Governor-elect Maura Healey visited Cape Cod today for the first time since her historic victory in November’s gubernatorial election.
Her arrival in South Yarmouth drew more than 100 people, including lawmakers, community leaders, and activists. The who’s who event was held in the old Riverway restaurant space, where the nonprofit organization Family Table Collaborative (FTC) cooks and serves meals for those struggling with food security across the region.
After chopping carrots and brussel sprouts and packaging chicken entrees for FTC, Healey and Lt. Governor-elect Kim Driscoll rattled off priorities for the Cape and Islands: developing more affordable housing to support its workforce, improving mass transit, and investing in climate resilience.
Speaking to press, Healey doubled down on her commitment to preventing Holtec, the owner of the decommissioned Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, from dumping radioactive water into Cape Cod Bay.
“We know the work we have to do to build a resilient future,” she said. “We know we have to stand strong in the face of Holtec and others, and I will hold them to their agreements, which do not allow, by the way, for dumping.”
Healey also said she supported transfer fees, which could be added to high-value real estate sales to create revenue to support affordable housing. Communities on both Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, as well as elsewhere in the state, have voted for the use of such fees, but they require approval by the State legislature, where they have yet to be passed.
“With respect to transfer fees and the like, I've said for a long time, I think that's up to communities,” she said. “And I support communities that feel [it's] appropriate to take to take those steps. Absolutely.”
Healey’s afternoon in South Yarmouth was part of a tour across the Commonwealth. She said this stop hosted by FTC, an organization that distributes an estimated 50 to 60 meals a week with the help of donations from local farms and fishermen, was a perfect example of the kind of conversations she’s been having in the run-up to her first day in office.
“We've been on the road the last few days visiting people and meeting people where they are. It's also been about service and people coming together. And there's there's no better representation of that than what we see happening here,” she said
Dozens the meals were delivered to Angel House, a family shelter in Hyannis.
On Thursday, Healey and Driscoll’s inaugural celebration will be held at T.D. Garden in Boston, with the theme: “Moving the Ball Forward.”
