UPDATED 7/28/25 6:41PM: To reflect the State Ethics Commission’s response.

One council dropped Perez, but she is still serving another…for now. (still via YouTube/Focus Springfield)

The political ecosystem in Ward 1 in Springfield received a jolt Saturday when the ward’s incumbent city councilor lost her job amid serious, yet cryptic allegations. In a late afternoon press release, the New North Citizens Council (NNCC) announced it had terminated its housing chief, Maria Perez. Perez has served as the Ward 1 City Councilor since 2022.

The brusque, shocking release all but accuses Perez of misappropriating NNCC funds, including those it received from the federal government by way of City Hall. More concretely, it alleges Perez had misused the nonprofit’s funds for “political purposes.” The release indicates it came to its conclusions after an internal review and had filed a complaint with the state Ethics Commission.

“Our organization is committed to maintaining the public trust and operating with the utmost integrity,” Juana Girona, the NNCC’s Board President, said in the statement.

The NNCC’s clerk, Efrain Vazquez, Jr., who sent the release, did not immediately respond to an inquiry about exactly when Perez was terminated. A source told WMP&I it had happened before Saturday.

Ward 1 consists of the North End neighborhoods of Memorial Square and Brightwood as well as downtown. Outside of residential areas in downtown’s historic quarters, the ward is largely Latino.

Ward 1 in aqua and turquoise blues. (via Springfield City Hall)

Perez did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, in a video ostensibly recorded earlier on Saturday, she seemingly alluded to her termination. Speaking in Spanish, Perez announced she was running for reelection, but mentioned something had happened to her “personally.”

“When they attack me, they are attacking my family,” she said, as translated by Google. “I want to tell you that I hold my head high.”

Perez concluded with a promise to keep fighting, punctuated with divine flourish.

“I want to end by saying that I will continue the battle politically and in the community. This is something that, given what has happened, I view biblically,” she continued. “The Lord was crucified, and all he was doing was defending his people.”

On the surface, this is a personnel matter. Yet, it has the potential to reverberate into the ongoing election for Ward 1’s seat on the City Council. Perez, a pillar of the Latino political class in Springfield, faces a stiff challenge from Joesiah Gonzalez, the School Committee member for Wards 1 and 3. She enjoys support from across the city’s political establishment, including Mayor Domenic Sarno. (Although, Senator Adam Gomez, who once held the Ward 1 seat, has been backing Gonzalez.) Perez also has a devoted following among members and alumnae of Women of the Vanguard, an activist group she founded and leads.

Gonzalez didn’t know nothing about nothing regarding Perez’s termination, but he still had thoughts. (submitted photo)

Gonzalez, who serves on the NNCC board, told WMP&I in an interview he had only just heard about Perez’s dismissal and had no details. He declined to opine on the impact to the NNCC. As her opponent, Gonzalez called the allegations “unfortunate.”

“I believe that ethics, integrity and morality are absolutely important,” he said. “All three of those things should be impeccable for those in office or seeking public office.”

Gonzalez added if the allegations were proven true, Perez should resign.

As an entity that serves a discrete area, the NNCC itself has no ethnic affiliation. However, it is also the neighborhood council serving the area where the city’s Puerto Rican population first settled. Thus, the council has featured prominently in the careers of many Latino pols in Springfield. For example, prior to serving on its board, the NNCC had employed Gonzalez as its chief of development and programs.

Officially, it is the neighborhood council for the Memorial Square neighborhood, which along with Brightwood and parts of Liberty Heights, makes up the North End area of Springfield. The NNCC dropped the reference to Memorial Square officially in 1989, per records filed with the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Now the Greek Cultural Center, the Carnegie-financed Memorial Square branch library once served the eponymous neighborhood the NNCC principally operates in. (via wikipedia)

The NNCC is unique among Springfield’s nearly two dozen neighborhood groups in that it operates as a social services nonprofit, too.  According to the NNCC, it now has about 100 employees and provides health, housing and other community services.

Ostensibly, it is Perez’s work in those areas, namely housing, that alarmed NNCC leadership. The release notes that she managed funds from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development for the city. It condemns the “embezzlement of federal funds,” but does not exactly accuse Perez of pilfering the money. Rather, it alleges that she misused the nonprofit’s resources.

The exact nature of that misuse and the timing of the investigation are unclear.  As recently as the City Council’s July 14 meeting, Perez noted that she worked with developers in her day job. (The pending item that night did not directly concern the NNCC and Perez frequently recuses herself on items affecting her then-job.) As of Saturday night, Perez’s picture and bio remain on the NNCC’s website.

NNCC sources indicated that a forensic review of resources allocated to Perez had been used for both campaign and City Hall business. One source said NNCC leadership had spoken to legal counsel about the matter, who, among other things, advised against comment beyond the release.

In the release, the NNCC said it made a referral to the “Attorney General’s Ethics Commission.” This is likely a reference to the State Ethics Commission, which normally investigates misuses of official government resources. A spokesperson for the Commission said by statute it must maintain confidentiality and therefore could neither confirm nor deny that a complaint had been submitted or any matter was under review.

The Attorney General does oversee charities, although whether that would extend to the NNCC was not immediately apparent. The AG or the Hampden District Attorney’s office could prosecute criminal conduct, if any. The AG’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.