Boston Mayor Michelle Wu will head into her second time period with a brand new chief of employees, Clare Kelly, who replaces Tiffany Chu as Wu’s prime deputy.
Kelly, director of intergovernmental relations for the mayor, will step into her new function as Wu’s chief of employees on Nov. 17.
“Clare has been a key leader in our administration over the last four years, and her decades of service in government and community will help steer our continued work to make Boston a home for everyone,” Wu stated in a Monday assertion.
Kelly will work alongside the mayor and lead her cupboard “in coordinating and delivering results.” She will likely be liable for overseeing every day operations and long-term initiatives of the mayor’s workplace, and constructing collaboration between metropolis departments, group members and native organizations exterior Metropolis Corridor, and different ranges of presidency,” Wu’s workplace stated.
“I’m honored to step into the role of chief of staff to continue supporting Mayor Michelle Wu’s vision to make Boston a home for everyone,” Kelly stated in a press release.
Kelly has been the town’s director of intergovernmental relations since January 2022, a job that serves as a liaison between the Wu administration and Metropolis Council. The division she oversees additionally coordinates interactions between the town administration and the state, federal and different native governments.
Previous to becoming a member of the Wu administration, Kelly labored for former Gov. Deval Patrick from 2005 to 2011, when she grew to become govt director of the Massachusetts Democratic Social gathering. Her time at Metropolis Corridor was instantly preceded by a stint as govt director of the Environmental League of MA Motion Fund.
Kelly and Wu each heaped reward on Chu’s time as chief of employees, with Wu saying that she helped to “build a strong culture of collaboration and entrepreneurship in city government to address our most pressing issues.”
The rationale for Chu’s departure was not instantly made clear on Monday, however a press release from the mayor’s workplace mentions that she plans to take a sabbatical and spend extra time along with her household after transitioning out of the Wu administration.
The mayor’s workplace didn’t reply to an extra Herald inquiry on the matter, and wouldn’t make Chu obtainable for an interview.
Earlier than working as Wu’s first chief of employees, Chu was the previous CEO and co-founder of Remix, a previous San Francisco transit planning platform that was acquired for $100 million in 2021 by By way of Transportation, Inc.
Chu’s private stake in By way of got here below scrutiny final November, when the town was contemplating hiring the corporate as a public transit operator, as a part of a federal grant that sought to advance its plans to scale back congestion by getting folks out of their vehicles.
On the time, the mayor’s workplace confirmed the connection to the Herald, saying that Chu bought Remix to By way of in 2021, and “owns a limited number of shares in Via, totaling far below 1%.”
Chu additionally beforehand labored in California as commissioner of the San Francisco Division of the Atmosphere and sat on San Francisco’s Congestion Pricing Coverage Advisory Committee.
She was paid $176,538 final 12 months as Wu’s chief of employees.
The mayor’s workplace didn’t reply to a Herald request for touch upon how a lot Chu was paid this 12 months, and whether or not she’s going to obtain a buyout or if there was a separation settlement tied to her departure.
A Herald inquiry on how a lot Kelly will likely be paid as chief of employees was additionally not returned by the mayor’s workplace.
The staffing shakeup comes roughly a month after Wu’s path to a second time period was successfully cleared when Josh Kraft, son of the billionaire New England Patriots proprietor Robert Kraft, dropped out of the mayoral race after his 49-point defeat by Wu within the preliminary election.
Wu is now working unopposed within the Nov. 4 common election.
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