Newburyport voters made a statement with the election of Donna Holaday as the next mayor of Newburyport.

The two candidates for mayor — Holaday and James Shanley — shared the same positions on many issues that face the city. But the key differences may well set the stage for how the city can finally resolve some of these long-standing, nagging problems.

Important among them is the fate of the Newburyport Redevelopment Authority's waterfront land, the so-called "dirt lots" in the middle of the downtown. The majority of this prime space has sat vacant for four decades, awaiting a final plan. Shanley favored some development of the land, mixed with open space and parking. Holaday wanted to see no development on the land at all. Clearly, a tone has been set.

We hope that Holaday will be able to take the momentum of her mayoral victory and her vision of the waterfront and see it through. If she can, she will have accomplished what eight predecessors haven't been able to accomplish.

Another important area where the candidates certainly sent distinct vibes is on downtown development, and in particular, on Steven Karp, the billionaire developer who is the largest property owner in the city. Both candidates said Karp was on the minds of many voters, and both had similar plans in place to deal with him — specifically, to get a working relationship going so that they can understand what his plans are for his properties and to make sure Newburyport's interests are represented.

But there was another message being broadcast that clearly had repercussions on the election. Shanley's campaign finance report demonstrated that he had a lock on the support of much of the city's business community. In the months leading up to the election, he raised significantly more campaign funds than Holaday — raising about $21,000 compared to her $7,000.

So often we see that the candidate who raises the most money carries the race. Not this time. If anything, the buzz around the city was that the preponderance of money from developers and businesses in Shanley's campaign war chest worked against him in the public's eye. Karp and members of his local development team did not give money to either candidate, but the message seemed clear — there's significant concern and uneasiness about development in the city.

Donna Holaday ran a great campaign. She learned a lot of lessons from her failed run against John Moak in 2005, and she changed how she did things. In the 2005 campaign, she admittedly let others take too much control, and this time she set the tone. She campaigned hard, engaged people and tried to connect. She has an easygoing and affable style, a professional demeanor in council meetings, and she studies closely the issues that come before her. Those qualities served her well in the campaign and will no doubt serve her well as this city's mayor.