“It brings me a lot of joy to contribute to where we live,” City Councilor Becky Grossman said. “That’s why I have done it for the last eight years, and I’m looking forward to continuing to do it for the next two.”

Grossman, running for a fifth term, is virtually assured of reelection Nov. 4. She and newcomer Brian Golden are running unopposed for Ward 7’s two councilor-at-large seats. At-Large Councilor Marc Laredo is stepping down to run for mayor.

Grossman, 45, is from Roxbury, N.J., and has lived in Newton since 2010. Her husband, Ben Grossman, grew up here, and their three children are fourth-generation Newtonians.

She earned an undergrad degree in economics from Cornell University, and a law degree and MBA from Harvard University. On the council, she serves as the chair of the Public Safety & Transportation Committee and previously served as chair of the Finance Committee.

Before joining the City Council, Grossman worked as an assistant district attorney in Middlesex County and as an investment banking analyst at Goldman Sachs. She ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in Massachusetts’ 4th Congressional District in 2020 but lost in the Democratic primary.

Budget pressures

Newton faces ongoing financial pressures, particularly as federal funding declines, Grossman said. One of the budget issues is the unfunded pension liabilities.

“Like pretty much all of our neighbors and municipalities, we have a pretty significant unfunded pension liability that we are obligated to fully fund,” Grossman said. “As a city, we had not been contributing enough over time to meet our needs on a long-term basis.”

Newton’s budget is unable to fully fund pension liabilities in a short term, so the date of achieving full funding is pushed to 2031.

“If we get to a point where we are really not able to fully fund our school system and some of the really key elements that I think residents care about, then Proposition 2½ override is always another tool in the toolbox to consider,” Grossman said.

Proposition 2½ prohibits municipalities from increasing property taxes by more than 2.5% each year, but voters can override that rule if they want to expand municipal expenditures.

Grossman supported the attempted proposition 2 1⁄2 override in 2023, which failed.

“As for a future override, the details matter,” Grossman added. “If you’re going to ask for an operating override, you have to make a really compelling case to the voters about why we need it and what we’re going to do with it. So they believe that it is a worthwhile investment of their hard-earned resources.”

But Grossman wants to be clear that she’d like the city to examine changing the pension schedule first, and then other ways to address gaps, before going for a Proposition 2½ override.

Bringing vitality to the city

Grossman said the city needs more vitality. 

“It’s getting incredibly expensive to live here,” Grossman said. The median value of owner-occupied homes in Newton has risen from about $1.1 million to $1.4 million over the past five years.

Grossman said one of the problems is a lack of variety in housing, particularly affordable condos.

In recent years, the city has approved multiple housing projects designed to convert empty lots and vacant office buildings into apartments. Grossman pointed to the 28 Austin Street project, which transformed a parking lot into a four-story, mixed-income apartment building with retail space on the ground floor. It now has become a hub for cafés, restaurants and stores. 

“I’ve been really supportive of these projects and bringing new mixed use housing opportunities, particularly to areas in the city where the land isn’t necessarily experiencing its highest and best use,” Grossman said. 

Grossman said people have mixed feelings about those new development projects, but she thinks they bring vitality to the city.

“Making changes can be complicated and frustrating,” she said. “The overall goal is to enhance the quality of life for everyone today and in the future.”

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This story is part of a partnership between the Newton Beacon and the Boston University Department of Journalism.