Beginning with my initial year on council in 2021, I took strong stances on many vital issues at the time and continue to do so today. Two matters, affordable housing and a solution for the Brown School, became tied together and, thankfully, are headed in a favorable direction. The third, a permanent home for Youth Services, is still being debated and now faces a vote of confidence by the community.
I am deeply concerned about securing a permanent home for Youth Service. One of the first actions I took upon being elected to the Council was to vote in favor of purchasing the building at 59 Low St. to house a community recreation center focused on youth services. It should come as no surprise that I am in complete favor of seeing this project through.
Please be assured that I understand the concern about “raising taxes.” My husband, son, and I live in a modest home, on a modest income, with my contributory portion fixed as a result of my being blind. Also, I grew up on the threshold of poverty, and I understand what it means to need every dollar to survive.
Even given my family’s situation, I will, without the slightest hesitation, spend the extra two dollars a month, $24 a year in property taxes, to pay for this project. Additionally, I will continue to be a strong advocate for utilizing the full yearly income from the Curtis Memorial Fund gift to buy down the bond cost for the community and eliminate the override.
Newburyport Youth Services, now known as Newburyport Recreation & Youth Services (NRYS), serves more than just the “kids,” many of whom are our most vulnerable community members, through its programs and activities. For every child served, there is a family structure that may be a single parent, two working parents, a multi-generational household, or something else entirely. What matters is that the service to our “youth” trickles down to parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, sisters, brothers, neighbors, and, for families at risk, the community at large.
The children from families who are “at risk” are often the ones who, without youth services and a recreation center with programming, are left to their own devices on the streets. It is with deep passion for this project that has its roots in my firsthand experience as a latchkey kid who grew up on Inn Street with nothing to do and no one to guide me. There is a great deal to be said for steering young people away from the wrong path.
Please join me and vote yes for the rec.
Jennie Donahue
Newburyport City Councilor, Ward 2