Erin Stewart

Erin E. Stewart
40th Mayor of New Britain
Assumed office
November 12, 2013
Preceded by Tim O’Brien
Personal details
Born Erin Elizabeth Stewart
(1987-05-04) May 4, 1987
New Britain, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party GOP
Alma mater Central Connecticut State University
Website Mayoral website

Erin Elizabeth Stewart (born May 4, 1987) is an American politician who is the 40th and current Mayor of New Britain, Connecticut. [1] She was elected to her first term on November 5, 2013, at the age of 26; [2] and overwhelmingly reelected to her second term on November 3, 2015. Both times beating the odds in a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans 7-1. [3] She is currently the youngest serving female mayor in the United States for a city the size of New Britain. [4] Stewart, describes herself as a fiscal conservative and social moderate, a mayor who likes to accomplish achievements by working together, regardless of political affiliation.

Early Career

Erin Stewart’s political career began as a campaign staffer for former Congresswoman Nancy Johnson. Working alongside Congresswoman Johnson, Stewart worked directly with municipal political leaders to achieve victories for various candidates around the State of Connecticut and develop strategy for communications and marketing of campaign platforms. Stewart then went on to intern for Governor Jodi Rell’s Administration in the Office of Policy and Management, then in the Legislative Affairs Office. Before becoming mayor, Stewart worked as a Legislative Aide in the Connecticut General Assembly. [5] Stewart was responsible for solving countless constituent problems for Senator Kevin C. Kelly’s district of 100,000 residents and providing research to the senator on various state law. While working at the Connecticut General Assembly, she became an elected member of the city’s Board of Education. [6]

Education

Stewart graduated from New Britain High School in 2005, after which she attended Central Connecticut State University. In 2009, she earned a Bachelor of Arts and Sciences with a specialization in Public Administration and a minor in Communications.

Volunteerism

Erin Stewart has had an extensive commitment to her community. She headed the planning and budgeting subcommittee of New Britain’s Commission on Community and Neighborhood Development while serving as the vice chairperson. She is also a Justice of the Peace. After graduating from CCSU, Stewart was an assistant softball coach at her alma mater, New Britain High School. Mayor Stewart has dedicated herself to raising awareness about breast cancer ever since her aunt passed in 1998 at the age of 51. [7] For the past three years, Mayor Stewart has served as the honorary co-chair of the Connecticut Race in the Park with Connecticut Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman.

Board of Education

Elected to the Board of Education in November 2011, Stewart strongly advocated for a return to neighborhood schools, greater parental engagement, and fought for enhanced accountability measurements for teachers and administrators, while keeping costs down. [8] In moving towards neighborhood schools the Board saved money for the school district, while also maintaining class sizes at a reasonable level. Expanding Pre-K to all day programing was another achievement during Stewart’s tenure. Lastly, the Board of Education decided to outfit the classrooms with SMART Board technology, bringing New Britain education into the 21st Century.

Mayor of New Britain

Elections

2013

On June 6, 2013 Stewart announced her intent to run for Mayor. [9] With full support, she was unopposed in the Republican primary. Stewart ran on a platform of government transparency and accountability while promising to restore financial health to the city in the face of a potential State takeover. Many considered Stewart to be the underdog, however on Election Day Stewart beat her opponent Democrat incumbent Mayor Tim O’Brien 56-44%. [10]

2015

May 26, 2015 in a YouTube video,[11] Mayor Stewart announced that she was going to for re-election. In her announcement video she stated, “I don’t believe that any one party has a monopoly on the right solutions for our city… Together we are setting a new standard for what you should expect from city government.” During her the campaign, Stewart received unprecedented endorsements from the city's police and fire unions, along with Local 1186 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, a union consisting of more than 300 city employees. [12] Stewart was elected to a second term on November 3rd after beating Democratic candidate John McNamara and petitioning candidate Alfred Mayo, garnering over sixty-six percent of the vote. [13] She is the only female to have been elected to the Office of Mayor in New Britain twice. [14] Mayor Stewart’s ticket, which was “fusion ticket”, consisted of registered Republicans, Democrats and Independents. [15] For the first time in forty-four years the Common Council is compromised of a Republican Majority, claiming twelve of the fifteen seats on the Council. [16]

