Hello, I'm Rebecca Lisi, Candidate for Ward 7 City Council. I live at 25 Reservation Rd, in the old Dobbs' house that my partner, Damian Cote, and I restored in the past 2 years.

I've been living in the Pioneer Valley for 4 years, and in that time I've worked as a community organizer with Clean Water Action. This means that I've been working closely with citizens and with government agencies, on campaigns to protect clean air, clean water, and public health.

In only one year of working with CWA I moved up the ranks from an entry level position to the Director of the Northampton Office. I helped to win some of the nation's strongest Clean Air Legislation and secure stricter Mercury Regulations on the emissions from coal fired power plants, like Mt. Tom. It was also under my watch that we recruited and developed the largest summer staff the Northampton office had seen since its inception.

I am involved in political work because I care deeply about people and have a sincere interest in the struggles that we encounter. I believe that it is from struggle and challenge that we grow, and learn to see what we're capable of accomplishing. I have an independent perspective of Holyoke and the challenges we are facing. I can turn these challenges into opportunities for businesses and individuals to express their creative and productive potentials.

We need to look at Holyoke's historic past and renew our sense of community and place, so that it is reflective of a Holyoke that we want to be a part of today. We should have a clear and comprehensive vision for what we expect to find in our city. I want to employ innovative, pro-active approaches that will help Holyoke regain its status as a ‘world-class city’. Smart Growth Policies are being funded by the state and provide an opportunity to invest wisely in the revitalization of downtown Holyoke.

Smart Growth Policies help to improve the quality of life throughout the Holyoke by establishing clear and predictable avenues for economic development. It concentrates urban redevelopment to compact areas downtown, where infrastructure already exists, preserving our natural environment, and utilizing our community diversity.

Holyoke will grow due to natural market forces and the overflow from neighboring, gentrified towns, so we have a choice to either take a pro-active approach that plans for and directs this growth, or remain more passive and allow developers come in with their own plans and ideas about the city.

I promise that the more people that engage in this process, the more real our vision will become and less risk any of us have to take. The time to act is NOW. We have nothing to fear but stagnation. Please join me in one of Holyoke's most historical creative endeavors.

REBECCA LISI, THE CHOICE IS YOURS!