December 4, 2009 – Mayor Domenic J. Sarno announced today that he has scheduled orientation sessions for the newly elected city councilors and school committee members. The orientation sessions will also be open to current members re-elected in November. The City Council orientation will take place on Saturday, December 5, 2009 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The School Committee orientation will take place on Saturday, December 12, 2009 from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Both sessions will be held at Emma’s Place which is located at 1464 Parker Street in the Sixteen Acres area of Springfield.
Mayor Sarno organized the orientations to assist the newly elected officials with their transition into office and has asked various City and Sate officials to prepare information on a variety of topics including how to manage requests from constituents, the legal authority of the City Council and School Committee, issues and challenges the City is projecting for the coming years and a review of public services provided. Each presentation includes time for questions, answers and discussion to ensure issues are fully explored.
Mayor Sarno stated that “the orientation sessions are one of many efforts designed to help us work effectively together so that the residents of Springfield and students of the Springfield Public School System benefit.”
Invitees were notified via correspondence from Mayor Sarno dated November 20, 2009. In his correspondence, Mayor Sarno expressed to each member how much he was looking forward to working with them in the new term. The letter went on to state “We have made great progress over the last several years to improve public safety, education, economic development, finance and many other municipal services. I am confident that we will be able to make even greater strides in services to the people of our great City.”