State Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack
It wasn’t hard to compare state Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack on Thursday to another hard-nosed, high state official working to help Lynn take another step forward.
Like state Housing and Economic Development Secretary Jay Ash, Pollack is a tough talker who, on Thursday, bluntly assessed transportation projects near and dear to Lynn’s leaders.
Pollack did not sprinkle any sugar on her words when she pointed out how late-night public transit service, which was cancelled this week, cost $13 per rider to subsidize. She offered that comparison by way of noting the price tag for subsidizing the Lynn-to-Boston operation is $40 per rider.
Pollack did not say the ferry is unaffordable; in fact, she said her aides are working to help local officials find money to subsidize the ferry operation for a third season.
Like Ash, Pollack is a Democrat who answered Gov. Charlie Baker’s call to join his administration. Like the former Chelsea city manager, Pollack talks a different language than her state predecessors.
State commissioners and secretaries once visited Lynn and said, “We will pay for local projects as long as we can line up some federal money.” Ash and Pollack sing a different tune that sounds like this: “Step up and show us you are unified around viable projects and we will help turn them into realities.”
If Lynn wants to turn the ferry into a long-term operation, then city officials are going to have to help come up with a business plan mapping out long-term strategies for ensuring the water shuttle succeeds.
If the city wants to grow waterfront development by turning the GE-only River Works stop into a commuter station, then — said Pollack — it is going to have to lean heavily on public-private partnerships to make the project work.
Sounding very much like Ash, Pollack urged city officials and business leaders to “strike while the iron is hot” and find ways to accelerate prioritized local transportation initiatives. Her blunt assessments also extended to the Blue Line extension project. Pollack did not declare the extension down for the count, but said it will be included in a transportation planning process looking out to 2040.
To her credit, she concluded her Thursday speech at the Porthole Restaurant with these promising words, “It does seem Lynn is poised to succeed.”