3 July 2009

O'Brien Seeks Coordinated Action To Aid Displaced Wal-Mart Workers

The August 31st closing of New Britain's Wal-Mart store, abruptly announced by the company this past week, has prompted State Rep. Tim O’Brien (D-24) to call for coordinated action to assist more than 160 displaced workers at the Farmington Avenue store.

“It’s vital that we do what ever we can to stem any job loss here in New Britain that may be created from Wal-Mart closing its doors,” said Rep. O’Brien. Rep. O’Brien said that he hopes that employees are able to find jobs at other Wal-Marts but expressed concern that positions at stores in Newington and Bristol will be not available in a tight labor market. O'Brien and others also fear that transportation challenges will complicate the prospects for some workers for out-of-town jobs. “Anytime a business closes and workers lose jobs it is devastating to those families,” said Brian A. Petronella, President of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW – 371). “It is our responsibility to step forward and help those workers in any way we can.” The UFCW does not represent the Wal-Mart workers but will support efforts at re-employment.

O’Brien is working to organize a meeting early next week among representatives of labor organizations, state and local officials to develop a response to the store closing and lay offs. O’Brien said he thinks that more needs to be done than just trying to save current jobs now. “We need to have long term plans that implement policies that bring good paying jobs and greater economic security to New Britain.”

According to James Craven's Herald report, a company official visited City Hall to inform Mayor Stewart but Stewart, who expressed surprise at the move, was "in a meeting" and did not meet with the Wal-Mart representative.

Under state law, companies must give employees and the community 60 days notice of a closing.


Democratic Endorsement Meeting To Be Held July 28th

The Democratic Town Committee will make its endorsements for city offices on Tuesday, July 28th.

Candidates for Mayor, Town and City Clerk, Tax Collector, Common Council, Board of Education, Board of Assessment Appeal and Constable will be nominated at the DTC meeting that will begin at 7 p.m. The meeting place will be announced. Town Committees are required to hold endorsement sessions between July 21 and 28. The July 28th date changes a tentative date of July 23rd announced last month.

The DTC's nominations committee continues to accept candidate information forms for all offices and any interested Democrats are urged to forward their information as soon as possible.

More information on the endorsement process is available at the Town Committee website at www.newbritaindemocrat.net


Candidates For Board of Education Emerging

Three candidates for Board of Education have emerged thus far for the Democratic endorsement, including Board of Education President Sharon Beloin-Saavadra who is seeking a second four-year term. Incumbents Fran Wolski and Lucretia Holley will not be seeking re-election ensuring that Democrats will nominate two new faces for the BOE.

New candidates who have contacted the DTC include Lindy M. Kwasowski, a past treasurer of the Jefferson and Gaffney schools’ parent-teacher organizations, and Carlos E. Pina, Jr, whose career has included more than 18 years at the state Department of Families and Children and involvement in the schools as a high school football coach.

The DTC nominating committee has also been contacted by other individuals for BOE, including former BOE member Luisa Leal. The DTC will endorse three BOE candidates later this month.

Lieberman (?-CT) Dumps Commitment To Public Health Insurance Option ; At Odds With Dodd , Other Democrats

Senator Joseph Lieberman has reversed support for a public option as part of health care reform, contradicting his positions during a 2006 re-election campaign and 2004 bid for the White House.

The public option issue is crucial to legislation that would help “insure the uninsured” and tamp down skyrocketing health care costs. While Lieberman has avoided any formal statements on the issue on his web site, press reports over the last week confirm that Lieberman will oppose a key element of Democrats’ plans for reform. Sounding a familiar theme, Lieberman says he’s joining forces with senators from both parties to attain a “bipartisan” agreement that would leave out public options, thereby preserving a monopoly for private insurance interests that heavily finance Lieberman’s campaigns.

The New Haven Independent’s Paul Bass has a story and video here www.newhavenindependent.org/archives/2009/07/post_459.php

Last week advocates for a plan with a public option staged a Washington, D.C. rally in support of the bill making its ways through Congressional committees. Tom Swan, Executive Director of the CT Citizen Action Group that is part of the Health Care for America Now coalition praised U.S. Senator Chris Dodd for assuming a leadership role on the issue in the absence of an ailing Senator Ted Kennedy. “We thank Senator Dodd for his leadership and support of legislation that will give Americans all across this country what they want - a choice of a strong public health insurance option that will provide lower costs and keep the insurance companies honest, said Swan. “The bill that Senator Dodd has spearheaded will make sure that Americans can keep their own insurance if they want or choose a new alternative to the private insurance industry. That new public health insurance option will encourage better health care delivery at lower cost. The legislation will also make good, affordable health care available to middle-class families in Connecticut and includes strict rules to stop insurance company abuses. The bill is a good prescription for health care reform.”

