Community Corner

Decommissioning the Senior Citizens Commission?

The council-appointed ordinance committee is looking at a possible change that could lead to having the Town Manager provide oversight of the Calendar House rather than a commission – but not everyone is convinced it's a good idea.

The town is looking to streamline government, and an effort by the Southington Town Council’s Ordinance Committee could soon bring oversight of the Calendar House directly back to town hall — but not everyone is on board with the latest suggestion.

Republican Cheryl Lounsbury, chairwoman of the committee, said last week that a proposed ordinance change would move the direct oversight of the under the purview of the town manager.

“It’s a move that is designed to streamline government process. The system right now is set up to allow for patronage and political favoritism. In order to clock that, we would have the executive director report directly to the town manager,” Lounsbury said. “It’s not designed to eliminate the (Senior Citizens Commission).”

The concept is still being worked through at the committee level and would need final approval from the , but the idea has caused a stir in the past week.

Members of the Senior Citizen Commission said they are heavily against the concept and took exception to the fact that they were being considered “political” or have had any other motives. Democratic commission member Lynn Maschi and Republican Ed Temchin, chairman, each said this week that they believe the plan is a bad idea.

Maschi, a registered nurse by trade, said in the two terms she has been on the commission, the group has been able to tackle numerous issues and help provide strong oversight at the Calendar House. She said politics have never played a role.

“If you attend the meetings, if you watch the decisions, you wouldn’t know who is part of what party unless you look it up,” Maschi said. The commission also has subcommittees, she said, and works with groups like the Community Emergency Response Team, which has given them direct insight in how the Calendar House operates.

Maschi sent a letter to Lounsbury via email on Friday, but said she has not heard back.

“The commission is made up of highly educated and dedicated professionals,” Temchin said, noting he understands the effort but is highly against it. “I take great exception that the council would consider us unaware –the town manager has plenty to do and doesn’t need to have another department reporting to him.”

But it’s not about the commission, Lounsbury said. She is in support of keeping an active committee even if direct oversight is shifted to the town manager.

She said last week that she fully supports having a committee work alongside the town manager to help hear the concerns of seniors and continue to find grant funding and other ways to more effectively and efficiently operate the senior center and related services.

“Our recommendation is actually to keep the committee because it is important to have input from the people in the town,” Lounsbury said. “What we are recommending is that the committee would maintain programs and work with other senior agencies, but the direct hiring and firing of staff we believe belongs with executive director, which is town manager.”

Lounsbury could not be reached for additional comment Monday or Tuesday.

Councilman John Barry said although he can respect the ideas presented by Lounsbury and members of the ordinance committee, he is not in favor of simply consolidating power. The Senior Citizens Commission is a volunteer committee, he said, and has never been political.

Barry said under both his tenure as council chairman and the tenure of current Council Chairman Edward Pocock III, the commission has never been political and appointments made by both Pocock and himself included Independents, Democrats and Republicans.

Under town charter, the council chairman directly appoints members to the Senior Citizen Commission. It is the only commission that the chairman has the direct power to appoint members without input and a vote from the rest of the council.

“To cherry-pick one commission and not advocate for the total in Southington – (Lounsbury) should follow through with a broader change; across the board changes in what she is advocating,” Barry said. “I believe she is ducking responsibilities that council has because we are elected members and to chip away at one commission isn’t right.”

Barry also expressed concerns with putting all oversight and control in one man by moving everything under the direction of the town manager.

Pocock said the effort isn’t a “cherry-picking” one, however. He said regulations most of the town’s commissions falls not within the town’s ordinances, but in the charter itself.

“This is an exploratory effort to see if there is a taste for reopening the charter. We couldn’t change the oversight of groups like the police or fire commission without reopening the charter, and that’s something that will take a lot of effort,” Pocock said.

Pocock said the town is still largely operating in the same manner as it had when a manager-council government was first founded in the 1960s. He said government as a whole is moving toward streamlining the process and the town needs to do the same.

Instead, he believes the town should have faith in their town managers, as they are professionally trained executives. The council still has direct oversight to make sure the manager is working appropriately.

He said a potential change could also help prevent future political appointments.

“I think John makes a good point in that the appointments made under each of our time as chairman were not politically motivated, but that’s also a lot of power to put in one elected official’s hands,” he said. “John and I aren’t going to be chairman forever, though. This is a preventive measure that could help eliminate political positioning in the future.”


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