General

Agenda — 6 items

1. Resolution to Honor the Legacy of Leslie’s Retreat and the Ongoing Commitment of the City of Salem to Liberty and Justice for All Be it Resolved by the City Council as follows: WHEREAS, on Sunday, February 26th, 1775, in an act that nearly sparked the first battle of the American Revolutionary War, the people of Salem, under threat of musket fire, raised the North River Drawbridge and defied the demands of British Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander Leslie, refusing to allow the passage of 300 armed infantrymen looking to fulfill orders and seize arms and armaments from a local blacksmith that had been gathered by Salem residents organized to forcefully resist British aggression, if necessary; and WHEREAS, for a decade prior, as the people of Salem endured both significant financial hardship and an erosion of personal liberty from several acts of the British Government, they did not sit idly and instead chose to organize and speak out against tyranny; and WHEREAS, in 1765 and 1766, in violation of the Massachusetts Provincial charter, the British Government sought to force the people of Salem and all people of the American Colonies, to accept financial hardship brought on by new tax laws, including the Stamp Act, the Quartering Acts, and the Townshend Acts, which were passed by Parliament, in part, to repay Britain’s national debt resulting from the Seven Years War against France, and to enrich British lobbyists and shareholders of the East India Company; and <br><strong>WHEREAS</strong>, in opposition to this financial burden and perceived overstep of British authority, the people of Salem chose to work within the existing systems of Society, Government, and Commerce by:<br><ul><li>Engaging their elected officials to pass a Resolution in opposition to the recent British acts, identifying the “excessively grievous and burdensome” consequences of these Acts of Parliament; and</li><li>Forming coalitions, including a Non-Importation agreement between merchants in other towns to economically pressure the British Parliament to repeal these acts; and</li></ul> <br><strong>WHEREAS, </strong>despite ongoing appeals to the British Parliament, tension continued to rise in Boston, resulting in the deaths of Christopher Seider, a Bostonian boy shot and killed by a British customs officer in February 1770; five men who were shot and killed by British soldiers in an incident in March, which later became known as the Boston Massacre; and finally an act of organized resistance, the Boston Tea Party of December 1773; and WHEREAS, in 1774, and in retaliation for the Boston Tea Party, the British Parliament passed several Acts specifically targeting the city of Boston, which, in-part, stripped self-governance from the people of Massachusetts by dissolving the Massachusetts Provincial charter, and extradited all trials of British officers to Great Britain, effectively ensuring that no British officer could be held accountable for unlawful actions in Massachusetts; and WHEREAS, in defiance to these “intolerable” acts against their very livelihood and liberty in which they had no elected representation, and under threat of British military intervention and arrest from the Governor, the people of Salem chose to organize and resist; meeting at the Town House to identify delegates to meet with representatives from other Massachusetts towns and discuss “necessary and expedient” measures to address the impact of the Intolerable Acts; and WHEREAS, even after the seat of government in Massachusetts was moved from Boston to Salem in 1774, the people of Salem continued, in concert with other towns across Massachusetts, to protest against specific Acts of Parliament they deemed unlawful and Acts of military aggression they deemed unjust, and to press their case for self-determination, until April 19th, 1775 when the first shots of the American Revolutionary War were fired at the Battles of Lexington and Concord; and WHEREAS, in reflection of 250 years of American Independence, it is impossible to ignore the parallels between the “Intolerable Acts” of a Colonial European power with a history of territorial occupation, imperialism, and violent oppression, and the harmful and intentional actions of the current United States Presidential Administration; and WHEREAS, the Trump Administration has taken specific actions that have brought harm to many communities across the Nation, particularly targeting communities that did not vote for President Trump in previous elections, including Salem, by: Unilaterally raising taxes in the form of tariffs without Congressional approval, an unconstitutional act which has deepened an affordability crisis for Salem’s residents and contributed to a Consumer Price Index 30% higher than the Federal Reserve’s expected inflation target in August 2025; andAuthorizing the Department of Homeland Security to deploy militarized troops to enforce federal immigration law, and more consequently, committing indiscriminate acts of violence on members of those target communities, regardless of individuals’ previous criminal histories, resulting in the fatal shootings of Kieth Porter, Renée Good, and Alex Pretti, along with countless unlawful arrests and assaults (from Executive Order No. 14159, January 20, 2025); andObstructing justice for illegal and violent actions taken by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol officers, as well as deputized state and local law enforcement departments and officers, including those within Massachusetts (from Executive Order No. 14288, April 28, 2025); andIntervening in state run elections by, in-part, mandating that voters provide documentation and proof of citizenship