As a parent, I'm voting for Lissette for Mayor of Malden, and here are some of the reasons why, based on answers from the Mayoral Forum and observations living here during the current administration:

There has been 14 years of squander, neglect and shrinking of resources for Malden’s youth:

The Malden High School Green Space: In a heavily developed city, our green space is rare and valuable. This beautiful living lawn with mature heritage oaks, has been maintained and preserved for over 100 years as part of the High School campus. It is not empty. It is a thriving learning area, outdoor classroom, and wellness space. Why lose it now? The plan to destroy this green space with the 15 Ferry building is not a good solution. Isn’t there an ugly old empty parking lot, somewhere already ruined, that would work instead? 

The Emerson School: The public schools built in the 1990s were designed to have small class sizes for a good teacher to student ratio, enrichments such as shop, library, cooking, health and nutrition, marching bands, everything to ensure kids would experience joy in learning. All that has been cut. All those enrichment rooms have been converted to regular classrooms. During the recession, all five of the elementary school librarians were laid off and only one hired back.  All while the schools budgets have been slashed to the bone, class sizes getting bigger, and school programs being cut, and school buildings, such as the Emerson, sold off.

 Malden Library Closed Reading Room: In response to the murder of their son by a bank robber, the Converse family wanted to make this community a better place for youth. In his memory, they hired the best architect of the time to build the most beautiful teen center across the street from the highschool, the Converse LIbrary Reading Room, in 1885. They wanted to make sure that Malden youth would have a place to go after school to be inspired, to learn, to find a better future for themselves. Generations of Malden youth have spent many inspired hours studying there. So why has this teen center been shut up for over 14 years, only open to private functions of the elite? When will Malden’s teens be invited back to this space created just for them and their future? 

Shuttered Branch libraries and Malden Community Centers: Oak Grove Community Center, Linden Maplewood Firehouse Library. A decentralized city is a walkable city. Branch libraries and community centers within walking distance for neighbors build community and make our city safer for everyone. These spaces are not just an “extra” - they make places for people to connect, find belonging, and they make our city safer and more welcoming for our youth. 

Youth City Council: Gary said he was against a youth council. I know from personal experience that empowering youth leadership will help make our city a safer, stronger, and more just. Young people are the vanguard: they are most alert to emerging injustices on the ground as they face many pressures. We need opportunities for our youth to have a voice in our government. 

Sports and Recreation: Roosevelt Park and Maplewood Park: Our kids need access to healthy, safe playing areas and fresh unpolluted air. Our kids deserve a sustainable, well-thought out future, not short-sighted solutions. Malden’s plastic artificial turf fields are aging or expired. Where is the plan or funding for their replacement? Is targeting Malden’s public green spaces for more plastic turf a sustainable or healthy solution? Over the last decade, there has been a noted spike in youth sports injuries on artificial turf. Plastic turf emits greenhouse gasses that contribute to air pollution and the urban heat island effect. Real grass gives our kids oxygen, cools the neighborhood, and has safer GMAX scores. We need leadership that values our kids’ health, safety and future. Our kids need more green spaces, not fewer. They need more oxygen and fresh air, not more extreme heat toxic chemicals and acres of plastic destined for our landfills. 

As a parent, I value leadership that has vision for our youth, their education, health, safety, and empowerment. Lissette offers her leadership with a progressive a parent's-eye-view of our school system and city. She has been a supporter and advocate of our teachers, parks and the civic infrastructure which promises opportunity for our young people. That's why I'm voting for Lissette for Mayor of Malden.

Thank you to former Councillor-At-Large Debbie DeMaria and current Ward 4 Councillor Ryan O’Malley for endorsing my candidacy for Mayor of Malden! These two elected officials have played a critical role in supporting qualified candidates, especially female candidates, from School Committee to City Councilors. To earn their endorsement is truly an honor. It also shows that our message of change, inclusion, and making spaces for all voices is resonating with our city leaders. This campaign has worked hard to make inroads into our many communities. The hard work we do on a daily basis is already making a real difference in this city. Whether we agree or disagree, all Maldonians should work together to make our city better for the future. Moreover, my recognition by this these two influential, involved citizens adds more creedance to my pledge to work with our City Council to be a leader for change and progress in Malden.

Former-Councillor DeMaria:

“I’m a believer that competition encourages creativity, greater problem solving, and revolutionary thinking. It forces our elected leaders to listen to the people and step up their game. We should never stay dormant and blindly support the status quo - especially if they just pretend to care prior to an election.

As a retired Malden elected official, I believe we need greater representation of women in politics. We need women who prioritize problem solving and concentrate on thinking outside the box. I’ve helped crack the glass ceiling slightly, but it’s still there.

Does Malden really welcome diversity? Or is it still an “old boys club” where women leaders are undermined and burned out from lack of authentic support? Malden counts just single digits for women in leadership roles and that must change. Starting from the top.

I’m very proud to support Lissette Alvarado for Mayor! She has the courage and tenacity to do the work and stand up for Malden today!”

