Public Split on Proposed Decommission of Fire, Police Boards – But Change Is Needed

Southington residents remain split on the best way to address an issue that has become an apparent problem as the Charter Revision Commission looks at whether to decommission the town’s police and fire departments, but one thing that remains clear is most believe a change is needed.

More than a dozen residents spoke before the Charter Revision Commission during a public hearing Wednesday night and while most felt some sort of change was needed, residents were split on what those changes should be.

“The system is broken, not the commissions,” said resident Richard Hart, a deputy fire chief in Waterbury. “I think a solution the (Charter Revision) Commissions should look at is merging the two into a public safety commission and put an emphasis on getting people with backgrounds in police and fire, finance, personnel, etc. so that we have a balanced commission with an eye to the public and serving the public.”

“The charter should not be opened to abolish a system that instead needs tweaking on who is serving and how they are selected to serve on those commissions,” he said.

The issue that residents took with the existing commissions lies in the perception that both commissions have become a place to appoint dedicated members of the town’s political parties rather than looking for the best qualified volunteers, a point made by residents Art Cyr and E. Richard Fortunato.

Fortunato said he sees the best solution to be using a business model with the Southington Town Council serving as a board of directors and the town manager, both now and into the future, acting appropriately as the President and CEO of the community. He said he supports the concept of having advisory boards, however.

Cyr added that such a change should be made and with the goal of enhancing efficiency is mind, the commission should consider reducing the number of members on the advisory board from five to three.

But others including Ann Marie Conaty and Joseph Landry believe that a move that would eliminate the commissions in favor of having the police and fire chief reporting directly to the town manager puts too much power in the hands of one man.

“Before this commission was appointed, I went to the town council and said I am diametrically opposed to this commission and effort. I think this is all a power ploy. If the power to hire and fire is given to the town manager, who is he beholden to?”

Resident Sandra Feld, a member of the Board of Finance, said Wednesday that she believes either option neglects to look at one aspect important to many of the town’s residents and business owners: the power of the people.

She said neither option allows for much public input and said she believes the commission could look at a third option that would be to consider whether to make the commissions and elected board as a way of preventing political rewards and enhancing the quality of candidates for the job.

“It’s something I think is worth exploring,” she said.

In Other Notes…
There were multiple suggestions made Wednesday on other aspects of the charter that could be addressed, including a suggestion by Brian Goralski to restore four-year terms on the Southington Board of Education, as well as moving the Board of Finance to four-year terms. The two boards currently serve two-year terms as agreed upon by the 2006 Charter Revision Commission and approved by the voters.

“(The Board of Education) is a bipartisan board and has done great things for Southington,” said Goralski, chairman of the Board of Education. “Politics is not what makes the board work well, but a two-year term brings politics to the board. A four-year term is what saves money. I look forward to anything you bring that makes us more efficient as a community.”

Phil Pomposi and Ann Marie Conaty suggested the Charter Revision Commission also consider changes that would reduce the threshold for public vote on bonding from $1 million to $500,000 before a project must go to referendum. The goal, they said, is to avoid abuse and help provide the voters with more of a voice in town votes.

Pomposi also asked the commission to consider writing language in the charter that would prevent the sale and lease of a town-owned property as a way of bypassing a referendum, citing how the town did so with the North Center School after three failed efforts to gain funding through referendum to renovate the existing town hall and Gura Building.

Steve Wlodkowski, Southington Highway Superintendent, also asked the commission Wednesday to consider eliminating the need to go to the Board of Finance for a transfer of funds between departments, instead allowing the departments to make a request and have them signed off on directly by the Southington Town Manager.

Wlodkowski also requested that the commission consider changing the process to allow projects under $50,000 to bypass the bidding process, provided estimates are received from a minimum number of qualified companies in advance.

Not able to attend Wednesday’s public hearing? Have your own suggestions? Share them right here on Southington Patch.

Make sure to like Southington Patch on Facebook and follow on Twitter for breaking news, daily updates and more!