OBSERVER File Photo Dunkirk Mayor Wilfred Rosas, seen posing at a former bank branch on Central Avenue that city planners are marketing for reuse.

In his final OBSERVER interview as Dunkirk’s mayor, Wilfred Rosas displayed pride, frustration, defiance, regret, appreciation — but most of all, acceptance.

After eight years in the mayor’s chair, Rosas is ready to move on. He didn’t want to run again this year, tired of seeing his loved ones hurt by personal attacks on him.

In fact, asked if he would do his previous runs all over again, Rosas said he’d redo his first successful bid in 2015 — but not his re-election campaign in 2019.

“A lot of progress was stopped” in his second term, Rosas said. “The pandemic was used to camoflauge a lot of what was going on in city government.”

He explained that the COVID-related social distancing of 2020 meant “a lot of the public wasn’t tied into what was happening.”

Rosas continued, “The council stopped progress” in his second term, deciding to terminate certain positions in city government. “It became a really hard place to work for some of the key positions in city government.”

He said of his opponents in the Common Council, “They think they hurt myself. They hurt the city.”

He added, “It felt to me that no matter what, if I said down, they would say up. The job of the mayor is to work with the people that are in (council). But the job of the mayor is also to make sure the city’s best interests are taken care of.”

Rosas said he vetoed zero Common Council items in his first four years, but in his second term, “we couldn’t agree on anything.”

He mused, “You realize there’s a point in time for a new leader to emerge.” Rosas then praised incoming Mayor and fellow Democrat Kate Wdowiasz, stating that “she will learn and do a good job.”

The two are doing what they hope is a smooth transition. “We’re kind of working together. She’s basically moved into the mayor’s office.”

Looking back on his own two terms, Rosas said city facilities have been modernized and upgraded. “The morale was very low. We took care of upgrading all the departments. I’m very proud of that. We were able to make these upgrades without raising taxes.”

Rosas also takes pride in public improvements, to city parks and the pier. He said some people used to have trouble finding Memorial Park until he spurred the installation of a sign. “Little things like that mean a lot.”

Rosas touted his cultivation of connections in Albany and Washington. Indeed, a photo of him with Gov. Andrew Cuomo was prominently displayed in his City Hall conference room. When Cuomo resigned in 2021, it was promptly replaced by a picture of Rosas standing with the new governor, Kathy Hochul.

He made his connections basically to get grants for Dunkirk. “Getting close to funders takes time and effort,” he said.

The $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award, announced by Hochul at the Clarion Hotel in February, “is the icing on the cake as far as I’m concerned. We developed a very good relationship with the governor’s office and it has paid off for the city of Dunkirk.”

Rosas said he doesn’t think he will run for office again — but wouldn’t flatly rule it out. He revealed he was asked to run for a state office recently, but turned it down.

“I’ve been made a couple offers in the private sector I may consider,” he added.

Rosas will not miss city politics.

“One of the main reasons for me to get out… it got too nasty and personal. It hurt the people I love so much, my family. That really bothered me.”

He’s still happy he could serve Dunkirk. “I love the city and want what’s best for the city,” he said.