George Roark, Gloucester Resident

I have personally knocked on over 1,300 doors in Gloucester for the Verga campaign and most of the residents I’ve spoken with have indicated they believe Mayor Verga is doing a good job. Many especially appreciated the trash being picked up ahead of the other 12 cities impacted by the recent strike and the fact he created a recycling drop off at the DPW yard. Now, that’s leadership! 

The Mayor’s opponent, Paul Lundberg, is entitled to his opinion regarding the performance of Greg Verga, but it doesn’t sync up with what I’m seeing.

Mr. Lundberg laments negative headlines he keeps reading. The ones I’ve read talk about Greg’s crucial support of the 400 celebration, his facilitation of the Bunker Hill reenactment, his having the guts to bite the bullet on a modern sewer treatment plant for the city and, just recently, in Travel & Leisure, a headline trumpeting Gloucester as one of the “10 Best Places to Live on the East Coast.”  

Mr. Lundberg complains about a lack of transparency. I guess he isn’t aware of new developments over the past four years like reverse 911 call capability, the city’s enhanced social media presence, or its newsletter. He must not have noticed that Mayor Verga spearheaded the permanent, post-Covid adoption of hybrid public meetings in early 2024, allowing the public and board members to participate both remotely or in-person.

Mr. Lundberg says we deserve to know how much the new wastewater treatment plant will cost. Maybe he doesn’t understand that we don’t have final construction plans, we haven’t determined the chargebacks for other towns that will share the cost, we don't know the rate of forgiveness we can get from the state, and we have not decided as a city by what method the project will be financed. Given all those known unknowns, maybe Mr. Lundberg thinks the Mayor has a crystal ball?

Most frustrating of all are Mr. Lundberg’s accusations about a lack of leadership. Maybe he has a spotty internet connection. I encourage him (and any registered voter, for that matter) to check out the Accomplishments tab at voteverga.com. 

Mayor Verga knows what it’s like to come from a family that needs a helping hand, and I think that shapes his view of the world. He just cares about people. He’s got my vote.