Political Attacks, Police Bias, Homelessness: Worcester D5 Forum Previews 2023 Election

WORCESTER, MA — Dozens of Worcester residents got a preview of what to expect in the upcoming 2023 elections during a forum in District 5 Wednesday night, where three candidates clashed and debated issues like homelessness, bias in the police department and property development.

Wednesday's forum was the first (and last) time the three District 5 candidates will meet ahead of the Sept. 5 primary. Incumbent Councilor Etel Haxhiaj is being challenged in the preliminary by Edson Montero and Jose Rivera.

The forum, hosted by former councilor Gary Rosen and broadcast live by Talk of the Commonwealth, began with the three candidates introducing themselves. Montero is a kitchen manager at the Family Health Center of Worcester and founder of Cofradía Cultural. Rivera is a trial court officer and a former professional boxer. Haxhiaj is closing in on the end of her first council term but has been a fixture in Worcester for years as an activist and volunteer on city boards.

The first question of the night went to Montero, probing how he would stand out in a race where Haxhiaj and Rivera are seen as front-runners and adversaries. Rivera has spent several months since switching from an at-large bid to running for the District 5 seat issuing news releases about his plans, sometimes passively criticizing Haxhiaj in them.

Montero said he's sticking to basics like making the city livable for young people and seniors, two groups he touched on multiple times during the forum.

"I believe that talking with people, talking nicely, we can find solutions for things," Montero said.

The forum then shifted to issues, including a proposal to create new city commissions dealing with issues that affect Worcester's Black and LGBTQ+ communities. The candidates were also asked how, if elected, they would help build bridges between Worcester police and the community. The department has been the subject of multiple lawsuits in recent years, and Department of Justice civil rights prosecutors are conducting an investigation into possible patterns of biased policing.

Haxhiaj said she'll follow any DOJ findings, but that city officials should "take the lead" from communities that feel mistreated by police. Montero said people in his community are sometimes scared of police, and he wants to see higher professional standards in the department and training for officers dealing with people in crisis.

Rivera said having a safer community is important for everyone, and that councilors should focus on "building bridges" between police and the community.

"I'd like to see Worcester police be more involved in the community, and with our kids as well," Rivera said, adding that "it's not [the city council's] job" to hold police accountable.

"Accountability is important, but we gotta let the city manager deal with it," he said.

Road safety has been a major piece of the District 5 story, before this election season and during it. Candice Asare-Yeboah, 5, died after a speeding driver hit her along Stafford Street in spring 2022, prompting a safety review of the road. This summer, Rivera seized on a planned road diet along Mill Street, narrowing the street to one lane in each direction and adding bike lanes. He asked city council to stop the project until residents could get a hearing on the road diet. That meeting happened on July 31, although there were never plans to stop the project.

Rosen asked eache candidate what they would do about "so many dangerous drivers who speed on our streets and ignore traffic signs."

Montero said drivers need better education starting when they first get a license. He also said he would seek more flashing beacons for pedestrians — an amenity missing from the crosswalk along Stafford Street where the driver hit Asare-Yeboah.

Haxhiaj said, as a mother, she was deeply affected by Asare-Yeboah's death, and would continue to work with the city's new Transportation and Mobility Department on safety improvements across the district.

Rivera said he supports road safety improvements, but also wants more police patroling streets, and said there's a shortage of officers in the department to do that work.

The candidates were also asked how they would vote on two proposed laws before councilors that would regulate crisis pregnancy centers — anti-abortion facilities that offer services similar to abortion clinics, but attempt to steer pregnant people away from actually having abortions.

Montero said he's pro-life, but believes in choice, adding that clinics shouldn't be lying to clients. Haxhiaj has long supported the ordinances and was among a group of six councilors who voted in July 2022 to see drafts of the laws. Rivera said he'd prefer to support a state law regulating crisis pregnancy centers and would not vote for any local law due to the threat of lawsuits.

The forum also touched on specific District 5 issues that have consequences for the entire city.
All candidates support keeping the city's tax rate split between residential and commercial properties. Montero and Haxhiaj said they would support exploring a city charter change, which last happened in the mid-1980s. Rivera said he supports the form of government Worcester has now.

The roof collapse last summer at a Mill Street apartment building came up multiple times, with the candidates being asked if the city is doing enough for residents who experience disasters. Haxhiaj asked Batista to establish a city fund that would help renters and business owners who face sudden calamities. The Mill Street collapse also exposed how renters are often treated poorly in the wake of disasters. The building owner took all the residents to court in an attempt to remove their possessions from the condemned building. It took more than three months to find permanent housing for the residents, with many staying in local hotels.

