BOSTON – Governor Deval Patrick yesterday administered the oath of office to two new members of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) Board of Directors. Northampton Attorney Michael S. Gove and Metropolitan Area Planning Council Project Director Joel Barrera of Natick were appointed to serve terms of service co-terminus with the Governor.

“Michael Gove and Joel Barrera bring a wealth of experience to the MWRA,” Governor Patrick said. “In appointing Michael and Joel to the MWRA’s governing board, I am confident their expertise and enthusiasm will go far in helping the Authority perform its essential role as the provider of reliable water and sewer services to 2.5 million people in 61 eastern and central Massachusetts cities and towns.”

As Project Director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council’s (MAPC) Metropolitan Mayors Coalition since 2003, Barrera led a high-level 25-year review of municipal finances, coordinated the work of the Coalition’s Municipal Health Insurance Working Group, and directed an effort to pass an $11 million state program to support regional, cross-disciplinary youth violence prevention programs. He organizes regional projects among ten Boston area communities, and is responsible for all legislative advocacy on behalf of the MAPC and the Massachusetts Association of Regional Planning Agencies.

A graduate of Oxford and Princeton Universities and the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico, Barrera’s previous positions include co-founder and executive director of Commonwealth Seminar, director of the Massachusetts Senate Post Audit and Oversight Bureau, market analyst and regional marketing coordinator for the Railroad Commission of Texas, and community organizer for the Industrial Areas Foundation in San Antonio and Brownsfield, Texas.

Currently an attorney at Lyon & Fitzpatrick, LLP in Holyoke where he practices landlord-tenant, probate, and civil law, Gove worked previously as law clerk for the Massachusetts Housing Court’s Western Division, an intern in the Hampden County District Attorney’s Office, and a correctional officer at the Hampden County Correctional Facility. A member of the Hampshire County Bar Association, Massachusetts Bar Association and numerous other professional organizations, Gove is a graduate of Boston College School of Law and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Created by the Legislature in 1984, the MWRA’s mission is to provide reliable, cost-effective, high-quality water and sewer services that protect public health, promote environmental stewardship, maintain customer confidence, and support a prosperous economy. The MWRA board is chaired by Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles.

# # #

PDF files on this site require Adobe Acrobat Reader® (free download).