Rebekah Gewirtz

Rebekah Gewirtz knows that effective leadership means working hard and working with the community. It means recognizing our diversity as strength. And it means bringing people together to solve problems, and find new opportunities to strengthen our community.

A proven community leader, Rebekah is committed to our values and our concerns and will continue to work towards an open and accessible city government.

Strong Public Schools: Nothing is more important for a strong community than public education. Each child deserves a quality education. Rebekah works to increase funding and improve the quality of our public schools. Rebekah and Paul Bockelman, Ward 6 School Committee Member, initiated the first-ever Ward 6 Newsletter to promote community involvement in our schools. She's an advocate for the Brown School and our youth.

Affordable Housing: Many of our families are struggling with the high costs of housing. Longtime residents are struggling to stay in the community where they grew up and newer residents are finding it difficult to achieve the dream of home ownership. Rising rents are also making it hard for renters to make ends meet. Rebekah will work to court developers interested in building housing that is affordable for Somerville residents so that our teachers, firefighters, and long time residents can afford to live here. She will also fight to decrease property taxes for seniors living on a fixed income.

Public Transportation: Improved public transportation is crucial to Somerville's future. It attracts business to the city, reduces reliance on automobiles, lessens pollution and improves our overall quality of life. Partly because of her demonstrated commitment to better transportation, Rebekah has received the endorsement of the MA Sierra Club. As Chair of the Housing and Community Development Committee, Rebekah will continue to seek to increase public transit access by working with community organizations, businesses and residents to continue progress bringing the Green Line into Somerville. Rebekah advocates for a full build of the Green Line in Ball Square and an Orange Line station in Assembly Square by 2014. She has brought residents and business owners together to find solutions to current pedestrian and traffic problems at crowded city intersections.

Smart Development: Rebekah knows we need smart, sustainable, and fair development that builds on our diversity. Smart economic development increases revenue for the city and decreases our reliance on regressive property taxes for city revenue. Rebekah brings the community together around development issues so we can assure that development meets broader interests of the neighbors and the community rather than just the narrow interests of some developers. New growth must also take into account the high population and street density that impacts Somerville neighborhoods. Rebekah continues to advocate for sensible development that improves our neighborhoods and supports a balanced community.

Environmental Preservation: Rebekah has been a leader on local climate change issues, and knows that maintaining a healthy environment makes our neighborhoods cleaner and more attractive. She authored two innovative environmental initiatives that passed unanimously, including New England's first-ever plastic bag recycling ordinance. Rebekah is working to beautify Somerville while maintaining its character and preserving its unique history. She is also advocating for legislation that will help local schools create rooftop gardens.