Connecticut Postings

By Councilmember’s Stephanie Philips 2^nd District, Jason Santi 4^th District, David Fuller 6^th District, Kimberly Meuse 7^th District:

We understand that with rising energy & health care costs, and little economic development, it would be fiscally irresponsible to expect a zero mil increase as many of us would have wished.  And we certainly heard the public request not to force any school closures at this late date.  In fact, we commend the Mayors willingness to work with the BOE to avoid school closures. On the other hand, we believe the mayor’s proposed 1.66 mill increase combined with a further loss of services and employees is a burden that is too much for taxpayers to bear.

As Democrats and the minority on the council we have demonstrated our willingness to work across the aisle with civility and recommendations for the betterment of Stratford. In the spirit of representative government we ask and hope that our majority friends and Mayor will include some of our ideas in their budget.  We offer an alternative that reduces the Mayor’s planned increase to .98 mils as our first goal.  Second we offer a responsibly conservative budget, without cutting town services or eliminating needed positions.  Our third goal was to prevent any school closures or reduced BOE funding.  And lastly, we believe the town should focus their cost reductions on the items that spiral uncontrollably each year such as Call-back, OT, Workmen’s Comp, Health Claims, and legal fees. 

Specifically, we feel that eliminating positions that provide direct services and do not incur overtime such as the Senior Services Clerk, Animal Control Officer, Public Health Nurse and the Library do not address the real chronic problems, but penalize the average taxpayer.  Eliminating a tax assessor and tax collector significantly reduces the town’s ability to investigate, locate, and then collect on taxable property.  Instead we encourage the town to implement an aggressive wellness & safety program to reduce workmen’s comp & medical claims; lower overtime with better priorities or hiring. Accelerate technology improvements to eliminate inefficiencies from inadequate record keeping, lack of electronic communications, poor or slow access to information, and implement typical online conveniences.  We suggest not funding vacant positions such as the Building Superintendent, or costly positions in EMS, and eliminating non-contractual pay increases.  In other words, “do more with less”.

After discussions with the Governor’s Office of Policy and Management, we feel confident that Stratford will receive at least the projected $1 million MME PILOT State reimbursement.  Furthermore, pending a final legislative vote, Stratford has been designated to receive $1.8 million in additional PILOT state funding which is not currently included in Mayor’s or our recommendations below.  We hope the Mayor will devote the majority of those additional funds towards capital improvement projects thus reducing our dependency on Bonding. The town will also receive $450K from the State’s revenue cost sharing program.

In summary, our recommendation will reduce the average taxes based on the Mayors budget from an increase of $308 to $181per household without eliminating services.

Restore Arts Commission                       $10,000

Restore Highways Supt.                          $96,000

Restore Library Funding                        $236,000

Restore P/T Public Health Nurse              $36,000

Restore Parents Place                            $20,000

Restore Clerk for Police                          $50,000

Restore – (3) Public Works employees    $150,000

Restore – Mechanic                                $63,000

Tree Replacement/Removal                     $50,000

Restore Reserve Weather Events             $20,000

Restore Senior Center Clerk                    $65,000

Restore Tax Assessor Position                $48,000

Restore Tax Collector Position                 $43,000

Restore Animal Control Officer                 $42,000

Sterling House                                         $4,000

Fire Dept Callback/OT                      ($1,173,000)

Contingency                                       ($785,000)

Employee Benefits                              ($590,000)

Public Works OT/ Workmen’s comp     ($584,567)

Town Attorney                                    ($205,000)

Police Dept                                        ($158,000)

Gas & Oil, Electricity (Town-wide)        ($125,000)

Human Resources                               ($110,000)

Other Line items                                  ($258,000)

Press release from the South End Community Center:

In a continued effort to assist children in grades K – 6 and their families, the South End Community Center in collaboration with the South End Community Council Inc. and the Stratford Junior Women’s Club is sponsoring a Back to School Clothing Drive.

Area businesses, individuals and companes are invited to sponsor a child in need of new back-to-school clothes, uniforms, shoes, socks and school supplies by making a monetary donation or gift card donation no later than July 1, 2011. All items will be distributed to children who qualify no later than Friday, July 22, 2011 from 12 to 2 p.m. at the South End Community Center.

