Medford Candidate Profile: Zac Bears For City Council

MEDFORD, MA — With the Medford Municipal Election scheduled for Nov. 7, Patch is profiling the candidates.

Here, we learn more about Zac Bears, who is among 12 candidates running for the seven seats on the Medford City Council. Bears joins three other incumbents in the race: Kit Collins, George Scarpelli, and Justin Tseng.

Bears, who will be 30 years old as of Election Day, works as a nonprofit operations director.

Candidates were sent questionnaires and filled out the answers.

Name

Zac Bears

How old will you be as of Election Day?

30

Campaign website

https://zacbears.com/

What city or town do you live in?

Medford

What office are you seeking?

City Council

Please give us your party affiliation

Democrat

Education

Medford High School, UMass Amherst (BA, Economics and BA, Political Science)

Occupation

Nonprofit operations director (2022 to present), formerly a nonprofit executive director, economist for Bureau of Labor Statistics, labor union communications staff member, and self-employed communications and administrative consultant.

Family

Bruce (Dad), Laura (Mom), Isabelle (Sister)

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government?

No

Have you ever held a public office, whether appointive or elective?

Medford City Councilor (2020 to present)

Why are you seeking this office?

I'm running for reelection to the Medford City Council because it’s time to create and implement a bold, transformative plan to fund Medford’s future. We need to build a Medford that works for all of us by investing in public schools and city services, passing major zoning reforms to address the housing crisis, and ensuring that people of all backgrounds are welcomed and can afford to live in our city.

As a Fulton Heights resident and graduate of Medford High, I know what this community means to residents, whether they have lived here for 5 days or 50 years, because this community means so much to me.

We have accomplished so much together already, and we can do even more if we take action on the great opportunities that lie ahead for Medford.

Please complete this statement: The single most pressing issue facing my constituents is ______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

Better budget process to fully fund schools, city services, and infrastructure.

We’re all fed up with underfunded schools, broken streets and sidewalks, understaffed city services, and a beautiful new Medford Public Library that doesn’t have the funding or staffing to stay open on Sundays. Worse, Medford’s broken budget process means there is no real plan to fix these problems that impact residents every day.

Now is the time for us to come together and make the big decisions to fully fund the city budget and build a better future for Medford and all of its residents.

Over the next two years, I look forward to:

1. Passing a Budget Ordinance that implements the Mayor-Council agreement to create a better budget process before next year’s FY25 budget.
2. Establishing the citywide Financial Task Force to create and publish a plan in 2024 to fund major capital projects (like a new Medford High School and new Fire Headquarters) and address underfunding and understaffing in our schools and city departments
3. Working with Medford residents to implement the principles of the Medford Better Future Budget Plan, take urgent action to raise revenue, and fund a better budget for all of us.

For more detail, please go to zacbears.com/platform and click the "Fund Medford's Future" button.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

Over the past four years as a councilor, I've developed a deep understanding of the structural problems that have left Medford with a deeply underfunded city budget, poor planning for housing and commercial development, and an outdated City Charter.

I have a clear plan to address these issues that is grounded in the grassroots 2023 Medford People’s Platform, which was created by hundreds of Medford residents and outlines the shared values and policy goals that guide me in my work with colleagues in city government.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

1. Transform Zoning to Build More Affordable Housing and Vibrant Business Districts

My top reason for running for City Council in 2019 was housing affordability and preventing displacement. Four years later, I still haven’t found a way to buy a home in the city I love, and I’ve seen even more friends and neighbors forced to leave the city they love because of skyrocketing housing costs. We need to make sure Medford stays affordable for people who want to stay here, and is affordable enough to welcome in new neighbors regardless of income.

The new zoning provisions and city ordinances we passed this term are starting to help, but we need to kick our work into overdrive and put Medford at the leading edge of regional and statewide efforts to provide housing for all.

I’m proud to say that the council will be devoting the next two years to “Phase 2” of updates to the Zoning Ordinance to turn the ideas in our citywide comprehensive plan, climate plan, and housing production plan into real policy. Through this, we’ll continue to ensure that new development meets our community’s needs, not the needs of big developers.

For more detail, please go to zacbears.com/platform and click the "Transform Zoning" button.

2. More Inclusive City Government Through a More Democratic City Charter

We’ve worked hard over the past four years to build a more inclusive city government that attacks systemic racism head-on and engages residents and communities that have been historically excluded from city government.

Medford needs to maintain and expand funding for great initiatives like the community liaisons program. Even more importantly, we need real structural changes to our City Charter, ordinances, and daily practices to make city government more inclusive and more democratic and add meaningful checks and balances into the structure of city government.

For more detail, please go to zacbears.com/platform and click the "Democratize City Government" button.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

Since this term began in January 2022, I’m proud that the City Council has delivered results that are making meaningful improvements in the lives of Medford residents. We’ve passed nearly a dozen new ordinances, a comprehensive update to our City Council rules, and the first Zoning Ordinance recodification in 60 years, which has already begun to allow new smart development that will bring more housing, more businesses, and more tax revenue to our city.

I’ve made engaging residents about Medford’s budget crisis my top priority during the FY23 and FY24 budget process, and this year, I proposed the Medford Better Future Budget Plan to create a new budget-making process that sets clear goals to increase funding and fix Medford’s biggest challenges.

I’m especially proud that we passed the Housing Stability Notification Ordinance and Affordable Housing Trust Ordinance to establish new housing stability protections and create a dedicated fund for the city to build more affordable housing. I also worked hard to update the Snow and Ice Removal Ordinance, pass the new Community Control Over Public Surveillance Ordinance, and update our Outdoor Dining and Food Truck Ordinances.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you</b>

Stand up for what you believe in, and “when we fight, we win.” Meaning that when we come together and advocate for what we believe in, we can build a stronger community and better future together.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I've talked to thousands of residents in my first two terms as a Medford City Councilor, and I am deeply involved in our community. From the smallest request for help to the biggest changes we need to make as a council, I will continue to work hard for the people of Medford every single day. I will strive to be a responsive, open, and passionate councilor who advocates for any resident who needs help in any way I can.

I would be honored to receive your support and one of your seven votes on Tuesday, November 7th.