"I did it because I was motivated and inspired and horrified at how these residents were treated by irresponsible landlords," she said about council orders she filed related to the collapse.

Montero said "the city can do better" dealing with natural disasters, while Rivera said "the city is doing a good job."

A question about Worcester's growing homeless population brought Rivera and Haxhiaj into conflict. Without naming Haxhiaj, Rivera criticized a moratorium on sweeping homeless camps that Haxhiaj brought to the city council on behalf of Maydee Morales, a local homeless outreach worker and at-large council candidate.

Morales' order was filed by a council subcommittee, which means it will not move forward. But Rivera called it "inhumane to allow people to sleep outside" while saying he wants the homeless to receive "wraparound services" — access to programs like low-barrier housing, healthcare, and addiction treatment.

Haxhiaj, who works as the public education and advocacy director at the Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance, said encampment sweeps don't work and just shuffle homeless residents around — and cause higher mortality rates. Local homeless advocates say sweeps disrupt wraparound services because outreach workers lose track of individuals. Haxhiaj said the only solution is permanent housing, a resource that is scarce and isn't being built in quantities Worcester needs.

"I just feel like we see what happened with Boston, Mass and Cass, that's what I don't want to happen here in Worcester," Rivera said.

"To compare Worcester with Mass and Cass is irresponsible," Haxhiaj responded.

One of the final questions covered the former Big D supermarket, a rotting eyesore owned by a Shrewsbury company. The building may soon be demolished, but has been sitting for about 20 years.

Rivera has advocated for the city to use eminent domain to take the property, an approach he says voters like. As a councilor, Haxhiaj pursued rezoning the property for mixed or multifamily use, and using a tax incentive to spur development. Montero said he'd like to see a new school built on the site.

For the last 30 minutes of the forum, candidates were allowed to ask each other questions. Rivera went first, asking Haxhiaj about an apparent plan to "eradicate single-family zoning." Rivera cited an article by independent journalist Bill Shaner about Haxhiaj making remarks about single-family zoning during a council discussion on affordable housing in 2022.

"A blogger she's friends with. The quote said that it's in the plan," Rivera said after Haxhiaj said she "literally has no plan" to eradicate single-family zoning.

"There's no plan, so please don't spread misinformation," she said. Haxhiaj said, adding any major zoning change in Worcester would be done with input from residents and the city’s planning board.

The interrogation portion of the forum led to a tense exchange between Rivera and Haxhiaj about a recent controversy on social media. Former District 5 council Wayne Griffin, a vocal Rivera supporter, in a now-deleted Facebook post accused Haxhiaj of accepting a "blood money" campaign donation from the daughter of Jorge Zambrano, the man who shot and killed Auburn officer Ronald Tarentino Jr. in 2016.

The girl, who is 17, shares a last name Zambrano, but isn't related to him. Griffin's post resulted in the girl's name and address being spread across several conservative-leaning Facebook pages.

Haxhiaj asked why Rivera did not immediately denounce what Griffin did, and provide support for the girl and her family. Rivera confirmed he knows the girl's family and talked to them to clarify he didn't have anything to do with Griffin's post. Rivera posted a statement about the incident several days after Griffin’s Facebook posts were deleted.

"I didn't politicize it like her side did," Rivera said referring to Haxhiaj.

Haxhiaj said Rivera failed to respond properly to an incident where a minor and potential constituent was mistreated. Haxhiaj said she contacted the girl's family to see if they needed support. She also contacted City Manager Eric Batista because Worcester police Sgt. Anthony Petrone posted the girl's address from a state Office of Campaign & Political Finance database of donors.

"I demanded accountability, you took none of those steps," Haxhiaj said.

"I denounced it and said I don't condone that type of behavior," Rivera said. "I don't know what more you want me to do. Again, they want to politicize the issue."

Montero got to ask the last question of the other candidates, asking what they would do for young people and seniors in District 5.

In closing remarks, all three candidates appealed to voters to go to the polls on Sept. 5 and send them on to the November general election.

"I am here to represent you, to make sure that we have a better city for the people that come behind us, and to inspire and show how we can do it," Montero said.

"I have shown time and time again I will intervene, step forward, and raise my voice when it necessitates it," Haxhiaj said. "D5 deserves a leader who will lead this way."

"I have the heart of a champion, I got that from my mom," Rivera said closing the forum. "Through all the politicking and debating and vote gathering, I'm committed to making all of you and my mom proud."

Rosen will be back for a second forum on Tuesday featuring the three candidates in the open District 1 race: Jenny Pacillo, David Peterson and Larry Shetler. That forum begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Notre Dame Academy auditorium at 425 Salisbury St.