October 22, 2007

Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chávez will run for the New Mexico Senate seat being vacated by U.S. Senator Pete Domenici, a Republican. An Albuquerque native, Chavez is in his third term for mayor. He was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1998, losing to Republican incumbent Gary Johnson. Chávez, 55, also served for years in the state senate. He is co-chair of the Conference of Mayors Water Council.

Alexandria (VA) Mayor William D. Euille, a Democrat, led a city council 7-0 vote on a resolution that outlines the city’s intent to comply with state and federal immigration laws but not question the immigration states of people seeking public services.

The city of 128,283 has a growing Latino population. Said the mayor, “We are reaffirming and reconstructing our services and outreach to international citizens.”

Alexandria must provide every resident with schooling, public health care and police protection. According to a memorandum to the resolution, the city can extend such services as rental and burial assistance, job placement and emergency Medicaid without mandatory proof of legal residence. The city in the Washington Metropolitan area will follow Arlington County as the second Northern Virginia jurisdiction in recent weeks to take such a stance.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl took office a year ago when Mayor Bob O’Connor died. He is up for reelection November 5, running for a full term.

Ravenstahl, at 27, is the youngest mayor of any major city in the country. An October 6 New York Times profile says the mayor is expected to coast to victory.

While making some blunders as a young mayor, the article also says that the mayor has helped keep the city’s hockey team, the Penguins, from leaving by promising a new arena, balanced the budget for a second year in a row, crime remains low, and he recently helped persuade two mayor contractors to redevelop sections of the city’s downtown.

And, to sharpen his role as mayor, Ravenstahl spent a day in January with Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and hosted a visit from New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to his city of 312,000.

“The Office” Helps Bring Notoriety to Scranton

Scranton (PA) Mayor Chris Doherty has seen his city’s public awareness grow immensely thanks to the NBC television series “The Office” who’s workplace, Dunder-Mifflin, calls the city home. In a Feature that ran in The Washington Post on September 26, the town was showcased as a go-to destination, thanks to the television series’ references to the city’s real locales. Boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell) and workers Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson) have not only made viewers aware of a few local haunts (the show’s writers pluck random place names from a copy of the Scranton Yellow Pages), but the paper company’s corporate logo can now be found upon the city’s light posts, even in front of city hall. It’s Scranton’s way of playing along with the show which has helped portray a positive image of this traditionally low key city in Northeast Pennsylvania.

“As a mayor, I am always concerned about how we’re depicted as a city. And they’ve always depict us favorably,” said Doherty.

Scranton has since seen a rise in public awareness since the show had won the Emmy for best comedy series last year. The fictitious show will take over the town October 26-28 when “The Office” Convention hits town.