METHUEN — An entrepreneur with a tech background, Jim Sarcione, 62, said he hopes to bring his business acumen and attitude to the office of mayor.
A political newcomer, Sarcione is running against D.J. Beauregard, acting mayor and until recently City Councilor, to fill the mayoral seat in a Dec. 10 special election. The election followed the unexpected passing of former Mayor Neil Perry this fall. The victor will serve out the remainder of Perry’s term, about one year.
Sarcione, a longtime Methuen resident, began his career working in software development for tech companies and more recently has started or taken over a series of small businesses such as a commercial landscaping company, a restaurant and an insurance agency. Now, he wants to make a direct impact on the community.
“I have always been a passionate person,” said Sarcione.
One of the central points of his campaign is that Methuen is losing its character as a community. Local businesses have given way to fast food chains and the city’s young are fleeing, never to return.
“We need to be more small-business friendly,” he said. “Methuen has 30 national fast food franchises.”
He has pitched measures to help promote local businesses with grants and classes for helping residents become entrepreneurs. He also wants to help people buy their first home in the city and talked about the benefits of residents owning homes rather than renting.
He explained this meant promoting homes that the average resident can afford, instead of apartments where people see their housing expenses disappear rather than owning to build home equity.
However, Sarcione said the biggest issue in the city at the moment was education and negotiations for a teachers contract, which have dragged on for months past the expiration of the union’s previous agreement.
He pointed to the disagreements between educators and officials in the public school system that has pushed the local union to rally at public meetings as teachers and the administration continue to fail to come to an agreement on salaries. He said that teacher’s pay has been an issue at the school for a long time and was not an excuse.
“I don’t let any problems reach 10 years,” he said.
He added that the quality of a city’s education system plays directly into property values.
Sarcione said he would advocate for the teachers at city hall, adding that he sympathizes with educators, respects their value to the community and expects that they will get a “fair wage.”
While he speaks of the importance of bringing business principles like efficiency or swift action, Sarcione said compassion is also very important for a leader.
“It’s not just the businesses, it’s the residents,” he said.
In order to improve city government Sarcione talked about the potential need for restructuring of some departments. He said in particular there needs to be more thought put into economic development, more strategic partnerships to bring in tech companies and more resources put to developing long-term development plans.
He also touched on the topic of preserving history and more specifically the recent purchase of the Searles Estate by the city for $3.25 million. Sarcione said more thought should have been put into what the city was going to do with the estate before it was bought.
“Where is the return on investment?” he asked.
Sarcione said the projected timeline for determining a use, 18 months, was also unnecessarily long.
If Sarcione is elected he will either inherit a city with new zoning that promotes the construction of multifamily housing or an administration and City Council that has decided to ignore a state law that asks municipalities to adopt zoning at the risk of grant funding. While Sarcione said the city did not need more apartment buildings he didn’t see much of a choice for the city.
“I don’t think it’s avoidable,” he said.
He praised the work of the Methuen Police Department and said the key to reducing crime is early intervention. He added the School Resource Officer program at the public schools had proven to be effective.
“Safety is all about being proactive,” he said.
Outreach is also important for Sarcione. He said the city needed to do a better job connecting with residents and asking them what they would like their city to do. Sarcione pointed to the need to reach out to students as well as senior citizens.
Sarcione went to school for computer science at Southern New Hampshire University and got his degree from attending night classes. He explained he had started a family early and was working multiple jobs at times.
After a career in the tech industry, Sarcione decided to become an entrepreneur.
He has owned, made successful and then sold both Patriot Land and Building Maintenance and Big City Bar & Grill, a local restaurant and sports pub, according to Sarcione.
Most recently, he opened an Allstate Insurance Agency.
When he is not working, he spends time fishing and tending to his garden. He is also involved in youth sports including as an official during basketball games for the Merrimack Valley and Catholic conferences for fourth graders to seniors in high school.
“I’m a normal guy,” he said.
For more information on Sarcione including his platform visit: jamessarcione.com