-Debbie DeMaria

Councillor Ryan O’Malley:

“I support Lissette Alvarado for Mayor of Malden because she actually cares about the environment and will defend our priceless greenspace. As a former student of the Salemwood, I know Lissette will protect Roosevelt Park, its historic weeping willow trees, and prioritize the health and safety of our community and its schoolchildren.

For decades, the city has pandered to well connected developers and has exclusively built luxury apartments that Maldonians can’t afford. Lissette will help spearhead affordable homeownership opportunities, so that families are not priced out of Malden and so our elders can age in place.

Lissette will bring transparency and accountability to the mayor’s office and her experienced leadership will serve as an example of good governance.

For these reasons and more, I ask that you vote for the only authentic candidate for Mayor: Lissette Alvarado!”

- Ryan O’Malley

Since 2010, 2,500 luxury units have been built in Malden, and not one of those units is affordable housing. Malden has had an amazing revival in the past several years. There’s no doubt that all of us, including myself and my family, enjoy the new Malden Center. Yet, the reality is that we could never afford to live in Malden (center or otherwise) if we had not purchased our house 12 years ago. For perspective: The purchase price of our home was $270,000 in 2011. That would be considered a steal right now. Our monthly mortgage is $1,200. 

My housing reality is a pipe dream for anyone hoping to rent or purchase in Malden now. The only people who can afford a new life in Malden are those who have amassed a small fortune to rent or buy here. 

On Zillow as of October 30, 2023:

 - The cheapest rental is $1,100 per month for a studio apartment. 

- The most expensive rental is $5,000 per month. 

- The cheapest condo for sale is a two-bedroom for $349,900. 

- The cheapest single family home is an abandoned home on Waitt’s Mount for $399,000 being sold for cash or rehab loan only. 

- The next single family home immediately jumps to $599,000.  

It’s time that we start building a Malden for us. We need to refocus on our current residents. We are pricing out our Malden residents - individuals, seniors and families. We are even pricing out those who can afford luxury housing but can no longer afford rents in the $3,500+ range . 

I pledge to work with the City Council to explore options for rent control. We need to be more proactive and immediately begin studying how rent control could benefit our residents and neighborhoods. When people aren’t scraping to pay their rent, they can spend their money elsewhere on restaurants, entertainment, and savings. 

For context: Rent control has been outlawed in Massachusetts since 1994, but COVID changed everything. Rents, inflation, and the cost of food and necessities are all way up. There are currently several rent control bills in the State legislature awaiting review, including S.1299/H.2103 “An Act Enabling Cities and Towns to Stabilize Rents and Protect Tenants.” These bills would NOT force towns and cities to enact rent control. It would only open the door to allow them to vote on enacting rent control in their specific city or town through their own city council/town meeting legislative processes. 

My goal is to exempt small landlords (double and triple deckers and owner occupied buildings) who rent units for income as opposed to profit. I want to help the small landlords that need it to help them maintain affordable rents of their tenants. These efforts would work towards keeping Malden residents and families in Malden.

Just because we were not legally mandated in the past to require affordable housing does not mean we should have ignored the need, and that is exactly what happened. We have to face the reality that Malden is no longer affordable for people who rent and live here. Our city government needs to begin addressing this now.

I will also work with the City Council to review our Inclusionary Zoning law. Currently, it requires new developments to include affordable housing only if the development will be 8 or more units. We need more mixed income developments around our entire city for buildings that have a smaller footprint (under 8 units). I will work with the City Council to amend our zoning laws to make more affordable housing in every new development that comes to this city regardless of size. 

Another proactive option is to expand our Property Acquisitions program through the Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF). The AHTF was created in 2019, but up until this Fall, the City had not purchased one property using AHTF in the past four years. We can purchase properties and return them to the affordable housing pool by selling them to first time and/or low income homebuyers. That’s a win for both the city and our residents. Homes stay taxable, and we keep Malden residents in Malden. 

Beginning this fall, the current Salvation Army purchase/project is the first affordable housing project of the AHTF. This is an excellent example of how we can build affordable housing with trusted partners like the Asian Community Development Corporation. I hope to see many more collaborations of this sort in the future. 

We need to let renters and first time homebuyers know that we support them. We can do that by creating a First Time Homebuyers Education Program which will walk residents through the process of purchasing their first home. Buying a home is a daunting task, and we can build awareness and excitement for buying homes in Malden by educating our residents on the process. 

We can also support our first time homebuyers by utilizing $1 million from ARPA funding as a pilot program that subsidizes $3,000 in closing costs for over 300+ first-time buyers that agree to live in the property they purchase (owner occupied), and stay in that property for five years. If they forfeit any of these options, they forfeit the down payment assistance and must repay the city. 

The main focus of my affordable housing plan is to work with the City Council towards viable solutions NOW. We can build a Malden for all of us. We have made good progress with increasing our housing stock, but at the cost of pricing out our longtime residents. We should be exploring all proactive options for more affordable housing. I want our wonderful residents to stay and invest their lives here. A mixed income and multi-generational residential base is a benefit to all of us. Let’s work with the City Council to make Malden welcoming for both current residents and new ones.

