape in all neighborhoods,” said Walsh. “If we’re looking to give people a healthy recreational option and we’re looking to make people feel safer and give kids something to do, we’ve got to put some money in the parks.”
Walsh and State Sen. Brendan Crighton secured $400,000 to demolish the bleachers at Barry Park. “We got money to put the splash pad in and that’s all great. But those fields down there are in pretty, bad shape, even after that’s done.”
Walsh would also like to see additional turf fields in the city beyond the one that exists at Manning Field.
“We only have one turf field in the city and with all the parks and spaces that we have around the city, we should have another one somewhere,” said Walsh.
Looking Forward to Working with Mayor Nicholson
Walsh said he is looking forward to working with Lynn’s new mayor, Jared Nicholson.
“I’m actually really excited to work with the mayor,” said Walsh. “I think these types of changes give us a clean slate. I am extremely optimistic about what we can get done. I’m not saying there won’t be disagreements – that’s politics. But I really believe that we can make some really effective changes in the city that are good for everybody.”