[3] Phelan successfully blocked Sheets' plan to build the school on contaminated land at a former industrial site in Quincy Point.
During the campaign, Phelan criticized Sheets for rising taxes, the unsuccessful effort to reopen the Fore River Shipyard, and for "putting the interests of the developers ahead of the people".
Sheets in turn faulted Phelan for his lack of experience, running a negative campaign, and for not putting forward ideas of his own.
[6] During Phelan's first days in office he was faced with a $4 million budget deficit due to reduced revenue from taxes and fees, including a $1.5 million reduction in the fees paid by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, as well as a reduction in local aid from the state government.
[7][8] In September 2002, Phelan suspended eight Quincy police officers for misconduct, which included drinking while on duty, firing weapons in the air, driving under the influence of alcohol, allowing one of the officers girlfriend's to drive a police cruiser, and attempting to cover up the incident, that occurred while they were working a paid detail at a nightclub.
The veto was criticized by the president of the Quincy Firefighters Association, who accused Phelan of not making public safety a priority.
Fire Chief Paul O'Connell also objected to the ordinance, citing the cost as well as the fact that only two other municipalities in the country had adopted these staffing requirements.
Newton criticized Phelan for moving slowly with plans for a new Quincy high school as well as the poor condition of the city's infrastructure.
[1] During his third term as mayor, Phelan created a citywide full-day kindergarten, hired additional teachers and classroom aides, cut the high school drop-out rate in half, planted more than 100 trees and implemented a nationally recognized 10-year plan to end chronic homelessness.
[19] In February 2007, Phelan's park's commissioner, Thomas P. Koch (a holdover from the Sheets administration), resigned and declared his candidacy for mayor.
The race between Koch and Phelan was described by Boston Globe reporter Robert Preer as "one of Quincy's most rancorous mayoral elections in decades".
[22] During the campaign, WCVB-TV reported that supporters and relatives of Koch who resided outside of the city had voted in the previous election.