Recchiuti to Seek Second Term on Bethlehem City Council

FROM MICHAEL RECCHIUTI: - Democratic City Councilman, Bethlehem small-business owner, and adjunct professor, Mike Recchiuti, 38, announces his candidacy for a second term on Bethlehem City Council.

Recchiuti cites his achievements during his first term on City Council and his desire to continue to make Bethlehem a better place to live, work, and raise a family as his motivation to seek a second term.

“I was raised in a middle-class family right here in Bethlehem. This is where I live, work, and am now raising my own middle-class family. In my first term on Council, I have been a tireless advocate for fiscal responsibility, job-creating economic development, transparency in government, and public safety. But my work is not done—putting Bethlehem first by making it a better place is what drives me”, Recchiuti says.

Recchiuti points out his successes in bringing about a number of new initiatives, or “firsts”, that he helped bring to Bethlehem:

• Mike wrote the law that makes City contracts subject to approval by Council, shedding light on the way the city does business and spends tax dollars for the first time.
• Mike supported and worked to pass a comprehensive overhaul of the City's zoning law—the first in more than 30 years, which will help protect Bethlehem’s unique neighborhoods.
• In the face of a 6-million dollar budget deficit, Mike, as Chairman of the Finance Committee, worked with the City Administration and his colleagues on Council to close the deficit by refinancing and restructuring debt, by reducing city spending, and by instituting a Council mandated city-wide hiring freeze for the first time-- avoiding the need for a drastic property tax increase.
• Mike strongly supported the City's application for the CRIZ designation, and creation of the first Bethlehem Revitalization and Improvement Zone Authority, which will continue to help the City build on the over $2 billion dollars of economic development already invested in our city in the last several years.
• Mike voted for the resolution to support the region’s first Rail Transit Authority.
• Mike fought successfully to strengthen the City’s first Campaign Finance Reporting Law—ensuring additional transparency by the City’s elected officials.
• Mike also voted in support of the Landmarks and Historic Resources Ordinance—preserving the history and traditions of some of Bethlehem’s unique character and architecture for the first time outside of the City’s historic districts.

“I am proud of what I have been able to accomplish on Bethlehem City Council in only 3 years. In every area—from economic redevelopment, to city finances, to public safety, I have written or supported laws and initiatives that have made Bethlehem a better place”, Recchiuti notes.

Recchiuti is a 1995 graduate of Freedom High School. He holds a B.A. in Telecommunications from Penn State University (1999), and a Juris Doctor from Western New England College School of Law in Springfield, MA (2003). Mike is a small-business owner, running his own law practice on Center Street, where he focuses on Family and Elder Law, Estate Planning, as well as providing legal help to families experiencing financial difficulties. He is also an adjunct professor at Northampton Community College.

Recchiuti, who resides in North Bethlehem with his wife, Tina, and 18 month-old daughter, Sophia, serves as Chairman of the City’s Finance Committee, is a member of both the Public Safety and Parks and Public Property Committees, and also serves as City Council’s liaison to the Bethlehem Authority. He also participates actively in his neighborhood Block Watch.“I love Bethlehem. I grew up here, I started my business here and I am raising my family here. I am running for a second term because I feel passionately about my hometown. We need leaders that put Bethlehem First. It is what I did in my first term and what I will do in my next term.”

For more information on Recchiuti’s campaign please visit his website at www.mikeforcouncil.com.