Meet City Council Candidate Emily Lazzaro

How many years have you lived in Medford?

Nine years. My family and I moved to Medford in 2016 when my son was 1 and I was pregnant with my daughter. We moved from a small condo in Somerville for more space and were lucky to find a house we could afford — we wouldn’t be able to afford our home now.  

Please describe your professional background and education. 

My background is in the arts and higher education; I hold a BFA and MFA from Boston University in theater and playwriting, respectively. When President Trump was first elected in 2016 and I was pregnant with my daughter, I felt that advocating for social change through theater alone was too slow for me. I returned to graduate school to study public policy at UMass Boston, getting a graduate certificate in gender, leadership, and public policy. I worked at the Massachusetts State House with Representative Christine Barber and coordinated the Senate Committee on Post Audit and Oversight with Senator Kathleen O’Connor Ives, conducting oversight to ensure the government remains accountable to the people it serves. I then worked for the superintendent of schools here in Medford, where we introduced the middle school lottery and leveled the demographics between the Andrews and the McGlynn, working in collaboration with teachers, administrators, education experts, and families to better support our students. More recently, I served as the assistant director of the Malden Warming Center, a seasonal emergency overnight shelter for unhoused people. Currently, I am the president of the Malden Warming Center.

What, if any, city positions (appointed or elected) have you held, and for how long?

I was an employee of Medford public schools as the executive assistant to the superintendent from 2018-2020. I have been a city councilor since January 2024.

What volunteer roles have you participated in that you feel have made a difference in Medford?

I have been a volunteer with the Malden Warming Center and a big sister with Big Sisters of Greater Boston, both of which are regional. I have volunteered in various capacities with the Unitarian Universalist Church of Medford, where I am a member, and with the Medford Family Network over the years.

Why should residents vote for you?

I believe in the promise of a representative democracy, the balance between firmly held beliefs and representing the real-life needs of your constituents. I listen, I learn, and I am willing to grow. I believe in finding consensus and building coalitions across different belief systems, but one thing I will never debate is the inherent worth of every human being. Because of my work with unhoused people at the Malden Warming Center, every initiative I support aims to center an ethics of care, respect, and dignity for all residents, especially those facing housing and food insecurity.

In working at both the state and local levels, I saw intimately how desperate our schools were for more funding. I campaigned on charter review in favor of more equitable representation in government, and to override Proposition 2 ½ so the city could save teachers’ jobs. I saw that local government had an obligation and capacity to act boldly, and felt that we needed elected officials who were willing to make needed changes to raise more revenue and provide more robust services to residents. Our city deserves elected officials who aren’t afraid to stand up for what’s right, who believe in something and say so proudly.

What do you believe are the top 3 issues currently facing the city of Medford? How do you specifically plan to address those issues? 

Issue number one - pedestrian safety. This past winter, Dan Dill and Arthur Webber were killed in crosswalks in Medford. I began working closely with community groups, Medford’s traffic engineer Todd Blake, state legislators, and state agencies to bring roadway improvements to these locations. Medford residents should be able to get from place to place and not worry about their well-being, and infrastructure improvements should be made with walkability, driveability, bikeability, and safety in mind. These roadway changes are underway now because of my collaboration and dedication to this cause.

Issue number two - services for our most vulnerable residents. Medford needs to increase its revenue so we can provide better services for our neediest residents. This includes bolstering our Health Department, one of the hardest-working departments in City Hall. They do so much for our community but could be better supported if they were provided the staff they really need. Extending beyond the Health Department, our librarians provide crucial assistance to vulnerable residents, such as internet, learning materials, classes, and a welcoming third space. Staff should be paid what they deserve, and the library should be open seven days a week. We owe it to our city workers to show up for them like they show up every day for Medford residents.

