PEABODY — Longtime School Committee member Jarrod Hochman is running for an open at-large seat on the City Council this fall.
Hochman, 54, is an attorney who has lived in Peabody for 23 years.
He ran unsuccessfully in the 2019 at-large race and had a contentious bid for Ward 4’s council seat against Ed Charest in 2015 that ended in Hochman suing the city following his loss and a subsequent recount that upheld Charest’s victory, a suit he dropped several months later.
Hochman joins Jaclyn Corriveau so far in challenging incumbent at-large members of the council. Of the five at-large seats, one will be open as Tom Gould announced this winter he will not seek reelection.
“Peabody is a city that has given a lot to me and my family, and I always feel that I need to or want to give back,” Hochman told The Salem News.
“A lot of people in the city need help, both residents and businesses, and I want to do what I can to make everyone’s life a little bit easier and a little better.”
Hochman has served on the School Committee for 16 years and was on the Conservation Commission for about three years.
He is also the chief operating officer and co-founder of the nonprofit No Child Goes Hungry in Peabody, which provides meals, clothes and other goods to Peabody students in need, and is the president of Peabody Babe Ruth Baseball, one of six vice presidents of Temple Tiferet Shalom on Lowell Street, is on the Peabody Rotary Board of Directors, and is a member of the Peabody Education Foundation.
He has an associate’s degree in liberal arts from the State University of New York and Morrisville, a bachelor’s in political science from the State University of New York at Albany and a Juris Doctorate from Western New England College School of Law.
Hochman hopes to help the city create new housing in a more “structured and collaborative manner” between the city and developers, specifically around how housing impacts the city’s water infrastructure and schools, he said.
He also wants to continue to improve the city’s downtown by supporting small businesses and making permitting processes easier for businesses.
“I sat on the PPD Downtown Action Team. I sat on Peabody Main Streets as a member,” Hochman said.
“I’ve had a history of wanting to and working toward improving our downtown.”
Nomination papers are available from the City Clerk’s office at Peabody City Hall through July 11. Papers must be filed by July 15.
Contact Caroline Enos at CEnos@northofboston.com.