Citizens may share their views with Lieberman’s office on line at http://lieberman.senate.gov/contact/ or by calling his Hartford office, (860) 549-8463

For more information on the issue go to http://www.healthcareforamericanow.org/

21 June 2009

DeFronzo Hits Rell's Cuts To Dial-A-Ride, Education In New Britain

State Senator Don DeFronzo (D-6), the Senate Chair of the Transportation Committee, strongly opposed the Rell administration's budget that would cut aid to the city's Dial-A-Ride program, among other serious reductions in state assistance to New Britain.

In remarks last week at the Democratic Town Committee's Pierogi Night, DeFronzo, cited Rell's proposed elimination of Dial-A-Ride as a serious blow to hundreds of seniors and disabled persons in the city. He also pointed to 10 percent reductions to special education, Head Start and other programs for families and children, calling them "very painful" and an unacceptable way to trim state spending in the current economic recession. "These cuts are ill-advised," said DeFronzo, saying that the Legislature would be passing an alternative budget in the next few days.

Stated DeFronzo: "We know there has to be budget cuts to balance the budget. But the Governor has taken a meat clever approach. This fight is going to go on for a period of time."

Echoing remarks last week by New Britain State Rep. John Geragosian (D-25), the House Chair of the Appropriations Committee, DeFronzo said state budget cuts need to be done "in an intelligent way. We don’t need to cut fundamentally important programs that fall disproportionately hard on urban centers and poor people."

Both the Democratic controlled House and Senate appear poised to pass a balanced budget this week that will address a deficit pegged at more than $8 billion. This proposal may include a combination of cuts. consolidations and tax increases on the state's wealthier households -- the group that currently bears less tax liability than working and middle income people when all local, state and federal taxes are counted.

At this juncture, lawmakers appear to need veto proof majorities because of Rell's instransigence and apparent indifference to serious negotiations to adoption of a budget in the early days of the new fiscal year.


Berlin Votes On Automated Trash At Tuesday Referendum: Proponents Urge A No Vote

A petition brought by interests opposed to instituting automated trash pick up in the Town of Berlin will be held Tuesday, June 23rd in a town wide vote.

The plan to move to an automated system that is currently used in New Britain and other surrounding towns would save money and ease the burden of trash removal for many citizens, according to former Town Councillor Linda Cimadon.

Berlin voters have the last word on the issue on Tuesday at the American Legion.

"Having been a council member for eight years," writes Cimadon, "I recognize the importance of saving taxpayers' money. The new automated system will do just that. The fact that the trash companies are moving away from manual service also meant that they not only raised their prices for that type of service but also added more restrictions on the manual collections. I have an aunt and uncle in Newington, ages 83 and 84, who have only good things to say about the automated system. My uncle has bad knees and my aunt recently had both knees replaced. They have no problems bringing the container to the front of their property for pick up. They feel it is easier to handle than the ones sold in stores plus the street is much cleaner since there isn't any trash blowing around."

Use of automated trash pick up is gaining ground throughout the country. As in New Britain, Berlin residents would receive a free, durable container to put out the trash every week. Residents would not have to purchase containers of their own. Environmentalists point out that litter and clutter on streets decreases because containers are large and have covers to prevent spillage.

Council Meeting Wednesday, June 27th: To Avoid Deficit, City May Sell Hospital Garage

The New Britain Common Council will holds its final regular meeting of this fiscal year on Wednesday, June 24th, and will be asked to consider new proposals from Mayor Stewart on sales of property and municipal assets. The administration's projected sales of property over the last three years have not materialized, prompting the need for new moves to avoid a deficit one week before the fiscal year ends.

In the most surprising development, city officials will take up a plan to sell the municipal garage adjacent to the Hospital of Central Connecticut earlier than expected. The municipal garage is a lucrative source of parking income for the city, but the need for millions of dollars in new one-time revenue has put the parking facility on the sell list to the hospital.

The Mayor and Common Council still await final action on the state budget. A $216 million budget was adopted this month that held the line on the tax rate.

What We Have Here Is A Failure To Communicate

Mayor Stewart took time out after his "open office hours" this month to write a missive to local blogger Frank Smith thanking citizens for their ideas and offers of help and to again knock the Common Council -- the legislative body that he is charter-mandated to work with in running the city.