Issue number three - Housing affordability. Medford needs to increase its housing stock, with built-in affordable housing units required by law. Currently, Medford has approximately 7,500 more households that qualify for affordable housing than units that are designated as affordable. This is unacceptable. Zoning is one way to address the affordable housing crisis, and we must continue to increase funding for the Affordable Housing Trust and other mechanisms that allow the city to build and require developers to build affordable homes. We have to continue to work to find solutions for residents across the income spectrum to survive and thrive, stay in their homes, find a place to live in Medford that suits their needs, and love where they live.

Transparency and communication are vital in representative government. What steps will you or have you taken to keep your constituents informed about local decisions and to explain your voting rationale?

I pride myself on being a responsive city councilor: if you write me an email or call me, I will write you back or call you back. I have a strong moral center, but I do not know everything. It is my duty to balance the principles I was elected on and the diverse perspectives of residents. I have offered listening sessions at the Medford Senior Center many times as part of my role as a member of the Resident Services and Public Engagement Committee, and I hope to continue that in my next term. In that same vein, I have also written many monthly City Council newsletters, and after taking a vote, I do my best to explain my rationale via my email list or a blog post on my website. 

What specific methods will you use to gather and represent your constituents’ perspectives on issues that come before the City Council?

The City Council does not have a communications office to send out press releases, robocalls, or letters in tax bills. I plan on continuing and expanding upon what I’ve done in my first term in a continued effort to increase access to City Hall: blog posts, emails, listening sessions, and increased communications directly from the council, authored by the council.

The past two years, the City Council has been updating the zoning across the city. Many residents feel the process has been too quick and has covered too much at once. What are your thoughts on that? If elected, how would you approach zoning?

Mayor Breanna Lungo-Koehn only agreed to a contract for Innes Associates for 18 months, so that was the amount of time that the City Council was allotted to complete the zoning project. In an effort to rezone the entire city in 18 months, many residents felt that the City did not adequately inform residents and that changes were happening too quickly. This all being said, I believe that updating our antiquated zoning laws is a top priority that must be approached with open hearts and minds from all neighborhoods and perspectives.

Before recent updates made to the zoning laws, Salem Street was zoned for apartments - only apartments. However, Salem Street has a gas station, a Target, restaurants, a dentist’s office, a bike shop, convenience stores, and the list goes on and on. Every single one of those businesses had to go before the Community Development Board to get a special permit to open. Does that seem efficient? I don’t think it does. The city needs to be rezoned on the basis of efficiency alone, but also so Medford can grow with the times. This allows us to bring in more businesses, which equals more revenue, which equals more services to our residents. It opens up the possibility to build more affordable units, so our neighbors who qualify for affordable housing aren’t stuck on waiting lists. 

We can slow down or speed up the project as much as we want. However, nothing moves forward without Mayor Lungo-Koehn agreeing to pay Innes Associates, the zoning consultants, using free cash, to stay on and assist with the project. Thus far, she has not agreed to do that. 

There have been City Council meetings that have gone past midnight. Do you really think these marathon meetings are serving the public? Should there be a time cap on meetings for everyone’s sake?

My kids are eight and ten years old, and no matter if the meeting the night before was two or six hours, I’m still up bright and early to get them to school on time. I understand: no one likes a meeting that runs long, especially if you have rearranged your evening to attend as a member of the public. Some constituents were expressing that sentiment, so I proposed a rule change to shorten the public comment period from five minutes to three minutes. This meant that more residents would have time to speak while still not imposing too strict a time limit on public comment. I did not anticipate the backlash I received, especially given that I intended to strike a balance between engaging with residents while also respecting their time. 

So yes, I do believe in a (slightly) shorter public comment period. Not because I believe in rushing through the work before the council so I can get a bit more sleep, but because it allows us to be more productive, remain focused on the agenda, engage directly with more residents, and hear more perspectives. 

If a resident of Medford who grew up in Gaza asks us to take up a ceasefire resolution and is bravely sharing what happened to their family members there, I believe they deserve their three minutes. If a trans resident asks us to protect them from the threat of overreach by the federal government and supports an ordinance doing just that, they deserve their three minutes, too. 

Elected officials have a duty to listen to the people, and council meetings are where that happens, even past midnight, and even if I have to get my kids up for school.