Committee Assignments

2008-2009 Term

  • Committee on Finance
  • Committee on Rules, Elections, Orders, Ordinances, and Claims
  • Committee on Public Safety
  • Transportation and Parking Commission
  • Ad Hoc Committee on Best Practices in Northampton Decision-Making
  • Police Station Building Committee
  • State Hospital Citizens Advisory Committee


2006-2007 Term

  • Committee on Public Safety
  • Committee on Social Services and Veterans Affairs
  • Committee on Economic Development, Housing, and Land Use
  • Transportation and Parking Commission
  • State Hospital Citizens Advisory Committee

A PROVEN RECORD OF EXPERIENCE, HARD WORK, AND LEADERSHIP ON THE CITY COUNCIL


City Councilor David Narkewicz has been an active and effective member of the Northampton City Council working on a wide range of policy issues for his ward and the city as a whole. During his two terms in office, David has served on every key Council committee as well as on citywide bodies including the Transportation and Parking Commission, the Ad-Hoc Committee on Best Practices, the Police Station Building Committee, and the Hospital Hill Citizens Advisory Committee. David has sponsored or co-sponsored legislation on issues including land conservation, zoning, housing, recreation, traffic safety, veterans benefits, sustainable growth, and government reform.

David's four years as a ward councilor have prepared him well to serve the entire city as Councilor At-Large. Now more than ever, the City Council needs David's experienced and capable leadership to face the important challenges that lie ahead, and to continue to move our city forward.

Constituent Service

David's top priority as Ward 4 Councilor has been accessibility to his constituents. He has worked hard responding to questions and concerns by phone, mail, e-mail, and in person. He's helped hundreds of residents find answers to questions about city government and worked with dozens more to solve specific problems affecting their family, property, or business. When larger neighborhood issues have arisen, David has organized and led meetings to bring people together, share concerns, and seek solutions. David also maintains a large Ward 4 e-mail list and uses it to keep his constituents informed about key city meetings and other issues of interest.

Transportation

As Chair of the Transportation and Parking Commission since 2005, David has led the city's efforts to improve traffic safety, modernize our parking system, and create a more sustainable transportation infrastructure that promotes walking, biking, and public transit. David has worked with residents and neighborhoods across Northampton, Florence, Baystate Village, and Leeds to address concerns about traffic safety and speeding. David helped author the City's first "Traffic Calming Manual," designing a citizen-driven process for evaluating and engineering solutions to these prevalent concerns. He has also worked to promote expanded public transportation in Northampton, working with the Mayor and the PVTA to extend bus routes to neighborhoods on Hospital Hill and in Florence. In 2007, MassBike Pioneer Valley named David its "Bicycle Advocate of the Year" for his "tireless dedication to promoting safety and access for cyclists in Massachusetts."

Budget & Finance

David has served on the Finance Committee for two years and worked closely with his colleagues, the Mayor, and the Finance Director to review and approve all expenditures and borrowings and help shape the City's $87 million budget. When the City faced deep revenue cuts brought on by the recent economic downturn, Councilor Narkewicz helped organize public meetings for both his ward and the city to share information with residents and seek their feedback. David became an active supporter of a Proposition 2 1/2 override to prevent the most damaging cuts to key city services and personnel. He met with, called, e-mailed, and canvassed hundreds of residents across the city to personally answer their questions and concerns about the proposed override and to make the case for why Northampton needed to take control of its own financial destiny when neither the state nor the federal government could help.

Government Reform & Best Practices

David has been at the forefront of the city's conversation about making city government more open and accessible to residents and looking for ways to improve our public policy and decision-making processes. David co-sponsored the resolution creating the Ad-Hoc Committee on Best Practices in Northampton Decision-Making. He was an active member of that body during its yearlong public process, performing extensive research on practices in other municipalities, creating and maintaining the committee's website, and co-authoring its final recommendations to the City Council. In addition to his work around best practice, David successfully sponsored an ordinance change restricting City Councilors from serving on regulatory and administrative boards like the Planning Board or the Board of Public Works in order to ensure a clear separation of powers in city government. More recently, David introduced legislation calling for the appointment of a special charter review committee to review our overall governmental structure every ten years. One of his continuing priorities if elected Councilor At-Large will be ensuring that the City Council is strong, independent, and fully exercises its role as the legislative check in city government.

Education

David has been a strong supporter of the Northampton Public Schools since long before he joined the City Council. A board member of the Northampton Education Foundation (NEF) for more than ten years, David has helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for our city's students and teachers, and was a member of the steering committee that created the first permanent endowment for the schools. David's children attend Bridge Street School and J.F.K. Middle School and he is a product of public education himself. David understands how important a strong school system is not only for our childen's future, but also for the overall social and economic well-being of our community.

Public Safety

David has served on the Committee on Public Safety for his entire four years on the City Council, working closely with the Police Department, the Fire Department, and the Building Commissioner to ensure the safety and security of both city residents and the many visitors who make Northampton a vibrant economic and cultural destination. From holding hearings on ordinance proposals to reviewing fire, crime, and building safety data to overseeing the recent transition to a municipal ambulance service, David has a broad knowledge of public safety issues and their importance to the overall social and economic security of our city. David also served on the Police Station Building Committee, working to locate and design a long overdue, state-of-the-art police facility for the benefit of all city residents and will continue to advocate for this important project if elected Councilor At-Large.

Veterans Services

David is currently the only military veteran on the Northampton City Council, having served on active duty in the United States Air Force. He has been a strong and consistent supporter of the Northampton Department of Veterans Services' efforts to provide vital services and benefits to our city's veterans and their survivors, including our nation's newest veterans returning home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. David was an active member of the Committee on Veterans Affairs and Social Services during his first term on the Council. In 2006, David teamed up with his late colleague and fellow veteran, Councilor Raymond LaBarge, to co-sponsor a resolution extending a deferment of property taxes for National Guard and Reserve personnel who were away from their jobs and families for extended periods of active duty service.