in order to register to vote, a policy that would restrict the voting rights of many married women and transgender citizens in Salem and across the Nation (from Executive Order No. 14248, March 25, 2025); andReinterpreting the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution, a power reserved for the Judiciary, to restrict birthright citizenship, and the Constitutional rights thereof, based on immigration status (from Executive Order No. 14160, January 20, 2025); andInitiating military strikes, invasions, coups, and open warfare, without Congressional approval, in Somalia, Iraq, Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, Venezuela, and Iran; acts of aggression which bring death and destruction to innocent people, directly and indirectly, and cost billions of taxpayer dollars which could and should be spent on addressing the needs of US residents on American soil instead of lining the pockets of defense contractors and war profiteers; and WHEREAS, to date the Massachusetts Attorney General has filed 47 separate lawsuits against the current Trump Administration, seeking to mitigate the negative impact on Massachusetts residents in the areas of civil rights, affordability, health care, education, climate change, transportation, privacy, and public safety; and WHEREAS, as elected representatives of Salem Massachusetts, the City Council honors the oath of office, which, in part, instills an obligation to uphold the US Constitution, and, from time to time, requires action to “insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity”. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, the city of Salem celebrates and honors the courage and wisdom of the people of Salem, who two-hundred fifty-one years ago, joined together to successfully, and non-violently, resist an aggressive and tyrannical power. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, on the 400th anniversary of Salem, we honor the virtues and recognize the faults of those who came before us, and reaffirm our commitment to the values of liberty and justice, for all of our community members, including people who immigrated here, to ensure a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment for everyone who calls Salem home. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Salem City Council expresses gratitude to the state and federal officials that continue to speak and act against all unjust and illegal acts of the Trump Administration; past, present, and future. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Salem City Council urges our federal congressional delegation to sponsor or support any act of Congress that would abolish the agency of Immigration and Customs Enforcement to protect the physical safety of Salem residents, and that they vote against any and all increases in Department of War funding which fuels US military aggression and imperialism, both foreign and domestic. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Salem City Council expresses gratitude to our federal congressional delegation for voting against the SAVE act and urges they do the same for any future act of Congress that would restrict access to the right to vote in free and fair elections or that would limit the representation of the people of Salem in our Constitutional Republic. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this resolution be made a matter of record as a statement of Salem’s values and to deem the aforementioned acts of the Trump Administration as tyrannical and intolerable, and that the City Clerk forward this resolution to the members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, Salem’s State legislators, and our State Executive officers.
2. The Mayor's Re-Appointments of the following with Terms to Expire:Name Board/Comm. Address Term ExpireMary Ellen Halliwell Beautification Committee 81 Orchard St. March 12, 2029Paul Kirby Board of Health 8 1/2 Daniels St. #3 March 12, 2026<br>Sara Moore Board of Health 1 Purchase St. March 27, 2029Vijay Joyce Historical Commission 107 Preston Pl, Beverly, MA March 13, 2029
3. <strong id="isPasted">ORDERED: </strong>That the sum of Seventy Two Thousand Two Hundred Twenty Five Dollars and Zero Cents ($72,225.00) be hereby appropriated from the Golf Course “Receipts Reserved for Appropriation” account (Fund 2436) and transferred to the following Park & Rec – Golf Course account below for the Golf Course equipment purchase of a Baroness FS900 Core Sweeper, Storage Container and Walk in Cooler in accordance with the recommendation of His Honor the Mayor. Description Amount Golf Course-Equipment(16512-5860) $ 72,225.00Total $ 72,225.00
4. The City Clerk submitting the following order to move Ward 3, Precinct 1 & 2 polling location back to the SHS Auditoriium:<br><br><strong>ORDERED: </strong>That the Polling Location for Ward 3, Precincts 1 and 2 shall be moved back to the original location, Salem High School Auditorium, 77 Willson Street, Salem effective immediately starting with the Special City Election on May 5, 2026
5. <strong id="isPasted">ORDERED: </strong>That the Committee on Ordinances, Licenses and Legal Affairs meet to discuss the attached ordinance amendment relative to Living Wage Requirement for the City of Salem (see attached for the complete text of the ordinance amendment and other documents and information)
6. Councillor Varela offered the following report for the Committee on Ordinances, Licenses and Legal Affairs co-posted with the Committee of the Whole, to whom was referred the matter of an Ordinance Amendment relative to Municipal and Business Composting. Has considered said matter and would recommend: Remain in Committee

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