DiNatale to focus on Fitchburg economic development

Matt Volpini Stephen DiNatale first started serving Fitchburg on its school committee in 1999 before joining the city council in 2004 and the state legislature in 2007.

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By Emily Micucci

Fitchburg Mayor Stephen DiNatale, a 63-year-old Leominster native who moved to Fitchburg in his mid-20s, is a rare breed: A local politician with deep roots in the community, who also has statewide and global perspective and lot of experience schmoozing with the state’s top officials.

His many supporters hope these traits will bring Fitchburg to new heights in DiNatale’s next stint in public office – this time, the corner office. He was sworn into office yesterday, Jan. 3, after capturing 74 percent of the vote in the November mayoral election, a contested race against local attorney Andrew Couture.

In an interview last month, DiNatale was direct about Fitchburg’s many challenges as an economically-depressed mill city that still struggles to find new direction decades after the former manufacturing hub peaked.

“The reason I wanted to run for mayor was in response to a lot of the issues I saw going unaddressed,” said DiNatale, who has a reputation for ceaseless attention to residents’ concerns — including those that didn’t fall under his purview as state representative.

The concerns are many, from the conditions of city roads to crime. According to DiNatale, such obstacles contribute to the overall perception that the city is down and out, and that has a direct impact on economic development prospects.

There are other important factors that have left the city – which once eclipsed neighboring Leominster and fellow “Twin City” as a hub for industry – playing catchup.

DiNatale made a fresh economic development strategy an important focus of his campaign. He highlighted the need for a more business-friendly city hall, where the permitting process for expansion and new business construction is designed to accommodate prospects, rather than serve as a roadblock.

He noted the city’s dual tax rate is a detriment, as businesses looking to buy property are turned off by paying higher rates than residents; they can easily find a single-rate in Leominster or another neighboring community.
There is also a relative lack of industrial space available for new development without revamping the city’s zoning map, which DiNatale would like to review, and access to Route 2 is somewhat limited.
Meanwhile, DiNatale said the city’s assets, including affordability, cultural attractions and newly improved commuter rail service, must be adequately marketed to revitalize Fitchburg’s image.

Wong righted the ship

All of this is not to say that DiNatale is outwardly critical about what’s been done in the recent past to revitalize the city. He said he’s enjoyed a functional working relationship with former Mayor Lisa Wong, who took office at the age of 28 and served four consecutive terms.

“She … righted the financial ship,” by rolling up her sleeves to straighten out the city’s shaky finances immediately after taking office, DiNatale said.

But has the city’s image improved under Wong? DiNatale was uncertain, and said he’d be more focused on the small things — the appearance of the city.

Leominster Mayor Dean Mazzarella, who grew up with DiNatale in the same Italian neighborhood of Leominster, put it this way:

“Lisa was the right step at the time, and now I think (DiNatale is) a Tom Menino kind of mayor … that on-the-street, I-want-that-street-cleaned (mentality) ,” Mazzarella said.

Mazzarella agreed with DiNatale’s point that the same things that matter to residents in terms of image, also matter to businesses. Mazzarella, himself notoriously pro-business, recognized that bigger efforts are required to put Fitchburg on equal footing with Leominster.

A member of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation Board of Directors, Mazzarella said he looks forward to working with the state and DiNatale on creating a connector road from Route 2 directly into Fitchburg. The project has been tossed around for years, and it is something Wong also pursued.

Saying, 'Yes'

Meanwhile, DiNatale said among his first steps will be a top-down review of city departments, and he’ll make the changes necessary to foster a streamlined permitting process for businesses. He said he wants to avoid situations where a business is turned away from setting up shop in the city because some element of the proposal, such as an engineering study, is missing.

The important question, DiNatale said, is “How do you get to yes?”

Roy Nascimento, who became president and CEO of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce about a year ago, said streamlined permitting is among the important initiatives he discussed with DiNatale, ahead of his swearing in.

“Mayor Wong has done a great job, but change is an exciting opportunity,” Nascimento said.

Wong said DiNatale has the right mix of local knowledge and statewide perspective, who can advocate at all levels for Fitchburg.

“We still need a cheerleader because we’re still overcoming perception problems,” Wong said.