Grigoraitis Elected Melrose City Council President For 2023

MELROSE, MA — The Melrose City Council made things official Tuesday night, with councilors electing Ward 6 Councilor Jen Grigoraitis as their president for 2023.

The 9-0 vote came just under a month after councilors backed Grigoraitis at a non-binding caucus on Dec. 5. Grigoraitis was sworn in as president following the vote this week.

“It is a privilege to serve this community, and all residents, and I am committed to doing everything in my power to make Melrose an even better place to live, work, and raise a family,” Grigoraitis told colleagues.

Grigoraitis said she will work collaboratively with council colleagues as president, while also listening to the concerns and ideas of constituents.

“We are all here to serve the greater good, and I believe that by working together, we can achieve great things for Melrose,” Grigoraitis said.

Grigoraitis, who previously served as City Council president in 2020, said she sees an opportunity over the next year “to make collaborative, thoughtful, data-driven decisions that benefit the entire community.”

A focus on solutions, Grigoraitis said, will allow city leaders to “create and sustain positive change.”

“After the past three years of having to react to so many things out of our control, I believe now is the time for this body and this community to move beyond reacting,” Grigoraitis said. “Our collective goal now should be proactive planning and progress.”

Grigoraitis joined the City Council in 2020 as one of several new councilors elected in November, 2019.

She was additionally elected as City Council president for 2020, holding the position for a year. Councilor Chris Cinella took the role for 2021 and 2022 before announcing prior to last month’s City Council caucus that he would not seek a new term as president.