Peabody Mayor Michael Bonfanti chose a small conference room at the Lahey Clinic to announce this morning that he will indeed be a candidate for re-election in the fall.
It was a low-key affair attended by about 20 staffers and supporters. He said the unusual location of the event was meant to highlight the city’s growing reputation as a medical hub with the Lahey expansion and plans by Boston Children’s Hospital to open a new location at Centennial Park in 2011.
The veteran chief executive, now 65 years old, said he’s running because “these are tough times … and I’m the person who can make those (tough) decisions.”
Bonfanti momentarily choked up while introducing his wife, Dottie, and thanking his family for its support through the years, then
Bonfanti
The mayor appears to have weathered the storm created by his ill-advised decision to give the city’s police officers 9/11 as a paid holiday. But he’ll have to wait until August to find out whether he will have an opponent.
