Gay Elected Chairman of Economic Development Committee

David Gay has been elected to succeed David Plunkett as chairman of the

The reorganization of the committee took place at a recent meeting at the Tewksbury Senior Center.

Nancy Reed was elected to serve as vice chairman. Plunkett will continue to serve on the committee, which also includes Todd Johnson, Kevin Donnelly, Tracy Clement, Stephen Deackoff, Town Manager Richard Montuori and Director of Community Development Steve Sadwick.

Both Gay and Johnson are members of the Board of Selectmen.

The committee lost a member earlier this month when Jim Wentworth submitted his letter of resignation. He said he intends to remain involved in economic development in the community in other ways.

Gay said Tewksbury faces great challenges in terms of economic growth but he feels there is also great opportunity. One of the committee's greatest tasks will be to do a better job spreading the word about what Tewksbury has to offer prospective businesses.

"Tewksbury has been designated an that makes some tax breaks available, "said Gay. "We working ... doing the best we can to let companies know about it."

Gay also said the Route 38 corridor, presently littered with vacant storefronts and strip mall spaces, is a top priority of the committee.

"I know Steve Sadwick has reach out to a number of those (property owners) on occasion," he said. "But I think it's something where we need to get a little more aggressive and beat the bushes. A sub-committee is being formed to address that."

The Economic Development Committee meets monthly at the