Mayor Michelle Wu's administration is trying to make the creation of a rat czar position in Boston official. This job, which involves killing rodents, would be given to a current city employee who is already leading municipal pest-control operations.
On Tuesday, Tania Del Rio, the commissioner of inspectional services, mentioned that there have been talks about promoting John Ulrich, the assistant commissioner of ISD's environmental services division, to the new role. The goal is to better coordinate the various city agencies responsible for rodent control.
During a City Council committee hearing, Del Rio referred to John as the city's rat czar and indicated that there are discussions about giving this role formal authority to coordinate more effectively.
Dr. Robert 'Bobby' Corrigan, an internationally recognized expert on rats and mice who was hired by the city as a consultant, is developing a mitigation strategy plan. He stated that the rat czar has been highly effective for rat management since it was established in New York City last April.
Kathleen Corradi, New York's rat czar, who is a self-proclaimed anti-rat activist, works directly under the mayor's office and collaborates with all departments handling pest-control operations in the city. This information was provided by Corrigan, who previously worked as a research scientist for the city government there.
Corrigan affirmed that a rat czar is crucial for city rat management, based on a question about the necessity of such a role.
In New York City, there is no independent pest-control office, unlike what Councilors Ed Flynn and Liz Breadon are advocating to establish in Boston through a city ordinance. Flynn and Breadon are pushing to create a standalone pest-control office in Boston according to a city ordinance that was discussed at the day's hearing. In New York, this office is part of the health department. Wu administration officials, who testified, effectively opposed the proposal for a standalone office. Instead, they opted to enhance the current multi-agency approach to pest control, which disappointed Flynn, as he had hoped for someone to lead the new office after advocating for a year for a rat czar.
During his opening remarks, Flynn expressed willingness to compromise but disagreed with the administration's position against establishing a new pest-control office. He described rat infestation as a significant public health emergency.
Flynn voiced his frustration upon learning from administration officials that there was no weekend pest-control coverage from the 14 relevant city inspectors. He stated that changes were necessary as people tend to gather more on weekends.
Flynn emphasized the importance of having a standalone department for pest control, arguing that it is also a public safety emergency. He believes that the issue needs to be prioritized.
Flynn expressed his frustration upon finding out from administration officials that there was no weekend pes