district 3
district 3
Will it soon be City Clerk Feeney? She quits Council early; Baker says he’ll step up
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The end came quickly and abruptly: Maureen Feeney finished her tenure as the District 3 city councilor last Thursday, tendering her resignation some 48 hours after voters had chosen her successor, Frank Baker. While the seat is vacant, the office will remain open until the end of the year, her staff said. Read more
Frank Baker wins decisive victory in District 3 race
Nov. 9, 2011
Councillor-elect: Frank Baker and his wife Today Baker posed for a photo with supporters outside Florian Hall shortly after the polls closed on Tuesday, Nov. 8. Photo by Pat Tarantino
Frank Baker, the 43-year-old former city employee from Savin Hill, triumphed by a 12 percent margin on Tuesday night, winning a closely fought slugfest for Dorchester’s open District 3 City Council seat.
Baker won the match-up with 5,262 votes to John O’Toole’s 4,120 votes, or 56 percent to 44 percent, according to unofficial results from the city elections department. O’Toole, the former head of the Cedar Grove Civic Association, called to concede around 8:30 p.m., a half hour after the polls closed across the city.
Baker won 20 of 29 precincts and three of the four wards represented in District 3. Baker’s strongest showing was in his home-base of Savin Hill, where he chalked up 84 percent of the vote in the bellwether precinct 13-10, the Cristo Rey School. But he also made major inroads into the more vote-heavy Ward 16, winning half of the ward’s 12 precincts and finishing just 130 votes behind O’Toole in his home base. Baker was strongest in Neponset, where he notched victories at the Murphy School and the Neponset Ave. firehouse. Read more
Voters head to polls to pick District 3 councillor and City Council At-Large
Nov. 8, 2011
Polls opened at 7 a.m. across the city, with two races on the ballot in Dorchester's District 3: Two men are vying to succeed retiring City Councillor Maureen Feeney and seven-person field is fighting for the four City Council At-Large slots.
The two top finishers in the Sept. preliminary, Frank Baker of Savin Hill and John O’Toole of Cedar Grove, are facing off over the first open City Council seat in Dorchester in nearly 18 years.
The polls close at 8 p.m. Read more
Vietnamese outlet and plumbers association endorse O'Toole
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A Vietnamese outlet and a plumbers union endorsed District 3 candidate John O'Toole on Thursday, his campaign said.
Thang Long, a weekly paper, placed an endorsement on its front page this week endorsing O'Toole. According to a translation of the endorsement provided by the O'Toole camp, the paper said, "Along with the fact that his background in community involvement surpassed that of Frank Baker, John O'Toole had shown himself to be a true friend of the Vietnamese." Read more
Baker proposes that city ‘decentralize’ bus depots, rethink Freeport Street site
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District 3 candidate Frank Baker on Friday pushed a proposal to revamp the city’s school bus system, calling for the city officials to “decentralize” bus depots and redevelop the Freeport Street depot for mixed use.
The depot is a 122,709-square foot site that frequently causes traffic congestion. The Baker camp proposed the city take up contracts with smaller bus companies and spread them out across the city in order to allow for faster commutes. Parents and city officials have struggled with buses getting to school on time this year. Read more
Heated campaign draws to close; voters get their say on Tuesday - Baker, O’Toole keep spending
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After six months of community forums, candidates knocking at their doors and political literature raining on their porch, Dorchester voters go to the polls on Tuesday to pick a successor to retiring City Councillor Maureen Feeney. Read more
Baker camp touts seven additional union endorsements
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District 3 candidate Frank Baker's camp on on Tuesday said another seven unions have endorsed the former city print shop employee.
The unions include AFSCME Local 419, Boston School Custodians Local 1952, Glaziers Local 1044, Painters District Council 35, Painters Local 939, Roofers Local 33, and Tunnel Workers Local 88.
"These unions represent many of thehard-working people of Dorchester who I hope to represent as City Councilor," Baker said in a statement.
EDIT: The original post incorrectly said eight unions had endorsed. There were seven.
Globe, Herald editorials back O'Toole
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Editorials in the Boston Globe and Herald on Tuesday back District 3 candidate John O'Toole for the City Council seat.
"He makes a convincing case that his volunteer activities, focusing on neighborhood stability, have served as an effective training ground for the District 3 City Council seat," the Globe editorial said, citing a thick civic resume. Read more
REPORTER'S NOTEBOOK: Campaigning in the sand box: Baker, O’Toole & friends go at it
Oct. 27, 2011
In District 3, the endorsement war rages on. The two candidates, Frank Baker and John O’Toole, continue to proclaim backing from this union and that union, all the while eyeing the electoral clock that shows less than two weeks left until the vote.
The eight-month battle perhaps can be best compared to a sandbox version of the Trojan War, a seemingly endless slugfest that involves some childhood feuds that are still in play years later because of adults unable to act their age. Read more