Vote for real change on November 7th!! 

"I was an enthusiastic supporter of Gary Christenson when he first ran for Mayor and he has done a lot of good for Malden, including the re-opening of Pleasant Street. No one questions his passion for the job and this City, and Malden could certainly do worse. (I am glad that he won out over opponents in previous years.) But in the last few years, I have seen questionable actions by his administration that give me pause, whether it's the weak handling of the pandemic, Roosevelt Park, Maplewood Square, missed opportunities, personnel decisions, or other matters. After 12 years, maybe the time has come to shake things up and give someone else a chance. I'm casting my vote for Lissette Alvarado."

Platform Initiative #2: Improving Public Infrastructure in Malden.

Improving our public infrastructure system will increase public safety, reduce transportation headaches, and improve our quality of life.

First and foremost, we will move forward with building a new and modern Fire Headquarters for our Malden Fire Department. The building they currently reside in is beautiful and historic, but does not meet the modern needs of a city our size, or of the civil servants who do this hard and heroic work for us on a daily basis. Our fire department deserves better. We will re-situate our new Fire Headquarters to a more centralized location so that travel times to Maplewood Highlands to the north, and Newland Street Housing to the south can be reached in under 4 minutes when a fire or medical emergency arises. It is not fair to residents of central Malden who have to cope with longer response times due to the lack of a fire station in that area. An increase in public infrastructure here will specifically lead to an increase in Malden’s public safety.

Secondly, we must modernize our traffic light system. Although the system we have works and works well, it is an analog system leftover from 50 years ago. It is outdated and does not support the technology that could improve our traffic wait times. By beginning to modernize our traffic light system on our bike lane roads first, we can dramatically improve traffic, wait times, and the mental health for everyone who drives in Malden. It should not take forty minutes to travel through our city on our main roads. By installing newer systems where needed first, we will be able to electronically update the timing of our signals at any time, and start building a database of quantifiable data in order to adjust the system as needed in the future. An improvement in infrastructure here would streamline traffic, reduce stress and headaches, plus best meet the needs of our residents and visitors who travel throughout our city on a daily basis.

Thirdly, we will reprioritize the road work schedule, especially as it revolves around reducing the number of lead water pipes in our city. There are some streets that haven’t seen any roadwork updates for decades. That means a lot of potholes, lead pipes that haven’t been replaced, and possible risks of safety and damage to your vehicles. We will meet these needs where they are, and make sure that roads are being worked on in every ward.

Fourth, we must identify a new space for our Malden Teen Enrichment Center (MTEC). The current agreement to share the Senior Center is a disservice to both groups. The Senior Center was built for the sole purpose of meeting the needs of our senior population. It has proven to be a convenient stopgap for our teen program, since MTEC had to move out of their last location due to the building being demolished, but it is time that we prioritize our teens and give them center that focuses only on them. We’re talking about a dedicated space that could include: academic help, college counseling services, classes on adulting (such as writing a resume, getting a job, paying bills and taxes), a maker space, afterschool meals, continuing the great programming they have today, and expanding upon it with citywide partnerships in order to increase service to our high school population of 1,856 students. A dedicated center can inspire, teach, offer a safe space, and engage so many more of our young people.

Fifth, we will create and find more public spaces that can be used by the community. We hear wonderful stories about how Malden used to have a stage at Devir where bands played, library annexes around the city, Ward rooms in several locations. We want that back. We can identify city owned lots and buildings and retrofit them for public use and to meet the needs of our communities today.

Finally, and most importantly, we want you in on the ground floor of all of these decisions. With increased community outreach and language access options, we can truly build the Malden you want. Lissette has heard your complaints and will move forward to make sure that our infrastructure plan for the next four years prioritizes your needs.

The Office of Public Engagement (OPE) would be bold in its work to create deeper relationships with our diverse and varied communities.  The purpose of City Hall is to make sure that all residents can access city services. This means fully engaging our non-english speaking residents, immigrant, and underserved populations, but also our disabled, teen, faith-based, LGBTQIA+, senior, and veteran communities on a daily basis. OPE would provide a two-way street that would focus on ensuring access to city services for all Malden residents, while also interacting our communities on a daily basis to really understand their needs, wants, accomplishments, and issues. It will initially begin with staffers hired for their connections and understanding of our communities, and will grow into an office structure overseeing:

• Quarterly town halls in various languages/issue areas

• Continue language translation and access services. 

• Create a rule that all publicly advertised meetings (per State Open Meeting Law) are also zoomed and recorded for transparency and 

• Facilitate meetings between communities and City Hall departments

• Event planning and coordination

• This office will not be a buffer to meeting with the Mayor.  All current community stakeholder meetings will continue, while OPE systematically increases access across all communities to the Mayor's office.  

This is not a performative office or set of positions. OPE is the tool by which we will fully integrate all of our services into resident-friendly initiatives and proactive relationship-building within our communities with community leaders.