Key Walsh aide joining Amazon
Boston Mayor Martin Walsh’s departing chief of civic engagement is shipping out to Amazon.
Jerome Smith, who is departing from Walsh’s Cabinet at the end of the week, will be senior manager of external affairs for Boston at the e-commerce giant.
Amazon continues to expand around Boston, adding new delivery and sorting centers. The colossal company is adding more space in the Seaport and is planning a distribution center near Andrew Square.
A Dorchester resident, Smith has experience in City Hall and in the State House.
He’s served on the staffs of former City Councilor Michael Ross, former Senate President Therese Murray and former Mayor Thomas Menino before coming to work for Walsh in 2014.
“Jerome has been an integral part of my team for many years, and greatly contributed to the continual improvement of delivering City services,” Walsh said in a statement. “It has truly been a pleasure to work with him and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Smith is one of Walsh’s most visible lieutenants and a steadfast advocate for the mayor’s city programs. Just this week, he pushed back on city councilors in a hearing over police reform, bristling at the idea that his boss hadn’t done enough.
Walsh’s office announced earlier this week that current Assistant Commissioner of Inspectional Services Aisha Miller will replace Smith as the civic engagement chief, overseeing the Office of Neighborhood Services, the mayor’s Office of Public Service and Community Outreach, Boston 311 and SPARK Boston.