Tenure

Budget & Finances

Mayor Stewart has earned accolades for her leadership and results-driven style of governing. She closed a deficit of more than $30 million during her first term,[17] while many were talking about filing for bankruptcy. She brought stability and responsibility back to the city’s finances, gained an unprecedented 3-notch upgrade [18] in New Britain’s bond rating by Standard & Poor’s in January 2015, and ushered in a further bond upgrade in January 2016 to "A+." [19] Though her leadership the city achieved a four notch bond upgrades within five years. [20] In two budget cycles, she managed to close a deficit of $30 million and put $14.9 million into the city’s rainy day fund. The budgets that Mayor Stewart has presented were structurally balanced. [21] She is the first mayor in the city’s history to deliver budget addresses when presenting her budget to the common council.

Economic Development

Under her leadership, New Britain is undergoing a dramatic economic turnaround. For the first time in years, the City’s grand list [22] is experiencing growth and businesses are expanding, including the addition of Costco, which was added to the City's list of top ten taxpayers in the fall of 2015. [23] Much of that interest has been sparked by the opening of CTfastrak. New England’s first bus rapid transit system, which directly connects downtown New Britain with Connecticut’s capital city of Hartford. Both the City and the State are spending millions in transit-oriented development and seven phases of streetscape improvements that are bringing increased commercial and residential development to New Britain. Mayor Stewart, has also been able to secure over $12 million of both state and federal grants to help pay for the Complete Streetscape Master Plan.

New Britain Bees

Professional Baseball has been a hallmark of the City of New Britain since 1983. In June 2014, the City’s longtime baseball team, the New Britain Rock Cats surprisingly announced that they were leaving New Britain and moving to Hartford. [24] After the surprise announcement former Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch (politician), connected Mayor Stewart with Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, the owners of the Bridgeport Bluefish. After months of negotiations, Stewart received a commitment from the League to bring what would become the New Britain Bees to the city. Due to a lapse in contract New Britain was officially without baseball for only one day. New Britain Bees. [25]

Homelessness

Mayor Stewart has also invested significant resources in helping New Britain’s homeless population through her creation of the Building Hope Together Task Force: New Britain’s Permanent Workplan to End Homelessness. [26] The Mayor was able to secure a $2.145 million to fund the construction of over ten units of permanent supportive housing; connecting individuals to the services needed to get back on their feet. By bringing city officials, clergy members, and social services providers around the same table, Mayor Stewart is not only continuing New Britain’s tradition of compassion for those less fortunate, she is intent on finding housing, treatment, and work for those who seek it. Veterans’ homeless is another issue which Mayor Stewart has made a focal point of her tenure being able to prove access to services, supportive housing and critical care veterans need. Working closely with Veteran’s Inc. the City committed $205,000 to helped to bring 18 units of veterans’ housing to New Britain.

Energy & Innovation

Mayor Stewart is also committed to making New Britain a “green” community. Through her “Smart City Initiative,” the Mayor has spearheaded the largest solarization project in New Britain’s history, including a massive solar array at Shuttle Meadow Reservoir, as well as rooftop solar arrays on most school buildings. [27] She is also taking steps to increase the use of LED technology in all City buildings and streetlights, further reducing the City’s energy consumption, and is embarking on building the city’s first fuel cell. Mayor Stewart has also founded an Energy and Innovation Committee to oversee this initiative. Stewart has a monthly television show called "Around New Britain with Mayor Stewart" that airs on Nutmeg Television. It is also available on YouTube. [28] In 2016, Mayor Stewart presented the first ever digital State of the City [29] as way of transforming City Hall and moving further into the 21st century.

Awards & Accolades

Mayor Stewart has been fortunate to be honored with many awards for her service to the City of New Britain:

Mayor Stewart has been the subject of in-depth profiles by national media outlets such as the New York Times [35] and Newsmax Media [36]

Personal Life

Stewart was born May 4, 1987 in New Britain to Patricia (Badolato) and Timothy Stewart. Mayor Stewart embraces her job as a role model – especially young women – and never misses an opportunity to encourage them to follow their dreams. The Stewart family has a legacy of service. Her uncle, Dominic J. Badolato, was first elected to the Connecticut General Assembly in 1954 and served for 22 years, and her father, Mayor Timothy Stewart, served as mayor of New Britain from 2003-2011. [37]

