Fall River Needs a Fresh Start [OPINION]

Fall River's political sideshow is about to take a turn for the loopy.

Fall River's embattled Mayor Jasiel Correia is facing a recall election this spring. He is the second mayor in five years to face a recall. Will Flanagan was unceremoniously asked to vacate Government Center and was replaced by Sam Sutter, who was shown the door just nine months later by voters who ousted him for Correia.

Correia, now facing a 13-count federal corruption indictment, is up against a recall election of his own and the rumor mill is spurning out names of possible replacements, should he too be given the boot.

Word on the street is that both Flanagan and Sutter are interested. Part of the reason Flanagan was ousted was that he introduced pay-as-you-throw trash collection. Sutter threw gas on the fire by adding a $120 annual trash collection fee. That and the fact that he was a stealth mayor didn't go over very well.

The problem with Fall River is that everyone wants to be mayor. Often times, everyone thinks they are mayor.

If it were up to me, I would have skipped the disruptive recall election and let the voters decide Correia's fate in the fall, unless the courts beat them to it.

Just a nickel's worth of advice for my friends who will be voting in Fall River's recall election: do not vote for anyone who has held public office in your city before. That includes state representatives, past or present. No former mayor's or current or former city councilors or school committee members, either.

It's time to move on. New Beginnings. Fresh starts.

Barry Richard is the host of The Barry Richard Show on 1420 WBSM New Bedford. He can be heard weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. Contact him at barry@wbsm.com and follow him on Twitter @BarryJRichard58. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of the author.