Council Tackles Development, Housing--But Still No Mayor

In 1996, it took 22 ballots before Sheila T. Russell was elected mayor of Cambridge by the City Council in late February.

In 1948, it took 1,321 rounds of voting before Michael J. Neville was finally elected mayor April 23.

And as this year's mayor's race drags on into February, it doesn't look like the council will be electing its first leader of the 21st century anytime soon.

Two rounds of voting have been taken so far, both identical. Kathleen L. Born has led with four votes so far--hers and those of Jim Braude, Henrietta Davis and Marjorie C. Decker. Michael A. Sullivan has captured three votes--his and those of David P. Maher and Kenneth E. Reeves '72, while Anthony D. Galluccio has two votes (his own and that of Timothy J. Toomey Jr.'s).

Now, with one month of the new term already passed, Cambridge remains without a mayor. Why is the voting taking so long? The length of the election can be attributed to several reasons, with former two-term mayor Reeves playing a pivotal role.

When Born received the first four votes at the council inauguration Jan. 3, it seemed like she was well on her way to victory.

In the month that has passed since then, however, the fifth and decisive vote has remained elusive.

Part of the delay in electing a mayor can simply be attributed to the schedule. After voting Jan. 3 and Jan. 10, the council has had only one regular meeting in the past three weeks, on Jan. 24. At that meeting, the council engaged in a heated debate before passing the Larkin petition--a motion which puts an 18-month moratorium, with several exemptions, on development in East Cambridge--at 12:30 a.m. The council decided then that it was too late to take a vote for mayor.

The relative breakdown of the traditional Cambridge political parties on the council has also slowed the proceedings.

In the past, either the progressive Cambridge Civic Association (CCA) or the more conservative but still left-of-center Alliance For Change, also known as the Independents, have held a majority on the council. This term, however, the Independents have four councillors (Galluccio, Maher, Sullivan and Toomey), while the CCA only has three (Born, Braude and Davis). Decker and Reeves are both unaffiliated progressives.

Though Born has received Decker's vote so far, Reeves is "obviously having a problem" voting for the four-term councillor, according to Glenn S. Koocher '71, host of the political talk show "Cambridge Inside Out."

Indeed, Reeves is the wild card in this year's election, just as he has been the central player in the mayor's race for the past decade. Mayor from 1992-95, he alone kept the 1996 race going for nearly two months in his bid for an unprecedented third consecutive term as mayor.

This year, he appears to be enjoying his temporary return to the leading post of City Council and School Committee meetings. Until a mayor is elected, Reeves--the senior member of the council--will serve as acting mayor.

"People have a little problem with Ken in the chair," Koocher says.

The six-term councilor is now running the so-called "Ken Reeves Show," Koocher says, adding that Reeves dominates the discussion and takes a long time "to get from A to B."

And as acting mayor, Reeves has an interest in keeping the election going as long as possible.

"I don't think there's two people in the city of Cambridge who think Ken Reeves would stick with Michael Sullivan if Sullivan got four votes," Koocher says.

One way out of the Reeves quandary would be for progressives to align themselves around first-term councilor Braude. Though Koocher says Braude is not encouraging the possibility, it would allow the five progressives on the council to stick together.

"No one would be embarrassed if he emerged as a compromise candidate," Koocher says.

Otherwise, the maneuvering will continue until someone gives in, or until a coalition--the four Independents plus Reeves being the most likely scenario--is formed.

Once a mayor is finally elected and council committees are formed, the council is expected to tackle affordable housing, over-development in the city's neighborhoods, and the future of City Manager Robert W. Healy.

Healy, who has led the city to become one of the six best-financed cities in the nation, has come under heavy criticism for his nearly two-decades-long tenure. In September, Councillors Reeves, Toomey and Katherine Triantafillou voted not to extend his contract.

His contract is currently slated to expire June 30, 2001. If the council does not act by Dec. 30, however, his contract will automatically be extended for another year.

Of course, councillors have individual aims for the next two years as well.

Braude wants to establish an Office of Constituent Services and change the way the city's mayor is elected so that voters elect a strong mayor, discarding the current city manager-led system Cambridge follows.

And in the middle of the debate on East Cambridge's Larkin petition, Decker said she will work on comprehensive long-term planning for the entire city.

"The rest of this city needs this kind of planning and needs this kind of funding," Decker said.