For more information on this program, to register a child in need or to make a charitable donation, please contact Ty Sims at the South End Community Center at 203-377-0689 or at tysims@townofstratford.com.

“So, anything going on in the world?”

This was late Saturday night, before the news broke about bin Laden. Gilbert Gottfried opened his second of two shows at the Treehouse Comedy Club at Butterfield 8 in Stamford with the question. The audience laughed. We all knew the reference.

Gottfried, a comedian known to many as the celebrity voice of Aflac’s duck mascot, became a cultural icon overnight after the insurance company fired him when he tweeted controversial jokes about the tsunami in Japan. He became a kind of Rorschach test for humor. How far is too far?

But at Butterfield 8, he sidestepped the matter. “I didn’t even know there was anything happening in Japan that day,” he said with a coy smile. He didn’t mention it again.

Instead, he launched into a politically incorrect tirade against midgets, a series of celebrity impressions with the help of masking tape and a few obscure pop-culture references from the 1920s.

It was all delightfully wacky and surprisingly clean. (He is, after all, known to many as the man who delivered the all-time funniest version of the sublimely rancid “Aristocrats” joke.)

Make no mistake. This was not a show for the grandkids. If not commas, he used profanity as the occasional exclamation point.

But despite his signature abrasive voice, he didn’t seem interested in shocking the audience. He wasn’t out to make apologies or political statements. He wanted to share an absurd collection of things — circus performers, Bond villains, the Beach Boys — that make him laugh, in the hopes it’d make us laugh, too.

It worked.

Press release:

John A. Harkins, mayor of Stratford, has appointed Fire Marshal /Assistant Fire Chief Brian Lampart interim chief of the Stratford Fire Department. The appointment is effective immediately. Lampart will serve in the interim role indefinitely, until a replacement for former Chief James Cavanaugh is hired.

Harkins said he is confident that Lampart, who has been with the SFD since 1988, will run the department efficiently in the absence of a chief.

“With more than 20 years experience with the Stratford Fire Department, I am confident in Brian’s abilities and comfortable that he will fill the void in the interim period,” said Harkins. “Brian’s reputation as a leader and his proven ability to manage will serve our town well over the next few months.”

“I am honored to have been chosen to further serve the Stratford community as interim fire chief.  This additional position will prove to be extremely challenging, but it is reassuring to have the confidence and support of the Mayor and his staff,” said Lampart. “I believe that with my 23 years of service and job performance, together with the relationships I have built with the citizens and businesses of Stratford, will prove to be a benefit to the Town.”

Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch issued the following statement on the killing of Osama bin Laden and the upcoming anniversary of the arrest of Faisal Shahzad, whose attempted bombing of Time Square took place a year ago today:

“As President Obama said during his address to the American people last night – justice has been with the death of Osama bin Laden. We all owe the members of our armed forces a great debt of gratitude for their work in helping to keep us safe at home and abroad. Please join me in saying a prayer for their safe return, and thank them for their service when they come home.

“It’s been almost a year since Bridgeport was placed in the middle of the failed terrorist attack in Times Square, when the suspect, Faisal Shahzad, was tracked to an apartment house in Bridgeport. Our City’s first responders, police, fire and federal security officials worked swiftly to keep our residents safe as they pursued this individual and made their arrest. Despite this recent victory in the war on terror, we must remain vigilant – I would ask all our residents to continue to stay alert, and if you “see something, say something.”

Fairfield University students filled the quad Sunday night and into Monday morning, chanting U-S-A following the announcement of the death of Osama bin Laden.

Here is a video posted on Twitter by a student:

Governor Dannel P. Malloy released the following statement following the news that Osama bin Laden has been killed.

“The news tonight that Osama bin Laden has been killed is 10 years in the making. As mayor of Stamford on 9/11, I remember waiting on the train platform there as scared, confused, and overwhelmed commuters made their way home, none of us fully understanding what had just happened. I also cannot forget the Connecticut residents we lost that day. Over the last decade, Connecticut men and women have served our country honorably, and some have made the ultimate sacrifice on our behalf. This news is a testament to the hard work, dedication and perseverance of our Armed Forces and our country.”