External links

References

  1. ↑ http://redalertpolitics.com/thirty-under-thirty/erin-stewart/
  2. ↑ Kirby, Amy (2014). Legendary Locals of New Britain.]
  3. ↑ http://ct.gop2013/11/memo-2013-election-results/
  4. ↑ http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/erin-stewart-mayor-youngest-New-Britain/2015/01/26/id/620858/
  5. ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=250198267&snapshotID=&authType=name&authToken=ouPa&trk=NUS-body-member-name&sl=NPU_REG%3B320048754-1423350501423-caff68eb88378de8f1879e1f58165277%3B-1%3Bactivity%3A5969877070761709568%3B7%3B0%3B
  6. ↑ http://www.centralctcommunications.com/newbritainherald/news/article_3baf120a-60bb-5c6e-ad4b-d8f066c31a45.html
  7. ↑ http://www.centralctcommunications.com/newbritainherald/article_57dfa5b0-f225-11e5-a8c8-335babff5582.html
  8. ↑ http://www.csdnb.org/#home
  9. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArJLZQjYRtE
  10. ↑ http://www.sots.ct.gov/sots/lib/sots/electionservices/electionresults/2013/new_britain.pdf
  11. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gz0mZKtBpow
  12. ↑ http://www.centralctcommunications.com/newbritainherald/article_5ad99eca-72e0-11e5-a3a5-03459f95c193.html
  13. ↑ http://www.sots.ct.gov/sots/lib/sots/electionservices/electionresults/2015/nov/new_britain.pdf
  14. ↑ http://www.centralctcommunications.com/newbritainherald/article_08c6b7e6-82a1-11e5-9aa7-27b185e35d78.html
  15. ↑ http://centralrecorder.com/2013/10/23/ccsu-alum-runs-for-mayor-of-new-britain/
  16. ↑ http://www.centralctcommunications.com/newbritainherald/article_a73857a0-8368-11e5-be72-b7d2cf50db07.html
  17. ↑ http://fox61.com/2015/01/20/credit-rating-agency-gives-new-britain-a-huge-financial-boost-of-confidence/
  18. ↑ http://fox61.com/2015/01/20/credit-rating-agency-gives-new-britain-a-huge-financial-boost-of-confidence/
  19. ↑ http://www.stewartfornb.com/sps-upgrades-city-bond-rating-to-a/
  20. ↑ http://www.bondbuyer.com/news/regionalnews/youthful-mayor-steers-new-britain-turnaround-1096082-1.html
  21. ↑ http://www.newbritainct.gov/index.php/119-government/mayoroffice/budget-proposal/407-mayor-s-fy2017-budget.html
  22. ↑ http://www.bondbuyer.com/news/regionalnews/youthful-mayor-steers-new-britain-turnaround-1096082-1.html
  23. ↑ http://www.bondbuyer.com/news/regionalnews/youthful-mayor-steers-new-britain-turnaround-1096082-1.html
  24. ↑ http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Bittersweet-Day-in-New-Britain-for-Last-Rock-Cats-Home-Game-323372951.html
  25. ↑
  26. ↑ http://www.stewartfornb.com/making-an-impact-nb-sees-drop-in-homelessness-nbherald/
  27. ↑ http://www.stewartfornb.com/stewart-unveils-smart-city-plan/
  28. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/user/stewartfornb
  29. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDervecok_4
  30. ↑ http://www.stewartfornb.com/ccsu-honors-mayor-stewart-with -women-of-influence-award/
  31. ↑ http://www.newsmax.com/TheWire/influential-republicans-30-young/2016/01/12/id/709124/
  32. ↑ http://www.ccsu.edu/alumni/topstories.html
  33. ↑ http://nbcityjournal.com/archives/10580
  34. ↑ http://www.connecticutmag.com/Connecticut-Magazine/February-2014/40-Under-40/?cparticle=4
  35. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/05/nyregion/at-27-balancing-her-social-life-and-a-citys-budget.html?_r=1
  36. ↑ http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/erin-stewart-mayor-youngest-New-Britain/2015/01/26/id/620858/
  37. ↑ http://www.newbritainct.gov/index.php/government/mayors-office/mayor-erin-stewart-s-welcome.html?id=249
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