Approximately one third of the 240 Town Meeting seats are up for election this year. There are 105 candidates for 84 seats — with 23 incumbents not seeking reelection — fewer than last year’s 141 candidates for 83 seats. While we’ll have to wait for the results, what we know for certain is there will be a lot of new faces in Powers Hall when Town Meeting convenes on May 4.
Last year, the draw into town politics appeared to be one central issue: the MBTA Communities Law. This year a variety of issues have been cited, including the expected Pollard override vote, the Envision project in Needham Center, housing issues and the Quiet Zone.
The Observer talked to six rookie candidates for Town Meeting from different age groups ranging from local policy wonks to candidates who look forward to learning the details of issues.
In Precinct H, Mia Biddick is one of 10 candidates vying for eight Town Meeting seats. With a household that includes two dogs, two parakeets and three young children, she said that her involvement in Needham has been centered around the young families that she has met through the schools and other youth activities. While well acquainted with the opinions of elementary and middle school parents, she said she looks forward to attending Town Meeting and learning about the “opinions of older families that have been here a long time.”
Biddick has a master’s degree in teaching from Tufts University with a specialty in art education, but currently stays home with her kids. She co-chairs a group in charge of outdoor enrichment at Broadmeadow Elementary School. With a grant from the Needham Education Foundation, she is working to make raised garden beds that are ADA accessible to replace the current garden that has broken boards with sharp edges.
In her six years in Needham, Biddick said she has become aware of many concerns including the “dog park which is falling apart and really dirty.” Her first impulse is to roll up her sleeves and do it herself, but, she said, “It might be better if I’m involved in the town and understanding how the budget works.”
She is strongly in favor of the Pollard override with the plan that includes the larger performance space, and she hopes the new school is completed in time for her youngest child to enjoy. “The arts are so important to our kids and to our town in general.”
Louis Wolfson of Precinct J has never served in town government but he said decades as a commercial Realtor have given him insight and experience into many pressing issues and inspired him to toss his hat in the ring.
Wolfson supports the multi-unit plan at the former site of Hillcrest Gardens on the edge of downtown, but called Envision Needham a pointless project. “I believe that our downtown is excellent the way it is and it’s very inviting.”
Instead of focusing on projects that take away travel lanes and places for trucks to unload, Wolfson believes the town should concentrate on basic infrastructure like repairing sidewalks and crosswalks. Needham has more miles of sidewalk that the DPW is able to adequately maintain. The DPW is able to repair every sidewalk once every 40 years. “The problem is that the lifespan of a sidewalk is 15 to 20 years,” he said.
Wolfson is particularly concerned about the state’s Newton-Needham Corridor Project having a negative impact on local businesses.
An advocate of maintaining the schools’ excellence, he is undecided about the Pollard project. He said he would form an opinion by reaching out to hear from other voters in his precinct.
James Goldstein ran for Town Meeting once before and lost, but that didn’t dull his passion to serve the town. This year he is once again vying to represent Precinct G as one of three candidates competing for a one-year opening.
Goldstein currently works as an independent environmental consultant after a 30-year career as an environmental scientist at the Tellus Institute.
Goldstein was president of the Bay Colony Rail Trail Association from 2018-23, the public private partnership that created the scenic trail that runs from near High Rock Street to the river crossing to Dover at the Charles River Peninsula. Goldstein said the organization ceded control to the town which has done a “nice job” maintaining it.
Although no longer president, Goldstein is still a board member and said the trail will expand toward Needham Junction in the coming years. He also represents the rail trail on the Mobility Planning & Coordination Committee. Goldstein said infrastructure includes roadway improvements, sidewalk improvements and bicycle amenities.
He favors the complete rebuilding of Pollard with the performance space. “It’s a generational investment,” he said.
Goldstein has been closely monitoring and supports the work of the Large House Review Study Committee. “The recommended zoning changes are quite modest but important.”
Jill Olive’s husband, Peter, a Town Meeting member for 13 years, has repeatedly urged her also to run to represent Precinct H. She resisted the invitation until now. “I feel like it’s my time,” she said.
She said that change of mind began in 2020 when she heard reports of students of color experiencing discrimination in the schools and in town. “That really upset me to learn that sometimes, brown or black children were followed in the shops of Needham or there were assumptions made.”
Olive joined a group called Equal Justice Needham that sponsored events to highlight the issue of racial discrimination in town. She said the group changed its focus to housing issues, and now she is active in the Needham Housing Coalition, a group that advocates for a wider variety of housing choices in town.
Olive has lived in Needham for 40 years and co-ran First Bridge Preschool for 23 years. The preschool was based in the Christ Episcopal Church. “I have a very tight connection with this town, and I have just loved my neighborhood,” she said.
She praised the schools for their continued excellence and said they usually do a good job of looking at the bigger picture. “It’s not just about where you’re going to college, but it’s how you develop emotionally, socially and academically.”
She is leaning toward supporting the Pollard project with the expanded auditorium, but said that she needs to learn more of the details.
When asked if she would sit next to her husband in Town Meeting if elected, she said she probably would. “It’s going to be a date night.”
Nick Giudice was encouraged to run by a friend who told him that young families with children need more representation in town government. Last year he lost his Town Meeting election bid from Precinct I. This time he is one of nine candidates for eight slots.
He said his most important issue in town is “making sure the town moves forward with securing state funding for the Pollard project and passing the override.” He hopes the school is rebuilt by the time his kindergartner arrives.
When he ran a year ago he said he was opposed to appropriating funds to upgrade the rail crossings in order to quiet the railroad horns, but after campaigning and talking to his neighbors, he changed his mind. “I came around,” he said. “I’m now fully supportive of a Quiet Zone based on the quality of life impact for a large portion of Needham residents.”
Giudice, who does sales in the software industry, grew up in Newton and moved to town from Boston about 10 years ago. He said he appreciates the close-knit community, but wishes Needham had more shopping and restaurants close by. “It seems that the Newton side of Highland Ave. has a little more happening,” he said.
He looks forward to getting involved in local government. “A lot of times when we’re doing our civic duty and voting in state and federal elections, you don’t get to see the tangible results,” Giudice said. “On the other hand, being able to add your voice on local matters is empowering.”
Mark Marget is a 2022 Needham High School graduate and a senior at Bentley University who interned for former State Representative Denise Garlick. He is double majoring in data analytics and business and conducting independent research into the lack of political involvement that characterizes most of his generation. “A lot of people my age have lost faith in politics, and that’s really something I want to help remedy,” he said.
He was encouraged to run for Town Meeting after a conversation with Select Board member Josh Levy. “Mr. Levy suggested that I look into it,” Marget said, “And it just sounds like a really amazing opportunity.”
Marget said he is still formulating opinions on many majors issues, including Envision Needham and the Pollard override, but he is focused on ”sustainable development, continuing good elder care and appropriate youth education.” He said he looks forward to reading over the warrant items. “I’m fortunate because I know that the Town Clerk will send us a lot of information.”
When Town Meeting convenes in May, Marget will be one of the youngest members. With eight candidates for eight slots in Precinct C, he is guaranteed victory.
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