"I thank the citizens for keeping me engaged in this process and continually making it so rewarding in spite of the negativity I have to deal with twice a month from the Common Council," stated Stewart on the blog that now includes daily posts from the right-wing press and extremists trashing President Obama.

Stewart's complaint betrays his own responsibility and actions in contributing to the frosty relationship between the Democratic-controlled Council and the GOP Mayor. That frostiness continues during this difficult budget process as noted by Don Stacom in a June 10th Courant story, "Divided government is an extra obstacle for New Britain to overcome."

It's been a longstanding tradition at City Hall that the Mayor and Council leaders meet ahead of Council meetings to discuss the issues whether they're in agreement or not. That communication is important in a mayor-council form of government where both branches wield considerable power and both need each other to move the city forward.

According to Council leaders, however, Stewart has chosen to cancel or not show up for the vast majority of these "standing" leadership meetings. There are apparently no "office hours" on his calendar to engage in a dialogue that might serve to promote bipartisan agreement.

The mayor bears a good deal of the responsibility for these important talks not happening. It would be a good question to ask in this election cycle: how many meetings were held in this term between the Mayor and Council leaders?

In not communicating more often with the Council, Stewart has also shown a propensity to keep public matters under wraps, trying to do the city's business in an arbitrary manner that ignores the public's right to know and makes consensus impossible. A good example of this is the secrecy engaged in by the Stewart administration on downtown development discussions that led to a ruling against the Mayor in this term for violating the open meeting law. Stewart also resisted sharing information on the badly botched Fairview cemetery fence replacement project where the contractor was paid without finishing the job.

The Mayor's office is also notorious for putting a lid on City Hall departments when public information is sought by councillors or citizens.

Some observers may say that Stewart has to be on guard and keep his cards close to his vest all the time because of the dominance of Democrats (13 to 2) on the Council. That assumes, however, there is not an ounce of good will from Democrats and that the partisan divide will never be bridged. But voters, who've opted for divided government in recent elections, want and expect their elected officials to end the campaign the day after the election and govern without partisan sniping at every turn.

Politically, the Mayor has benefited from a "me against them" strategy; he may feel that partisanship is the winning strategy, even if that strategy is not always a good way to govern.

Communication is a two way street. What we have here is a failure to communicate on Stewart's part that is detrimental to his leadership and the city's business.

Barack O'Berry Soda, Pierogis and Politics Thursday (6/18) at Pulaski Democratic Club

The New Britain Democratic Town Committee will meet Thursday, June 18, at 7:30 p.m. at the Pulaski Democratic Club, 89 Grove Street to discuss municipal nominations and the stalemated state budget.The meeting will be preceeded by a "Pierogi Night" fundraising reception starting at 5:30 pm to benefit the DTC's 2009 Get Out the Vote activities. There is a suggested donation of $20 for the reception. Refreshments include Barack O'Berry soda from Avery's. All are welcome. For more information go to www.newbritaindemocrat.net.

Three Candidates Seek Endorsement for Town and City Clerk

Three Democrats, including two incumbent office holders, have announced their interest in becoming Town and City Clerk in 2009. The candidates include Peter J. Denuzze, the four-term incumbent who has been re-elected to the four-year post without opposition in past elections. Newcomer Angelo D' Alfonso is also seeking the endorsement. D'Alfonso, a business outreach coordinator for the local Chambers of Commerce, has long been active in the city's civic and fraternal organizations.

Joining the field this week is Alderman At Large Suzanne Bielinski, the Common Council President, who is the longest serving member of the city's Council.

The DTC's nominations committee is currently gathering information on candidates for city office as part of endorsements which will be made by Democrats on July 23rd.

DTC Chairman John McNamara urged all prospective candidates to contact the committee by July 1. Besides town clerk, the DTC will be endorsing candidates for Mayor, Tax Collector, City Council, Board of Education, Board of Assessment Appeal and Constable. Information available at www.newbritaindemocrat.net or by emailing newbritaindemocrat@gmail.com

Rell's Proposed Budget Cuts Opposed at DMV: Lawmakers Assess Damage To New Britain In GOP Budget

Residents and elected officials turned up at New Britain's DMV office last Saturday to oppose Governor Rell's proposal to close the office, which is one of the busiest in the state. House Speaker Chris Donovan (D-Meriden) was joined by State Reps. Betty Boukus (D-22) John Geragosian (D-25), Tim O'Brien (D-24) and Peter Tercyak (D-26) with speakers from the local muffler repair shop owner to Donovan saying the closing doesn't make sense.

The stalemate continues on the state budget two weeks from the end of the fiscal year. Speaker Donovan indicated over the weekend that his Chamber may move ahead and adopt a budget with the Governor continuing to sit out negotiations.

