Kim Driscoll
Kimberley Driscoll (born August 12, 1966) is an American politician serving as the mayor of Salem, Massachusetts. Early life and education. Driscoll was born in Hawaii while her father was serving in the United States Navy. Her mother was born in Grenada and raised in Trinidad. Driscoll moved to Salem, Massachusetts in 1986 and graduated from Salem State College in 1989. Career. Driscoll served as deputy city manager of Chelsea, Massachusetts for five years. Mayor of Salem. Driscoll was elected mayor of Salem in 2005, taking office in January 2006 at City Hall. She was re-elected to  the position in 2009 with over 80% of the vote, and won again in 2013 and 2017. Driscoll has considered running for higher office, including the United States Senate, United States House of Representatives, or governor of Massachusetts. As a result of her leadership, Salem became one of 110 cities and towns in the state of Massachusetts designated as Commonwealth "Green Communities." This status made the city eligible for municipal renewable power and energy efficiency grants from the state. In 2013, Salem received eight stations where drivers can charge their electric vehicles; four are located at the Museum Place Mall , near the Peabody Essex Museum, and the other four are located inside the South Harbor parking garage across the street from the Salem Waterfront Hotel. Also in 2013, under the leadership of Driscoll, the city moved to a mandatory recycling program for trash pick up in Salem. Driscoll obtained a federal grant to cover 90% of the cost of "Nathaniel Bowditch", a $2.1 million 92-foot high-speed catamaran that travels from Salem to Boston annually from May to October. The maiden voyage took place on June 22, 2006. The ferry is named after Nathaniel Bowditch, who was from  Salem and wrote the "American Practical Navigator". A major point in the waterfront development occurred in 2016 when Driscoll set up for the City of Salem acquisition and redevelopment of the parcel at 289 Derby St. into a gateway park along the waterfront. As of 2017, a $1 billion transformation of the Salem waterfront is well underway. The project was originally proposed in 2006, and involved dredging to make the waters deeper for larger boats. In 2016, the city acquired the vacant parcel at 289 Derby Street for redevelopment as gateway park along the waterfront. The Salem Harbor Power  Station, an old 1940s coal-powered facility was replaced with a smaller and cleaner natural gas powered plant, occupying one-half of the original footprint, allowing for additional waterfront redevelopment in the future. 40-acres of prime waterfront land is up for sale, the largest deal in the city's modern history. 2022 lieutenant gubernatorial election. In January 2022, Driscoll declared her candidacy for lieutenant governor of Massachusetts in the 2022 election.