Madden to step down after 2 terms: Weymouth mayor won’t run for re-election

Madden

By JACK ENCARNACAO
The Patriot Ledger

WEYMOUTH - The town’s first mayor has announced after eight years in office that he will not run for re-election this year.

David Madden said he does not feel he can devote his full energy to another four years in the office.

‘‘At this point, I think it’s best for me personally,’’ he said.

He said he had been considering the move since the beginning of the year and made his decision over the weekend. Madden told his staff yesterday afternoon.

Madden was elected in November 1999, becoming Weymouth’s first mayor after residents voted to switch from a town meeting-selectmen form of government to a mayor-town council form.

A Weymouth native and a former Weymouth fire chief, Madden wasn’t on anyone’s original list of mayoral candidates after a majority of voters approved the change to a city form of government.

During a six-week race, Madden portrayed himself as a conciliatory figure who would end Weymouth's personality-driven political squabbles. But he cautioned voters not to expect dramatic improvements in services overnight.

Reflecting on his two terms in office yesterday, Madden said he feels he has accomplished his goals.

‘‘We took something that didn't exist and created it,’’ Madden said of the mayor’s job. ‘‘We did it in a way that allowed people to be proud of it. I felt I made difficult decisions when I needed to.’’

Madden presided over several large projects, including the building of a high school, groundbreaking in the redevelopment of the South Weymouth Naval Air Station and the lifting of long-term water bans.

‘‘You need to invest in your assets, to improve them, to maintain them,’’ he said.

Madden was Weymouth’s fire chief from 1993 to 1999. He joined the fire department in 1977.

Madden, 52, is still on leave from the department so he can keep a pension that allows him to retire at55 with full benefits. That means Madden can return to the fire chief job at any time. He has not ruled out a return to the fire department.

He said yesterday that his future is the next thing he is going to focus on, and he has no definitive plans yet.

‘‘I really haven't focused on where I'm going from here,’’ he said.

Madden said he won’t be leaving the mayor’s job with any regrets, though there are several projects left undone.

‘‘In this job, there will always be a thing that has to be done,’’ he said. ‘‘Even if I got to them and left later, there'd be more.

The mayor appoints all of the town’s department heads and hires his office staff. When he was elected, Madden mostly retained veteran town hall staff.

Madden, a father of two who lives on Millstone Lane near Weymouth Landing, said he will be on vacation in the coming weeks.

He said the town’s second mayor will face challenges.

Nearly all of the town’s union contracts expired last month and Madden expects many of them to still be in negotiation next year. Progress at the South Weymouth Naval Air Station will need to be closely monitored. And a new mayor only has three months to prepare a budget in tight fiscal times.

‘‘I think next year is going to be a difficult budget year,’’ Madden predicted.

Madden’s successor will take office the first day of business in the new year, Jan. 2.

A primary election will be held for mayoral candidates on Sept. 18 and the general election is Nov. 6.

Madden said he’s looking forward to the day when people no longer refer to him by title, such as ‘‘chief’’ or ‘‘mayor.’’

‘‘It's almost like I haven't had a first name in a long time,’’ he said.

Jack Encarnacao may be reached at jencarnacao@ledger.com .

Copyright 2007 The Patriot Ledger
Transmitted Wednesday, July 11, 2007