Reading City Council president announces bid for reelection
Reading City Council President Donna Reed has announced that she is seeking reelection to the post.
Reed, 71, was appointed to serve as council president in January 2023 and elected in November 2023 to serve the final two years of the full term to which the late Jeff Waltman was elected in November 2021.
Donna Reed
Reed formerly served as council's District 5 representative, a position to which she was elected six times, beginning in 2001.
Reed will enter the May 20 primary on the Democratic ticket.
She is the third person to announce a primary bid for the president's seat, which is elected at-large.
Council members Jaime Baez Jr. and Vanessa Campos also will be running as Democrats for the post.
'This was a serious decision for me,' Reed said in a statement. 'In the past weeks, I've been approached by so many people from city residents to state, county and city officials to folks in law enforcement, legal, business and trades professionals to run again for the office I hold.'
Nearly all, she said, stressed the need for consistency and institutional knowledge on the council body.
'I intend to continue to lead into the city's future with independence, integrity and a shared intent to move Reading forward through supporting economic development to increase job opportunities, the return to passenger rail service, and to support collective efforts for a safer and cleaner city,' Reed said.
Reed has served on council, with a brief interruption to reenter the news business, since 2002.
In those years, Reed said, she has worked with a number of council members.
Among the key issues she tackled as a council member, she said, were the preservation of the Antietam Lake Watershed and the successful, decadelong effort to rescue Reading from its former designation as a financially distressed city under state Act 47.
Reed's everyday work of council, she said, is to be present and responsive to residents' concerns, deal with ongoing fiduciary and policy matters, and hold fellow officials to their responsibilities stated in the Home Rule Charter.
Reed serves as council representative to the Reading Area Transportation Study, the Pagoda Foundation and the America250 Committee. She also is council liaison to the Stadium Commission and BCTV.
She is a past member of the city planning commission.
Reed was chair of the Reading 275 anniversary celebration, is a trustee of the Berks History Center and a longtime board member of Crime Alert Berks County. She previously served on the board of the Centre Park Historic District and the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance Women2Women Council.
Reed is a graduate of Muhlenberg High School and The American University, Washington, D.C., with a bachelor's degree in political science and communication. She worked on Capitol Hill and in a D.C. news bureau before returning to Berks and joining the Reading Eagle where she served for 23 years as a reporter, columnist and editor.
Reed said her time on council and former career in local journalism reflect her dedication to public service.
'On council, I serve as the public's voice,' she said. 'As a journalist, I served as the peoples' eyes and ears on government, including covering City Hall.'
She also served as vice president/communications for the former Berks County Chamber of Commerce, volunteer coordinator for Meals on Wheels, assignment editor for the Berks Edition of Channel 69 News, media/government relations staffer for a local pharmaceutical research firm, communications coordinator for the Berks County Parks and Recreation Department, editor of The Historical Review of Berks County, and Cocalico editor for The Ephrata Review, during which time she earned two top statewide reporting awards. She handled the publication of 'Pagoda Centennial Tales' for the 100th anniversary of the city's icon, and has written for a number of local, state and regional publications. She is a regular contributor to Berks County Living magazine.
'I believe my long experience and connections in the community have been an asset to the work of the council and to the city and its people,' she said. 'I love Reading, its many cultures and people that can both honor the past and look to the future.'
Meet the candidate
Candidate: Donna Reed, 71, Reading
Position sought: Reading City Council President
Background: She has served as council president since January 2023. Reed formerly served as council's District 5 representative, a position to which she was elected six times, beginning in 2001. She has served as vice president/communications for the former Berks County Chamber of Commerce, volunteer coordinator for Meals on Wheels and has been a reporter, columnist and editor. She has a bachelor's degree in political science and communication.
Term: Four years.
Compensation: The council president is paid an annual salary of $6,875.
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