New Britain lawmakers have sharply criticized Rell's plan this month for "budget cuts that will drastically and negatively effect New Britain’s families and small businesses. In a joint statement Democrats called GOP cuts "irresponsible and unconscionable", because the governor "has sought to balance the state’s multi-billion-dollar deficit on the backs of poor children, senior citizens and working families struggling to get by in difficult times."

Besides the DMV closing, Rell is proposing a a 10 percent reduction in education grants.

“I’m disappointed that Governor Rell has once again decided to balance the budget on the backs of the working families of New Britain,” said Representative John C. Geragosian (D-25), who serves as House chair of the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee. “Cutting job training, education, health care, programs for seniors and disabled citizens and other important services is irresponsible during a recession. Instead, we should ask the wealthiest of Connecticut’s residents to pay a few more dollars to protect our vital services.” At Saturday's DMV event, Geragosian said Rell's moves will put people out of work at a time when public investments are needed for economic recovery.

“It is disappointing that Governor Rell would rather take away Dial-A-Ride, property tax relief, education and health care funding and close our DMV office than ask the wealthy in rich towns to contribute their fair share,” said Representative Tim O’Brien (D-24). “It is also disappointing to see her engaging in petty name-calling that is unfair to the hard work Representative John Geragosian is doing for the people of our state as Appropriations chair.”

The legislators said they will work to avoid Rell's cuts that will directly impact New Britain, including elimination of funding for neighborhood youth centers and public libraries and other support for community organizations. Rell, who refuses to compromise on asking wealthier residents to absorb an increase in the income tax, would also slash financial aid for college students and increase bus fares by 40 percent.

The governor has also proposed borrowing more than $2 billion—which would saddle every man, woman and child in the state of Connecticut with $700 in debt. The delegation pointed out that, while Governor Rell has been unwilling to discuss revenue increases, she apparently has no reluctance burdening a new generation of Connecticut taxpayers with unrelenting debt.

Thus far, Governor Rell has rebuffed numerous requests from top legislative leaders that she personally participate in active budget negotiations, the lawmakers' statement asserted.

6 June 2009

Pierogi Night, June Meeting At Pulaski Democratic Club June 18th

The Democratic Town Committee will hold a "Pierogi Night" fundraiser for party building activities on Thursday, June 18th, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Pulaski Democratic Club, 89 Grove Street. The suggested donation is $20. Information available at www.newbritaindemocrat.net

The event will be followed by the June meeting of the DTC, beginning shortly after 7:30 p.m. at thejavascript:void(0) Pulaski Club. The public is welcome to attend the meeting.

Voter Registration Update: DTC Could Add Seats If Obama Bounce Holds

Voter registration at the end of May showed a slight drop in enrollment from the Presidential year high.There are 32,758 residents registered to vote in the city, including 17,599 Democrats, 11,214 Unaffiliateds, 385 from minor parties and 3,560 Republicans. The surge in Democratic enrollment in 2008 may result in the 48-member Town Committee adding seats for the term that begins in 2010 if enrollment numbers can be sustained. Adding seats would be Voting Districts 4, 10 and 13, which currently have three members. Under party rules, every voting district gets at least three three members. Districts which have at least 1,201 Democrats next January may add a seat.

Additional seats will depend on whether Democrats can stay at or above the threshold for a fourth seat. Currently, the only districts with four seats include Districts 1, 2 and 14.

Democratic Chairman John McNamara has said he may propose increasing the minimum number of seats in each district to promote greater citizen participation and involvement in the local party. A larger Town Committee would require a rules change by two-thirds of the membership and would take effect in the next term. Presently, the Town Committee appoints residents to vacancies for Justice of the Peace if they volunteer in the community and welcomes others as non-voting associate members to serve on committees to promote involvement.


Council Adopts City Budget: Money For Senior Tax Relief, Library and After School Programs Put Back In

Common Council Democrats adopted an alternative budget to Mayor Stewart's $216.3 million proposal late this week, restoring a senior property tax relief program and using a line-by-line approach to paring expenses to hold the mill rate at 34.98.

According to the print edition of Saturday's Herald the Council restored:

* a senior property tax credit program authorized in prior years by ignored by the administration;
* six police officer positions;
* a parking enforcement position as a means of generating additional revenue;
* funding to the library and after-school programs that has been cut by the Mayor.

On the revenue side the Council seeks "at least $250,000" by stepping up code enforcement against slumlords and negotiating $150,000 in concessions from municipal unions.

