NORTHAMPTON – After serving on the Northampton City Council for 14 years from 2006 to 2020, David Murphy will be running for election as a City Councilor at-large.

One reason Murphy said he is running again is so he can bring his financial experience back to the council.

“I would like to bring my knowledge and my experience back. I am very knowledgeable about municipal finance, for 10 of my 14 years on the council I chaired the Finance Committee, I know more than anybody on the council about finance,” he said.

Along with council financial experience, Murphy said he also has experience with city audits and capital improvements.

“What I would do is bring stability in the fact that I know finance, I also know capital improvements, I have done city audits, I know what I am doing and that is kind of why I want to come back and I think the council needs that,” he said.

Murphy said his experience as a realtor will help the council settle zoning issues.

“This time there have been all kinds of questions about infill zoning, I understand that stuff. The council had to postpone a decision on Zero Lot Lines because no one understood it; I understand it,” he said.

If elected, Murphy said he would have the second longest tenure on the council.

“The council is still a very young body, the only two people that have actually completed a term on the council would be Marianne LaBarge and Jim Nash. It is a relatively new council of people that have less than two years’ experience, I would be the second most senior person on the council,” he said.

Rather than focus on political issues, Murphy said he wants to be a competent administrator for the city if he is reelected.

“I am a really apolitical guy; I pretty much hate politics. I would rather be known as a competent administrator of public policy, I keep track of the money, I keep track of the technical things like zoning, that is what I am into. I am interested in competent administration and doing things that make a difference in the quality of life in Northampton,” he said.

Despite not being on City Council for the last two years, Murphy said he has chaired the Board of Assessors during that time.

“I served for 14 years and before I was a city councilor, I was a member of the Board of Assessors. About 30 days after I got off the council, I became Chairman of the Board of Assessors. I am chairing the assessors because I am a Massachusetts accredited assessor, I understand the finance,” he said.

Murphy said that one of his focal points as a Northampton resident is by working in the city’s different nonprofits.

“I have been president of Child’s Park for 25 years, which is a private, non-profit park. I also am running for reelection for the elector under the Will of Oliver Smith from Northampton, I have been there for 20 years administering Smith Charities and giving money to beneficiaries. I just finished a term as the president of the Three County Fair,” he said.

One fun fact Murphy shared about himself is that he has been working the Olympics for NBC as a broadcast engineer since 2000 and is currently in Tokyo for this year’s Olympics.

“My classical education is as a television broadcast engineer. Friday     I am flying to Tokyo to be the technical manager for basketball at the Olympics for NBC Sports. I have been doing the Olympics for NBC since 2000 and we have been to Australia, London, Rio, and it is a fun international spectacle,” he said.

Because of the current COVID-19 state of emergency in Japan, Murphy said travel is restricted to work and back to the hotel room.