Lynn Daily Item: Moulton sees biotech in Lynn’s future
LYNN — Lynn has the potential to sprout “biotech clusters,” U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton said Friday, but those new business opportunities similar to ones taking shape in Gloucester must be guided by a defined city vision.
“Lynn needs to figure out, ‘what is the business plan — what is the key business we want to bring to Lynn,’” Moulton told 50 Lynn Area Chamber of Commerce members gathered at The Porthole Restaurant.
Marking almost eight months in Congress, Moulton fielded questions ranging from healthcare to working with Congress’ Republican majority to U.S. relations with Iran. He said recent meetings with biotechnology leaders focused on how innovators in this industry are interested in grouping several businesses in an urban area.
“They are very interested in what could go on in Lynn,” he said.
But speaking in broader terms, Moulton, a Democrat and Marine Corps veteran elected to Congress last November, said economic development efforts must include comprehensive tax reform.
“The tax system we have now is unfair to small businesses,” he said.
Efforts to spur economic development in Lynn and other cities also must focus on long-term transportation improvements. Moulton said the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s poor performance during the past winter means public spending attention will probably be focused on the agency instead of longer-term projects, including a Blue Line extension to Lynn. But Moulton said public-private partnerships could harness the project and push it closer to reality.
“I am being as aggressive as I can to have these conversations, but it is not something that is going to happen overnight,” he said.