Facing a deadline despite uncertainty over state aid and questionable Stewart administration revenue estimates, the Council worked throughout the week to revise Stewart's proposal.

Democratic Town Chairman John McNamara praised the Council's line-by-line approach to cutting expenses and the pursuit of concessions from unions to avoid layoffs and cutbacks to essential services.

"The Council proposal is a step toward a fair and responsible budget in tough economic times. Specific cuts are preferable to across the board ones to attain savings, and concessions that can be worked out with labor unions are preferable to layoffs in public safety and education."

The Herald endorses Health Care Partnership

The editorial page of The Herald has endorsed the House-passed Health Care Partnership Act that would let cities and towns and others participate voluntarily in the state's health insurance pool.

Adopted in up to 20 other states the pooling proposal has gained support for the comprehensive coverage it would provide to employees at considerably lower premiums. Along with rising energy and electricity costs, health coverage has been the fastest-growing expense for local governments. Unsurprisingly, Mayor Stewart is an outspoken opponent of the measure.

The partnership legislation, along with the Sustinet health insurance reform bill, faces hurdles in the state Senate and a veto threat from Gov. Rell. Rell, in vetoing the partnership bill last year, left room for compromise or re-consideration.

For proponents, it boils down to a choice between the profits and dominance of private health insurances versus a state pooling option that can bring savings to taxpayers and good coverage for participants.

Speaker of the House Chris Donovan's office has estimated a potential savings for the City of New Britain of up to $900,000.

29 May 2009

Chris Murphy To Host Saturday (5/30) Housing and Mortgage Seminar At N.B. City Hall

Congressman Murphy (D-5) is holding a mortgage seminar on Saturday, May 30th, at New Britain City Hall, 27 West Main Street, Room 504 from 10:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.

The public is welcome to attend to learn how to go about getting an affordable mortgage and how to get help for those who are falling behind on paying their mortgage. Cong. Murphy will be joined by experts from the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, New Britain Neighborhood Housing Services, Fannie Mae and McCue Mortgage.

Mayor Stewart's fuzzy revenue estimates: when will sales of development properties be realized?

It's crunch time for the Mayor and City Council to arrive at a budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. City officials already face the uncertainty of not knowing state aid amounts on the weekend before the state legislature is scheduled to adjourn. That makes it critically important that Mayor Stewart's estimates for the sale of property, set at $3.5 million next year and $4.5 million this year, be confirmed. Unfortunately, these property sales, largely based on the Pinnacle Heights development, are not yet real.

The following is a post on the issue at NB Politicus:

Revenue Gap Threatens New Britain Municipal Budget
It's a year when local and state governments are struggling with falling tax revenues and a severe economic downturn. New Britain is facing all of those struggles plus one more potential hole that could break the city budget in the new fiscal year.

The problem? Mayor Stewart's proposed $216.3 million estimate, now getting scrutiny by the Common Council, has added millions of dollars of revenue that may not exist at all.

The Mayor's numbers for the sale of real property includes a $3.5 million line item, an increase of $3 million over the Board of Finance's $500,000 estimate. The source of the $3 million has been reported to be the city's sale of the former Pinnacle Heights public housing project to Centerplan development company.

Back in March Mayor Stewart told the Herald: "It’s still up in the air but it’s because of the major change in the economy. Unfortunately, that’s something none of us can control. However, we can work to make sure the deal goes through eventually.”

At issue is whether the $3 million in property revenue and perhaps millions more booked by the city's finance department for the sale of property in previous years are for real, or based on any solid promises to give by the buyers.

The Common Council, in addition to its line by line review of the budget with department heads, needs to ascertain the status of the Mayor's revenue estimates, particularly with regard to sale of property, for a true picture of the city's finances. As the June budget deadline approaches, there are millions of dollars being used to balance the city budget with nothing so far to back it up.

Time is running short on adopting a municipal budget by mid June. It's time for the Mayor to lead, not mislead the public on whether those property sale revenues can be counted on before June 30th.

No one can blame anyone at City Hall for a bad economy but City Hall has an obligation to tell the truth -- even if that truth is bad news.

Municipal Endorsements: Interviews Slated For June

The Democratic Town Committee's nominations committee continues to gather information from prospective candidates as part of the DTC's endorsements of city offices this year.

The Democrats' slate will include Mayor, Town and City Clerk, Tax Collector, Treasurer, Common Council (10 District, 5 At large), Board of Education (3), Board of Assessment Appeal (2) and Constable (4).

All Democrats interested in seeking office are asked to submit information to the committee in preparation for July endorsements.

Candidate information forms are available upon request at the Town Committee web site www.newbritaindemocrat.net