Long time South End resident Jeff Ross announced this week he would officially start his campaign for an at large seat on Boston’s City Council.
Ross, a resident of the South End for the last 19 years, is an attorney in Boston, serves on the Democratic State Committee, and works as a local activist for LGBT rights. If elected, Ross, as an openly gay man, would be the first LGBT person to hold the at-large seat.
“I’m running for the City Council At-Large because I believe our city is best served when it is represented by a diverse group that is reflective of the city itself,” said Ross. “While I’m not in the race to make history as the first openly gay At-Large city councilor, the significance of it is not lost on me. Boston is a city that is strong because of its diversity and I am excited about how my campaign is already bringing people together across identities to focus on the issues facing us all.”
Ross said his main issues he wants to tackle would be to invest in small business owners, improve public school education make every neighborhood safer, and have each of Boston’s neighborhoods become a “destination” neighborhood.
“Each neighborhood has differnet aspects of culinary, art, business, venues and theater, and I think that each neighborhood can become a destination neighborhood for the city,” he said, specifically mentioning improvements in transportation to Hyde Park and Mattapan.
Ross also said he’d like to see more development in the city to help increase Boston’s tax base, and reduce resident property taxes at the same time.
“I struggled to establish a life where I could support a family, and I want to create better opportunities for the talent that comes here to Boston from all over to stay in the city,” he said.
Ross is one of about 20 candidates running for four at-large city council seats, including another South End resident, Michelle Wu.
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