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What, zoners voted against Mario! How could that be?

The Planning & Zoning Commission meeting nearly hit the stroke of midnight, but when the vote came Monday night dozens of North End residents were stunned and pleased that an application by Democratic Town Chair Mario Testa to change the designation of his Madison Avenue restaurant to Office Retail in a heavy residential area was rejected.

Testa needed five yes votes for application approval and came up one short. Commissioners Carl Kish, Robert Morton and Reggie Walker voted no. Commissioners  Joe Tiago, Anne Phillips, Tom Fedele and Mel Riley voted yes.

State Representatives Chris Caruso and Jack Hennessy were among the pols who spoke against the application presented by attorney Chuck Willinger on behalf of Mario. Caruso, who appears to be gearing up for a mayoral run, has had a decades-long battle with Mario on things political and zoning.

If Caruso runs for mayor it sets up a rematch of his primary battle with Bill Finch in 2007. Caruso lost by just 270 votes. Why do I get the feeling that zoning and ballot counting will be part of the Big Wave campaign message.

Book Signing

I’ve updated my book Only In Bridgeport, a 25th anniversary special edition (yes, I’m that old) from the first printing. Georgia Day, owner of Rainy Faye Bookstore at Broad and John Streets downtown is hosting a book signing party Dec. 9, 5 to 6:30 p.m. Come on down and say hello. This new edition includes more than 40 new photographs and a load of Only In Bridgeport moments.

(Check out my daily webzine www.onlyinbridgeport.com)

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The Connecticut Post wants a recounting of Election Day ballots. City Attorney Mark Anastasi says that will occur “if appropriate.” I can’t wait to hear Mark’s legal version of “if appropriate.”

From Post staffer Tim Loh:

BRIDGEPORT — The Connecticut Post announced Friday its intention to conduct a full and open recount of all of the Bridgeport ballots cast for governor in the Nov. 2 election.

The recount would serve as the first audit of the city’s disputed voting totals, which were submitted to the secretary of the state’s office on Nov. 5.

The city’s handling of Election Day has attracted widespread criticism in the past two weeks, most recently when city attorneys on Monday refused to allow the secretary of the state’s office to recount the ballots itself.

“We think the people of Bridgeport — and Connecticut — deserve a clear accounting of the city’s vote for governor on Nov. 2,” said Tom Baden, Connecticut Post editor. “We’ve asked the voter registrars and the city attorney’s office, under the provisions of the state’s Freedom of Information law, to make all ballots available to us for an impartial and open recount.”

City Attorney Mark Anastasi responded Friday that his preliminary review of election law indicates the ballots should be sealed until Monday, Nov. 22. He said he planned to confer with Bridgeport Democratic Registrar Santa Ayala and Republican Registrar Joseph Borges on Monday, and expected to work out a process to make the ballots available to the newspaper “if appropriate.”

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We’ve seen this movie many times. A Bridgeport company leaves the city lured by Shelton developer Robert Scinto. Add Modern Plastics to the list.

Modern Plastics has been a fixture in the city’s West End for 65 years. Bing Carbone, president of the company, says Bridgeport development officials must do a better job communicating with city-based businesses to retain them.

Scinto is a master at recruiting businesses to his Shelton properties. He was in the news a few weeks ago when he entered a guilty plea for providing false statements to FBI agents probing the administration of Shelton Mayor Mark Lauretti. Modern Plastics news release:

BRIDGEPORT, Conn., Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Modern Plastics, Corporate Headquarters, 678 Howard Avenue, Bridgeport, Connecticut, is moving from its current location for the past 65 years in early 2011 to Shelton, Connecticut.

Modern Plastics is one of the largest distributors of medical-grade plastics and supplies high-performance engineering-grade plastic stock shapes along with fabricated plastic parts. The new facility will have a quarantined environmentally controlled room for storage of medical plastics, 5,000 square feet of office space and 18,000 plus square feet of manufacturing floor space, including a retail store for items such as cut-to-size Plexiglas and Lexan sheet.

“We are saddened to leave Bridgeport after so many years, but we are also thrilled and excited about the move to Shelton. The location is ideal for us just off of Bridgeport Avenue in the heart of both industrial and office commerce,” said Bing J. Carbone, President of Modern Plastics. He added that “the need for efficient manufacturing space, larger offices for our core business plus a retail store to serve the local market has become essential to meet the growing requirements of our customers.”

(Check out my daily webzine www.onlyinbridgeport.com)

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Election Day was a mess. Ballot shortages, chaos at voting places, long lines, electors walking away in disgust. Kudos to voters that waited in line for an hour or more. For those that walked away who could blame them.

Mayor Bill Finch has formed a committee to assess the election process and make recommendations for improvement. The obvious improvement, print more freaking ballots! City elections are managed by elected registrars of voters, one Democrat and one Republican, and their respective staffs. The registrars, chosen by party regulars, have two year terms and do not report to the mayor.

A public meeting will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m., in City Hall Annex, 999 Broad Street.

Former Bridgeport Mayor Nick Panuzio, attorney Richard Bieder and Robert Trefry, former CEO of Bridgeport Hospital want to hear from you. “We want to hear firsthand accounts of problems and issues faced by any Bridgeport voters who went to the polls to vote on Election Day, Nov. 2,” says Panuzio.

(Check out my daily webzine www.onlyinbridgeport.com)

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On a surreal Election Day that may take weeks to settle (in court) the gubernatorial race, city voters responded in far greater numbers that anyone had projected. The turnout unofficially is near 40 percent, large for a mid-term race. Bridgeport’s chief registrars Sandi Ayala and Joe Borges have a lot of explaining to do about why only 21,000 ballots were printed.

Before Barack Obama’s visit to Bridgeport city pols were concerned they’d be hard press to see a 30 percent turnout. And now the city is at the center of deciding the governor’s race. And you wonder why I call this Only In Bridgeport?

(Check out my daily webzine www.onlyinbridgeport.com)