By DAN TOMASELLO
LYNNFIELD — The question of who wants to serve as the next town moderator has been answered.
Mayberry Lane resident Steven Walsh pulled nomination papers for a one-year term as town moderator on Jan. 24. He is looking to succeed incumbent Town Moderator Joe Markey, who announced in late December that he will not be running for re-election due to family and professional responsibilities.
Walsh has served on the Lynnfield Center Water District (LCWD) Board of Water Commissioners since October 2022. He served as a state representative for 12 years, where he represented Lynn and Nahant on Beacon Hill. He has been a practicing attorney for 16 years and has been the Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association’s president and CEO since November 2017. He is the current president of Lynnfield Little League.
The Town Election on Tuesday, April 9 will also include three seats on the Board of Library Trustees. Library Trustees Chair Bob Calamari recently announced in a letter sent to Town Clerk Amanda Haggstrom and Town Administrator Rob Dolan that he will be resigning from the board on April 9. He was re-elected to a sixth three-year term during the 2023 Town Election.
“Please accept this letter as my formal resignation from the Lynnfield Public Library Board of Trustees, effective April 9, 2024,” Calamari wrote. “My personal and professional obligations prevent me from continuing. This effective date will provide the opportunity for a candidate to register and run in the upcoming election to serve the remainder of my term.”
In the wake of Calamari’s upcoming resignation, the Town Election will also include a two-year seat on the Board of Library Trustees in addition to two three-year seats. Haggstrom informed the Villager on Tuesday, Jan. 30 that Library Trustee Russell Boekenkroeger pulled papers for the two-year term. Mitchell Road resident Anne Malenfant, who is co-president of the Friends of Lynnfield Library, took out papers for a three-year term on Tuesday morning.
Finance Committee/Library Building Committee (LBC) member Joe Gallagher recently had his papers for a three-year term on the Board of Library Trustees certified. He is running for office for the first time.
Library Trustee Andrew Kenneally has yet to announce whether he is running for a second three-year term.
Two separate races for School Committee currently headline the Town Election. The three-candidate race for two three-year seats currently includes School Committee Chair Kate DePrizio, Pine Street resident Brendan Cooney and Planning Board Chair Brian Charville. Haggstrom certified Charville’s papers on Monday. Incumbent School Committee member Phil McQueen announced in early January that he is not running for a third term.
In addition to the three-year race, the Town Election also features a contested race for two one-year seats on the School Committee. Bryant Street resident Kristen Grieco Elworthy, Russet Lane resident Jenny Sheehan and Winchester Drive resident Kimberly Baker Donahue are looking to succeed current School Committee members Jim Dillon and Tim Doyle. Dillon and Doyle were appointed during a joint Select Board-School Committee meeting last week to serve the next three months on the school board due to the resignations of former Chair Rich Sjoberg and Vice Chair Stacy Dahlstedt in late December.
Baker Donahue’s nomination papers were certified on Monday. Haggstrom certified Elworthy and Sheehan’s papers in early January.
Select Board Chair Joe Connell recently turned in his nomination papers to the Town Clerk’s Office, and they have been certified. He is running for a second three-year term.
Planning Board member Amy MacNulty pulled papers for a full five-year term in early January. She has been serving the remaining three years of former Planning Board member Tom Wallace’s term.
Board of Assessors Chair Don Garrity took out nomination papers for a fourth three-year term in early January.
Elected officials and prospective candidates looking to run for office are able to pull nomination papers at the Town Clerk’s Office. The Town Clerk’s Office has been relocated to Senior Center/Lynnfield Public Schools Central Office, 525 Salem St., due to construction of the new $63.5 million public safety buildings and Town Hall project.
Candidates will need to receive the signatures of 50 registered voters in order to have their name appear on the ballot. The last day to submit nomination papers is Tuesday, Feb. 20 at 5 p.m. The last day for candidates to have their name removed from the municipal ballot is Thursday, Feb. 22 at 5 p.m.